Lawmaker shunned for voting to loosen pot penalty

You'd think the fuckheaded McCarthyism that accompanies the disastrous War on Drugs would get old after 25 years, but it's one thing that always seems to just get worse.

Recently, the New Hampshire House took up a bill to greatly loosen penalties for possession of small quantities of marijuana, reducing the punishment from a $2,000 fine and jail time to just a $200 fine. The bill passed the House. One of the legislators who voted in favor of the bill is Rep. David Scannell, a Democrat from Manchester. Scannell is also the spokesman for the Manchester school system.

But now right-wing Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta is demanding Scannell resign his school system post solely because of his vote on pot. Guinta cried that only Scannell's resignation can "help restore the integrity" of the school system's anti-drug paranoia. The mayor sniffed that Scannell "interacts with kids on a daily basis" and that his vote "is counter to logic, in my view."

Reminds you of the "Think of the children!" rally from the 'Simpsons' episode where Springfield instituted prohibition, doesn't it?

So Guinta is saying someone can't work for the school system just because they voted to loosen marijuana penalties that were too stiff?

Scannell won't budge. He says that if the intolerant mayor tries to remove him as school spokesman, he may sue.

Avidly DLC Gov. John Lynch is being as much of a crybaby as Frank Guinta is, by threatening to veto the bill. I guess John Lynch enjoys it when people continue to find their futures ruined for being caught with 3 grams of pot.

And yes, the scolding Freeper-like posts calling the bill's backers "potheads" and supporting the mayor's retaliatory efforts to fire Scannell from the school system have already appeared in the comment section of the New Hampshire paper that reported the story.

(Source: http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Marijuana+vote+draws+fire&articleId=4f7cb02b-ee24-42a2-9185-083d0144c820)