Slog tipper Jason points us to an article in New West—a site seeking to to "promote conversation that helps us understand and make the most of the dramatic changes sweeping our region"—titled "Marijuana, Guns and Oregon." In his piece, Joseph JF asks lots of questions to "help us understand" the perils of pot growing in pristine rural Oregon:

Is it a criminal offense to grow and sell marijuana in mass production? Yes, it is.

Is it creepy to imagine someone growing dope in a field as opposed to say, a warm garage for personal and/or medicinal purposes? Yes, it is.

It's nice of JF to clarify that marijuana is still illegal, because it totally is. But I disagree that growing plants in fields is inherently "creepy." Growing plants in a warm, toasty, cozy garage seems far more weird—considering the history of agriculture—if you ask me. But I digress.

JF goes on to quote the sheriff and a narcotics officer who confirm that armed pot growers are out in the fields of Oregon, and then he ask some more questions, ostensibly to "help us understand."

Chris Gibson, the director of a federal program that targets Oregon’s high-trafficking drug regions, said this week that Oregon’s marijuana raids could culminate up to 215,000 plants worth at least $451 million. Who gets the money when such raids occur? Nobody, at least according to the feds. Who gets to burn one down when such raids occur? Nobody, at least according to the feds.

There are people willing to gun you down while you hike through forests in the West. They grow marijuana.

Is it worth it?

No, getting gunned down not worth it. Obviously. People shouldn't be toting around weaponry in other people's fields. But for someone who uses question after question as a crutch, it's disappointing that JF doesn't ask a single question that matters. Like, he could have asked, are the feds full of shit when they say "nobody" will "burn one down" after they arrest folks? Or that they have halted the flow of drug money?

More to the point, JF never asks the basic question—the crux of his article—which is this: Why are pot growers carrying guns in fields, why is this "creepy" thing happening? And what would make it stop? The answers aren't going to come from the cops who bust pot growers. All JF has to do—to "help us understand and make the most of the dramatic changes sweeping our region"—is pick up the phone and talk to one person who can explain that they're growing pot in fields to lower their chances of getting busted and it's cheaper than renting a warm garage. Once we tax and regulate marijuana, poof, the creepy problem will disappear.

If Friedrich were here, he'd probably say what all the reporters who regurgitate federal drug-war propaganda say: This is a crime story, not an advocacy piece. But you don't have to write an advocacy piece to write honestly about drug crime. Crime stories examine motives. Crime stories determine if police are lying. Crime stories ask if there is a solution to the problem. Crime reporters ask questions. But when JF—stupid fucking credulous hack of the day—wrote a crime story about pot, he asked all of the asinine questions and none of the questions that mattered.

The Stupid Fucking Credulous Hack described in this post successfully appealed to have his or her name redacted so that it would not haunt him/her in Google searches for all time. You may read the text of the appeal after the jump, should you give a shit.

I have been an active journalist for more than a decade. My byline has appeared throughout the West in numerous publications, including High Country News and a collection of newspapers in Oregon and Montana. I take pride in my craft and am proud to call myself a journalist. I'm not the best reporter out there, but certainly not the worst. All the same, I feel an article posted Nov. 17, 2009 on NewWest.Net does not quantify me being labeled as the Stupid Fucking Credulous Hack of the Day.

Either slog tipper Jason or Dominic Holden commented on my article, suggesting my biggest flaw in the piece was my lack of asking the questions that really mattered. I believe this is unjust. The main message of my post was to make clear the hazards that occur to the environment when illegal marijuana crops are mass produced. As I mentioned in my piece, I've come across these operations while hiking. They are hideous, full of litter and can potentially be very dangerous. In short, it irritates me that I have to think about being badgered, or worse, by an individual or group growing marijuana illegally in the forest. I refer to some of these operations as "creepy" because they are. People camped out in the middle of the forest, with guns, using drugs, littering the land and prepared to kill to defend their crop is creepy. Damn creepy.

The point of my article is neither to defend growing marijuana nor to promote using the plant for any purpose. I am merely stating, as a hiker, outdoor enthusiast and a journalist, that when it comes to growing marijuana, surely there is a better way than setting up shop in the woods, destroying the land and striking fear into the hearts of others. And while I still may not have any perfect solutions to the problem, I believe in a better way. I believe in progress. I believe in change.

Thank you for considering the removal of my name in association with the Stupid Fucking Credulous Hack of the Day.

Here is the link to my piece, as well as the link in The Stranger.

http://www.newwest.net/city/article/marijuana_guns_and_oregon/C108/L108/

http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2009/11/18/joseph-friedrichs-stupid-fucking-credulous-hack-of-the-day

Again, thank you for your consideration regarding this matter.

J.F.