What is Wrong With Decriminalizing Homosexuality? Answer for Conservatives

I have received this question multiple times from other conservatives. They are pro-life, they are pro-family, and they do not want to cede anymore political territory to the left.

However, when the discussion turns toward what to do about homosexuality, the confrontations emerge: "You think it should be recriminalized? Why not just decriminalize these behaviors? It's not like what people do in the privacy of their own homes affects us.

"What is wrong with decriminalizing homosexuality?"

To those conservatives, I say --- Thank you for asking the question, fellow conservatives!

This is an issue which must be confronted adequately, accurately, and cogently.

First of all, I want the natural rights of all individuals to be respected and honored. Homosexuality and transgenderism are not natural rights, but unnatural acts. They violate the laws of nature and Nature's God, and thus they are an affront to the law of nations.

Under no circumstances would I celebrate or press for individuals in bondage to these behaviors to be thrown off of buildings or hung from cranes. Not at all.

Regarding the executions which take place in Islamic countries, what most people do not realize is that in the many cases in which homosexuals are hanged or thrown off of buildings to their deaths, these executions occur in connection with child abuse or rape. The narrative that those individuals are executed simply for "being gay" is not true.

Now, regarding the matter of liberty ...

There can be no liberty in any country without morality. Review the histories written by ancient Greco-Roman historian Polybius, who described the total breakdown and collapse of Greek city states following the disregard and disruption of natural relations between man and woman.

The state does have a role to play in ensuring public health and public safety.

Private acts do indeed have public consequences. For example, it is wise and good for a nation to criminalize prostitution and incest. Such behaviors are harmful to morale as well as the morale fibers of a community. One could argue that in the vast majority of cases, those behaviors are private, consensual acts. They wreak untold, unintended public consequences--the breakdown of healthy families, the health problems, the conginental and moral defects which ensue from such corrupted beahviors.

The same consequences hold true for homosexuality. Where homosexual acts are permitted and even celebrated, there is a stunning rise in disease, dysfunction, and death. Contrary to the arguments proferred by LGBT activists, indifviduals in bondage to these behaviors suffer high rates of morbidity and mortality due to the nature of the acts themselves, and not from political or cultural persecution. In the most LGBT affirming locales, the suicide and mortaity rights for these behaviors are actually much higher. The lifespan of homosexuals declines by an average of 20%.

Again, most people will contend: "What people do in the privacy of their own homes is none of my business." Paul Johnson, a pre-eminent British historian unveiled to the world one of the most horrendous public conequences which followed the decriminalization of homosexuality in Great Britain.

He wrote:

"There were many of us, in the 1960s, who felt that there were grave practical and moral objections to the criminalisation of homosexuality, and who therefore supported, as happened in most Western countries, changes in the law which meant that certain forms of

homosexual behavior ceased to be unlawful. 

"We were proved totally mistaken. 

"Decriminalisation made it possible for homosexuals to organise openly into a powerful lobby, and it thus became a mere platform from which further demands were launched. Next followed demands for equality, in which homosexuality was officially placed on the same moral level as standard forms of sexuality, and dismissal of identified homosexuals from sensitive positions, for instance in schools, children’s homes, etc., became progressively more difficult. This was followed in turn by demands not merely for equality but privilege." (The Quest for God, pages 28-29)

Homosexual conduct, and the movement which inevitably ensued, was never about "Live and Let Live". It was never about expanding the notion of liberty. Homosexual conduct, and the inevitable lobby which follows, will never cease making more demands for its normalization, acceptance, and celebration at the expense of the natural rights of all.

I have no interest in seeing the Bad Old Days of the sexual license, in which men abused other men for pleasure, diminishing the rights and privileged roles of women and children. This perversity was rampant not just in Ancient Greece, but also in Ancient and even Mediaval Europe and China.

The introduction of Judeo-Chrisitan mores in all domains, including sexual expression, helped foster stable, strong, and prosperous societies. Abandoning these principles is hurting our communities, our country, our culture. When Great Britian colonized Southeast Asia, the instituted this strict ban on immoral acts, which in turn helped those regions to prosper economically and culturally. To be truly progress, a nation, a country must honor natural marriage--one man and one woman.

As for making the arugment that one is arguing for a theocracy by sanctioning homosexuality, one can consider the Republic of Singapore, which is hardly a religious state, yet which has maintained the anti-sodomy statute 377a on its books. No, the Republic of Singapore does not actively enforce that law, but it forestalls all the corrupt perversions which inevitably follow:

1. False, aka same-sex marriage
2. Homosexual adoption (which harms the children)
3. Enactment of civic codes to grant special protections to them, and at the expense of everyone else
4. Punishment for those who do not agree to or celebrate LGBT behaviors

Karen Siegmund mentions that we are living in the slippery slope, and I agree--but that does not mean would should settle for the slide and enjoy the perverse ride until our culture, country, and communities collapse.

It's time to push back, to build a big, beautiful wall around the civic order which makes Western Civilization possible. 

I would submit that homosexuality should be treated like smoking:

1. We limit its practice
2. We actively encourage people, especially young people, to avoid practicing those behaviors
3. We offer assistance to help people break free of those habits.

Thank you for your time.

(PS for a more thorough breakdown why sanctioning sodomy is wise public policy, please look over the speech of Dr. Thio Li-Ann of Singapore:

http://aschaper1.blogspot.com/2019/10/bold-speech-against-lgbt-in-favor-of.html

The State of the Union: Bold Speech Against LGBT, In Favor of Sanction (Parliament Building, Singapore, 2007) Two camps championing two distinct criminal law philosophies are polarised over whether to retain or repeal s377A which criminalizes public or private acts of gross indecency between two men, such as sodomy. aschaper1.blogspot.com

After Prop 64 Passage, Black Market Pot Shops Still Thrive -- What Happened?

The Modesto Bee has reported that Stanislaus County sheriff's deputies are cracking down on illegal pot shops, which are eating away at the legal marijuana businesses, all recently established following the passage of Proposition 64. 

Wait a second!

I thought that legalizing recreational marijuana would do away with the black market? Certainly that's what the proponents of Prop 64 believed, and one of the reasons why the initiative passed by a significant margin in 2016.

What went wrong? What was in the iniative, and thus the reasons why I opposed the initiative, even though I believe that people should not be locked up, placed in jail for using a drug that simply makes you ... stupid.

I voted NO on Prop 64 precisely because there were so many poison-pill provisions in the legislation, including language which would undercut one of the goals of the bill--shut down the black market and bringing marijuana sales into the open. The initiative imposed a massive sales tax on recreational marijuana products. The initiative also included stiff penalties for marijuana related crimes, including the loss of one's Second Amendment Rights for a non-violent misdemeanor. These two problems, along with a host of other issues (the fact that marijuana use, sale, and distribution remains illegal at the federal level; the impossibility of banking because marijuana sales violate federal law, etc.) made Prop 64 a bad proposition.

But the biggest problem was that stiff added sales tax of 15%. Lo and behold, because the costs of legal marijuana are so high, much higher than the drugs pushed on the street, the black market survives and even thrives in the state of California. Why bother buying legal pot, which is excessively expensive, when you can buy it cheaper from the seedy drug dealer?

I favor decriminalization for possession and use of marijuana, since locking people up does not get them sober nor does it set them free from the addition. One reason why? It's even easier to get drugs in prison than on the street? However, Prop 64 was the wrong approach for many reasons to phase out onerous legal consequences for drug use or possession. The proof is the fact that the black market has not be closed down or forced out of business by the legal compte

Proponents expected a collect greater tax revenue with the passage of Prop 64. What happened instead is that the black market has only gotten bigger, while the marijuana revenue failed to meet projections. No end to the black market, lower-than-expected tax revenue, and now police officers throughout the state of California must divert their already strained resources to crack down on these illegal pot shops.

It's time to have a thoughtful discussion about decriminalization of controlled substances, one that recognizes the potential unintended consequences of marijuana use, one which allows law enforcement to stop down serious crimes and track down those criminals, but most importantly one which understands how markets work, how free enterprise works, and which recognizes the power of competition as well as government control.

Thriving black market in StanislausCounty is hurting legal cannabis businesses

BY ERIN TRACY

MAY 16, 2019 01:18 PM, UPDATED MAY 17, 2019 08:32 AM

 Play Video

Duration 1:55Take a look inside a legal marijuana business in Modesto

Bob Blink of Lyfted Farms and Michael O'Leary with Medallion Wellness describe the production and sales of Marijuana on Monday May 6, 2019 at Lyfted Farms in Modesto, Calif. BY JOAN L LEE

Since the outdoor growing season for cannabis began last month, the Stanislaus County Sheriff Department’s Special Investigations Unit has dedicated at least one day each week to eradicating illegal grows.

Critics say cannabis is legal now and it’s safe; law enforcement should focus their efforts on dangerous drugs like methamphetamine and heroin. The multi-jurisdictional SIU investigates those drug crimes as well, in addition to others like gang crimes and human trafficking.

But law enforcement and the businessmen who’ve obtained permits and licenses to grow and sell cannabis in Stanislaus County say the illegal grows not only undermine the legal operations but attract violent crime into neighborhoods, produce untested, sometimes unsafe products and create environmental hazards.

Sgt. Bruce Mitchell, supervisor of the SIU, said they are focused on large-scale operations, not small grows just over the 6-plant limit for personal use.

He said the large grows are targets for robberies and burglaries and both the criminal and the victim are usually armed, bringing gun violence into neighborhoods.

“We have had a number of incidents where people will try to break into places like this and grab five or six plants and there ends up being a shooting,” Mitchell said earlier this month at a 2,200-plant illegal grow in Patterson.

About 2,200 plants were eradicated from illegal indoor and outdoor marijuana grows at a property in the 2900 block of Orange Avenue, just outside of Patterson, on May 2. By Erin Tracy

Sheriff Jeff Dirkse said there was a period of time during changes in the law that illegal grows were not a priority.

“Beginning this year, we have a renewed our enforcement activities against illegal grows and removed over 22,000 plants in March alone,” he said. “If people want to use marijuana recreationally or medicinally, they have nothing to worry about from us so long as they follow the appropriate laws, no different than alcohol.”

But he said illegal grows “create a number of public safety hazards that we are concerned with, including illegal pesticides, black mold, armed robberies and general increased complaints and calls for service.”

The Sheriff’s Department estimates there are 1,500 illegal grows within the county at any given time. Mitchell believes as many as half of those involve Mexican drug cartels.

He said marijuana appeared to have motivated a 2017 unsolved double homicide near Riverbank in which two men were found dead at an illegal grow.

One man was found dead outside a warehouse behind the house on Claribel Road; a broken wooden bat next to him, according to court documents. A second deceased man was found tied to a chair inside the warehouse, where marijuana was being dried and processed. A grow inside the house had been cleared out.

Legal operations have safety plans approved and maintained through compliance checks by the Sheriff’s Department.

Those plans vary depending on the operation but include background checks on owners and their employees, burglar alarms, exterior and interior cameras, on-site security guards, panic buttons and plans in place in the event of takeover-style robberies or other crimes.

Michael O’Leary, owner of Medallion Wellness, a dispensary on north McHenry Avenue, has a surveillance system that is linked to a 24-hour crime center from which a dispatcher can send a security guard, sound an alarm and speak directly to the suspect.

In addition to keeping his business free from crime, he said it’s stopped a break-in at a neighboring business and interrupted a suspect who was trying to siphon gas from a vehicle in the parking lot.

His dispensary also has a panic button, as does the cultivation site from which he purchases product.

Bob Blink, owner of Lyfted Farms, currently is producing about 2,000 pounds of cannabis a year and continuing to expand in warehouses on Jerusalem Court.

Blink said he accidentally pushed the panic button shortly after it was installed and four sheriff’s deputies were at his business within five minutes.

“Illegal operations are completely clandestine so (when there’s) some sort of security event, they are on their own. They can’t pick up the phone and call the local sheriff’s office to come help them,” said Zach Drivon, an attorney who represents both O’Leary and Blink.

The businessmen, both Modesto natives, first started operating nonprofit medicinal cannabis collectives in 2015. Drivon said they were integral in passing a measure in Stockton that lifted the ban on medical cannabis dispensaries and cultivation and worked with Stanislaus County to fund a poll that showed majority support for cannabis businesses here. They also have been transparent with county officials who asked to tour their businesses.

So when the county started reviewing 33 applications for cannabis permits last year, O’Leary and Blink were at the front of the pack. They received the first cultivation and dispensary permits in the county in February and April, respectively.

Since then the county has issued permits to three other businesses for cultivation and four more businesses are going through the approval process now for nurseries, cultivation, distribution and retail, said Tera Chumley, senior management consultant for Stanislaus County.

The county has a cap of 61 cannabis permits, only seven of which can be dispensaries.

To grow cannabis, Blink not only is regulated by the Sheriff’s Department but by the state Water Resources Control Board and the County Agricultural Commissioner, which ensure the businesses are not polluting the water or using harmful pesticides.

In the rooms where cannabis is grown, Blink uses insulated metal paneling, typically utilized in cold food storage, to prevent mold.

The rooms are cleaned with bleach between each harvest.

He uses only organic pesticides that are so mild the plant must be treated weekly. There are other pesticides that will kill any insect with one treatment per harvest, O’Leary said, but they are dangerous to humans and become carcinogenic when heated and inhaled, which is how most people consume cannabis.

Mitchell said he sees those toxic pesticides being used at illegal grows and marijuana being grown in moldy, unsanitary conditions that can be harmful to the consumer and the environment.

Samples are tested from every strain of cannabis in every quarterly harvest at Lyfted Farms. A lab tests for 66 types of pesticides, as well as microbials (bacteria), toxins from mold and heavy metals like arsenic and lead. If any were ever detected (none have been), the batch would be destroyed.

Blink also tags every plant with a unique number that is entered into the state’s track and trade system.

“It tells me when it was created, when it was flowered, when it was sprayed, what was sprayed, who had hands on it; the whole history of the plant from seed to sale,” he said.

 MOD_JBLLyftedFarms2

Processor Brad Nunes trims marijuana product at Lyfted Farms Monday May 6, 2019 in Modesto, Calif. Joan Barnett Lee JLEE@MODBEE.COM

But O’Leary said most consumers don’t consider all the safeguards in place by legitimate businesses and the potential dangers of cannabis grown illegally.

“In the cannabis market, as long as your flower looks pretty and smells pretty, you’re going to give it a shot, ” he said.

As a result, many consumers are still willing to purchase cannabis on the black market because it costs half of what you’d pay in a dispensary. The taxes alone are 33 percent, O’Leary said.

“We as legal operators have shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars to become compliant and it is hard for us to even recoup what we put in when there is such a lucrative black market out here right now,” O’Leary said.

In addition to operating costs and state taxes, they must pay the county a community benefit fee, which funds enforcement, and a community benefit contribution, which supports local charities, community programs and public projects with a focus on youth.

Blink pays $70,000 a year for the fee and $35,000 for the contribution. That number will increase annually as profits grow. O’Leary will pay a fee of 8 percent on every sale and a community benefit contribution of $12,000, which also will increase annually.

Mitchell said the money that is coming in from the community benefit fee will soon fund two new deputies to join the SIU to combat illegal operations and conduct compliance checks on the legal businesses.

“There is more of a focus now because the county is getting pressure from these businesses … for us to go out and (eradicate) the illegal grows,” he said

Still, for now their efforts to fight illegal grows are “barely scratching the surface.” They take one down and another pops up, Mitchell said.

“Not only is the black market undermining the price of cannabis for the legal operators but it’s detracting from the best interest of the community, the health, safety and welfare of the general public,” Drivon said. “It only makes sense from a policy perspective to control this market, to control this agricultural commodity.”