this is so obvious it really does make you ask "why exactly are they still illegal?"

the answer is fascism (and no i'm not plugging a movie). drug laws (which in reality, are no more than tax stamp laws being abused) mark the beginning of the american fascist movement. they exist only so that the government may have a "war".

when i was in the navy i made the observation that in peacetime the enlisted forces become the enemy for the officers. without an outside enemy the fascists/authoritarians always turn on the their own.

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From the French connection to the Golden Triangle to the Golden Crescent to the Contra crack connection, the CIA is there every time. Without a black market, there is no secrecy in fundraising for covert operations or money to skim off the top for the operatives involved. Legalization will never be allowed to happen so long as the CIA still exists.

That said, legalization is the best course of action, and for even more reasons than just ending the violence involved with the illicit trade. The restrictions on the anaesthetics covered by these prohibitions severely degrade the quality of healthcare (raise your hand if you've been given an ineffective prescription painkiller), especially in poorer regions. A number of drugs not prohibited (alcohol, nicotine) are demonstrably more harmful than those prohibited. Last, but not least, look at all of the nonviolent petty drug offenders in prison.

Actually, take a much, much closer look at the prison situation, because nefarious things are ongoing there (frankly tantamount to ethnic cleansing). Look at what proportion of US exports are produced by prison labor. Look at felon disenfranchisement's effects on elections. Look at the corporate and other financial beneficiaries of mass imprisonment, esp. how many ex-CIA officials are on those boards of directors.

There is a lot riding on the continuation of the "War on Drugs." It will take a lot more than saying "legalization makes sense" to fix this.

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When the cops are saying it's time to legalize, it's clearly a policy to consider! The source of the drug war is corporate, look to the markets prohibition creates and you'll find who makes these policies. Just like credit card companies writing bankruptcy laws or oil companies making energy policy--prison corps, pharmaceutical companies, gun makers all benefit from this policy nightmare which is now nearly 30 years old! While they are nasty, the banditos and drug gangs are secondary thugs. The only way to change it is to make drug policy a voting issue, demand accountability for the millions of dollars we spend serving corporations who profit from death, torture and poverty!

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Drugs from Mexico are defacto unregulated which causes the same kind of problems as all the Bushies deregulation mania have caused only worse. Regulated legalization of drugs would drastically reduce the worst drug problems just as reregulation of the Bushie deregulation would drastically reduce the freaking greed caused by the Bushies's deregulation. Greed causes most drug problems and Greed causes most Bushie problems. In addition regulated legalization of drugs would allow us to close about half of the recently built US jails which are packed with drug "offenders".

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No question: the harm done by the Drug War far exceeds any harm it prevents. Legalization would probably do more good than harm . But, we all know the vested interests we're up against: Police, pimps, lawyers, dealers, prision contractors, kingpins, the companies who sell helicopters to the DEA, etc. etc ad nausium.

But, making the Mexican border towns safe for sexual tourism and drunken frolics as they were a few decades ago -- I don't see that idea getting a lot of traction. Certainly not with Mexicans. Probably not with anyone who doesn't have a spring break and a few hundred bucks to blow and get blown with -- and has never actually done it before.

Personally, I think a man who can get actually off in a Tiajuana brothel with anything approaching pleasure is either blind, deaf, and has no sense of smell, or he's a budding criminal sociopath with no concience and no soul.

Amsterdam costs more ... but easier on the Karma : the sex is more or less consensual, and the drugs venues reasonably safe -- they even sell legal switchblade knives there, just like the Tijauna of old.

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I cannot believe the posts I've read on this topic. Trafficking in drugs could be stopped if there were the will to do so. The answer is NOT legalization, the answer is siezure of drug money laundering banks and imprisoning the bank officers who knew or ought to have known their banks were profiting from drug money laundering. Before he became governor of Massacheusetts, William Weld was Federal DA in Boston. During his tenure, First Boston was caught red handed in a money laundering scam. Federal charges were brought and indictment and conviction followed. Weld bragged that the 1/2million dollar fine was the largest such fine in US history. The sad fact is that was less than one days interest on First Boston's blood money. Weld's familywere heirs of the "White-Weld" fortune, made from their merchant bank which had sold out to Credit Suisse, a correspondent bank of First Boston. Weld's prosecution of First Boston was nothing but "damage control." Continental Illinois has also been caught red handed in drug money laundering. But there have been no siezures either of the drug money or of the bank. No bank officers have gone to prison. Going after even the top layer of thugs will never stop drug trafficking. Until the banking financeers who launder and conduit the money are imprisoned and their riches siezed, there is no commitment to stop trafficking in this poison.
It is common knowledge, first reported by San Jose Mercury News, that the CIA was responsible for introducing crack into the drug trade in LA in order to fund the Contras after Congress cut off government funding with the Boland Amendment.
Prosecutions stopped with "Freeway Willy," the no. 1 street hawker in LA. And that's as far up the "chain" that they went with investigations and prosecutions.
Although George H.W. Bush was implicated during his tenure as Pres. Reagan's VP, he has never been called to account for his complicity in the introduction of crack cocaine into this country.
Advocates of drug legalization are either dupes or witting fellow travellers of the thugs at the top of financial and government layers. Either that or they're drug users themselves.
TagsNOLA

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I'd like to ask the author how "fun" and "safe" Tijuana circa 1960 was for the women providing the "adult entertainment." A barrel of laughs for them, I'm sure. While I too agree that the Drug War is an enormous, staggering mistake that is the direct cause of massive violence and senseless acts on all 'sides', I question the author's introduction to this issue by reminiscing about those good old days when he used to get wasted and exploit women. Helluva disconnect there, friend. There is/was plenty of horrific, deplorable violence in the sex industry *everywhere* - your wording would have us believe that only the kind of violence that prevents privileged, american male teenagers from partying in Tijuana (i.e. violence against *men*) is a problem. If you are truly concerned about violence, you should learn a bit more about the female sexual slavery crisis that is a worldwide issue. The overwhelming ignorance of this fact in your casual fuzzy description of what you call "adult entertainment" is nothing short of plain old ugly sexism.

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I haven't seen the movie, but from what I saw in the trailers, I think it grossly inaccurate, particularly with respect to the income tax. There are some scenes where the question is asked, "show me the law" referring to the income tax, another, where someone states the tax is unconstitutional because not apportioned. Wrong! The authority for the tax is the 16th Amendment to the Constitution: "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration."

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Recall alcohol prohibition? The American mafia got it's real start in the Prohibition days by controlling the illegal alcohol shipments (alcohol use actually rose during Prohibition), and usually it was high-proof (easier to transport).

Today, the illegal drugs, the pharmaceutical drugs, and the legal drugs are all mixed together in a country with the highest rate of drug use on the planet. Recently pbs ran this special on how much amphetamine is given to kids in this country (Adderal - Dexedrine -Ritalin etc.):
http://www.pbs.org/ Studies indicate these kids are predisposed to methamphetamine addiction - but Big Pharma does not want that little factoid to get out.

Take alcohol, tobacco and marijuana (legal in this country until 1937) - which ones are the killers? The greatest health risks? Tobacco and alcohol - more people die every year from taking aspirin then from marijuana - another little factoid. George Washington grew cannabis on his farm (hemp) and the drug and fiber products from the crop were an important part of the US economy and pharmacopia for many decades.

The money laundering schemes go on as well - the cash from drug sales in the US is apparently usually smuggled out of the country (easily) and then reinvested in the US via the typical cadre of investment banks, but taxed at the lower 'foreign capital investment' rates. It's a scheme a lot like that of petrodollar recycling from the Saudis, only a lot more shady - but then, the inner sanctums of Citigroup are unlikely to see much government oversight. Opium production in Afghanistan, cocaine production in Columbia, amphetamine production in US pharma factories - where does the money end up?

So why not legalize the drugs for personal use, have an honest ad campaign that details the health risks of drugs (including alcohol, tobacco, cocaine, heroin, kiddy amphetamines, pharmaceutical painkillers, etc.)? Just consider that more poeple have died from taking Celebrex and Vioxx as pain mediactions then from smoking cannabis, which is also an effective pain medication.

Drug legalization would undercut Big Pharma's (and the Arellanos) profit line, especially since there are no patents available on cannabis (not that they aren't trying). Then we'd have to empty the prisons of all the non-violent drug offenders (how much would that save us? Isn't ~50% of the US prison population in this category?). By the way, what's the drug most commonly associated with violence? No, not methamphetamine - it's alcohol (though meth users do tend to drink hard liquor).

Meanwhile, local undercover cops are busy targeting cannabis users for asset seizures - and now that same undercover DEA-style apparatus has been unleashed on anti-war groups and political dissidents of all kinds. The "War on Drugs" was a political move dreamed up the same right-wing freakshows that run the country today as a method of domestic political control.

The government should be honest about the effects of drugs: cannabis is not as bad as alcohol, but methamphetamine and heroin will really screw you up - and tobacco will likely kill you in time. That would also entail a lot of reform at the FDA, and a harsh examination of pharmaceutical practices in this country. If you want to lower the incidence of demand for drugs, you have to be honest with people - because we all know the government is lying through it's teeth on this one.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go and water my plants. Who's waiting for legalization? Oh- and if you are going to smoke marijuana, use a water pipe, aka 'BONG'. If our ex-President Bush Sr. can insist on his 'daily martini', then so can I.

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of why drugs are illegal in the first place. It is only concluded they are harmful, therefore they must be illegal. Johnny wants to experiment with drugs, but the gov't says, "No Johnny, drugs will screw up your life, they are bad for you, and to protect you and keep you from screwing up your life, we will make them illegal." Then, after Johnny goes out and tries some of the wicked for himself, the gov't throws Johnny in prison, where he will be saved from himself.

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False. I want smaller government. I want the gov out of the drug prohibition business and out of that part of the jail business. I want the gov out of bedrooms. I want the gov out of the marriage business. I want the gov out of the Iraq war business. I want the gov out of the unneccessary weapons business. The Republican party is largely responsible for big government.

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In his biting essay, "End Prohibition Now" he says,

"Those kids in the parking lot, none of whom were 21 years old, could and did sell me any kind of illegal drugs you can name but they often came up to me and said, "Hey Jack, we're thirsty--will you go into the liquor store and buy us some beer? We can't buy beer." They could get all the illegal the drugs they wanted but couldn't buy beer. How can that be?"

We all know the answer to this. When more and more middle class parents wake up and realize that ONDCP, Partnership for a Drug-Free America and a multitude of other organizations are not really trying to help kids, but simply use them as scapegoats, we can get on a path to change.

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Really?

I know that if I pay taxes, then I want it to be used to help ME if I need it. It won't happen, no matter how big or small the government is. That's the conservative created reality.

Who are you to say what someone will hear?

Unfortunately for you, I did notice your blaming liberals for the problems created by Bush and his conservative horde. How convenient.

It didn't work.

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You've been drinking your Bill O'Reilly Kool-Aid my friend. Liberals don't want a handout--they want a change in the way things are done. They want smaller government, an end to corruption (which the war has made into a multibillion dollar business), new ways of looking at old problems (thus, "liberal" thinking) instead of a retrenchment of the status quo (thus, "conservative"). The propaganda that you hear/read/see about liberals is all part of the conservative plan to scare you. If you are afraid--such as yellow/orange/red levels--you are more obedient to authority. They've got you hoodwinked into believing that any radical change in the appropriation of funds will mean the end of the democratic system. I've got a news alert for you buddy--there is no democratic system! The laws are writen and the legislators are in place to keep things just the way they are--a wider gulf between the haves and have-nots and a government that runs roughshod over a constitution. This is all led by a president who has declared himself "The Decider" and consolidated power within the executive branch. You want the power back? Then let 'em know this sucks and they are ALL out of office!!! Massive, sweeping change in government is the key. No more Republicans, no more Democrats (they have the same opportunity to be crooks as well). Total campaign reform. Demand action today!!! That's Democracy.

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You are so wrong. Here's something you don't know about government handouts.
A group of citizens, called corporations, recieve 250,000,000.00 EACH YEAR in government subsidies, are given free hand to pollute without fear from environmental regulations, employ laborers under slave-like conditions, and even though their subsidies are paid to them to NOT grow a crop beyond a determined percentage, they grow as much of it as they want and reap record profits year after year. Now here's the rub, these people are not even US citizens, theyare all foreign owned and operated corporations who remove a mojortiy of the profits from our country - give up? It's the sugar industry.
Next time you see a woman with children without healtcare, education, a fair paying job, why don't you go over to her and just kick her in the stomach because the way you think is eqaul to such an act.

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I'm all for legalizing drugs. I'm all for letting people smoke as long as they don't plant carcinogenic timebombs in the lungs and throughout the bodies of those around them.

Of course, anyone driving under the influence would never be able to drive again. Ever. And if they did, then prison. Until we developed smart car ignitions that would make it impossible for them to drive. That's actually a far better solution, and I'd do that first. Anyone tampering with such a system and thereafter driving would get instant prison.

I'm also for outlawing all manufacture worldwide of anything meant to be smoked or all smoking paraphernalia, which are terrorist weapons used by suicide murderers. With the harshest of penalties on those who cross the law to produce distribute or sell such items.

Do that, and you'd solve most of the problems related to drug use. Especially health care.

And without the readily available distribution of smoking materials, smoking would decrease to about 1% of the total population worldwide intent on going through the hassle of growing their own. As long as they live alone, fine. If they smoke around their kids or relatives, prison.

Of course, like astute observers in other posts have pointed out, that would definitely crimp the black op income of the CIA and NSA and other organizations we don't even know the names of.

But what kind of world would my suggestion create?

A libertarian world where anyone could do pretty much whatever they wanted to regarding drugs, as long as they didn't do anything to threaten the lives of others (like drive, or poison other people with their smoking, or manufacture products, that when used as directed, kill people.)

As opposed to the world we have now, a nonsensical completely illogical world where SOME drugs that kill people and SOME industries that kill people are perfectly legal, while others that merely have the POTENTIAL to kill people are COMPLETELY ILLEGAL, and are sold and distributed to make money for black ops sections of the CIA and NSA and other intelligence agencies.

A society that seems hell-bent on killing people with their own bad habits, while profiting mightily off it, and at the same time poisoning the poor black population with drugs and filling up the prisons with those that undertake the only jobs available to them, dealing the CIA and NSA distributed drugs. Now THAT'S an ef'ed up world, but it does certainly benefit the elite that have figured it out and are fighting to keep it in place, doesn't it?

It really is time to sit down and take a logical look at what the real consequences of certain BEHAVIORS regarding drugs are (such as SMOKING) and the damage actually caused vs. the perceived cause.

So here's the conclusions:

1. Do not ever penalize the user unless they are harming other people.

2. End the supply worldwide of products designed to kill when used as directed (anything smoked and smoking paraphernalia.)

3. Legalize all other drugs.

4. Make it impossible for people under the influence to drive or operate heavy machinery. If they hack the systems in place to do so, then prison.

I think that just about covers everything. Of course, the tobacco giants who are REALLY behind the big push to legalize pot (and have held TRADEMARKED NAMES for various pot brands since 1970) will have something to say about it, I AM SURE.

Murderous lying bastards.

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I encourage all alternet readers to search the name Lysander Spooner, a great american lawyer, abolitionist and activist.
www.lysanderspooner.org is the site where you can read an essay he wrote in 1875 called Vices are Not Crimes. A vindication of moral liberty.

Its amazing we are still having this debate about whether vices are crimes 131 years after this essay was penned.

End prohibition, eliminate the drug trafficing gangs and start focusing on human social needs that are the source of our addictions to substances and ideas (like Dumbyas a terrorist fighting machine).

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As an X-cooker said to me years ago who worked for a international organization- "stop the sale of chemicals used to process the drugs in this world and your problem will begin to dry up". She also said follow the 'MONEY' and stop it; your problem will be reduced to a minor problem as people not wearing seat belts.
Lets look at the biggest drug problem; from chemicals put in our drinking water (chlorine, arsenic) bottled or not, chemicals in our food to make us eat more and destroy our immune system, vaccines, and our wonderful healthcare system that makes billions of dollars off our sickness. It is a war against us people and we are conditioned through our media to buy, buy, buy, and then given drugs by our doctors who are paid by the pharmaceutical company's. Think about it doctors are trained to give drugs and cut people open, not on health care of the individual.

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There is no incentive to end the "War on Drugs," because both law enforcement and the drug cartels are profiting too much from the stalemate.

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Make mangoe illegal and you would have a new black market in mangos, it all goes back to the saying; make laws prohibiting something and you create a new market and our government is all about marketing so now do you see the connection? Drugs fund the CIA and others, and confiscation laws fund the local Police and government, look at the USA Today on Wednesday of any week and see how much is confiscated in the US< it runs to pages of classified ads describing homes, farms, vehicles, and money all of which is used by the confiscating unit. Any wonder why this will never end? It is all about the benjamins.

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... and the Repugnicans voted for a dope fiend... >;->

(and btw - if they don't have a problem, then who are they executing?)

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Great idea! I think we should run with this. But it doesn't go far enough, in my opinion. While we're at it, we should start executing all people who speed. After all, they're recklessly endangering others by their selfish need to drive fast.

Likewise, those who drive SUVs to go grocery shopping. After all, it is morally wrong to so foolishly damage the environment and waste our precious natural resources.

While we're at it, let's execute prostitutes. Their depravity can't be tolerated in this country. Though of course, we can't arrest the clients... they wouldn't be clients if the temptation wasn't there, obviously.

Anybody else care to expand this list here? I think it's the start of a new era of moral rectitude mandated by the government, because of course it has our best interests at heart and holds the moral high ground in all cases.

(Note to the clueless: I am kidding. I should think it's obvious, but with such posts as the one I'm responding to, you can never be too sure.)

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You apparently haven't seen the movie. If you had you would not still talking partisan politics. That's what the elitists want you to do. The problems in America need fixing by Americans, not Democrats or Republicans. They won't do it, they just want to continue the same pretend fight between the political parties in public view while they do their dirty work behind the scenes. WAKE-UP ! We have to rid ourselves of the one thing that allows them to keep control of both parties....THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. Go watch the movie again.

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Here is a recent story on a banned marijuana church, FYI. Someday we will be free...

http://regulus2.azstarnet.com/comments/index.php?id=137087

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Tobacco kills more people every year than all other drugs combined, far more. Booze and Tobacco lobbyists have been lying to ameircans for years about their products. NOne of the illegal drugs are as dangerous, but then, they have not been consumed on such a mass scale as tobacco and booze has - I may be wrong about that but I don't hink so.
Salvia Divinourm, or sage, now there's something to use to escape. Why isn't that illegal. Or Kratom?

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... non-western European peoples from far flung savage places who are not imperailists would have wealth and power. The current controlling ruling classes of colonialist bonesmen can't have colored folks running around this planet running crap. If the natives of the ground on which the good stuff is harvested have a say, good white folk from half way around the world can't suppress non-whites the world over by controlling them with dope, while pocketing all the profits. How will they be able to explain our military presence is places where the only thing of value is the coca or poppy fields? This currently barely works covertly where YT is handpicking those who get to front as owners and kings. If dope is legalized, and the curtain is pulled back for all to see some money, hell will first break loose. Can't have that, can we?

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The war on drugs (aka War on Personal Choice), gambling laws, prostitution laws, pornography laws, and alcohol prohibition all stem from what one certain group of people (fundementalist "Christians") view as being proper morals for all of us.

These people dictating our "morality" are the same ones that lie to us about science, lie to us about the effects of "drugs", lie to us about the country being founded by "Christians", defraud the American public to initiate war on a sovergn nation (and kill many American's sons or daughters in the process, not to mention civilian Iraqis), deprive natural medicines to people suffering in pain (physical and emotional, lie to our kids about sex(and try to do the same to unwitting adults) , impose their beliefs on unsuspecting teen women in order to dictate their behavior and health/well being, kill innocent civilians in soverign nations, torture, rob the poor to give to the rich, hold people in bondage for slavery, kill people of different beliefs, beat their children, lie about their own pasts, and foul our "nest" in the name of corporate profits. (This is just scratching the surface)

In the meantime, they are watching out for us by imprisoning us for an action that harms no one but possibly the person committing the act (and that is questionable at best.) They want what is "best" for us!

I hear "Christians" constantly talking of how they are being persecuted by the secular society, and how they are being denied "freedom of religion" by the rest of us non-Christian types. Perhaps this equation is backwards, and they are depriving us of our liberty and personal freedom (which, according to them was given to us by God.)

The War on Drugs, the War on Terror, and the War on the Constitution are immoral, NOT moral. The very people that wish to dictate our morality are about as immoral as one can get. This is supposed to be the land of the free, home of the brave. Not the land of the self-rightous, home of the hypocrite.

This is about control, not God or Christ. Those who speak the loudest are the biggest of the hypocrites.The Christian Wrong-Just Say NO!!!

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You are a fool to think that an "assault weapons" ban (which doesn't even ban assault weapons) would change anything; I was trained to hunt with a bolt-action rifle; one shot, one kill.

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and putting a muzzle on our out of control police and military.

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"Its not a war on drugs. Its a war on personal freedom. Please keep that in mind at all times."

Bill Hicks

Whether you choose to do it with drugs, philosophy, meditation, religion, etc... squeegee your third fucking eye already!

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My stepbrother, who lives in Manhattan came up with, what I consider, a brilliant idea. First, drugs must be legalized. The "War On Drugs" is a lost war. What we have to show for it is prisons, filled to capacity, largely with women and men whose only crime is drug related. This, of course, is big business for certain large corporations who run and supply these prisons. And most of the violence in large U.S. cities is directly related to the currently illegal drug trade. Once sanity is restored we should legalize "Drug Stores" where anyone of age could purchase whatever it is they'd like. The price being set based on the addictiveness of the particular substance. This would largely destroy the illegal underground drug trade. Of course some users will become addicted, while other won't. A certain percentage of the profits of these stores could go to rehab programs. Alcohol is one of the most damaging and addictive drugs anyone could possibly use. As a nation, we tried making that illegal and we all know how that turned out!

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Legalizing recreational drugs is a grave health threat to the industrial sector of violence that includes police, military, incarceration, investigation and security. The violence industrialists are afraid of a general rise of the leftist/labor/peace movement, a snowball effect. For example, the people might start demanding more counseling and education for drug offenders. They might demand that guns be outlawed. The interests of the violence industry have to be protected and this is why the White House illegally intervened in Mexico's movement toward the results-oriented approach of drug legalization. In the abstract, results are exactly what the White House wants to avoid. It is so enslaved to capital that violent stalemates have to be perpetuated forever to avoid a drop in economic activity. What makes violence industry so lucrative is the emotional response it gets out of people. It's the thrill of the chase. Industrialists cultivate this emotion and harvest the people's energy. There is also a need in the U.S. to differentiate itself culturally from its European mother countries, so after Europeans and everyone else choose the results-oriented approach, the U.S. selects just the opposite. These are the main factors at play and the pattern is well-developed. Just look at the privatization of public services which usually cause a doubling or tripling of costs to taxpayers. The important point is that we can see the pattern and it provides a clear guide for action. We can greatly reduce our federal taxes paid by becoming more self-sufficienct, and include with our federal taxes letters explaining what we're up to. By cutting the federal tax revenue we curb the growth of the violence industries. We may also state in the letter that we want to individually direct our annual federal tax payments, so that the will of the people is expressed directly in the overall tax allocation, enabling us to cut all funding for the violence industries and redirect it to non-violence programs. All great change happens at the grass roots. No doubt that given this grass roots capability, we can clean up all of federal policy, not just the violence industries. For example, we can demand that the Copyright Clause be enforced against Microsoft/Intel and then make it happen with a mass boycott.

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Glad to read it from a guy that has horrendously harmed many, many people over dozens of years who were all acting well within their Founding Documents Rights. Guess I'll bang my drum, I've said all this and more for 35 years, but then who listens, I'm just a citizen. Many, many, many know all this well. And. No! To regulating hemp, or mushrooms, or cacti. That's our biz. And I don't mean business, as in $$$. So long as it isn't on a large commercial scale. The rest. Yes. All of it. Absolutely. Of known quality, purity, effect. No rat poison, gov herbicide and all the rest of the criminality pushed down our throats over the years. From your pharmacist, I suppose, taxed, to cover the costs of 'regulating' it. Obviously, some few people just can't handle some of it so perhaps there should be some requirement that people get some sort of screening, to be allowed to purchase it. If the small percentage of folks who do have problems, have a medical problem, instead of facing the Gulag as they do now, they'll get help. At least they won't have to 'rob a bank' to buy the stuff. Yea, right. That's what 'enforcement' always says when they want more jobs and toys, and your property. Yes, it will take the money out of it. Why would you pay $400! an ounce for a garden herb you now have growing, lovingly tended, in your garden? Or mushrooms myceliating in your own mason jars? Or cactus growing in your window garden? All very nearly Free! No mon, no fun for the ass-----. Why is it 'illegal' to begin with? Religious zealots, old power mongers emulating Ed Hoover for their own gov agency empires and the chemical companies who wanted to get rid of hemp fiber. Remember nylon? That polyester shirt that corporatist guy next to you is wearing? Great leverage on the intellectual community, huh?! Who doesn't want substances (mindwarp codeworded 'drugs') legalized nowadays? Most of the enormous 'enforcement' community who have nice jobs and toys because of this, huge numbers of prison gaurds for the same reason, and...most importantly, lawyers. They make? take! big, big, big money for not defending you, the truth be known. They take 10-20-30K$ off you, and slide a contract back across their desk that states that the money you just gave them is considered legally as "earned on receipt" and any action the lawyer therefrom may take on your behalf is solely at his whim. What a racket. They won't give that up. It is known as the Prison Industrial Complex. It's huge now. Hugely profitable. These maniacs have built more prisons in the last 20 years than this Nation built in the last 200!! Fascism, codenamed "industrial policy", since the time of what we know as WWll. Walk around the us capital building. What do you see? All over and through the place? Carved and cast at tremendous expense, our expense, bronze and fine wood with this motif, the Roman Fasces. The symbol of fascism and no other. I say Feces! to their fasces. That's what we got, folks. Getting rid of Nixons's Revenge, the Drug War would be a good start. How is it that whatever it is that wears the sheeps hide appearing to be the United States Government wages WAR on it's own citizenry. And they buy into it!! Ouch! Reparations, restoration, serious apologies made to all harmed. Bravo to this cop, though. Why didn't he say what he just did 40 years ago. This is not an isolated incident these days, glad to report. I just got an email confirmation from one of the directors of LEAP, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, that of their 5,000 members, 500 are 'enforcement' types. So hang on to your hats, and keep your hemp well cared for, and share it, dammit, and see if things don't start to change for the better. If not. It couldn't get much worse than it has been. We can only go up from here. Or to prison. Peace, Love, Joy...and TRUTH. Bobby Baxter, Veteran & Marijuana Felon (an anti fascist 'drug' and Truth warrior from our side of the fence)

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So true. I live in Texas, in an unbelievably conservative area, surrounded by Bushies. The county in which I live recently seized (stole) an S.U.V. in a drug bust. Naturally, they decided to turn it into a rolling anti-drug billboard. On the back window of the pimped-out S.U.V. is written, "High-end stereo - $5000, Wheels - $4000, Seized from drug dealer - Priceless!" The deputy who drives this monstrosity, was just about bustin' the buttons on his uniform, proudly showing it off. I made the casual comment, "Why don't you ever see, "Seized from a child molestor" on an S.U.V.?" All I got for that was a dirty look. But the point is, it only reinforces the absurdity of the unending War on Drugs. When you get a stiffer sentence for drug charges than for molesting a child, things are definitely WAY outta whack! Each time law enforcement makes a drug bust, they get FEDERAL funding based on the street value of the MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF THE CHARGE. In other words, here in Texas, if you're busted for possession of marijuana (a Class B misdemeanor) 0-2 ounces, the agency gets funding for the value of 2 ounces, and it matters not if all you had in your possession was some seeds or half a joint. It doesn't stop there either - the state makes money from probation fees, court costs, fines and drug awareness programs. Then you add attorney fees, and lost wages for having to miss work to attend probation meetings. It's really quite a racket. The fact that people from all social strata are finally reexamining these failed policies makes me think there may be a light at the end of this long, dark tunnel.

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The pro drug lobby love to forget history. Back in the late 1890s and early 1900s when drugs such as cocaine and morphine were legal, there occurred, following endorsement from prominent medical authorities, an explosion in the use of cocaine; almost simultenously, violence and robbery. together with prostitution increased as people sought desperatly to fund their habit; don't take my word for it, check the facts.

A further consideration overlooked by the pro drug lobby is even if drugs were legalised, how would users fund their habit? would they suddenly change their modus operandi of robbing, stealing and cheating, most of which involves violence?

Yet another factor overlooked by the advocates of legalisation is that the manufacture, and distribution of drugs would be confined to a few of the pharmaceutical manufacturers, a price increase would more than likely be the outcome, as evidenced in the early 1900's when despite the increased demand and use, a condition that normally leads to price reduction, the manufacturers actually increased the price.

Finally the old chestnut that organised crime, dealers etc would not profit, is yet another myth; alcohol and cigarettes are legal drugs, freely available, but there is a thriving black market in smuggling and counterfiet products; what would prevent a similar situation arising from legalising of drugs?

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Norm Stamper's well documented observations, in a sane America, would cause the immediate end to the policies causing the problem. But this is authoritarian America where good is bad and deliberation is replaced with reaction.

I wrote about another component of this national dysfunction just today on my blog Bush White House: Saving lives sends wrong message relating to the fact that the government is opposing distribution of an anti-overdose drug, Narcan, because it will send the wrong message.

The drug war prohibition economics are "creating chaos and instability" on our border, around the world and on American streets. And the government knows it.

"The international traffic in illicit drugs contributes to terrorist risk through at least five mechanisms: supplying cash, creating chaos and instability, supporting corruption, providing “cover” and sustaining common infrastructures for illicit activity, and competing for law enforcement and intelligence attention. Of these, cash and chaos are likely to be the two most important."

Does any of this sound familiar in these border security deliberations along the Mexican border? The above quote comes from the 2004 Congressional Research Service report to congress, "Illicit Drugs and the Terrorist Threat: Causal Links and Implications for Domestic Drug Control Policy".

The government has known, for years, that the $ 144 billion annual U.S. black market, that is created by the prohibition drug war policy, is "creating chaos and instability". Including that on the Mexican border today.

Their conclusion: "American drug policy is not, and should not be, driven entirely, or even primarily, by the need to reduce the contribution of drug abuse to our vulnerability to terrorist action. There are too many other goals to be served by the drug abuse control effort."

Not even the threat of increasing terrorism and the chaos and instability on our borders is more important than maintaining the status quo of the drug war. Even stateless terrorism then becomes collateral damage of the drug war.

Worse even than the current situation is the fact that the DEA is expecting and planning for major escalations in cooperation between the Mexican/Central/South American gangs and terrorist armies with the heroin producing terrorist armies and drug gangs of Afghanistan in distributing into the U.S. in the future.

The 2006 US National Drug Threat Assessment of the Justice Department expects that: "Despite significant decreases in heroin production in most source countries other than Afghanistan, production in South America and Mexico—the main source countries for the United States—remains sufficient to meet most U.S. demand for the drug in the near term. Further sustained declines in South American white heroin production, however, may gradually stretch domestic heroin supplies in eastern markets; any heroin deficit is not likely to be filled by Mexican heroin and will most likely result in an increase in Southwest Asian white heroin trafficking in the United States."

"...Colombian and Dominican criminal groups quite likely
would strive to maintain control over domestic heroin distribution by purchasing Southwest Asian heroin from sources in Asia or Europe and distributing it in eastern drug markets."

Successful U.S. interdiction in Central and South America is succeeding only in bringing together South American gangsters and terrorists with Afghan gangsters and terrorists. this is the ballooning effect in zeppelin proportions. The US is creating super stateless terrorist armies of the future.

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After all, it was Nixon who started the drug war.

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How come we never hear about this? Can a reliable test be devised to determine if/how much someone is driving under the influence of marijuana?

With that, pot would finally be allowed to be relegated to a safety/health issue as alcohol has been since 1933. Clearer policy about other drugs would follow.

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The drug war will never end because it provides the millions of criminally disenfranchised minorities and nonconformists needed to give electoral critical mass to the subversion of apportionemtn, Gerrymandering and polling place denial of access tactics that the white right wing of America need to stay in power.

From Ira Glasser's column, Drug Busts=Jim Crow, in July 10 issue of The Nation. (A link that may or may not work http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060710/glasser)

"If you want to contemplate what this means, consider the state of Florida in the 2000 presidential election, where 200,000 black Floridians were barred from voting because of prior felonies in an election in which the presidency was determined by 537 disputed votes. If even one-third of these people had actually voted--say, 70,000--and if they voted in the usual proportions that blacks vote for the Democratic candidate--say, 80 percent, probably a low estimate--those 70,000 voters would have produced a 42,000 net gain for Al Gore."

When will the Democrats stop prosecuting richard Nixon's white right wing Jim Crow subversion of the Voting Rights Act?

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Conservative economists tell us that over-regulation stifles the growth of profitable markets and products. Drugs and their market are the most profitable product on the planet, save oil, and the market is growing out of control.

The solution to control drug use growth is democratic institutions of regulation, taxation and licensing. The authoritarian institutions of prohibition permit too free a market for all of the best law enforcement efforts to overcome.

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The national security threat posed by the government imposed illicit status of the drug market is so grave and immediate that it alone should convince every America of the importance of ending the drug war immediately. The success of the growth of international statless terrorist armies is a direct result of the $ 344 billion annual world wide retail black market.

The government promises, in the 2006 National Drug Threat Assessment of the DOJ, that it will get even more insane in the future if success in interdiction increases in South America. In the Heroin section of the report they tell us:

"Further sustained declines in South American white heroin production, however, may gradually stretch domestic heroin supplies in eastern markets; any heroin deficit is not likely to be filled by Mexican heroin and will most likely result in an increase in Southwest Asian white heroin trafficking in the United States."

"...Colombian and Dominican criminal groups quite likely would strive to maintain control over domestic heroin distribution by purchasing Southwest Asian heroin from sources in Asia or Europe and distributing it in eastern drug markets."

Colombian groups includes FARC and the other terrorist armies. Southwest Asian heroin is Taliban and alQaida heroin most likely. So the government is warning the reader that if interdiction in Colombia is successful it will drive Colombian terrorists, who control U.S. distribution, to join forces with the Taliban and alQaida, who control Southwest Asia supply.

That's drug war success.

That is not even the most insane part of the drug money terror nexus. Since the mid 1990's alQaida has been preaching to its people that distributing heroin into the free societies in the west will destabilize western culture. Our politicians have known this for years.

"That's part of their revenge on the world," Kerry said. "Get as many people drugged out and screwed up as you can." U.S. Sen. John Kerry 21 Sept. 2001

"The crop will be opium and the farmer will be Osama bin Laden, the most wanted terrorist in the world. Bin Laden, accused by the United States of bombing two of their embassies in East Africa this summer and a string of other attacks, sees heroin as a powerful new weapon in his war against the West, capable of wreaking social havoc while generating huge profits, according to sources in eastern Afghanistan and in Pakistan. Dec 1998, Indian Times, Heroin In The Holy War

"Since the mid-1990s, the prevalence of lifetime heroin use increased for both youths and young adults. From 1995 to 2002, the rate among youths aged 12 to 17 increased from 0.1 to 0.4 percent; among young adults aged 18 to 25, the rate rose from 0.8 to 1.6 percent." 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health

alQaida calls the campaign the "silent jihad".

It is no wonder addiction rates have sky-rocketed these past ten years. The veins of the children of the western world are the cannon fodder of the drug war on terror.

Finally there is the facilitation and spread of independent terrorism methods of operation preached by alQaida. The Madrid train bombings were a textbook example of how bin Laden tells sympathizers around the world to act independently from within the cover of the drug trade. The Madrid group recruited people in prison drug user populations. They sold drugs and traded within the black market for untraceable resources INSIDE the target nation. Hiding the bomb plot activities within the black market community the police could not see most of what was happening until it was too late. (There was an ongoing narcotics investigation of some of the group that was getting wind of the terror plot but it was not their crime of interest. They were drug cops.)

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Hey man, it was all described in "Reefer Madness." Use that marihuchie stuff, and next thing you won't know what your doing. You might find yourself butt naked walking backwards on the street trying to grab girls (interesting thought). Every one of your future kids will be some kinda retard (kinda like GWBush I suppose) and your brain will instantly be so fried all you will ever be good for is flipping burgers at MicD's (but do you get free food?). And remember with just one puff, you will also be instantly addicted to heroin, crack, smack and Ecstasy. In minutes you will be dealing drugs and the cartel will be working for you. SEE THIS IS WHAT DARE taught all of us. Isn't anti-drug education great!

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Here in Amsterdam, when you need a light for your joint, you can ask any police officer, and he will gladly oblige!

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doesn't work and never will. Prostitution has been around awhile and always will be there for those that want that sorta thing. The best way to eliminate the obvious black market is to legalize all drugs. If growing a few plants of the evil weed was legal the wholesale price would drop like a rock and put most of the growers out a job quite rapidly. The drug war is about the authoritarian power elite and their perverted ability to control others. The law enforcement and prison industries are dependent on the stupid drug laws and they will do anything to continue this farce. Prohibition has never worked and NEVER will.

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We all know that tobacco products and alcohol kills but our Govt. has total control over these things AND they can tax these products. Our Govt. don't care when people kill themselves on these products. (smoke and drink them selves to death). If there was a way to totally controll AND tax "street drugs" i know they would be legal too. It all has to do with "Controll AND Taxes/Taxation". That's the bottom line. Robert

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I work with a Christian progressive recovery group as the Field Coordinator on a volunteer basis at a local Salvation Army Homeless Shelter. We should definately legalize drugs, make it more controllable and cut into the illegal profits of drug czars, including the US Government! Look at heroin coming out of Afghanistan!

We need to legalize drugs, work on drug prevention and treatment for addicts in order to combat drug addiction.

Peter S. Lopez ~aka Peta
Sacramento, California
CASA Progressive Recovery Group
CASA 12-Steps Program Blog

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Great piece. Been advercating such for 30 odd years.
Too much drug money finds its way into the police/government circles for that sector to ever support legalisation.
However, sit down and map out the interests who legally make money out of drugs because of the way the law is.
Insurance, law enforcement, court system, prison operators/workers, retailers who sell new replacement items, just to give you a start.
Lives against $$$$'s? No contest.

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They DON'T WANT to win the War On Drugs! It's a gold mine! What, $20 billion and rising in funding, lots of new toys, millions (literally!) as fodder for the prison industry, slave labor as soon as they pass that, they get to look like heroes thanks to propaganda - what more could a neocon or greedy cops (oh - add free drugs) ask? And talk about job security! As long as there are people (a dubious proposition lately) there will be a drug market.

Sheesh...

Ian

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Illegal drugs, promulgated under USA law has killed, maimed, and tortured millions of innocent people. The ridiculous , inane "Partnership For a Drug Free America" is nothing more than a front organization for God knows what ...probably the pushers...........They have been successful in promoting the LIES about drugs and have kept them illegal ... all to the black marketeer's delight.......They probably all walk together to the bank.........hand in hand having a good laugh!

Anyone with any common sense knows drugs do not KILL or do what the commercial says...THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ,,THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON DRUGS>>ANY QUESTIONS???
YES>>>I have many questions....when are you going to STOP THE FRAUD AND THE LIES............Drugs that are pharmaceutically clean and made by pharmaceutical standards are not life threatening or harmful.......it is the drugs manufactured by clandestine labs that use a little from column A and a little from Column B to produce there wares that cause illness and death.....However this means nothing to all these politicians here in America....they will not HEAR nor will they listen....
Another BIG problem with DRUGS is they keep people in jail and that means many jobs for law enforcment and many dollars for drug enforcement that are paid for by US the taxpayer.........these POLICEMEN and ENFORCEMENT groups would be out of jobs and business if drugs were legal..
EVER WATCH "COPS"....and see the big bad sheriffs and policemen jump on a citizen who just bought and I quote "narcotics"....( a nickel bag of pot or a dime bag of cocaine)........The police on the show "COPS" make me tumble over in laughter (like the KEYSTONE COPS of old) ..their busting a low, low level dealer who is 15 years old and will not learn a thing from his ordeal or they are pouncing on some innocent hooker who just bought a nickel of crack and it takes about ten or fifteen big strapping , weight-lifting, officers to do it..instead of wasting OUR tax dollars on these antics (which make for good comedy).....why not use these officers and man power to clean up the streets and get rid of the sexual perverts who pray on our children??? Or the murderers who pray on society.........Why???? Because if drugs were legal about 70 % of our jails would be empty, we would not need to pay for extravagant surveillance equiptment and teams to catch $5.00 pot smokers....
Then we could use the monety and men to build schools, educate our kids and make education a priority...not marijuana or cocaine............As long as they get their way and as long as front organizations like "Partnership for a DRug-Free America" keep on telling their tales....WE ARE IN TROUBLE!!!!!! You cannot legislate people's behavior...not years ago during prohibition nor today.........and as long as we allow some politician to control GOD's plants like the marijuana, poppy and coca we are all losing out....NO ONE has the right to control a plant that the GOOD LORD put on this earth!!!!

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