Amy Winehouse RIP

We have to get better at understanding the social triggers of addiction. Amy Winehouse created some of them with her song “Rehab.” It was funny back then, but today no one is laughing. Amy Winehouse is dead at the age of 27. Clearly she did not have the will to want to save herself. But this is how addiction ends. It ends exactly where the addict wants it to end; six feet under.

Addiction targets all people; rich or poor. In recovery it is often said that one of the main qualifications to enter a successful recovery is the admittance that we are losing in life, because we are. There is a lot of shortsightedness going on in the mind of the addict, but also in those who are watching and contributing. We are often called “losers” and are not willing to give those power who try to pull us down by admitting they are right, by admitting we are losers, by acknowledging we have a problem. We can’t see that this is our only hope. Our hypocritical accusers are often addicts who think they can “handle their high.” But it is also those people who keep us in the vicious cycle of addiction, as addiction among many other things, is a social problem.

Amy, like so many other talented music icons thought her talent was not enough. She empowered herself with substance abuse and it dismantled her piece by piece. It doesn’t matter in the end what people think of an addict. Shaming and blaming does not fix the problem nor does it change the devastating and deteriorating physical condition of an addict. Asking someone with a serious addiction like that of Amy Weinhouse to shape up in a few months is like asking someone with broken legs to get up and walk. Before we can help any addict we must understand what this condition does to a human being.

RIP Amy

Republican Craig Huey loses congressional race to Democrat Janice Hahn, but there is something far more disturbing going on.

Congressional Candidate Craig Huey is a nice guy. I met him last night and I must say he was everything we need right now both in local and national government. He cared about the people, about their lives, he looked you in the eye and smiled and when he spoke about the issues. Though I did not agree with him on everything, he spoke with conviction.

I did not vote for Janice Hahn last night, though my Democratic friends probably thought I should have “for the sake of the Party.” But some things never change, simply because they can’t. Janice Hahn wants to tax marijuana. She wants to regulate and control it and look the other way on the great harms it would cause. For me that was too big of a liability. For many of my fellow party members this did not matter.

They knew, Janice Hahn knows government. She knows how to take care of unions and fat cats. She will spearhead job growth and she will hit the ground running. Yes, she will know how to do her job, there is no doubt in my mind. At the end of the day however, we have to show that we have principles that cannot be broken. And even though I have known Janice Hahn since 2002 and even believe she will be a good Congresswoman in many respects, I will no longer be a fan or a supporter of hers.

As for the Democratic Party, I wonder what else they will do “in the interest of the Party.” Supporting drug dealers seems to be a trend they are taking in some parts of California. To say the least, I am disappointed. I am disappointed in my party and I am disappointed in Janice Hahn. For some, Janice Hahn may be a light at the end of the tunnel. The party may not see the significance and long-term consequence supporting drug dealers. It’s not a solution or a light at the end of the tunnel; it’s an oncoming run-away train.

Why I will not be voting for Janice Hahn July 12, 2011

It goes against my conscience and it is not in the best interest of our youth to elect Janice Hahn for Congress. The people should not vote for someone who is riding on the message of breaking federal law to get elected to a federal post!

I have been acquainted with Janice Hahn since 2002. I have campaigned for her brother James Hahn for Mayor of Los Angeles and always held her in high esteem. But last year I learned something about Janice Hahn that has made me not want to support her in her effort to run for the 36th Congressional District.

In 2010, I launched my campaign to defeat Proposition 19, the measure that attempted to legalize marijuana for recreational use in the State of California. This measure, had it won, would have made marijuana legal for taxable sale and consumption under state law ONLY, not federal law. I remember visiting Janice Hahn in Pasadena at a fundraiser for her race for lieutenant governor and asking her about her position on Proposition 19. I explained to her that when I was a teenager at the age of 16, I was given marijuana and was raped. After telling her my story, Hahn still did not enthusiastically oppose Prop. 19. and danced around every question I had. I found this not only hurtful, but also odd since the lieutenant governor of the state of California also sits on the Board of Regents making decisions in the best interest for students. Drug legalization is not in the best interest of students.

I have been recovering from a 13-year drug addiction for more than 12 years. My addiction started with marijuana and lead to devastating consequences in my life. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in 2007, illicit drug use cost the U.S. $198 Billion dollars in public health and public safety costs. Legalization would double, even triple that number.

Three days before the November 2010 election, Janice Hahn went before the press and pledged that the State of California would be first in line to tax recreational marijuana and that SHE would see to it. THIS WAS IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW!

Janice, I thought we were friends! I guess there’s a reason you did not ask me for my endorsement or support. On that day I was shocked to learn that Janice Hahn had so little regard for the year-long effort many hard-working Californians, including U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein had made. Senator Feinstein whom I admire for having been campaign co-chair of No on Prop. 19.

Now the constituents of the 36h Congressional District, of which I am a resident, are being asked to vote for Janice Hahn and elect her to a federal post as Congresswoman. As a registered Democrat, I will not be voting for Janice Hahn.

Gang Intervention Money Controversy Not Over Yet: MyFoxLA.com

A True Saint Has Left Us: Betty Ford Has Died

Betty Ford was a pioneer in recovery from addiction. She moved mountains were no one dared. She saw solutions where no one cared to look and she left us all with a comforting feeling that there is help for those who suffer from addiction.

Betty knew, that there is a flourishing life after addiction if we want it. By her example she made it clear that all the negative stigma addiction leaves behind, could be forgotten if one made a big enough difference. Betty made that difference all over the world.

The recovery and prevention establishment has lost a great icon who championed a second chance at life, like no one could. May we all aspire to take her example and be motivated to make the changes she has. Betty Ford was 93.