Drug WarRant

The editorial in the Argus:

Restricting sales of cold meds key to war on drugs

Wow. Good thing we finally figured that one out. Now we can win the war on drugs.
Second stupidest headline of the day?
The editorial in the Oakland Tribune:

Cold medication regulation key to war on drugs

A 60- year old man recovering from cancer who uses marijuana is busted for “a few baby-sized plants and a small amount of commercial weed.” Before the case is even heard, the Tennessee Tax man comes and charges him for non-payment of the marijuana tax, seizing all cash, cars, and putting a lien on the house.
Yep. This is America.
Hire a lawyer to fight it? With what?
This story is developing at the blog of a relative.
Say Uncle has been all over this so-called tax, which is really another way to pile on charges and seize assets (note that 75% of the “tax” goes to the law enforcement agency that made the bust).

This column in the Charlotte Observer by Bill Reeside, Jr. is just fun to read. It made me smile, which is important now and then.

Marijuana, tobacco, cocaine, beer, ecstasy, chocolate, Viagra, aspirin, codeine, French fries, Prozac. These are all things that people voluntarily put into their bodies to make themselves feel better. Some of these things can be bought at a convenience store. Some require a doctor’s prescription and a visit to a pharmacist. Some must be bought under cover of darkness, with cash only, and with no certainty of the purity of the product. Some can be procured by children, others after you reach age 18, still others not until 21 and a few only at the risk of government sanction. Why have we stitched together this crazy quilt of dealing with the products that comfort us?

Puts it nicely in perspective. He goes on to show how poorly this system works, and then makes some concrete suggestions, including:

Here’s what we can do on a local and state level:

Vote a resounding “No” on the bond issue that includes more money for jails. In 2004, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department made almost 3,000 arrests for drug offenses and issued more than 600 citations for drug paraphernalia. We don’t need to fill the jails with people harming only themselves.

Charlotte City Council can free the police from enforcing silly “don’t park on your own lawn” laws and “don’t make or possess a crack pipe” ordinances and have them focus on rape, murder and property crime. Don’t tell us we need more police officers while you are wasting the efforts of the current force.

This is the Australian woman who had marijuana found in her bag at customs in Indonesia (quite likely innocent, based on what I’ve read). TalkLeft has been all over this one, so go there for the full coverage. I’m sure Jeralyn’s pleased to know that bookings to Bali are already down 20%.

Be afraid, mothers and fathers. There’s an insidious disease that infects the minds of the weak and gullible.
This is your brain… on propaganda.

Don’t Underestimate the Danger of Marijuana Use by Larissa Lytwyn (yes that’s her)

[Thanks to all the fine folks at Cannabis News for the information and the inspiration.]

Via Scott at Grits for Breakfast with additional information at Drug Policy Alliance:

Congresswoman Jackson Lee’s bill would [prohibit] states from spending federal money on anti-drug task forces unless they have laws to prevent people from being convicted of drug offenses solely on the uncorroborated word of an undercover officer or informant.

The legislation is based on a law enacted by the Texas legislature in the wake of the Tulia, Texas scandal. That law was passed thanks to a coalition of Christian conservatives and civil rights activists. During the floor debate, conservative Texas legislators quoted the Bible and pointed out that Mosaic law requires corroboration, while civil rights leaders emphasized the need to reduce racial disparities and protect innocent people from going to prison.

This is what we need to see more of. Different groups with differing agendas realizing that the drug war is wrong in so many ways that they can work together to reverse some of the worst abuses.
This is a bill that should be fully supported.

“bullet” Los Zetas are coming! Citizens and police in Arizona and California border areas are being warned by the Justice Department:

… a group of rogue Mexican military commandos may be headed this way. They’re thought to be setting up new drug smuggling routes and it could bring new violence to the border area.

And yes, they could be very dangerous…because we trained them in the U.S. at the School of the Americas at Fort Benning, Georgia.
That’s right. We find people of questionable moral character so that we can train them to go and assassinate/murder drug cartels. Then we send them into Mexico where there are enormous profits available in the drug trade to those who are ruthless and well trained!
Oops. They defected.

The Intelligence Bulletin we obtained says the Zetas are responsible for hundreds of violent drug-related murders. It says they’ve executed journalists, murdered people in Dallas, McAllen and Laredo, Texas. They even detained two DEA agents and recently they’ve shot at Border Patrol agents. At the Arizona border with Mexico agents are already seeing a major increase in violence.

We put them there! Is there no accountability?
“bullet” In other news… China acknowledged in a nationally televised broadcast “that they have failed to stop surging narcotics abuse despite repeated crackdowns.” This, from the country that routinely executes drug smugglers.
And yet, some people still seem to think that if we could just get a bit tougher, we could make prohibition work.

In today’s Virginia Gazette: Drug Forum Draws National Interest by editor Rusty Carter.
Well, it drew my interest as well, for a couple of reasons…

Drug prevention is so high on the radar screen that the White House is watching how a local initiative plays out.

The Historic Triangle Substance Abuse Coalition is hosting a town hall Wednesday night about the pros and cons of testing student athletes. A press conference has been scheduled to draw more attention, and a dozen students were planning a pro-testing picket.

That’s right. Students were planning on protesting with picket signs demanding that they be required to pee in a cup.
Times have changed since I went to High School. I remember there were things that upset us, but the lack of a requirement to get drug tested to be an athlete wasn’t one of them.
Of course, you may say to these picketers, “Go ahead. Get tested. Nobody’s stopping you.” Ah, but that’s not really what they want. They want everyone else to be tested, too.
Further in the article, this paragraph jumped out and smacked me in the face:

More promotion came from Dr. Andrea Barthwell, herself a former deputy drug czar who now works on the local level in Chicago against marijuana usage. She helped defeat an Illinois bill to legalize marijuana.

???
Other than the fact that there hasn’t been a bill to legalize marijuana in Illinois, that Andrea was exposed as a liar, and that now she’s actually working selling marijuana… well, she was a former deputy drug car — that part’s true.
Here’s my letter to Rusty:

Dear Mr. Carter,

I was… surprised by a couple of things in your article today.

First: you said: ” More promotion came from Dr. Andrea Barthwell … She helped defeat an Illinois bill to legalize marijuana. ”

There was no bill to legalize marijuana in Illinois. There was a bill to stop arresting specific categories of sick people who use marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation, but that’s a far cry from marijuana legalization. And to say that Andrea helped defeat the bill is generous at best. She created a series of programs with which she tried to influence legislation, but those fell apart when it turned out she had lied about her sponsors. She refused to debate the Congressman who sponsored the legislation, and didn’t even show up for the hearing. Instead, at taxpayer expense, the Drug Czar himself came to interfere with the Illinois legislature.

You also say that she “now works on the local level in Chicago against marijuana usage.” On the contrary. She has been hired by GW Pharmaceuticals to lobby for the approval of liquid marijuana (Sativex) in the United States.

Obviously the issue of drug testing is one that you have to deal with at your local level. Maybe drug testing is right for you, but you’re going to need to seriously analyze the costs — in terms of dollars, trust, and respect. Do you test athletes? All those in extra-curricular activities? What about those borderline kids who will be deterred by the notion of drug tests from participating in positive activities that could actually help them avoid drugs? Are you actually driving them further to drugs by having a testing program? What about the fact that the most comprehensive study of drug testing in schools shows that it doesn’t work?

All of these things I urge you to consider and analyze for yourselves. But before you get excited about national attention — be aware that one reason that issue is on the radar at the national level is that the drug testing industry is becoming a huge business. Many of these people don’t care about your kids at all. Only the business of the drug war.

Sincerely,

Pete Guither, Drug WarRant

References:

• Lies Cloud Marijuana Debate (Representative McKeon’s letter in the Chicago Sun Times about Andrea Barthwell’s efforts)
• Andrea Barthwell, caught red-handed (My expose about Andrea Barthwell’s lies about sponsorship)
• Andrea Barthwell, snake oil salesman
  (Report on Andrea’s new job selling marijuana)
• “Experience, Research Show Testing Doesn’t Work” by Marsha Rosenbaum
• Drug Testing Fails Our Youth

If I left anything out, please feel free to write your own letter to editorATvagazette.com. As always, be polite.
UPDATE! In the article, it noted that Andrea Barthwell…

enlisted the help of John Pastuovic, whose Chicago public relations firm specializes in issues promotion. He’s sent alerts to local and national media about Wednesday’s press conference, including to the networks, cable news and major newspapers.

Turns out that John Pastuovic is also the U.S. Public Relations contact for… [drum roll] …GW Pharmaceuticals (makers of the liquid marijuana called Sativex).

So what’s really going on here?

A very powerful article by Gary Fields in the Wall Street Journal: Arrested Development.
The article shows that prison is only part of the societal destruction caused by the war on drugs. Once these non-violent prisoners are finally released, there are so many barriers set in front of them to obtain basic services and jobs that we’re practially encouraging them to return to a life of crime and more prison at our expense.
Just read it.

Link

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has denied the US State Department predictions that Afghanistan is on the verge of becoming a ‘narco-state’.
He said the country could be free of opium in 5-6 years.

Man, that guy is funny!

With President George W Bush at his side after a meeting on Monday, Karzai said he is hopeful that poppy production will be down 20 per cent to 30 per cent this year.

… and he’s got his own straight man!

Karzai then continued, “My sister is so fat…”
“How fat is she?” prompted Bush, to gales of laughter from the Washington crowd

Well, you get the idea.
Note: two months ago, a State Department report said the area in Afghanistan devoted to poppy cultivation last year set a record of more than 510,000 acres.