In case you wondered why the wealthcare bill didn't make it legal for people to buy cheaper drugs from Canada and why it didn't include medical marijuana provisions...

From National Journal 3/17/10:

Under his tenure, PhRMA has spent well over $100 million on ad drives backing health care reform legislation, a strategy that grew out of a deal Tauzin struck with the White House and key Democrats in the Senate that's provoked some criticism from parts of the drug industry. Early this year, Tauzin announced he would be departing PhRMA after five years at its helm and a search is underway for a replacement. Tauzin earned $4.5 million in 2008, according to IRS documents.

PhRMA is the trade association that lobbies for the drug companies.

If you have seen an ad promoting the wealthcare bill, chances are better than 50/50 that they paid for it. We need public financing of campaigns as much as we need single payer.

 

From the LA Times Blogs 2/5/09.

Cereal and snack manufacturer Kellogg's has announced that it will not renew its sponsorship contract with Olympic champion swimmer Michael Phelps

The reason? According to AP, because Phelps acknowledged smoking marijuana in a bong pipe. Duh.

The company claims that Phelps's behavior — caught on camera and published last Sunday in Britain's News of the World — was "not consistent with the image of [Kellogg's]."

What image? Are they talking about their image as a bunch of asswipes?

I can't smoke pot myself, but I have no animus towards people who can. People who object to pot have no pleasure in their lives and are filled with envy towards anyone who actually is enjoying herself or himself.

So much money and so many lives are wasted on marijuana laws that serve no legitimate purpose. Those laws would have been repealed years ago if not for childish people like the ones who run Kellogg's.

There's also the issue of hypocrisy. Considering how much Kellogg's does to get children addicted to sugar, they are in no position to judge anyone on smoking pot.

I never thought much either way about Michael Phelps before this. (Sorry mos, I prefer guys closer to my own middle age.) But, Kellogg's corporate behavior is so irresponsible. As Laura Penny, author of the brilliant book Your Call Is Important to Us: The Truth About Bullshit has pointed out, the "War on Drugs" is really a War on Some Drugs.

Drug companies are constantly pushing mind altering and mood altering pharmaceuticals such as Prozac. Kellogg's itself is pushing sugar as a mood altering drug. Fast food companies use sugar and other food ingredients as mood altering drugs too. The only thing that determines the legality of a drug is the power of the corporate interests behind it or the lack thereof.

I'm boycotting Kellogg's products (including Carr's, Cheez-It, Keebler, Famous Amos, and Morningstar Farms) until the following conditions are met.

1) Kellogg's reverses its decision.

2) Kellogg's publicly apologizes.

3) Kellogg's runs commercials on all the major broadcast and cable news networks calling for the legalization of marijuana.

Can we have just a little corporate responsibility please?