Colorado's Economy is Vibrant...So Why is Trump Attacking It?

Can you think of anything that might calm this man down?

$17,300,000,000 is what Colorado's tourism industry generated in 2016. There is no doubt that our state does well with its skiing, hiking, hunting and fishing industries.  But were you aware that since Colorado legalized the use of both medical and recreational marijuana, our state has increased its tourism significantly? Agree with it or not, people are curious to see what the buzz (pun intended) is all about in Colorado.

In 2016, the legal sales of marijuana in the state added $266,000,000 to our coffers.  That has done a great deal to improve Colorado's budgetary woes, especially in the area  of capital improvement in schools and helping the homeless.  Theses facts can be found in a great NPR interview from last year aimed at making people aware of how these tax dollars are spent. http://www.npr.org/2016/10/01/496226348/where-does-colorados-marijuana-money-go. It is not going to completely heal our fiscal difficulties, especially since the prices for marijuana will begin to drop as more states fall into line with pot-friendly legislation, but there is no doubt it has helped a great deal.

In an October article in the Washington Post, the newspaper attempts to understand the impact on the states of Washington and Colorado after having legalized marijuana usage and possession amounts.  That article can be viewed here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/10/13/heres-how-legal-pot-changed-colorado-and-washington/?utm_term=.13b36d02e432.   In a brief summary, both states have not had any significant negative fallout from the decisions.  Crime is slightly down.  Drug arrests are very much in a downward spiral.  Usage among teenagers has not gone up and might actually be going down.  Traffic accident rates involving pot have not gone up.  There is even some evidence to suggest that medical marijuana may dramatically help abate the crisis in this nation as it struggles with the worst opioid crisis in its history. http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/11/could-pot-help-solve-us-opioid-epidemic.

But President Trump sees things differently.  His appointment of former Senator Jeff Session as Attorney General marks a return to the policies that rank marijuana as a dangerous drug on a par with heroin.  It is expected that the AG will make moves to criminalize those who recreationally use marijuana by throwing them in jail as common criminals.  This is going to become a gigantic crisis here in our state as a significant number of Coloradoans  benefit from the legalized sale and usage of the substance.  Many people grow their own marijuana and it has led to a reduction of alcohol consumption, which is both hazardous and expensive.  Many are finding pain relief that is safe and effective requiring less uses of dangerous and often addictive prescription drugs.  Some people are finding that marijuana not only helps them solve sleeping problems without the dangerous side effects of drugs like Ambien.  And, there does not seem to be the debilitating impact of what drinkers painfully refer to as "hangovers."

So why are the new AG and President Trump so worried about the twenty-eight states that have relaxed laws on marijuana?  Perhaps you need look no further than the high paid lobbyists of the alcohol industry.  Perhaps you need look no further than the high paid lobbyists working for private prisons that need customers in the form of inmates.  You may even want to examine the lobbyists for Big Pharma who see the medical benefits of marijuana cutting into their profits.  If you think that my belief is that our new president and his appointed officials are doing this for nefarious purposes, you would be correct.

This states' rights argument comes up from time to time.  When it is convenient for the conservatives, they say leave it to the states to decide.  When it serves their corporate sponsors, the conservatives want the federal government to step in and do the dirty work for them.  President Trump, Colorado has decided as a state to loosen federal regulations on marijuana and we are doing just fine. If you criminalize us for what we have done here in Colorado, you may be in for a big surprise.

Personally, I don't use  alcohol or marijuana for recreational purposes.  I do have relatives who have abused alcohol and prescription drugs, resulting in death.  I do have relatives who have had pain issues and have become addicted to painkillers.  I have a number of  family members who battle insomnia and then have had horrifying side effects with drugs like Ambien. 

I live in arguably one of the most conservative counties in our state.  As a liberal Democrat I am in a minority of epic proportions.  Many of my friends, neighbors, and acquaintances in this county are conservative Republicans.  They may not publicly talk about the fact that they not only use marijuana, but  they grow marijuana for their own consumption.  In my opinion, they are not going to be happy about this decision.  This may be more of a problem than anyone might imagine when the government comes for their weed.  These are the same people who said that they would not remain silent if someone came for their guns (which nobody ever did).  It will be interesting to see what happens in this case.

Suffice it to say, if Sessions turns its forces loose on the people of Colorado for marijuana usage, there will be resistance from both side of the political aisle and the other states will be watching.  This is just one more attempt to divide the people of this nation and replace our cherished Democracy with authoritarian rule of law.  Resist.

Might I suggest an app for your smart phone that will help speak truth to power?

Picture of CA app not the CO

Yes, it is a long title.  Truth be told, the title of this piece really says most everything that needs to be said.  The application is one that is called Mobile Justice Co.  It is free on iTunes.  It is software from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) located in Colorado. It is software that helps you watch situations where for example a police officer might be overstepping his bounds.  It might help a person being harassed or it might help someone who is a victim of a hate crime.  You simply load it on your phone.  If you find yourself in a difficult situation, simply pull out your phone and start the app.  You can see in the picture what features are included.  Push the orange button marked Record  and it will take over your phone's camera and begin recording.  When you feel you have captured a significant event, just press Report and the phone sends what you have captured directly to the American Civil Liberties Union offices here in Colorado. There is also a feature that allows your phone to be alerted in case someone else is being harassed and the event is nearby.  In this function you can quickly be told where to proceed and you hit the orange button marked Record to act as a witness. When you are finished you merely send the report as already discussed.

There is an information button that gives you instructions of what you can and cannot do in an arrest situation in the state of Colorado.  It also has an audio feature that works in a similar manner.  This app might just protect you in an unfortunate situation of over-policing or help someone have eyewitness protections.  Just something to think about when politicians are attempting to reel in protesters around the nation.  Be brave.  Resist.

State Senator Jerry Sonnenberg and U.S. Senator Cory Gardner: Old friends

If you live in rural Colorado on the Eastern Plains, these are the two people who will have the greatest clout in the argument for reasonable preservation of the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a ACA, Obamacare).  They are old friends from the Colorado State Legislature where they served together before Cory Gardner won his U.S. Senate seat.  They are both conservatives and both proponents of "anything but Obamacare."  Of course there has been no substantive alternative plan floated by either of these two men.  They both are seemingly unmoved by the pleas of their constituents who fear for the health and well-being of their families who are dependent on uninterrupted healthcare that cannot be taken away for preexisting conditions or be capped based on treatment needed.

These two elected officials have great appeal in rural Colorado for the majority of the people living there.  There is no secret that rural America tends to be conservative and has a high proportion of Evangelical Christians. Both of these politicians have their roots in agricultural settings. That said, what bothers me the most about these two men is that they both are against the kind of healthcare where women make choices that are suited to their beliefs and needs. care  Small towns the likes of which these two men evolved are places where religious beliefs sometimes make their way into the private confines of a doctors office. Women want to be able to chose for themselves whether they wish to become pregnant and have a family.  Women often want easy access to birth control pills or IUD's so they may plan for their financial futures.  They may need birth control pill for a wide array of female specific maladies, it is not just about getting pregnant and they want that decision to be theirs. They do not want to be harassed by people who believe every trip to a Planned Parenthood facility is an appointment for an abortion.  But these two guys are just fine with that.  In fact both are major proponents of legislation that reduces a woman's opportunity to receive quality healthcare for any reason including reproductive health. The cavalier dismantling of the Affordable Care Act and the defunding of Planned Parenthood just about guarantees that women especially those who have to raise a family on their own are going to get abandoned by the system. They are tired of men controlling their bodies.

Let's be perfectly clear here, there are good doctors both in Yuma where Cory is from and Sterling where Jerry makes his home.  There is even a Planned Parenthood office in Sterling. But let's just say you are living in Yuma and you give birth to a child with a genetic anomaly. It is almost a guarantee that he or she will need access to affordable healthcare for the remainder of their life.  Just a few years ago, that meant that if the child's parents attempted to gain access to health insurance the application would have been denied because the condition was preexisting.  The family would have run through its financial resources almost immediately.  Bankruptcy would soon have followed.  The child's life would have been put in jeopardy because of lack of treatment and then would likely have died. It is a scenario that was all too real just a few years ago in the days before the ACA. The ACA is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination but is doing it is a hell of an improvement.  But now, the republicans are on the brink of taking away the healthcare from 30,000,000 people.  They also decided to allow whatever the future replacement plan is to not honor the most important aspects of the ACA i.g., no disqualification based on preexisting conditions, children being allowed to stay on their parents insurance policies until the age of twenty-six, and no caps on major illnesses.  Never forget that before the ACA, the leading cause of bankruptcy in the United States was health related.  This is a situation that can happen to families in Yuma, Sterling, Hugo, Aurora, Denver or Boulder.  You see even conservative families also need adequate and affordable healthcare.  Illness does not follow party lines even though Sonneberg and Gardner behave as though it does.

These two politicians serve the citizens of Colorado.  Sonnenberg is probably safe in his senate seat due to the number of republican constituents in Eastern Colorado, but Cory Gardner has been put on notice by the voters of the entire state. Despite claims to the contrary by the cult of Trump, the progressives, if compelled to vote by the actions unfolding on our televisions daily, will definitely eclipse any attempts by the republicans to retain his seat in 2020. The Women's March on Denver was no fluke.  The republicans, by blindly acquiescing to this mean spirited and woefully ill-prepared POTUS have done just what Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto supposedly lamented in his diary after the attack on Pearl Harbor when he wrote, "I fear we have awakened a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve."  Women have it in their power to make the United States the envy of the world when it comes to healthcare.  I believe Mr. Gardner is beginning to hear the banging on the gates.  It remains to be seen whether Jerry Sonnenberg will begin to fear that the republicans will retain the control of the Colorado State Senate and tone his attack on healthcare down a bit.  

Time will tell us much.  SB17-003, only the third bill on the docket in the Colorado State Senate received such backlash and so many protestors at the capital that they postponed the initial hearing.  It is an age old tactic to keep the majority party from having to field citizen opposition from an organized citizenry.  The idea is they employed is that if you frustrate the people who have taken time off from work etc. by postponing a hearing without notice, they will be reluctant to come out again.  It may have worked in past legislative sessions, but when you meet these people.  When you begin to see the organization that is behind these protests, you begin to see that these people are as serious as a heart attack.  They will not be backing down anytime soon.  When people learned that the hearing was called off, instead of going away dejected, they either walked  to the offices of elected officials or joined in the protest at Cory Gardner's office a few blocks away.  That is not giving up.  That is reconnaissance.  The Indivisible movement is learning very quickly how to outpace the bureaucracy.  Welcome to the age of social media and huge groups of highly motivated people of every demographic imaginable.

Finally, if you do get a chance to visit the offices of either of these two politicians, you may or may not ever get the chance to meet them.  Their staffs are expert at keeping their bosses out of sight, especially if your hat is pink or your lapel pin is a donkey. But never leave without making the secretary take down your name and address.  Make sure you leave a message and tell them you want a response.  Then, as a final gesture, make sure they write down that you are not a paid protestor.  If they balk, tell them you have others waiting down the hall that you can request to have join you and make the very same request.  They work in your capital.  They will almost always do as you ask. 

20 reasons why you should be writing a guest blog at "Learning to Stand."

1.     If you have turned on the television in the past two weeks and you have stared with slack jawed amazement at what is transpiring in Washington D.C. and you fear for the stability of our democracy you need to share your thoughts with others.

2.     If you are the child or grandchild of immigrants who fled their home country and came to the United States to provide a better life for their family, you need to tell us that story.

3.     If you have ever felt you were discriminated against because you do not practice Christianity, by all means, we need to hear about that situation.

4.     If you felt your stomach churn with anger or embarrassment when you saw Donald Trump mock a reporter who had physical impairments that is a nobel  reason to take a stand as a guest author and sharing your feelings.

5.     If you feel that the Trump Administration is  making the world a more dangerous place in which to live by his cavalier disregard for for the the science of climate change consider telling us about your concerns.

6.     If you believe that it is a dangerous and unprecedented maneuver to embrace the Russian government who according to seventeen separate intelligence agencies, interfered with our presidential election we would love to hear why that is wrong.

7.     If you believe that Mr. Trump has a misogynistic attitude toward women and has bragged about his exploitation of them in his past, this is a platform to share why this is such an important issue.

8.     If you believe that President Trump has appointed a cabinet of wealthy business people whose only interest in government is to make it easier for them to enrich themselves at the expense of  the middle class and working poor then we need to hear about it.

9.     If you feel that the Trump Administration is making a mockery of the party of Lincoln perhaps you can make us understand how it feels to have your party hijacked by an opportunistic huckster who figured how to manipulate the election process.

10.    If you believe that Social Security is in trouble because these people are fast tracking privatisation of our hard earned contributions and this upsets you, we want to hear your thoughts.

11.    If you think that it is unfair that President Trump refuses to show us his tax returns which will shed some much needed transparency on his business holdings and possible conflicts of interest, don't you think it is about time you said something?

12.    If you think that President Trump should be able to use Twitter as a legitimate means to attack the press and his detractors with no obvious way to counter his arguments then you might just want to say something about that in the form of a guest blog.

13.  If you are concerned about the term alternative facts, as a way to distract you from his inability to handle the truth of a situation, perhaps you could instruct us on a better way that you believe our POTUS should behave.

14.    If you are concerned that our POTUS may actually be suffering from a severe form of Narcissistic Personality Disorder as diagnosed by famed psychiatrist John D. Gartner,  you may want to share your ideas about what the country should do about it.

15.    If the temperament and impulsivity of Donald Trump in conjunction with his access to the nuclear codes keeps you up at night you could elaborate your thoughts here.
 tell us why
16.    If the placement of Steve Bannon the Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor to United States President Donald Trump, a known white nationalist icon with alt right underpinnings is disturbing to you, then you are welcome to share your feelings on the topic here.

17.     If you believe the President is currently benefitting financially in violation of the Nobility/emoluments clause of the United States Constitution and you believe that is an impeachable offense, there is no better place to unburden yourself than right here as a guest author.

18.    If you think that NATO and our commitment to the countries of Europe has not become obsolete as proclaimed by Donald J. Trump, I want you to espouse your reasons why we should stand in support of this important treaty organization tell us why.

19.    If you think firing the U,S, Attorney General being fired because she refused to follow the Muslim Ban proposed in Trump's executive order because in her professional opinion it might not be lawful, I would hope you might take the time to expound upon it here.

20.    And finally,  if you are afraid that the election of Donald Trump poses the greatest threat to our democracy since the advent of the Civil War, please, please step up and tell us what you believe our best recourse is.

The Not So Secret Power of Women

Let's face it, the reason you are reading this is that you have become concerned that our newly elected POTUS is a couple of Cheetos short of a full bag and he is attacking many of the principles of our government on which you used to rely.  Perhaps you are worried that he has the nuclear codes and seems to be fixated on imaginary illegal alien voter fraud.  That is a pretty nasty cocktail.  Or just as importantly, perhaps you have a health issue that involves the use of Planned Parenthood services to insure that you are able to stay well enough to provide for your family. That used to be called "being responsible" but Trump and his sidekick Pence insist that you are really just using that evil institution as a place to gain access to abortion as an alternative means of birth control. That makes no sense whatsoever!  Their attitude is the epitome of both  arrogance and ignorance.  Neither of them knows the difference between a UTI, an STD or an IUD.  They are children who blush if they have to use the word Volvo in a sentence because they think it is the Swedish word for a woman's external sexual organs.  When a grown man opts to call those organs a "pussy" instead of its name, you are dealing with a child.  I know, because I taught sex ed. for nearly twenty years to grade school children and that is what children do, not grown men.

That is what was so powerful about the various Women's Marches. You had millions of women and women who were enlightened marching together wearing "pussy" hats not because they were acting like children, but instead they were mocking the unenlightened elected government officials who are acting like the children I used to teach in elementary school.  It was a great big beautiful reminder for these people, most of them pasty white old men, that they need to grow up and start treating women as equals.  It scared the crap out of them.  They have always been aware that to continue to remain in power they must control the majority of the voting population who just happen to be sporting two "x" chromosomes. Men have, up until the last two centuries, dominated women in this world because of their physical abilities to hunt, fight and protect their families, but that is no longer necessary for survival.  In a modern society, women are every bit as capable and perhaps even better suited for the jobs that provide for the family unit.  It is a fact that scares many men half out of their wits.  This recognition that women might even one day be treated equally intimidates them and unfortunately some men turn to the age old practice of suppression. The current administration is no friend to women.

It is a tool that women should keep in their tool box.  These political figures need to know that you are completely aware about their fear of women.  They need to know that you are not going to back down and are united in numbers that can and will make a difference in the 2018 election. They will respond to courageous action. Sara Bareilles says it way better than I ever could in her song, Brave.

 

Everybody's been there, everybody's been stared down
By the enemy
Fallen for the fear and done some disappearing
Bow down to the mighty
Don't run, stop holding your tongue
Maybe there's a way out of the cage where you live
Maybe one of these days you can let the light in
Show me how big your brave is

 

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave

 

Do not ever forget that it has taken literally hundreds of thousands of years for mankind to reach this point.  We no longer need to play by caveman rules.  Women will be need to be the leaders in a future where the ideals of humanity will be vastly more important for our survival as a species than  faux toughness and bravado. These men are pushing back with fervor because they know this reckoning is near.  Enlightened men and women must continue forward and not be pushed backward.  Backward male politicians are in the minority and they must be reminded of it with a tone of complete resolve. As those of us who have ever run competitively will tell you, this a marathon, not a sprint. We must not lose sight of the finish line, but to regain civility we must stay organized, be supportive and endure.  This is why we must learn to stand.

Hello. I suppose you are wondering why I am here.

This is the the first post in Learning to Stand. This blog, unlike several other of the blogs that I have done over the years, is a shared project.  As I have stated on the Facebook group page, The High Plains New Common Sense, many people are feeling the need to be able to speak truth to power.  Standing up for something in which you truly believe does not come naturally for all but a few lucky individuals.  As a retired public school teacher for many years I can tell you that this is there is some good news here... it can be learned.  And better even yet, is the fact that there are tons of different methods by which you arrive at the place where you can stand up and speak your truth.  Even when the people to whom you are speaking are rude, or loud, or vulgar, or in a position of power, you can make your point without having to adopt those ugly and frightening tactics.

I am going to assume that if you are reading this, you are probably struggling with the recently emboldened followers of Donald Trump.  You are not alone.  I too struggle with getting my message out to people who seem unwilling or unable to listen to reason.  I have done community advocacy work for years and no two issues ever seem to be alike when you step into the fray.  Each and every argument presents many faceted reasoning, and it always feels like the people with whom you are facing on the other side other side, are more confident and willing to do do battle.  But let me let you in on a little secret here.  When an opponent is being loud, crass and even vulgar, it is because they have no substantive facts on which to make their opinion known.  They only have anger and a few time tested slogans guaranteed to fire up the the people around them, i.e., "If you don't love this country, leave!"  It is not fact based and appeals only to those people who are ill-prepared.

I recently posted the following on January 26, 2016 in feed stream on The High Plains New Common Sense, "If someone tells you that they believe torture is something that they believe the United States of America should utilize calmly ask them if they would want their own child who might be serving in the military to be tortured. Remind them that even if the person they love survives the torture, their child will never ever be the same again. Ask John McCain. Do not argue. Just plant the seed." I stated my point in this manner on purpose.  Many people can relate to someone who has a child in the military.  Generally speaking, most people can understand and empathize with the notion that this country has made great sacrifices in recent years.  This usually means that a young person goes off to war.  Many of these children come back and they are never quite the same.  Often it is because of injuries or PTSD.  If someone is tortured, it is life-altering. Rape is a form of torture. Hate crimes are a form of torture.  It is not a point that can be refuted, and even if someone tries to cast the argument aside, the others in their camp will most likely hear the message.

In the above example, I believe that you are refocusing people on their own "humanity," a quality to which most people, even those people on the other side of the argument, can relate as was pointed about by my friend Gail Segreto in her comment to the post.  This can all be done without screaming.  This can be done even if you are frightened because it is the truth.  The truth is powerful and if practiced with some regularity makes you brave and a worthy adversary.

This blog is about sharing your experiences.  This is a place to learn to stand up for your beliefs by hearing how others have arrived.  This is a place to share what your fears about standing up for what you truly believe.  If you are so inclined, I would love to have you guest blog here.  Just send me your post and I will post it for you here.  We are all in this together and this is a good place to share your story with others who are wanting to help you find your voice.

Be strong.  Share. Learn every day.