Sunday, November 6, 2005

Democrats Fled in the Face of Danger Garrison Keillor takes his own party to task: We Democrats are at our worst when we try to emulate Republicans as we did in signing onto the "war" on drugs that has ruined so many young lives. The cruelty of the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 is stark indeed, as are the sentencing guidelines that impose mandatory minimum sentences for minor drug possession -- guidelines in the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act that sailed through Congress without benefit of public hearings, drafted before an election by Democrats afraid to be labeled "soft on drugs." As a result, a marijuana grower can land in prison for life without parole while a murderer might be in for eight years. No rational person can defend this; it is a Dostoevskian nightmare and it exists only because politicians fled in the face of danger. That includes Bill Clinton, under whose administration the prosecution of Americans for marijuana went up hugely, so that now there are more folks in prison for marijuana than for violent crimes. More than for manslaughter or rape. This only makes sense in the fantasy world of Washington, where perception counts for more than reality. To an old Democrat, who takes a ground view of politics -- What is the actual effect of this action on the lives of real people? -- it is a foul tragedy that makes you feel guilty about enjoying your freedom. This is a message that Democrats need to hear and heed. [Thanks, jackl] (Note: The 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act passed the House 392-16 and the Senate 97-2) 6:57:02 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

A small piece of good news in the war on pain patients Thanks to Adam, (and I see that Libby at Last One Speaks has already covered this, but it's important) -- The Washington Post reported yesterday that the DEA has been stripped of one of its roles: A House-Senate conference committee yesterday dropped a controversial provision that gave the Drug Enforcement Administration authority to review, and potentially block, the sale of all new prescription narcotics. The legislation, promoted by Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.) and attached to a multi-department appropriations bill, passed last year with little notice. But this year the Food and Drug Administration, many drug makers and doctors who treat pain patients objected to renewing it, and the provision was stripped from the bill. Opponents said the provision was an unwarranted intrusion by a law enforcement agency into the FDA's drug-review system. Pain specialists also said the DEA reviews could jeopardize development of new drugs needed by patients with chronic pain. Are people waking up? Realizing that the DEA has no business inserting itself in medical issues? I give a significant amount of credit for this to Radley Balko and others who have been reaching a lot of decision makers with their articles about the DEA's abuses. (Of course, there are still a lot of roles that we need to strip from the DEA.) 6:34:35 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []