Gone to Pot: University Opens Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research

photo credit: matthew kenwrick

ARCATA, Calif. (AP) — A public university located in one of California’s prime pot-growing regions has formed an academic institute devoted to marijuana.

The Humboldt Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research at Humboldt State University plans to sponsor scholarly lectures and coordinate research among 11 faculty members from fields such as economics, geography, politics, psychology and sociology.

The Times-Standard of Eureka reports (https://bit.ly/V5H8zy) that one professor is studying recent campaigns to legalize marijuana, while another is investigating the environmental effects of pot cultivation.

“If anyone is going to have a marijuana institute, it really should be Humboldt State,” economist Erick Eschker, the institute’s co-chair, told the newspaper. Eschker is studying the connection between marijuana production and employment in the county.

Read more from this story HERE.

Brave New Creed: ‘No Country for Old (White) Men’

photo credit: marion doss

Collectivists of the Washington establishment, representing both major parties, have analyzed the 2012 election results and come to a lovely conclusion: old white men are the problem. The only difference of opinion between the two factions regards how one ought to handle it.

Democrat experts declare that laughable old coots are the natural core of the Republican Party, so one need only join the cool leftist majority and leave Grandpa in his kitchen chair to mutter to himself until death shuts him up for good. Republican experts, as the reluctant stewards of these cantankerous fogies, are more circumspect: they merely want to leave Grandpa ranting in the corner with his talk radio shows, while they attend to the urgent business of selling off his prized possessions (e.g. property rights, national sovereignty).

On one side we have the Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and Paul Krugman types haughtily declaring that the Democrats are the party of women and minorities, and the Republicans the party of old white men. See how colorful, female, and young we look? See how monotonously white and graying they look?

On the other side we have campaign strategist Steve Schmidt, ACU chairman Al Cardenas, and others declaring that “Rush Limbaugh’s audience” should be ignored as a bunch of old white men who (apparently for that very reason) no longer represent America. Since when is “representing America” a matter of head counts and demographics, rather than of principles? Such thinking seems reasonable only to men who have lost the forest of encroaching leftist authoritarianism for the trees of electoral victory. (See how well their Constitution Fire Sale method has worked out so far!)

This mocking, bitter dismissal of the mature white male is a nearly poetic symbol — as if we needed another one — of the degraded state of civilization. Old men — whether white, black, olive, yellow, or red — have traditionally been regarded as the sage voices in their communities with regard to matters of public policy and private virtue. Having seen more, learned from mistakes, and grown weary of youth’s careless chasing after the chimerical “new,” they have commonly been appreciated as a steady source of common sense and moral rectitude. Age may not necessarily bring genuine wisdom, but it has traditionally served an invaluable function in humanity’s natural system of checks and balances: it casts a skeptical eye upon youth’s grand designs, thus raining on the often misguided parade of “progress.”

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National Pediatric Group Recommends Children Get Morning After Pill Before Sex

A national pediatric association is recommending that doctors prescribe women age 17 and younger the morning-after pill in advance of them actually needing it, under the assumption that they will be more likely to use the emergency contraceptive if they don’t have to make a doctor’s visit at the time.

The American Academy of Pediatrics issued the new policy statement Monday. According to a report by Reuters on the statement, which is published in the December issue of Pediatrics, the group believes that because federal law prevents over-the-counter sales of such contraception to those under age 18, the teens will be more likely prevent unwanted pregnancy if they already had the necessary prescription on hand.

The battle for over-the-counter availability for emergency contraceptives was in the spotlight last year as the Food and Drug Administration overturned a 2005 ruling that prevented teens from obtaining pills like Plan B without a prescription. The Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius though overruled the FDA’s decision maintaining the requirement for a prescription for minors.

Reuters reported former FDA assistant commissioner for woman’s health, Susan Wood, saying of AAP’s new policy that “it’s not often you see physician organizations saying that their patients are better off without the physician involvement.”

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Corporate Tax Cuts Enacted: Economic Stimulus Old-School-Capitalist Style . . . in China!

photo credit: wisegie

China’s new round of structural tax cutting is likely to benefit more than 900,000 enterprises nationwide, according to a working conference held here on Monday to discuss the country’s piloting of replacing business tax with a value-added tax (VAT).

About 710,000 enterprises have been covered by the tax-cutting program, and another 200,000 will be included starting from Dec.1 this year, according to the meeting jointly held by the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation.

Shanghai piloted the program on Jan. 1 this year in an effort to decrease the overall tax burden and boost the transportation and service sectors. The pilot was then expanded to provincial regions including Beijing, Guangdong and Zhejiang later this year . . .

The reform has effectively promoted the growth of tertiary industry, especially the service sector, and encouraged the development of small and micro-sized enterprises, those present at the meeting agreed.

Read more from this story HERE.

Federal Officials Take Down 132 Websites in ‘Cyber Monday’ Crackdown

photo credit: cbp photography

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and European officials seized 132 websites on Monday for allegedly selling counterfeit merchandise in a coordinated crackdown timed to coincide with the holiday shopping season.

It is the third straight year that the government has seized websites on “Cyber Monday” — the marketing term for the Monday after Thanksgiving, when many online retailers offer steep discounts and promotions.

ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations unit coordinated with officials from Belgium, Denmark, France, Romania, the United Kingdom and the European Police Office to take down the sites.

“This operation is a great example of the tremendous cooperation between ICE and our international partners at the [Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center],” ICE Director John Morton said in a statement. “Our partnerships enable us to go after criminals who are duping unsuspecting shoppers all over the world. This is not an American problem, it is a global one and it is a fight we must win.”

As part of the operation, federal law enforcement officers made undercover purchases of products such as sports jerseys, DVD players, clothing and jewelry from websites suspected of selling counterfeit products.

Read more from this story HERE.

Russia’s Pravda Declares “Communism Won in America with Obama; US Suffering Has Only Begun”

In an extraordinary column last week, Russia’s de facto government press arm declared that the era of “Miss American Pie” was over in the U.S. Citing Obama’s reelection, Pravda stated that the “Communists have won in America…”

Why? Because the US is “an illiterate society” that continues to buy off on Obama’s “lies of less taxes while he raises them.” The US educational system is also held responsible, with Pravda stating that it was “conquered by the Communists long ago and history was revised thus paving the way for their Communist presidents.”

As you might have gathered, Pravda’s hit on Obama as a communist isn’t a glancing blow. It seems to be the overriding theme of the article:

He is a Communist without question promoting the Communist Manifesto without calling it so. How shrewd he is in America. His cult of personality mesmerizes those who cannot go beyond their ignorance. They will continue to follow him like those fools who still praise Lenin and Stalin in Russia. Obama’s fools and Stalin’s fools share the same drink of illusion.

Pravda also criticizes the growing American attack on religious freedom, saying that “Christianity in the U.S. is under attack as it was during the early period of the Soviet Union.”

The Russian article concludes with a frightening warning to Americans:

Russia lost its’ civil war with the Reds and millions suffered torture and death for almost 75 years under the tyranny of the United Soviet Socialist Republic. Russians survived with a new and stronger faith in God and ever growing Christian Church. The question is how long will the once “Land of the Free” remain the United Socialist States of America? Their suffering has only begun.

There’s no doubt that everything is not right in Russia. Nevertheless, it’s extraordinary that our formerly communist neighbor is now chiding the United States for moving in the same fatal direction of the former Soviet Union.

Morgan Stanley Forecasters Fear Major Recession in 2013

The global economy is likely to be stuck in the “twilight zone” of sluggish growth in 2013, Morgan Stanley has warned, but if policymakers fail to act, it could get a lot worse.

The bank’s economics team forecasts a full-blown recession next year, under a pessimistic scenario, with global gross domestic product (GDP) likely to plunge 2 percent.

“More than ever, the economic outlook hinges upon the actions taken or not taken by governments and central banks,” Morgan Stanley said in a report.

Under the bank’s more gloomy scenario, the U.S. would go over the “fiscal cliff” leading to a contraction in U.S. GDP for the first three quarters of 2013. In Europe, the bank’s pessimistic scenario assumes a failure of the European Central Bank (ECB) in cutting rates and a delay of its bond-buying program.

But the bank says investors should also be nimble, in case policy action is “convincing and decisive,” leading to a big uptick in growth.

Read more from this story HERE.

Why Governor Palin Is So Dangerous (To the Left)

photo credit: SarahPAC-USA

Yesterday’s post by Adrienne Ross had a nice recap of Palin’s strengths:

‘Her message is always one of reform, respect for life, and restoration of our founding principles. She has not veered from championing fiscal responsibility, energy independence, and a strong national defense. She always encourages standing by allies, not bowing to enemies, and unapologetically embracing American greatness. She unceasingly begs us to consider future generations, incentivize small business, and support our military. She is not prone to flip-floppery.’

An additional thought is triggered by reading a post-election cri de couer delivered by pollster Pat Caddell. The speech has lots of good stuff, but focus on this crucial point:

‘But one fifth of the people said the most important thing was: Cares about people like me. And Obama won those voters 82 to 17. . . . . you have to have some connection with people, and we didn’t.’

In any fair contest, if one compared Palin’s dedication to the welfare of the people, of all economic classes except the plutocracy and the crony capitalists, she would beat any other candidate in either party on this value of ‘cares about people like me.’

Read more from this story HERE.

Gun Store Owner Who Banned Obama Supporters Says ‘Business Is Booming’

Last week, the owner of an Arizona gun shop made national headlines after it was reported that he had posted a sign and taken out a full page ad in a local newspaper that banned Obama supporters from entering his store. One week later, Cope Reynolds is cashing in on the attention.

Mr. Reynolds, owner of Southwest Shooting Authority says “business is booming” after his sign and newspaper ad caught the attention of various media outlets. The sign read: “If you voted for Barack Obama, your business is not welcome at Southwest Shooting Authority. You have proven you’re not responsible enough to own a firearm.”

Reynolds says he has been inundated with hundreds of calls and emails from media types and supporters. When asked about business, he replied, “I’ve been busier than a cat covering up poop on a marble floor.”

The Arizona Republic spoke with Mr. Reynolds about his sign and the effect it’s had on his business:

“People are saying that I’ve alienated half of our customers,” Reynolds said, laughing. “No, I haven’t. I haven’t alienated any of my customers, because the people who voted for Obama don’t buy guns here. They don’t come here at all. I haven’t alienated. I’ve improved things. I have packages sitting on my desk to be shipped to places like Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Idaho, Nevada and California.”

Read more from this story HERE.

photo credit: mike saechang

Obama Needs More Revenue: Is He Coming For Your 401(K) Next?

NEW YORK – Two years ago, as WND reported, the Obama administration was proceeding with a novel way to finance trillion-dollar budget deficits by forcing IRA and 401(k) holders to buy Treasury bonds by mandating the placement of government-structured annuities in their retirement accounts.

Remarkably, those financial professionals specializing in private retirement savings and the U.S. citizens investing in private retirement plans now face the possibility the Obama administration and its allies on the political left will impose rules and regulations that effectively abolish the private retirement savings and investment markets.

Recent evidence suggests government officials continue to eye the multi-trillion dollar private retirement savings market, including IRAs and 401(k) plans, eyeing the opportunity to redistribute private retirement savings to less affluent Americans and to force the retirement savings out of the private market and into government-controlled programs investing in government-issued debt.

Government takeover?

An Investment Company Institute study published this month found that U.S. retirement assets totaled $18.5 trillion at the end of the second quarter 2012, of which 3.5 trillion was in IRAs and $5.1 trillion was in 401(k) plans.

Since 2010, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Department of Labor have been holding combined hearings on various plans designed to introduce government-mandated retirement plans and investment options, including government annuities invested primarily in U.S. Treasury debt, into the private retirement savings market.

Read more from this story HERE.