From the Keene Sentinel:
My name is Jenna, I’m 18 and am from the Keene area.
I stand with my fellow “stoners” at 4:20 when I can on my days off from work. I read the paper and keep up with the media on this topic every day.
As to the article in the Sept. 30 paper, “Weeding out lawbreakers:” I was appalled as to what some of the residents feel should happen to us protesters, such as one resident called for the police to use tear gas, riot batons and Tasers on us.
Those sorts of actions have no place at the rally that is held at the common.
It is a peaceful protest and there has been no violence. Why should we have those used on us when we are simply standing for what we believe in?
And if the police were to use tear gas, riot batons and Tasers on us when we are not out of control it would be police brutality.
This protest will continue and we will all stand together for what we believe in. Some say what we are doing is a mistake. Well, if it is a mistake, let it be our mistake to make.
What some people don’t understand is that marijuana is not a drug. Marijuana is no different than tea, coffee, or even tobacco. The chemical in tea and coffee is caffeine.
The chemical in tobacco is nicotine. The chemical in marijuana is THC.
Caffeine and nicotine have effects on the mind and body similar to marijuana, except caffeine can be addicting and your body has physical withdrawals. Nicotine is addicting and has effects on the brains as well.
I’m not a doctor so I cannot get technical, but marijuana is not addicting like caffeine or nicotine, and there is no physical withdrawal from the “drug.”
People drink coffee to give them energy. People smoke cigarettes for relaxation. People smoke marijuana because it is calming, similar to tea. I am speaking as someone who has been doing all of the three since I was about 11 years old.
How often do you hear of someone smoking a joint and going out and starting a riot? Or how often do you hear of someone lighting up then going home and beating his wife?
But how often do you hear of people doing these things while drinking alcohol? Alcohol is a worse substance than marijuana, but is legal to those over the age of 21 in the state of New Hampshire.
Also in the article, a resident stated “my prediction is that if you allow this to continue, someone is going to get hurt, either from a fed-up citizen or from the junkies.”
Excuse me, but since the protest has started there has been no violence, so if someone is to get hurt its not going to be because of us “junkies.”
This is a peaceful protest and if a fed-up citizen were to try and hurt one of the protesters, what could anyone make of it, except someone needs to hand that citizen a joint, light it up and take a walk in our shoes and free his mind of the negative feelings toward us and the plant.
And for you to call us junkies is out of line. A junkie is somebody who is addicted to a substance and lets the addiction control their lives.
Marijuana is not addicting and it does not turn people into junkies like actual drugs can do. I feel they miscategorize marijuana by calling it a drug. A drug is a manmade substance, not a naturally grown plant. Maybe alcohol should be placed in the drug category and marijuana taken off of the list.
I believe in what I stand for and I’m thankful to those who started the 4:20 gathering at the common.
It’s about time we speak out and express to those who are uneducated about the harmless plant marijuana.
JENNA SHEEHAN
322 Valley Road
Sullivan
