cat-gun

cat-gun t1_j9xw19f wrote

The House has passed numerous bills legalizing recreational weed. However, until recently, drug war enthusiasts in the Senate have killed the bills.

For example, here are the Senators who voted against the last bill to legalize weed in the Senate, NH SB299 on 2022-05-12:

Sen. Avard, Kevin A. [R]
Sen. Birdsell, Regina [R]
Sen. Bradley, Jeb [R]
Sen. Carson, Sharon [R]
Sen. Cavanaugh, Kevin J. [D] --> Sen. Keith Murphy, R-Manchester
Sen. D'Allesandro, Lou C. [D]
Sen. Daniels, Gary L. [R] --> Sen. Shannon Chandley, D-Amherst
Sen. Gannon, William "Bill" M. [R]
Sen. Giuda, Robert "Bob" [R] --> Sen. Tim Lang, R-Sanbornton
Sen. Gray, James [R]
Sen. Hennessey, Erin Tapper [R]
Sen. Morse, Charles "Chuck" W. [R] --> Sen. Daryl Abbas, R-Salem
Sen. Ricciardi, Denise [R]
Sen. Soucy, Donna M. [D]
Sen. Ward, Ruth B. [R]
Sen. Whitley, Becky [D]

In the last election, four of the Senators who voted against legalization were replaced by pro-legalization Senators. So, the pro side now has enough votes to pass the Senate.

However, there are still not enough votes (2/3 majority) to override the veto of Governor Sununu. Sununu has indicated that he will not sign off on new legalization bills. That said, he's gearing up to make a run for President, and may not want to take an unpopular position on legal weed (74% of NH voters support legalization).

If you support legal weed, consider contacting your senator and the governor's office, and let your support for legal weed be known.

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cat-gun t1_j9o2lbq wrote

> as much as I oppose people moving to NH and trying to change it to their own desires

Free staters who move to New Hampshire have the same right to vote for our preferred policies and candidates, same as you. Do you expect NH's culture to remain preserved in amber for eternity?

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cat-gun t1_j9fayrt wrote

> whether we want it or not.

Yes, it's annoying to be coerced to do something you don't want to do. That's the nature of government though, and the reason why libertarians want a homeland where there is as little coercion as possible. Free Staters are only doing what both liberals and conservatives do: voting for the laws and elected representatives we want to govern us. If our people / ideas are appealing enough to NH voters to win elections, then our representatives have just as much right to govern as liberals and conservatives.

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cat-gun t1_j9293k5 wrote

"Idaho has the largest concentration of white supremacists of any state. It’s full of religious nutjobs."

Ah, progressives! So tolerant. So kind.

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cat-gun t1_j853vlx wrote

I didn't say they were equivalently evil acts. I used the "sundown laws" as an example to establish the principle that there exist a ) immoral laws that should not be obeyed b) laws that can't be easily changed by the victim of the law.

While suppressing the baker's free speech rights is not an equivalent offense, it's a violation of his free speech rights (and therefore immoral) and trying to change the law is likely to be a futile effort (which I think the people making the suggestion know).

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cat-gun t1_j84zzyd wrote

Yes, I want people to be able to show films that criticize government officials, regardless of their funding source. This is also the position of the ACLU:

" The ACLU has consistently taken the position that section 203 is facially unconstitutional under the First Amendment because it permits the suppression of core political speech, and our amicus brief takes that position again."

I also favor letting bakers paint donut murals on their walls.

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cat-gun t1_j84wgaf wrote

In my view, laws exist to protect our right to life, liberty, and property. So, when the law itself violates those rights, then there is no moral or ethical obligation to obey or enforce it. For example, many towns used to have "sundown laws" that made it illegal for non-whites to remain in town after sunset. Do you think a sheriff charged with enforcing "sundown laws" had an ethical obligation to enforce them?

In this case, billboard regulations violate the property owners right to do with their property as they please, and violate the First Amendment protection of freedom of speech (" Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...")

Of course, the Constitution is just a piece of paper; what matters is whether there are enough people who value civil liberties that they're willing to protect other people's civil rights. I'm arguing that the townsfolk should defend this baker's free speech rights instead of slavishly obeying the local ordinance (just as I would advocate that folks living with "sundown town" laws on the books have no duty to enforce or obey them.)

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cat-gun t1_j84t68j wrote

Lot's of small towns are dominated by obdurate, petty tyrants that can't be easily influenced or ousted due to local "good 'ol boys" networks. That's why the national government sometimes had to step in and say "No, really, you can't just lynch black people."

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