Drug WarRant

TV 10 in San Diego has a story out Who is Winning the War On Drugs?. It’s pretty standard TV journalism fare — a mention of LEAP and alcohol prohibition, some good points, some ignorant points. Overall, a reasonable balance for such a source.
But then they decide to do a poll. An actual, four question SurveyUSA News Poll of San Diegans’ view on drugs, the drug war, and prohibition. Only a sample of 500 adults, but still, potentially interesting. The results of Question 3 (Would you say it is fair? Or unfair? To compare the war on drugs with the Prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s and 30’s?) are pretty depressing.
But then you come to Question 4. Here is the actual survey question that a news entity asked of 500 San Diego residents:

In general, do you think drug use should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?

Yep. Those were the options. “Crime” or “Disease” (or you could answer “Not Sure”)
So I’d like to ask the imbeciles at KGTV in San Diego a couple of questions:

• In general, do you think eating steak should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?
• In general, do you think that driving a motorcycle should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?
• In general, do you think that having wine with dinner should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?
• In general, do you think that taking aspirin for a headache should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?
• In general, do you think that watching KGTV TV-10 should be treated more like a crime? Or more like a disease?

Today, the DEA unveiled the next tour stop of their offensive “Target America” exhibit.
From what I can tell, it’s pretty pathetic — a small part of the exhibit that was at the Museum of Science and Industry, moved to the hallway in the lower level of Navy Pier in Chicago, next to the escalators, near the stained glass exhibit.
As far as I can tell so far, the media has had very little interest in even mentioning it (as of this moment, a TV station clear across the state in Moline, Illinois is the only one besides the DEA reporting it).
It seems likely that our efforts to protest the exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry have had an effect — and alerted the media that this is biased propaganda.
Our website responding to the DEA exhibit — DEA Targets America — has gotten quite a bit of visibility.
This partial exhibit will be at Navy Pier until September. It seems unlikely that there will be another exhibit after this one.

And Carlson wins in a knockout.
Watch this video all the way through and see how Tucker continually sets up Souder and lets him hang himself. The end of it is classic!

Here’s a rough transcript of the last part:

Carlson: … and how many people died from marijuana overdoses last year?

Souder: Uh, if you count the, uh, uh, amount of crime associated with marijuana…

Carlson: No, no, just marijuana overdoses. Just the drug itself, which you said is like cocaine now. How many people died from it?

Souder: Uh, I don’t, I don’t, uh. 65 percent of emergency room admissions for drug abuse are marijuana.

Carlson: Huh. OK. But did anyone die that you know of?

Souder: Uh, presumably so, thousands have died, the only question is, you said “overdose” –that isn’t even most of the deaths related to prescription drug or to cocaine or heroin — there’s a whole range of drug crimes and so on. I don’t know the number of overdose. Marijuana is often managed ah, with meth —
no drug user is a single drug user so marijuana is often in the mix of most deaths so it would be very hard to separate what’s what. A marijuana user is very seldom just a casual marijuana user, ah, except in the early stages, they’re often gonna polydrug.

Carlson: Yeah. OK. I’m not endorsing drugs, but I know a lot of casual marijuana users, so, that’s wrong.

But I appreciate you coming on. Thanks a lot, Congressman.

Souder: Thank you, Tucker.

The DEA sends out a “Biweekly E-mail Informant” where they brag about their recent arrests, and sometimes it’s just embarrassing when they try to be hip, fly, phat, groovy and happenin’
Here are the headlines for the current issue:

• Operation Polar Express Puts the Chill on Boston Ecstasy Traffickers
• NYC Heroin Trafficker Trades in Bling and Classic Cars for Jail Time
• Sour Grapes for the Vineland Boys: San Fernando Valley Gangsters get Decades-Long Prison Terms

Here’s another odd moment in one of the pieces:

“This group marketed their Ecstasy by using images such as superman, a bat, a kangaroo, and even the Statue of Liberty. It’s ironic that a group of traffickers who chose to use our symbol of liberty now face losing theirs,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge of the New England Field Division, June Stansbury.

There is, in fact, more irony in Stansbury’s statement — representing, as she does, an agency that works to take away Americans’ freedom — than there is in the Ecstasy images.

Here’s this week’s issue. Vote Hemp’s press release does a nice job of nailing the DEA.

I’ve never really had much interest in American Idol and haven’t followed it at all, but this item caught my attention.
Apparently Akron Watson has been disqualified from the Hollywood Round, and speculation is that it may be for a previous marijuana bust. However, I’m skeptical about that reported reason, given:

1. Watson told Fox about the bust up front
2. Fox stood behind Bo Bice in season 4 (despite previous cocaine and marijuana arrest records)
3. Paula Abdul

Fox has said they will never reveal the reason for Watson’s disqualification.
The controversy did bring back memories for me of the 1998 Winter Olympics when Ross Rebagliati almost lost his snowboarding gold medal for testing positive for trace amounts of marijuana. Or when World Flying Disc Federation decided to start disqualifying ultimate frisbee players for testing positive for marijuana.
I ask you. What kind of a horrible world is this, if snowboarders, ultimate frisbee players and musicians can’t smoke pot?

This is hilarious.
Ryan Grim writes another good, well-researched, well-sourced article at The Politico: Bush Wants Funding Jump for Anti-Drug Ads Rated as Useless.
Check out the editorial sidebar on the story at The Politico:

Ryan Grim, who wrote today’s story on the anti-drug campaign program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), previously worked for the Marijuana Policy Project, which lobbies to legalize marijuana. Grim worked at the project from June 2004 until May 2005, a fact that has been on his official bio since he joined Politico.com. Grim called the ONDCP for comment for his story early Wednesday. Instead of returning Grim’s call, Tom Riley, the agency’s spokesman, called The Politico’s senior publisher and editor, Martin Tolchin, to point out Grim’s previous work with the Marijuana Policy Project. He then threatened to complain to Washington Post media columnist Howard Kurtz about a conflict of interest. The ONDCP did not return Grim’s call Wednesday.

Ouch. How’s that feel, Tom?
Tom Riley, who has a conflict of interest with the truth, complains about conflict of interest when the press reports the truth, because he doesn’t have any actual… facts. All in an attempt to silence the press, while protecting his propaganda.
And he gets called on it.
Priceless.
[Perhaps one more thing for the Domestic Policy Subcommittee to investigate?]

According to WSBTV in Atlanta:

ATLANTA — Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard plans to ask a grand jury to consider murder charges against three Atlanta police officers.
The big news is not only the notice of the indictment itself, but also an FBI [official] indicated to Channel 2‰s Mark Winne that the action by the Fulton County D.A.‰s Office came without any notice to either the FBI or U.S. Attorney‰s Office. The official suggested the FBI investigation has not been completed and the FBI had not been notified of what he indicated was a unilateral action taken by the District Attorney.

I’m not sure what it means that the DA is acting separately from the federal investigation, but ultimately I would expect hope to see these officers tried for felony murder. If the apparent facts hold up and the officers lied to get a warrant, and then broke into Kathryn Johnston’s home based on that warrant and killed her in her home (regardless of her self-defense actions), then what other conclusion can you reach?

“bullet” It’s way too early to obsess about the ’08 Presidential election, but Glenn Greenwald has a fascinating post explaining why those who are quick to dismiss Rudy Giuliani’s chances are mis-reading the dynamics. And he ends it with a description of Giuliani that reminds me why I think Rudy would be just about the worst possible option for us.

Giuliani is an “authoritarian narcissist” — plagued by an unrestrained prosecutor’s mentality — who loves coercive government power (especially when vested in his hands) and hates dissent above all else. He would make George Bush look like an ardent lover of constitutional liberties. He is probably the absolute worst and most dangerous successor to George Bush under the circumstances, but his political talents and prospects for winning are being severely underestimated.

“bullet” Award for understated headline: Afghanistan losing war on drugs, general says. And while the New York Times doesn’t quite have a clue of what to do in Afghanistan, they at least realize that patterning their efforts after what we’ve done in Colombia is stupid: Editorial: Wrong Model for Afghanistan. Related: The Senlis Council will be holding a symposium in London next week: “A Cohesive Strategy for the Future of Afghanistan”
“bullet” Meth crackdown fuels smuggling — not a surprise to any of us. Pat Rogers has more, in Barack Obama, Assassin of Youth
“bullet” Lou Dobbs has always been a moron, but he shows it anew in a segment that includes LEAP member Terry Nelson:

DOBBS: Now, you may think, and certainly I do, that we are in the grips of a mass idiocy when it comes to failure to secure our borders and our ports. The U.S. Border Patrol says drug seizures of cocaine and marijuana are up sharply this year. President Felipe Calderon, of Mexico, continues to target drug cartels, to his credit. But despite the idiocy that surrounds border security, there is another idiocy rising up.
A group of law enforcement agents now say that effort is actually fueling drug trafficking and violence, and they say the answer is to end the war on drugs. [emphasis added]

“bullet” North Dakota Issues First Hemp Permits. Will the DEA blink? And I wonder — will Kucinich put Karen Tandy on the hot seat if the DEA denies permission?
“bullet” And finally, the Marijuana Policy Project will be hosting its annual fundraising party at the Playboy Mansion on May 14. Could be a lot of fun, if you’re got an extra grand to spring for the ticket. Last year, they raised more than $170,000. Not bad.

For any of my readers at Illinois State University, I’ll be leading a roundtable on current issues in drug policy tonight with the Illinois State University chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy.
Wednesday at 8:00 pm in Stevenson 212.