Covering the gamut from upcoming elections to mind-expanding drugs (which might prove useful in dealing with all the politics of the upcoming elections) this newsletter will reward the time you spend reading it with insights, actions and feelings of accomplishments.

For a variety of issues and reasons, the November 2024 election is about as momentous an election as there has ever been in our lifetimes. Before that election comes California’s primary election on Tuesday, March 5. With 15 other states holding their primary elections on March  5, this Super-Tuesday ballot extravaganza delivers over one-third of all delegates to the presidential nominating conventions. It will most likely seal the nominations of both Biden and Trump – no surprise there.

In California there are many other elections. The big one is the nomination for the U.S. Senate. Have you seen your voter guide? The number of candidates running for the U.S. Senate is only exceeded by the number of grains of sand on a beach, but for the Democrats it is coming down to Representatives Barabara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff.  There are also a number of Congressional seats in play with the  House Majority PAC, the main Democratic group that finances in House races, planning to spend $35 million to elect Democrats to them.

There are local elections most of which are non-partisan, but party affiliation still plays a role in almost all of them even if the candidate's party is not on the ballot.

Brownie Mary Democrats have endorsed four candidates on the local election ballots They are:

Sonoma County Judge of the Superior Court - Omar Figueroa

Omar Figueroa is one of the foremost attorneys on cannabis related issues. He is just the type of person we need sitting on the Judicial Bench. Find out more about him at: https://www.omarforjudge.com

BMD has endorsed three candidates for the Los Angeles County Democratic Central Committee

AD 69 – Joseph Pinon

AD 52 - Paul Neuman and Renee Nahum

All the candidates are members of BMD with Joseph, Paul and Renee sitting on the BMD Eboard.

Many BMD members are volunteering their time helping local Democratic candidates run for office whether it is Congressional, State Senator or Assemblymember and a veritable host of candidates for County Supervisors, City Councils and down ballot races like school and water boards. Whether running for congress, the state legislature or local offices, if you have the time, you should seriously consider helping some of your favorite local candidates as well. If you do be sure and let them know you are concerned about cannabis issues and are a member of BMD.

Look for your ballot to arrive this week and then vote. Friends don’t let friends not vote, so get your friends, family members, co-workers and that strange person down the street to vote and vote Democratic.

BTW If you have not received your ballot by the 2^nd week of February, contact your local county Registrar of Voters.

In November 2020, Oregon voters legalized the use of psilocybin. After almost 4 years, access is finally going to happen. You don’t have to be an Oregon resident to have this access but don’t look for stores opening on Main Street selling psilocybin. Although the uses do not have to be medical, getting access is only through licensed practitioners offering services in controlled and supervised locations.

A long time friend of mine, Terry Turner, moved from California to become a licensed psilocybin facilitator. You are invited to attend his FREE zoom seminar on Thursday February 15 at 5 p.m. Entitled “Portals of the Sacred”, the seminar is an amazing presentation you will not want to miss. Here is what Terry has written as an introduction to his seminar and the brave new world of Oregon’s legalization of psilocybin.

     Toward the end of his ministry, Ernest Holmes famously exhorted his fellow ministers saying, “We must always remain open at the top for fresh revelations”.  As a student of world religions, he was probably aware of the strong human tendency to codify revelation into creeds and doctrines and to slide into legalistic formalism.  “The letter [of the law] kills but the spirit gives life.” (2 Corinthians 3:6).  With few exceptions, direct mystical experience has been absent from the mainstream of Western religion for the last 2000 years!  Legal access to psilocybin has the potential to change all that. In a 2008 study at Johns Hopkins University where volunteers were administered psilocybin under controlled conditions, 67% reported their experiences to be among the five most significant spiritual experiences of their lives and 72% reported mystical experiences that resulted in sustained changes in attitude, mood and behavior.

     In my 30-minute PowerPoint presentation “Portals of the Sacred”, I briefly explain what psilocybin is, how it works and give a brief outline of the 7,000 year recorded history of its sacramental use.  I conclude with a description of Psilocybin Services in Oregon—the first program of its kind in our nation offering supervised, controlled, non-medical state-legal access to psilocybin for adults over 21.  Oregon residency is not required.  Following a period of Q & A, participants will have the opportunity to experience the “sound arc” of a condensed 20-minute meditative “journey” with soundtracks used in the Oregon psilocybin service centers.

To Register for this free event contact Terry Turner at [email protected].  Include full name, phone number (optional), and email.

Brownie Mary Democrats