Pubdate: Mon, 06 Jun 2011
Source: Daily Tribune, The (Royal Oak, MI)
Copyright: 2011 The Daily Tribune
Contact:  http://www.dailytribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1579
Author: Amanda Lee

STERLING HEIGHTS MAN'S MEDICAL POT RADIO SHOW A HIT

Medical Mike Taylor, an advocate, debates issues on 'Detroit Homegrown
Show'

Mike Taylor has had a rough time lately - but he's not letting his own
personal woes keep him down.

The longtime Sterling Heights resident is not only fighting cancer,
but the condition has forced him to leave his job as a janitor because
he can't keep up with the manual labor portion of the job.

Because of his illness, Taylor was introduced to medical marijuana as
a therapy device to manage pain. He later became such a proponent of
it that he went on the air at WDTW-1310 with another local radio
personality where they discussed politics during the "High Noon Hour"
and how it affected the medical marijuana debate in the state of Michigan.

"Ultimately, I realized that I was really interested in the political
angle," he said. "I don't care about putting blame on someone or just
arguing to argue. I want to actually accomplish something."

Taylor decided to branch out on his own and launch his own
program.

Just this past weekend, "Detroit Homegrown Show" debuted at 8 a.m.
Saturday on the radio station.

"I call it 'Wake and Bake with Medical Mike,'" Taylor said. "Instead
of arguing I'm more interested in having knowledgeable guests come on
and discuss what's going on with medical marijuana and growers."

Taylor's first guest was a rocket scientist - and even he agrees that
will be hard to top going forward.

"It was amazing having my first show with a rocket scientist," Taylor
said. "I couldn't believe it."

The hour-long show will also allow callers to phone in to ask
questions and even argue about the merits of medical marijuana.

"I welcome people who don't believe in medical marijuana, if they want
to call," said Taylor. "I want my show to be more about intelligent
debate than just hurling insults and names at other people.

"There's no good way to raise awareness for people than to get our
position out there," he continued. "I want people to know we're not
thugs, we're not people just trying to get high, we're just trying to
get some level of quality of life."

While Taylor does believe that pot should be decriminalized, he says
that he doesn't want to the government to get involved in the
situation and tax the product.

"I think it's an issue that has a lot of facets," he said. "That's why
I think this show is great. People can talk about all those different
facets."

In addition to his radio work, Taylor makes regular appearances on
television and is hosting a special event on Sept. 24 at the Emerald
Theater in downtown Mount Clemens.

"I think there's a real niche market here for a show like this," he
said. "I'm not angry, I'm not beating anybody up, and I'm informative
and rational.

"They say it takes a village to get anything done and I'm building
one," Taylor said.

For more information, call (586) 883-3966 or visit
www.homegrownshow.com . 
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MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.