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Oh No! Not Again, It's Deja Vu all over again!
Now I know what Yogi Berra meant when he uttered those infamous words. Wasn't it just yesterday that I did some soul-searching with the aid of THSeeds S.A.G.E. and an Email from a stranger! Wasn't it ME, who said "But since I have been sticking my neck out recently and speaking without thought to the consequence I "should" have been expecting it!".....Yes it was. And I have written 2 new stories where I have considered the "consequences". And the consequences I am speaking of have nothing to do with irate emailers or angry stoners. I am drawn back to the story as related by Rabbi david a cooper in his book God is a Verb: Reb Shlomo, A Rabbi, who when he passed, his memorial was attended by as many rastafarians as othodox jews, told the story of "The Snuff Box" And there are many things to take away from that story, but one inescapable truth is that everyone should be respected. The lowest beggar may be a saint. The angriest, crudest dj may have a heart. Wait, I better re-light this Super Silver Haze I have been smoking.... angriest, crudest are some of the subjective prejudices I want to avoid.
This time the email starts with a quote from me.
Recently Callum Francis and High on the Air at HighTimes radio had a
GREAT interview, (well, Callum did NO interviewing, just basically had
his facts wrong, but Todd was just his eloquent self as usual.
Unfortunately, as usual with High Times, they can't just do it right,
they HAVE to screw it up!!! So not only do you have to listen to some of
the MOST INANE and non-comedic drivel known to man before getting to the
Todd stuff, but you have to DOWNLOAD the entire program on MP3 1st and
then STRAIN to HEAR IT!!!!! Arggh!!
My, did I really write that? I really need to READ these things once and awhile. Jeez, what a nasty paragraph.I'm lighting up my last joint of some sweet tooth (I was saving it for the season finale of Six Feet Under tonight but something tells me I "may" need it now!" Ahhh. Okay back 2 the job at hand.....
Inaccurate? Well, let's look. It was a GREAT interview, that is true. Callum did a basic job of interviewing, but basically had his facts wrong, many of his facts wrong, so that IS true. Todd WAS his eloquent self as usual. Unfortunately, high times does screw it up frequently. I would have to do a whole article on it(its in the works) but it STARTS with the article they printed about Peter Bourne and how "some people" blame high times for the whole collapse of the forward momentum in the late 70s. But that's another story! They did indeed make you listen to some stoner comedy before the interview, they DID force you to download it and they didn't have an engineer who could have fixed the audio in studio or someone who could fix it before posting on the web. Again true in substance, but the subjective comments about the humor were my feelings and not fact! Some people like stoner humor (see cheech and chong) Arrrggh is how I felt!
"Gee, thanks for your kind thoughts.", the email continued, "For someone who preaches "Together Over Kommon Enemies" you certainly spew a lot of garbage in HIGH TIMES' direction."
"For the record, we're not your enemy"
Point taken, Callum. But guess what? I still have the 1st issue of High Times! I have most issues pre-79(And post 95). And I think that for as long as I and others have been represented BY High Times (after all, wasn't it the magazine of the counter culture?) we have the RIGHT to demand more from High Times. Or call them on it when they don't! Now recently, a couple of things have altered that. An article by Pete Brady in which High Times esteemed counsel basically said the same line to him. That High Times ISN'T the enemy of Cannabis Culture and that we are all in the same war and an article by Steve Bloom who I had negatively prejudged due to his treatment of the lowly beggars at the (Million Marijuana March) Cures Not Wars stage sponsored by High Times and having the misfortune of sitting behind him on 2 Pan Am flights to the cup! But again, I understand that that is subjective and serves no purpose. So for the record, while I WILL still publish what I feel are facts relating to High Times (we are trying to set up an interview with Hans) I think a moratorium on subjective attacks is warranted.
I don't mind you using the Todd McCormick interview, but professional
courtesy dictates a request rather than just grabbing it for your
website. In the future, you might try doing your own reporting.
We are a Public Access T.V. show. This website is an extension of that TV show. We are professionally bound by the Fair Use Doctrine which we followed to the t. It is not our policy to request what we don't need to request but in the future, as a courtesy, if we use High Times or your information under the fair use doctrine for news and critique we will send you an email telling you we did so.
In the future, you might try doing your own reporting.
Incidentally there is no parent company. There is no expense account. We are going to Amsterdam in a month on our dime. We went to Frisco on our dime. We interviewed Soma and Marc Emery Ed Rosenthal, and for that matter Wutang, Nore, Cocoa Brovaz on OUR dime! We have no rich sponsor, no sugar daddy, just mounting debt. Most of us have families. I put 2 children through college, 1 through Law School and one yet to start it all. I think it is not subjective to say that very little reporting went into your Todd McMormick interview. We do all our own reporting. So, I understand that we are a tiny, no budget Public Access television show in New York City and that you have no idea what we do and for how long we have done it. But in the past we have done our own reporting and in the future we will continue. There is a member of the TOKE editorial Board who has been published many times in High Times!
So, honestly, I thank you for your email. I learned that people perceived as thick skinned are often as thin skinned as the rest of us. I learned that LESS THAN 2 days after posting it Callum Francis found it and complained about it! I learned that For the record, we're(High Times is) not your enemy.(this one, seriously, I hope is true and a true direction to come) and lastly and most importantly, I am human and ocassionally still stick my foot in my mouth!)
Now, where is that damn lighter..........PEACE!
To put some perspective on this, recently, Callum Francis did an interview with Todd McMormick. Tommy Chong and whether or not he has stopped smoking pot was addressed. And Todd had a very interesting take on the situation! Just the Tommy Chong info HERE The FULL interview HERE Snoop Story HERE
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