US Sends Warships to Venezuelan Waters in Cartel Fight, U Michigan Bans Entheofest, More... (8/22/25)

Oklahoma police chiefs unsurprisingly oppose a marijuana legalization initiative, a drone attack on a helicopter kills eight Colombian anti-drug police, and more.

Marijuana Policy

Oklahoma Cops Come Out Against Legalization Initiative. A proposed marijuana legalization initiative, State Question 837, is gathering signatures to try to qualify for the November 2026 ballot, and state law enforcement has begun to mobilize against it.

The USS Gravely is headed for Venezuelan waters as part of Trump's war on cartels. (defense.gov)

On Thursday, Todd Gibson, president of the Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police, spoke on behalf of the state's more than 300 police chiefs and executives in coming out against the initiative.

"Nowhere in no state have I ever seen marijuana make safer communities or better communities," said Todd Gibson, Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police President. "A recreational marijuana will just open the door to further access to young adults and youth, which the data is very clear," Gibson said. "It's not good for brain development. It's not good for mental health. It's not a healthy solution to a successful life."

Gibson warned without specifics that State Question 837 would restrict police and prosecutors: "Some of the things outlined in this state question absolutely tie the hands of not only police officers on the street but prosecutors in a courtroom trying to maintain justice," he said.

But Jed Green, director of Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action, the group behind State Question 837 said law enforcement has not been particularly interested in dealing with marijuana.

"We've been asking as an organization for over three years for the Bureau of Narcotics and Attorney General's Office to do something about unlicensed, untested, unregulated marijuana and marijuana products and synthetic products that are not even marijuana, disguised as marijuana, from being sold online and in gas stations around the state," Green said. "They refuse."

If law enforcement has concerns, he welcomes a public conversation, Green said.

"I think that would be of service to the state of Oklahoma. I believe the state of Oklahoma deserves more of a conversation," he said.

Psychedelics

University of Michigan Denies Permit for 5th Annual Psychedelic Plant and Mushroom Festival. The University of Michigan has denied a permit for the Entheofest psychedelic plant and mushroom festival, citing concerns it promotes illegal substances.

The festival has been held every year for the past four years, with the university routinely granting a permit for the Central Campus Diag, the same spot the annual Hash Bash occurs each April. The Student Association for Psychedelic Studies, which organizes the event, says it is disappointed and will appeal.

"It's incredibly disheartening," said SAPS President Emily Berriman, a UM social work graduate student. "We've worked so hard and so diligently to abide by university policy. We're willing to do whatever they want us to do, and they still denied us and under terms that we think are illegal."

Berriman said Entheofest centers on education, science and therapeutic purpose of psychedelics and expressed frustration at their continued stigmatization and demonization. She said she is interning at a clinic doing ketamine therapy for people with chronic pain, depression, and PTSD.

"It's incredibly safe, it's effective, it's legit," she said. "It's a beautiful space to work in and I see the healing," she said, expressing frustration that psychedelics with therapeutic and medical potential still are demonized and stigmatized.

Entheofast began in September 2021 to mark the anniversary of Ann Arbor's decision to decriminalize entheogenic plants and mushrooms a year earlier.

The student organization did not speculate about whether the current political environment under the Trump administration had an impact on the university's decisions, but the school has taken other steps to appease Trump, including closing its Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in March.

The university action is reminiscent of its response to Hash Bash, where it refused to issue permits for the rally in the 1990s. But in the end, the ACLU helped Hash Bash organizers sue the university of free speech and assembly grounds, and Hash Bash continues. Entheofest organizers said they believe they have the same rights.

Foreign Policy

US Sends Warships to Venezuelan Waters to Thwart Drug Cartels. The White House confirmed Wednesday that the US is sending three Aegis guided-missile destroyers to waters off the Venezuelan coast as part of his campaign against Latin American drug trafficking organizations.

The USS Gravely, the USS Jason Dunham and the USS Sampson are set to depart for the region over the next few days, a White House official said. Their assignment is to support counternarcotic efforts.

The move is part of a broader aggressive push by the Trump administration against drug trafficking organizations. He has also threatened to use the US military against cartels inside Mexico, a move Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has firmly rejected.

Venezuelan President Roberto Maduro has been under indictment for drug trafficking by the US since 2020, and earlier this month, the administration it was doubling the reward for his arrest to $50 million. The administration has also targeted a Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, as a foreign terrorist organization, although it not a major player in drug trafficking.

Venezuela sneered at the Trump administration's drug trafficking accusation against it.

The press office of Venezuela's government did not respond to a request for comment from the AP on the deployment of the US destroyers. But without mentioning the ships, Foreign Minister Yvan Gil, in a statement on Tuesday, dismissed the Trump administration's drug-trafficking accusations against Venezuela.

"Washington's accusing Venezuela of drug trafficking reveals its lack of credibility and the failure of its policies in the region," Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said in a statement on Tuesday. "While Washington threatens, Venezuela steadily advances in peace and sovereignty, demonstrating that true effectiveness against crime is achieved by respecting the independence of its peoples. Every aggressive statement confirms the inability of imperialism to subdue a free and sovereign people."

But just in case, Maduro announced Monday that he planned to deploy more than 4.5 million militia members around the country. "The empire has gone mad and has renewed its threats to Venezuela's peace and tranquility," he said.

The Maduro government is also the subject of an International Criminal Court investigation, for "crimes against humanity, particularly in the context of detention".

International

Colombia Drone Attack on Police Anti-Drug Helicopter Kills Eight. A drone attack by what is believed to be a FARC dissident faction involved in the coca and cocaine trade has killed eight police officers on a coca eradication mission and left another eight wounded.

The helicopter downing took place Thursday near the rural area of Amalfi in Antioquia. A manual cocaine eradication campaign was underway there, and the helicopter was assisting.

Colombian officials were quick to point at dissident faction of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which laid down its arms in 2016 as part of peace deal after decades of civil war and insurgency. But some FARC factions rejected the accords and carried on with both the insurgency and with involvement in the coca and cocaine trade.

The government of former guerrilla President Gustavo Petro has been pursuing peace negotiations with the dissidents, but talks have collapsed and violence has ramped up in recent months. The same day as the downing of the chopper, a bomb outside a military base in Cali left five dead. FARC dissidents have also exploded bombs near police stations in Cali and Cauca province, and one group has warned civilians to stay clear of military installations.