Fresh Air From The Age

Marijuana Steve's Revolution

"Marijuana Steve's Revolution"

There once was a man named Steve. Steve smoked cannabis. Only, Steve lived in a place called The United States.
Before anything, a little history on the US. The United States was founded (not discovered) by a group of people who didnt get their way in their homeland and decided to start a new country. (The equivalent of a 5-year-old claiming he doesn't want to play a game anymore because he's losing. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for not conforming, but the wrong people were the non-conformists.) Anymore, these people founded a country based on strict imaginary laws and borders. Things were good for them, because they could play their own game in which they always won.
But things changed, the new generations born in this country did not think like their ancestors. They began to see how easily imaginary borders and laws could be crossed and broken.
Enter Marijuana Steve. Steve was a normal man, doing his part for society and doing his part against it, too. It sometimes felt that his relationship with marijuana was like a dirty secret, like wearing women's underwear. Other times, Steve felt empowered, knowing he was not alone, knowing that there was an entire counter-culture of people behind him.
Steve tried not to think in such big terms for he grew sad that things would take a very long time to change. Steve visited the nation of Spain in the spring of 2003. (Had the entourage of prudes not inhabited this country, we'd all be speaking spanish because of these people.) Steve was amazed. Spain had very pliable marijuana laws. You could grow and smoke in your own home, legally owning up to 50 grams of green. You could not distribute, though. Steve then learned of other countries that had even slacker marijuana laws, countries where it was even legal in some places. Steve returned home and grew sad for several weeks.
Steve told his friends of everything he had seen. Steve's friends grew sad as well. Steve then fell into a semi-serious spiral of drug use. Steve wound up getting arrested for possesion of cannabis his sophomore year of high school. Steve grew sad. It was after several months of reprimand and hypocrasy that Steve smoked again. Brainwashed isn't the right word but it's the first word that comes to mind. Steve accepted his country and its invisible forces. There were too many against him. Against us.
Steve then realized that marijuana would only be the beginning of something very big. Big things take time.
Call me Marijuana Steve.

posted by Gary @ 10/31/2006 11:20:00 AM