Honolulu Lite
Greens see red after
pakalolo proclamationI go on vacation for one lousy week and a fire storm of controversy erupts over a column I wrote about loony candidates being unable to find a home in historically unconventional political parties.
Well, not a fire storm exactly. More like a flare up, like you'd find at the end of a poorly rolled marijuana joint. (Or so I'm told.)
I pointed out that the Hawaii Green Party would not allow convicted Big Island pot grower Jonathan Adler to run for governor as a Green candidate. I thought that was surprising, because the Greens are generally considered to be "pro pot." Not so.
It turns out that the Green Party of Hawaii is not "pro pot," which is disappointing because at least that would make the party interesting.
Green Party co-chairpersons Ira Rohter and Kathy Dorn wrote a letter to the editor accusing me of "bad mouthing" the Greens and wrongly accusing them of being pro-pakalolo. Another Green echoed Rohter and Dorn's contention that the Green Party platform does not endorse legalizing marijuana.
First off, I didn't "bad mouth" the Greens. I love the Greens. They are fun to watch. All I said was that the Green Party has been a haven for those with unconventional beliefs. I once called a member of a mainstream political party in Hawaii a political psychopath, which is clearly more along the "bad-mouthing" line than what I said about the Greens.
The trouble with the Green Platform is that it's filled with gushy, mind-numbing pronouncements like "Greens seek to restore balance through recognizing that our planet and all of life are unique aspects of an integrated whole, and also through affirming the significant inherent values and contribution of each part of that whole." (After singing a few rounds of "Kumbaya," those readers who have not slipped into a hyperglycemic coma might note that marijuana proponents apparently are too unique to be integrated into the whole planet inherent value thingy.)
The thing is, Greens are "pro pot," at least members of the Green Party of the United States, of which the Hawaii Green Party is associated. Hawaii Greens supported Ralph Nader for president in 2000 and the Green national platform specifically stated: "We support decriminalization of victimless crimes, for example, the possession of small amounts of marijuana." Nader, supported by Hawaii Greens, also is against the drug war and for medical marijuana. While the Hawaii Greens might not mention pot in their local platform, they stick the national Green platform at the very top of their Hawaii Web site, which would lead one to believe they give the national position some credence.
Greens should be pro pot. In fact, they should smoke it often. It might contribute one useful element missing from their crazy-quilt political mush of ideas: A sense of humor.
Charles Memminger, winner of National Society of Newspaper Columnists awards, appears Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. E-mail cmemminger@starbulletin.com