Q: When does the film come out?
A: The first official premiere of the film is on February 28th, 2006, in room 200 of Campbell Hall on the Ohio State University campus in Columbus, OH. See here for more info.
Q: Who are you and why are you doing this?
A: My name's John Holowach. I'm just someone from Ohio who's decided that he can't take all the lies anymore. I feel very strongly about letting people live their lives, make mistakes, and experiment with whatever suits them. The drug war doesn't help anyone, and is actually greatly harming the world.
Q: Do you smoke pot?
A: I've smoked pot three times, and got high off of it once.
Q: Oh, c'mon.
A: No, really! In fact, I only did it those times to try and see what the "high" was that everyone was talking about. This after a full year of researching the substance and determining that it was pretty much harmless. You could say that I don't really like to try too many new things without a buffer zone of safety.
Q: Tried any other drugs?
A: Let's see, alcohol around the holidays, aspirin, various prescriptions-- Oh, you meant illegal drugs. In that case, no. Just the pot on those three occasions.
Q: Do you really expect this movie to change anything?
A: I hope that this film will open up a dialogue between people, and force the government to be more accountable for its practices. Also, I hope that this will convince people that this is not an unimportant issue, that millions are suffering and sometimes dying from moralizing, and that there is perhaps a better way.
Q: Aren't people suffering and dying from drug use, though?
A: Yes, but this is mostly about pot, marijuana, weed, Mary Jane, chronic, etc. It has never been shown to cause an overdose1, and the only danger seems to be from accidents while high (and even those are relatively rare). But, I ask, why are we damning this while openly giving alcohol "social" drug status? We, as a society, are fully willing to accept the risks associated with alcohol use (which is far, far more dangerous than marijuana), and yet we seem to be condemning pot as far too great a risk. Why? No independent panel has ever suggested that marijuana should remain criminalized2, yet governments worldwide have ignored their tireless efforts. Nixon did, the Canadian government did, and now such efforts almost seem to be a waste.
1. Iversen, Leslie L., PhD, FRS, "The Science of Marijuana" (London, England: Oxford University Press, 2000), p. 178, citing House of Lords, Select Committee on Science and Technology, "Cannabis -- The Scientific and Medical Evidence" (London, England: The Stationery Office, Parliament, 1998
2. AlterNet, "The Doper Vote" (Oct. 22, 2004)
Q: How can we expect fair and accurate information from someone who's obviously biased?
A: I'm only biased by my years of factual research and evidence-gathering. However, I believe that everyone should be free to fully examine the information I present in the film as deeply as they want. That is why I will, upon release, present sources for everything I give in the film, including factual backing for my personal opinions and ideas. I also encourage everyone to do their own digging and discover all the information for themselves. I could say that I give you my word, but with all the backing and information I'm going to post, I don't think you should need to go on a promise.
