I say if a 73 year old man wants to smoke pot, then God Damn it, let him!

[trumad]

Willie Nelson and four others were issued misdemeanor citations for possession of narcotic mushrooms and marijuana after a traffic stop Monday morning on a Louisiana highway, state police said.

The citations were issued after a commercial vehicle inspection of the country music star’s tour bus, state police said in a news release.

“When the door was opened and the trooper began to speak to the driver, he smelled the strong odor of marijuana,” the news release said. A search of the bus produced 1½ pounds of marijuana and 0.2 pounds of narcotic mushrooms, according to state police.

<snip>
Each was released after being issued a citation.

Nelson, 73, has recorded songs including “On the Road Again” and “City of New Orleans.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14894300/

[Bacchus39]

1. or 23 for that matter.

n/t

[dionysus]

2. holy crap, a pound and a half!!!!

lucky they only got cited! In new york you have that much and it's automatic possesion with intent to distribute!

[Freedom_from_Chains]

5. That's what I thought, that generally goes beyond simple possession

What's the deal here?

[EFerrari]

10. Probably just busy schedule and better price. Buying pot

can take up a lot of disposable time, when you think about it.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

12. The deal is how the law reads in LA

It's weird, so long as it's under 60lbs (yes, you read that right) on your first offense it's five hundred dollars and/or up to six months in jail.

That goes for all Schedule I, Hallucinogenic substances in LA.

[dionysus]

13. Time for the Celebrity Smoke-Off

Willie and the Boys Vs. the Cypress Hill crew...

[Lone_Star_Dem]

17. That would be some tough contenders

Both teams dedicated, skilled and devoted to their training.

I'm still leaning in the direction of Willie and the boys. The added years of training would have to be an advantage for the more seasoned team. :P

[sarcasmo]

45. Snoop and Willie are on my team.

[Freedom_from_Chains]

23. Cool, I may have to think about moving to L.A.

:bounce: :toast:

[lies and propaganda]

29. some facets of being a Cajun make me proud as hell!

its a plant. You shouldnt be driving and smoking, but nothin changes thats its a freaking plant.

[DIKB]

25. It's Willie!

If it were anyone else it might be trafficking, but anything under 5 pounds for him is "Personal Use."

[Freedom_from_Chains]

27. ROTFLMAO!!!!!

[FearofFutility]

36. I heard that everyone on the bus claimed it as theirs

So basically, the total amount was divided among the number of passengers. Each person was then charged with simple possession.

[pitohui]

49. that's what the local paper is saying around here

smart thinking, if they had all started pointing fingers at each other, it would not have worked out so well for any of them

[Benhurst]

9. Yeah, but they know Willie and the boys can consume that much

in a night or two.

:rofl:

[qwertyMike]

22. Hey, it was a bus load of CREATIVE people

Here in Canada 30gms (Just over an ounce) is OK legally (at least they don't bother prosecuting)

Shrooms? Way to go. Shrooms? 1972 was the last time I did them

Both are natural plants.

God's gift.

[Scriptor Ignotus]

28. that's what Willie rolls into one joint

no big deal...

:hippie:

[Freedom_from_Chains]

37. Uses the paper from Cheech & Chongs Big Bamboo album, ey.

[katty]

3. go willie boy@73 do whatever the hell you want

[demigoddess]

24. smoking pot does not seem to have affected his ability to support himself

or his wife, and he has not done any violent crimes that I can think of. Compare that to alcohol. Plus, I am approaching 60 and I think that in our time of life we deserve to relax and kick back a little. I raised my kids not to smoke cigarettes or drink and they haven't, so I should get a break after they have grown up and moved out. Why should we be under the same rules(by the government) as people with a two year old in the house?

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Only a misdemeanor?

Willie lucked out if you ask me.

I agree he should be allowed to smoke pot if he wants. I am glad they didn't haul him off to jail.

[JVS]

6. Wait, why should old rich people get to have 1.5 lbs but not me?

[wicket]

18. See post #12

n/t

[rhiannon55]

7. The war on drugs is another bogus war on people

Remember the good ol' days when our country's leaders declared a "war on poverty"? Considering the number of poor people in this country, I guess they lost that one.

I wish they would fucking leave peaceful people alone.:mad:

[Ganja Ninja]

8. Or 53 for that matter.

:smoke:

[dkofos]

44. Indeed

[astonamous]

11. Hahahahaha...

A friend of mine hanging out with him before and after a concert a week ago.

Trudy

[TheFriedPiper]

14. If ANYONE 18 or over wants to smoke pot, they should be allowed

[Theres-a]

15. Amen,let him.

And I don't smoke pot,for the record.

[leftchick]

16. Damn! Shrooms Too??

Go Willy! :)

[Jcrowley]

19. definitely

shrooms opens one up to different worlds and upon returning to this one you realize there is more to life than meets the eye. This can help to keep an open mind.

Willie committed the crime of living freely and loving life. The State doesn't like that. Go Willie.

[yellowcanine]

20. Shrooms? How 1969. It's been decades since I've heard of anybody

getting busted for shrooms.

[pitohui]

48. well they are still technically illegal in louisiana

for a time our library even had them scissored out of the mushroom identification book, they grow here naturally on cow patties, so it is not like they can be eradicated

i don't think they are as popular as they once were, people can get other drugs now that don't cause visions and interfere with getting things done, but they're still around, always will be, i think

[HereSince1628]

21. But he is a 73 year-old alternative energy promoter who leans left

And those last two descriptors are what will likely motivate a huge hullabaloo.

[Generic Other]

26. 1 1/2 lbs is a misdemeanor in La???

Cool.

And I gree with you, Trumad. Willie Nelson is no threat to society. Let him smoke pot if he wants to.

:crazy:

[sofa king]

30. Any dude with the balls to light up on the White House roof...

...oughta BE President, not just be visiting.

[opihimoimoi]

50. Willie for PREZINENT....

:smoke:

[shanti]

54. hey, i'd vote for him!

:hi:

[sweetheart]

31. If he was poor and driving a crap car...

it'd be near as bad as driving whilst black, a ticket to the pen. The trooper
that got Willie Nelson's signature probably genuflected.

[Ghost in the Machine]

32. This is all Tobey Keith's fault!!!

Didn't anyone notice the other night when he was on (ok, i forget, it was either The Daily Show or The Colbert Report)_________ ... how he kept talking about smoking with Willie on tour and always "going to the bus to get high" or "got a contact buzz just walking IN the bus"? :evilgrin:

Hey, sometimes we all have to play the blame game, but honestly, when Tobey said that on TV I wondered how long it was gonna be before Willie got stopped somewhere...

Am I off base here, or could this theory hold water?

Ghost

[Laurab]

39. It was Colbert, and Toby did keep talking about it

there's another thread somewhere where people agree with you, but I think Willie himself is the biggest advertiser of how much he smokes. He certainly doesn't try to hide it, and he's said mostly people know and just leave him alone.

I just read the new biography of him that's out, and it BEGINS with Willie talking about smoking dope. I've read interview after interview, same thing. I'm a huge Willie fan, and I do NOT like Toby Keith, but I think Toby Keith was just trying to make himself look "cool". I expected Stephen to get into politics with him, and was disappointed when he didn't.

What I DO think makes a difference is that he's a prominent Dem, is working on alternative energy, helping people, and stuff like that. I think that's more likely why he was targeted. No doubt it was a rethuglican idea, and I HATE to seem to be defending Toby Keith, but Willie is just really vocal about it, and doesn't care who knows, and I'm betting this doesn't change him a bit!

[walldude]

41. Willie is a well known pot smoker, I doubt TK had any effect.

The mistake they apparently made was smoking in the front lounge of the tour bus. Most buses only allow pot smoking in the back lounge with the windows open, in order to avoid this very issue. Tour buses go through inspection stations all the time, most drivers know where they are and make plans accordingly...

[az chela]

47. Willie for president!!!

I think we should throw our support behind him and his family!!!

[personman]

33. They took an old man's joints.

Everybody feel safer now? :sarcasm:

I despise these people who need to control everyone. Authoritarians, control-freaks, pigs, judges, self-righteous scum. If a grown man decides he wants to smoke a joint let him smoke a fuckin joint. I don't think you create a better society through more control, I think you need education and freedom.

If anyone needs me I'll be smoking a joint.

-personman

[Philosoraptor]

34. FREE WILLIE!

[dogday]

43. Amen to that! nt

[distantearlywarning]

35. Agreed.

The first thing I thought when I heard about this story was, "Just leave the poor guy alone already!"

I'm sick and tired of the puritan attitudes in this country. People should be allowed to smoke a joint or two if they feel like it, for God's sake. Prosecuting marijuana use is a waste of time and money.

[KharmaTrain]

38. Imagine a 75 Year Old Dealer...

Flashback to the airport scene from Easy Rider...where Phil Spector buys the weed and coke in the back of the limo. Now that was 1965...fast-forward to 2006...and the same characters with grey hair, hearing aids and the sale going down in the parking lot of an Assisted Living Center :rofl:

While I know Willie's gotta a lot of young friend (like Toby Keith), we were laughing here at the thought of a normal 70 year old going out to "score an ounce or lid", then sneaking back up to their room in the old folks home, putting the towel down by the door...lighting incense and giggling like little kids (ah those college flashbacks...LOL).

Sorry...this old hippie just isn't aging gracefully... :rofl:

[Stardust]

56. If 40 years ago someone had told me that weed would still be

illegal and causing paranoia, I would never have believed it. Nor would I have believed any prediction that our country would be on the verge of fascism, or Roe v. Wade would be in jeopardy, or that the press could not be trusted to report the truth, or our officials would need to debate whether or not torture was acceptable, or evolution would be discredited, or that our beloved New Orleans would succumb to flooding that could have been prevented and the people were left to drown, or we would be invading a country that never posed a threat to settle a score and plunder their oil...I would have called it a bad trip.

[KharmaTrain]

60. Reminds Me Of The 70's Movie Tunnelvision...

I think that one was set in 1996...and David Eisenhower was "preznit". TV was all intrusive (on the Firesign Theater's "Channel 85" concept) and the resembelence to what we have today is chilling.

My hopes are all things are cyclical. I spent the first 25 years of my life in a fairly liberal/progressive world...have spent the last 25 fighting the regression...I figure nows time for the pendulum to move in the other direction. But then I remember how we used to laugh at the concept of "getting high when we're old"...and that meant 35...who thought I'd be going strong well beyond that...LOL

Cheers...

[Stardust]

61. I'll have to check out that movie. BTW, I'm a Firesign Theater fan, too. /

[datasuspect]

40. if it wasn't willie

the whole lot of them would have been secreted away, charged with possession, distribution, intent to distribute and a whole host of felonies.

the tour bus and all valuable property would have been seized as well.

[eppur_se_muova]

42. But...but...what about the long-term consequences! n/t

[RedStateShame]

46. OH NO!!! ONE PERSON DIDN'T GET HOOKED ON A PFIZER DRUG?!

HAVE HIM HUNG AND QUARTERED!!!!!

[Triana]

51. Oh Jeebus Friggin Keerist, leave the man alone!!

They need to just legalize the stuff and be done with it. This is useless and stupid.

[lisainmilo]

52. Isn't that F* lovely!!!!

He has endorse Democratic Claire McCaskill...I hope this does not hurt her!

[Warren DeMontague]

53. No. We must arrest consenting adults for using their own bodies in ways

the government doesn't like. We must spend $40 Billion Dollars a year to do so. We must let murderers and rapists out to make room in prisons for mandatory minimum sentenced non-violent drug offenders.

I mean, just think of the Children! :eyes:

[shanti]

55. of course we must!

lot of pockets to line, ya know :eyes:

[Elwood P Dowd]

57. Only the war on terror makes more money than the war on drugs

x(

Edit: The cold war was also a nice investment opportunity.

[upi402]

58. Smoke Aid '07

Free Willy
:hippie:

[KatyMan]

59. I know a 40yr old who wants to smoke

...wonder who? Just need a hook up! (not soliciting, joking)