Network media fail (updated)

Some of the network media have been trying to cover the legalization of marijuana in Colorado and Washington and clearly are in catch-up mode, not really knowing how to talk about it. And they’re completely thrown by the fact that the DOJ, for the most part, isn’t coming right out and commenting. So they’re all forced to turn to… Kevin Sabet.

Check out this ABC piece by Christing NG: Marijuana Legalization Celebrations May be Premature, Lawmakers and Experts Say.

The experts on what the federal government will do appear to be… Kevin Sabet.

“I think this is the beginning of the conversation on legalization, not the end,” former Obama Drug Policy Advisor Dr. Kevin Sabet told ABCNews.com today.

“When you have the governors of both states [opposing it] as well as the president and Congress, who has already determined that marijuana is illegal, this is not going to be a walk in the park for marijuana enthusiasts,” Sabet said. […]

Even though the measures have passed, they are likely to meet legal challenges very quickly.

Sabet predicted that the federal government would find a way to make clear that the passage of the amendments violates federal law and they won’t “take this lying down.”

“I wouldn’t advise anyone to toke up just yet. This is going to be caught up in the courts. This is a to-be-determined situation,” Sabet said. “The government has multiple avenues. They can wait until it’s implemented, take action before it’s implemented, reiterate what federal law is, send warning letters.”

The avenue the federal government will choose remains to be seen, Sabet said, especially since the passage is unprecedented.

“If you look back, the only precedent is the medical marijuana situation,” he said.

In 2005, the Supreme Court by an 8-0 margin struck down a California law that legalized medical marijuana in the state. The Court said Congress had the power to criminalize marijuana under the Commerce Clause.

He said that it may take a state’s move toward implementation to spur the federal government into intervening.

“I think you’re going to see very soon a response from the administration,” he said. “It’s completely premature for any legalization advocate to be celebrating at this point.” […]

When asked if the federal government may try to quickly quash the amendments as a way to prevent a potential future domino effect of other states following in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington, Sabet said a failed legalization could actually set the movement back.

“A lot is going to ride on what happens next in these two states.” he said. “This very well may backfire because if this does not turn out so well, if implementation does not happen, the donors and millionaires that donated for this to happen may pause when doing it in other states.”

“I think people should just pause before celebrating this,” Sabet said. “The story is just beginning.”

What’s that – something like a dozen paragraphs out of a not particularly long story dedicated to total speculation by a former employee of the federal government about what the federal government will do.

And I’ve seen this in a number of articles. I asked Christine why she devoted so much time to this, but she hasn’t responded yet.

I asked another reporter why he depended on Kevin Sabet quotes and he told me: “I too would like some answers from the DOJ but in the absence of that we have to give our readers some idea of how they might be leaning.”

But the question is, how does Kevin know how they’re leaning? Why couldn’t the reporter give the basic facts of the federal-state conflict without having to turn to someone who appears to be nothing more than a media whore looking for more attention?

I asked Kevin if he was being paid to speak for the federal government or whether he just enjoyed making stuff up? He said he wouldn’t answer me unless I took back some of the things I’ve said about him in the past…. I decided I didn’t really need to know the answer that bad.

The thing is, good reporting can be done.

Update: Stop the Drug War has done a follow-up of this blog post: Fast Talking Has Started

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20 Responses to Network media fail (updated)

  1. Paul says:

    I enjoy the squirming, but isn’t it outrageous to hear how our masters are not sure if they’re really going to follow the law, because their serfs are so badly misguided?

    State authorities can’t arrest people who are not breaking a law. Feds can for federal laws, and we’ll see what they do soon, but the state cops don’t get a choice. No law, no crime.

    I also don’t see how courts could possibly overturn legalized MJ. There’s no law to overturn, no rights being violated. If this law had been to round up all the black people in the state and imprison them for being black, there would be a rights problem, and a law to discuss. But in this case, it is simply not against the law to smoke MJ.

  2. Lars says:

    Gonzales v. Raich was not unanimous.

    • Matthew Meyer says:

      Nor did it “strike down” California’s law–it just said it was no defense to violations of fed law.

    • Duncan20903 says:

      No, but Wickard v Filburn, 317 U.S. 111 (1942) was unanimous. You can thank the left for that decision. 8 of the 9 Supreme Court Justices were appointed by FDR in 1942.

  3. Windy says:

    Mexico’s New Gov to Review Pot Fight After US Vote
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/mexico-govt-review-pot-fight-us-vote-17667177#.UJt2ocXR58F

    FTA:
    Luis Videgaray, head of incoming President Enrique Pena Nieto’s transition team, told Radio Formula that the Mexican administration taking power in three weeks remains opposed to drug legalization. But he said the votes in the two states complicate his country’s commitment to quashing the growing and smuggling of a plant now seen by many as legal in part of the U.S.

    “Obviously we can’t handle a product that is illegal in Mexico, trying to stop its transfer to the United States, when in the United States, at least in part of the United States, it now has a different status,” Videgaray said. “I believe this obliges us to think the relationship in regards to security … This is an unforeseen element.”

    Videgaray stopped short of threatening to curtail Mexican enforcement of marijuana laws, but his comments, less than three weeks before Pena Nieto travels to the White House days before taking office, appeared likely to increase pressure on the Obama administration to strictly enforce U.S. federal law, which still forbids recreational pot use.

  4. Freeman says:

    I asked Kevin if he was being paid to speak for the federal government or whether he just enjoyed making stuff up? He said he wouldn’t answer me unless I took back some of the things I’ve said about him in the past….

    Sheesh. What a child.

    I decided I didn’t really need to know the answer that bad.

    You didn’t expect an honest answer anyway, no doubt.

  5. Peter says:

    with the drug war moved into the spotlight i wonder when we will see the first whistle blowers emerge from the various administrations responsible for this massive fraud? insiders from the clinton/gingrich era would be my first chiice for an expose of total opportunistic cynicism. or barbara and poppy bush’s investments jn the prison-industrial complex. and what about bidens waltz with nancy reagan? the scope for memoirs of this period a mass insanity is vast

  6. pt says:

    I think half the media somewhat expect that they themselves will be arrested if they dont write negatively about the ammendments lol, but it wont last, I expect at some point it will be the “cool” thing to be all in favor of weed.

  7. CJ says:

    AWWWWWW!!!!! LOOK AT THE LITTLE BABY!!!! KEVIN WONT ANSWER UNLESS PETE TAKES STUFF BACK? WELL, TAKE IT BACK!! ITS NOT FAIR!! WAAAAH WAAAAH WAAHHHH!!!! AWWW POOR LITTLE BABY!!! THERE THERE, ITS OKAY, ITS OKAY… BE GOOD BOY, BE GOOD BOY… AWWW HE’S SO CUTE WHEN HE’S MAD! POOR GUY!! HE’S BEEN OFF THE GIL KIRLIKOWSKE NIPPPLE FOR TOO LONG, THAT’S WHY HE’S CRANKY, WONT SOMEONE GO FETCH OL’ GILLY, GET THE LITTLE FELLA BACK ON THE NIPPLE AND INTO THE OTHER ROOM SO US ADULTS CAN DO ADULT THINGS THAT WE WANT TO LIKE SMOKING WEED (FOR YOU) AND SLAMMIN’ THE DOPE FILLED SPIKE OF CHINA WHITE (FOR ME)

    eh kevin you freakin pansy you want some cheese with that whine you loser? next time you go out for a stroll buddy take a long look around, anytime you see someone that fits the stereotypical homeless (aids ridden, hep c having, rail-thin-skinny, busted fingernails, tons of clothes because their incessantly cold due to their homelessness etc) junkie look, and i hope that for the sake of humanity whoever you judge to be that is really that, and you realize your agenda does that, enables that to happen to someone who enjoys opiates (heroin, all the painkillers from dilaudid to oxy roxi morphine and all the wonderful colors of the rainbow) simply because they enjoy opiates and then youll know why i hate your guts why i will make fun of you, why i will never ever take back anything i ever say about you and probably because they feel as strong as i do why the good folks here wont take back anything they say about you. as for the folks here with their “quit your mudslinging” be “mature” lol, you make me laugh. be mature. grow up! ha! that’s outrageous. age – a man made mechanism, another stupid way to over simplify something already simple enough – the life of the human species. whats more, a mechanism to dictate certain aspects of the ‘normal’ do your 9-5, borrow that $$$ to buy that house, have them babies, get old, get ignored, get died. i mean, if we didnt have an age system, how would we know when we were supposed to retire or to cash in on social security? i mean, we gotta define EVERYTHING right? and shoot, we might as well decide that certain things are for young folks and certain things are for old folks, yea? well i sure as hell know that if my disease riddled junkie body can survive to a ripe old age and if for some sick, perverted, twisted reason, i were to be thrown away into some old folks home at 90 years old and find out that kevin is in the same home, i will take my wrinkly old heroin shooting tooshy wooshy over to his room and continue to say

    AWWW LOOK AT THE WIDDLE BABY WABY!! SOOOO CUTE WHEN HES MAD!!! YOU FREAKIN’ PANSY BASTARD SON OF A HUNDRED MANIACS FAN OF HAWAII 5-O

    ah and if age should dictate when someone stops “making fun” (he made fun of me mommmy!!) then maybe also when one should be smoking weed? shooting dope? ah, i just dont think if your on our side of the coin here and your an adult like myself, you should be pointing fingers about maturity and what have you because i dont give a damn about social profiling and thereby make fun of kevin sabeet in my best high school bully impersonation (its been a long time since i dropped out of high school so forgive me if my impersonation sucks) and while sitting on your high horse getting on the folks that get on kevin your also upset, stomping your feet like a kid and complaining because you cant smoke weed legally in your state (hahaha, like how i gotta say that now? if i were a pot lover, i would!) so the whole trying to play the mom or dad thing or the teacher thing is actually a little more immature, to me, and – forgive me, i am a dope shooter afterall so what the heck do i know – what have you versus actually, if you hate the bastard as much as i do (i was gonna say as much as i and pete, but, i dont want to get pete in trouble) then get in the mud and throw some mud we can make like we’re at woodstock ’94 and it’s green day’s set (am i dating myself? uh oh) or if you hate my dope shooting guts, then get in and sling mud at me, i dont care, it’s alot better than playing the mommy role cause i have authority issues and instead of dealing with it ill just numb myself and youll have wasted your time – if you get in the mud pit and sling, at the least youll maybe say something thatll make me laugh, at best you may even hurt my feelings… and im a junkie, im sensitive, obviously, so it may not be so hard.

    ah but i digress, how could you ever bitch at anybody for taking to the mud with Kevin Sabeet? look at him, look at what he said !! he obviously takes it to heart, he obviously was abused by the cool kids in high school. he obviously takes it personal, what the hell? lol is it kicking someone while they’re down? do you think if there was kevin walking down the street okay, and he smiles a butt kissing smile to a cop standing on the corner, he keeps walking and boom, there we are, you and i, my tongue sticking out, slunk over with my arm hanging down belt wrapped around my bicep and my eyes shut, i am off too heaven with a 100 cc 32 gauge short tip hypodermic syringe dangling out of me inner elbow and boom there you are my wonderful stoner friend, ripping that bad boy bong, lighting that lighter like i would normally like my crack pipe – with an odd mix of ferocity, love, and passion, sucking that sucker down and being rewarded with the incredible sensations of THC… you think that, you and I, vulnerable as we are in this metaphorical alley-way, would get any kind of sympathy from kev? lol. you think he’d keep walking? he DEFINITELY wont step in whip out his wallet and say to you i got five on it, pass that bowl – he definitely wouldnt ask if he could do the leftovers from my waterbottle cap.. he definitely WOULD walk right over to that cop he just passed, he’d definitely, with his chin high up, walk right over to us and get us locked up, no matter how much we may have in common with him on a personal level, no matter how sensitive our home life may be (if you have a home – i.e dependent wife, i.e highly dependent children i.e even more highly dependent old aged parents) he’d laugh and smile as we drove off sitting in the back of the cop car.

    ah whatever… something just came on the TV about a DEA response to Colorado and Washington.. oh boy, my heart skipped a beat, the news anchor woman said the DEA says “not so fast” and then they went into an unrelated story, apprently to discuss the DEA story later… so im gonna go see what this is about… the DEA, oh i hate them so much!!! they’re another bunch of bastards who must be crying like babies over Colorado and Washington. bastards!!

  8. claygooding says:

    Kevin should apply for poster child in the “bullying” ads.

  9. CJ says:

    ok so ive seen alot of stuff, like pete wrote about here about how there has been virtually no response from the authorities about the pot stuff… so the news program on over here im watching an nyc affiliate of one of the majors [idk if i was watching nbc cbs or abc or fox i have no idea tho i def dont think it was fox i rarely have fox on except when the simpsons are on and seinfeld reruns] and they were like “dont toke up just yet, the DEA has something to say” bla bla bla… and then they went into stories about yesterdays storm (there was a second one here in NYC after the hurricane which was totally wild, yea there was a second storm, nothing like the hurricane but nevertheless was a real bad one and since the citys still in bad shape it was extra bad) anyway, they eventually got to the pot story

    here it goes guys, basically, they started trying to be cute, you know how these newscasters are. and let me just say, personally, i hate news caster type people probably more than any other kind of… i guess would you call it TV program host? i hate most all TV and TV programs and most all celebrities and mainstream shows [i am not a hipster infact, i hate hipsters incase you were inclined to assume that i do not live in brooklyn i never go to brooklyn and i hate hipsters and treat them very ignorantly, oh well for my karma and while i am not into materialism and pretention, i will be honest when i tell you that, my hate for hipsters is such that i have consciously decided to tailor my appearance to be the exact opposite of theirs, so that i would never be mistaken for one or be thought of as a comrade by them [and thus have them approach me and infect my with their coodies] like they like beards, i shave everyday. they have shaggy, long, naturally dark hair, i have very short bleach blond hair, they wear tight jeans, i wear loose fitting jeans etc. etc. etc.] but nevertheless of all the kinds of TV personalities i hate, i think i hate news people the most they just seem to be the epitomy of fake and pretentious. they are also very much like me, agonizingly not funny tho they try to be funny.

    so they start the segment saying “dont break out the cheetos and goldfish just yet!”

    and then they said that as regards washington and colorado that the DEA has issued a statement. The statement was that, and im not quoting it exactly cause i cant remember precisely the word for word statement (even tho this happened like, 5-10 minutes ago lol) but they did not acknowledge Colorado or Washington. They appeared to be specifically ignoring being specific. they just said that “our policy of enforcement has not changed. We will continue to enforce the law as we have been.” basically saying nothing is new, nothing is different, nothing happened, we are going to persecute and enforce the drug law.

    OK if you had NO IDEA about the legalization in Colorado and Washington, this DEA statement would seem very wierd. it would be like the milkman getting everybodies attention and then saying “i just want to let everybody know, i will continue to deliver your milk.”

    seriously. and i am sure they did that on purpose for some reason – as if by not acknowledging the reason they’re making their statement, they give it less credibility – infact, i bet thats exactly why they said that the way they did, that may’ve been their intention all along as far as their opening response to the legalization ballots was concerned. To make the matter seem insignificant, to make the matter trivial and to act like its not real, it doesnt existence… like a cancer patient in denial who just doesnt admit their ill, doesnt admit theirs anything wrong and then wakes up one day feeling ill enough to need to see a doctor and then the doc says youve got 24 hrs to live, i told you a year ago you needed immediate treatment but you ignored it for so long now that theres nothing that can be done.

    then the news program said the governor or whatever of colorado has yet to sign off on the legalization paper and has to do that to make it official, they went to the office with cameras but the governor was out, but they had with them a delivery of cheetos and gold fish for the governor that the governor’s secretary accepted on the governor’s behalf (the gov wasn’t at his office at the time the cameras showed up) the cheetos and goldfish came from one of the top marijuana legalization people in the state.

    so is that the first official response to the legalization efforts from our opponents then? Or did i miss something? I mean the kevin piece Pete wrote about i obviously saw that and just like Pete said that doesnt really count because Kevin doesnt really count because hes irrelevant – he is a FORMER employee not a current employee he has no idea whats going on because hes not there. its like asking your french neighbor about the intricacies of the modern day japanese political system when your french neighbor has poor command of the english language and has never been to japan doesnt know anything about japan, but maybe likes samurai movies alot.

    so is it the first official response? basically they’re saying, “go ahead and toke, we dare ya” aren’t they? this is gonna get real freakin’ ugly i think guys. I think inevitably that … well, see i dont know how this all works, can someone help me out – basically, so, do all the municipal and state police out in Colorado no longer have authority to arrest anybody on Marijuana charges anymore because of the legalization? (i mean as soon as it is official with the governor’s signature) if that is true then does that mean that the only people who can do any pot arresting would be federal agents, like FBI CIA and DEA? right? is that generally right??? i dont know so help me out.

    but! so – i mean, the DEA has to be fuming pissed. I think the judges whose entire corrupt lives are dependent on putting drug users behind bars i bet these judges are fuming pissed off. i bet the private prison people who have written SPECIFICALLY that their business would be HURT by laxing on drug laws, i bet they’re pissed… these people, these organizations, thanks to prohibition, at the moment, they have some serious behind the scenes power guys, (i get that im stating the obvious) and they are gonna try to make us pay for this, i bet you, i bet they are fuming, i bet they are so upset and they are definitely brewing with fury… its gonna get ugly guys… i dont look like jesus, moses and since im very white, i definitely dont look anything like the red version of satan or muhammad, and ive never claimed to be a prophet tho i do enjoy spending all my profits on opiates, but if i may play fortune teller for a second, i really really think that the people who we severely slapped in the face two days ago (the federal agencies dependent on drug prohibition the judges the cartels the private prisons) are going to up the ante and they are gonna come at us very very hard. in this day and age guys im sorry to say but most in 1st world countries only care about themselves and their money and their status and their power and they will kill their own family to maintain those things (not everybody but most people) and you guys we have all acknowledged before the wide array of special interests that are dependent on drug prohibition like me to heroin… and hey, look, all things fair i can tell you if someone tried to take my heroin away from me there would be an immediate third opium war going on in my life and i would do all i could to embody the spirit of the UK from the 1st and 2nd opium war and do all possible to destroy my opiate hating enemy…. now, here we are guys… and maybe this is the third opium war going on… i mean, but this time encompassing more than just opium… (afterall, and even though i know this is over simplifying a complex matter but for simplicities sake, werent the two opium encounters basically Chinas govt saying “Europe – specifically UK, we dont want you selling opium to our citizens anymore. from now on it’s illegal. we demand you stop.” and Europe/mostly UK saying “uh, no, we’re not gonna let you do that to your citizens, they have rights to do what they want.” [even though it was more about opium being the only thing china would pay excessively for in the UK/China trade and the profits of opium was the real reason not any desire to defend chinese people’s rights to do as they pleased with their money, mind, and bodies.] and then they fought, China lost, and said “ugh… ok ok!! we give up! you can sell your opium…!” and even though the young emperor was known to enjoy opium with his concubines, a little bit after the first opium war, China said, “ok, we’ve secretly got our army back together and stronger than before and we definitely dont want our citizens to be having the right to do opium, how dare they think they have any right to decide to do what they want with their bodies!!! dont they get that the human body is property of the state (country/empire) in which their body [which is nothing but an avatar, mind you – Keanu Reeves Matrix style] is born in! OK, EUROPE/UK YOU GUYS STOP SELLING THAT OPIUM!” and Europe/UK said to them “hey, hey, wow, you already tried this little stunt, fella, we kicked yer arse around the three Kingdoms and back again, you really dont wanna make this mistake again, bucko!” and China said, lips moving totally out of sync with poorly dubbed over vocals i.e 70’s exploitation kung fu films “Silence, fool! If you will not stop selling the opium then prepare yourself! DEFEND YOURSELF!” and then, also, with poorly dubbed, out of sync lip movement, Europe/UK replied sharply after rolling up their sleeves “This time you’ll be sorry!” and then an ominous voice in the background of all of this shouted out “ROUND 2, FIIIIGHTTT!!” and cheesy music plays as China is resoundingly decimated once again, worse than before. At the very end of the battle, the ominous voice repeats “YOU WIN! PERFECT! FLAWLESS VICTORY!” and Europe/UK poses in an extraordinarily cheese victory pose.)

    i think we are fighting the third opium war but this time its even bigger than the second one, and, this time it encompasses so much more than just opium that it’s the drug war – and our opponents, sorta mirror the incubent Cuban government during Castro’s time of rebelion. We are DIY guerrilla warfare folks, armed with righteousness and intelligence, we are the morally just side, believing that we have a human right to employ judgment over our bodies, and what we do with them. our bodies are our bodies. our brains, our hearts, our organs are OURS. they are NOT property of the state. They are NOT property even of those we love (who may ignorantly mis treat us because theyve been duped by prohibitionist propaganda) our bodies are ours and our argument is on par with the argument of slavery ISNT IT? our argument is on par with the argument of a persons right to their sexual preference, ISNT IT? All we want is the very fundamental ability to be ourselves and do what we want – we are NOT property of the federal govt. When they said at the convention of narcotics long ago that opiate use was not condusive to the herd mentality, that, essentially, opiate using people were more likely to be individualistic and independent, as opposed to mainstream and trend following well that is our RIGHT we may be American and some may be proud of it (i personally have dual citizenship, am proud to be a EU citizen, not an American – yes i know, i should get out if i dont love it, yes i am working on it, i will be gone soon enough.) but this isnt fascist italy, we are not property of the state. This isnt some Orson Wells, Philip K. Dick novel of an authoritarian generalissimo run twisted future. No.

    So at the moment our opponents control private prisons, have tons and tons of money more than we do (especially when we have to spend outrageous amounts of money on drugs because of prohibition prices – not really an issue for pot smokers and maybe MDMA takers, but opiate lovers, due to tolerance it is impossible and is why prohibition is the primary reason for our suffering because unless your rich or have a fat opiate script you have to go about your opiate use in a prohibition system that makes 40 bags of dope 400+ dollars, a bag 7-15 dollars but the actual production and the actual cost of a wop in a legalized market would be the price of a bag in a prohibition market, thus, no more homelessness, no more stealing, breaking and entering, no more homelessness.) they hold positions of authority and power… they are police (***NOT ALL!!*** GOD BLESS THE WONDERFUL PEOPLE OF L.E.A.P – WHAT POLICE OFFICERS OUGHT TO BE LIKE!! I THANK YOU L.E.A.P FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART FOR EVERYTHING YOU GUYS DO AND ALL YOUR TIRELESS EFFORTS YOU ARE TRUE HEROES OF THE MODERN WORLD! THANK YOU L.E.A.P THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!) they are judges they are CEOs of companies with interests tied to our persecution, they are ignorant parents, they are ignorant teachers in public schools, destroying lives of kids they bust smoking weed in the bathroom, they are definitely powerful lot, and, it would do us all some good to stay versed in the writings of Niccolo Machiavelli, Sun Tzu and all the strategic masters cause this is definitely war guys, i mean, itss so stupid that our govt that should be helping us is actually hunting us down and persecuting us but the planet earth is a sick, twisted place guys and they definitely are. These greedy bastards sitting on Judge’s chairs, throwing otherwise wonderful teenagers into jails, psychologically destroying them, ruining them, destroying their lives. The prosecutors, drunk with their huge ego’s and their pisspoor priorities. They’re sick, jaded, hypocritical bastards.

    And make no mistake about it my friends, we got all of those bastards and we kicked them square in the nuts two days ago.. but it wasn’t one of those rushed kicks to the balls that happen in the midst of fights, you know, like when you are looking for the cheap shot (but also one hit victory in most cases) but end up catching inner thigh more so and therein you firstly look like a wuss for going for the nut shot in the first place and secondly, did nothing to further your standing in the fight – that was not what us reformists did two days ago – no WAY – what happened two days ago was an absolute direct missal style, leather, steel toed cowboy motorcycle boots with moon shoe souls, kick directly center into the nuts of our opponents and the person wearing the shoe, sending this kick, was a professional european footballer… thats how wonderful a kick to the nuts of our opponents was two days ago…

    and they are doubled over, they are coughing gagging, they cannot speak! as the men here know, a devastating nutshot definitely takes the wind out of you.. and is certainly understandable why they cannot speak at the moment.. they are struggling to get up, they are gasping for air… their face turns red… but they are humiliated and they are pissed and guys i do think they are gonna be spiteful, hateful and they are gonna try to do something to us that will get us at our very core.. Obviously Obama isn’t gonna go on TV and essentially re-read Nixon’s infamous war on drugs speech, but something of that magnitude… i bet you!! they are frightened and cornered and they are gonna lash out at us… its gonna be open warfare i think guys. i cant wait. so for the moment lets toot our own horns till we lose our voice. what do you think?

    • Opiophiliac says:

      CJ I don’t think anyone knows how the prohibitionists are going to react which is why so many of us in the reform movement are paying such close attention. We can be sure that the drug warriors will not just tuck their tails and declare defeat. Kevin is a media addict who will say anything to get his next fix (his face on national TV) so he’s not exactly credible.

      One thing that infuriates me are all those cops, judges and politicians who retire and then come out with lamentations on all the lives they’ve ruined. This indicates that they knew it was wrong to persecute people solely on the basis of their drug preference but they continued to do so because to come out against prohibition might jeopardize their material comforts and/or political power. There were people in Nazi Germany who were opposed to Nazism but stayed silent because it was easier to play along, and not being a part of the scapegoated minority meant they were never in danger. I’m sure there were a number of people living in southern states that recognized the American institution of slavery was a grievous affront to human dignity but never challenged the status quo.

      I’m no history expert but I think the opium wars were more about trade, specifically the silver-for-opium trade deficit that China was running, than it was ever about opium. Opium was also the British answer for their trade imbalance caused by the widespread British predilection (addiction?) for tea.

      LEAP is an incredibly important organization. They have a credibility that is different from everyone else in the reform movement. I watched a video where Neil Franklin gave a speech in which he, speaking on LEAP’s behalf, accepted the challenge of truth and reconciliation between drug users and police. One important first step in ending the drug war.

      “ive never claimed to be a prophet tho i do enjoy spending all my profits on opiates,” LOL me too! Seriously though the price of heroin in the US is between 25-50 cents per mg. Due to the hysterical reaction surrounding any mention of heroin it is not pharmaceutically available in the US but overseas in (slightly) more enlightened countries the pharmaceutical cost is less than one cent per mg. Opiate lovers have to work their asses off (or sell their ass, tragically) only to see most of their income go to the cartels. Thanks a lot prohibition.

  10. kaptinemo says:

    Yet another media fail. Their playbooks just got invalidated.

    Yes, I said playbook, like it was a menu in a Chinese restaurant. It’s called ‘The Titter factor’. And it works like this:

    ‘Pot’ story? Okay, turn to page XXX where it says you must inject some condescending verbiage in the header: “Pot enthusiasts dreams go up in smoke” or some such cutesy-poo drivel, designed to cast in the non-user public’s mind the meme that only immature people are interested in drug law reform.

    Then follow with cut-and-paste quotes from extremely biased prohib sources as if they were the ‘Burning Bush’, with scant or no responses from reformers. There, done! Time for more important things, like reporting on some bureaucrat’s wardrobe.

    Well, they’ve been caught with their pants down. They shouldn’t have; the warnings were there, all along, in the polls. But they figured that they could continue their condescending ways indefinitely, and are only now just realizing that they have angered millions of voters with that condescension.

    I expect that the corp-rat media will have to rapidly change gears, and soon, if it expects to maintain any degree of market share with all those they’ve insulted all these years. For, as the old saying goes, “Money talks; BS walks”. The BS of ‘The Titter Factor’ will die sooner than prohibition itself will.

    And as far as Kevin is concerned, when will some reformer like Nadelmann go to the mattresses with ol’ Kev, and point out to the public that the media is being damned lazy if the best they can do to get any response from the prohibs is to have them trot out their faux ‘expert’ Sabet. He was nothing but a freakin’ speechwriter, a mouthpiece, a propagandist paid to lie by people authorized by Congress to lie.

    Point that out publicly and humiliate both the media wonks and Sabet, and this crap will stop, posthaste. The prohibs are using Sabet as a firewall so they don’t have to publicly display their own growling, in-your-face authoritarianism. Remove the smooth, slick facade he projects, and behind it are nothing but the snarling dogs and jackboots and guns that represents the TRUE face of the DrugWar, the face the prohibs don’t want the non-users to see.

  11. ezrydn says:

    The international question hit me last night. It’s a real kitty litter ball of twine to be unwound. Some say have the State National Guard protect the states. Uh, the Guard can be federally mobilized. Ergo, major players change sides. Then, there are the threatening letters to third parties. Human nature kicks in.

    I’m not trying to rain on the parade. Just looking at realities of engagement. I’d love to be wrong on this one. However, I pay attention to history and I see a Grand Showdown in the works. Too many egos involved. Don’t get me wrong. I love a good battle. Like Gen Giap of the NVA said, “In order to fight the tiger, you must first lure him out of his cave.” Well, the “lure” has been set. The lion will come. Be ready.

    • darkcycle says:

      If you’re a small guy like me, and you absolutely HAVE to take down some giant brute for whatever reason, start your fight in an elevator, or a hallway, or a doorway even. Fight where your opponent can’t swing with all his force, and has to avoid walls. In those circumstances his advantages become disadvantages. His size and strength don’t help anymore, they limit his ability to move.
      That’s where we are. And like CJ said, we just kicked the federal prohibition machine square in the nuts. Of course they are going to try to swing back, but they can’t swing with all their force. I don’t think we need worry about troops in the streets in this case.
      I think we’ll see the feds still trying to enforce federal law for a while, but without so much help from the locals. I think we’ll see some threats and some hyperbole, but I really don’t think there’s a whole hell of a lot open to them. I am pretty sure they don’t quite know how to proceed…..everybody is watching right now.

  12. Cannabis says:

    Kevin Sabet wants to be ONDCP Director. He’s worked at it almost his whole life. It used to be a cabinet position. It’s not any more. At the rate things are going the position may not even exist before Kevin gets his chance.

  13. mr. ikashini says:

    The once proud daily Post Standard is now a tri-weekly or WEAKly!

  14. Servetus says:

    “A top Colorado drug enforcement task force is disbanding over a lack of resources.

    The South Metro Drug Task Force serving Arapahoe, Douglas and Elbert counties has been fighting drug crimes for 23 years.

    Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said Thursday that investing limited resources to specific crimes is becoming more difficult because of a lack of funding.”

    http://tinyurl.com/a3yrlkr

  15. Pingback: Prohibitionists Attempt To Downplay Marijuana Legalization In Washington And Colorado | Egypt

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