Nullification

Nullification: Not a Temper Tantrum

"When the Supreme Court ruled the feds have the authority to make medicinal marijuana illegal across the U.S., more than 15 states said, 'No,' and created medical cannabis programs anyway. And when the Bush administration pushed through the Real ID Act in 2005, seeking to create a national system of identification, states said, 'No,' and refused to take steps to implement the program. In fact, state governments have utilized nullification to fight a wide range of overreaching federal actions, from military conscription during the War of 1812 to the Fugitive Slave Acts in the 1850s. From overreaching FDA regulations to groping TSA searches today." Continue reading →

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City of Berkeley fights U.S. civil action against marijuana dispensary

"In the latest strategy against federal attempts to shut down marijuana shops, the city contends the U.S. civil action would harm the city by depriving it of hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes, paid over a period of years, according to Drug Policy Alliance, a nonprofit group whose attorneys are representing the city. In May, the U.S. government filed a complaint for forfeiture against a property leased by the retail marijuana store Berkeley Patients Group at 2366 San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley, according to court papers filed by U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag." Continue reading →

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Missouri governor vetoes bill to nullify federal gun laws

"The legislation would have made it a misdemeanor crime for federal agents to attempt to enforce any federal gun regulations that 'infringe on the people's right to keep and bear arms.' It also sought to invalidate some specific federal laws, including a 1934 law that imposed on tax on transferring machine guns or silencers. The measure would have made it a misdemeanor to publish the names of gun owners. Missouri's age to obtain a conceal-carry permit would have been lowered to 19 instead of the current 21, and the bill would have allowed people with concealed gun permits to openly carry firearms up to 16 inches long." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMissouri governor vetoes bill to nullify federal gun laws

Dissolve the Federal Government

"I cannot be comprehensive, but I can mention a few reasons why you'll be better off without the Federal Government (which is the U.S.A.). You won't pay any federal taxes. This includes the Social Security tax, the income tax, any tariffs, any excise taxes, any Medicare taxes, telephone taxes, gift taxes, inheritance taxes, capital gains taxes, dividend taxes, and others. You won't have to use fiat money. You won't have to support a bloated military/industrial complex, an agricultural complex, an education complex, a Wall Street complex, a banking complex, a scientific complex, or any federal crony capitalist complex. Your won't have to worry so much about foreign wars." Continue reading →

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Utah launches new federalism commission to push back Washington

"For too long Utah and other states have not exercised their sovereign powers in the face of the federal government’s growing reach into new arenas, according to leading members of a new state commission assembled to study and push back against federal authority. 'History has shown that if you concentrate power it was a fundamental threat to the rights of people and it was corrupting,' Senate Majority Leader Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, told the inaugural meeting of the Commission on Federalism. 'We have watched that happen for the last 50 years as the federal government has broadened its jurisdiction in a number of issues.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUtah launches new federalism commission to push back Washington

CA Medical Marijuana Dispensary Numbers Shrink in Two-Pronged War of Attrition

"Anyone who is following the situation in the Golden State at all closely has seen a numbing litany of reports of dispensaries forced out of business, including from some of the most venerable, respected, and law-abiding operations in the state. What had been the occasional raid or prosecution by the DEA or federal prosecutors during the early years of the Obama administration has turned into a heightened onslaught since the issuance of the notorious Cole memo, written by Assistant Attorney General James Cole, two years ago next week and the announcement by California's four US Attorneys that fall that they were declaring open season on dispensaries." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCA Medical Marijuana Dispensary Numbers Shrink in Two-Pronged War of Attrition

World’s largest pot shop can stay open in Oakland, judge rules

"A medical marijuana dispensary billed as the world’s largest cannabis store may stay open while the city of Oakland fights a U.S. government effort to shut it down or seize the property, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. There has been a tug-of-war in California between federal and local authorities over cannabis sold for purported health reasons. In February, Magistrate Maria-Elena James, the same judge who ruled on Wednesday, said the city had no right to intervene in a federal prosecutor’s civil-forfeiture action against the Harborside Health Center, which was featured on the Discovery Channel reality TV show 'Weed Wars.'" Continue reading →

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Treasury Delays Obamacare Implementation For Businesses Until 2015

"The Obama administration left it to a relatively low level Treasury official to announce the blockbuster news that the Obama administration will not begin enforcing employer mandates in the Obamacare law until 2015 - one year later than originally planned. Mark Mazur, the Assistant Treasury Secretary for Tax Policy, announced on the agency's blog that the administration 'will provide an additional year before the ... mandatory employer and insurer reporting requirements begin.' At this point the individual mandate remains, meaning individuals must obtain health insurance or face penalties." Continue reading →

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Marijuana’s March Towards Mainstream Confounds Feds

"It took 50 years for American attitudes about marijuana to zigzag from the paranoia of 'Reefer Madness' to the excesses of Woodstock back to the hard line of 'Just Say No.' The next 25 years took the nation from Bill Clinton, who famously 'didn't inhale,' to Barack Obama, who most emphatically did. Now, in just a few short years, public opinion has moved so dramatically toward general acceptance that even those who champion legalization are surprised at how quickly attitudes are changing and states are moving to approve the drug - for medical use and just for fun." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMarijuana’s March Towards Mainstream Confounds Feds

Colorado Gun Owners Display Blatant Defiance Of New Law

"Stores across Colorado are pulling high-capacity magazines off their shelves. A new law that took effect Monday limits magazines to 15 rounds and some people are already deliberately breaking the law. The law requires background checks on all gun sales, including private ones. 'We want to, today, to test how this law functions; demonstrate that it is not enforceable,' a demonstrator told the crowd. The new laws prompted about two dozen opponents of increased gun control to gather at the state Capitol on Monday at midday in protest. Many swapped and sold high-capacity magazines in plain view of police officers, daring them to make an arrest." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingColorado Gun Owners Display Blatant Defiance Of New Law