Do it now.

It's hard to understand why Governor McCrory and Republicans in the General Assembly are spending their time and our money "fixing" things that aren't broken instead of looking for opportunities to lead our state forward. Eight other states already have industrial hemp laws in place, and are poised to capitalize on this new cash crop. Many more have already cut their enormous costs of incarceration for minor drug offenders. Meanwhile, our legislature is doubling down on putting more of our fellow citizens in jail.

America's war on drugs has failed in every imaginable way. Changes in marijuana laws alone could save our nation more than $40 billion each year. For North Carolina, that translates into big bucks. We're currently spending hundreds of millions to achieve absolutely nothing.

Industrial hemp could be even more important to our state's economy. Industry groups have produced estimates ranging upwards of $500 billion annually for industrial hemp on a global basis. We need to find a way to participate in this growing economy.

UPDATE: The North Carolina Police State is an illegitimate government ... now arresting peaceful citizens in the People's House in Raleigh.

My mother has been arrested in Raleigh, NC for protesting GOP legislative agenda: ow.ly/ldVBv #moralmondays #ows

— Lynn Parramore (@LynnParramore) May 20, 2013

The first of many is arrested in front of the #NCGA twitter.com/StudentPowerNC…

— Student Power NC (@StudentPowerNC) May 20, 2013

Hundreds getting ready to enter the #NCGA for @naacp protests for fourth consecutive week. twitter.com/CKardish/statu…

— Christopher Kardish (@CKardish) May 20, 2013

It doesn't matter whether you love or hate the Democratic Party. It doesn't matter whether you like the current leadership or not. It doesn't matter if you're an unaffiliated voter, a Republican, a Democrat, or a Libertarian. Anyone with her eyes open can see that Raleigh is out of control. So make plans to show up on an upcoming Moral Monday, either as a supporter or as a person willing to put yourself on the line for freedom and fairness.

Thanks to the Independent Weekly, the media silence has broken and the deluge of criticism begins. After scanning reader comments online, it's a good thing I don't worry a lot about what people think of me.

The best thing about Protzman is that he isn't a politician, and he has a near-compulsion to say what he thinks in the most direct, if sometimes profane, way. Protzman was one of the first people in North Carolina to accuse Republican moneybags Art Pope of, well, read it for yourself: "Art Pope is contaminating North Carolina politics with the sleaze and corruption of corporate money, just as is the national Republican Party."