Cult Busters

How governments decide whether a religion is real or not.
By Christopher Beam
Posted Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009

The Church of Scientology logoA French court fined the Church of Scientology $888,000 on Tuesday after a couple claimed they'd been manipulated into buying between $30,000 and $73,000 worth of church products. The verdict is "a historical turning point for the fight against cult abuses," said the leader of France's "government cult-fighting unit." How does this special cult-busting unit distinguish between cults and bona fide religions?

Vaguely. French law doesn't define the term "cult." Rather, it uses the expression "cultlike movements" to describe groups that demand unreasonable financial contributions, encourage nonparticipation in elections, promote anti-social behavior, or cut members off from their families. It's easier to target bad behavior, the thinking goes, than to get into a semantic debate over what is and isn't a cult. The French government has, however, tried to define the term in the past. In 1995, a special parliamentary commission compiled a list of 10 cultish characteristics, including the indoctrination of children, a mentally unstable membership, and the attempt to infiltrate public institutions. The commission also released a list of 173 groups that qualify as cults—that is, they meet at least one of the 10 criteria—including the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Church of Scientology. (At least one group—the followers of Anthrosophy—sued the report's main author for defamation and won.)

France has a long history of going after cults. The rise of groups like the Hare Krishna movement and the Unification Church in the 1970s led the prime minister of France to request a special report on cults in 1983. After the famous mass suicide by members of the Order of the Solar Temple in Switzerland in 1995, the French National Assembly created the Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France, which drew up the now-infamous cult list. In 1998, the government created an agency that eventually became Miviludes—an acronym for Mission interministérielle de vigilance et de lutte contre les dérives sectaires, which translates to "Interministerial Mission for Monitoring and Combatting Cultic Deviances"—dedicated to identifying and monitoring what the government considers dangerous religious sects. The ministry issues regular reports on topics like the financing of cults and children who grow up in cults. In 2001, the assembly passed a law that has been used to hold cult leaders responsible for the deaths of their followers. The French government also funds a group called the Association for the Defense of the Family and Individual with the mission of helping cult victims and filing lawsuits on their behalf.

France isn't the only country with strict anti-cult policies. China bans at least a dozen religious minorities, including Falun Gong. Like France, Germany does not recognize Scientology as a religion and treats it instead as a business. Belgium commissioned a report on cults similar to France's in 1997 and created a Center for Information and Advice on Harmful Cults. None of those countries, however, shows up on the watch list of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, which singles out Afghanistan, Cuba, Russia, Turkey, and eight other countries as especially intolerant of religious minorities.

he United States doesn't distinguish between religions and cults, a philosophy that traces back to the establishment clause of the First Amendment. For example, unlike in France, the Church of Scientology receives tax exemptions intended for religious organizations. Government documents do occasionally use the term cult to describe small religious organizations, but the word doesn't have any legal meaning.

Giant breasts shock China

Giant breasts shock China

Parents and teachers in China are protesting after a sculpture of a tiny girl with giant breasts was installed in a city park.

The sculpture depicts a 20cm tall girl with breasts that are five metres high and wide, reports News Express.

Parents have protested at the installation in Foshan City, Guangdong province, which they say is highly embarrassing.

One local mum, called Liang, complained: "The park used to be a great place for families, but now what attracts my son the most is the huge breasts.

"I have tried to educate him with some scientific knowledge, but all he thinks when he sees the statue are smutty thoughts."

And a kindergarten teacher, who brought her class to visit the park, says it shocked some of them to tears.

"The little girls were scared and cried loudly, asking me if they would grow those huge things, and boys laughed crazily," she said.

A park spokesman said the statue was intended as a permanent fixture in the park but admitted it had been repeatedly damaged - with one person even trying to fit it with a giant bra.

"It's normal to have disagreements about art, we can understand it," said the spokesman.

a hitchhiking tale untold

Hello Everyone,
This episode is called "a hitchhiking tale untold." Something of an old story from a previous life, memories of memories, almost spoken out load, for the first time.

Here's a new URL to tune in the show:
http://radiofreeexile.podomatic.com/

for archived podcasts:
http://exileguy.mypodcast.com/index.html

featuring music & spoken word, in order of appearance, from:

Jah Roots - "Good Highs"
Katt Williams - "Weed"
Athiest Flow - "End of Days"
Mark Edgeman - "Dab The Midget Hitman - The Little Dab Will Do Ya"
Marianne Faithfull - "A Stranger On Earth"
Pat Condell - "Wake Up America"
David Peel and the Lower East Side - "I Like Marijuana"
Playing For Change - "War/No More Trouble"


Don't forget to check out Radio Free Exile Televised.
http://www.livestream.com/radiofreeexile
Now you can see what you've been hearing.

currently streaming:

Along with some interesting vintage commercials, public service announcements, a bit of activism, and some messages from exileguy, you'll find:

Lenny Bruce - "Thank You Masked Man'
"Circus Contraption"
Dread Daze - "Running"
Paul Sprawl - "Touch of Evil"
Blu - "Muto"
Marianne Faithfull - "Working Class Hero"
"Man Meets Chicken"
Diana Krall, Elvis Costello, Willie Nelson - "Crazy"
"Hitler Wants marijuana Legalized"
Pat Condell - "Apologists for Evil"
Matthew Mars - "Wallflower"
"Genius Chimp Outsmarts Tube"
George Carlin - "Religion is Bullshit"
Chris Chandler - Cracker Jack Cure"
Tracy theilen - "Pistol to Me"
Rich Ferguson - "All the Times"
DJ Monkey - "U-Boat"
Scatman John - "Scatman's World"
The Individuals - "Let A Thug Smoke"
The Zimmers - "My Generation"
Dan Bern - "Tiger Woods"
Rod Smear - Live at Venice SongFest
Teresa Willis - "Eenie Meanie"
Pat Condell - "Wake Up America"
Phil Ward - "The Hoosegow"
Honest John - "On Weed"
The Plastic Ono Band - "Give Peace A Chance"
Playing For Change - "War/No More Trouble"

Important Links:

exileguy @ myspace - http://www.myspace.com/exileguy
Radio Free Exile blog - http://exileguy-exileguy.blogspot.com/
follow exileguy on twitter - http://twitter.com/exileguy

For unique & cool gifts and things from exile, check out the Radio Free Exile Super Swag Emporium, - http://www.zazzle.com/exileguy

Everyone is invited to submit to Radio Free Exile. I'm always on the lookout for interesting and cutting edge Indie Music, Spoken Word, and Commentary. What have you got to lose?

To submit your material for consideration, go to:
https://www.sendthisfile.com/f.jsp?id=fskCM6gQzqdvYFD2PWa4SkGM
and use the widget there to upload your mp3 files directly to me.

neologism

Once again, The Washington Post has published the winning
submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers
are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words.

The winners are:
1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.

2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have
gained.

3 . Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat
stomach.

4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.

5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.

6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you
absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.

7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.

8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavored mouthwash.

9. Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that p icks you up after
you are run over by a steamroller.

10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.

11. Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam.

12. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by
proctologists.

13. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.

14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with
Yiddishisms.

15. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief
that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets
stuck
there.

16. Circumvent (n.), an opening in the front of boxer shorts
worn by Jewish men.

The Washington Post's Style Invitational also asked readers
to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding,
subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.

Here are this year's winners:

1. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that
stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer,
unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near
future.

2. Foreploy (v): Any misrepresentation about yourself for the
purpose of getting laid.

3. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders
the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

4. Giraffiti (n): Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

5. Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit
and the person who doesn't get it.

6. Inoculatte (v): To take coffee intravenously when you are
running late.

7. Hipatitis (n): Terminal coolness.

8. Osteopornosis (n): A degenerate disease. (This one got extra
credit.)

9. Karmageddon (n): It's like, when everybody is sending off
all these re ally bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth
explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

10 Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the
day consuming only things that are good for you.

11. Glibido (v): All talk and no action.

12. Dopeler effect (n): The tendency of stupid ideas to seem
smarter when they come at you rapidly.

13. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just
after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.

14. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito that gets
into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

15. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a
grub in the fruit you're eating.

And the pick of the literature:
16. Ignoranus (n): A person who's both stupid and an asshole.

Drugs to Do On a Date

Ta dah!!!

Obama will not 'rush' Afghanistan troop decision.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Despite Republican pressure to act quickly, President Barack Obama says he won't rush his decision about whether to send more troops to Afghanistan where 14 Americans died in the deadliest day for U.S. forces in more than four years.

"While I will never hesitate to use force to protect the American people or our vital interests, I also promise you this – and this is very important as we consider our next steps in Afghanistan: I will never rush the solemn decision of sending you into harm's way," Obama said Monday during a visit to Naval Air Station Jacksonville. "I won't risk your lives unless it is absolutely necessary."

Obama spoke on a day when a U.S. military helicopter crashed while returning from the scene of a fire fight with suspected Taliban drug traffickers in western Afghanistan. Ten Americans, including three Drug Enforcement Administration agents, died in the crash. Four more troops were killed when two helicopters collided over southern Afghanistan.

It was the heaviest single-day loss of life since June 28, 2005, when 19 U.S. troops died, 16 of them aboard a Special Forces MH-47 Chinook helicopter that was shot down by insurgents.

Obama is nearing a decision on whether to commit large numbers of additional troops to the war next year. His top military commander in Afghanistan favors an increase of roughly 40,000, officials have told The Associated Press, which would allow the U.S. military to expand its reach in areas of the country's south and east now under Taliban sway.

Obama's visit to the naval air station came after he convened another in a series of White House war council sessions with about a half-dozen Cabinet officials and other top advisers earlier Monday in Washington amid Republican criticism that he is taking too long to choose his next move. The White House Situation Room session focused on the cooperation between U.S. military and civilian efforts in Afghanistan, White House officials said. Another session may be held later this week.

Obama did not tip his hand on how he might decide. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters that a decision was still expected in the coming weeks.

A war plan that asks Obama to commit tens of thousands of additional U.S. forces to Afghanistan is too ambitious, a top Senate Democrat said in Washington on Monday.

Sen. John Kerry, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman who was the White House's point man during last week's tense talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, praised commanding Gen. Stanley McChrystal but said his plan for adding troops in Afghanistan "goes too far, too fast."

Kerry's stance would aim for a modest increase in American forces, treading middle ground between Republicans who have said Obama would put soldiers and the country at risk by rejecting McChrystal's larger request and anti-war Democrats who question whether the United States already has taken on too much in Afghanistan.

"Under the right circumstances, if we can be confident that military efforts can be sustained and built upon, then I would support the president should he decide to send some additional troops to regain the initiative," Kerry, D-Mass., said.

Fresh from several days of talks in both Pakistan and Afghanistan, Kerry warned that the United States also cannot risk a drastic shift in strategy that would focus narrowly on hunting terrorists.

"We all see the appeal of a limited counterterrorism mission, and no doubt it is part of the endgame, but I don't think we're there yet," Kerry said during remarks to the Council on Foreign Relations. "A narrow mission that cedes half the country to the Taliban could lead to civil war" in Afghanistan and threaten the fragile civilian government in Pakistan, he said.

Last week, former Vice President Dick Cheney said Obama should stop "dithering while America's armed forces are in danger."

"It's time for President Obama to do what it takes to win a war he has repeatedly and rightly called a war of necessity," Cheney said.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/27/obama-will-not-rush-afgha_n_335097.html

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/27/obama-will-not-rush-afgha_n_335097.html

The Hole They Dug for Us

why the GOP is dying

endless war

wake up, america

fear & ignorance

A Brief History of Medical Marijuana

By Patrick Stack, with Claire Suddath

On Oct. 19, the U.S. Justice Department announced that federal prosecutors would not pursue medical-marijuana users and distributors who comply with state laws, formalizing a policy at which the Obama Administration hinted earlier this year. Currently, 13 states allow doctors to prescribe medical marijuana to patients suffering from ailments ranging from AIDS to glaucoma, and in Maryland a prescription can soften punishment if a user faces prosecution. But until now those laws didn't provide any protection from federal authorities.

Should Professors Cheech and Chong ever receive university tenure teaching the medical history of their favorite subject, the course pack would be surprisingly thick. As early as 2737 B.C., the mystical Emperor Shen Neng of China was prescribing marijuana tea for the treatment of gout, rheumatism, malaria and, oddly enough, poor memory. The drug's popularity as a medicine spread throughout Asia, the Middle East and down the eastern coast of Africa, and certain Hindu sects in India used marijuana for religious purposes and stress relief. Ancient physicians prescribed marijuana for everything from pain relief to earache to childbirth. Doctors also warned against overuse of marijuana, believing that too much consumption caused impotence, blindness and "seeing devils."

By the late 18th century, early editions of American medical journals recommend hemp seeds and roots for the treatment of inflamed skin, incontinence and venereal disease. Irish doctor William O'Shaughnessy first popularized marijuana's medical use in England and America. As a physician with the British East India Company, he found marijuana eased the pain of rheumatism and was helpful against discomfort and nausea in cases of rabies, cholera and tetanus.

The sea change in American attitudes toward pot came at the end of the 19th century, when between 2% and 5% of the U.S. population was unknowingly addicted to morphine, a popular secret ingredient in patent medicines with colorful names like "The People's Healing Liniment for Man or Beast" and "Dr. Fenner's Golden Relief." To prevent more of the country from being washed over with a morphine-induced golden relief, the government introduced the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906, creating the Food and Drug Administration. While it didn't apply to marijuana and merely brought the distribution of opium and morphine under doctors' control, the regulation of chemical substances was a major shift in American drug policy.

It wasn't until 1914 that drug use was defined as a crime, under the Harrison Act. To get around states' rights issues, the act used a tax to regulate opium- and coca-derived drugs: it levied a tax on nonmedical uses of the drugs that was much higher than the cost of the drugs themselves, and punished anyone using the drugs without paying the tax. By 1937, 23 states had outlawed marijuana: some to stop former morphine addicts from taking up a new drug, and some as a backlash against newly arrived Mexican immigrants, some of whom brought the drug with them. Also in 1937, the Federal Government passed the Marihuana Tax Act, which made nonmedical use of marijuana illegal. Only the birdseed industry, which argued that hemp seeds gave birds' feathers a particularly shiny gloss, was exempted, and to this day birdseed producers are allowed to use imported hemp seeds treated so they don't sprout.

With an exception during World War II, when the government planted huge hemp crops to supply naval rope needs and make up for Asian hemp supplies controlled by the Japanese, marijuana was criminalized and harsher penalties were applied. In the 1950s Congress passed the Boggs Act and the Narcotics Control Act, which laid down mandatory sentences for drug offenders, including marijuana possessors and distributors.

Despite an easing of marijuana laws in the 1970s, the Reagan Administration's get-tough drug policies the following decade applied to marijuana as well. Still, the long-term trend has been toward relaxation. Since California became the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996, a dozen states have followed. Critics say the legalization of medical marijuana has sparked an underground pot culture in states that sanction its use — Los Angeles County district attorney Steve Cooley has estimated that there are about 1,000 illegally operated marijuana shops in that city alone. And although the Justice Department's newly unveiled policy will keep authorities from cracking down on those with legitimate marijuana prescriptions, all other smokers still run the risk of prosecution.

Got Pot? Fly From Oakland

Josh Richman writes in the Oakland Tribune:

Oakland International Airport may be the nation’s only airport with a specific policy letting users of medical marijuana travel with the drug.

The policy is spelled out in a three-page document quietly enacted last year by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office. It states that if deputies determine someone is a qualified patient or primary caregiver as defined by California law and has eight ounces or less of the drug, he or she can keep it and board the plane.

Deputies warn the pot-carrying passengers that they may be committing a felony upon arrival when they set foot in a jurisdiction where medical marijuana is not recognized. But they say they don’t call ahead to alert authorities on the other end.

“We never have. We’re certainly within our right to, but we never have,” said Sgt. J.D. Nelson, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office. “Our notification of the passengers is for their own safety and well-being.”

California voters approved medical marijuana use in 1996, while federal law still bans all possession and use.

But Oakland attorney Robert Raich notes the Code of Federal Regulations says a prohibition on operating a civil aircraft with knowledge that there is marijuana aboard doesn’t apply to carrying marijuana that’s “authorized by or under any Federal or State statute.”

The federal Transportation Security Administration does the screening and when marijuana — or any suspected contraband — is found, the sheriff’s deputies are summoned.

US medical cannabis policy eased

Federal prosecutors in the US have been ordered to stop cannabis-related prosecutions in the 13 states where medical use of the drug is legal.

Attorney General Eric Holder said it was wrong for federal resources to be spent on prosecuting people who were in compliance with existing state laws.

But he warned that the authorities would continue to go after traffickers hiding behind medical marijuana laws.

The policy is considered a sharp shift from that of the Bush administration.

California became the first state to permit medical use of cannabis in 1996. It allows special facilities to sell the drug and even to advertise.

In 2005, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government could continue to enforce US law barring the cultivation, possession and use of cannabis for any purpose, even when states had legalised it.

'Step forward'

But in a policy memo issued by the Department of Justice on Monday, prosecutors were told they "should not focus federal resources in your states on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana".

However, they will be required to go after people who distribute more than is permitted under state law or use it as a cover for weapons offences, money laundering and other crimes.

"We will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal," Mr Holder said in a statement.

According to the government, 14 states allow some use of cannabis for medical purposes - Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

However, Maryland only allows for reduced penalties for those found to have used cannabis solely for medical reasons.

Advocates of the medical use of cannabis argue that it is effective in treating chronic pain and nausea, among other ailments.

"This is a major step forward," Bruce Mirken of the Marijuana Policy Project told the Associated Press news agency.

"This change in policy moves the federal government dramatically toward respecting scientific and practical reality."

But critics said it signalled a retreat in the fight against Mexican drug cartels, whose largest source of revenue in the US is cannabis.

Ryan Grim Discusses Obama's New Marijuana Policy

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Feds to Stop Medical Marijuana Prosecution

12 jobs you'll do better...

Common knowledge tells us that smoking weed while trying to do anything “productive” is a fool’s errand – the two just don’t mix. And if you’re a lawyer, airline pilot, large crane operator or brain surgeon, that’s probably true. But for many of us, with far less intense jobs, marijuana can actually help you do your job better! Here are the 12 jobs where weed actually acts as a performance-enhancing drug.

1. Zamboni Driver

Unlike driving a car or a truck, driving a Zamboni while stoned is relatively safe. Since you’re already driving slowly, pot’s effect on your reaction time is basically a non-issue. And since all the job entails is driving around in a damn circle, you’re going to need something to take the edge off the repetitive nature.

The Buzz Kill: Besides the fact that operating heavy equipment while intoxicated is probably highly illegal, the only thing we could come up with as a downside to a Zamboni driver smoking weed is a possible to tendency to just want to make figure-8s in the ice. And really, who gives a sh*t about that?

2. Landscaper

Every landscaper or we’ve ever met is a huge pot smoker. Why? Because nothing goes better with mowing grass than smoking grass. The sweet high allows you to really get into your work in a way that’s impossible without a little herbal help.

The Buzz Kill: Get a little too into trimming the hedges, and you’ll end up with a bare branches, and some very pissed-off customers.

3. Video Editor

After hours upon monotonous hours of looking at the same footage thousands of times, after tweaking frames and playing with shot-to-shot relationship, it becomes insanely difficult to see the effects of what’s in the cut versus what you’re seeing in your head. Smoking allows you to cut through with fresh eyes, and see the project in a new and valuable light.

The Buzz Kill: When dealing with massive amounts of footage and the sheer complexity of editing itself, you’ll probably get confused and f**k something up, somewhere. But if all you’re making is another Keyboard Cat video, something tells us you can pull it off.

4. AT&T Customer Service Representative

Since all you have to remember is a simple script, with handy phrases like, “No, you can’t speak to a supervisor,” or “I am the supervisor,” or “I’m sorry, sir, but that’s AT&T policy,” you shouldn’t have much trouble getting away with a smoke-fueled workday. And since everyone who calls you is probably in a murderous rage at the appallingly bad service they’re getting, being high will definitely help take the edge off.

The Buzz Kill: Getting a call from a particularly nasty individual could certainly put a damper on your buzz. But if you get a call from someone who’s also high, you’ll end up on the phone for hours talking about the superiority of Thundercats. (Not good.)

5. Country Club Golf Pro

Spending your days outside, enjoying the weather, riding around in golf carts and helping people improve their back-swing is already an awesomely cushy job. But grab a few drags from your one-hitter, and it will seem like God himself handed you the keys to the best life ever.

The Buzz Kill: At some point, you’re going to run into some rich punkass that sucks at golfing, and you’ll be forced to actually engage in a conversation that could seriously screw-up your groove.

6. Musician / Sound Engineer

Like most things, music is always better while high. You can feel it more, man. Just listen to that bass line!

So whether you’re writing it, playing it or mixing it, any job that centralizes around listening to music is going to be done better if you’re high. In fact, the higher your are, the better.

The Buzz Kill: I can’t really think of any direct negatives to smoking weed on this job. Although, I suppose you could add too much cowbell…

7. Sports Mascot

What’s more fun to do while high than run around and act like a goofball in front of tens of thousands of people? Especially since you’re completely anonymous, and there’s nothing about the job that requires you to interact with anyone like a normal human being. (Not to mention the killer hot box you’d have in that giant head.)

The Buzz Kill: All the jumping around would be seriously difficult if you’ve smoked yourself lazy, so you might have to add a small bump of coke in there to even things out. Ok, maybe just a 5-hour Energy…

8. Pot Dealer

This one’s simple and obvious: To be a good pot dealer, you have to know your product. And the only way to know your product is to smoke it, constantly. That way you can let your customers know which strain to get for the kind of high they’re looking for. Plus, you became a pot dealer for a reason. And it probably has something to do with being able to smoke weed all day. Just a hunch…

The Buzz Kill: Unless your customers come to you, there’s a good chance you’re going to be late to deliver the goods anytime someone calls you up for a few grams, which is annoying (but mainly for the customer). And when you do get there, you probably forgot to bring the right bag, which then adds a few more hours to the entire transaction.

9. Writer / Artist

Damn near everyone with a creative job smokes a massive amount of weed. That’s because marijuana opens up your creative mind in ways that sober thinking never can. Suddenly, your jokes are funnier, your prose more engaging, your photos framed better and your paintings more colorful, rich and deep.

The Buzz Kill: While it’s true that smoking can definitely help bring your creative endeavors to life, it can also make you think something’s a great idea, when in reality, it’s almost as brilliant as a Glenn Beck monologue.

10. Chef

Not only does smoking weed make you hungry, it makes even sh!tty food taste amazingly delicious. So when someone with the skills and palate required to be a good chef starts cooking up concoctions after a healthy pull on their bong, everything is going to come out amazing. Add to that the boost in creativity, and you’ll be whipping up the best veal parmigiana on the face of the Earth.

The Buzz Kill: Smoke too much, and you’ll never remember to take that cake out of the oven in time. Fail that, and you’ll not be a chef for very long…

11. Video Game Tester

On the list of awesome things to do while stoned, right next to listening to music, is playing video games. So mashing buttons for a living and smoking weed go hand-in-hand. Plus, since most of the people playing the game you’re testing are going to play it with a joint in their mouths, it’s really the only responsible course of action.

The Buzz Kill: Turns out, being a video game tester is actually really hard and tedious, with lots of reports to file to the company about glitches, bugs, what works, what doesn’t. And if there’s one thing that doesn’t go well with smoking weed, it’s reports to your boss. Fortunately, since you boss works at a video game company, he’s probably pulling one down right along with you.

12. Any Job

OK, so maybe pot won’t make you better at “any” job, but it will sure as hell make it a lot more interesting, no matter what your position.

The Buzz Kill: This does not apply to any job that involves children’s safety, flying an airplane or actually giving a sh!t. (Joke, it’s a joke…)

Family Business

Rush post-game interview

Farmers Arrested Planting Hemp On DEA Headquarters Lawn

A group of civilly-disobedient hemp farmers and business leaders were arrested Tuesday morning while digging up the lawn to plant industrial hemp seeds at the headquarters of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

David Bronner, the president of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, a more than 60-year-old company that does tens of millions of dollars of business annually, was among those arrested.

Bronner buys the hemp used in his soaps from Canadian farmers. He was arrested outside the DEA museum, which shares space with the headquarters.

"Our kids are going to come to this museum and say, 'My God. Your generation was crazy. What the hell is wrong with you people?'" he said as Arlington County Police handcuffed him and walked him to a waiting car.

The group was arrested for trespassing.

A DEA spokeswoman referred comment to the Department of Justice "because they're the people who set the policy for drugs." A DOJ spokeswoman declined to comment.

Hemp, however, is not a drug and has no capacity to get someone stoned, the farmers pointed out. Wayne Hauge and Will Allen, farmers from North Dakota and Vermont respectively, brought shovels and seeds to the protest, where they were joined by representatives of Vote Hemp, which advocates for federal legislation that would allow states to craft their own hemp policies.

Currently eight states -- Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Montana, North Dakota, Vermont, and West Virginia -- allow industrial hemp production or research, but federal law, which requires nearly-impossible-to-obtain-permits to grow hemp, trumps those state laws. A bill introduced by Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) would allow states to craft their own policies.

Isaac Nichelson, head of LiViTY Outernatioanl, a hemp clothing company, was also planting seeds, telling the officers and a handful of reporters that he'd rather buy his raw material domestically than from China.

"Who's got a permit?" asked David Smith, DEA security supervisor, when he spotted the collection of farmers volunteering their agricultural services to his agency.

"As far as I know, we applied for the permit a long time ago," Nichelson told him.

The farmers asked the next DEA official to arrive if he knew the difference between hemp and marijuana.

He wasn't sure. "It's a cousin, right? Or is it an uncle?"

Hauge is one of two farmers licensed by the state of North Dakota to grow hemp, but he can't do so because of the federal ban. Mother Nature is apparently unaware of the federal restriction: Hemp grows wild through the United States.

President Reagan invested significant resources going after hemp, uprooting millions of plants of what it calls "ditchweed." Reagan's effort against ditchweed steadily increased and by 1989 the DEA was able to claim it had uprooted 120 million ditchweed plants. By 2001, that number reached half a billion.

The farmers argued that Instead of uprooting hemp, the government should allow American farmers to grow it, especially since American companies can already legally sell hemp products. "We've got a billion dollar industry we're sleeping on," said Hauge, who is suing the DEA for the right to raise hemp.

Hauge traces his interest in growing hemp back to the founding fathers, and one particularly famous hemp farmer. "The DEA would have arrested George Washington," he said.

the higher the hair...

serious about religion

1984

Radio Free Exile - Televised

the state

Joe Arpaio

White House strips immigration policing powers from Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio

Sheriff Joe Arpaio has previously been attacked by critics for racial profiling among illegal immigrants.


A controversial Arizona sheriff known for taking a hard line against illegal immigrants has been stripped of some of his powers in what he described as a political move by the Obama administration.



Joe Arpaio, a gruff lawman who styles himself as America's toughest sheriff, has won acclaim from US anti-immigrant forces for his relentless pursuit of mostly Hispanic illegal immigrants in Maricopa county, Arizona, a fast-growing county of 4 million people that is home to Phoenix, the nation's fifth largest city.



Arpaio's aggressive tactics include the jailing of illegal immigrants in tent cities surrounded by barbed wire in the middle of Arizona's searingly hot summers, the reduction of meal costs to 20 cents per day, the use of pink jail clothing for men, and chain gangs for women inmates.



Arpaio also came in for criticism when he appeared on the Fox reality show Smile: You're Under Arrest.



Under a two-year-old agreement with the federal department of homeland security, Arpaio and his deputies had been authorised to enforce federal immigration law by arresting suspected illegal immigrants in the field and by checking the immigration status of people arrested on other offences. His deputies have arrested roughly 33,000 illegal immigrants since 2007, far more than other agencies with similar authority.



But after drawing thousands of complaints and a civil rights investigation from the justice department, Arpaio was this week stripped of his federal authority to make immigration arrests. County attorney Andrew Thomas, one of Arpaio's supporters, condemned the "setback in the fight against illegal immigration".



For his part Arpaio has promised to continue chasing illegal immigrants using state laws. In an angry press conference, he called US homeland security officials "liars" and said he would personally drive those caught on the streets to the border if federal officers refused to take arrested illegal immigrants into custody. "I'll take a little trip to the border and turn them over to the border," he said.

quitter queen

you're hearing what you'll soon see...

If you scroll to the bottom of this page you'll see the new livestream player, this is the official radio free exile television broadcast - sometimes it will be streaming videos from exile and other favorites, and others there will be live broadcasts, which I think is a pretty cool idea, but the only drawback is that there are ads that placed on the bottom of the screen, ignore these, they are not endorsed by radio free exile, they only allow this cool little thing to work without cost. There you have it.
Enjoy

go bush yourself

Politics Explained

FEUDALISM: You have two cows. Your lord takes some of the milk.

PURE SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes them and puts them in a barn with everyone else’s cows. You have to take care of all of the cows. The government gives you as much milk as you need.

BUREAUCRATIC SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes them and put them in a barn with everyone else’s cows. They are cared for by ex-chicken farmers. You have to take care of the chickens the government took from the chicken farmers. The government gives you as much milk and eggs as the regulations say you need.

FASCISM: You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them and sells you the milk.

PURE COMMUNISM: You have two cows. Your neighbors help you take care of them, and you all share the milk.

RUSSIAN COMMUNISM: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk.

CAMBODIAN COMMUNISM: You have two cows. The government takes both of them and shoots you.

DICTATORSHIP: You have two cows. The government takes both and drafts you.

PURE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.

REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors pick someone to tell you who gets the milk.

BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. Then it takes both, shoots one, milks the other and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.

PURE ANARCHY: You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors try to take the cows and kill you.

LIBERTARIAN/ANARCHO-CAPITALISM: You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull.

SURREALISM: You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.

girl scouts

places to find radio free exile

I've been placing my podcast episodes with several different servers because my original podcast host has been going through some changes and downgrades, and it makes me nervous and unhappy to think that they might disappear at any time, with no notice.
Sucks to be me.
Anyway,to ensure that the episodes will always be available, you can find various ones at these pages:

http://radiofreeexile.podomatic.com/

http://exileguy.podcastpeople.com/

http://www.gcast.com/user/exileguy/podcast/main

http://www.governmentmoneyfree.com/podcasts/radio-free-exile

There are also individual episodes available for listening, embedding and download at the Internet Archive.
Here are the pages -

http://www.archive.org/details/RadioFreeExile-A420KindaDay

http://www.archive.org/details/APreRecordedUniverse

http://www.archive.org/details/SacredCowsMakeTheBestHamburgers

http://www.archive.org/details/StopTheWar

http://www.archive.org/details/RadioFreeExilePodcast-TakeThingsFromWork

http://www.archive.org/details/ThePostureOfMemory

You can find all of the archived Radio Free Exile podcast episodes and all new and upcoming ones at:

http://exileguy.mypodcast.com/index.html

Now you have no excuse not to listen. There you have it.