Adele ferguson - Pot, Nobel Prize, Benghazi among topics

ITEM-Washington is on the verge of becoming the first in the nation to let adults 21 or older buy taxed, inspected marijuana at state-licensed shops. Voters in Oregon and Colorado are considering similar initiatives but based on polls, Washington’s 1-502 is believed to have the best chance of passing. It could, however, bring on a protracted fight with the feds because marijuana remains illegal under U.S. law and when state and federal law conflict, federal law takes precedence. Conferences are planned to try to work something out if it comes to that.

COMMENT-I have long opposed legalization of marijuana for any reason on the advice of Kitsap County Sheriff Steve Boyer who says the plant remains a Schedule I narcotic, meaning it has a high potential for abuse and has no value medically, according to the feds. He doesn’t believe we’d save any money by knocking off prosecutions for possession because very few people are jailed for using it. It’s selling it that fills the jails. Yes, I know King County’s sheriff supports I-502, but they do a lot of things in King County I don’t think much of.

ITEM-The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the peace prize this year to the European Union, an organization Norway, being a rich country from its North Sea oil, has twice voted not to join in the belief EU’s main mission is to separate the rich countries from their money and redistribute it to poor countries that are hostile to capitalism. The award apparently is a belief that it helps unite Europe.

COMMENT-The Nobel Peace Prize has declined considerably in value since its award to Vice President Gore, President Obama and President Carter, none of whom did anything to deserve it. Gore runs around promoting a green economy while he fattens his purse on the results, Obama was honored in the early days of his presidency simply for being black since he hadn’t done anything yet, and still hasn’t, to justify it, and President Carter got it to shut him up since he had been agitating for it for years. But EU’s goal obviously is what generates our president’s desire to turn the USA into a socialist nation.

ITEM-Vice President Biden said in debate that we, we being him and the president, didn’t know increased security had been asked for in Benghazi before Al Queda came in and killed our ambassador and three other Americans.

COMMENT-What’s the use then of the red phone in the president’s possession so he can be immediately notified when something requires a decision? Remember Hillary asking about that during the campaign? If the killing of the first American ambassador in 33 years isn’t enough to get his attention away from flying all over the country at our expense to collect reelection campaign cash what is?

ITEM-Washington is expecting near record apple crops this year, while other apple growing states in the nation report the lowest production records in 26 years. A warm early spring followed by killing frosts decimated the other states’ harvest while we had ideal growing and picking conditions. Washington usually produces about 50 to 60 percent of the nation’s apples but this year could hit 77 percent.

COMMENT-The same as my apple growing friends, my own trees are putting out bumper crops, unlike last year when I had only one tree that produced, a Mutsu which normally isn’t grown here because it ripens so much later than the standards such as Red Delicious, Yellow Delicious, Gravenstein, etc. I hope I don’t have the same results as last year when my Mutsus finally approached harvest time and the night before I decided to pick them, the raccoons beat me to it without leaving me one single apple.

(Adele Ferguson can be reached at P.O. Box 69, Hansville, Wa., 98340.)