Tagged: drug war

Weighing benefits of pot legalization

Two states have legalized small amounts of marijuana possession. More than 30 states have legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes. Recently, The New York Times editorial board called for the decriminalization of marijuana. Kenneth Thompson, the district attorney of Kings County, N.Y., announced he will no longer prosecute misdemeanor marijuana possession cases.

In light of the changes in the rest of the country, the Georgia Legislature should examine whether to repeal Georgia’s own prohibition of marijuana possession. Prior to 1937, cannabis was legal and recognized by the American Medical Association as a legitimate pharmaceutical. It was prescribed by doctors in this country and England; Queen Victoria was prescribed marijuana for menstrual cramps.

In 1937, prohibition had ended, and Harry Anslinger, director of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, needed a new cause. He convinced some friends in Congress to introduce a bill criminalizing marijuana. According to the Congressional Record, Anslinger gave the following testimony: “There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the U.S., and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers, and others.”

Congress voted to criminalize marijuana.

Read more at Atlanta Journal-Constitution: http://atlantaforward.blog.ajc.com/2014/08/21/weighing-benefits-of-pot-legalization/

The Atlantic Gives Legalization in Boulder Two Big Thumbs Up

The Atlantic’s Conor Friedersdorf went a little native in Boulder, Colorado for the magazine’s August 13 feature — a ringing endorsement of the implementation of Amendment 64. There’s still many questions left unanswered, he wrote, but:

One thought I never had was that Boulder would be better off if its marijuana smokers were all imprisoned, or at risk of arrest, or casually breaking the law to facilitate a habit that isn’t going away.

Friedersdorf really nails one key factor: the legal sales of cannabis on January 1 in Colorado was part of a decades-long evolution, despite media efforts to make it look like some radical jump. Much like Berkeley, Boulder is part of a well-travelled constellation of safe zones for hippies, heads, itinerant musicians, and “circuit homeless.” The piece lends a more humane counterpoint to headlines about “legalization attracting more homeless kids to Colorado.” Yeah, they’re dirty. They’re also de facto drug war refugees.

Read more at East Bay Express: http://www.eastbayexpress.com/LegalizationNation/archives/2014/08/21/the-atlantic-gives-legalization-in-boulder-two-big-thumbs-up

Six Ways Police Lie About Colorado Legalization

The prohibition-funded Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area released its annual slambook on marijuana policy in Colorado, and it’s a great tool to illustrate the lies and half-truths police will tell to keep drug war-era funding going.

  • 1. Crime is up: It’s too early to tell what effect, if any, a slight change in cannabis laws (over the counter sales) will have in Colorado. Especially given de facto legalization under medical marijuana since 2006. Rocky Mountain HIDTA wants to highlight that in Denver crime is up 6.3 percent, but if we’re cherry-picking invalid stats: Denver murders were down 38 percent in the same reporting period, robbery is down five percent, and forcible sex offenses were down 19 percent.
  • 2. An epidemic of sick kids and dogs: Weed-related exposures by kids jumped “268 percent” for the period of 2009 – 2012, compared to the three years prior. The actual increase: from five to 18 kids a year – for the entire state. The great thing about kids accidentally eating weed? They live. Look up the stats on accidental child alcohol or firearm exposure in Colorado for any period. It would be great to see HIDTA funds spent on that.
  • 3. A state of addiction: Marijuana-related drug treatment admissions fell from 7,194 in 2009 to 6,082 in 2013 — a 15 percent drop the report does not highlight.
  • 4. ERs are overflowing with bad trippers: From 2011 to 2013, Emergency Rooms saw a 57 percent increase in visits “related to” marijuana and a 91 percent increase in pot-related hospitalizations from 2008 to 2013. That’s bad right?

Not highlighted: Weed-related hospital visits comprise a negligible share of all visits — 0.96 percent in 2008, and 1.74 percent in 2013. The increase is also due partly or completely to people truthfully reporting marijuana use — something they do less under prohibition.

  • 5. Teen potheads! It’s so bad: Marijuana did not fall out of the sky on Colorado on Jan. 1 2014. Teens have reported high weed availability for decades, and that’s while America arrested hundreds of thousands of them for the drug.

In Colorado, you got two inconsistent federal polls. The CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) says teen weed use is going down. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) said it went up after Colorado commercialized medical marijuana in 2009. Again, invalid stats due to reporting period and confounding factors, but if we’re cherry-picking. …

  • 6. Road carnage: Traffic fatalities are declining in Colorado and decreased 14.8 percent from 2007 to 2012. However, the number of positive tests for marijuana doubled from 2007 to 2012. But even RMHIDTA admits a positive test “does not necessarily imply that marijuana was the cause of the incident.”

Police are also testing more often for pot in drivers’ systems. So naturally, police got more positive tests. This, ‘if you look more for it, you will find more of it’ problem applies to interstate trafficking data as well as postal interceptions.

Meanwhile, just follow the money. Under the failed drug war, the country has been turned into a patchwork of officially designated “high intensity drug trafficking areas”. These HIDTAs take in government drug war dollars on multiple levels. Few have more to lose if the policy changes. For example, “Byrne grants, which cover a range of drug enforcement actions including marijuana, provided over $2.4 billion for law enforcement agencies this fiscal year.”

Source (SF Gate): http://blog.sfgate.com/smellthetruth/2014/08/19/six-ways-police-fib-about-colorado-legalization/

Texas, Louisiana Governors Say They’re Open To Marijuana Reform

On Tuesday, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) declared “we will end the failed drug war.” On Wednesday, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) said he would be open to legalizing medical marijuana if it were tightly controlled. And on Thursday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) hinted at support for decriminalizing marijuana in Texas.

The comments from three Republican governors are the latest indication that the rhetoric, at least, may be shifting on the War on Drugs. Christie’s comments are only slightly more aggressive than previous statements on the drug war; he condemned the drug war in 2012, and has since vetoed bills to ensure users of medical marijuana could get an organ transplant, and another to ease access for children with debilitating conditions.

See more at Think Progress: http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/01/23/3200041/texas-louisiana-governors-open-marijuana-reform/