Thursday, August 30, 2007

Some reading Give peace a chance. Forget the war on drugs by Anatole Kaletsky in the Times Online (UK) a ceasefire in the war against drugs would at least give peace a chance -- not only in Afghanistan, but also in the streets of Britain. War on Drugs Long-Lost Cause by Michael Jones in the Albuquergue Journal (NM) The tipping point will be reached when people are tired of the abuses of civil rights by the criminal justice system and by the continued endangerment of the nation's youth by the maintenance of a black market system of drug distribution. The drugs strategies don't work in The Statesman (Ghana) The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 must be one of the least effective pieces of legislation ever enacted. [...] Cannabis is an example of the nonsenses created by the 1971 act"s simplistic classification system. Stronger types of cannabis are now on sale, we are told, and research shows a link with schizophrenia. This is like saying Chablis should be banned because cognac is much stronger and because some people become alcoholics, with dire effects on themselves, their families and society. 8:52:22 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Denver City Council - better than the rest of us It's hard to imagine a more annoying group of nitwits than the Denver City Council. "I had a brownie once, there may have even been a bowl going with it," Councilwoman Marcia Johnson told the newspaper. "I got a good taste and even a case of the giggles, but I voted against (the marijuana measure) because I'm thinking of the message to little children." The message to the children. The message to the children is: "It was OK when us politicians did it and it was even fun, but if you do it, we're going to put you in a position where you can get raped in prison and have your future cut short, 'cause we don't care a damn thing about you." [Mayor] Hickenlooper had previously admitted smoking marijuana. "As I've already been open about in the past -- and as I assume many would expect -- I made personal choices when I was younger that I neither support nor condone for others and certainly wouldn't encourage through public policy," Hickenlooper said. "Yep. OK for me. Not for thee. And by 'wouldn't encourage through public policy,' I really mean that I want us to have a priority of arresting people for marijuana use." (Background on the Denver issue is here) 8:29:45 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []