New Drug Czar Doesn’t Even Know What Legalization is
What better way to blow off the debate over legalization than to pretend there's no such thing?
On his first trip outside Washington since assuming his new role, Kerlikowske told a law enforcement crowd Wednesday that marijuana should remain illegal, but public health officials — not police — should lead efforts to reduce illegal drug use."Legalization isn't in the president's vocabulary, and it certainly isn't in mine," he told 300 police, federal agents and law enforcement officials. [USA Today]
As supremely lame as it is to find the drug czar sucking up to law enforcement by sneering at the legalization debate, there's something interesting happening here. He says legalization is a foreign concept to him, but he's talking about it onstage days after taking office.Sounds like somebody's feeling the pressure.
Does anyone have an email addy for the ONDCP?
Comment posted by Moonrider on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 1:58amIf so, please post it so we can each send an email copy of the Corrupt Cops blog each week to Mr. Drug Czar, don't forget to CC the president (president@whitehouse.gov).
I'm pro-choice on EVERYTHING!
how can public health officials lead in enforcing prohibition?
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 5:01amIf they are adequately financed, they can lead in helping people who want to quit, they can lead in providing accurate information on risks to users and potential users, they can lead on harm reduction measures like needle exchanges, but if selected drugs remain illegal, cops with guns and prisons will have to do the enforcing and the leading, turning cops into objects of hatred for many, and public health officials will continue to spend most of their energy just trying to pick up the pieces after the war on drug users tears up and destroys individuals and families.
Until Gil Kerlikowske, Eric Holder, Barrack Obama and Joe Biden explain why alcohol users deserve such infinitely better treatment than cannabis users, they aren't doing their job. And the claim that this isn't a war on people is just ludicrous. It's a vicious war on people who have the very bad luck to prefer a drug that isn't on the approved list, like killers alcohol and tobacco.
They ignore 800,000 annual arrests and perpetuate the myth...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 2:59pmThey ignore 800,000 annual arrests and perpetuate the christian myth that alcohol is not a drug and that alcoholics (typically christian) are not drug addicts.
The truth will be in next years arrest and rehab numbers (which will continue to be skewed by the coercive nature of the go to rehab - or go to prison - option the rehabbers love).
Remember, in the drug war you are already guilty under their law(s) and you DO NOT have the right to defend yourself in a court of law from unreasonable arrests or seizures of property.
The drug war sullies us all by making a mockery of the whole silly, ambiguous, theory of "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" thing mentioned in the Declaration of Independence - which rests (RIP) in the national archive - right next to the constitution - for some strange reason!
Constitutional scholar obama should know and appreciate this - if the rule of law is as important to him as he pretends it is?
End Prohibition or Perish!
don't be so quick to blame...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 3:26pmchristians...i know plenty of atheists and humanists who buy into the drug war and all the government propaganda supporting it (many are "scientists" that will not look at the empirical scientific evidence that cannabis is relatively harmless and is a darn good medicine), i also know of lots of christians who 1. shun alcohol and tobacco, 2. see the damage that the drug war has caused to communities, families and individuals and therefore back efforts to legalize.
undrgrndgirl
You should read the religious history of this christian nation
Comment posted by Anonymous on Tue, 05/26/2009 - 11:06amAll atheists and humanists may not support marijuana legalization but they don't tend to organize and pass laws that violate my rights the way christians have been doing since time immortal.
Atheists and humanists didn't start the first drug war against alcohol that was a purely christian methodist movement called temperance.
Harry Anslinger was our 1st drug & propaganda czar and was, among many things, a fundamentalist methodist,a prohibitionist, a racist and bigot, liar and progagandist!
Essentially he was a 20th century fundamentalist christian with all the righteousness and certitude that includes.
As long as christians keep putting the grace of their god before my democracy they will continue to sully the rule of law and our rights.
You should watch bill mahers 'religilious' and listen to the interview with the moron serving as a senator had to say about faith.
And IDIOTS like him are everywhere pretending to represent me in congress... not fucking likely!
And since exceptianism is such a large part of christianity is it any wonder that the christian drug of choice, alcohol, is not considered a drug by christians. I'm not a drug addict... I'm an alcoholic... WTF! Hence another christian lie 'drug and alcohol addiction' instead of 'drug, especially alcohol addiction'.
If you have faith that's great... just keep it away from my democracy and rights!
B.S. Gods & Gov'ts are always antagonistic to our rights, liberties, and freedoms... and mine aren't subject to license!
You seem to be biased
Comment posted by mlang52 on Wed, 05/27/2009 - 2:25amSo all of us Christians should just go away and not support the cause? What a load of bunk! Temperance is not prohibition, but that is what they called it. Temperance has a different definition. Maybe you need to be looking some stuff up! Prohibition had nothing to do with what was written in the old or new testament and more to do with man-made laws! Drugs and alcohol are NOT PROHIBITED in the Bible.
But don't say that in a Baptist Church, They will tell you Jesus and the disciples only drank grape juice! And dancing will send you straight to hell! Or, that wearing makeup, in some denominations, is a deadly sin! Ignorance is on both sides of the isle! In the true Christian church it is referred to as "legalism". They add a bunch of man-made rules that screw up the real message.
And, by not having faith in anything, there are many that would call you a moron, or a fool. Doesn't make it right. It is just what your type of discourse would bring about! Get off religion and back on the subject. We need to eliminate the crazy drug war!
The christian 'temperance movement' lead to prohibition...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Wed, 05/27/2009 - 2:02pmI know the meaning of words far better than most christians... and the only people better then christians at bending words are the liarticians residing in government!
I'm referring to the methodist christian 'Temperance Movement' that lead directly to alcohol prohibition (circa 1920-1933). To these christian fundamentalists temperance meant and lead to prohibition... learn your drug war history!
Trust me u wont find me in a church - especially a baptist church (you forgot slavery on the list of baptist beliefs) - unless of course it's the church of the flying spagetti monster... because it's obvious that his noodliness is everywhere!
Only fools & morons believe 'faith', like 'morals', is reserved for the 'religious'! And who said I don't have faith in anything - I did say i was a fan of humanistic values - perhaps you should take the time to read their principles - which relies heavily on the 'faith' that man will use his rational thought processes when making important decisions about our republics democracy and future.
I'm not suggesting the 'religious' go away... as a civil libertarian i understand the 'prism of life' and that individuals have the right to their beliefs... as long as they don't cross the line into my civil rights & liberties... the way christians frequently conspire to do.
I also forgot to comment, on my previous post, what the obvious difference between the scientific community and the various christian tribes is. Historically, scientists don't conspire and murder those that disagree with them like the religious are prone too. There is a reason why we took the popes army away! And the millions of 'gnostics' murdered over the millineum would argue not a second to soon!
Todays kill or incarcerate crowd of christian organizations doesn't seem too much different when it comes to putting their god before my rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
'Imagine there's no religion... it's easy if you try" - John Lennon
Your conversation seems to be a one way street!
Comment posted by mlang52 on Wed, 05/27/2009 - 11:57pmYou seem to want to bash "christians". Go ahead, if it makes you feel better! But, your anger and hate seems to be well exhibited in your posts. And temperance means "judicious use", since you keep wanting to erroneously use the term! Yes, the group you mention was a bad act, but don't group us all in with them! That is dumb. As, I said in the last post, alcohol and drugs are not prohibited anywhere in the old or new testament. And it does not matter if you believe in the Bible. That is your free choice, guaranteed to be your inalienable right, by our Constitution! It does matter that Christians erroneously believe that drugs and alcohol are prohibited by God, when it is not in their own "Word"!
And being a Christian does not mean that one is not educated, (or scientists). I have heard CS Lewis has a couple of books about that. And Ron Paul, a professing Christian, and well educated believes in Libertarian viewsl. I support those views, as well. But, I don't get on here and bash atheists and agnostics because they have ideas I don't agree with. Stick to the drug war!!
And, I did not suggest you go to a Baptist church. I did suggest their crazy assumptions! But, apparently you don't wish to acknowledge that. You have more fun bashing!
I will keep bashing our enemies regardless of their philosophy
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/30/2009 - 4:36pm"And temperance means "judicious use""
And as previously stated: "I KNOW WHAT TEMPERANCE MEANS" but feel free to try and convince your religious friends of the true meaning of this word.
FACT REMAINS: Fundamentalist Methodist (also called Tea-totallers) created the "Temperance Movement" which lead DIRECTLY to 13 years of alcohol prohibition under the guise of temperance (circa 1920 - 1933).
The SAME religious people that prosecuted the war against alcohol went on to create and prosecute a new war of their own bigotted religious making... with the tacit approval of another complacent congress... thus harry anslinger... our first of many fundamentally religious drug and propaganda czars is let loss upon on the public .
Illegal marijuana prohibition, currently under the guise of temperance through the regulation and control of some substances, remains steeped in religious moral opinions.
Moral opinions, religious or otherwise, do not a law make and society should stop pretending it does.
Q. "I don't get on here and bash atheists and agnostics" Well if you have evidence that they, or humanists, violate the rule of law and thus our rights perhaps you should rant about it... we all want to hear, and benefit, from the truth... without which their can be no justice or equality under the law.
All enemies of the cause must be bashed, figuratively if not literally, before they unlawfully violate the 4th amendment rights of another 800,000 innocent people !
Again, I don't care what a persons philosophy or IQ is... we are all equal under the law. The 'seperate but equal' formula advocated by the religious is NOT equality... how soon we forget the civil rights struggle of the 60's... and how religious opinions violate gay rights today!
So, my question to you is what group of christians, if any, can be trusted... we know historically most fundamentalists can't be trusted with something as important as the truth or democracy!
Ron Paul is a good point, his wanting a constitutional amendment regarding prayer is scary but ok with me... because he wants to try and do it legally... through constitutional amendment... not the usual method of forcing religious and political opinions down our throats under the pretense of promoting the general welfare. A constitutional amendment for prayer would be religious suicide... which is just fine with me... if you are dumb enough to try in the age of diminishing religiosity!
Modern religious history sure looks a lot like ancient religious history.... christians fucking with and murdering gnostics... like potheads, the educated, and the non-conformists among us!
History is a Battlefield and Hell on the Christian Theory of Things!
Listening to him on KUOW 94.9 in Seattle right now
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 12:32pmHe's full of shit & he knows it.
The laws which give him the power of his office also require him to lie, to argue against scientific facts and maintain the status quo.
His change in terminology for the War on Drug Users is only indicative of a new marketing tactic.
Remedies for Speech Defects
Comment posted by Giordano on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 12:44pmI would have expected a speech defect from Bush, not Obama or Kerlikowske. If politicians have some kind of lesion in their brains that causes the word ‘legalization’ to be absent from their vocabulary, there are always other words that can be used that imply much the same thing.
Obama and Kerlikowske could issue an authorization and permit the use of cannabis for recreation, medicine and further research. They could provide a validation or corroboration for the arguments put forth by reformers who criticize the drug laws. They could elicit a rationale for drug decriminalization from politicians and FBI directors whose knowledge of drug war issues is currently stunted by decades of drug enforcement superstitions and falsehoods. They could substantiate the research done outside the United States which reveals the physical and mental health benefits associated with various illicit drugs, particularly marijuana. They could give confirmation and support to harm reduction policies. They could do all these things while never mentioning the word legalization.
Giordano
Well said, Gio. When--not
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 1:44pmWell said, Gio. When--not if--the day comes, though, it seems for certain that it can never come from the efforts of a convert. When is the last time you heard a politician admit he was wrong, much less give a serious apology? Other than Clinton, who should have just been high-fiving every one in celebration of his virility remaining in tact. It seems that Obama--at the very least during his first term--is paralyzed from legalizing, rationalizing, whatever, because he, like any human politician, is way too chicken shit to admit that he was either wrong or too scared to confront the status quo in the first place. Did you ever hear Sarah Palin say, "whoops, guess I kinda slipped in thinking there!"?
Sadly, it seems that unless Congress, with their less tangible responsibilities and integrities, makes change materialize, we'll have to depend on voting in a sensible President (sigh) or that Obama gets ballsy on his second term.
Fight the good fight.
I Agree
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 8:58pmI believe that Obama would wait till second term, if elected, to get ballsy and possibly consider ending this prohibition. I find it ironic that marijuana is still a schedule 1 , but has medical use in Calif and I believe 12 other states.
and that marinol is a schedue III !!
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 3:35pmmeaning it is on the same footing as most prescription meds and is less controlled than opiates (which are schedule II) ...i just don't understand the intellectual and legal disconnect.
F Kerlikowske
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 3:09pmI've lived in the US my whole life of 30 years, and I can say that I hate the government; period. Obama's pastor was right, God damn the USA. God damn us for allowing these crooked politicians to lie and defraud us, and God damn us for allowing tyranny to rise through our complacency. I'm about to break, I really am. I refuse for my kids to grow up in this hypocritical Orwellian cesspool of a nation that refuses common sense to the detriment of its people, and sells out the common good to private interests; and no I'm not going to leave. F the Democrats, F the Republicans, F the government, and F the police for serving the government instead of protecting the people. I've got the Constitution and the second amendment behind me, and I'm not going to submit to arrest; they can put handcuffs on my corpse.
You want to know a word in my vocabulary Mr. President? Revolution. F you Kerlikowske, and your two faced change artist boss Obama.
Things had better change, and soon. I am nearing the point where I no longer believe that peaceful change, and a peaceful return to constitutionality, is possible.
"Live free or die; Death is not the worst of evils." - General John Stark
Without "Re-Legalization" it's just another form of control...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 3:16pmWithout "Re-Legalization" it's just another form of control... with all the political whoredom and economic looting the self-appointed authorians love and demand!
Truth is treason in the kingdom of lies - Ron Paul
Cops
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 5:21amHow many cops would have to be laid off if the drug war ends?
my guess, none...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 3:38pmmost municipalities are claiming they don't have enough cops...end the drug war and those cops could actually start doing *real* police work!
Who cares how many cops will be laid off?
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 1:56pmDrug war cops aren't supposed to exist!
We'll need cops to catch prohibitionists too...
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/30/2009 - 4:58pmWe'll need cops to catch prohibitionists too... I guess if they catch enough of them we'll knock some time off their sentences... say one month off their 3 year prison terms for every prohibitionist they capture.
Remember a 7 decades long crime spree will require decades long prison sentences for tens of thousands of prohibitnists amd many of them won't simply report to their cells as the court orders... and we will have to hunt them down like dogs.
I can't fucking wait for justice to begin - make sure you keep your list of criminals as current as possible... don't want any roaches slipping thru the judicial cracks!
Now it's a war on doctors and the general public?
Comment posted by Freedom Lover on Tue, 05/26/2009 - 12:56pmSo now the police state needs authority to monitor prescription painkillers as well? There is already documented proof that the government makes it difficult for some doctors to prescribe meds for pain. So now are we going to allow police to determine if a patient's prescription is legit? Law enforcement is over-stepping its bounds on virtually every issue imaginable. Keep them out of the doctor/patient relationship. They have no business going there. Joe "Drug Warrior" Biden is having quite the influence under the Obama guise of "change" just as he did under the Clinton administration. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. Don't forget Obama's absolute abandonment of his promises of "change" in the next election. He's become the master of backpedaling to insure special interest monies. Forcing people into treatment is about as effective and forcing them into jail. Exposing people whose only offense may be to smoke a joint to those who are hard-core drug users seems to me to be a very effective "gateway" all of its own. No?? Nice swing and a miss, Obama.
Work on real crime
Comment posted by anon e. mouse on Tue, 05/26/2009 - 1:02pmWatching a recent special on PBS, they documented how many cases of rape have gone unprocessed due to lack of funding/manpower/prioritization. Literally THOUSANDS of DNA rape kits are sitting unprocessed at present. They outlined how New York made it a priority to process their backlog of rape kits. The result? Over 2,000 violent criminals were apprehended as a result!!! Now you tell me- which is a more effective way to reduce crime: arrest rapists or hunt for a weed?? Please....let's get some priorities in this country already that aren't centered around padding the pockets of special interests.










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Pressure
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/22/2009 - 1:26amThe only pressure he feels is how to get the Drug War back on track, while convincing everyone it's not a war on the people. I'll bet he doesn't even read Corrupt Cop Stories !