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Spinners Pizza
no Fonzi here, But Heeyyy! Spinners is about as Americana is now open and taking phone as Ritchie Cunningham. There orders for pick-up or delivery. are several TV to catch your One of the latest in Pizza shops favorite sports and if music is to open in San Marcos, they what you like you can here live serve up more than just pies. You can order a hot sub,Burger, or even a Philly Cheese steak! They also offer meatball parmigiana, Madison’s Calzone, Shandons Lasagna, are all part of the menu specialty items that you can order besides pizza pies.
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
There are some Weird Magazine events on the 20th of April as well Club Abiente in McAllen with Personal Use and join us for Funkotron at Tantra in San Marcos. We tackle the growing concern about legislation of marijuana in this April edition, so read our interviews with Barry Cooper, and Charlie Roadman on the legal side of this issue. Also there are a few tips for any HEADS out there as well. We speak with Russ from NORML radio on what is new with the national puff and pass rules for medicinal medicating and what states are pressing for legislation.
COLD BEER AND PIZZA! Cold beer is coming soon to
Spinners so be on the look out in a few weeks for cold beer on tap to go with the already great tasting pizza. Oh and Spinners will do fine by your wallet and budget as well because everything is affordable. Heck even Potzi or Ralph the Mouth could be as cool as the Fonz at Spinners! So plan a party, call it in, or just bring the whole family. Spinners welcomes all the San Martians to come in and try the great food and say hello. Ask for the Bobcat Special!
Reminding me a bit like TVs Arnold’s in Happy Days, except
Welcome to Weird Magazine this April. Lots of great information for your consideration this month. Enjoy our interview with Kevin Booth on the Drug war and pick up his new film “How Weed Won the West” at Brave New Books on April 20th. Also catch Barry Cooper at BNB on the 20th.
music on Thursday nights, or ask the staff to turn up the XM Radio to the station of your choice!
For a personal use of groovy music chime in on our interviews with Van Sanchez, and Personal Use. Both of these great bands rock and deserve to be heard! Now if Frozen Nazi’s don’t grab your attention, then maybe Killer School Girls from Outer Space will. Read our exclusive interview with the Director of the Film and the gang from Angry Nun Productions. Yes... that’s Ron Jeremy in a cameo appearance in the April release to DVD from Austin ANP. Contact these guys if you want to screen the film at your place. Wow we are all over the place with this issue. So don’t let those brownies burn in the oven and do that thing you do, cause Weird Magazine is weirder than ever. Thanks for being a part of our 75th Issue this month! See you in May when we talk with astral comics from Neptune. They will be stopping by earth for a comedy tour that’s out of this world!
BAND INTERVIEW W: Hey Personal Use. Welcome back to Weird Magazine. PU: Hey wussup Russ how you been? THANX FOR HAVING US BACK ON WEIRD. W: So tell us what's cooking with the band in recent months? PU:WE'VE BEEN TAKING IT EASY AND TRYING TO FINISH THE ALBUM.(PLAYING DOWNTOWN EVERY THURSDAY) Are you guys recording? PU: YES. ALWAYS. W: Introduce all the Band Members? PU: WATTS ON BASS, CHAPA ON GTR, MENDOZA ON PERCUSSION, BENNETT ON TRUMPET, ADAME ON TRUMPET, CASTANEDA ON
TROMBONE, OCHOA ON VOCALS, RUIZ ON FREESTYLE, RENDON ON DRUMS
PU: MIX CD THE BEATLES, TOM PETTY ,SNOOP ,DOGG, BOMBA ESTEREO, RIGO TOBAR, ALBOROSIE,BOB MARLEY OF COURSE.
W: What was I talking about before man?
W: Describe for the Weird Magazine readers the concept behind the name of the band? LOL ;)
W: Favorite Cheech and Chong movie ever?
PU: ABOUT PUTTING US ON THE COVER (JUST THE P.U. SYMBOL AS BIG AS YOU CAN ON WHITE BACKGROUND
PU: MUSIC FOR YOUR PERSONAL USE. THAT'S IT!
PU: UP IN SMOKE! BUT WE LIKEM ALL
W: Tell Meird Wagazine what, wait man what was in that?
W: So tell us what inspires the band? (besides the obvious).
W: Back to the music, tell us who some of your influences are man.
PU: THE ALBUM WILL BE OUT SOON WE PROMISE YOU STONERS!
PU: LIFE.
Interview concludes with Russell passing out on the floor. . . . .
W: So where are you guys performing for 420 this year? That's April 20th?
PU: MADONNA,TOTO,STYX, what!............. thats kind of hard to answer man all of us have different influences but sammy likes LADY GAGA!!!!
PU: @ AMBIENTE LIVE MUSIC VENUE S. 17TH ART MUSIC VENDORS FOR MORE INFO TEXT (956) 460-7490
W: What do you guys think of the Marijuana Legislation situation in California? Medicinal marijuana is legal to medicate ones self you know.
W: What CD is in your car now?
PU: CALL US WHEN IT AFFECTS TEXAS.
WHO GAVE HIM THE BROWNIE!
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BAND INTERVIEW photography by Ross Fry @ Monocle Digital Imaging
W: Welcome to Weird Magazine. Introduce the band members and the instruments each plays. VS: Michael Harrison: lead bass, vocals; Cole Husbands: keys, vocals; Todd Landrum: rhythm bass, vocals; Erik Tarpley: drums W: Very Cool. That is different? So there isn’t any guitar?
VS: Correct, two basses, keys, drums and no guitar, which makes for a pretty unique, big, warm sound. It enables us to do some fairly heavy, loud stuff without being teethgrindingly abrasive. And the treble end is covered by the keys and vocals, and Mike being able to make his bass sound like a guitar when he wants to. It’s a pretty unmistakable sound. W: Describe some of the bands influences? Because You ROCK! VS: Thank you very much. And that’s actually kind of a difficult question.
It’s hard even for us to identify who our influences are. We like so many different bands and kinds of music, but we don’t really sound like any of them. Honestly, our influences pretty much run the gamut. Everything from Ministry to Chopin has had its effect on at least one of us. And then there are nonmusical influences. For instance, the song “Blood lust” on our first album was directly inspired by Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian. Anything from anywhere at any time can be an influence. It’s also probably necessary to say that we feel like there is a lack of original ideas coming out
of music, film, art, most everything these days, and we’re reacting to that with the way we approach our music. W: What kind of background do the band members have musically? VS: Mike, Todd, and Erik have been in bands for most of their adult lives. About eight years ago, Mike and Cole were briefly in a band together called Dead Shaggy Pony, and they’ve collaborated on a couple of ambient records since then. Erik and Todd were in a band called Holding 1. After a while, things fell apart
with those projects, and new things arose from the ashes. For the past five years, Mike, Todd, and Erik have played in a band called Enemy of Mankind, which also has two basses and no guitar, cultivating a sound unlike anything anyone has ever heard before. Van Sanchez is like the cute little sister of Enemy of Mankind. W: Where are you guys of Van Sanchez from? Your hometown? VS: We’re from Texas. Our home base is in San Marcos. W: I have several albums, the music is psychedelic at the least would you agree? VS: Our music has remnants of many different styles, but yes, “psychedelic” does usually make its way to the forefront when people try to describe our music, and that’s especially true when you listen to our first album. Which makes sense because most of the tracks on that album are instrumental or with minimal vocals. We like to try to put pictures in people’s heads with our music, suggest a scene or a particular situation or emotion or color. We are all very interested in film score, which as a genre is in many ways about creating a mood, taking the listener to another place. So yeah, you could say the music’s a bit trippy.
write strong melodies. We also try really hard to make each song unique, in sound, in attitude, in perspective. And we hope that keeps the listener interested and stimulated. It does us. It’s fun to hear different people’s responses to our music. Everyone says such different things about it. W: I like Hey Man, and of course The Mean Lean, and Play with the Lights. Are many of these songs on the new album? VS: Thank you. Both “The Mean Lean” and “Play with the Lights” will be on the new album along with 8 other tracks. “Hey Man” was on our first record.
Cole Husbands: keys, vocals
VS: Heh. Right. Next on the agenda is to really push the album and try to drum up some buzz for it. And we’re always writing new music. There will definitely be some new songs at our CD Release, as well as a new album by the end of the year. As far as a tour goes, we really don’t have any desire to be gone 300 days out of the year and come home broke. We do want to play some good shows though. So, if the opportunity arises to open for a
W: What is the new Album called? And when can we get our grubby weird hands on this eargasmic gem? VS: It’s called “High Class Dirt Bag”, and it will be available in mid-April. You can always buy it (and the first album) at one of our shows or you can pick up a copy at Sundance Records in San Marcos, Waterloo Records in Austin, as well as other indie music stores around Texas. W: Weird Magazine attended a show at Trophy’s last month. It was AWESOME! Tell us where we can see you perform live this April?
Erik Tarpley: drums VS: Thanks very much. It was cool to hang out with you guys that night. Our next show is our CD Release at the Triple Crown in San Marcos on April 24th. We’re playing with The Organics and Beans and Rice. Everyone that pays admission will receive a copy of the new Van Sanchez album. We’re planning on tearing shit up, so please do come check it out. We typically play the Triple Crown in San Marcos, and we’ve played Trophy’s, the Beauty Bar, and Creekside Lounge in Austin.
Todd Landrum: rhythm bass, vocals were meant to be somewhat cryptic and suggestive rather than specific. The intention was to create a feeling of a scene with each song without providing all the details, with the hope that the listener would provide his/her own. The lyrics on the new album are a bit more straightforward and in your face, like the music on it. W: Well I love all this music, what do you guys have in your CD player right now?
Michael Harrison: lead bass, vocals good band or play somewhere where there is a demand for our music, we’ll probably take it. The ideal situation for us would be to get into the film industry and do film score/soundtrack work. That’s our main goal. W: Are any of you from outer space? Just kidding the music is awesome and sounds out of this world! What is going on in the track Time to Drive off and Die? Sounds Apocalyptic?
W: Tracks on the previous album Sweetcake part one and two are very Pink Floyd esq; if I may use that term. Is that fair to say that it’s a modern melodic mix of sounds? VS: First, Pink Floyd is a brilliant band. Their stuff sounds complicated, but much of their music is very simple. We think it’s often harder to write a simple song like one of theirs than something that has several changes and a different time signature in it. We’re definitely a mix of some pretty different sounds, and we do try to
W: What’s next on the agenda for Van Sanchez? When can we expect to hear the announcement of your World Tour?
VS: Hell, sometimes it seems like we are. We look around and see what the norm is, or what is popular at the moment, and we just shake our heads and think, “What the F**k?” Sometimes we just don’t get it. “Time to Drive Off and Die” is a song about knowing you’re caught, knowing you’re not going to be able to get away, and steeling yourself to face it down. It’s a song of desperation and defiance. You could also say that it’s about the end… the end of a film, the end of a life, the end of an album.
VS: Thanks, and wow! There are so many different types of music running through our cd players at any given time. The list would go on and on. W: What do San Martians, and Austinites need to know about Van Sanchez? YOU GUYS ARE A SLEEPING GIANT! LIKE AN ANCIENT DRAGON ARISING FROM THE DEPTHS OF THE UNDERWORLD READY TO AWAKEN AFTER A 1000 YEAR SLEEP! VS: Well, that probably sums it up. Maybe also, give us a listen, give us a chance. If you want to experience something new, come see our show and/or listen to our records. You won’t be disappointed. We all wear muzzles when we’re frothing. W: Thank you for your music. The planet is a better place with Van Sanchez teaching us about music, life, ourselves and rocking our DNA with melodic dreams of peace hope for humanity!
W: The music has meaning and cryptic dialog. What’s going on there?
VS: Thank you very much Russell. We’re trying. And thanks to Weird magazine for giving us the time of day and trying to give people something other than the pablum of the mainstream. We’ll see you at The Triple Crown on the 24th.
VS: It’s nice to hear you say it has meaning. We think it does. The lyrics, especially on the first album,
Check out Van Sanchez at myspace.com/vansanchez
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W: Welcome back to Weird Magazine Barry. So what’s new with you and KOPBUSTERS and Never Get Busted? BC: During our most recent sting, we filmed a kop in Williamson County, Texas stealing drug money. Five days after releasing the sting on Youtube, Williamson County raided our home on a misdemeanor, False Report To A Peace Officer. My daughter and I were driving to the University of Texas to give a speech when two narcotics squads pulled us over and transported us back to our house. We were forced to watch our home being raided and had no way to warn Candi inside. I was placed in solitary confinement for two days. I didn’t make a false report to the police during the sting. They cheated their way into my home and raided us because we caught one of them stealing drug money. It was total retaliation. W: So did you guys lose some equipment from this raid that happened? BC: Yes. The search warrant was for all of our media so they took all of our computers, cameras, films and they even took Candi’s I-Pod. W: Tell us about the sting operation in Liberty Hill (Williamson County)? BC: I placed $45 marked bills, a 8
simulated crack pipe and a drug ledger inside a bag equipped with a hidden GPS tracking device. We placed the bag at a car wash in Williamson County. An unidentified caller reported a suspicious bag at the car wash. (Reporting the truth is not a false report.) Cpt. Nassour was dispatched to the scene where I filmed him throwing the bag in the trash and keeping the drug money. He never made a report of the incident. W: So you busted an officer again? BC: Yepper. So far we are three for three. We have attempted three KopStings and have been successful on each.
current laws are unfair and unjust. Remember when Jews were illegal in Germany? Any person willing to enforce that bad law was a korrupt person. Similarly, any person willing to hang a slave for running away was a korrupt person. Just because a law has been passed doesn’t mean enforcing it is correct or even moral. Any person willing to lock people in a cage for marijuana crimes and other non-violent crimes is korrupt. So in that sense, all kops are korrupt. For those who define a korrupt police officer as one who lies and violates citizen’s rights, there are at least 70 percent of this type throughout police departments in America. I have tens of thousands of emails complaining of kop korruption and each citizen states the police in their town are the worst.
W: So as a result I understand you are suing Williamson County for damages?
W: What are your plans for 420 this Month? (April 20th)
BC: I’m suing them for 40 million. Having my peaceful, non-violent family treated so violently is going to cost them.
BC: I’ll be at the Brave New Book Store in Austin, Texas giving a speech and watching the premier of Kevin Booth’s, How Weed Won The West. Kevin is a friend of mine and so is the owner of Brave New Books.
W: How corrupt are cops really Barry? BC: Any person willing to enforce our current laws is korrupt because our
W: Is Kopbusters going to be picked up by a cable network? BC: We aren’t sure. So far, all of
the networks have passed because they “do not want to harm their current relationships with law enforcement.” KopBusters is a new animal and nobody knows what to do with it just yet. W: What can Weird Magazine readers do to get involved in your legal fund for you and Candi? BC: They can go to our website and donate or purchase our videos. 100% of the money is being used for our legal defense. W: Barry, of course we support your wonderful work. Any final thoughts to Weird Magazine readers this 420 Issue? BC: Yes. As one of our nation’s ex-drug enforcement officers, take my advice: Never carry more pot than you can eat and if you do, travel with it in the rain. Kops never search when it’s raining. Never open your door for a kop. Yell at them through a window but don’t ever open the door. You are never obligated to let a police officer into your home. If they had the right to be in your home, they would be kicking the door in instead of knocking. These three tips will guarantee that you NeverGetBusted.
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Kevin started out in the music business in the late 80s when his band Year Zero signed a major contract with Chrysalis records. The band toured for several years with the single “Hourglass” playing in regular rotation on MTV. While living in Texas, Kevin went on to produce several records, music videos, and short films. Today many people know Kevin from his work with the late, great comedian Bill Hicks. Kevin produced most of Bill’s CDs and filmed the early full-length shows that lead to Bill’s HBO specials and Letterman appearances. At the turn of the century, Kevin developed his filmmaking in a more political direction and produced several films with conspiracy guru Alex Jones about Waco, 9-11, and the two-party American political system, while still directing comedy DVD’s 10
with Fear Factor’s Joe Rogan and Comedy Central’s Doug Stanhope. In May of 2004, Kevin traveled to Britain to promote his first book, “Agent of Evolution,” about his lifelong friendship with Bill Hicks, published by HarperCollins U.K. Following Bill’s death and the loss of several family members to alcohol, cigarettes, and pharmaceuticals, Kevin decided to produce a featurelength documentary exploring America’s failed Drug War. The discovery that the government classifies Marijuana as being more dangerous than Crack or Crystal Meth was the start of a four-year mission to sort the facts from the fiction and pick apart the paradoxes of America’s longest running war. This lead to unexpected associations with
characters like Bloods co-founder, T. Rodgers, and Freeway Ricky Ross, the man blamed for starting the Crack epidemic with cocaine supplied by the CIA. Kevin traveled across the country and around the world with his wife and co-producer Trae, documenting the fallout from the War on Drugs and seeking out possible solutions that have worked elsewhere. AMERICAN DRUG WAR is Kevin’s debut as narrator and the first of a series of films that will build on his ability to untangle the myths and present serious subjects with a dry wit and eye for the absurd. For the past two years, Kevin has toured the country, showing AMERICAN DRUG WAR at colleges and universities in the hope of sparking a debate where it is needed most. In early 2009, Sacred Cow went into production on a new documentary-style reality show following Freeway Ricky Ross as he leaves prison and attempts to make amends to the community while rebuilding his former fortune through legal means. Through this and other projects, Kevin Booth and Sacred Cow pledge to continue to make the audience think, while entertaining them at the same time. ------------------------------------------------------W: Welcome back to Weird Magazine, Kevin. Congratulations on the release of the new film “How Weed Won the West.” How has the film been received so far? KB: It’s a very different response than “American Drug War” – for one, hardly anyone disagrees with the idea of legalizing Marijuana. Even most of the people who make a living off locking Marijuana offenders in jail admit in private that it should be legal. This makes getting a barometer reading a bit difficult because if someone says they hate the film it’s as if they are saying they are against legalization. I recently did a screening at Lyndon State college in Vermont (I have no idea how my agent finds these places) during the 6 hour flight – a very conservative woman sitting next to me could not help but ask what I did – because I was reading a Marijuana growers guide. I told her I was on my way to do a lecture and she asked: “So you go around teaching children how to grow Marijuana?” Of course I got all-defensive. Later the next night during the Q&A session that follows the film I was left with a room full of young males (mostly) all asking questions that had more to do with
having success as growers/dealers. At that moment I said to myself “Maybe that woman was right, maybe I do travel around teaching children how to sell drugs - What have I done with my life!?”
business the second it gets legalized. W: So I heard you on the Alex Jones show recently with Highway Ricky Ross. How is Ricky doing now? You two have been close for many years now.
W: When was it officially released? KB: 420 – OK I get an F for originality – but on April 20th we have screenings in over 25 cities and 4 countries including a little place you might have heard of called Austin Texas – Alamo Draft House at Lake Creek 7:30PM. In Los Angeles we are the official Kick off to the THC – Expose’ (SXSW for weed) @ Paramount studios – buy tickets at Sacredcow.com W: This film is really something, Kevin. Just as powerful as the American Drug War; you are on the frontline battleground as an independent filmmaker that takes on the challenging dilemma of drugs in America. How does it feel to be in that position?
KB: It’s “Freeway Ricky Ross.” Ricky is doing great –he has been out of jail for almost a year now – and I have traveled with him and witnessed first hand how he can go into the toughest of juvenile detention centers and these young bad ass gangster kids hang on his every word. Rick and I signed a deal with Original Productions (Worlds Deadliest catch – Ice Road Truckers + 17 other shows on the air) to do a reality show about Rick getting out of prison and rebuilding his empire – but this time there is a twist? He is not allowed to sell crack, which narrows his options, but seeing is believing and he is a hustle machine. Picture him being handed a blackberry the second he got out of prison with 50cent on the line. I don’t think that phone has stopped ringing since – in-fact,
“I took a DNA swab from one of Rush Limbaugh’s Oxycontin bottles & mixed it with DNA from Bill’s harmonica. The outcome was not exactly what I expected” KB: I don’t really think of it like that – there are so many amazing films coming out left and right these days. As far as me feeling a certain sense of responsibility it’s tricky. The common negative feedback I would get from “American Drug War” is always about how biased the film was and how I attacked Republicans, which is always funny to me – look at the presidents we have had since Nixon – what was I supposed to do, a big Jimmy Carter is evil chapter? This new film is even more biased and we put a warning on the opening to let you know. It’s my film, it’s my time, it’s my money – why should I have to waste any of it telling the opposing views when we have all had those views shoved down our throats since we were children. If you think there needs to be a debate in order to decide the legalities of a plant GOD created that serves literally thousands of uses – go ahead & debate it – I have better things to do. Let the Pharmaceutical, Tobacco & Alcohol companies have that debate. Ironically, those major corporate interests with their fancy suit wearing lobbyist will be the first to jump into the massively lacerative cannabis
I don’t think he sleeps. He is a total health nut- vegan – totally clean. I was actually moved to tears when I heard Rick on Alex’s show – because it’s been a long hard road. W: Alex had a pivotal role in the film. How was it working with Austin’s Bulldog of political talk? KB: You know Alex and I go back – so this was not our first project together. If you watch Martial Law – you can see me getting my head stomped on the streets of NYC during the second Bush coronation. Working with Alex is always a trip – I could not believe his big new office when I came to Texas to interview him for the new film. I thought using Alex in a film about Marijuana would be powerful for several reasons. #1 he does not smoke pot and is the least likely person to be talking about legalization. A problem I see with many other Marijuana films is that they tend to preach to the choir, Anyone seeing “How Weed Won the West” might accuse me of doing the same, but I think having Alex in there opens the argument up to a whole other portion of society that probably
does not think the legalizing argument is all that important. Alex cuts through all the smoke (ha-ha) and brings it down to a simple argument about states rights. Alex is also great because he will always come up with that one hard-core angle that no one else thinks of. Google “Codex Alimentarius” it’s a UN consortium that is attempting to make it so you have to have doctors prescription to buy certain vitamins. Who in the world besides Alex Jones could intelligently put this into a debate about Marijuana? Brilliant!! W: By the way, have you heard that rumor that your long time friend Bill Hick’s spirit went into Alex Jones? (laughs) KB: Yes before Bill’s passing I took a DNA swab from one of Rush Limbaugh’s Oxycontin bottles & mixed it with DNA from Bill’s harmonica. The out-come was not exactly what I expected, but I stand by creation, I am a loyal man. Seriously – it does freak me out some times when I get these long intelligent emails from people talking about one of the films, and then it ends with the “Did you turn Bill into Alex question? Bummer, I was thinking that I was making a difference in some brilliant young mind then that question hits and I realize that I‘m aiding crazy people in becoming even crazier. W: What is the most important thing people need to know about the “Drug War” in America, Kevin? KB: That the government makes more profit by keeping certain drugs illegal – this is why they actually classify marijuana as more dangerous than heroin or cocaine. The DEA’s drug schedule is supposed to be based on how harmful or addictive things are when in truth its based on how much profit it will take out of their hands. People who argue against legalization say “It’s already bad enough, we don’t need more children hooked”. The irony of that argument is that its partially true, but up-side down. When I go to lecture in front of hundreds of college students in places like Alabama or Tennessee – I will ask how many here smoke pot – the same amount of hands go up as they do in places like California or Washington State. The point is simple – anyone who wants to smoke pot can and does with great ease, the question is this: If your children are going to smoke pot and there is nothing you can do to stop them, do you want them buying it at a legal dispensary with a well lit parking lot and tough standards of
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quality control? Or do you want your children buying it from the same guy who sells crack – heroin – Meth and so on? Because right now that’s who your children are getting their weed from and the only way to change that is by legalizing. W: Drugs will never be legal in this country because the illegal drug trade is a big source for funding the secret black-op budgets and arms trade. The Drug trade creates this funding that corrupts nations and keeps the intelligence agencies flourishing. Gary Webb, Cele Castillo and Rickey Ross all spoke or have written about these things, Kevin. Two of them went to prison and one died under suspicious circumstances. This is a touchy subject to say the least. So why are you bold enough to cover the topic in your films? KB: Oh Bummer – I never thought of it like that. Seriously the difference between those guys and me is that they were naming names & attempting to destroy careers of very powerful people – me I’m just a simple filmmaker trying to connect a few dots. W: Tommy Chong spoke to Weird Magazine last year and said that if the “Government just legalized a plant we could bring the deficit under control.” Do you agree? KB: I always like to take my economic advice from a man who has made himself known as the biggest stoner of all times. Seriously - I can’t say that it would totally fix the deficit, but it’s crazy to think that it would not go a long way to help. I liken all the Ranches in the Emerald Triangle (north California) to Vineyards. They are family owned and run. They all have their own special strains and way of growing it, and they all think they are the best. Here in LA during the THCEXPOSE’ there will be a meeting of the greatest growers on earth. W: So what is the latest with California’s Medicinal rulings currently? KB: It literally changes everyday. After our first screening at the Organinca dispensary – owner Jeff Joseph was arrested and charged with 23 felony counts mostly to do with money laundering. So it’s one step forward and two steps back. The city says they are going to close as many as 900 out of the 1000 dispensaries. They can’t even fix the roads up here by my house after the rain. Knowing they can’t afford to bust that many people – they are going to have to make horrible examples out of certain people such as Jeff Joseph. W: Will Texas ever make any ruling in the defense for Medicinal Marijuana, Kevin?
KB: There was a group called “Texans for Medical Marijuana, but they disbanded. It really sucks because I personally know several Texan’s who need Marijuana. The problem is two fold. #1 - people who live in Texas who smoke pot already have a source and are mostly content with the quality. Nobody wants to hear they have bad weed, but all I can say is that if you come to Cali and sample the grade that passes for “Medical Marijuana” going back will taste like you’re smoking pencil shavings. #2 – because it’s illegal many sick and even some dying people will never even know what they are missing. This is the aspect that angers me the most. I watched my father die of cancer in a Texas hospital. When I brought up the idea of Marijuana to the doctor and my dad – I was only met with big Texas sized eye rolls. W: What’s next for Sacred Cow? Any new films we can expect to see from your cutting edge production company soon? KB: One thing I want everyone to know about is the new Bill Hicks documentary. I hear it kicked ass at SXSW – it’s called “American: the Bill Hicks Story”. I myself am thinking of getting into marketing and advertising . W: Thanks, Kevin. What are your plans for 420 this year? KB: Smoke um deep & hold it in. We are having the global 420 screening event of “How Weed Won the West” with simultaneous screenings in Los Angeles CA (http://www.sacredcow. com) Toronto Canada – 30,000 man march (the biggest event) http://www. conspiracyculture.com/ Austin TX,B.C. Canada, Victoria B.C., Alaska (Juno?) NYC, San Diego, DSM Iowa, Hereford, UK Yorkshire, UK, Dublin, Ireland, Detroit MI, Northern Utah, Boulder CO. Cincinnati, Ohio Hemet CA, Calgary CA, Long Beach CA, Australia (not %100) Clifton Park, NY. W: Kevin, keep up the great work and thanks for being a part of our 75th Issue and 420 Edition! KB: You’re welcome - Weird magazine should have a 420 screening in McAllen. It sucks so hard that in a state created by rebels you can go to prison for selling a plant used by our founding fathers. On 420 I would like to see all your readers plant a seed in a public place. (I ain’t talking about Blue Bonnets) Maybe when these evil politicians lie on their death beds they will see the truth for a spilt second before they burn in hell for eternity. I’m dreaming again...
Jesse Ventura’s Censored 9/11 Commentary Jesse Ventura Editor’s Note: The following column by former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura was removed by Huffington Post after it was published March 9 and replaced with a note that states the site “prohibits the promotion and promulgation of conspiracy theories -including those about 9/11.” You didn’t see anything about it in the mainstream media, but at a recent conference in San Francisco, more than 1,000 architects and engineers signed a petition demanding that Congress begin a new investigation into the destruction of the three World Trade Center skyscrapers on 9-11. That’s right, these people put their reputations in potential jeopardy -- because they don’t buy the government’s version of events. They want to know how 200,000 tons of steel disintegrated and fell to the ground in 11 seconds. They question whether the hijacked planes were responsible or whether it could have been a controlled demolition from inside that brought down the twin towers and WTC Building 7. Richard Gage, a member of the American Institute of Architects and the founder of Architects and Engineers for 9-11 Truth, put it like this: “The official Federal Emergency Management [Agency] and National Institute of Standards
and Technology [NIST] reports provide insufficient, contradictory and fraudulent accounts of the circumstances of the towers’ destruction.” He’s especially disturbed by Building 7, whose 47 stories came down in “pure free-fall acceleration” that afternoon, even though it was never hit by an aircraft. This is a subject I take up in my new book, American Conspiracies, published by Skyhorse. An excerpt follows: Some people have argued that the twin towers went down, within a half hour of one another, because of the way they were constructed. Well, those 425,000 cubic yards of concrete and 200,000 tons of steel were designed to hold up against a Boeing 707, the largest plane built at the time the towers were completed in 1973. Analysis had shown that a 707 traveling at 600 miles an hour (and those had four engines) would not cause major damage. The twinengine Boeing 757s that hit on 9-11 were going 440 and 550 mph. Still, we are told that a molten, highly intense fuel mixture from the planes brought down these two steel-framed skyscrapers. Keep in mind that no other such skyscraper in history had ever been known to collapse completely due to fire damage. So could it actually have been the result of a controlled demolition from inside the buildings?
I don’t claim expertise about this, but I did work four years as part of the Navy’s underwater demolition teams, where we were trained to blow things to hell and high water. And my staff talked at some length with a prominent physicist, Steven E. Jones, who says that a “gravity driven collapse” without demolition charges defies the laws of physics.
These buildings fell, at nearly the rate of free-fall, straight down into their own footprint, in approximately 10 seconds. An object dropped from the roof of the 110-storytall towers would reach the ground in about 9.2 seconds. Then there’s the fact that steel beams that weighed as much as 200,000 pounds got tossed laterally as far as 500 feet. NIST started its investigation on Aug. 21, 2002. When their 10,000-page-long report
came out three years later, the spokesman said there was no evidence to suggest a controlled demolition. But Jones also says that molten metal found underground weeks later is proof that jet fuel couldn’t have been all that was responsible. I visited the site about three weeks after 9-11, with Gov. Pataki and my wife Terry. It didn’t mean anything to me at the time, but they had to suspend digging that day because they were running into heat pockets of huge temperatures. These fires kept burning for more than three months, the longest-burning structure blaze ever. And this was all due to jet fuel? We’re talking molten metal more than 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Probably the most conclusive evidence about a controlled demolition is a research paper (two years, nine authors) published in the peer-reviewed Open Chemical Physics Journal in April 2009. In studying dust samples from the site, these scientists found chips of nanothermite, which is a hightech incendiary/explosive. Here’s what the paper’s lead author, Dr. Niels Harrit of the University of Copenhagen’s chemistry department, had to say about the explosive that he’s convinced brought down the twin towers and the nearby Building 7: “Thermite itself dates back to 1893. It is a mixture of aluminum and rust powder, which react to create intense
heat. The reaction produces iron, heated to 2,500 degrees Centigrade [4,532 degrees Fahrenheit]. This can be used to do welding. It can also be used to melt other iron. So in nano-thermite, this powder from 1893 is reduced to tiny particles, perfectly mixed. When these react, the intense heat develops much more quickly. Nano-thermite can be mixed with additives to give off intense heat, or serve as a very effective explosive. It contains more energy than dynamite, and can be used as rocket fuel.” Gage is one of hundreds of credentialed architects and structural engineers who have put their careers on the line to point out the detailed anomalies and many implications of controlled demolition in the building collapses. As he puts it bluntly: “Once you get to the science, it’s indisputable.” A former Navy Seal, professional wrestler and actor Jesse Ventura was elected governor of Minnesota on the Reform Party ticket in 1998 where he served until 2002. Today, Ventura is best known for hosting the popular television show Conspiracy Theory, which airs on cable television. He is also the author of five books. JV
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W: Welcome to Weird Magazine, Russ. What is your title with NORML? RB: I am NORML’s National Outreach Coordinator, which means I help organize and support activists in over 100 local NORML chapters throughout America and the world. I also work for NORML’s educational arm, called the NORML Foundation, as the host of NORML SHOW LIVE, an educational talk-radio program. I began in talk radio as the winner of the nationwide Search for the Next Great Progressive Talk Radio Star in 2006 and hosted program on XM Satellite Radio for two years. I took over NORML’s podcast, the Daily Audio Stash, in 2007 and in 2010 transformed that podcast into the weekday talk radio show that is NORML SHOW LIVE today. W: Tell Austinites how they can listen in on the show. RB: Austinites and everyone else on the planet with internet access can hear our show live at http://live.norml. org every weekday at 3pm Central Time, with replays at 5pm, 7pm, 9pm, and 11pm. We also stream live on weekends from many summer events
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from NORML and others, including the International Cannabis & Hemp Expo in San Francisco, the THC Exposé in Los Angeles, NORML Legal Seminar in Aspen, Seattle’s world-largest threeday Hempfest, and NORML’s National Conference in Portland, Oregon. W: So what’s going on with Marijuana Law right now? RB: 2010 is poised to be the year with the most marijuana law reforms attempted since President Nixon declared War on (Certain American Citizens Using Non-Pharmaceutical, Non Alcoholic, Tobacco-Free) Drugs in 1970. Six states are seriously debating outright legalization, taxation, and regulation of adult cannabis possession, use, cultivation, and sales. California, Oregon, and Washington are attempting this through citizen ballot initiative and California, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire have filed bills in their legislature for legalization. Just five years ago the notion of even mentioning legalization in a statehouse would be laughed out of the room.
Furthermore, up to 19 states are considering some measure of amending their existing medical marijuana laws, enacting medical marijuana laws, or instituting some form of marijuana decriminalization. The two states to have most recently passed medical marijuana or decriminalization by initiative, Michigan and Massachusetts, respectively, passed those laws by close to two-thirds majorities. W: How many states have legalized Medicinal Marijuana? RB: Fourteen states and the District of Columbia have enacted medical marijuana protections, with only congressional approval standing between DC’s citizens and the initiative they approved in 1998. However, the protections in the state laws for patients are very uneven. A patient on the West Coast could be protected for possession of up to a pound and a half of usable cannabis he or she uses for chronic pain, but that same patient in New Jersey, the most recent state to pass medical marijuana, would be a felon, as their
law does not recognize chronic pain and only allows two ounces in possession. Patients who live in California, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada become instant criminals when they cross into those neighboring states, as only Michigan, Montana, and Rhode Island will honor medical marijuana cards from other states. For these reasons and the fact that all medical marijuana patients in all states are still criminals in the eyes of federal law enforcement, marijuana needs to be re-legalized for all adults nationwide. W: Barry Cooper and Kevin Booth are also in this issue. Tommy Chong has been in a recent issue. Have you interviewed them on your show? RB: We spoke with Tommy Chong upon the release of his DVD “a/k/a Tommy Chong” and again when his DVDs were subject of a raid by US Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan. We spoke with Kevin Booth as he was promoting his film “American Drug War: The Last White Hope”. We haven’t had the pleasure of having
Barry Cooper on the show yet. W: What do you have coming up for April 20th? RB: On 4/20, the unofficial cannabis holiday, I will be giving a 90-minute presentation and Q&A on marijuana legalization at the University of Washington in Tacoma. Two days prior I will be appearing at the International Cannabis & Hemp Expo in San Francisco and the weekend after I will be at the THC Exposé in Los Angeles. W: What diseases are commonly known that TCH (THC) or the medical benefits of marijuana have shown to ease pain or treat symptoms? RB: In medical marijuana laws, we find what I call “The Big Eight” conditions that nearly every state covers: cancer, epilepsy / seizures, multiple sclerosis / spasticity, cachexia, chronic pain, chronic nausea, HIV/AIDS, and glaucoma. In California, doctors may recommend medical marijuana for any condition they feel it will help. There is research and anecdotal evidence to support the use of medical marijuana in the treatment of anxiety, depression, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder, alcoholism, addiction withdrawals, menstrual cramps, migraine, cluster headaches, and neuropathic pain. However, it is not just the THC – delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive molecule – that is medically effective. Other cannabinoids, notably nonpsychoactive cannabidiol (CBD), may actually be more beneficial in the treatment of pain and spasticity. Furthermore, there is laboratory evidence that cannabinoids may be effective anti-viral and anti-bacterial agents in fighting staph and other infections that have grown resistant to conventional antibiotics. W: When the hell is Texas going to go for this Medical Law? RB: When enough Texans display the spirit of their frontier heritage and tell the federal government to go to hell over a medical issue that should be properly thought of as 10th Amendment States Rights. One recent survey found that a large majority of Texans – an over two-thirds’ margin – support medical access to marijuana. But the telling stat is in the next question which asked whether Texans believed other Texans agreed with them in their support for medical marijuana. Only one in five Texans think their fellow Lone Star residents
agreed with them! Prohibitionists have managed to convince a super majority that it is a super minority! So when enough Texans have come forward to publicly support medical marijuana that it becomes impossible to convince them they’re in the minority, that’s when Texas will have medical marijuana. Nobody’s going to fly in from Washington DC or California to do it for them. W: How many joints does it take to kill a man? RB: 758,000 of them weighing 0.9 grams each, packed into a steel crate and dropped on a man from a height of twenty feet. Seriously, there is no real answer, as cannabis is non-toxic to healthy cells and organs. You literally cannot smoke enough of it to overdose. The DEA’s
marijuana-themed song on every show, with a different genre each weekday, and then we randomize that song list for playback to accompany the live chat and webcams our listeners can enjoy. Our show will also be giving marijuana activists a chance to virtually attend the popular NORML Aspen Legal Seminar and the NORML National Conference through a pay-per-view webstream, as well as covering Seattle Hempfest, Portland Hempstalk, and other summer events as free live backstage specials. W: How can a plant cause so much controversy? RB: Suppose you came up with an invention that would supplant some of the need for the timber, paper, cotton, building materials, oil, natural gas, and corn bio-fuel industries. Then imagine that by-products from this invention would cut into the markets for soy,
“You literally cannot smoke enough of it to overdose. The DEA’s Administrative Law Judge Francis Young found that a person would need to toke 1,500lbs in 15 minutes to achieve an overdose.” Administrative Law Judge Francis Young found that a person would need to toke 1,500lbs in 15 minutes to achieve an overdose. The measure of how potentially lethal a drug can be is called “LD50”. It means that 50% of test animals will die at that particular dosage. Then you can compare that to the amount of the drug needed for an effective and safe medical use, called a “therapeutic ratio”. Heroin has a 1:5 ratio (five times a regular “high” dose can kill you), alcohol has a 1:10 ratio (ten times a regular “buzzed” dose can kill you). Many prescription drugs have ratios of 1:10 or lower and even aspirin has a ratio of 1:20. Cannabis’ therapeutic ratio is somewhere between 1:20,000 and 1:40,000; it is literally less dangerous to your life than the caffeine in your coffee, soda, tea, or chocolate. W: So what is new with the Radio show, Russ? RB: We have added a “Toker Tunes” Megamix to play 24 hours a day during the times we are not on the air with the show or with replays. We play a
fish oil, wheat, alcohol, tobacco, antidepressants, sleep aids, anti-emetics, and painkillers.
lie to the American people. Do you think that invention would be a little bit controversial? W: How can folks get in touch with you Russ to be on the radio show or just ask questions? RB: You can always email me at stash@norml.org, follow me on Twitter @RadicalRuss, or call me at 888-7-RADICAL. I’d also encourage Texans to hook up with our great chapters in the Lone Star State in Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, and Waco. We’d love to have more chapters set up in Texas; to get one started in your area, email start@norml.org. W: Any final thoughts to Central Texas this 420? RB: Believe that you can be the change you’re hoping for. I once interviewed Jeff Blackburn, a defense attorney in Amarillo, who successfully argued a medical marijuana affirmative defense for an HIV/AIDS patient for possession of marijuana. The jury of twelve Texans came back with a “not guilty” verdict, despite absolute proof of the defendant’s technical guilt, in just eleven minutes. Your fellow Texans are eager to end this stupid prohibitions and let adults be adults; they’re just waiting for you to be brave enough to lead them. To learn more about NORML Check out http://norml.org/
Now, imagine that invention is something that any citizen can build in their closet for about $200-$500 in investments and a slight bump in the electricity bills. Imagine that allowing people to build and use that invention would mean millions of jobs lost in law enforcement, corrections, prosecutions, prison construction, medicine, and more, and billions of dollars lost in under-the-table income for everyone from the street corner hustler to a super-secret government agency or two needing to fund illegal wars without Congress finding out. Then imagine that allowing citizens to use that invention means requiring a majority of 435 representatives, 100 senators, and a president to offend 25% of the country with a severe prejudice against those particular citizens, to seriously upset the campaign donors from all the industries listed above, and to admit to the American people that they’ve been a part of a seven decade conspiracy to
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CR: The most common mistake that people make is underestimating the determination of the police to arrest you for weed. Police officers can’t wait to find it. They love to search cars. And they are usually better at finding the marijuana than the average marijuana user is at hiding it. Under the seat, in the glove box, and in the ashtray are terrible hiding places. The second most common mistake is driving a car without up-to-date registration and/or inspection stickers. I know that stuff can be expensive to keep current. But, it is less expensive than getting arrested. W: People do forget to exercise their rights often don’t they?
W: Welcome to Weird Magazine, Charlie. Tell us about your law firm and the Marijuana Law for Musicians. CR: Hello. I have a solo criminal defense practice in Austin. I started my office right out of law school in 2001. I’ve done criminal defense exclusively. W: The presentation you do this year is on April 19th at the Mohawk. What can readers expect to learn from this event this year? CR: They can expect to get an inside view into the courthouse. I talk about what motivates prosecutors and police (from my perspective). And I’m fairly cynical about it - which makes it entertaining, I think. W: What are some of the common mistakes that citizens make when encountering law enforcement?
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CR: People are either too intimidated to exercise their rights, or they hope that they will get some benefit (leniency) for not doing it. All I can say is that people who work in this field, whether a prosecutor, defense attorney, judge, or legislator - they almost always invoke their rights early and consistently. W: Are we getting closer to de-decriminalization of minor marijuana possession cases? CR: We are slowly getting closer. It may be possible to hold inconsistent thoughts in our heads during boom times (that alcohol is ok, and marijuana not ok) - but when times get tough, I think people start to re-prioritize rationality. W: Are you familiar with Barry Cooper and his work Never Get Busted.com? He is doing a good thing to educate people on how to deal with law enforcement corruption.
law enforcement official speaks out against our current laws - it is helpful. W: Who is winning the Drug War? CR: I think Obama has declared that they will no longer call it “The War on Drugs”. This is a good first (tiny) step. Calling it a “War” is an appeal to emotions (and votes). Emotions are really lousy tools for solving problems. To answer your question - no one wins. W: Do you think Texas will ever appeal the laws for Medicinal Marijuana similar to the way California has in recent years? CR: I am not optimistic. It is strange... Texans are constantly referring to the independent and freethinking spirit of Texas. Unfortunately, we continue to elect politicians without these qualities. W: To recap; what can people again expect to see, hear and learn about your speaking at Mohawks with your Marijuana Law for Musicians speaking date. CR: Expect to see me disassemble the mechanics of a marijuana prosecution. And I’m giving away two tickets to Roky Erickson at the Paramount (April 24th). I’ll be there. W: Charlie, any final thoughts to Weird Magazine readers with this being our 420 friendly issue this April? CR: The police know all about 4/20. They are giddy with the excitement of it... like the first day of hunting season. W: Thanks, Charlie. See you on the 19th.
CR: I have heard of Barry Cooper. Anytime a former
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Operation Highjump/Longhaul Nazi UFO’s in Antarctica by James Hewson
O
peration Highjump was an United States Navy campaign conducted in Antarctica from 1946-47, it was the single greatest effort in the southern most continent to the present day. The mission was, and continues to be to this day, the largest Antarctic voyage ever undertaken. It was conducted by the Arctic discoverer Rear Admiral Richard Byrd, and concerned 13 vessels, 23 aircraft and along with a military force of 4,700 men. The believed mission was to photograph, chart and extensively explore the frozen continent of Antartica, prior to any other force doing so. The mission was of a classified nature and was principally a military exercise with military personnel. However, it also involved scientific organizations comprising the US National IGY Committee and the respected National Program which was more immediately concerned with the mapping of Antarctica to record perspective US territorial claims. The original code name apportioned by the Navy to the Antarctic mission
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was Project Longhaul, expressive of the lengthy logistics channel amongst the United States and Antarctica although which was subsequently altered to the now recognized codename of Operation Highjump. The mission objectives were for the dozen ships and several thousand men to navigate their way to the Antarctic edge to train workers and trial materials in the frozen regions and also to reinforce and develop American jurisdiction over the greatest workable region of the Antarctic c o n t i n e n t . Furthermore, they were to determine the feasibleness of setting up and supplying bases in the Antarctic and to explore potential base sites coupled with a need to advance methods for founding and looking after air bases on the ice.
In spite of the fact that not expressly declared in the August 26, 1946 commands, a principal purpose of the project was the aerial mapping of as much of Antarctica as was possible, especially along the coastline. Conspiracy
Admiral Richard E Bryd theorists specializing in supposed Aryan or Nazi occupations in Antarctica have extensively contemplated about this mission. Rumours started to spread that even though Germany had been overthrown, an assortment of military personell and
scientists had escaped the native land as Allied troops passed across mainland Europe and instituted themselves at a base on Antarctica from where they continued to build progressive aircraft founded upon alledged extraterrestrial or alien technologies. This base was a p p a r e n t l y positioned in Neuschwabenland, a region of Antarctica which G e r m a n y investigated, and claimed, ahead of the outbreak of WWII. As inconceivable as it may appear, there is substantial supporting evidence for these claims about a German base in Antarctica. On the very eve of WWII, the Germans themselves had entered part of Antarctica and claimed it for the 3rd Reich. Historical events also provide us with further suggestions as to a German-Antarctica association, for it documents
that Hans-Ulrich Rudel of the German Luftwaffe was being prepared by Hitler to be his heir apparent. It is recognized that Rudel made numerous trips to Tierra del Fuego at the edge of South America closest to Antarctica. In reality, Germany had completed a extremely exhaustive study of Antarctic and were believed to have built a small secret base there prior to the War. The truth is that there was an abundance of evidence, at the time, to point to that as late as 1947, portions of the Kriegsmarine, or German Navy, were very much functioning in the South Atlantic, operating either out of South America, or some base previously unrecorded in the Antarctic. One piece of evidence identified was of a German U-boat halting an Icelandic whaler titled ‘Juliana’ in Antarctic waters, and demanding that its captain, known as Hekla, trade the U-boat crew provisions from her available stores. Some theorists believe that the Germans were, in fact,
developing UFO technology in underground ice caverns of which there is information to suggest that this may not actually be too much a leap of faith. One of a quantity of documented accounts of sightings of unidentified flying objects over Antarctica was by Rubens Junqueira Villela, a meteorologist whom was the principal Brazilian scientist to take part in an voyage to the South Polar area, and at the present time, a veteran of 11 expeditions to Antarctica. Whilst on board the US Navy iceboat Glacier, which had set sail commencing from New Zealand towards the end of January 1961, Villella states that he observed a UFO occurrence in the skies over Antarctica which he instantly noted in his journal,
even details including the sentiments felt by all those involved. It is no secret that the German Nazi movement held technology progressive enough to create a craft resembling a UFO in shape and size, there are many recorded accounts of sightings and pictures of these German UFO’s. Even though, to say they held the agility and speed of a true UFO would be deceptive given, they could not remain airborne for any prolonged period and were known for their unpredictability in terms of navigation and general handling. Operation Highjump has turned out to be a hot topic amid UFO conspiracy
theorists over recent years, who claim it was a secret US military campaign to defeat and destroy supposed secret Nazi facilities in Antarctica and seize the German Vril flying discs, and the Thule mercury propelled spacecraft. An obscure Hitlerist narrative tells that Adolf Hitler did not commit suicide in 1945, but however, escaped to Argentina, and then onto an SS base beneath the ice in New Swabia during the early fifties where he restarted his career as a painter. According to this description, Operation Highjump, the greatest journey undertaken to the Antarctic, is claimed to have been dispatched to obliterate the Nazi occupancy there.
Highjump was its procurement of roughly 70,000 aerial photos of the coastline of Antarctica and chosen inshore regions. Initially prepared for an 8 month undertaking Operation Highjump abruptly returned to the United States just 16 weeks after exploring Antarctica, with no rationale
ever provided for the hasty return. While there is, yet, no definitive proof of a German UFO base on Antarctica, It is beyond doubt that something extremely strange was occurring on, or nearby, the ice covered continent.
The finest accomplishment however of Operation
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W: Welcome to Weird Magazine! DB: Glad to speak to you. Thanks for having me! W: So tell us about how and when you first got interested in drawing comics? DB: Pretty much since forever, I guess. I was always fond of drawing since I was very, very young. I grew up in a little town in northern Spain, and I discovered the spanish edition of Marvel comic books in a small shop there. They arrived very scarcely and nor very orderly, but even so, they caught my eye. I particularly remember a George Perez Avengers issue, with Iron Man as chairman and Jocasta and Ultron being nasty... Both things got together, I guess, but it was not until I was 14 or 15 that I consciously decided I wanted to draw comic books. W: Who are your influences as an artist? DB: I have no idea, honestly. I can give a list long as my right arm of artists I like, from both sides of the ocean and Japan, but I don’t really know which one has influenced me more or less. Also, I’ve read so many different comic artists that could be possible influences, from Barry Kitson to Uderzo, that I really don’t know. But if I have to pick one or two, I’d say Mike Wieringo and Terry Dodson. At least style-wise. Narration is a completely different matter. W: How did you “break in?”
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DB: In Spain, I sent a portfolio to Cels PIñol by then editor in Spain’s top publisher, Planeta deAgostini, creator of the Fanhunetr franchise, which I guess is not very well known in the U.S., but it is quite big around here. He saw my stuff and decided it was a good idea to lend his toy to a 20 years-old rascal to play with. After a couple of years of intense learning, I spent some years working in animation and missing the comic book media, and I decided to return. This time, with the U.S. market as a target. So I got to do some stuff for Drew Edward’s comic “Halloweenman,” thanks to the Millarworld forums. Those pages, along with some samples I prepared and the Halloweenman/Hack Slash crossover got me my first gig in DC Comics.
W: Your first DC work was doing fill-ins for Blue Beetle correct? DB: Indeed. I got to draw Cully Hammner’s BB design and a script by Keith Giffen, two all-times favorites of mine. W: Did you get to draw any other DC heroes during this stint? DB: During that time I also got to draw a couple of Robin issues and Batman was in one of them. And also Maxie Zeus, who was insanely fun to draw as an overacting villain! W: Are you more of a Marvel guy or a DC guy? DB: I grew up on Marvel Comics, mostly because those were the ones that got to my town, so I’d say Marvel. As I said before, I remember that Avengers issue and the feeling that a lot of things had happened before the ones I was reading, in both its history and story, and I loved that. Later on, I had proper access to DC, and I love their stuff too of course, but I grew up on Marvel comic books. But DC has Batman. And Batman always wins. W: You did the Halloween Man vs. Hack/Slash crossover which had a parody of Marvel Zombies in it. Did that prep you for working in the real Marvel Universe?
DB: In a way, I guess it did. I got a taste of a somehow necrotized, referencial sample of what my Marvel work might look like. And I certainly got to study and think of Marvel characters in a deeper fashion than mere enjoyment. I got to put goggles on Arachnodude, which seems to be a recurring theme in my Marvel work! W: Do you think working with a popular “indy” comics character like Cassie Hack helped legitimize your career? DB: Well, being able to present some work that someone actually has published sure helps in addition to samples, but I also think that work speaks for itself, for better or worse. W: How did you approach Cassie and Vlad (from Hack/ Slash) as characters? DB: I pictured them as a well established pair of friends. Very much as in a buddy movie sequel, where the relationship is solid and they’re a team. I tried to slip in some body language that implied complicity and familiarity. The script fleshed them out quite well and it implied, I think, a lot of that. W: Tell us about Nomad? DB: I must say, I’m not objective about her. I love the
way Sean McKeever writes her as a young adult-to-be, as opposed to a “young girl” or “young woman” cliché. I tend to call her “Rikki” in my e-mails, and not “Nomad”, because that’s the way I perceive her. She is tough, she’s sensible, she does not whine when she has every reason to. Some reviews have named references like “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Veronica Mars,” and I very much agree on that. It is a very well written character and a very positive role model for young readers, both boys and girls, I’d say. But as I said, I’m not objective. W: You’re from Spain and yet you’re working on a “Captain America” spin-off. Is that a little weird? DB: Not at all. Superheroes are an all-american cultural creation; all of them. So approaching any of them should feel weird, but it isn’t. I’d feel weird drawing a “Captain Spain” basically because it makes no sense to me, or at least it has not made sense so far. American and Spanish/European cultures are different and therefore make different cultural products. As long as it has internal coherence, it does not feel weird at all, and I’ve come to find that what matters is the message and ideas behind the story more than the genre itself. Those tend to be more or less universal. And the fact that the main character wears a flag-like suit matters very little to me as long as I feel a connection to what is being told. The connection might be there just for the sake of entertainment or go to deeper and be more “serious” than just an adventure. But again, some genres make sense when in their geographic cradle. Superheroes are one of them. W: Is drawing a teenaged lead different than drawing adults?
DB: Aside from the technical differences regarding size and volume, not really. When they are well written, they all have their load of conflict and worries, and that has to get through. When it comes to drawing, after all, it just takes common sense to know what kind of person you’re trying to depict. W: They’re making a “Captain America” movie. Do you think the character has a global appeal, despite being an iconic American hero? DB: Absolutely. For one, american culture is global. All over the world, citizens from different countries understand and recognize the cultural references that american narrations imply. The rest of the world has been doing so for quite a handful of years. And also, at the end of the day, it all comes to quality. If the movie is good enough and appeals to a few
universal ideas beyond local references, people all around will like it. After all, not only americans have enjoyed stuff like “Band of Brothers!” W: Which Marvel character would you like to work with next? DB: Iron Man was always a favorite of mine, but I don’t think I fit as an artist, to be honest. Spider-Man would be GREAT. I’d love to get to draw him at least once in a couple pages! But I’m happy with whatever comes next. After all, the “Heroes Reborn girl” version of Bucky was never in my preference list of “if-I-ever-get-to-draw-forMarvel” characters, and I’ve grown very very fond of her. So who nows. I’d rather be surprised! For more info check out: www.davidbaldeon.com
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Craig X Rubin: Just Another Prisoner of War W: Welcome to weird magazine, Craig! CXR: Thanks glad to be here!!! W: Let’s cut to the chase, you got popped on some bullshit charges (reference to How Weed Won The West). Tell us about the injustice of that day & why you think you were singled out?
I have been on the TV show ‘Weeds’, written 9021Grow, been a guest on TV and radio shows questioning the lame stream reality with humor and intelligence and the government finds that to be a threat. Plus, I ran for mayor of Los Angeles trying to expose the corruption. I put my faith in J’shua (Jesus) the messiah, so I am not afraid and when they take everything from me, in fact, I am glad rather than upset because I know it means I am being
know many industry movers and shakers. I know exactly when Bret showed up, and I have video of him working with DEA and LAPD. I have seen older interview with him before he became more imbedded in the culture; before he spoke like one of us. Plus, I have had private conversations with many industry leaders that are aware of his law enforcement role, but I am one of the few that speak up because I feel as if I should protect my people from him.
CXR: I was singled out because there is a war on drugs and the people on drugs are winning. I am one of the leaders of the winners. The governments is losing. Alcohol and cigarettes kill more people every year than crack, tweek, heroin and pot combined. In fact the number of people who have overdosed from marijuana in the history of the world... zero. Yet, marijuana is against the law? People who smoke cannabis question the government. People who smoke cannabis know for a fact that the government will lie to them. People who smoke pot because they know the government will lie to them look into incidents like the assassination of Kennedy, the moon landing and WCT7 collapsing at free fall speed and question why there is no Boeing at the pentagon on 911 because people like Cass Sunstein, the POTUS’ regulation tzar, are trying to ban these so-called conspiracies from the internet. It was a democrat who first asked to see POTUS Barry Soetoro’s birth certificate because he was a Hillary Clinton supporter, but stoners are skeptical enough to press the issue. We are in the middle of an information war because we live in an information age. We are witnessing a government takeover of our private lives and cannabis smokers are able to articulate that to the rest of the population because we have been under this NWO attack since 1971 when Nixon declared the drug war.
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CXR: Call the Governor’s officer 916-4452841 ext. 6 and leave a message for the Governor... take your time speaking to them. W: What would you like to tell all our readers worldwide reading this right now? CXR: I love my country, but I fear the people who are working for the government right now. The Bible is the word of G-d. The book of Revelation promises a blessing to those who read and understand it. Follow the ten commandments and review the testimony of the messiah. Does it ring true to you? Then notice the government doesn’t like pot smokers... nor do they like Christians, so if you are a pot smoking person of faith you really scare the crap out of the people who have taken over the government. Don’t be afraid because the messiah will return soon. W: We wish you the best of luck Craig & we will keep you in our prayers & will NEVER FORGET about our brothers in Arms/ Prisoner of “War in this bogus war on drugs” CXR: Thanks I appreciate that.
effective. On this particular occasion I think Cooley and Trutanich thought they could get publicity for their future campaigns by shutting me down. Cooley is running for state attorney general and I think Trutanich would like to be Los Angeles’ next district attorney. W: On the Alex Jones Show you mentioned that a person from HOW WEED WON THE WEST was a FED (Bret Bogue). why do you think that? CXR: I am convinced of that fact because I have been in the industry for year and
I will also say this; I don’t blame Bret for anything that happened to me. G-d is in control and I know that for a fact. I actually liked him better than many others in the pot industry because the industry attracts people who don’t keep their word. Bret is a reliable guy who keeps his word... I now think that because he uses tax dollars rather than risks his own personal money, but that is the type of behavior that is welcome in any industry. W: what can people do or where can they call/write to help out your case?
www.facebook.com/people/Craig-XRubin/590656581 The Beverly Hills Green Cross is located at 2370 Robertson Blvd. 90034 craigxrubin@hotmail.com http://www.temple420.org/ 818-807-4420
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W: Welcome to Weird Magazine Bill. ANP: Thanks Russell, happy to be here! W: Tell us about Angry Nun Productions. What Projects are you currently working on? ANP: Angry Nun Productions is an Austin based production company that is based on the Roger Corman model with respect to movie production and distribution. It is a father & son company founded by my son, Alexander, and I to produce low-budget genre and exploitation flics (with budgets typically in the quarter to half million dollar range) - basically the kind of movies we enjoy watching, but that no one is making. We love classics like Dolomite, The Big Bird Cage, The Great Texas Dynamite Chase, Race with the Devil, and Big Bad Mama. To get an understanding of our films you need look no further than our company motto which is: “There are two kinds of movies. The kind with big guns, big tits, and big explosions, and the kind that suck. We make the first kind.” Of course we do enjoy other types of movies, but the point is our movies aren’t made to provoke thought or win awards; they are made to entertain - to help people kick back and have a good time. We view our movies as the kind of flic that would have played at drive in theatres across the U.S. back in the 50s, 60s, and 70s.
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Angry Nun Productions is also about helping aspiring filmmakers and actors. As an example, all of our DVD products are two disk products, with the nonmovie disk being devoted to explaining how the accompanying movie was made. This is not just a “making of” disk. It is much more. It is actually a detailed tutorial of how the various scenes were lit, what they were lit with, what camera they were shot with and what
the settings were. There is a tutorial for every kind of digital effect used in the movie. In fact, on the disk are all the various Adobe AfterEffects projects used in the movie. They can be downloaded from the disk along with a tutorial so that aspiring filmmakers can learn from them and use them in their own film projects. We also cover things like practical effects and color corrections. Basically, everything used to make the movie is revealed and much is available for download. We also go the extra mile to help aspiring actors. When we held auditions for our latest movie, Killer School Girls from Outer Space, we held open auditions and looked at almost 900 actors for the project. We also used some experienced name actors such as Ron Jeremy, Derek Lee Nixon (When In Rome), Donny Boaz (The Great Debaters), and Julin (The Final, Spirit Camp), but we also cast first timers. Our only requirements are that they look the part and they must be good actors. And there are some good actors waiting to get discovered. As an example, one of our Killer School Girls is a first time actor named Jenny Zhang. Another minor cast member, Ernest James went on to have a significant role in Friday Night Lights. Hell, one of the girls that we cast in some Killer School Girl test shoots is now a major cast member of the Bold and the Beautiful. Hollywood has this small list of actors it likes to use over and over, when in reality there are a lot of actors every bit as talented as current A-listers. All they need is a break. Angry Nun Productions hopes to provide that break for as many as possible. At Angry Nun we are currently working on three projects, all in various stages of development. The first and farthest along is Killer School Girls from Outer Space which will be released in April of this year. We also have in preproduction, a revenge flic titled They Call Her the Ball Collector. Lastly, a Mexploitation (as in blaxploitation except with a Latino flavor) feature titled Dirty Sanchez.
“One misconception people have about the movie when they first hear about it is that they think it is a spoof of the old-school films, which it is not.” W: Great tell us about Killer School Girls from Outer Space! ANP: Killer School Girls from Outer Space is a 90 minute feature in the genre of late-50s/early-60s sci-fi. Think of The Blob with Steve McQueen and you will have an idea of the look and feel. This movie was inspired by old-school sci-fi flics that used to play at drive-in theatres across the country movies like The Blob (1959 version), Teenagers from Outer Space, the original The Day the Earth Stood Still, and The Giant Gila Monster. These
were movies that did not require a big emotional investment, but were simple, and fun. Most of these films had a formulaic plot and Killer School Girls is no exception, it centers around a young high-school couple who must overcome the doubt and rules of their elders in order to defeat invaders from space bent on destroying their small town and eventually the world. People can see the trailer, clips, and stills at the official website: www. killerschoolgirls.com . W: I understand you are keeping the style true to the classic 1950’s
genre of films. Is that correct? ANP: Indeed! One misconception people have about the movie when they first hear about it is that they think it is a spoof of the old-school films, which it is not. Our perspective when we wrote and shot Killer School Girls, was to pretend it was 1962 and that we were making the next big sci-fi B movie to hit the drive-in circuit. The movie did not have the budget to be a full on period piece, but we still made an effort to give it a vintage 1962 look. We spent a lot of time studying sci-fi and horror movies of the period to make note of the colors and designs that were used. There is a definite look to the period which tends to incorporate a lot or primary and near primary colors. Plaids were also big. Wherever our budget allowed, we tried to stick with these colors and patterns. Because these old-school movies also worked with lower budgets they tended to be shot in a certain way. For example, they tend to use more wide and medium shots, and at night the backgrounds were often black. There were little if any dolly shots or crane shots. Most of these movies, especially if Roger Corman was involved, were shot very quickly, typically between ten days and three weeks. We shot Killer School Girls in 15 days. With the exception of one day in a studio for our green screen shots, the entire shoot was at night. We dressed our actors in the colors of the times and also made an effort to keep the vehicles to blues and reds. Most of the music used in Killer School Girls is in the style of the late 50s and early 60s. The two final steps of post production will be to color correct the footage to look like the color movies of the era and to add some artificial scratches and film damage to the final product. While not a period piece, the movie will have an old look and vintage feel to it. W: You must be a fan of Classic “B” horror or Sci-Fi. ANP: Absolutely. We love those movies, but not just horror and sci-fi. Especially from the early
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sixties through the mid to late seventies there were some great exploitation movies shot. This was the period when Blaxploitation flics arrived on the scene. Guys like Fred Williamson wrote, directed, and produced movies like Boss Nigger and Mean Johnny Barrows. Guys like Jim Kelly arrived on the scene and appeared not only in Blaxploitation movies but also martial arts films like Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon, and hybrid films that were part Blaxploitation and part martial arts like Black Belt Jones. This was also the era that gave birth to the psychedelic revolution and the counter culture so you had movies like Roger Corman’s The Trip, Easy Rider, and The Wild Angels. This was the era of the British and European sex comedies like She’ll Follow You Anywhere, and What’s Good for the Goose is Good for the Gander. Bob, Carol, Ted, and Alice showed up during this period as did I Love You Alice B Tokeless. The world, especially American culture was much more open to exploration (without guilt) then than it is now. As a result you had a much greater variety of films being made. Today studios and distributors want to reach as wide an audience as possible in order to pad the bottom line so they push to get every movie a PG rating. The result is movies that are often bland and boring. I might add that studios feel they have to reach a wide audience because the budgets of today’s movies are so large. There is great freedom is having a smaller budget – you don’t have to please everyone, only your niche audience. Ultimately, I think Hollywood’s big budgets are actually harmful to the movie industry. You get a few blockbusters that are not bad, but everything else suffers because the creativity is stifled by the fear of not being able to recoup the cost of the giant budget. Also, far too often, studios try to substitute money for true creativity, as a result writing suffers, and casting departments, and directors are less likely to take chances. W: What other films are you guys at Angry Nun Production working on? 26
or get in touch with ANP?
ANP: We currently have two movies in the queue. The first is a revenge flic currently titled, They Call Her the Ball Collector. It is about a hot young twenty something that is violated a dozen different ways, survives the ordeal, and then sets out to extract her revenge. In the process, she also collects the testicles of those she does-in. This is in the pattern of the great revenge flics of the seventies. Many people do not realize it, but
your next picture? LOL. I want to marry a Killer School Girl from Planet 9. Or at least bang one. ANP: Well, the first day it is not freezing (I hate cold weather) or too windy we will shoot you against a green screen and put you as a “kill” in Killer School Girls from Outer Space. It’s not the same as marrying or banging a KSG, but it is still a deeply personal experience. We would love to have Weird
“There is great freedom is having a smaller budget – you don’t have to please everyone, only your niche audience.” following this pattern is exactly what Tarantino did when he created Kill Bill. In fact, the character of Elle Driver in Kill Bill is clearly patterned after the main character of a little known revenge flic titled They Call Her One-Eye. I think it also played as Hooker’s Revenge. Our second movie is titled Dirty Sanchez and is what we are calling a Mexploitation movie - basically a Blaxploitation movie but with Latino characters and settings. It will follow in the mold of the old Blaxploitation flics except with a bit more of a rural setting. W: Well when are you going to cast Weird Magazine as a role in
Magazine make cameos in our movies. It is a natural fit. W: That would be fun. So when will this film be screened? Will it be at the Alamo Drafthouse? ANP: All our movies are distributed via DVD and VOD. For Killer School Girls from Outer Space we will likely do one theatrical premier at one of Austin’s Alamo Drafthouse theatres. We expect to have the movie ready by late May or Early June, so a theatrical screening would be sometime shortly after that time frame. W: How can folks order the DVD
ANP: The DVD will be available from the Killer School Girls from Outer Space website, www. killerschoolgirls.com . If people visit the site now they can register for freebies and discounts. We also plan to have a “Night on the Town” contest where a lucky purchaser of the DVD will win a night on the town with the Killer School Girls. In addition, all of our actor are affiliates for the movie. As an example, once the movie is released people could go to Ron Jeremy’s MySpace page and order it from there. We will also be available in major retail outlets such as Best Buy and Amazon. But I would encourage people to buy the DVD from our actor’s websites because the actor gets five dollars for every DVD sale that originates from their website, or MySpace page. Seriously, wouldn’t you rather have your money go to support these artists than to pad the bottom line of some big box corporate entity? People can get in touch with Angry Nun Productions via the website www.angrynunproductions.com . If people are actors they should be on the lookout for Angry Nun castings this summer. Just as we did for Killer School Girls, we will hold open auditions for They Call Her the Ball Collector and Dirty Sanchez. With every production we are hoping to give some aspiring actor a start or boost a little known actor’s career. So if you have talent be sure and check out these auditions. Although we are not currently doing so, in the near future we also hope to be taking script submissions as well. It is our goal to start turning out three movies per year come 2011. W: Any final parting words to the Weird readers of Austin? ANP: Sure. Don’t work too hard, always leave time for fun, and check out Killer School Girls from Outer Space at www. killerschoolgirls.com . You can also find Killer School Girls on Facebook and MySpace.
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your girlfriend.
Hey Ash,
Touchy Feely Shadow People Copyright 2010 by Heidi Hollis
Ash Writes: Dear Heidi: Soooo—my girlfriend is being scared sh*tless by a Shadow Person and I’m really worried for her. Thing is, she’s too proud to ask anyone for help herself. I’m the only person she’s ever told about this thing. She describes this Shadow Person as having red eyes and that she can see it right out in front of her usually. Most of the time it just stands there—watching her! But, she said one time she had a dream that even I was in! She said I was the one that had the red eyes and said that I was going to kill her! THEN, this Shadow Person of me actually kills itself! Can these Shadow People actually contact us in our dreams?! How can she or I both stop this thing? Believe it or not, it actually touched her one time and left a red mark on her. It’s such a problem because only SHE can see this thing and she’s more freaked out than I’ve ever seen her. So, I really need some help if you can tell us anything that will help—please do share! Thanks, Ash Best wishes, Kristy
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Yipes... it touched her where it actually left a mark? Hmm—not so typical. I mean, yeah, one of their favorite past times is to choke people, but I don’t hear much about marks being left. I’d say you have a major problem that can only get worse, though it sounds bad already now. These things are usually seen via our peripheral vision, for reasons I won’t go into now. But when they really want to take you on and take you down, they will let you see them straight on. So by this thing looking at her in this staring competition, it’s a bit concerning. Then by it touching her, too, it’s also sizing her up for how big of a bite it can take out of her in every sense of the word…uh…soul wise I should say. Time to show this thing the door! Trust me, from someone who has been there, seen that, and dealt with similar crap—it can and shall be done. But first—for your other questions… You asked if they can come into your dreams—darn skippy they can! They are not limited by the physical world as we are as you can see even by their
appearance. No clothing is needed or necessary—therefore even the confines of this life aren’t revered. Why they do this whole dreamscape adventuring is again, a whole other story that you didn’t ask about so I won’t bore you with the details. But, I will say why this thing appeared as you (her boyfriend):
First off, your girlfriend needs to have no doubts that she can take charge of her life to get rid of this thing. Showing weakness only lets the bugger in and remain. This is where you can help her out, since you haven’t seen it and don’t have to deal with it directly you are less likely to be afraid of this thing. So stand by her side on this and BLESS YOUR HOME or her home or wherever it is she lives.
They do this to aim to fool the person that is dreaming of this, so that maybe their guard will be down just a tad more so they can come in a little closer to munch on them. Then this whole, “Surprise, it’s not your boyfriend—‘tis I—the Shadow Demon coming to get ya,” scenario is just to get some terrifying respect. Since when we are fearful, we aren’t quite as strong.
I’ve had to tell a lot of people over the years how to do this and how important it is when faced with such things. I’ll send you an additional email on how to go about doing this and then tell her not to give this thing anymore of her thoughts or time. It’s overdone its welcome and used up enough of her energy—enough is enough!
Quick recap:
I hope this helped and let me know how it goes.
Boyfriend=GUARD IS DOWN— when realized it’s-->Not Boyfriend=TERROR—which equal--> NO-GUARD and WEAKNESS=SOUL MUNCHING. Also, seeing this thing as ‘you’ may make her trust you less in the real world and encourage her to pull away from you which will make her prone to even more Shadow People garbage. Since where there is less L-O-V-E there is more D-A-R-K-NE-S-S—plain and simple. Now then, you asked how to stop this devil (really it’s a demon) from continuing to do what it’s doing to
Sincerely, Heidi Got a question about anything weird? Send your questions on the paranormal—from aliens to angels— to: alienadvice@gmail.com For more info about Heidi Hollis’ books, videos and events visit: www. HeidiHollis.com
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