Obama Compares Drug War to Alcohol Prohibition
Via NORML's Russ Belville, CBS's Bob Schieffer asked President Obama about the drug war violence in Mexico and got this surprising response:
President Obama: Well, what’s happened is that President Calderon I think has been very bold and rightly has decided that it’s gotten carried away. The drug cartels have too much power, are undermining and corrupting huge segments of Mexican society. And so he has taken them on in the same way that when, you know, Elliot Ness took on Al Capone back during Prohibition, oftentimes that causes even more violence. And we’re seeing that flare up.
I honestly cannot believe the president is looking towards alcohol prohibition for a little perspective on our present predicament. Everyone knows that story. Elliot Ness didn't defeat those cartels. Legalization defeated them.
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redditObama is Touting the Violence as Success
Comment posted by aahpat on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 9:19amAnd Pete Guither at DrugWarRant is fantasizing that this is a sign of hope for drug policy reform.
Obama is not seeing the prohibition policy failure. Elliot Ness is a hero to law enforcement and Obama is just licking some law enforcement dick by mentioning Ness.
Pete Guither is doing reform a disservice by IMPLYING that Obama is doing some backdoor effort to get an anti prohibition debate going. He and other commentators did the same disservice for reform throughout the presidential campaign. They would take vague innuendo by Obama and mischaracterize it to mean reform. This gave Obama a lot of drug reformer support that he should not have gotten. Now Obama is escalating and militarizing the drug war while Pete again deludes people raising audaciously false hopes by mischaracterizing of what is going on.
Don't be fooled like Pete by smooth tongued fascists.
IMPEACH OBAMA, BIDEN & CLINTON!
President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary R. Clinton have all sworn to "insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare" which are guarantees articulated in the United States Constitutions. But their co-sponsorship in 2005 of S-103, "The Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005" has achieved just the opposite. It has grown dangerous Mexican drug cartels across America and provided them with the financial to corrupt the Mexican military to the point of being able to recruit dangerous military professionals and purchase state of the art U.S. military munitions that our government has sent to Mexico to fight the war on drugs. S-103, "The Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005" today directly threatens America's "domestic tranquility" by weakening our "common defense" with policies that significantly damage the "general welfare" of all Americans.
I Don't Operate on Blind Assumptions
Comment posted by aahpat on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 12:53pmAnd wishful thinking. I base my positions on facts and reality.
A lot of people were duped into supporting Obama and into not confronting him about drug policy during the campaign when drug reform commentators took Obama's vague and ambiguous comments and translated them into definite support for reform. Just as you are trying to do now. I will not accept that kind of fuzzy thinking. I will not operate under such false pretenses.
I concur!
Comment posted by aahpat on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 7:44pmThe war on drugs is a public safety, public health, national security, economic and social justice issue well beyond the limited pot reform agenda that too many people fixate upon.
I wish more people would realize that pot reform is of interest mostly to people with an interest in pot and that holds back the effort from the broader drug policy issues that far more greatly impact the daily lives of average Americas outside the pot interest community. It is not pot interest people who will cause the politicians to change the policy it is the broader public that will demand changes that impact their personal interests. When reformers can convince the broader public that it is in THEIR interest to reform the drug laws they will move the politicians quickly to do it.
The public interests are national security and public safety. Not justice for pot smokers. As Obama's drug warrior stance poignantly proves not even justice for poor black kids will change this war policy. It will take proving to America that it is in their national security, economic and public safety interests to end the drug war. Pot reform alone, as an issue, cannot do that. the entirety of dysfunctions of the drug war can and will do it.
Obama's "rigorous drug control agenda"
Comment posted by aahpat on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 7:32pmTestimony of The Honorable R. Gil Kerlikowske
April 1, 2009
STATEMENT OF R. GIL KERLIKOWSKE
NOMINEE TO BE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTOL POLICY
BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
OF THE
UNITED STATES SENATE
APRIL 1, 2009
"Let me assure you that I know President Obama is committed to developing and implementing a rigorous drug control agenda, while bringing ONDCP back to its original leadership position. I am also grateful for the strong support of Vice President Biden. Our Vice President has long been a leader in protecting communities and families from the harms of illegal drugs. His continued dedication to solving the drug problem will be a key resource for ONDCP's success.Upon confirmation, I will immediately coordinate with my colleagues in the federal government, as well as our counterparts at the state and local level, to ensure that the national drug control strategy is:
• Balanced and comprehensive, based upon the best possible understanding of the drug threat, and incorporates a science-based approach to public policy;
• Vigorously implemented through development of a national drug budget that contains proven, effective programs; and
• Rigorously assessed and adapted to changing circumstances, "
I Am Not Willing
Comment posted by aahpat on Thu, 04/02/2009 - 4:41pmto be twisted around Kerlikowske's little finger with yet more of their manipulated and ambiguous rhetoric.
"I know President Obama is committed to developing and implementing a rigorous drug control agenda,"
That is the operative assertion in the quote. It is consistent with the following;
A three part animation of a direct and in context quote of Drug Warrior President Barack Obama defining his War on Drugs policy.
I think that too many drug policy reformers are growing complacent lulled by the ambiguous and manipulated rhetoric of the Obama administration. Fooled into audacious false hopes by the intentionally misleading innuendo of yet another drug warrior administration.
learning?
Comment posted by mlang52 on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 12:01amAt least, there is another politician that realizes how much this prohibition looks like the one of the late 1920's! And, he is the top dog!!! We need to keep up with the good information the public is getting from our side! We could bring this drug war business to a halt!