The Speakeasy Blog
How to Write a Clichéd, Unpersuasive Argument Against Drug Legalization
The American Spectator ran an anti-legalization editorial last week that was so over-the-top, I turned it into an instructional guide on bad drug policy writing. I couldn't help myself. The whole thing is over at Huffington Post. Enjoy.
Mexico Drug War Update
Medical Marijuana Update
Here's the latest medical marijuana news from around the country. There's a whole lot going on. Chronicle story here.
Ron Paul Explains Why Other Candidates Won't Discuss the Drug War
If you've been following our coverage of the presidential candidates in New Hampshire, you'll find this to be a refreshing change in tone.
I think he's exactly right, and it's worth pointing out that you don't have to be just like Ron Paul to win points with voters by supporting drug policy reform. Paul's libertarian philosophy doesn't resonate well with many progressives, who are otherwise impressed with his drug policy positions. Any number of politicians on the left could earn enormous support, especially from young voters, just by copying Ron Paul's approach to marijuana policy and ignoring much of the rest of what he stands for.
Ron Paul is a complicated political personality, but the lessons to be learned from his politically successful advocacy of drug policy reform shouldn't be too difficult to grasp: public support for changing our drug laws creates a substantial and growing opportunity for politicians with the wisdom to capitalize on it.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Peru Fires Reformist Drug Czar
Peru's drug czar has been fired for being insufficiently enthusiastic about eradicating coca crops. Chronicle story here.
Dutch to Ban Khat
The Dutch government will ban khat, a plant favored by Somali and Yemeni immigrants for its mild stimulative properties. Chronicle story here.
Time to Rethink Drug Raids, Police Trainers Say
An increase in police deaths by gunfire last year and the bloody Ogden, Utah, drug raid that left one officer dead last week are causing some police to think again about the utility of aggressive drug raids. Chronicle story here.
Michigan Repeal Marijuana Prohibition Initiative Gearing Up [FEATURE]
Michigan medical marijuana patients are tired of getting pushed around by state officials, so they've come up with a novel solution: Just repeal the marijuana laws once and for all. An initiative that would do that is getting underway now. Chronicle story here.
This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past. Weekly Chronicle feature here.
Major Study Finds No Lung Damage for Marijuana Smokers
But marijuana's reputed legacy of respiratory havoc has always had a funny way of never actually happening to anyone. Important new research will hopefully help bury the nonsense once and for all.
Jan. 10, 2012 -- Woodstock generation, breathe easy. One of the largest and longest studies ever to look at the effect of marijuana smoking on lung health finds that pot smoking doesn’t appear to cause chronic breathing trouble.
…
In fact, the study found that the lung function of most marijuana smokers actually improved slightly over time. [WebMD]
Why isn't marijuana bad for your lungs? I don't know. Intuitively, I understand why many have assumed that it would be. But it just isn't. It isn't tobacco, and the things you know about tobacco's harms simply aren’t relevant to the discussion of marijuana on any level whatsoever, including what happens when you set it on fire and inhale it into your lungs.
Obviously, it will take a hopelessly long time for this fact to sink in among the frenzied anti-drug fanatics who've fantasized for decades about marijuana's fictitious effects on lung function. Fortunately, due to their healthy lifestyles, most marijuana smokers will probably live long enough to see the day when everyone stops predicting their premature death.
This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
Cops continue to have problems keeping their hands off the drugs they come across. And they're developing problems with prescription pills, too. Chronicle weekly roundup here.
Florida Medical Marijuana Bills Filed
Mitt Romney Promises "A Full Answer" About the Drug War
At least, I hope that's what he meant by this response.
Of course, there is absolutely nothing on Mitt Romney's website that explains his views about the War on Drugs. But maybe – hopefully – what Romney meant wasn't that he had a drug policy page on his site, but rather that he plans to create one. He's right that it's a long question, so if he's going to put together a long answer, well, I'm looking forward to seeing it.
How amazing it is, though, that a group of college students had to follow him around for days and demand answers on drug policy before it even occurred to him that he needs to have a position on this. In all likelihood, it never even occurred to Mitt Romney before this very moment that this issue is actually important enough that people would want to know what he thinks about it before deciding if he should be president.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Ron Paul's Least Controversial Idea: Legalizing Drugs
A lot of people have a lot of problems with Ron Paul, but when the poo starts flying in his direction, it's never because he wants to legalize marijuana, or even meth. That's not the debate his critics want to have with him. If anyone really believes that Ron Paul's ideas about drug policy are a non-starter with voters, they sure are reluctant to point it out.
Face it, Ron Paul's belief in changing our drug laws is easily the least controversial position for which he is known. It's the one thing no one ever challenges him on, a fact which, by itself, ought to completely bury forever the notion that politicians who support things like the legalization of marijuana are engaging in a act of overt political suicide.
No one will ever make an attack ad saying that Ron Paul wants to legalize drugs, because saying that about Ron Paul would just make him more popular. You can't burn someone by reinforcing what their supporters love most. It's a principle Obama seems to have forgotten and would do well to remember before November.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Supreme Court Will Hear Florida Drug Dog Case
Tallahassee to Pay in Death of Informant Rachel Hoffman
The city of Tallahassee has agreed to a $2.6 million settlement in the killing of Rachel Hoffman, a collegiate drug scenester whom police sent to snitch on hardened criminals after a small-time drug bust. A similar case has just popped up in Detroit, too. Chronicle story here.
Rick Santorum on Imprisoning Non-Violent Drug Offenders: "The federal government doesn't do that."
From the same presidential candidate who brought you, "I don't know my medical marijuana laws very well," comes yet another mind-bending morsel of jaw-dropping ignorance.
I'm still not sure what happened here. I think he got cornered and confused and just choked for a second. He may not have even understood the question, and that's okay. We're not going anywhere. Anytime Rick Santorum wishes to clarify or expand upon this, I'm sure everyone will be quite excited to hear whatever else he has to say.
*Thanks to our friends at Students for Sensible Drug Policy for hitting the ground in New Hampshire and making this happen.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Recreational Drug User Asks Newt Gingrich if She Should Be Arrested
…And for like the first time ever, the most notorious blowhard in the GOP has very little to say.
Did I hear that right? It sounds to me like Newt Gingrich just endorsed not arresting recreational drug users (or at least this particular one), and where I come from we call that decriminalization. Too bad he beat it the hell out of there so fast. I wanna know more about this man's formula for determining who should and should not be arrested (and/or killed) for breaking our drug laws. Inquiring minds want to know!
*Thanks to our friends at Students for Sensible Drug Policy for hitting the ground in New Hampshire and making this happen.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Mitt Romney Doesn't Know What Industrial Hemp Is
This is…I mean, what can I even…oh whatever, just watch.
Um, it's what the Constitution was written on. But it's illegal now, and we're trying to get to the bottom of the situation. Our best guess presently is that there's been a big misunderstanding of some sort. The DEA seems to think hemp is drugs. It's not, though. Could you look into it for us?
*Thanks to our friends at Students for Sensible Drug Policy for hitting the ground in New Hampshire and making this happen.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Rick Santorum: "I don't know my medical marijuana laws very well."
An instant classic on the campaign trail in New Hampshire.
*Thanks to our friends at Students for Sensible Drug Policy for hitting the ground in New Hampshire and making this happen.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Poll Finds Washington State Voters Split on Marijuana Legalization
A poll released Wednesday found more support for than opposition to marijuana legalization in Washington state, but with support under 50%. An earlier poll that incorporated the details of Washington's I-502 initiative found more support. Chronicle story here.
Five Utah Police Wounded, One Killed in Drug Raid
An Ogden, Utah, police officer was shot and killed and five others wounded, two in critical condition, in a drug raid on an Ogden home Wednesday night. The resident was also wounded and is in custody facing as yet unspecified charges. Although police aren't saying, it appears the target was a personal marijuana grow. Chronicle story here.
Who Are the Extremists in the Drug War Debate?
This piece has already been cremated by Pete Guither and its ashes thrown from a mountaintop by David Sirota, but in case you missed Kevin Sabet's lament in the New York Times about his lonesome quest to find reasonable voices in the drug war debate, well, I just wish you could've seen the expression it left on my face.
This guy wrote speeches for multiple Drug Czars and yet finds himself complaining that "extremists on both sides have taken over the conversation." Dude, look behind you. There's nobody there. I never saw someone sitting six rows back from Sabet screaming psycho drug war battle cries into a bullhorn. If you've been deciding what words would come out of the Drug Czar's mouth, your centrist credentials are in question. Sabet's been writing cheers for one of the teams, then shows up in a referee uniform and a fake moustache hoping no one will notice. It would be no more absurd for Rob Kampia or Ethan Nadelmann to do the same.
Strange New Website Attacks Marijuana Legalization… and Vegans
By introducing articles, slogans and products that bring up the contradictions in certain cultural movements, it is hoped that people will stop to think before they choose positions that may harmful to themselves and others. Two movements which challenge knowledge and conventional wisdom, veganism and the legalization of marijuana, prompted this website.
The whole site is a dream come true for hysterical hippie-hating idiots who know how to read. The next thing you know, they'll be publishing articles about how granola makes you fat and live music damages your eardrums. In the meantime, you can enjoy anti-pot rantings that rival in stupidity almost anything we've come across in the wealthy realm of bone-headed anti-drug bloggery.
"If the make-believe world of 'pot magic' gets its way, its advocates will make others believe there are no other remedies for certain illnesses."
"Anyone can grow marijuana in their yards or in a planter and not get arrested if kept at home."
"Marijuana smoking does cause cancer, another lie perpetuated by marijuana promoters."
"Pot supporters know well that legalization would mean more pot smoking, or they would not be advocating for it so vigorously."
"The legalization of pot in the United States should be stamped out and go no further because its partisans have always claimed and promoted that marijuana is not addictive, a clear and simple lie."
Maybe I'll send a note pointing out that if people can quit meat and cheese, they can probably quit pot too. Yes, that will make them feel better.
Newt Gingrich Says George Washington Would Have Punished Pot Growers
Pot growers such as…George Washington? This gem comes courtesy of our friends at SSDP who are on the ground in New Hampshire confronting candidates about the War on Drugs.
Newt is apparently unaware that George Washington and Thomas Jefferson both grew marijuana crops for the purpose of harvesting hemp. Or, maybe that's just not what Newt had in mind when he heard the question. But even if he'd known or understood, what then would he have said? It's nevertheless a fact -- a very stupid fact -- that it's presently illegal to grow hemp anywhere in America, and no one better try to make rope and paper the way our forefathers did, or there'll be hell to pay.
Whatever Newt may or may not know about hemp farming at Mount Vernon and Monticello is beside the point. The real story here is that our government is so embarrassingly terrified of the marijuana plant that modern farmers aren't even permitted to grow harmless and useful hemp crops for fear of…hell, who even knows.
Hemp isn't even a drug, and we're at war with it because it looks like one. If you can think of anything stupider than that, please don't tell Newt Gingrich about it.
(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
