Sorry, but what about the police?
I am very sorry for the families and friends whose loved ones have died due to police action and/or while in police custody in 2015 in the U.S. (“Doesn’t Count: Deaths by police are not tracked in the U.S.” Nov. 12-19, 2015). I am curious, do you think the Advocate could publish the names of those whose lives have been saved by police action in the U.S. in 2015? Also, how many police officers have been killed in the line of duty in 2015? I would be interested to read those statistics as well.
Just a bunch of old fogies in yoga pants?
My God! How did we not see this coming? A letter writer complaining that David Sedaris’ show at the Academy was “classless” and “offensive.” Really? David Sedaris for chrissakes! (“Sedaris: For mature audiences only” Nov. 12-17, 2015.) Sedaris is an international phenomenon because — in his writings and on stage — he is so human, so flawed and even frail. He points out his own foibles and foolishness first and invites us to laugh at it. And we do. And we did! I was there with my 12 year old, who’s read his books, and the only complaint we had was our nosebleed seats. But even way up there we started laughing seconds after Sedaris came on stage and were giggling the whole way home.
The letter writer, who hails from what I must assume from the tone are the rarefied streets of Wilbraham, wonders if Sedaris violated the boundaries of good taste — like some Viking kicking down a nunnery door — because of “Northampton’s reputation as an unconventional, hip town.” And yet the letter proves — definitively and hopefully for the last time! — that “Noho” is neither unconventional nor hip. Maybe once. But from the endless whimpering in our little settlement it is clear Hamp is now just a bourgeois burg full of old fogies in yoga pants.
God save us from those who would save us from Sedaris!
Take advantage of marijuana-pro knowledge
What delicious levels of audacity have been displayed by this self-proclaimed “cannabis consultant,” Ezra Parzybok. (“Chill Out on the Marijuana, Man,” Oct. 8-14, 2015.) He’s growing good-quality marijuana in his backyard with scientific precision and when he gets busted he insists that this area of exploration has the potential for medical breakthroughs and that, essentially, he has done nothing wrong by getting into this trend in its early stages.
True, there is a war on drugs in progress. Yet there is a new world of understanding emerging in the area of cannabis exploration. Extracting the healing properties from plants is a human endeavor that has deep roots in our tribal past. The quest goes on. Cannabis is Exhibit A in our times.
He is “caught in the breach,” says his attorney. (Editor’s note: Police raided Parzybok’s Florence home after marijuana was spotted growing on his porch. Parzybok has a medical marijuana card, but police said he had more plants than was allowable. On Nov. 3, Parzybok got 90 days probation stemming from the raid.)
Upon reading his “Confession of a Cannabis Consultant,” printed in the Daily Hampshire Gazette on Nov. 4, one is struck by the sense of personal integrity Parzybok exudes in the ever-changing phantasmagoria of the ubiquitous weed. There is a pioneering spirit in the man that pushes him to be on the creative, cutting-edge in some area. Cannabis cultivation and experimentation on willing subjects are the activities that engage him.
Yes, he’s been playing with fire. He has been performing drug experiments on human subjects, without any claim of personal injury, to test the impacts of certain strains of cannabis. Yes, the authorities may need to make a display of the sanctity and solidity of the law even as our drug laws are shifting like tectonic plates under our feet.
A more productive and creative way to deal with Parzybok would be to drop all the charges, return his property to him and applaud his beautiful creative energy. You can’t stop the cannabis train. Just clear away the tracks and let it pass. Why not hire Parzybok as a consultant in developing the infrastructure of state-of-the-art medicinal marijuana experimentation, the licensing of cannabis specialists and directing research initiatives? With Parzybok’s expertise we could make important strides in developing cannabis and its availability to its full potential.
