cannabisnews.com: Drug Czar Calls Pot a Danger To Kids Drug Czar Calls Pot a Danger To Kids Posted by CN Staff on April 08, 2005 at 08:24:20 PT By Jane Prendergast, Enquirer Staff Writer Source: Cincinnati Enquirer Walnut Hills, Ohio -- President Bush's drug czar wants parents and kids to know: Marijuana is as serious a drug as any other.John Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, visited Cincinnati on Thursday as part of his push to convince Americans that marijuana isn't a "soft'' drug. Too many young people start smoking marijuana because they think it's harmless, he said. "The single biggest enemy is cynicism,'' he said in a speech at First Step Home, a substance-abuse treatment shelter for women in Walnut Hills. "We have to pay attention. We have to correct misinformation. This is not a joke.''Though marijuana is not as toxic as cocaine or heroin, and doesn't cause overdose or death, the drug is increasingly the primary cause nationwide of admissions to substance-abuse treatment facilities, he said. In 2002, about 130 people of every 100,000 who were 12 or older sought help for marijuana abuse. That was up by 162 percent from a decade earlier.The White House thinks it's crucial to get its message to pre-teens because studies show people are much less likely to become dependent on drugs after 19, Walter said. He called marijuana abuse a "pediatric-onset disease.''Walters said he supports confidential, non-punitive drug testing for teenagers as a way to get them help. About 140 schools across the country are doing that now, he said.To parents, he advised: "You have to be concerned about this before you think you have to be concerned about this. Tell (your children) what you care about."The First Step Home started in 1993. Executive Director Margo Spence said the facility is the only licensed treatment option in Hamilton County that allows children to live there with their mothers.Source: Cincinnati Enquirer (OH)Author: Jane Prendergast, Enquirer Staff WriterPublished: April 8, 2005Copyright: 2005 The Cincinnati EnquirerContact: letters enquirer.comWebsite: http://enquirer.com/today/Related Articles:Pot Less Harmful Than Alcohol or Tobaccohttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20448.shtmlWhite House Expert: Pot is Dangerous http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20401.shtml Is Pot Far More Potent Than in the Past?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20384.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #16 posted by global_warming on April 10, 2005 at 16:16:04 PT To The Fallen "We the People are the rightful masters of both Congress and the Courts--not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution." "Abraham Lincoln"http://rense.com/general63/truth.htm"If ever time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin." "Samuel Adams "The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government--lest it come to dominate our lives and interests." "Patrick Henry "It is the duty of the patriot to protect his country from its government." "Thomas Paine My friend Dennis Kyne wrote a song that we recorded together while he was staying at my home in January. He was in Baton Rouge in order to attend, and to speak at, the "Jazz Funeral For Democracy" in New Orleans, a counter-inaugural demonstration that activists from south-Louisiana had organized. The song is called "All We Want Is The Truth." Dennis is a Gulf War vet, and was a medic with the front-line 24th Infantry in 1991. I am an older volunteer infantry vet, one that spent 32 months overseas, from 1971-1974, serving this country as an occupation soldier. We are patriots. The truth. It's not too much for a soldier or vet to ask for, particularly when the subject is whether or not our nation goes to war. As many of us, those that actually tried to stop the occupation of Iraq before it got started, watched this tragedy unfold, what we saw was everything BUT the truth. Will the press now do its job, and report the facts? We all know how hard Congress, and the press, went after Clinton because of his lie. He was impeached for his lie about sex. So all we can hope for now is that the actual words of the Bush administration, the neocons, will somehow get the same scrutiny that ANY lie made by our elected officials should get. All we can hope for is that they will be punished. All we want is the truth. Here's a FACT. Before President George "Dubya" Bush forced his "war" against Iraq down the world's collective throat, he said, "First, we will demonstrate to the people of Iraq and the world that the United States and the coalition aspire to liberate, not to occupy Iraq." Iraq heard him, and now they know it was a lie. That was in the first few days of the "war." Bush also promised our nation that he would go to war as a "last resort." That was a lie.The truth is that the administration was hell-bent to go to war with Iraq at any cost. The TRUTH is that they planned this "war" before 9-11. And the parents and families of those who have given their lives were lied to, as were we all. We deserve MUCH better. Can we truthfully say this is not an occupation? We are, in fact, building 14 permanent military installations as I write this. We have poured $1,500,000,000 into building the Green Zone embassy complex alone. An embassy for $1.5 billion, in war zone? Undoubtedly a "cost-plus," no-bid contract. Ask our troops if they are "occupying" Iraq. Bush refuses to let this country see the coffins he is filling with his "non-occupation," much less admit that this is an occupation. I say the situation in Iraq is now at genocidal proportions. Here is a FACT. On March 16th, 2003 Vice President "Dick" Cheney said on "Meet The Press": "We will, IN FACT, be greeted as liberators". A lie. Can Cheney now say say that we have been "greeted as liberators"? When the most powerful man in the world says something, he MUST be held accountable. "Oops-- I was wrong" cannot be used as an excuse for failed foreign policy. In May, 2003 President Bush said "Mission Accomplished," and since then more than 1,000 of our citizens have died in Iraq. Is the mission accomplished OR NOT, Mr. Bush? Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said "I don't believe that the United States has the responsibility to pay for reconstruction." Can he truthfully say that Iraq is paying for this war? With a straight face? The FACT is that this disaster in Iraq has already cost the people of the U.S.A. $300,000,000,000, with no end in sight. Condi Rice said on CBS, "I don't think anybody could have predicted that...they would try to use an airplane as a missile, a hijacked airplane as a missile." A HUGE lie, if any lie was ever told. The TRUTH is that she had been handed a memo, by our nation's top terrorism expert, Richard Clarke, long before 9-11--a memo that said exactly what Rice said "nobody could have predicted." Rice also said "Richard Clarke had plenty of opportunities to tell us in the administration that he thought the war on terrorism was moving in the wrong direction and he chose not to." That is a complete LIE. The TRUTH is that Clarke sent a memo to Rice principals on 1/24/01 marked "urgent," asking for a Cabinet-level meeting to deal with an impending al Qaeda attack. Our own (former) weapons inspector, Scott Ritter, said "there are no WMD's." He had scoured Iraq FOR YEARS looking for them. He knew the truth. Bush ignored him. Our own investigative diplomat said the "yellowcake" uranium rumors were false and fabricated. He was told to shut up, and his wife's CIA-agent identity was released in retribution for his unfavorable report, by SOMEONE in the White House. All we want is the truth, why's it so hard to find? I can find it, why can't the TV news find it, report it, and act on it? Two years ago today, on March 29th, 2003, Baton Rouge, Louisiana held an anti-war demonstration and march. At that march, off-duty police stood with those advocating that we protestors should be shot for protesting. SHOT for protesting. How fascist will we allow this nation to become before we wake up? During the same week, a local DJ, while ON THE AIR, advocated beating protestors. How much trouble would we protestors have gotten in for advocating violence against say, Republicans who were for the war? The media advocating violence on the air. Can this really be the USA? Policemen advocating death to protestors? All we want is the truth. On May 21st at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LSU police built a "Free Speech Zone" and ordered protestors to stand inside of it to protest Bush's visit on campus. We refused, and I now own a "free speech zone." My anti-war trophy. But the point is, " Free Speech Zones" in the U.S.A.? You must be kidding.And non-protestors were allowed within inches of the President, with no security whatsoever. That's the truth and reality of our nation today. "Zones" for free speech. What "Bill Of Rights"? Perhaps we should issue "free speech zones" to our leaders. Here are a few documented lies they told the world to force this Iraq disaster to happen: "Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction." "Little" Dick Cheney. A lie. "Right now, Iraq is expanding and improving facilities that were used for the production of biological weapons." George "aWol" Bush. A lie. "We know for a fact that there are weapons there." Ari Fleischer. A lie. "25,000 liters of anthrax...38,000 liters of botulinum toxin...materials to produce as much as 500 tons of sarin, mustard and VX nerve agent...upwards of 30,000 munitions capable of delivering chemical agents...several mobile biological weapons labs..." George W. Bush even told us the quantities that he KNEW existed. Where are they, George? What a lie that was. "We know that Saddam Hussein is determined to keep his weapons of mass destruction, is determined to make more." Even Colin Powell started lying to send us to war. "Well, there is no question that we have evidence and information that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, biological and chemical particularly...all this will be made clear in the course of the operation, for whatever duration it takes." Ari Fleisher lied to send us to war. "We know where they are. They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south and north somewhat." Donald Rumsfeld even told us where the WMD's were. "Obviously the administration intends to publicize all the weapons of mass destruction US forces find--and there will be plenty." Neocon scholar Robert Kagan was lied to. He believed their crap, and he is one of the neocons. "We are learning more as we interrogate [or torture] or have discussions with Iraqi scientists and people within the Iraqi structure, that perhaps he destroyed some, perhaps he dispersed some. And so we will find them." Bush kept on lying, even after he lied to send us to war. "We'll find them. It'll be a matter of time to do so." George Bush lied. There were no WMD's. "I'm absolutely sure that there are weapons of mass destruction there and the evidence will be forthcoming. We're just getting it just now." ABSOLUTELY SURE said our Secretary of State Colin Powell. A lie. "US officials never expected that we were going to open garages and find weapons of mass destruction." Condoleezza Rice told that lie. She was obviously not listening to the rest of the administration. Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and Powell all stated that they would find WMD's, and even stated we knew where they were. "For bureaucratic reasons, we settled on one issue, weapons of mass destruction[(as justification for invading Iraq], because it was the one reason everyone could agree on." Paul Wolfowitz said this, and it might have been the ONLY true statement that the whole administration made. All we want is the truth. But for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong: we found them. George W. Bush said THAT! What a delusional lie that was. Where are they, George? So now we have passed the two-year mark, in a "war" sold on lies. When will the Congress and the "free press" rise up to punish this band of war criminals and professional liars? All we want is the truth. We deserve the truth. The liars deserve to be impeached, at the very least. Wake up America--our country is hanging on the edge of a cliff, and only the truth will save it. If we allow these war criminals to get away with their lies, our nation will be sent tumbling down the mountainside. We still have the choice. We should DEMAND "the truth." We MUST demand "the truth." James Garfield, one of our presidents, once said, "Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption. "If it be intelligent, brave and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature.... If the next centennial does not find us a great nation ... it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces." WE THE PEOPLE, must DEMAND the truth, especially when war is at the balance. All we want is the truth, why's it so hard to find? "History, in general, only informs us what bad government is." "Thomas Jefferson The "truth" is, that our top level government is lying, IS BAD, and it wouldn't matter so much if these lies didn't mean the deaths of so many innocent citizens of the world. But it is a war that these lies sent us to, and many, many, innocent people have died for these lies, and it is our job, the press's job, and our elected officials' job, to stop it all, now. The innocent dead deserve that much. They have certainly earned that much. All THEY wanted was the truth. Had the truth been told, NONE of them would have perished for these liars. "All we want is the truth, why's it so hard to find." Thanks for writing that, Dennis, it says it all, and that's no lie. "We the People are the rightful masters of both Congress and the Courts--not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution." "Abraham Lincoln "The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home." "James Madison "Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does NOT mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country.... It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country." "Theodore Roosevelt George Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Condoleezza Rice ALL SWORE to abide and obey the Constitution. They have all failed to do so in the worst possible way. They LIED to send us to war, and countless thousands to their deaths. That's NO lie. The "TRUTH"...it's out there. All we want is the truth. Why's it so hard to find? Ward Reilly, of Baton Rouge, La., is a member of Veterans For Peace and Vietnam Veterans Against the Warssage has been received. http://www.baltimorechronicle.com/033005Reilly.html All We Want Is The TRUTH [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on April 09, 2005 at 18:40:57 PT JSM I never heard of the movie. I checked out the link but the trailer didn't work for me using Windows Media Player. I'll watch it if I ever get a chance to see it. We don't have any movie channels so we aren't up to date on what is good. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by JSM on April 09, 2005 at 18:10:37 PT: What the Bleep Do We Know http://www.whatthebleep.com/You will find it there.:-) [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by FoM on April 09, 2005 at 15:43:41 PT JSM Do you mean The Emperor of Hemp? [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by JSM on April 09, 2005 at 15:29:26 PT: What The Beep Do We Know!? Fom,Would it be possible for you to share what you think about the above movie. (Available at any DVD rental place.)I respect your opinion. [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by FoM on April 09, 2005 at 15:11:03 PT JSM I remember that Jack Herer said he didn't understand anti-war protests about Vietnam until he smoked cannabis and then he started to understand what they were saying. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by JSM on April 09, 2005 at 13:37:11 PT: Musings Continuing on the harm that prohibition causes, perhaps the primary reason for prohibition has to be the fear of true spiritual growth. For this is what cannabis does, it opens your heart to what is good and positive in this world allowing us to see the opposite. War is bad, it is evil. Lack of a good health system is wrong. Letting mediciare go bankrupt while making a fuss over social security is evil. When we are feeling good, we are feeling God. And that means that change is coming. Good, positive, loving change. Are there any questions about why Walters lies in public all the time? I have faith that the time is very close when the light will shine on those lies and it will end prohibition. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by goneposthole on April 09, 2005 at 07:48:45 PT He's right, you know "We have to pay attention. We have to correct misinformation. This is not a joke.'' -- John P. WaltersMan has used hemp and cannabis for how long, Mr. Walters?10,000 years of use and commercial application are undeniable testament for its legitimatcy. That fact trumps all. Scare tactics employed against a harmless plant is a lot of huffing and puffing.China has how much hemp in their crop plan?Lo and behold, they've got the biggest piece of the pie. Those are the facts.http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/crops/special/hemp/symposia15.htmlMisinformation? We don't need no stinking misinformation. It's no joke, so pay attention. [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by unkat27 on April 09, 2005 at 06:32:23 PT Walters is a Mother Vulture Walters is the mother of all vultures. As drug czar, his words inspire the anti-pot actions, the demonization and continual criminalization of people who use marijuana, and the destruction of their lives 'for the good' of the children and all the parents who care for those children. Under the fear-mongering of guys like Walters, all the nation's vultures rationalize the continual everyday fascist punishment and destruction of pot-users everywhere. If we are to believe guys like Walters, then marijuana is responsible for all the worlds problems and so it is the duty of Americans to do everything to stop it. He is, like all of the Bushites, one of the biggest fear-mongering fascist bullshit artists in the nation and the world. If the American people had any real brains, they'd see through the lies, see that the Bushites are the real criminals, and have them all executed at the guillotine in a new American revolution. The Bushites put to shame all the ideals that the original US Constitution stood for. Shame on them and off with their heads! [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by b4daylight on April 08, 2005 at 16:29:35 PT ,.... "Though marijuana is not as toxic as cocaine or heroin, and doesn't cause overdose or death, the drug is increasingly the primary cause nationwide of admissions to substance-abuse treatment facilities, he said"So why is it a schedule 1 drug? Seems to me caffine is now a schedule 1 rigt That is not as toxic as Heroin, meth,coke...nice comment omment #2 posted by observer on April 08, 2005 at 10:11:46 PTNotice how he forgot meth... [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by mayan on April 08, 2005 at 16:11:44 PT Hey, Johnny "The single biggest enemy is cynicism,'' he said in a speech at First Step Home, a substance-abuse treatment shelter for women in Walnut Hills. "We have to pay attention. We have to correct misinformation. This is not a joke.''YOU are a joke, Johnny Pee. You a**holes have been lying to us for years and you wonder why we're cynical? We're the ones that have to correct your misinformation(lies). Your credibility is gone and you have lost bigtime in the courts of public opinion. Our numbers grow every day as yours shrink and you will now be forced to push even more outrageous lies as that is the only option you have left. If you had a mind of your own I would say you had other options but you are merely a puppet on strings. You have abandoned the truth and the people have abandoned you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by OverwhelmSam on April 08, 2005 at 12:53:00 PT How To Commit A Fraud Upon the American Citizens So how do you push a ridiculous and hateful agenda forword in light of it's extremism?First Congress passes laws that make it mandatory to go to jail, or treatment if you're caught with marijuana. The obvious choice by most Americans will be treatment instead of jail.And then you use the statistics from the first initiative to prove your view point about marijuana is correct. This is so obviously a lie that Walters should be charged criminally for commiting a FRAUD upon the American people!Let him go to jail and see how he likes it. Maybe Bubba can hook him up.Overwhelm Uncle Sam [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by AOLBites on April 08, 2005 at 11:46:22 PT Cynicism "The single biggest enemy is cynicism,'' he said in a speech ... so the single biggest enemy to america is cynics, cause they don't agree with whatever the govt says ... they seem to want to find out the truth and think for themselves ... hmm... ==============================Cynicism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.Cynicism was originally the philosophy of a group of ancient Greeks called the Cynics (main article), founded by Antisthenes.Nowadays the word generally describes, somewhat pejoratively, the opinions of those inclined to disbelieve in human sincerity, in virtue, or in altruism: individuals who maintain that only self-interest motivates human behavior. A modern cynic typically has a highly contemptuous attitude towards social norms, especially those which serve more of a ritualistic purpose than a practical one, and will tend to dismiss a substantial proportion of popular beliefs, conventional morality and accepted wisdom as irrelevant or obsolete nonsense.In informal use, derived from the meanings described hereabove, cynicism may refer to heartless calculating behavior or thinking. Someone who has no faith in the goodness of other human beings may have less restraints to behave in a calculating way without compassion but this doesn't have to be the case.Despite the negative portrayal of cynics, some would argue that such people simply "refuse to look through rosy-tinted spectacles" and do not fear to demolish popular beliefs no matter how sacred society considers such alleged misconceptions. Cynics themselves tend to take this view, regarding themselves as enlightened free thinkers, and their critics as deluded social pretenders who "bury their heads in the sand". However, an excess of cynicism in an individual can cause social or psychological difficulties when cynics see themselves as depersonalised and self-serving inhabitants of a meaningless, fictitious, and shallow world. wiki: Cynicism [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by jfrolang on April 08, 2005 at 10:36:11 PT always the same... it's always the same lies from the prohibitionists, never anything new. They endlessly scream their lines like a dying beast, but is anybody listening?The theme for this article seems to be the supposed danger to children, but I don't think any reformer wants cannabis to be legal for children. That does not mean they can punish the responsible adults for using or growing their favorite plant though.The easiest way to reduce a minor's access would be to allow the tobacco companies to grow, package and sell cannabis, in a market where competition will remove the profits from the local street seller. Then the only residential growing would be for personal use, and parents would have much more control over it.I'd also be willing to accept an age limit of 21 for cannabis, despite tobacco being available to 18 year olds. Just stop prohibiting God's plant. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by observer on April 08, 2005 at 10:11:46 PT propaganda analysis [1] Drug Czar Calls Pot a Danger To Kids Walnut Hills, Ohio -- President Bush's drug czar wants parents and kids to know: Marijuana is as serious a drug as any other. (Sentence 1) re: "Kids" - Prohibitionists forever claim that children are corrupted by drugs, and this is why adult users must be punished harshly. (Children Corrupted (propaganda theme 5) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme5.htm#5 ) [2] John Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, visited Cincinnati on Thursday as part of his push to convince Americans that marijuana isn't a "soft'' drug. (Sentence 2) re: "Americans" - Because of prohibition (prohibitionists assure us), society is protected: the community is safe, and the nation is saved. (Survival of Society (propaganda theme 3) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme3.htm#3 ) [3] Too many young people start smoking marijuana because they think it's harmless, he said. (Sentence 3) re: "young people" - "The inflaming of this fear about the fate of our own children [makes] it difficult if not impossible for most Americans to take a careful and reasoned look at our drug policies."[W.White,1979] (Children Corrupted (propaganda theme 5) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme5.htm#5 ) [4] "The single biggest enemy is cynicism,'' he said in a speech at First Step Home, a substance-abuse treatment shelter for women in Walnut Hills. (Sentence 4) re: "enemy" - Prohibitionists assert that the survival of the community, society, the nation, the world, etc. are at stake. Only continued and increased punishments for drug users can be contemplated, because, say prohibitionists, society will otherwise fall apart. (Survival of Society (propaganda theme 3) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme3.htm#3 ) [10] The White House thinks it's crucial to get its message to pre-teens because studies show people are much less likely to become dependent on drugs after 19, Walter said. (Sentence 10) re: "teens", "message" - Prohibitionists play on parental fears by exaggerating the dangers to children of drugs. Adults must be jailed (reason prohibitionists), because kids might be corrupted with drugs. (Children Corrupted (propaganda theme 5) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme5.htm#5 ) [11] He called marijuana abuse a "pediatric-onset disease.'' Walters said he supports confidential, non-punitive drug testing for teenagers as a way to get them help. (Sentence 11) re: "marijuana abuse" - Prohibitionist propagandists repeatedly assert that "use is abuse." Details about "using" as opposed to "abusing" drugs are ignored. (Use is Abuse (propaganda theme 4) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme4.htm#alluseisabuse ) re: "teenagers" - Drug war propaganda plays on parental fears for the well being of their kids. If drug users are not jailed, says the prohibitionist, then your children will surely suffer. (Children Corrupted (propaganda theme 5) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme5.htm#5 ) [14] Tell (your children) what you care about." (Sentence 14) re: "children" - Being a prohibitionist means you can never shed too many crocodile tears for the "children". (As you lustily jail or kill their parents for using drugs.) (Children Corrupted (propaganda theme 5) http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pg/propaganda/theme5.htm#5 ) now available in print: Drug War Propaganda [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by schmeff on April 08, 2005 at 09:53:39 PT I'll tell you what's a danger to kids... A lack of commitment to quality education, a collapsing economy, poor health care, job-outsourcing, a pending military draft, leaders who lie to them "for their own good", George Bush...But I'm repeating myself. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment