[cephas]

Okay, so I can't sleep, all wound up about the protests tomorrow, so I'm enjoying some fine medication hoping to drift off soon so I can still get at least 4 hours of sleep....and I just had a thought.

Has anybody, say the ASA or NORML, tried using sympathetic advertising techniques to get the general public to understand what MMJ is about? The idea being if they become sympathetic to our cause it will put that much more pressure on the LEO's to stop.

Here is my idea. Full page advertising in major newspapers (like the LA Times), in major news (first)section of the paper. What I envisioned would be a series of ads, each one a picture of a say a cancer patient, Crohn's patient, or other people who suffer from severe, and more appropriatly obvious, ailments. The text of the ad could read something like:

"The (insert city name here) district Attorney, and Law Enforcement organizations would like to eradicate Medical Marijuana Collectives in (city name), and throughout California. They would like you to believe that medical Marijuana patients are faking, or lying about, their symptoms just to "get high".

Do I look like I am faking?

They have said patients can grow for themselves.

Do I look like I can grow anything for myself?

What we need is regulation, so people like me can safely obtain our medicines.
Please help.
Thank you.

It's a little cheesy, and obvious, but that is what works a lot of times.

Anyways what do people think, anybody seen something like this?

Even if the ASA or NORML can't do it, I bet if every tracker donated $2, and every Collective donated a $100 we could get enough money up to buy the ad space in LA....might not even need that much, I don't know what ad space in the Times runs, or if they would even accept the ad....nothing sways politicians like public opinion....

[ps-med]

I think it is a good idea. Nothing like putting a face on the damages being proposed by the planners and LEOs. I think we need to have a message to counter the "medical marijuana is just a different form of drug dealer" message that seems to be the one being put out there by the local LEOs.

Erradicating safe access only hurts patients, it does nothing to curb illegal MJ sales.

[CarlSagan]

I totally agree.

Eventually the tide of public opinion will turn in favor of mmj and national legalization will follow.

Personally, I know I'm a dreamer, but I envision a day in which recreational marijuana is legal and expensive (taxed and regulated), while medical marijuana affordable for qualified patients because it is covered by insurance or medicare (or single payer system!?!)

This day will come, but it will not come soon enough for anyone who suffers from conditions that can be treated by mmj.

MMJ can be framed in terms of the economy and health care. Why do you have to buy your medicine from a large pharmaceutical company, when its as easy as growing WEEDs! Think of all ofthe money that could be saved. Right now when you want to buy ills as a pharmacy, think of all of the middlemen you need! The manufacturer, the insurance company, the distributor and pharmacists. And all of these links in the chain are FOR PROFIT. Thats why healthcare is expensive. A large part of the cost of pills is in marketing them (not just ads on TV, but in free samples to drs and aggressive drug reps). With MMJ, Peter Tosh said "legalize it, and I'll advertise it!"

We can just grow our own and have cheap friendly local coops for those who cant grow.

We have the following on our side:
1) our capacity to empathize with the ill
2) science
3) millions of mmj users
4) a public that is less worried about marijuana in general (medical and recreational) than a generation ago

Our biggest problem at this point is money. Who would pay for this ad campaign? I know there is NORML etc., but they're still small compared to big pharma!

Until we get more money behind this movement we need as much free publicity as we can...so...LETS GET OUT THERE AND PROTEST!!!! write letters, sign petitions, get our friends and family involved, etc!

[Mother Chucker]

The trick is finding outlets willing to run your ads.
Case in point last month in NY state the MPP tried buying pro MMJ TV ads to support MMJ legislation in the State Legislature now.

In NYC FOX, ABC and CBS all refused the ads.

NBC and local cable stations up north have accepted them.
theres a story about it on NORML's website.

[CarlSagan]

Originally Posted by Mother Chucker

The trick is finding outlets willing to run your ads.
Case in point last month in NY state the MPP tried buying pro MMJ TV ads to support MMJ legislation in the State Legislature now.

In NYC FOX, ABC and CBS all refused the ads.

NBC and local cable stations up north have accepted them.
theres a story about it on NORML's website.

I didn't know about this. WTF!?! "Free press is only free if you own a press"I don't recall who said it, unfortunately thats how our country works.

How can you reach people if the mainstream media (the only available channel to "mediate" between us and the rest of the public) won't carry our story?

With the mainstream media biased against us, even our protests can be distorted by biased reporters who focus on any mmj patients that look like a stereotypical "stoner".

I don't know how you get these folks to play pro mmj ads.

At least we live in the 21st century!

If ABC won't play ads that support our cause, YouTube will (and every year less and less people are relying on TV and newspapers for news and entertainment).

Obviously, but using this site, we are already taking advantage of the participatory nature of online social media.

One thing we can do is to use every available social media network to organize mmj patients and our friends and family. This means not only WT, but also facebook, twitter, youtube etc.

Maybe ABC or the New York Times won't accept ads, but maybe google will accept NORML ads, and these ads can link web surfers to a video

Also, mainstream media might not take us seriously, but there are (a few) local, state, and nationals who are compassionate. The Norml and MPP get laughed at when they go on TV, but the career politicians are taken seriously, and the mainstream media will have them on. We need effective lobbying, letter writing (and fundraising?) to get compassionate politicians on TV telling the truth!

This is war!

[cephas]

Again, this is all hypothetical without funding of some sort, but in today's society, billboards are cheap and privately owned. I bet billboards could be rented.

Just for fun tomorrow I'm going to call the LA Times and find out how much a full page ad runs, and if they would carry the ad or not. Figure it would be interesting information if nothing else.