This Story is Archived and Commenting is Closed

Comments: 258

• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 10:37 a.m.

  several cities and states have the question of what to do about the drug war on the ballot this November.Some like Las Vegas and Colorado have the question of whether to legalize marijuana.Others will decide whether to order police to make marijuana arrests the cities lowest priority.more and more Americans are growing tired of the failed war on drugs and all the collateral damage it causes all of us.

  4 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 6:14 a.m.

    What I can't figure out is why the Democrats don't take this and run with it?

    ====

    Do Republicans support drug prohibition because it finances criminals or because it finances terrorists?

    Republican Socialism. Price supports for criminals and terrorists.

    Do they still teach alcohol prohibition in schools?

    ====

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2006/10/kinky-on-drugs.html

    ===

    The NIDA says addiction is a genetic disease triggered by the environment. That trigger I believe is trauma.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2006/04/ptsd-and-endocannabinoid-system.html

    So you have a war on the traumatized.

    Why are the Dems silent?
  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 6:58 a.m.

    The drug war was started as a way to opress minorities.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2004/09/drug-war-racism.html

    Guess what? It is still used that way.

    Anti-racism is supposed to be a big Democrat thing.

    Where are they?
  • 
    Avg rating: (+1/-1 0)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 7:29 a.m.

    What Did You Do In The War Daddy?

    I chased criminal plants. I tore up fields of hemp. A plant that looks like marijuana but has no psychoactive effect. I filled the jails with drug users, letting untold numbers of violent criminals get a free pass to make sure there was room for dealers and users of the wrong kinds of drugs. I let terrorists go free in order to concentrate on jailing people out for a little drug induced fun. Of course I ignored those using the most harmful drugs commonly available in society, alcohol and tobacco.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2004/09/what-did-you-do-in-war-daddy.html
  • 
    Avg rating: (+2/-0 2)

    mbkijb

    Dec. 28, 2006, 10:30 p.m.

    Not coke- that is crazy... perhaps opium- By the time you get it, coke is too cut up with other chemicals and is dangerous. Opium is another one of God's simplistic gifts. I have tried it and it is a mellow buzzzzzz, but I don't use it and haven't in decades. However, I do not see it as one of the hard drugs either. I feel anything that needs to be processed should be considered a hard drug.
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  bubba2

  Oct. 22, 2006, 1:31 p.m.

  Yes, the war on drugs is an UNWINNABLE war. There is no way to ever stop people using drugs, just like there was NO way to stop people from drinking alcohol in the 1930s (Prohibition).

  There IS no proof that marijuana has ANY long-term detrimental affects to the human body - they only issue is that it can make you so complacent that you don't want to 'do' anything.

  Marijuana has been PROVED - study after study - to AID in the treatment and cure of Glaucoma, aids, and cancer. One of the MOST proven and MOST beneficial affects of marijuana is that it increases your appetite. People suffering from aids and cancer get a BIG benefit from this because it helps them to be able to EAT!

  People who stand on their self-righteous high-horses about the evils of marijuana have no idea what they are talking about. Cigarettes have been legal for YEARS, and they KILL people!

  The legalization of marijuana is LONG overdue.

  15 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+13/-0 13)

    stephen-johnson

    Oct. 22, 2006, 1:51 p.m.

    If it is legalized, some protection would have to be put in to keep stoned drivers off the road, and keep reefer out of the hands of kids.

    Marijuana might be a relatively innocuous drug. But if the War on Drugs is "unwinnable", do you favor legalization of cocaine and heroin as well?

    13 Replies

    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

      bubba2

      Oct. 22, 2006, 2:33 p.m.

      The SAME "protections" for drivers that are DRUNK would apply to drivers that are stoned. DITTO for minors.

      WHY would it be any different? It is a DOUBLE-STANDARD to allow alcohol to be legal (when children can still get it and drunks can still kill THOUSANDS every year on the highways) But not marijuana.

      I do actually believe that ALL drugs should be legal. Yes, that is pretty RADICAL view. I don't deny that. The ONE exception would be METH - that is SO INSIDIOUS that there is NO reason it should exist.

      But consider this -- HOW MUCH MONEY does the government spend on the "war on drugs"? HOW MUCH MONEY do the criminals make, TAX FREE, on sales of illegal drugs? How many NON-VIOLENT criminals are crowding our jails because they were selling marijuana or coke on the streets?

      Some will say, "how do you teach your children about the perils of this stuff if it is all legal?" The answer - the SAME way that you are hopefully teaching them about the bad consequences of alcohol and cigarettes!

      Legalizing drugs would put big-time criminals OUT OF BUSINESS. It would all be TAXED and regulated, just like alcohol and cigarettes. SOME of the BILLIONS that are spent on the "war on drugs" would be used for regulation - the rest of that money could be better spend on other government issues like poverty, medicare, education, etc.
    • 
      Avg rating: (+10/-0 10)

      jordan11

      Oct. 22, 2006, 6:51 p.m.

      "If it is legalized, some protections.......">>>>

      Protections are already in place....with alcohol (a drug, by the way).

      2 Replies

      • 
        Avg rating: (+4/-1 3)

        m-simon

        Oct. 23, 2006, 6:48 a.m.

        BTW the drug war stuff I put up is for any Dem who is smart enough to pick it up. Although my guess is that the dope dealers pump a lot of $$$ into the Dems to keep dope illegal.

        Just look at the El Rukan and Blackstone Ranger scandals from many years back in Chicago. Then imagine that going on all around the country.

        I wonder if the District Attorney offices around the country are checking on the political donations of the various gangs.

        ===

        Do Republicans support drug prohibition because it finances criminals or because it finances terrorists?

        Republican Socialism. Price supports for criminals and terrorists.

        ===

        Now there is a real issue. Naturally the Democrats won't touch it.

        http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2006/10/push-poll.html

        1 Reply

        • 
          Avg rating: (+4/-0 4)

          jordan11

          Oct. 23, 2006, 10:40 a.m.

          Although my guess is that the dope dealers pump a lot of $$$ into the Dems to keep dope illegal.>>>>>>

          I wouldn't know; however, the CONS have had the Congress for 12 years. Wonder why they've not legalized marijuana...LOL!
    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

      Redneck

      Oct. 23, 2006, 3:30 a.m.

      frogg57

      Be grateful for the ability of your body to resist the long term effects. Some people are able to smoke all their life without cancer or obvious impact on other tissues. However, for most people that is not the case. This is true of this drug. There is recent research out that demonstrates a strong long term impact in several systems of the body, not the least of which is on the memory. I have dealt with marijuana users for many years and can testify that most suffer acute memory function. Perception of events, time lapse and even sensitivity to social ques and responses of companions is lacking. Motor skills suffer due to slow response times. They are dangerous to work with even when not driving or opeating complicated or heavy machinery.

      From a government research report: "Marijuana's damage to short-term memory seems to occur because THC alters the way in which information is processed by the hippocampus, a brain area responsible for memory formation." It is not what is retained but how it is processed. Drugs alter perception and the dull the mind or mask memory or multiply a naturally occurring body function that produces a euphoria or no one would use them!! None are harmless regardless of all the claims to the contrary by habitual users.

      Drug users (all drugs even legal alcohol) have difficulty assessing the overall impact and effects on their person. Those who see the effects and can assess them objectively are the doctors and nurses who see the consequences in the ER's of our nation's hospitals. RN's will testify of the terrible loss they see from patients admitted who were high on marijuana. Those I have talked to say the number is equal to or greater than those admitted who were drunk on alcohol.

      As a society we have not been able to stop people from murdering one another, committing abuse of children, spouses, animals, stealing either by gun point or on paper, etc. But we still criminalize those actions. Much child abuse and I suppose spousal abuse is a direct result of drug abuse. Why? Because the altering of perception and giving into self-serving selfish motives which must exist due to the use of the drug effects one's relationships. If a person were to go off into a secluded cell and smoke dope without contact with other person then I might concede it to be victimless act. But even then the family is robbed of their presence, care and love as well as the funds spent on the drug. No one lives in a vaccuum and no action such a taking a drug to gain the anticipated effects fails to impact others in the process.

      Do not try to pigeon-hole me as a sanctimonious pious holier-than-thou idiot bigot!! I am speaking from a heart of compassion and reason from personal experience too! I have seen the effects in the lives of young men incarcerated in their teens for more serious crimes than drug use but stemming from someone's abuse of them either parents, siblings, etc. I have witnessed the impact upon those living a hand to mouth existence on the streets in major and small cities. Those lives and many future ones are at stake.

      For my part stiffer penalties should be handed out to all drug dealers. In that respect the "war on drugs" does lack backbone and resolve. Those who traffic in drugs across outr borders should be executed because they traffic in the misery of other human beings. We are harder on those who traffic in salvery but meth and other drugs induces a type of slavery and in some cases certain death with continual use.

      4 Replies

      • 
        Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

        Centinel

        Oct. 23, 2006, 3:45 a.m.

        How can you possibly claim to approach this issue objectively when your entire tirade reeks of subjectivity. It seems obvious that you have probably never experienced the "euphoria" from using pot. Your seem to have only experienced the extreme circumstances attributed to marijuana. I am sure that if taken from a per capita perspective, your experience would prove to be in the less than 1 percentile. Injuring others and/or their property is a crime. If no perceptible harm or injury has occurred then no crime has been committed. That is the basis of liberty. A free person may do with their property; this includes their body, whatever they choose so long as their actions do no harm to another human and/or their property.

        3 Replies

        • 
          Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

          Redneck

          Oct. 23, 2006, 5:02 a.m.

          "Subjectivity" by definition would embrace all who have used the drug. That is the point of my "tirade" as you call it. No one who has used the drug can be "objective". A person does not have to experience a wreck to know that speed can kill! Objectivity demands no vested self interest in the matter under investigation. Those who defend the use based on their personal use cannot be objective by definition.

          We ban prescription drugs all the time which have less destructive effects in fewer cases than has been documented with regard to this drug.

          I am all for Property rights and the free use thereof. However, child abuse as an example is related to drug use as is attested by volumes of research. There are always victims when individuals live and conduct themselves in lifestyles which are self serving and pleasure seeking to the exclusion of those for whom and to whom they are responsible. Drugs are merely a symtom. That is part of what I was addressing.

          By the way the number of individuals mentioned who are in prison as an result of abuse of drugs IS impacting everyone in the society. The cost alone of housing these individuals is horrendous. The long range degeneration in the society in suicides, murders, child abandonment, etc. effects us all.

          2 Replies

          • 
            Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

            jana505nm

            Oct. 23, 2006, 9:37 a.m.

            Can 'marijuana" ReaLy be classified as a "Drug"?..( I personalY do not believe it is) there are So manY "Homopathic" herbs and tictutres, I know "if" weed was (1) of these on a shelf, I would be using it to gain wight. The positiveds out weight the negatives as far as "marijuana" goes...sucH as HUGE difference between smoking or eatting, "marijuana", HoW BLIND are PEOPLE..(excuse me, it is "How BL:IND are Political figures",VERY, but not that blind.THEY ALL have their "dirty little hands" involved w/the [profits of "marijuana"] What IT ALL COMES DOWN TO MY FRIENDS' is Money and greed, 2 amongst many deadlY Sins..the lawmakers seek out too fill their already FULL pockets!!..((just an observation)), I mean NOT to start an argument, EverY person has their right to voice their feelings on anY and ALL matters', and "WE" should "STAND UP" and BE HEARD--*Mo...
          • 
            Avg rating: (+7/-0 7)

            mbkijb

            Dec. 28, 2006, 10:40 p.m.

            Drugs, yes, weed- no. You stated a good fact in your last paragraph.... it is costing a fortune to house weed dealers. Let them off, tax the stuff-put it toward the war effort so we can get out of the hole our dear president got us into, and go after the real offenders- the dealers of the hard stuff.
    • 
      Avg rating: (+5/-0 5)

      m-simon

      Oct. 23, 2006, 6:21 a.m.

      Heroin is not addictive except to those with a genetic pre-disposition and who have been severely traumatized.

      http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2004/09/heroin.html

      http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2005/11/is-addiction-real.html

      Science is pretty much up on the cause of addiction.

      If the science was publicized the DEA would be out of business.
    • 

      NemoShiZniTComment has been removed: User banned.
    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

      Helixbuilder

      Oct. 23, 2006, 11:20 a.m.

      Yes all drugs should be legal. Any argument to the contary is just silly. Life liberty and the pursuit of happiness; where have I read that line before!

      It's not freedom if you have no choice! It's not charcarter if you have no choice!

      By the way the smoke from marijuanna is harmful, just like tobaco smoke, it is filled with toxins and carcinogens! Don't fool yourself.
    • 
      Avg rating: (+9/-0 9)

      mbkijb

      Dec. 28, 2006, 10:33 p.m.

      Oh, I know..... stoned drivers are some of society's worst...lol- they are the ones who are extra cautious and drive under the speed limit within the rules. Can't say the same for drunk drivers. No coke or heroin- processed and not good. My 2 cents.... I love debates on legalizing drugs.
  • 
    Avg rating: (+9/-0 9)

    jana505nm

    Oct. 23, 2006, 9:24 a.m.

    *U* said it well and to the point. Pot needs to be re-educated in our society. Yes there is a VerY BIG difference between weed 'n hard core chemicals. The "myth" they started by saying "If *U* smoke weed, *UR* bound to be ome a addict,(heroin)~This is BuLL! It saddens me Politicians and the like, eVen said this, as think of ALL the youngsters out there, carring the weight of the wprld on them, not to forget 'guilt" pver smoking a "J"~ by telling youngsters "IF" they soke they nwill become addicts, "How manY kids lives have been ruined by this "myth"?.The "medicinal properties" of marijuana, out weigh the negativity it has for SO long received. I personalY believe they NOW these facts, yet ALL the peoples' lives "they"- (governing bodies)- that have been affected by this (one) of ManY "myths"; concering weed, they need to go..and truths be told! It has been to long in coming, the legalization of 'marijuana", but for thr politicans, judges, lawmen, etc..HoW can theY, after ALL the LIVES "THEY" have ruined..eVer come out and say: "We were WRONG"?A question to ponder....PEACE!~jana505nm
• 
  Avg rating: (+11/-0 11)

  Virginia

  Oct. 22, 2006, 1:36 p.m.

  From the article: "During my 18 years of police service I was dispatched to zero calls generated by the use of marijuana. What else do you need to know that pot use by adults in their home is not worth police time?" There are some really bad drugs out there that we should be paying attention to like meth.

  4 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    Eagle_Eye

    Oct. 22, 2006, 8:14 p.m.

    I agree, more attention needs to be on the much more life threatening matters!! We are losing the so called "War on Drugs" and a lot of people frying their brains with far worse chemicals!! Go after the synthetic stuff and leave nature alone!!
  • 
    Avg rating: (+14/-2 12)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 6:27 a.m.

    The meth crap is propaganda.

    Drs. prescibe similar drugs to millions of children and adults for ADD/ADHD.

    Guess who are the biggest donors to the drug free America campaign?

    That is right. Drug companies. They don't want the competition.

    The drug war is the biggest con job ever perpetrated on the American people.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2005/10/war-on-unpatented-drugs.html

    Do Republicans support drug prohibition because it finances criminals or because it finances terrorists?

    Republican Socialism. Price supports for criminals and terrorists.

    2 Replies

    • 
      Avg rating: (+3/-0 3)

      mbkijb

      Dec. 28, 2006, 10:49 p.m.

      Quite honestly, I think repubs support drug prohibition because pharmaceutical lobbiests finance them and their decisions!!!!!!!!!!!! They line their pockets with their dirty money, while the average senior citizen often has to make a choice of whether to buy thier medicine or eat. Weed could help people sleep, help anxiety, and help everything else it is proven to help. I have a friend who has a genetic disease that has claimed a few of his family members (and off the top of my head, I cannot remember what the name of it is, but it is a disease where tumors grow on his nerve endings, in his brainstem, on his back and in his hands- you can see them-and they are wrapping themselves around his hearing mechanisms and he is going deaf from it), but his doctor knows he smokes it and attributes it to the fact that these tumors are slowing down in aggressiveness, thus prolonging his life. There is no cure for this, and I wish I could remember the name of it.
    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

      mbkijb

      Dec. 28, 2006, 10:50 p.m.

      Meth is a highly chemical based drug, but who am I to knock it- the drugs that are prescribed to us are highly processed too.
• 
  Avg rating: (+1/-0 1)

  Helixbuilder

  Oct. 23, 2006, 11:22 a.m.

  Whats the wrong message? Tell me!
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 1:54 p.m.

  nostradomas

  I encourage you to look at LEAP's position as to whether it is the wrong message.

  Presently,a minor has some roadblocks to obtain alcohol,he must obtain fake ID or convince an adult to break the law.On the other hand,any kid can go across the street to joe drug dealer and wont be asked for any ID and while he's there maybe he can try some harder drugs.

  We need to take the control away from black market dealers.

  2 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+1/-0 1)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 6:31 a.m.

    I did one of the first interviews with a LEAP member.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2005/03/interview-with-police-officer.html

    Do Republicans support drug prohibition because it finances criminals or because it finances terrorists?

    Republican Socialism. Price supports for criminals and terrorists.

    Do they still teach alcohol prohibition in schools?
  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    mbkijb

    Dec. 28, 2006, 10:52 p.m.

    That is what the govt doesn't like about weed. Too easy to grow and propagate in your own home. Our Government is comprised of control freaks!
• 
  Avg rating: (+2/-0 2)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 1:56 p.m.

  Stephen Johnson

  As part of the initiative in Las Vegas,not only does it call for the legalization for adults but also imposes stricter penalties for intoxicated driving.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+10/-0 10)

    stephen-johnson

    Oct. 22, 2006, 2:07 p.m.

    Thanks for the clarification.
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  Hobe

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:02 p.m.

  This is a great idea... The Police really need more time on their hands to ride around and setup up their speed TRAPS to steal MONEY from the very same Towns People that Support Them... This is excuted in the guise of Safety???

  The Money is used for their Salaries and Pensions and sometimes Vacations... That's why they join Police to begin with... Also, you may want to check if your town supports Police vacations to the BAHAMAS, Cruises etc., with their spouse at your expense... This is a little secrete that they really would not like to talk about... So when you get pulled over by a traffic COP, (usually the flunky on the police force) don't be upset you may be contributing to the Police fund for their much needed vacations... Now in South Florida most Police appear to be OVERWeight, this is a good indication their System is Working...

  The Blue Wall of 'S---' lives on.....

  Whate A Disgrace....

  Sincerely,

  3 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+6/-0 6)

    posthumous

    Oct. 22, 2006, 7:53 p.m.

    Do you have additional info on this?

    1 Reply

    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-1 -1)

      m-simon

      Oct. 23, 2006, 6:36 a.m.

      "The Latin American drug cartels have stretched their tentacles much deeper into our lives than most people believe. It's possible they are calling the shots at all levels of government." - William Colby, former CIA Director, 1995

      http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2005/02/why-we-must-not-end-prohibition.html

      http://www.narconews.com/narcodollars1.html
  • 
    Avg rating: (+2/-0 2)

    not2needy

    Oct. 22, 2006, 9:41 p.m.

    Hobe:

    The police who do the speed trap thing would do it regardless of whether pot was legal or not, aren't they doing it now, and pot is illegal, so what makes you think if they legalize pot that would just give police more time to harass motorists.

    Where i live, they harass motorists while crack dealers stand on the corner selling their wares, the police are afraid of the drug dealers because the dealers have no problem shooting them rather than go to jail, so the police pick on jay-walkers more than they do the dealers anyway.
• 
  Avg rating: (+1/-1 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:37 p.m.

  bubba

  Actually legalization is not a radical idea, many real conservatives have long suggested legalization of all drugs.They include William F Buckley,George Schultz,Milton Friedman,The Heritage Foundation as well as the law enforcement people at LEAP.
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  bubba2

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:44 p.m.

  Ok ... then I am not so radical, after all? Cool ... :-)

  I have an even MORE CYNICAL opinion about the rhetoric against legalization of marijuana by politicians.

  I believe that SOME of the monies that get contributed to political campaigns is "laundered", money that comes from sources who do NOT want 'illegal' drugs to be legalized because those sources make too much TAX FREE profits.

  3 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+9/-1 8)

    jordan11

    Oct. 22, 2006, 6:57 p.m.

    I agree with you, bubba2....I've no doubt that powerful people have their hands in the 'pot' of illegal drugs. Personally, I'd like to see marijuana legalized, and alcohol OUT. I've seen lives destroyed by alcohol, and not a one by the use of pot. I've seen people turn into monsters when drunk, but never have I seen that with the use of pot. And I've seen people's livers destroyed with alcohol, but not pot.

    1 Reply

    • 
      Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

      Webfeed

      Oct. 22, 2006, 8:16 p.m.

      I'm with you on this, jordan11.
  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    posthumous

    Oct. 23, 2006, 12:02 a.m.

    An exelent observation!
• 
  Avg rating: (+8/-0 8)

  Twistoflex

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:48 p.m.

  I don't use narcotics, but I think that ALL drugs (of the non-lethal variety)should be legal, packaged in "safe" doses by gov't licensed distributors and sold with a heavy Federal excise tax.

  This "war on drugs" is a scam, anyway. The gov't has been involved in narco-trafficking and money-laundering for decades. The "war on terror" is also a scam. Our amnesiac "news" industry likes to forget that is was our CIA and tax dollars that created and nurtured al Qaeda and that on-going relationships with terrorist organizations persist to this day (e.g., we're working with terrorist organizations to destabilize Iran).

  In any event, with drugs legal and taxed by the gov't, at least the Federal Mafia would be doing its business legitimately.
• 
  Avg rating: (+3/-0 3)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:49 p.m.

  years ago I even heard a rumor that Reagan ,Bush Sr. and Clinton as gov of Ark were in cahoots bringing in loads to an Ark landing site.Please see my other post This Weeks Corrupt Cop Stories,it is a weekly account of crooked cops.
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 2:53 p.m.

  what people dont see is the collateral damage done by the drug war.The constitution has been gutted,a cop can now walk up to you on the street with no probable cause and confiscate every dollar you have in your pocket unless you can prove where you got it,and never charge you with a crime.The drug war affects everyone in an adverse way.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+1/-0 1)

    Centinel

    Oct. 23, 2006, 3:16 a.m.

    The police are able to steal your money not because of the war on drugs but because you are now government property under "corporate" (statute) law rather than the common (constitutional) law. By acknowleging that you are the entity identified by your assigned "nom de guere" or artificially created "person" you have given up your "rights" protected under the constitution. The all capitalized identification on your drivers license, voter registration, SSN and any other "government" document is how they do it. Remember,Ignorance of the law is no excuse. Send message through this forum directed to me for more information.
• 
  Avg rating: (+2/-0 2)

  samsara15

  Oct. 22, 2006, 3:41 p.m.

  Almost any way you look at the, the war on drugs has been a fiasco. At the very least, we should change drug use from a felony to a misdemeanor.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+8/-0 8)

    Bacalao

    Oct. 22, 2006, 11:37 p.m.

    if they did that how would they be able to take away our right to vote. Felons are not allowed to vote without a pardon from the govonor.
• 
  Avg rating: (+5/-0 5)

  1basque1

  Oct. 22, 2006, 3:59 p.m.

  The system loves to get more tax money and build bigger and better jails. Hire more cops,lawyers,judges,and probation officers. The war on drugs has been a rip off to the tax payers. Our jails are over run with non-violent people, who are guilty of smoking weed in the privacy of there own homes. I think those weed smokers MUST be terrorist.God forbid that we secure our airways,subways,bridges and nuclear facilities...
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 4:21 p.m.

  At a time when Attorney General John Ashcroft should have been investigating an FBI field agents report on people wanting to learn how to fly planes without landing them,instead,his highest priority was busting Tommy Chong for selling bongs over the internet.
• 
  Avg rating: (+7/-0 7)

  Gatsby

  Oct. 22, 2006, 5:12 p.m.

  We have never been even close to winning the war on drugs and we never will be. It's useless and futile to continue. We need to legalize all drugs and, like liquor, control them as best we can. We may not totally succeed in this control, but we'll come closer than we are to winning the so-called war. The legalization of drugs will cut off the legs of the drug cartles. If they're not put completely out of business, they'll be badly crippled.
• 
  Avg rating: (+2/-5 -3)

  ratoncitaverde

  Oct. 22, 2006, 5:26 p.m.

  i'm not so sure about the legalization of things like crack and heroin, but i don't think you should go to jail for it either. i don't exactly have a well thought out solution besides counceling, but just the fact that they are so addictive and easily overdosed on makes them incomparable to the legalization of marijuana.
• 
  Avg rating: (+12/-1 11)

  Twistoflex

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:02 p.m.

  mntnman, Check out this link. It has a verified sworn affidavit from William Casey - Reagan's campaign manager, who was appointed to head the CIA. It contains the information that you seek,

  http://insider-magazine.com/BUSHthebigpicture/BillCaseyAffidavit1.html
• 
  Avg rating: (+4/-0 4)

  not2needy

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:07 p.m.

  I think it is way past the time to legalize marijuanna.

  I'm not sure i take the same stand with drugs like cocaine, heroine, and crank, but it is a shame to have people have a police record because of marijuanna possession.
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:14 p.m.

  The point of legalization though is not to reward users but to control the drug and get rid of the crime that comes from prohibition.

  I personally think that it has been and always will be our right to do whatever we choose with our own bodies,making it illegal was the crime.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-1 -1)

    Centinel

    Oct. 23, 2006, 3:23 a.m.

    Under common law or natural law you are absolutley correct. However, under corporate or statute law we are a "fascist" police state and will remain so until the people realize it and take back our liberties protected under the constitution. As an aside check out Title 18 section 242 and 241 of the United States Code.
• 
  Avg rating: (+4/-0 4)

  STONERS

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:23 p.m.

  front page - way to go mntnman444--:}:}:}:}
• 
  Avg rating: (+8/-0 8)

  thaw

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:32 p.m.

  a little weed, hash, or oil. (basically marijuanna darivitives), are not that dangerous, and should be legalized or at the least decriminalized. legalizing pot, could generate some much needed tax dollars for gov'ts. but coke, acid, and other halucinagenics must be kept illegal.

  the problem is that it's hard to pick a legal limit of how much you can do without it affecting driving. i know that sufferers of fibromyalgia and other pain related diseases can benifit from smoking a little joint too.

  but before it can be legalized, the "legal limit" and a way to measure this economically, has got to be set up first.

  until then, you take your chances. --

  .

  2 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+10/-2 8)

    el-jefe

    Oct. 22, 2006, 8:32 p.m.

    Um, and how is this different than busting a stoned (on marijuana) driver today? There is no test that can accurately determine how stoned someone is on marijuana at a particular point in time (vs. alcohol, where the BAC is generally taken as a practical measure of how drunk someone is).

    So, let's say someone smokes up and hits the road today. Police officer sees what appears to him to be impaired driving, pulls the driver over. Doesn't smell any alcohol on the breath, see signs of marijuana intoxication (red eyes, poor eye tracking...symptoms that can be caused by things other than marijuana intoxication). Police officer gives field sobriety test, which the driver fails. Suspect is taken downtown and given a breath test, showing a BAC of 0.000. Now what? Suspect is videotaped, and the DA is given the discretion of charging with DUI or not filing charges. That's how it's done today.

    It wouldn't be any different if marijuana is legalized. The only difference is that the police officer wouldn't have an automatic bust if he searched the car and found marijuana...although (legal) posession of marijuana could be presented as evidence in a DUI case. It just wouldn't be an automatic conviction the same way a high BAC on a breath test is.

    1 Reply

    • 
      Avg rating: (+5/-0 5)

      Bacalao

      Oct. 23, 2006, 2:15 p.m.

      The BAC is an arbitrary number used to make the officers job easier and take away discression. depending on my mental and physical state i can get trashed on one drink( and still be legal) or still be relatively sober after 5 drinks( And not be legal). Their is nor probably ever will be any test that can say if you are stoned, high, drunk, ect...
• 
  Avg rating: (+5/-0 5)

  mntnman444

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:35 p.m.

  thaw

  One difference between marijuana and alcohol is that with marijuana a person only gets so high no matter how much they consume unlike alcohol with which the more you consume the more intoxicated you are.besides...people who are stoned are notorious for driving below the speed limit lol!

  2 Replies

  • 
    Avg rating: (+15/-2 13)

    Dsb2k6

    Oct. 22, 2006, 6:54 p.m.

    There was a study done in the UK that actually found that people under the influence of pot were less likely to get in/cause accidents on the road than unintoxicated drivers because it made them concentrate more on the road. Not to mention trying to avoid those pesky traffic cops.
  • 
    Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

    thaw

    Oct. 22, 2006, 7:54 p.m.

    WOW! i thought that was just me.
• 
  Avg rating: (+3/-0 3)

  Dsb2k6

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:45 p.m.

  *Takes a puff*

  "I dont see no stinking police..."

  *Takes another puff*

  It is a shame that over 55 percent of the federal prison population is there for non-violent drug offenses. Theres a reason we have more people in jail than anywhere else in the world. Its because the government dont like us taking their money. If you think about the fact that in Ga we pay 6 cents on the dollar, once a dollar has been spent 16.6 times it has paid for itself. Drug money doesnt get taxed so it eats up taxes. They dont like you spending your money without you paying them to do it. Its all about taxation and money. If you dont pay them to spend your money they will take all your stuff and throw you in jail. They dont need you if you arent paying them to spend your own money and making them a profit. And that my freinds, is why marijuana will not be legalized anytime soon.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+4/-0 4)

    Centinel

    Oct. 23, 2006, 3:30 a.m.

    I have said before and I will say it again. To find the reason behind anything "follow the money". This is an excellent post. Bravo!
• 
  Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)

  Dsb2k6

  Oct. 22, 2006, 6:52 p.m.

  It is also a great way of controlling minority neighborhoods with a lack of economy. If the impovershed go out and do whatever they can to get money to feed their kids the government can lock them up thus creating a cycle that keeps minorities in the same place. The drug war had nothing to do with drugs themselves. There are numerous benefits the government can reap by keeping drugs illegal.

  Also, I hear the arguement that they can always tax marijuana and make back the money they make on the war on people who chose to use it. This is not true because marijuana is one of the easiest plants there is to grow. Anyone can do it. If you ever had a houseplant that didnt die you can grow marijuana. It is a weed afterall and will grow by itself if left outside. Where is the incentive to buy something you can grow with relative ease? It would still be an unregulated market because it would be just as easy to get from the store as it would be your neighbor.

  1 Reply

  • 
    Avg rating: (+8/-1 7)

    m-simon

    Oct. 23, 2006, 6:53 a.m.

    It is actually worse than that. We have turned black neighborhoods into war zones.

    War zones are excellent for creating PTSD in susceptable humans.

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2006/04/ptsd-and-endocannabinoid-system.html

    http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2004/09/drug-war-racism.html

The first 66 comments are shown. Show all 258 comments »