Libertarian Medical Marijuana Advocate Determined to Put Martyred Author Back on Bestseller List

Remember Peter McWilliams: California Prop 215 supporter urges thousands to get the McWilliams book, "Ain't Nobody's Business If You Do" on 3rd anniversary of author's death.

On June 14, 2000, Peter McWilliams lost his battles with AIDS, cancer, and a government that wouldn't let him take all the medicine needed to complete his treatment. To commemorate the third anniversary of the author's passing, Edward Bowers wants to create what he calls a Statistical Anomaly Event, by asking people to buy in droves the same book "Ain't Nobody's Business If You Do." To that end, Bowers, Media Relations Chair of the Libertarian Party of California, sent out an email to over 1000 fellow libertarians and compassionate use and marijuana reform advocates. He is urging them all to buy the book some time between June 8 and June 14, that being a week for bestseller list purposes. The idea is to honor their fallen hero and the cause of medical marijuana by getting the media's attention in an interesting and completely uncynical way. The book, described by Sting as "Brilliant," has the subtitle "The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes in Our Free Country." While McWilliams was the author of many other books, mostly self-help, Bowers chose "Ain't Nobody's Business" for this effort because of the obvious title and appropriate subject matter, despite the fact that many of the people he is asking to participate probably already have it.

In order for the positive subversive activism to work, many of the hundreds who received the email will need to pass it on to many of their friends, and those in turn will have to pass the idea on to more. "It's a bit optimistic a plan to ask in a country that is worn down by apathy and cynicism," Bowers admitted. "But once I thought of the idea, I had to try it. That's why I kept emailing until I got up to over 950 recipients (in addition to the many that resulted in over a hundred "mailer daemon" failures). If half those people pass the word on to 10 more people and half of those forward the idea to 10 more people each, then I've given this idea a chance of working. Either that or I've set myself up for the biggest rejection of my life."

For people who are interested, but have more questions, Bowers put up what he calls a QYMA (Questions You Might Ask) page at http://homepage.mac.com/ebowers/PeteQYMA.htm