cannabisnews.com: US Drug Czar Calls for End To 'War on Drugs'

cannabisnews.com: US Drug Czar Calls for End To 'War on Drugs'
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US Drug Czar Calls for End To 'War on Drugs'
Posted by CN Staff on June 05, 2009 at 13:34:47 PT
By Andy Sullivan
Source: Reuters
Washington, D.C. -- The Obama administration's top drug cop plans to spend more money on treating addiction and scale down the "war on drugs" rhetoric as part of an overhaul of U.S. counternarcotics strategy.But don't expect the White House to consider legalizing marijuana, drug czar Gil Kerlikowske said on Friday.
"The discussion about legalization is not a part of the president's vocabulary under any circumstances and it's not a part of mine," Kerlikowske said in a telephone interview.As head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Kerlikowske coordinates the efforts of 32 government agencies to limit illicit drug use.He has been in office less than a month, but the Obama administration has already taken a less confrontational approach to the nation's 35 million illegal drug users.The FBI is no longer raiding state-approved facilities that distribute marijuana for medical purposes, and the White House has told Congress to eliminate the sentencing disparity between powder and crack cocaine.Kerlikowske said he hopes to ditch the chest-thumping military rhetoric at the center of U.S. policy since President Nixon first declared a "war on drugs" 40 years ago."We should stop using the metaphor about the war on drugs," said Kerlikowske, a career police officer who headed the Justice Department's community-policing initiative under President Clinton. "People look at it as a war on them, and frankly we're not at war with the people of this country."Nevertheless, Kerlikowske also plans to disrupt trafficking across the Mexican border through a new focus on the guns and cash that travel south, as well as the drugs coming north.U.S. drug policy has been criticized for focusing too much on fighting supplies from Colombia and other countries in South America and not enough on curbing demand at home, the world's largest drug market. Balancing The Approach Kerlikowske said a more balanced approach was needed, with greater emphasis on treatment programs, especially in prisons."It's clear that if they go to prison and they have a drug problem and you don't treat it and they return ... to the same neighborhood from whence they came that you are going to have the same problem," he said. "Quite frankly people in neighborhoods, police officers, et cetera, are tired of recycling the problem. Let's try and fix it."Obama, who described youthful marijuana and cocaine use in his autobiography, has proposed a budget for the fiscal year starting in October that boosts funding for substance abuse programs by 4 percent to $3.6 billion.Needle exchanges for intravenous drug users, now banned at the federal level, will be considered a healthcare issue, he said.As Seattle police chief, Kerlikowske worked in a city that ran a needle-exchange program, celebrates an annual "Hempfest" that draws tens of thousands of marijuana smokers, and passed a referendum that made enforcing marijuana laws the department's lowest priority.Other state and local governments have loosened their marijuana laws as well. Medical marijuana is now legal in 13 states, and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last month welcomed a public debate about proposals to legalize and tax the drug.While that's not going to happen on the federal level, Kerlikowske suggested the government should devote less effort to prosecuting nonviolent drug users."We have finite resources," he said. "We need to devote those finite resources toward those people who are the most dangerous to the community."Editing by Doina ChiacuSource: Reuters (Wire)Author: Andy SullivanPublished: June 5, 2009Copyright: 2009 Thomson ReutersCannabisNews Justice Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/justice.shtml
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Comment #51 posted by Rainbow on June 08, 2009 at 19:34:17 PT
Well ...
OK I get it and agree
No to legalization instead Regulate and tax.No problem.
[ Post Comment ]

Comment #50 posted by JSM on June 07, 2009 at 04:39:38 PT
Poll result
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/06/majority-of-americans-wan_n_198196.htmlThe times they are changing...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItPz7f-k-dE&feature=related
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Comment #49 posted by EAH on June 07, 2009 at 02:05:42 PT:
No personal stake in the issue.
This is one of the worst things one can do regarding a difficult and controversial policy, that is to say conciliatory things and give an impression of changes while in reality nothing is going to change. The lack of any solid tangible change on paper at the federal level will mean continued injustice for thousands across the country. Law Enforcement will continue pretty much as they have. The weakness and inadequacy of state laws to protect all but the smallest of users will mean good people will still find themselves being put through the meat grinder of the the courts. The Obama people aren't in need themselves, don't have close personal ties to anyone who does, and have lost touch with exactly how people are destroyed when the system gets a hold on them. It's only when major politicians experience something personal, painful, and harsh that their tune changes. Imagine if Michelle Obama's mother was taken ill and found effective relief came only from cannabis...
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Comment #48 posted by RevRayGreen on June 06, 2009 at 18:49:49 PT
I would've been
proud if that was my son. In my kid's defense he was placed in a county home for most of his time when he was 16 for failure to drop a clean UA after being caught in the act of campus in 9th grade. He knows it was his fault for failing the terms of probation, best thing was he got his GED, never to return to HighSchool, is now 18 working on an IT degree.
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Comment #47 posted by Hope on June 06, 2009 at 18:23:38 PT
Observer
I am in agreement with your prayer.The speech young Mr. Barry gave is very well researched, in depth, and covers just about everything. I'm sure it will be more widely read than most high school speeches. http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v09/n590/a01.html?397
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Comment #46 posted by observer on June 06, 2009 at 17:11:02 PT
Teen accepts penalty for marijuana speech
Teen accepts penalty for marijuana speech - expelled: 17-year-old lit joint as class projectThis man, Ian Barry, has courage. If one percent of us thought like this guy thinks, we would not be in the mess of tyranny we're in. I applaud Ian Barry. I wish Ian Berry success. I pray that the spirit kindled in Ian Barry is kindled in millions of other Americans until America stops jailing her sons and daughters for ... smoking a flower.
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Comment #45 posted by rchandar on June 06, 2009 at 16:16:25 PT:
Hope
Thanks. Your comment does mean a lot. I will try to carry this through.
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Comment #44 posted by FoM on June 06, 2009 at 16:09:58 PT
EAH
I think very much like you do. It's going to be a big mess to unravel.
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Comment #43 posted by rchandar on June 06, 2009 at 15:52:18 PT:
GWPharma
The only way this would work for Big Pharm is if they were to receive a complete monopoly of distribution, which is only plausible if they were given huge farms that would quickly outstrip anything the mobsters could produce. It could work, I understand why you will swear it cant. Funding in the amount of, say $10 billion, would be a good start, plus a complete legal monopoly on production. Otherwise I'd say you're right on the money.--rchandar
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Comment #42 posted by Sinsemilla Jones on June 06, 2009 at 13:24:54 PT
Teen accepts penalty for marijuana speech
Saturday June 6, 2009 - Tacoma, WATeen accepts penalty for marijuana speech
expelled: 17-year-old lit joint as class projectBRENT CHAMPACO; The News TribuneIan Barry says he wasn’t trying to be a martyr when he lit a marijuana joint this week at Peninsula High School in Gig Harbor, nor was he trying to pull a stunt.Simply put, the 17-year-old junior wanted to drive home the message of his persuasive essay: Marijuana doesn’t deserve its negative stigma and should be legalized....http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/769115.html
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Comment #41 posted by Hope on June 06, 2009 at 12:54:25 PT
RChandar
I'm glad to see you're feeling better.You're a brilliant and accomplished man. Quit paying any attention to immature twits that just like to aggravate people by running their mouths and being rude.Don't let them have the kind of power over you and your life that you're allowing them to have. It doesn't matter what they think or say. It really doesn't if you don't let it. You're internalizing and brooding over it. Don't do it. You, though, have a lot to do and say that does matter and it would be awful if you let their stupid attitudes actually hurt or cripple you. Shake them and their ignorance off and don't give them a second thought. Please. They don't deserve it. They're just badly functioning people that get off on putting other people down. They and their foolish attitudes don't matter in the scheme of your life and they won't effect how you live it if you don't let them... so don't let them.
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Comment #40 posted by GeoChemist on June 06, 2009 at 12:40:19 PT
rchander
The Amereto story of organic versus organix shows how big-pharma needs it to be to turn a profit. While your mafia route has merit don't think for a second the big pharma route isn't as legit. The potential was there in 1974, how could this have been supressed for so long? Remember, there is no money in a cure.
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Comment #39 posted by EAH on June 06, 2009 at 12:21:09 PT:
Politically Safe
Obviously in the judgement of the Obama Whitehouse, the politically safe position is to continue to resist actual reform despite the fact that is the "change" that's needed. Like gays in the military, it's just not a priority and they see legalization as too risky politically and without any big political payoff.I think there is a sizable faction that would go berserk, plus there are international implications as well. Undoing all the international treaties regarding
drug laws etc would be complicated and stormy to say the least. It took 50 years to build the tangled international drug laws and treaties, it won't go away easily.
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Comment #38 posted by rchandar on June 06, 2009 at 11:02:26 PT:
Miranger
In theory, fine. Yes, MJ does things to some people's psychology and if they want "help," they should get it. But it must be a just, equitable, dogma-free clinic of learning and caring. Many pot-smokers are quite horrible humans, and there are many pitfalls even if we like it. Safer than alcohol or tobacco, yes. That's been demonstrated. Still, it's hard for me to write off someone saying that......but rehab usually doesn't work. One, it demands submission to the Christian God, and many of us ain't Christians. Second, a lot of people there are pretty bad--violent criminals who resist treatment. You won't get the attention and love that you need. Finally, it isn't free--and it should be. Standing outside rehab with the other pensioners, the police flashing their lights to remind us that we were criminals in their eyes, was pretty depressing itself. Fairness is something that we Americans are very, very poor at--it shows. We punish people psychologically and offer them pretty empty hopes. But if enough money and time was spent on rehab centers, it could work. I can share your sympathies--who is this guy? Will he really do anything? But rehab is necessary--it's an attempt that should be furthered, not clipped.--rchandar
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Comment #37 posted by rchandar on June 06, 2009 at 10:33:37 PT:
GeoChemist
the real reason cannabis won't be legalized is because the mafia doesn't want it. Why should they give up undisputed control over users, high prices, the freedom to amass huge fortunes while the user wafts through the debris of a world ruled by self-degradation and sickness? Let's be fair about this: in a legitimate world, a mafia don, hit man, seller, has no operative value: he is no better or worse than anyone else. The whole fortune that they earn is borne of this trickery, and they are not going to give it up so easily.-rchandar
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Comment #36 posted by Miranger on June 06, 2009 at 10:32:25 PT
well
It would be hard to believe that the goverment will actually legalize it, but its easy to see how they're still COMPLETLEY WRONG in their APROACH when they say
"we must invest in rehab and prevention"I fear that more than anything else, because you're categorizing pot heads as having a disease, not being vibrantly aware of what they're doing.
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Comment #35 posted by FoM on June 06, 2009 at 07:41:59 PT
Just a Note
I hope everyone has a nice weekend. I am happy that we are changing directions that will lead us in a way better way. I really do have hope and peace actually.
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Comment #34 posted by GeoChemist on June 06, 2009 at 04:44:51 PT
The main reason cannabis won't be legalized.......
If it were legal then the doors, oops I mean flood gates would open for UNFETTERED SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH on varios strains of quality herb. And as everyone here knows, inlight of the 1974 Virginia Medical College Study and the Guzman Study, this is the LAST thing big Pharma wants. As far as scheduling goes, my opinion is this....if PURE (albeit synthesised) THC is a schedule III, then what the hell is lurking in these plants (I'm including hemp) that makes them so dangerous that they are still in schedule I? The ONDCP could NOT answer this when I called them out on it. What is lurking is the key to a cure for a ravenous disease, and the key is a chemical component that is synonymous with both "marijuana" and hemp hence there legal status or lack there of.....End of line
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Comment #33 posted by kaptinemo on June 06, 2009 at 04:15:24 PT:
Same old, same old...
"Other state and local governments have loosened their marijuana laws as well. Medical marijuana is now legal in 13 states, and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last month welcomed a public debate about proposals to legalize and tax the drug.While that's not going to happen on the federal level, Kerlikowske suggested the government should devote less effort to prosecuting nonviolent drug users. (Emphasis mine - k.)Now...the question is: was this Mr. Kerlikowske speaking? Or was it the reporter inserting his tuppence? I strongly believe, given past statements by Mr. Kerlikowske, that it is the former. Which means that we have heard the official 'party line'. The Executive Branch didn't get the hint when the Change.gov site was swamped with suggestions to change the Fed drug laws to eliminate cannabis prohibition. They evidently thought they had been 'freeped'. In fact, the idea of ending cannabis prohibition was ridiculed by the man who wouldn't be President right now if he had been caught doing what he stated he had. But time is running out...as is the money. The US Federal government can't continue to print currency out the whazoo forever to maintain the illusion of solvency, as the prices for staples rises ever higher (that, friends, is the source of the 'inflation') and more and more are thrown out of work like Rchandar. The money to run drug prohibition can best be spent doing other things, like maintaining unemployment insurance. A point which must be made, time and again, at every opportunity, for as the old saying goes, you have to use a 2x4 repeatedly on a donkey's skull to get its' attention. Enough of that, and the tune of 'not on the agenda...not on the agenda' will become "It's time to get smart on drugs!"It's all about the money. Always has been; always will be...
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Comment #32 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 23:00:42 PT
One more thing…
Before I call it a night…Free the weed…Clean the streets…Equal with lettuce, tomatoes, peas and carrots…As it will be done…Peace to all of mankind…I think the world could use a little of that…
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Comment #31 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 22:44:42 PT
Last …But Not Least…
A different acoustic version… many will like...acoustic Bass too…not like many see…Reo Speedwagon " Riding The Storm Out" From XM Radiohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_zU6R7IMns
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Comment #30 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 22:34:55 PT
rchandar…
What you/we/us/mankind are experiencing is the turbulence of the transition from the Age of Pisces …to the Age of Aquarius.The Hopi call it the 5th world…The Mayans call it the 5th dimension …and there are many other references from ancient civilizationsThe forces are in motion and will not be stopped…and yes... there will be peace when we are done…but in the meantime…we will have to ride out the storm…************Hopihttp://www.crystalinks.com/hopi2.htmlMayanThe 5th Night of the Galactic Cycle of the Mayan Calendarhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4MSAWMOHAs************The Fifth Dimension "Aquarius /Let The Sunshine In" (1969)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EegRh8Z4H-o
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Comment #29 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 21:51:30 PT
rchander
ZZ Tophttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH85zttgbGg
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Comment #28 posted by rchandar on June 05, 2009 at 21:37:54 PT:
They Keep Attacking My Plant
...saying, "he masturbated on drug addiction." That one word, "masturbation," keeps them going for hours and hours. Seems like every girl in this country is waging a holy war against me. What did I do???? Some wealthy kids moved in next door. And they are horrible. Every day threats, demands for "surrender," on and on. Couldn't respect me, the professor, if their life depended on it. I can't get a cup of coffee, use the bathroom, lie down, or be with my wife (because, contrary to public opinion, I am NOT GAY). You know, sometimes Americans have the least perspective. They've turned sexuality, a natural, ordinary fact of human life, into an endlessly speculative race for egoistic brilliance and financial and physical prowess over all of humanity. I get disgusted with the appalling lack of perspective on this one. Around the world, men aren't big, can't boast of conquests or violence against other men. We just aren't good to each other. Governments have tried so hard (please forgive this statement, it's true) to encourage all of us to have more sex. I'm being targeted for doing things right--sympathizing and working with the poor and afflicted, those without the absolute luxury of today's brute murderer "man."Listen, it's an apartment. The pretty young girls are "sick and tired of this masturbation!" They "don't want any of it," even though they basically encourage it. If I was truly fornicating, why don't I feel good enough to sleep. And what is my wife, a mannequin, that sex with her is also "masturbation?"...till then, rchandar--rchandar
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Comment #27 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 21:35:49 PT
rchandar
Do not despair…For every dark cloud there is a silver lining to be found…only if one seeks it…Take those despaired feelings and channel it into positive energy…Checkout these people…and share with like mined people…Carry on our wayward son…peace be with you…as there will be peace when we are done…************Announcing a new Meetup for People United For Medical Marijuana!What: South Florida Meeting in Broward CountyWhen: June 27, 2009 1:00 PMWhere: Dan Pearl Library, W. Oakland Park Blvd in SunriseMeetup Description: This is a great opportunity to meet other people in South Florida helping PUFMM get the laws changed. We will be giving you ideas on how we can work together to reach our goal. There is no cost to attend. We will be giving out t-shirts in exchange for a $10 donation.Learn more here:
http://www.meetup.com... ************And a tune for you also…Kansas Carry on my Wayward sonhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pw6_VXPwm6U
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Comment #26 posted by Paint with light on June 05, 2009 at 21:32:24 PT
Why Not?
I have heard both the President and his Czar say they are against legalization but I don't think I've read anywhere the reasons they are against it.Maybe I've missed reading an article. I've missed a few recently.I like the change in tone and some of the positives that have happened in their approach so far.I just want to know their reasons against cannabis.Where are the, "sends the wrong message to the children",......"increases the crime rate",......"leads to harder drugs",......"grows big breasts on males" reasons we've learned to expect?This time all I've heard is, "It won't be part of the dialog".Well...........Why?What are your reasons?I have been a big supporter of Obama, but at least with Bush and Walters you knew the illogic with which you had to deal.The president should at least apoint a commission like the Schaeffer Commission, and start the political mechanics to reschedule cannabis immediately.Legal like alcohol, and if not, why not?
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Comment #25 posted by rchandar on June 05, 2009 at 21:22:25 PT:
Some More...
...and let me tell you some more about my life. My daily words are "pussy," "masturbator," "faggot," and most recently, "piece of s #t." Sometimes girls--usually 15-25, walk around saying this:"Kill him! Kill the masturbator!"What on earth did I do to deserve this? I'm starting to think that the more attractive a girl is, the more evil she's going to be. What is this nonsense all about? I don't hurt women, not in the past, nor in the future. In fact, when I was a teacher these girls got good grades in my classes, when they could have easily been flunked by me. Why do I live with this nonsense? What exactly did I do??? I can see how Bush f#%ked up this country royally, turning it from a great and free country into a medieval, fundamentalist backwater. Where do these people get off, threatening me like this, with both my parents suffering from cancer???--rchandar
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Comment #24 posted by tintala on June 05, 2009 at 21:20:26 PT:
If we don't legalize pot let's at least legalize
HEMP! FREAKIN LEGALIZE HEMP ALREADY IF POT CAN'T BE! Utterly rediculous policies the USA dictates to human beings around the world.
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Comment #23 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 21:14:48 PT
Hhhmm…and I wonder…Still I wonder…
“”'The FBI' is no longer raiding state-approved facilities that distribute marijuana for medical purposes, and the White House has told Congress to eliminate the sentencing disparity between powder and crack cocaine.””I thought it was DEA that was doing that…the raids...************Creedence Clearwater Revival: Who'll Stop The Rainhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIPan-rEQJAlyrics…Long as I remember the rain been comin down.Clouds of mystry pourin confusion on the ground.Good men through the ages, tryin to find the sun;And I wonder, still I wonder, wholl stop the rain.***I went down virginia, seekin shelter from the storm.Caught up in the fable, I watched the tower grow.Five year plans and new deals, wrapped in golden chains.And I wonder, still I wonder wholl stop the rain.***Heard the singers playin, how we cheered for more.The crowd had rushed together, tryin to keep warm.Still the rain kept pourin, fallin on my ears.And I wonder, still I wonder wholl stop the rain.
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Comment #22 posted by rchandar on June 05, 2009 at 21:10:16 PT:
Ironic as F#$k
Hello--I just thought you all would like the basic information. Recently out of work. I come back to Miami--supposedly, a haven for MJ. All my buddies have deserted, and the neighbors seem to think my only hope is to be a fundamentalist Christian and "support the law enforcement officials." Day by day, I'm becoming crazy, because not one soul tells me they understand and sympathize with me opposing the War on Drugs. There are no jobs here at all. Lies are undisputed truth, just because I don't support the bamboozling nonsense that glorifies the cycle of sickness that is this city, which unfortunately I grew up in. I have thoughts of suicide, but repress them. Seems like everyone's principle in life is that because their body is bigger than mine, they're justified. What do I do now? I'm basically on your side...
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Comment #21 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 20:24:16 PT
In reality…this is all there is…
The Beatles-All You Need Is Lovehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzJ2NKp23WU
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Comment #20 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 20:12:32 PT
Had Enough
Great song. It still packs the most powerful message of all and it is love.
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Comment #19 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 20:08:38 PT
And not to forget…
This special person too…Burn One Down – Coverhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lnLtha1YC8&feature=related
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Comment #18 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 20:04:01 PT
And…
From a person…from a special light…our friend and brother...musemanTo This Momenthttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx5WQYSelYY
[ Post Comment ]

Comment #17 posted by Had Enough on June 05, 2009 at 19:56:24 PT
The way I see things…
Right Now...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpNoxKzEEvw
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 19:54:23 PT
BGreen
I have found being angry is a big waste of time. All it does is upset people around us and can wreck a persons own day. Life isn't fair and never will be. Grasp tightly onto the good and get thru the bad is my philosophy. Change comes in stages not in a big bang. I understand those who are afraid of marijuana and maybe in time they won't be so afraid if we represent this ancient plant in a good way.
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Comment #15 posted by BGreen on June 05, 2009 at 19:40:02 PT
I agree, FoM
I see some angry young people but no one seems to listen to them anymore.Thank goodness no one seems to be listening to the angry older people, either. LOLThe Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 17:34:36 PT
BGreen
I have faith in the younger generation after seeing all the young people that worked so hard to get Obama elected. I see determination to change the failed direction we have been on. I see the spirit of the 60s awakening. I see the turning away from chasing money but going into social service jobs. This is a compassion generation I am seeing. They are polite, kind, listen, show respect, and will pick up where we left off. I see some angry young people but no one seems to listen to them anymore.
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Comment #13 posted by BGreen on June 05, 2009 at 17:12:31 PT
Dropping the rhetoric and keeping the actions
That's not going to work.Marijuana prohibition is as much of an important social issue to the younger generation as is gay marriage. In other words, it ISN'T!My parent's generation screwed things horribly and my generation has failed just as miserably, but the younger generation has set itself up to be the people who return the "free" to this "land of the."So what if the cops talk nice to us before they destroy our lives?Obama and Kerlikowske are seriously delusional if they think we'll be placated simply by applying Orwellian naming practices to laws that violate our Constitutional rights.Does GWB's "Patriot Act" ring a bell?A name change doesn't change anything and we haven't fought this long and hard to be duped by vernacular obfuscation.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 16:36:55 PT
MikeEEEEE
I agree we need to keep fighting on but for the longest time I felt hopeless because we didn't have a progressive on our side. Now we do! We have Senator Webb, and of course Barney Frank and even Arianna Huffington. Onward and upward!
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Comment #11 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 05, 2009 at 16:32:53 PT
Lost Cause
The declaration that the war on drugs is ending is important. The problems are the stigmas already created and industries that profit from it. Law enforcement still gets a lot of bootie from this stupid war, $omething they will not give up without a fight.
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Comment #10 posted by rchandar on June 05, 2009 at 15:35:47 PT:
Rchandar Challenges the Obama Administration
I've stated this before, but it's good info. Here's rchandar's platform for ending the WOD:1)Legalize cultivation, distribution, and possession of marijuana.2) Free ALL prisoners, parolees, and probationees convicted of marijuana-related "crimes."3) Law and expansive budget providing free treatment to anyone who calls themselves a marijuana "addict."Go confidently in the direction of your dreams!--rchandar
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Comment #9 posted by rchandar on June 05, 2009 at 15:32:09 PT:
Scaling Down the WOD
I'm going to agree with Sam. Our main concern should be reducing the # of arrests. That's our main problem--we may like decrim/legalization moves, but if people are getting hacked, that's the real problem. So we reverse Bush's policy--let's say, reduce the # of MJ arrests by 50% within five years.AND we re-try, quite favorably, drug criminals who are serving time. Free the prisoners whenever possible.But Kerlikowske must be tested on this idea. Plainly said, it's time to ditch precedent and do what is right.--rchandar
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Comment #8 posted by The GCW on June 05, 2009 at 15:25:07 PT
Safer - Healthier - move in right direction
US CO: Coloradans Report Drinking Less, Smoking More Pothttp://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v09/n586/a12.html?397
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Comment #7 posted by observer on June 05, 2009 at 15:20:24 PT
Keep Jailing Them for Cannabis - Just Rename It
From what he's said so far it looks like they plan to arrest 800,000 per year for marijuana, add a few million dollars in treatment spending, and just not call it a "war" anymore.I call the drug war "prohibition". Prohibition is a failed policy. But, governments like to repeat failures, since what we call "failures" are often power-grabbing orgies of government corruption. Prohibition is where government holds a gun to your head and says, "Don't taste that." That's why police (the gun holders) like prohibition so much: they get to Most Righteously hold lots of their guns to our heads. To most earthly governments, success is defined as getting more power. And so it is with government "drug wars." Governments are drunk with power and blood and their drug prohibition police state activities play a big part in that. Call it what you will.
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Comment #6 posted by Sam Adams on June 05, 2009 at 15:04:02 PT
grace period
It's still early. From what he's said so far it looks like they plan to arrest 800,000 per year for marijuana, add a few million dollars in treatment spending, and just not call it a "war" anymore.Remember his "new" plan for Mexico's drug war was about 95% militarized law enforcment and 5% treatment.But Cheney's people aren't just going to give up overnight, it will take Obama years to get rid of them all and put his people into place.You can see it's not just us Obama is trying to placate. Hilary put a scarf on and Obama took off his shoes and went to mosque. Apparently they think that's going to pacify Al Quaeda.Again, it's a good start, but unless the we stop bombing them it's only going to buy a couple months of goodwill. Right now Gitmo is still open and we've increased troops in Iraq and Afganistan. Hilary and Obama are going to have to go to that mosque every day at this rate!
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 14:23:01 PT
MikeC
I'll take it too! What a difference.
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Comment #4 posted by MikeC on June 05, 2009 at 14:04:27 PT
Well...
It's not legalization but it's a big step in the right direction. The wall is coming down and this is a necessary step in the process.I'll take it.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 13:53:30 PT
HempWorld
If you look at the United States there are many states that would flip out if marijuana legalization was even mentioned. Reform communities are way ahead of the general population.
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Comment #2 posted by HempWorld on June 05, 2009 at 13:41:21 PT
don't expect the White House to consider legalizin
gWhy not?Was the abandonment of alcohol prohibition then a bad thing?And the, why is it wrong to 'consider it'?Jeffrey Miron, a Harvard Professor, has 'considered it' and came up with a huge number in savings for society.And so we keep limping along ...
LegaliseIt.com
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on June 05, 2009 at 13:40:52 PT
This Is a Good Beginning In My Opinion
Excerpt: He has been in office less than a month, but the Obama administration has already taken a less confrontational approach to the nation's 35 million illegal drug users.The FBI is no longer raiding state-approved facilities that distribute marijuana for medical purposes, and the White House has told Congress to eliminate the sentencing disparity between powder and crack cocaine.***PS: Obama never mentioned anything on the campaign trail about legalizing marijuana but he did mention medical marijuana. It has been something to watch a new drug policy surface after John Walters.
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