Sudden Outbreak of Common Sense

Amash: Syria strike supporters ‘might as well start cleaning out your office’

"Federal lawmakers who plan to vote in favor of a U.S. military strike against Syria 'might as well start cleaning out' their office, U.S. Rep. Justin Amash said Thursday. Amash, R-Cascade Township, tweeted that the 'unprecedented level of public opposition' to military intervention in the country should beg for dissenting votes. Amash garnered national attention for hosting 11 town hall meetings this week to gauge opinion on President Barack Obama's request for Congress to approve a Syria strike. The sophomore lawmaker, whose mother was born in Syria, estimated 95 percent of those who turned out at meetings throughout his district were opposed to intervention." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmash: Syria strike supporters ‘might as well start cleaning out your office’

Calls to Congress 499 to 1 against Syria war

"Americans are slamming at least 24 members of Congress with thousands of phone calls and emails, urging lawmakers not to approve a military strike on Syria – by a margin of as much as 499 to 1. A national debate is raging on Twitter. Tweets and statements from members of Congress – both Democrat and Republican – show tremendously strong opposition to President Obama’s call for an air strike on Syria. Meanwhile, U.S. men and women in the military are taking to social media to anonymously demand that the Obama administration refrain from sending them to fight Syria." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCalls to Congress 499 to 1 against Syria war

Obama on Verge of Historic Rebuke Over Syria

"Pundits on both sides of the aisle say losing the high-stakes bid for congressional authorization would make Obama an instant lame-duck, and might well endanger his entire second-term agenda. On Thursday afternoon, as the whip counts were being tallied, the realization dawned in the nation’s capital that President Obama is perilously close to what would be an historic, humiliating international rebuke. To date, no major military power or international organization has supported Obama’s stated intention to launch a cruise-missile barrage at Assad, the so-called 'shot across the bow.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama on Verge of Historic Rebuke Over Syria

Iran’s foreign minister condemns Holocaust on Facebook

"'We condemn the massacre of Jews by the Nazis, and we condemn the massacre of Palestinians by the Zionists,' Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on his Facebook page, where he published the text of an interview he gave to the Tasnim news agency. [On Twitter, Zarif said]: 'Iran never denied it (the Holocaust). The man who was perceived to be denying it is now gone. Happy New Year.' The controversial Ahmadinejad was succeeded as president by Hassan Rowhani, who won a surprise election victory over five conservatives on June 14." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIran’s foreign minister condemns Holocaust on Facebook

Homeschool raid on family viewed as terror

"The German government is being accused of terrorism on its own citizens for a police squad raid in which officers armed with a battering ram forcibly took four children from their parents because they were being homeschooled. The accusations are being posted on a Facebook page for the German embassy in Washington. The reaction developed after, as WND reported, four homeschooled children, ages 7 to 14, were forcibly taken from their Darmstadt, Germany, home by police armed with a battering ram. The parents, Dirk and Petra Wunderlich, were told they won’t see the children again soon, according to the Home School Legal Defense Association." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHomeschool raid on family viewed as terror

Administration Gives States Conditional Okay on Marijuana Legalization

"Attorney General Eric Holder told the governors of Colorado and Washington Thursday that the Justice Department would not -- at least for now -- block their states from implementing regimes to tax, regulate, and sell marijuana. The memo listed a number of activities that could draw federal prosecutorial attention or result in a Justice Department reassessment, including sales to minors, profits going to criminal actors, diversion to pot prohibition states, marijuana sales as a cover for other drug sales, violence and the use of firearms, drugged driving and other 'adverse public health consequences,' and growing marijuana on public lands. That leaves some wiggle room for federal prosecutors." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAdministration Gives States Conditional Okay on Marijuana Legalization

What the Justice Department Pot Memo Means

"How soon is 'relatively soon?' The answer is 296 days. That’s how long it took for the Obama Justice Department to respond to the passage of last November’s historic statewide ballot measures in Colorado and Washington authorizing the commercial production and retail sale of cannabis to those over the age of 21. Cannabis law reformers welcomed the Justice Department’s directive, though some also expressed skepticism. Their caution is understandable. In a 2009 memo (the Ogden memorandum), the administration pledged not to intervene in medical cannabis states. But federal officials reversed course in 2011. Yet there are indications that things may be different now." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhat the Justice Department Pot Memo Means

Mexico City mulls legal marijuana ‘clubs’

"The capital hosted a three-day forum on drug policy amid a growing debate in Latin America over the course of the region’s deadly struggle against narcotrafficking, with President Enrique Pena Nieto taking a stance against legalization. Esthela Damian, a councilwoman of the city’s ruling Democratic Revolution Party (PRD), told AFP the proposals on the table include allowing the cultivation of three cannabis plants per person, as well as a system of cooperatives or 'non-profit private clubs.' Mexico City, home to almost nine million people plus 11 million more in its suburbs, has stood out from the rest of the country in recent years by legalizing abortion and allowing gay marriage." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMexico City mulls legal marijuana ‘clubs’

McConnell Stays Quiet As Congress Moves To Strike Syria

"Facing competing pressures as he fends off a conservative challenger for re-election, Mitch McConnell is steering clear so far of the debate over whether to attack Syria. The potency of the GOP’s hawkish wing is waning as isolationist sentiments flourish within the conservative movement. The deep-pocketed Heritage Action is against military action. Many Republicans are leaning that way. The public is weary of more war. And being on the same side as Obama is not a comfortable place for Republicans to be politically. 2016 hopefuls Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rand Paul (R-KY) both voted against the use of force in committee Wednesday." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMcConnell Stays Quiet As Congress Moves To Strike Syria

Mexico’s Vicente Fox pushes marijuana debate to forefront

"Former President Vicente Fox grew up on a farm here in rural Guanajuato, one of Mexico's most conservative states. He is the kind of guy who wears big belt buckles, collects hand-tooled saddles and worships the free market. Fox has always fancied himself a policy maverick. And these days, the former standard-bearer of Mexico's conservative National Action Party, or PAN, has emerged as one of Latin America's most outspoken advocates of marijuana legalization. This summer he has significantly ramped up his efforts. In June, he declared that he would grow the plant if it were legalized and added that he'd like to see marijuana sold in Mexican convenience stores." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMexico’s Vicente Fox pushes marijuana debate to forefront