COMMENTS: 12
Drug Use by Political Candidates Isn't a Deal Breaker, But Hypocrisy on the Issue Should Be
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At last week's debate in the race for Manhattan District Attorney, two of the three candidates admitted to cocaine use. When the candidates were asked if they used any illegal drugs besides marijuana, both Cy Vance and Richard Aborn admitted to trying cocaine in the past.
We seem to have come a long way from when Douglas Ginsberg was bumped from consideration for a Supreme Court position because he had tried marijuana in the 70's. Now it is almost impossible to find a presidential candidate who has not tried marijuana. It has become so commonplace for elected officials to admit marijuana use that the question has progressed to whether candidates have tried an illegal drug besides marijuana.
President Obama broke ground as a candidate when he wrote openly about not only using marijuana, but trying cocaine when he was in high-school. I can't remember a presidential candidate admitting to using a "hard drug". Obama's drug use clearly had no negative impact with voters. I believe his honesty helped him by humanizing him with both young voters and baby boomers. Voters appreciated some straight talk compared to President George Bush refusing to answer questions about his "youthful indiscretions" and Bill "I never inhaled" Clinton. Ironically, the candidate who suffered the most damage from Obama's past drug use was Hillary Clinton, when Bill Shaheen, Clinton's New Hampshire co-chair, had to step down after going after Obama for his past drug use.
Another high-level elected official who admitted to cocaine use and received a public shrug in response was Governor David Paterson, who admitted to cocaine use days after he became governor following Eliot Spitzer's resignation over having patronized a prostitute. Governor Paterson has recently taken heat for a range of reasons, but his cocaine use is notably not one of them.
Now we have two candidates running for District Attorney of Manhattan, one the of the most powerful law enforcement jobs in the country, admitting to cocaine use. I predict it will not be a major issue and it shouldn't be. The reason past cocaine use by Obama and Paterson and Vance and Aborn use has not been a huge problem for them is that they don't have hugely hypocritical political views on substance abuse. All four of these elected officials/candidates have advocated for alternatives to prison for low-level drug offenders. President Obama has stated he wants drugs to be treated more as a public health than a criminal justice issue. Governor Paterson worked for years to reform New York's draconian Rockefeller Drug Laws. Vance and Aborn both opposed the Rockefeller Drug Laws and Aborn is calling for a debate on decriminalizing marijuana.
The problem for voters is when there is hypocrisy. The reason the Spitzer prostitute scandal was so damaging is because he was actively prosecuting prostitution at the same time he was enjoying the services of prostitutes.
Hypocrisy is what bothers me. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is currently running for reelection. When asked years ago if he had smoked marijuana he said yes, and even added that he enjoyed it. Yet under Mayor Bloomberg, New York has the shameful distinction of being marijuana arrest capital of the world. Last year 40,000 New Yorkers were arrested and jailed on low-level pot possession charges. More people have been arrested on marijuana possession charges under Mayor Bloomberg than any elected official in history!
It is encouraging that past drug use by candidates and elected officials are being discussed more openly and voters are less judgmental. What we need now is for voters to punish elected officials who are willing to ruin other people's lives with arrest and incarceration for doing similar things in their lives.
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COMMENTS ( 12 )
Comments are closed-
Posted by: kettleblack on Sep 6, 2009 7:38 AM
Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Royalty was the original model of class separation, where it was common for the king to declare royal law on a whim. And, if you resisted, to the gallows with you.
Today, they simply send the "drug addict" off to the slave labor camp we call prison. Much more efficient use of the resources.
Drug laws are a great way to keep the rabble in their places (down). Especially when selectively applied.
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: New American Slogan: Do as I Say, not as I Do
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: P.E.A.C.E. on Sep 6, 2009 3:11 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
The 'economics of punishment' are profitable too, prison construction, law enforcement, electronic & weapons industries, etc...but the real money is being made by the competitors who fear competition from the eventual return of industrial hemp industries.
Isn't it odd how silent Obama is about hemp? Only if you still believe he's other than a frontman for the chemical industry.
It's about food, fuel & fiber, measured in trillions. Obama isn't leading on hemp, but he could be smart enough to follow the growing majority of people who are demanding answers about the obvious values being ignored.
Prohibition is about the fortunes and power to be made by grabbing unevenly distributed resources. Cannabis is globally available to produce energy, food,fiber products and herbal therapeutics. If Cannabis were available in the US, the global awareness would shift more quickly.
If we don't solve global climate change it won't matter what problems we do solve.
Return to Reason trailer
http://www.youtube.com/projectpeace
Cannabis agriculture vs. climate change
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/projectpeace
We have nothing to fear but the atmosphere itself. How bad do things have to get before all solutions are considered?
Freedom to farm "every herb bearing seed" is the first test of religious freedom.
Come on people, what's left to debate? The quickest way to end prohibition is by "essential civilian demand" for hemp. It could happen next spring if DPA, LEAP, Dr. Bronner's, ASA, NORML, MPP and the rest of the drug policy reform community all said the same thing at the same time. Executive Order 12919 identifies hemp as a "strategic food resource" critical to national security.
Cannabis-based industries or extinction? It's a simple shift in values that's needed. Eventually we have to stop throwing the baby food out with the bongwater, but time is the limiting factor in the equation of survival.
Consider that industrial hemp is banned in the US because law enforcement claims that it's hard to distinguish between industrial hemp and marijuana.
The truth is that it's easy to tell the difference between the two types of Cannabis because there's a difference in how they're planted. Industrial strains grow 4" apart, while commercial pot plants are grown a minimum of six feet apart.
Consider that a "strategic food resource" is concurrently classified as a "Schedule One" drug. The extremes of absurdity are consistent throughout the "drug war," posing a serious threat to the integrity of our legal system, and therefore a primary threat to national security.
The degree of criminal negligence for failing to recognize the incomparable nutritional value of hemp seed, particularly during a time of radical food insecurity and malnutrition, is staggering. Essential nutrition is the first line of defense against illness, so Cannabis seed nutrition ought to be fundamental to the healthcare discussion -- but it's not even mentioned in the White House.
What's up with that, Mr.& Mrs. President? Don't you want your children to enjoy the unique and essential nutrition contained in hemp seed? Please don't tell me that you don't know about it.
I am personally outraged and ashamed that it's taking this long for our generation to remember what our grandfathers knew. Hemp is an essential agricultural resource. Without it the United States would never have been founded. Without Cannabis our species will not see the end of this century.
Without the many benefits of Cannabis agriculture, manufacture and trade, we're all working for extinction.
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: SO MUCH MORE TO IT THAN WE'RE BEING TOLD
Posted by: lesfrad
» RE: SO MUCH MORE TO IT THAN WE'RE BEING TOLD
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: sicntired on Sep 7, 2009 3:21 AM
Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
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» RE: I suggested the combining of resources almost two years ago.
Posted by: lesfrad
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Posted by: wmw1984 on Sep 10, 2009 12:58 AM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
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» RE: Blu-ray to Apple TV
Posted by: lesfrad
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Posted by: bryangalt on Sep 22, 2009 7:48 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
What have we received for the money? The world's largest prison population, the world's largest number of drug arrests, the world's biggest system of corruption inside a government-black ops smuggle and distribute illegal drugs to finance illegal activities (think Iran-Contra) and on and on.
What is the most disturbing about these numbers is the fact that we have such an entrenched bureaucracy that the government is paralyzed from changing course.
And, in case anyone isn't fully aware of this little nugget: Nixon initiated the war on drugs not to save lives, but to destroy them. He insisted that pot be placed on the same level as acid and pcp so that the feds could bust "hippie pinkos" who he blamed for the massive anti-Vietnam protests.
And Republicans continue to tow that line even today...very "small government" aren't they?
BRYAN GALT BLOG
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» RE: Stopping All the Wars
Posted by: lesfrad
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Posted by: lukewatson on Oct 2, 2009 1:55 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
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Comments are closed-
Posted by: kettleblack on Sep 6, 2009 7:38 AM
Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Royalty was the original model of class separation, where it was common for the king to declare royal law on a whim. And, if you resisted, to the gallows with you.
Today, they simply send the "drug addict" off to the slave labor camp we call prison. Much more efficient use of the resources.
Drug laws are a great way to keep the rabble in their places (down). Especially when selectively applied.
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: New American Slogan: Do as I Say, not as I Do
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: P.E.A.C.E. on Sep 6, 2009 3:11 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
The 'economics of punishment' are profitable too, prison construction, law enforcement, electronic & weapons industries, etc...but the real money is being made by the competitors who fear competition from the eventual return of industrial hemp industries.
Isn't it odd how silent Obama is about hemp? Only if you still believe he's other than a frontman for the chemical industry.
It's about food, fuel & fiber, measured in trillions. Obama isn't leading on hemp, but he could be smart enough to follow the growing majority of people who are demanding answers about the obvious values being ignored.
Prohibition is about the fortunes and power to be made by grabbing unevenly distributed resources. Cannabis is globally available to produce energy, food,fiber products and herbal therapeutics. If Cannabis were available in the US, the global awareness would shift more quickly.
If we don't solve global climate change it won't matter what problems we do solve.
Return to Reason trailer
http://www.youtube.com/projectpeace
Cannabis agriculture vs. climate change
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/projectpeace
We have nothing to fear but the atmosphere itself. How bad do things have to get before all solutions are considered?
Freedom to farm "every herb bearing seed" is the first test of religious freedom.
Come on people, what's left to debate? The quickest way to end prohibition is by "essential civilian demand" for hemp. It could happen next spring if DPA, LEAP, Dr. Bronner's, ASA, NORML, MPP and the rest of the drug policy reform community all said the same thing at the same time. Executive Order 12919 identifies hemp as a "strategic food resource" critical to national security.
Cannabis-based industries or extinction? It's a simple shift in values that's needed. Eventually we have to stop throwing the baby food out with the bongwater, but time is the limiting factor in the equation of survival.
Consider that industrial hemp is banned in the US because law enforcement claims that it's hard to distinguish between industrial hemp and marijuana.
The truth is that it's easy to tell the difference between the two types of Cannabis because there's a difference in how they're planted. Industrial strains grow 4" apart, while commercial pot plants are grown a minimum of six feet apart.
Consider that a "strategic food resource" is concurrently classified as a "Schedule One" drug. The extremes of absurdity are consistent throughout the "drug war," posing a serious threat to the integrity of our legal system, and therefore a primary threat to national security.
The degree of criminal negligence for failing to recognize the incomparable nutritional value of hemp seed, particularly during a time of radical food insecurity and malnutrition, is staggering. Essential nutrition is the first line of defense against illness, so Cannabis seed nutrition ought to be fundamental to the healthcare discussion -- but it's not even mentioned in the White House.
What's up with that, Mr.& Mrs. President? Don't you want your children to enjoy the unique and essential nutrition contained in hemp seed? Please don't tell me that you don't know about it.
I am personally outraged and ashamed that it's taking this long for our generation to remember what our grandfathers knew. Hemp is an essential agricultural resource. Without it the United States would never have been founded. Without Cannabis our species will not see the end of this century.
Without the many benefits of Cannabis agriculture, manufacture and trade, we're all working for extinction.
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: SO MUCH MORE TO IT THAN WE'RE BEING TOLD
Posted by: lesfrad
» RE: SO MUCH MORE TO IT THAN WE'RE BEING TOLD
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: sicntired on Sep 7, 2009 3:21 AM
Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: I suggested the combining of resources almost two years ago.
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: wmw1984 on Sep 10, 2009 12:58 AM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: Blu-ray to Apple TV
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: bryangalt on Sep 22, 2009 7:48 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
What have we received for the money? The world's largest prison population, the world's largest number of drug arrests, the world's biggest system of corruption inside a government-black ops smuggle and distribute illegal drugs to finance illegal activities (think Iran-Contra) and on and on.
What is the most disturbing about these numbers is the fact that we have such an entrenched bureaucracy that the government is paralyzed from changing course.
And, in case anyone isn't fully aware of this little nugget: Nixon initiated the war on drugs not to save lives, but to destroy them. He insisted that pot be placed on the same level as acid and pcp so that the feds could bust "hippie pinkos" who he blamed for the massive anti-Vietnam protests.
And Republicans continue to tow that line even today...very "small government" aren't they?
BRYAN GALT BLOG
[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]
» RE: Stopping All the Wars
Posted by: lesfrad
Comments are closed-
Posted by: lukewatson on Oct 2, 2009 1:55 PM
Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
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