Grafton Twp. – is a spiritual weed warrior, who wants people to know their mental and physical ailments can be treated with a plant and prayer, versus pharmaceuticals.
He said he began his journey after spending 15 years in a West Virginia prison for possession of three ounces of marijuana and sharing his marijuana with others in 1999.
Lawrence Scible, 58, who goes by the name Ras Ible, which he said is his spiritual name for the Rastafarian religion he practices, grew up in Maryland. He said he is a Navy veteran who served from 1977-80 as a boiler technician.
Scible is experiencing freedom by pulling a rickshaw across the United States and advocating for the end of marijuana prohibition. Alcohol, methamphetamines and narcotics are the problem, he said, not marijuana.
Poison ivy is more of a threat than marijuana, he said.
Scible said when he got out of the Navy he was looking for a different direction in life while living in Annapolis. He got into Rastafarianism and marijuana after his interest in Jamaica was piqued in the 1980s.
A sailboat came into port and it was from Jamaica, he recalled. That was something different.
Scible has pulled a 560-pound rickshaw more than 2,000 miles across the United States from Washington with the intent of stopping next to the White House and protesting for an end to marijuana prohibition.
On Saturday he was taking a rest near the Grafton Township Hall, relaxing inside the rickshaw that also serves as his shelter from the elements, looking at a map and contemplating life.
Scible said he was the runt of five boys to parents who were both veterans, and he credits his mother with teaching him what it means to be an American.
She taught me how to march with a blue helmet and a wooden gun, Scible said. By God here I am all these years later marching in her honor and setting world records.
It has taken him 17 months to get to Grafton Township after starting in Spokane, Wash., in April 2015 and taking a northern route across the country.
Scible said he experienced trauma while in the Navy, although he wouldnt describe what happened.
Even though it was peace time, brother, there are a lot of things that go on that people dont like to talk about, he said.
Scible said hes experienced quite a journey while pulling a rickshaw in the name of legalizing a plant that he believes many veterans could benefit from. He said hes flipped over in storms, been hit by cars and chased by animals and bad people.
Police have stopped the marijuana activist 200 times, according to his count, but they havent given him any trouble.
They busted me in Idaho, Scible said. In Idaho. Thats a prohibitionist state. But they turned around and gave my cannabis back to me, apologized and we did a selfie together the next day before I left.
Cannabis is illegal because prohibition was a tool to oppress minorities and the poor, Scible said. He said newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst had a major interest in outlawing hemp and marijuana because smaller newspapers were often printed on hemp paper.
Scible said he believes cannabis is the answer to getting people off prescription pills. In his own life, Scible, who said he suffers from bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, said doctors put him on psychiatric medication after his time in the service, which only made his life more miserable.
He said doctors attempted to put him on psychiatric medication again after his release from prison because they claimed it would help him re-adapt to society, but the only medicine he takes is cannabis.
I dont take any medicine from the VA at all now, he said. They once had me on a psych drug, Seroquel, to try to calm me down. That stuff just made me feel like a wide-awake drunk. I couldnt even function on it. Every psych drug theyve given me did that.
Scible said some may consider him crazy, especially since hes pulling a large rickshaw down the road, but he said hes at ease and he knows his mind is right thanks to marijuana and religion.
When people feel this so-called high, actually it is just the body coming into balance, he said. Thats why you feel happy and wonderful.
Scible said the government took his home, business and everything he owned when he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for felony trafficking. Scible said his daughter was
5 when he was imprisoned. Hes tried to contact her, but she wants nothing to do with him.
While on the road and crossing a variety of landscapes, Scible said, hes had time to pray, ponder and question why he is who he is.
He plans to follow the Potomac River to the home of his youth and visit his mothers grave. Hes hoping his daughter, who is 23, will allow him to visit her and forgive him for going to prison.
This is like my Forrest Gump walk, Scible said. Basically Im wounded and Im hurt. This walking is helping heal my heart. Im going to park this next to the White House and pray to Jesus to ask where I should go next.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker
Full Article: Pot Activist Treks Across Lorain County On Way To D.C.
Author: Jon Wysochanski
Contact: The Chronicle
Photo Credit: Kristin Bauer
Website: The Chronicle
