John Walters
John Walters Still Thinks the Drug War is Awesome
This comment from the former drug czar perfectly explains why drug warriors are so incapable of ever admitting failure:
Well, yeah. If your idea of law enforcement is shoving guns in the faces of misdemeanor drug suspects, if your idea of treatment is forcing casual marijuana users into drug therapy, and if your idea of prevention is spending countless millions on anti-drug ads that are proven to increase drug use, then I would call you "misguided," to say the least.
This is what you've accomplished, sir, and instead of demanding gratitude, you should consider yourself lucky you haven't yet been paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue in tar and feathers.
"To say that all the things that have been done in the war on drugs haven't made any difference is ridiculous," Walters said. "It destroys everything we've done. It's saying all the people involved in law enforcment, treatment and prevention have been wasting their time. It's saying all these people's work is misguided." [AP]
Well, yeah. If your idea of law enforcement is shoving guns in the faces of misdemeanor drug suspects, if your idea of treatment is forcing casual marijuana users into drug therapy, and if your idea of prevention is spending countless millions on anti-drug ads that are proven to increase drug use, then I would call you "misguided," to say the least.
This is what you've accomplished, sir, and instead of demanding gratitude, you should consider yourself lucky you haven't yet been paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue in tar and feathers.
Has Anyone Seen Former Drug Czar John Walters Lately?
A post at the LEAP blog points out that John Walters has been conspicuously quiet recently. After beginning his new position as executive vice president at the Hudson Institute in January, Walters was producing pro-drug war editorials on a monthly basis, but we haven't seen anything from him since spring.
LEAP speculates:
I'd love to think that Hudson told him to stop, or better yet, that he's been writing feverishly this whole time and newspapers just wonât print him anymore. Still, my first guess is that it's just a coincidence and Walters will resurface any day now to once again stink up the drug policy debate with his familiar brand of unhinged prohibitionist propaganda.
And you know what? I hope he does. John Walters's tenure as drug czar ushered in an unprecedented period of progress for the reform movement, as he traveled the nation alienating the media and terrifying small children. I swear, every time he opens his mouth, thousands of new people start questioning the validity of his beliefs. So please John, don't leave us now. Things are just starting to get interesting.
LEAP speculates:
Perhaps, toward the end of 2008, Hudson thought it a brilliant notion to bring on Walters to spearhead prohibitionist drug policy thought leadership for the conservative apparatus.
But after witnessing the amazingly anti-prohibitionist shift that the public discourse on drug policy has taken throughout 2009, it seems that Hudson and the larger conservative establishment -- or anyone, for that matter -- just don't have all that much use for what John Walters has to say right about now.
I'd love to think that Hudson told him to stop, or better yet, that he's been writing feverishly this whole time and newspapers just wonât print him anymore. Still, my first guess is that it's just a coincidence and Walters will resurface any day now to once again stink up the drug policy debate with his familiar brand of unhinged prohibitionist propaganda.
And you know what? I hope he does. John Walters's tenure as drug czar ushered in an unprecedented period of progress for the reform movement, as he traveled the nation alienating the media and terrifying small children. I swear, every time he opens his mouth, thousands of new people start questioning the validity of his beliefs. So please John, don't leave us now. Things are just starting to get interesting.
A Surprise Encounter With Former Drug Czar John Walters
I've wondered a thousand times what I'd do if I ran into John Walters somewhere around D.C. I figured that the odds favored it happening eventually. A few times, I even thought I saw him, only to discover that it was just some stiff angry guy in a suit scowling at schoolchildren and spitting at hippies.
But as luck would have it, long-time marijuana policy reformer and smooth-talker Steve Fox just happened to be riding the right subway train at the right time:
Whole story at the MPP blog. I think Steve handled it maturely, but I always thought it would be funny to do the exact opposite of what he did. Instead of introducing myself as an opponent, perhaps I'd be a rabid drug czar fan. "John Walters, is that really you? I just loved your policies. I used to read PushingBack.com every day. Did you see how Obama's people deleted all the old posts? What's up with that? Anyway, I was thinking about starting an anti-legalization organization with some of my friends from Yale. Maybe we could do lunch sometime?"
If that plan somehow worked, I bet I'd learn more in an hour of pretending to agree with him than a lifetime of butting heads. Hey Steve, what train was that?
But as luck would have it, long-time marijuana policy reformer and smooth-talker Steve Fox just happened to be riding the right subway train at the right time:
While riding the Metroâs Red Line yesterday, I spotted former drug czar John Walters entering the train. When he ended up standing right beside me, I realized I couldnât pass up the chance for a conversation. I know it sounds like a fruitless endeavor, but Iâm an eternal optimist and thought, âMaybe if we have a casual lunch together, heâll come to see the folly of keeping marijuana illegal.â
Whole story at the MPP blog. I think Steve handled it maturely, but I always thought it would be funny to do the exact opposite of what he did. Instead of introducing myself as an opponent, perhaps I'd be a rabid drug czar fan. "John Walters, is that really you? I just loved your policies. I used to read PushingBack.com every day. Did you see how Obama's people deleted all the old posts? What's up with that? Anyway, I was thinking about starting an anti-legalization organization with some of my friends from Yale. Maybe we could do lunch sometime?"
If that plan somehow worked, I bet I'd learn more in an hour of pretending to agree with him than a lifetime of butting heads. Hey Steve, what train was that?