Author Archives: Pete

The drug war and the national security scandals have overlapped in so many ways, not the least of which is a growing sense of the erosion of the very foundation of legitimacy of government. Certainly in a Democracy at the … Continue reading →

Step 1: Force Pot Clubs To USe Cash. Step 2. Bar Them From Hiring Guards. Step 3: Finger-Wag About Drug Violence … the Drug Enforcement Administration has ordered security and armored vehicle companies to quit serving state-legal cannabis providers, according … Continue reading →

Racial disparity is a fact of drug prohibition. Release (UK) has released a new report: The Numbers in Black and White: Ethnic Disparities in the Policing and Prosecution of Drug Offenses in England and Wales Here’s just a taste of … Continue reading →

Strong article in the Atlantic by Jeff Deeney: To Stay Out of Jail, Must Nonviolent Offenders Submit to Medical Diagnoses? The following passage, I think, really points out the problem that we’ve been railing about with the so-called “third way” … Continue reading →

Regardless of what you may feel about the appropriateness politically of the “marijuana is safer” than alcohol campaigns, the truth is that in some areas, marijuana is, in fact, scientifically and objectively safer than alcohol. A recent ad aired at … Continue reading →

I was pleased to hear Attorney General Holder make his announcement about reducing sentencing for low-level drug crimes, not because I thought what he planned to do would have much practical effect (still depending on prosecutors to use judgement), but … Continue reading →

Official Tweets from the Seattle Police Department twitter feed: SPD Chief Jim Pugel was just driving down 4th Ave when he spotted a 79 Chevy w/fake pot leaves hanging from its rearview. Driver looked lost That’s when Chief Pugel’s 30 … Continue reading →

I hate to recommend watching the TV “news” stations, but it’s how so much of the mass population gets their info… Tonight at 9 pm Eastern: Gone to Pot – Making cases for and against the legalization of marijuana. Featuring … Continue reading →

I was impressed with this CNN story: As haze clears, are American opinions on pot reaching tipping point? (except for the obligatory pun in the headline). It is a story of a lot of people getting caught flat-footed by the … Continue reading →

Mayor Bloomberg tries to defend Stop and Frisk in this horrible piece in the New York Post: Frisks save lives He basically takes the position that Stop and Frisk has been responsible for a decrease in violent crime, even though … Continue reading →