The the Editor:
As did Ms. Beverly Johnson in her letter to the editor last week, I too will start this with a quote.
This from Ronald Reagan. “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are “I’m from the government and I’m here to help!” I “get” Reagan now. Back when I was a freewheeling hippie, I was much too busy doing whatever felt good to engage in deep political thought. I’ve evolved! Ms. Johnson inferred that I’m racist but that is far from the truth and tossing out that tattered old “card” only serves deflect from the truth. We can disagree on the reasons that inner city children have to grow up in a feral environment, but reality rears its ugly head and the facts are there! Synonyms for feral are: wild, untamed, untamable, undomesticated or untrained. The people that are the problem are those that are well past childhood and create a clear and present danger to public safety. These inner city issues are a reality that crosses all racial and ethnic boundaries. It was also inaccurate to say that I attributed all of societies ill on LBJ’s Great Society. He just ushered in as era of Big Government on steroids and now the country is having to deal with some disastrous results. Ms. Johnson opined that, even with its failures, this social engineering effort made it possible for elderly people in Mississippi to have healthcare, as she tried to defend elements of the program. The assertion that we would’ve been worse off without it is just speculation, as it is probable that alternative systems based on work ethic and merit would have had a better outcome! What we have now is a class of “diverse” people all trapped in, what I like to call the Modern Opiate of the Masses, the bonds of welfare slavery. It’s all about control. Just vote Democrat and they’ll give you just enough to survive and do nothing to help you thrive! Maybe common sense approaches like requiring one hour community service for each $10 in public assistance that would help filter out abusers, teach good work habits and better help the truly needy.
Ms. Johnson also alleged lies when I stated a case for legal regulated cannabis. I stand by my numbers and further assert that also having legal recreational cannabis will further reduce opioid deaths and use. It is also the ONLY way to have a fighting chance of keeping these products out of the hands of those 21 and younger. In a report released in January of 2017, the National Academy of the Sciences confirmed the existence of medical benefits of cannabis and found it is not nearly as problematic as people are led to believe. It found no links between smoking cannabis to lung, head, or neck cancers, asthma, or other respiratory diseases. There is insufficient or zero evidence links to deaths from overdose or occupational accidents or injuries and…here’s the big myth killer…zero link between the use of cannabis and the use of illegal drugs. This report concludes that, while cannabis is not harmless, it is not as harmful as other products that are REGULATED for ADULT use. I glad that Ms. Johnson mentioned Gov. Bryant’s trip to Cuba. When I learned of that excursion, I obtained a meeting with Mr. Bobby Morgan III, one of the Governor’s economic policy advisors. He told me the the gov had a great deal of “heartburn” over that trip. I told him that I would give him a little more of that heartburn and laid out my case for legal regulated cannabis. I told him that their economic development delegation should’ve gone to Washington State instead and I then offered to lead a delegation to explore the many facets of the cannabis business. I extend this offer to all local and state government officials. Mr. Morgan was veronica, but I sensed a reluctance that may be the result of years of misinformation. The indisputable truth about cannabis is that either “Criminal Enterprise” or “‘Free Enterprise” is going to reap enormous financial benefit and I’d much rather the state of Mississippi have those millions to use for education, healthcare, infrastructure, or maybe even public transportation!
Dana Gwin
Kosciusko
