THE METROPOLITAN « APRIL 17, 2008 « INSIGHT « A9
Anger and the price of grain
Too much news is bad for the
health, and as a confessed news junky
I should know. It is not only rummag-
ing through such distasteful content
that shortens the news junkie’s life,
but the true danger of news is a rare
phenomenon called the apocalyptic
light bulb of doom. Even in the most
mundane story there lurks a mysteri-
ous and powerful danger.
And so it was for me this last
weekend. Partaking in my Sunday
ritual of spending at least two good
hours with the week’s headlines, I
was sitting at my computer, listening
to music and drinking sweet gulps of
my tasty coffee beverage, when the
light appeared above my head.
Choking on my coffee, I immedi-
ately sat up in my chair. The burn-
ing ember from my cigarette fell into
my lap, causing me to quickly spread
my legs which then sent my right toe
against the computer’s start button.
Bending forward to find the ash, I
then knocked over my coffee.
The flickering screen and the mu-
sic quickly shut down, and the room
was silent but for the sounds of drip-
ping and the strange man crawling
and cursing on the floor. And all be-
cause of the price of grain in Haiti.
Protests against an almost 50
percent jump in food prices since a
year ago had developed into violence
and looting. Mobs tried to storm the
Hemp rally gives room to a new flavor
April 20 is the anniversary of
the Columbine High School shoot-
ing. It is also Hitler’s birthday, the
date of the failed Bay of Pigs inva-
sion and back in 1914, the Ludlow
Massacre happened on the twen-
tieth of April. Indeed, much like
many of the other mournful holi-
days America has racked up over
the years, doom and gloom seem to
happen on April 20.
Perhaps no other day is in such
need of emotional and political over-
haul. And this is exactly the reason
to come out and party this Sunday at
Civic Center Park. If you can avoid
the buy-one-get-one-free sales of-
fers at every local pipe and gift store,
there will be sweet skunky smoke in
the air.
Plenty of mystery surrounds the
origins of the street term 420, but it
is a calling similar to the Jesus fish or
Batman’s spotlight. It means “hey
man, are you cool?” in that “Dazed
and Confused” kind of way. It’s on
clothing lines, bumper stickers, craig-
slist roommate ads and even panhan-
dler signs. The point is, to quote Place-
bo, “A friend in need is a friend indeed,
but a friend with weed is better.” And
mostly nobody talks about it.
The police will be there, just like
ANDREW FLOHR-
SPENCE
spencand@mscd.edu
presidential palace, six people died,
including a UN police officer, 200
were reported injured and Prime
Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis was
forced to resign.
Of course, rioting in Haiti, I am
sad to say, is not particularly shock-
ing. Haiti is not known as the picture
of political tranquility. The country
seems to be either allergic to gov-
ernment or exceptionally short on
patience for corrupt and inefficient
politicians.
It was the realization that prices
here, too, had gone up and what I
read next that was the proverbial
radio in the bathwater, setting off a
chain reaction that almost set my
own house on fire.
The problem is not only Haiti’s.
Prices for all of the world’s basic
last year, but they seem to respect
the local rules. They only bothered
people they knew personally and the
kids who are too young to be at such
a place without parents. Although
District 6 put on a hell of a show, last
year’s middle-of-the-week rally was
tame enough to keep officers in their
cars. The smoke was seen from offices
outside the park, but the outcome
was substandard. The show of force
seemed to keep the crowd from grow-
ing much.
The murder of local marijuana
kingpin Ken Gorman, unspoken
host of past rallies, will give room to
a new flavor this year. Instead of a
hotheaded activist yelling at “those
pussies in the Capitol,” a whole new
crowd will come around when the
hemp rally shifts from Gorman’s
high-schoolers to Denver’s Medical
Marijuana Community.
The Hemp and Cannabis Foun-
dation (THCF), a Wheatridge-based
clinic, has moved to end the under-
ground spirit of the rally and make
it something more educational. Dis-
pensaries, doctor information, hemp
food, head shops, radio stations and
a body painter are planned as guests
for the rally. 2008 is the first year the
mayor’s office has approved a hemp
foodstuffs have recently gone through
the roof, according to scientists at a
world economic institute based in
Hamburg, Germany. Since October
2007, the price of long-grain white
rice has quadrupled. Corn has come
down slightly since peaking in March
at six times what it cost last year.
Wheat, soybeans, soy oil, coconut oil,
palm oil and sunflower oil have all
more than doubled. Only sugar, ac-
cording to the study, has stayed stable.
And the reaction has been fiery
around the world.
Senegal has seen large protests
recently, with the opposition party
leader, Abdoulaye Bathily calling the
prices “a political time bomb.” More
than 100 people died in several days
of rioting over food in Cameroon.
Egypt, after the price of bread went
up 40 percent and chicken went up
140 percent, also saw large mobs in
the street, forcing President Husni
Mubarak to announce the suspen-
sion of much of the countries rice
exports for 2007.
The list of countries that have
seen massive unrest is long. Indonesia,
the world’s third largest rice producer,
apparently isn’t producing enough.
In Mexico, the cost of tortillas has in-
creased around four fold and Peru has
seen rioting mobs and a recent trade
agreement with the United States
blamed for the rising prices.
J. ISAAC SMALL
jsmall4@mscd.edu
rally in Denver’s history.
Medical marijuana patient Holly
G. Conrad of THCF did the footwork
for this year’s permit, expecting
around 2,000 people. Conrad helps
nearly 100 patients get their medi-
cal marijuana cards every month,
but hopes everyone will attend the
festival this Sunday. Facilities will
be provided by the city, the welcome
blue string of porta-poties displayed
at many of the park’s other yearly
gatherings.
The hemp rally and its support-
ers are trying to shed the rebellious
reputation most respectable people
feel about cannabis. The gay rights
movement has shown Civic Center
Park some of the most flamboyant
THE
METROPOLITAN
Since 1979
In response, the World Trade
Organization, the World Bank and EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
numerous relief agencies have David D. Pollan
warned that the prices could endan- dpollan@mscd.edu
ger growth, stability, democracy and MANAGING EDITOR
peace around the world. They blame a Andrew Flohr-Spence
spencand@mscd.edu
string of poor harvests, the increased
demand of emerging economies such NEWS EDITOR
as India and China, and the new use Amy Woodward
awoodwa5@mscd.edu
of grains for alternative fuels.
Surely, the rioters will understand ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
James Kruger
when they show up at the gates and jkruger1@mscd.edu
the politicians explain that the food
was used to power the Mercedes and FEATURES EDITOR
Joe Vaccarelli
SUVs of rich western countries? jvaccare@mscd.edu
Alas, right before angry peasants
MUSIC EDITOR
stormed the royal palaces and toppled Jeremy Johnson
the government, French Queen Marie jjohn308@mscd.edu
Antoinette, as the anecdote goes, rec- SPORTS EDITOR
ommended the poor eat cake if they Eric Lansing
were unable to find bread. lansing@mscd.edu
Historians have since questioned ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
if the monarch actually said such an Zac Taylor
ztaylor2@mscd.edu
absurdly out-of-touch thing, but no
one questions that the queen finally PHOTO EDITOR
lost her head to the guillotine. The Cora Kemp
ckemp4@mscd.edu
starving masses, it seems, were not
debating history at that time. They ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS
Kristi Denke
were hungry and pissed. kdenke@mscd.edu
Indeed, numerous heads have Dawn Madura
rolled into the old basket of history be- dmadura@mscd.edu
cause the people couldn’t afford to eat. ILLUSTRATOR
Revolutions ignite, empires rise and Andrew Howerton
ahowert2@mscd.edu
fall, wars are fought and governments
collapse – all because of food. Explana- COPY EDITORS
Austin Corell
tions, at that point, are too late. acorell@mscd.edu
Rob Fisher
rfishe18@mscd.edu
Amanda Hall
ahall35@mscd.edu
Debbie Marsh
dmarsh8@mscd.edu
DIRECTOR OF STUDENT MEDIA
Dianne Harrison Miller
harrison@mscd.edu
festivals it’s ever had, and 35 years ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF
STUDENT MEDIA
ago it was just a dream. THCF is try- Donnita Wong
ing to get control of the cannabis wongd@mscd.edu
movement, and things tend to work
ADVISER
better when they are organized. Jane Hoback
Regardless of the mood of things,
smoking marijuana in public is still The Metropolitan is produced by and
for the students of Metropolitan
illegal. Chances are good that it will
State College of Denver and serves
happen, but THCF and Safer Alterna- the Auraria Campus. The Metro-
tive For Enjoyable Recreation want politan is supported by advertising
everyone to know you are commit-
ting a crime if you partake in public.
revenue and student fees, and is
published every Thursday during the
The penalty for possession of pot in academic year and monthly during
Denver is $100, but the real danger is the summer semester. The Metro-
politan is distributed to all campus
in paraphernalia.
buildings. No person may take more
College-aged people are pushing than one copy of each edition of The
the marijuana movement, as they Metropolitan without prior written
have been since the 1960s, but for permission. Please direct any ques-
some reason college students aren’t tions, comments, complaints or com-
doing much. Despite the signature pliments to Metro Board of Publica-
turnout at Metro for legalizing tions c/o The Metropolitan. Opinions
expressed within do not necessarily
ganja, most students didn’t bother
reflect those of Metropolitan State
to vote. A rally is almost as good as College of Denver or its advertisers.
a vote, and you don’t have to stand Deadline for calendar items is 5 p.m.
in line. The rewards are the won- Thursday. Deadline for press releases
derful smell of nature’s oldest nar- is 10 a.m. Monday. Display advertis-
cotic, plus frozen treats from Hemp ing deadline is 3 p.m. Thursday. Clas-
I Scream and a possible visit from sified advertising is 5 p.m. Thursday.
the cheesecake lady. Only when the Tivoli Student Union, Room 313.
park is full of Metro students will we P.O. Box 173362, Campus Box 57,
have done our civic duty. Join me at Denver, CO 80217-3362.
the park at 4:20, and we’ll see what
the buzz is about.