-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.zolatimes.com/V3.8/pageone.html <A HREF="http://www.zolatimes.com/V3.8/pageone.html">Laissez Faire City Times - Volume 3 Issue 8</A> The Laissez Faire City Times February 22, 1999 - Volume 3, Issue 8 Editor & Chief: Emile Zola ----- Walking the Walk by Sunni Maravillosa The United States� national anthem concludes "�the land of the free, and the home of the brave." While it can be argued that freedom was limited among certain classes of people at this country�s inception, most individuals agree that in recent years our freedoms have been greatly encroached upon, and with increasing speed. Also, many have lamented the "lack of heroes" for today�s youth, which presumably stems in part from the rarity of courage and character. Or, as it�s expressed today, it is unusual to find someone who "walks the walk". Unfortunately, this "hero" problem exists among those who fancy themselves "freedom fighters" as well. Consider the number of web sites which have all kinds of information and ideas related to freedom; then consider the number of sites�and individuals�who are actively doing something to promote freedom. Many talk the talk, but few, it seems, walk the walk. Don�t misunderstand me�educating people is a very important aspect of disseminating our ideas. Still, it�s much easier for the majority of individuals to talk about freedom than it is to do freedom. Peter McWilliams is not one of those individuals. You may recognize his name; he�s the author of Ain�t Nobody�s Business If You Do: The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes in a Free Society (Prelude Press, 1992), as well as many other books. This book is perhaps the most thorough extant exploration of the history and cost of consensual crime, and has opened many minds to the ideas of libertarianism. That in and of itself is doing freedom, but McWilliams has gone far beyond writing about these ideas. Peter McWilliams is engaged in a fight for his life. Because of that fight, he�s been drawn into battle with the DEA and IRS. It�s ironic that he�s being harassed in much the same way as he described in Ain�t Nobody�s Business If You Do. In March of 1996, McWilliams was diagnosed with cancer and AIDS. Frequent side effects of treatment for each are nausea and loss of appetite. Prior to his illnesses, McWilliams had been a supporter of one�s right to put whatever substance one desired into one�s own body on principle. Only after no other antinausea medications proved effective for him, he tried medicinal marijuana on his doctor�s recommendation. Once McWilliams experienced firsthand the dramatic difference it could make, he became an ardent supporter of the medicinal marijuana movement. For that support, McWilliams drew the interest of various federal government agencies. He placed a paid advertisement in the December 1, 1997 issue of Daily Variety, in which he discussed what he calls the "Hollywood anti-drug blacklist." He criticized the DEA�s abuse of power, including its threat to investigate the creative staff of Murphy Brown for an episode in which Murphy smokes marijuana for relief of chemotherapy-induced nausea. (Yes, writing fiction is now sufficient to make one a target, if it has a realistic drug message!) On December 17, 1997, DEA and IRS agents executed a search warrant on McWilliams� home, another residence he owns, and his business. He was told only that the search was part of an "ongoing investigation". They found marijuana�an amount within the legal limit in California�but still seized the computer he was using to research and store a book manuscript on medicinal marijuana. Undeterred, McWilliams continued his activism. Realizing that he�d become a target for the Feds, he had his lawyer send a letter to the DEA stating that McWilliams expected to be arrested again, and all they needed to do was tell him when and where to appear for his arraignment. Despite this, DEA agents showed up at dawn, and arrested and jailed Peter McWilliams on July 23, 1998, indicting him and eight others on "federal medical marijuana violations". His bond was originally set at a ridiculous $250,000 property bond, later changed so that cash was accepted against it as well. While he was jailed�over a month�he did not receive his prescribed "medical cocktail" for his AIDS and cancer regularly, nor did he receive medicinal marijuana for his nausea. A condition of McWilliams� release is drug testing, which means that he cannot use marijuana to relieve his nausea. Other medications aren�t effective for him, and his health has suffered as a result. In a recent communication, McWilliams summed up his situation: "It has been lonely these past six months since my release. My illness prevents me from creating, which is my true passion. What little productive time I have each day is spent preparing for my defense or fending off creditors. � I cannot have visitors. I do not go out. (Germs, you know. A flu could kill me.) I live the life of a hermit, laying in bed battling nausea, and going out only for medical appointments and court appearances. "But � I am reminded that I am not alone. And I am not wrong. I have not intentionally put my life in jeopardy for an unworthy cause. Like those who tossed chests of tea into Boston Harbor, were stationmasters on the Underground Railroad, were jailed for woman's suffrage and reproductive rights, who stood up to McCarthy, Marched with King, and protested against the War in Vietnam, � getting marijuana to those in medical need it is a worthy cause. [sic] �If you don't have something you're willing to die for,� wrote Martin Luther King, �You're [sic] life's not worth living.� I have found this to be true. In the midst of my perhaps-impending death, I have never felt more fully alive. Sen. Vasconcellos reminds me that a life can be just a letter�a perfectly good letter, but still just a letter�or it can be part of a great sentence. �Marijuana is medicine,� is a sentence worth dying for." In actuality, Peter McWilliams� case is about much more than medicinal marijuana. It involves freedom of speech�McWilliams believes he was originally targeted because of his outspoken criticism of the DEA. With the intimidation tactics they�ve used against him, it�s likely others have been cowed, even though McWilliams himself has not been. It involves the Tenth Amendment�the right of the states to pass their own laws, without pressure from the federal government. Janet Reno and her cronies have made it clear that they have no respect for the Tenth Amendment, particularly when it comes to the drugs they don�t approve of. His case concerns the fundamental human right of self-determination�the right to choose what to do and how to do it, as long as that does not harm others or their property. Aside from these more theoretical and judicial matters, Peter McWilliams� situation offers several lessons those of us who value freedom would be well-advised to heed. McWilliams is a well-known writer; he�s written several books in addition to Ain�t Nobody�s Business If You Do, with more than one best-seller among them. The Feds� shabby treatment of him�some believe they are actively trying to kill him, an idea which has some merit�indicates they think they can get away with such brutality. If that�s true, where will they draw a line when coming after someone who isn�t well known? Will they have any moral qualms about creating evidence when they know that public scrutiny won�t accompany their actions? We who value freedom can�t count on being right, or a constitutional basis for our arguments, to help us. As horrific as the ordeal McWilliams is going through is, it must be worse for individuals who won�t have the public history and support he has on his side. The Feds obviously see the citizens as stupid animals to be corralled and controlled as they see fit, and they are increasingly confident that they can get away with this treatment. Most important is the example McWilliams is setting. He isn�t in this for martyrdom, nor for attention�McWilliams is engaged in this battle, which may cost him his life, because it�s the right thing to do, and if he doesn�t fight, he�ll die anyway. Because of that, no matter what the Feds do to him, he can�t lose. Yes, they may kill him, but in that, more will learn about his actions, and will find it in themselves to take up his cause. More will become sickened by the tightening grip of government�s hand and will begin to resist in other ways. If he wins, he�ll be back to his writing and activism, again with a larger audience than if the Feds had let him alone. How many of us�we who write about freedom and think Big Thoughts about what a libertarian or anarchic society would be like�would make the choices McWilliams has? It�s easy to talk the talk, particularly with the Internet as the forum, where anonymity can cloak one�s identity as well as location. Signing petitions against the FDIC "Know Your Customer" proposal or National ID are easy actions to take�those are baby steps in walking the walk compared to what Peter McWilliams is doing. It takes bigger steps to actively resist the government�s attempts to brand us with the National ID, or to monitor our every financial transaction with the "Know Your Customer" proposal, or to take all of our firearms away. This nation is no longer the land of the free, nor the home of the brave. Because more of us have not been courageous enough to take action, our freedoms continue to disappear. But not where Peter McWilliams is. He is free. He may not agree with my characterization of him, but he is an example of the kind of courage that it takes to fight against those who enslave us�including ourselves, with our doubts and fears and hesitations. If we are to win this battle, we must be prepared to take the kinds of actions McWilliams has, and to pay the prices that will accompany that choice. Each individual must think about these issues, decide where one�s limit is, and what one is willing to do to resist. Not everyone needs to be as heroic as McWilliams�but if we are to make a difference, we need to take action. What anthem will you choose to sing as the days pass and more liberties vanish�will it be the national anthem that�s long been a farce, or will it be an anthem of freedom, spurring others to act in love of liberty? References Another Low in the War on (some) Drugs, by Sunni Maravillosa (http://home.lrt.org/lrt.mar98.essay.htm) How Low Can They Go?, by Sunni Maravillosa (http://home.lrt.org/lrt.essay.howlow.htm) Medical Marijuana Magazine (http://www.medicalmarijuana.com) ACLU Press Release (http://206.41.12.194/mcwilliams/motion1/temp/aclu/aclu.htm) Pretrial Statement by Peter McWilliams (http://www.petertrial.com/) CA Senator Vasconcellos� statement in support of Peter McWilliams (http://home.lrt.org/lrt.mcwilliams.vasconcellos.htm) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sunni Maravillosa is a psychology professor, a writer, and the web mistress for the Liberty Round Table. -30- from The Laissez Faire City Times, Vol 3, No 8, Feb. 22, 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Published by Laissez Faire City Netcasting Group, Inc. 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