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Budget Axe Falls on Stockton Narcs

California's Central Valley city of Stockton has been a poster child for the Great Recession, and now, with layoffs hitting the police department for the second time in two years, the cops have announced they don't have enough manpower to staff their dope squad.
medical marijuana (courtesy Coaster420 and wikimedia.org)
medical marijuana (courtesy Coaster420 and wikimedia.org)

Greedy Dispensary Owner Opposes Marijuana Legalization

[image:1 align:right caption:true]Via NORML, check out these comments from a medical marijuana businessman who opposes Prop 19:


"I'll give you two reasons," Craig said. "One is big tobacco. Did you know that Phillip Morris just bought 400 acres of land up in Northern California? The minute marijuana becomes legal, they'll mass produce and flood the market. And of course, they'll add the same toxins they put in regular cigarettes to get you addicted, and very little THC, so you'll have to buy more... In short, they're going to ruin weed." He gestured around his beloved shop, with every flavor of every strain, in its purist form, selling for at-cost prices. "I like the way things are now."

I'll bet he does. But while you're making money and having a great time, thousands and thousands of people are being arrested. Conspiracy theories about Phillip Morris don't even begin to justify the war on marijuana, and anyone who advances such mindless speculation – while simultaneously lining their own pockets – is a first-rate jackass.

He even tries to bring children into the debate:


"Two, legalization will mean more fifteen-year-old kids smoking pot. Smoking pot mellows you out, makes you lazy. When you're twenty-one, twenty-five, you can make your own decisions. But California doesn't need its fifteen-year-olds lazier than they already are."

Seriously? Well, let me ask you something, sir. Does your dispensary sell marijuana to 15-year-olds? Do your customers resell your product to young teenagers? I imagine you would insist that this isn't the case, and I can't fathom why you think things would be any different if regulated marijuana retailers were allowed to serve all adults instead of just those with a doctor's recommendation.

Let's not forget: Prop 19 is about so much more than just how marijuana will be grown and distributed. It's about stopping the arrest and persecution of marijuana consumers and reducing the violence and chaos of prohibition. Concerns about how it might affect the market are understandable, but people were nervous about Prop 215 as well, and it's clearly become a miracle for patients and a huge step forward for reform in general.

The bottom line is that anyone who currently sells marijuana in California, medical or otherwise, should be thrilled with the prospect of dramatically reducing arrests for marijuana possession and the vicious consequences that go along with it. All other concerns are secondary to ensuring the freedom of adults to enjoy cannabis without fear of arrest, and Prop 19 will do exactly that. Those who object, those who would fight to continue the war, are enemies of justice. Patients should never purchase medicine from anyone who lobbies to continue the disease of prohibition.

High school drug testing shows no long-term effect on use

Drug prohibition has led to such hysteria about drug use that some schools -- thankfully only less than 5% of the total in the U.S. -- drug test students. Drug policy reformers have said for years this plan wouldn't work, and now a U.S. Department of Education study shows that mandatory drug testing for high school students has no effect on teens' plans to use drugs in the future. About one in three students said they "probably" or "definitely" will use drugs in the next year.

Wall Street Is Laundering Drug Money And Getting Away With It

Wachovia Bank is accused of laundering $380 billion in Mexican drug cartel money. Internal whistleblowers at Wachovia warned that the bank was laundering drug money, higher-ups at the bank actively looked the other way in order to score bigger profits, and the U.S. government is about to let everyone involved get off scott free. Think about what would happen if you or I were accused of laundering $380 billion in drug money.

Science-based drug policies for injecting drug users gain support ahead of Vienna

One of the most damaging consequences of drug prohibition is that scientific approaches to drug policy tend to take a backseat to ideological ones. Ahead of the 18th AIDS meeting, experts from across the world have released the “Vienna Declaration” calling on governments and the UN to promote rational drug policies that promote human rights and public health. “I hope that the Vienna Declaration will inspire many more political leaders to cast aside the drug war rhetoric and embrace evidence-based policies that can meaningfully improve community health and safety,” said Dr. Julio Montaner, president of the International AIDS Society.

Court: Michigan medical pot law isn't retroactive

In a blow to seriously ill people who were forced to utilize the black market due to federal drug prohibition, the Michigan appeals court ruled that medical marijuana patients arrested and charged for possessing their medicine prior to Michigan's medical marijuana law taking effect have no protection under the law.
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