ISSUES:

MARIJUANA

The government is wasting lots of money arresting, trying and incarcerating people for the victimless crime of growing, dispensing of medical marijuana. This isn't even a crime in California. Lives of innocent people are ruined by the Federal pursuit of their unfair laws. It is unConstitutional to go against the will of the people of California who passed Proposition 215, which allows for medical marijuana in California. I will make it my priority to free all non-violent prisoners convicted under arcane marijuana laws.

Hemp cultivation is not legal in the USA. Hemp is a miracle plant from God, put on the Earth to clothe us, feed us, make our paper out of and oil to power our lives. Hemp is all organic and would drastically reduce deforestation, pollution from cotton growing and ease our dependency on foreign oil.

ILLEGAL
IMMIGRATION

We should setup cooperative organic farms in countries like Mexico, where they would grow organic food, hemp and harness solar energy for even simple basics like purifying drinking water. The food would be exported to the USA. This way people could make a decent living, and stay close to their family, friends and homeland. This would reduce the influx of illegal immigrants to the USA and still supply us with healthy food.

ENERGY

Solar cells have been making low cost significant breakthroughs lately. There is a new kind of solar cell technology called amorphous crystal. Though they are not yet as efficient as expensive, standard silicon wafer solar cells, they are many orders of magnitude cheaper, easier to manufacture, more durable and easier to install than our current silicon wafer solar cell products. Amorphous crystals are very durable, thin, light, flexible, even transparent. They are currently in products like solar cell roof shingles and even paint.
An overlooked technology is of using parabolic reflectors in the desert that heat water and produce electricity. A company called THROUGHNET in 1982 installed a solar collector/electricity generator that produces as much energy as a nuclear power plant. There is enough desert around cities like LA, San Diego and Sacramento to produce solar electricity to run these cities with no oil or pollution. The government should assist in the development of these technologies, creation of the production facilities and in making these ideas into an everyday reality.

TRANSPORTATION

There are many overlooked, underutilized methods of alternative transportation including carpooling, particularly Casual Carpooling. Casual Carpooling is a method of instant carpool ride matching that has been going in in the San Francisco East Bay for 33 years, for which 20,000 riders a day get rides into San Francisco at Carpool Stops. A driver pulls up to the stop, 2 riders, strangers, jump into the car and get a free direct ride into SF and now the driver doesn't have to pay the toll. In 33 years and millions of rides matched there never has been a problem reported to the police. This has all been done by a guerrilla, grassroots, improvisational manner with no organization used to create this phenomena. If the government was to get behind this, create the infrastructure and use modern technology, Casual Carpooling could be used way beyond the SF East Bay and made into a practical, reliable and safe form of alternative transportation. For more information on Casual Carpooling check out CARPOOL4CASH.com.

PRISON REFORM

The prison system is a big, multi billion dollar business in California, that has a very powerful lobby that does not want prison reform. They want to build more prisons, incarcerate more people and keep their prison developers and guards employed. The first step is to free all marijuana prisoners and inmates incarcerated for crimes for which their is no their victim. The prisoners are the victim. We have to stop the revolving door where people on parole or probation get an automatic 3 months back in jail just because they had a drink or smoked a joint. Over 60% of inmates in prison are stuck in this vicious circle that has to be addressed and reformed. We cannot be wasting taxpayers money and ruining the lives of helpless people stuck in a system this goes on for a lifetime.

PEACE

These perpetual wars can not go on. We spend trillions of dollars destroying the poorest nations. Latest estimates have over 600,000 Iraqis dead. We will never know. With the kind of money used to destroy and kill, we could be building beautiful cultures that will be our friends not our enemy. I will do all in my ability to bring an end to this evil madness. It has to stop now.

THE FUTURE

There is a great future for California. One that is free of polluting fossil fuels, whose citizens are not harassed by the government, where people eat wholesome foods and utilize the latest and best of our technology. We now have picnic utensils that are made out of potato starch, not petroleum based plastics, that are also biodegradable. Corn is used for making a new kind of plastic that is currently used in coffee mugs. Electric cars are starting to make major headway. TESLA MOTORS has just started production on an all electric sports car, that is faster than a Ferrari, with a 250 mile range before need to recharge, gets the equivalent of 100 miles to a gallon and can get 100,000 miles to a gallon if you recharge the car using solar panels. These cars are not hybrids, like the Toyota Prius. They run using the latest technology and should last a lifetime with minimal maintenance. They will have a SUV soon. This, and much more coming.

I envision an end to the Marijuana war because Marijuana Peace makes social and fiscal sense. A healthy society that has access to health care because funds. The money wasted building prisons for pot users can be utilized in the health field.
I envision family farms thriving with a healthy hemp crop and organic food with solar energy and wind energy taking the place of petroleum energy.
This is the future I see for California, a very solar powered bright one. Now where are my shades?