Thursday, January 12, 2006

Some Bad Advice for Republicans I've never quite figured out Dick Morris. He comes off to me as a sleazy political opportunist, yet there are people in Washington who listen to him. In his OpEd America is shifting leftward published in The Hill, he gives advice to Republicans to recapture the political momentum, including this gem: As the victory of Evo Morales in Bolivia makes clear, cocaine is concomitant of oil in fueling terrorism in the Western Hemisphere. The narcoterrorists use our dependence on black oil and white cocaine to power their anti-American work and terrorist activities. Soon their terror will spread to our shores. Already the cocaine infects our young. Bush should urge drug testing, with parental consent, in schools in his State of the Union address and put drugs back in play as a domestic issue. Crime is down, but drug use is still a vital Republican issue. Put it back on the agenda. What a load of disconnected crap! No facts. No attempt to actually link policy to results. All that matters is whether it can be turned into a talking point, and perhaps used to generate fear. But then, that's how Washington works. Via California Patriot Blog, who writes: We need to take a cue from notable Republicans like Milton Friedman, George Shultz, and Gary Johnson, and make ending the War on Drugs part of the Republican agenda. Doing so would not only be Constitutionally correct, but morally correct as well. If the GOP goes with Dick's plan then I'm just going to give up and vote Libertarian. 9:06:45 PM | drug policy | Related  | permalink | comment []

NFL's Buzzkill: No Beer at Giants Stadium Fun OpEd by NORML'S Paul Armentano in today's Washington Examiner Following a string of violent incidents - including a pair of stabbings - between rowdy football fans during the team's previous games, Giants Stadium officials made the bold move to halt sales of the intoxicant. The rationale for the ban? Jets spokesman Ron Colangelo could not have been more blunt: "It's for the safety of our fans." Alcohol's long-standing association with aggressive behavior, whether it's among raucous sports fans or late-night bar patrons, is well-publicized and much debated. Yet, a relevant fact that is often overlooked in this public discourse is that an alternative, almost equally consumed intoxicant, is rarely, if ever, linked with violence - - marijuana. However, unlike alcohol, marijuana is illegal and not only at Giants Stadium. The whole thing is worth reading -- some great factual info about marijuana's lack of connection to anti-social behavior. 8:14:39 PM | drug policy | Related  | permalink | comment []

Anthony Diotaiuto's family suing Sunrise for records The family of Anthony Diotaiuto (see here, here, and here for background) is still looking for answers, and on Tuesday they filed a lawsuit. The family of a 23-year-old man killed by the Sunrise Police Department's SWAT team filed a lawsuit Tuesday saying the city broke public records laws by not turning over documents related to his death. [...] Attorney William Scherer III wrote in Tuesday's lawsuit that the city of Sunrise illegally denied parts of the family's first public records requests and ignored three subsequent requests. Attorneys for the family sought police department documents ranging from SWAT policies and training manuals to tactical notes and documents on the raid itself.[..] There have been discrepancies in the police department's account of the incident, including whether Diotaiuto pointed a gun at the SWAT team, and the amount of marijuana found at the home. A neighbor also disputed whether SWAT members knocked before raiding the home, as police say. Thanks to Say Uncle for the tip. 8:04:14 AM | drug policy | Related  | permalink | comment []