I remain so disappointed in the lawmakers unwilling to see the benefits of legalizing marijuana completely. It helps with more things that ail a person than what will be medically prescribed eventually. I realize this is a backwards state, just one, among several others. The laws imposed upon us, by people who can drink their way into oblivion, if they choose, is kind of hypocritical ... don't you think? They are stuck in a time warp and can't see past their rigid beliefs. Legalize it. Put laws on it. No difference than the rules for drinking. It is not a gateway drug. [continues 134 words]
Multi-Tasker Only Begins To Describe A Citrus County School District's Student Resource Officer SROs can act as teachers, counselors, safety consultants and law enforcement officers - sometimes all before lunchtime. The SROs even referee parents battling child custody issues. "They're using the school as the tug-of-war zone," Sgt. Kevin Purinton explained to school board members during a presentation Wednesday. Purinton and Lt. James Martone oversee the Citrus County Sheriff's SRO program, which has been a part of the county's educational system since 1985. [continues 674 words]
As Pat Gabriel, president of the Southwest Rotary Club, introduced the guest speaker for the week, she challenged everyone to "get off on some of the side roads, turn on some of the dirt roads and see what is right out in our very own back yards. We have homeless children, we've got meth labs, and we have got things happening right underneath our own noses, in our own neighborhoods, that we are not even aware of." Which is why D.J. Medlin of the Sheriff's Office was asked to the breakfast meeting on Aug. 23, to inform members and guests of the growing number of methamphetamine labs in Marion County. [continues 896 words]
Perhaps the greatest impediment in the quest for a constitutionally mandated right to privacy is the issue of drugs, and that issue is now on the front burner. Marijuana has become the primary test. The debate over marijuana focuses not only on legalization but also on medical benefits. In this past election, the ballot in Alaska had a petition to legalize the "possession, cultivation, distribution or consumption" of marijuana. For many proponents of legalization, it is more a question of privacy than anything else. Al Anders, chairman of the Free Hemp in Alaska group, considers it "a states-rights issue. It's a right to privacy and the right to privacy is not being respected by the federal government." [continues 496 words]
HAS YOUR SON OR daughter ever approached you and said, ''I'm going to a dance tonight with my friends Tim, Lisa and Lisa's older brother. You met them last week, remember?'' What you remember is being in the middle of fixing the lawnmower or cooking something for the younger kids and not really paying attention. The teen who's telling you this is almost ready for high school or maybe already is in the 10th grade. From a parent's point of view, things have been a little rough lately with this child, so you try not to create a big scene by saying something like, ''OK, be home early. You know what time your curfew is.'' [continues 1057 words]
