Author Archives: Pete

Nationally, asset forfeiture laws, in conjunction with the drug war, have been extremely profitable to law enforcement, to the extent that many units depend on a certain level of seizures to achieve their annual budgetary goals. This means that law … Continue reading →

A U.S. report that has been hitting Canadian media sites in the past two hours says that Canada is too terrorist friendly. A serious charge, but let’s take a closer look at it. First, the report (titled Nations Hospitable to … Continue reading →

TalkLeft reports that the cost of prosecuting Tommy Chong for making bongs was $12 million. This comes by way of Chong’s attorney who got the information from the government prosecutors. It’s outrageous, but not particularly surprising. The amount of tax … Continue reading →

The Canadian federal government reintroduced a marijuana decriminalization bill on Thursday. The text of the bill is here. The bill provides for fines if the amount of marijuana is 15 grams or less (and smaller fine for 1 gram or … Continue reading →

Now that I’ve got your attention… A post by Randy Barnett at the Volokh Conspiracy led me to his fascinating paper in the Cato Supreme Court Review: Justice Kennedy’s Libertarian Revolution: Lawrence v. Texas (pdf) In it, Barnett posits that … Continue reading →

Powerful editorial yesterdayl: NOTHING CRIMINAL IN HEALING HERBS Should patients suffering from severe ailments — AIDS, cancer, glaucoma — have access to medical marijuana which, often alone among available medicines, can alleviate their suffering? Or should they be liable to … Continue reading →

As I mentioned yesterday, Illinois is looking at Medical Marijuana. Companion bills have been introduced in the House and the Senate. If you live in Illinois, go now and contact your representative.

From the good folks at Students for a Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) As you know, since its inception, SSDP has campaigned against a 1998 amendment to the Higher Education Act that denies federal financial aid to anyone convicted of a … Continue reading →

Reported in the Quad-City Times: Cancer and AIDS sufferers as well as Illinoisans suffering from glaucoma, would be able to grow, possess and use marijuana without fear of arrest or jail under legislation just introduced in the General Assembly. But … Continue reading →

LastOneSpeaks has another outstanding post on the Kucinich/Kerry question for drug policy reformers. There’s plenty of time to close ranks behind the nominee when the fight is against Bush. For now backing this losing candidate [Kucinich] could win some respect … Continue reading →