Salon.com > Silja J.A. Talvi

Reefer madness: Is sanity breaking out?

Tue, 07 Jun 2005 19:21:00 +0000

The battle over the war on drugs heated up several degrees on Monday when the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, ruled that state laws allowing the medicinal use of marijuana don't protect patients from federal prosecution for use of a controlled substance, despite a doctor's orders. The case, Gonzales vs. Raich, was originally filed by two California women who smoke pot for medical reasons.

Medical marijuana advocates were quick to point out that although the ruling was a disappointment, it came with a surprising acknowledgment by the justices that medical marijuana users had made "strong arguments that they will suffer irreparable harm because, despite a congressional finding to the contrary, marijuana does have valid therapeutic purposes."

"While we're disappointed, the validity of state medical marijuana laws was never at issue in this case," said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, in a press statement. "The [state] medical marijuana laws ... will continue to protect patients from arrest by state and local authorities. Because [Drug Enforcement Agency] and other federal agents make only 1 percent of our nation's 750,000 marijuana arrests every year, patients in states with medical marijuana laws retain a high level of protection. Congress should act today to give those patients complete protection from arrest."

Vedder on Nader: The better man

Tue, 26 Sep 2000 19:00:00 +0000

Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder made an unexpected appearance at a crowded political rally here Saturday night, declaring his public support for Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader and performing a short, solo acoustic set for the mostly young audience.

Vedder's decision to actively support Nader's campaign comes as a surprise to many of Pearl Jam's fans. In a July interview in George, Vedder and his band mates said that lending political sponsorship to a candidate was an inappropriate activity for a rock band. Vedder, in particular, worried that endorsing one candidate might alienate fans.

But judging by his appearance Saturday at the city's Key Arena, Vedder has apparently decided that his enthusiasm for the Nader campaign's themes of anti-corporate greed and grass-roots democracy outweighs such concerns.

In the past few weeks, Vedder's name has begun to appear on Nader campaign fundraising material alongside the likes of Susan Sarandon, Linda Ronstadt, Willie Nelson, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and ex-Dead Kennedy and spoken-word performer Jello Biafra.

Hell no, we won't WTO

Fri, 12 May 2000 17:00:00 +0000

If ever a protest deserved a soundtrack, it was the tumultuous anti-WTO demonstrations in Seattle. On Dec. 1, after shutting down the city center and disrupting the trade summit, 400 weary protesters took a break from the fiery all-day demonstrations to brave the dusk-to-dawn curfew. The tired troops crammed into a popular downtown club called the Showbox to witness an unlikely USO band: singer/spoken-word performer Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys) playing the Bob Hope role, backed by guitarist Kim Thayil (Soundgarden), bassist Krist Novoselic (Nirvana) and drummer Gina Mainwal (Sweet 75).

Calling themselves the No WTO Combo, the one-off group ripped through a blistering set of Dead Kennedys-style hardcore. "Jello just exploded," says Novoselic, remembering the show. "Kim was bombin' those riffs out, just shredding. Gina was rockin'."

San Francisco indie label Alternative Tentacles released a live recording of the set this week.

Beastie Boys

Wed, 15 Jul 1998 19:00:00 +0000

In 1986, three wildly energetic young Jewish punks made rap history with "Licensed to Ill," a loud and unapologetically adolescent album that still ranks as one of the bestselling albums in the U.S. But after their funky, doped-up "Paul's Boutique" in 1989, and the more instrumental and spiritual releases "Check Your Head" (1992) and "Ill Communication" (1994), it was hard to guess where the Beasties -- MCA, Ad-rock and Mike D -- were headed. Evidently, the trio was headed to the outer dimensions of Beastiedom: Back in '86, the cover of "Licensed" featured a smashed-up airplane; in '98, the foldout CD cover of "Nasty" displays a specially designed Beastie space station.

Positive and upbeat throughout, "Hello Nasty" is nothing if not unpredictable. On several songs ("Super Disco Breakin," "Just a Test" and "Three MC's and One DJ"), the Beasties return to a slower, hollering rap style that is more reminiscent of "Licensed" than of their more recent albums. In fact, old school is king on this album in many ways -- "Body Movin'" is bound to become a new hit among break dancers everywhere -- although the modern engineering feats (courtesy of co-producer Mario Caldato Jr.) and sampling techniques offer a much more polished sound than anything they did in the mid-'80s. Intelligent instrumentals also play a prominent role, with tracks like "Sneakin' Out of the Hospital" and the beautiful "Song for Junior."