Obama’s New Drug Control Report Calls for More Workplace Drug Testing, Nationwide Zero Tolerance La

[Tea Party]

http://reason.com/blog/2012/04/17/obamas-new-drug-control-report-calls-for#commentcontainer

The first thing you should know about President Barack Obama’s 2012 Drug Control Strategy report is that it begins and ends with the declaration that the war on drugs is working and will continue apace.
Obama administration policies have “yielded significant results,” according to the President’s introductory letter, which concludes by saying, “While difficult budget decisions must be made at all levels of government, we must ensure continued support for policies and programs that reduce drug use and its enormous costs to American society.”
The report ends with a familiar refrain: “Legalization of drugs will not be considered in this approach. Making drugs more available and more accessible will not reduce drug use and its adverse consequences for public health and safety. We will continue to educate young
people and all Americans about the science on the harmful health effects of marijuana use.”



romney2012

 

[Vicki]

romney2012

You know, Romney hates cannabis too.

 

[turk]

....more right wing nonsense...none of the candiates have a enlightened view of drugs/drug use....50's hysteria...and anybody thinking mitt romney is going to do anything for us hasn't been paying attention...

 

[lwien]

....more right wing nonsense...none of the candiates have a enlightened view of drugs/drug use....50's hysteria...and anybody thinking mitt romney is going to do anything for us hasn't been paying attention...

No shit, not only Romney, but I'd like to know from Tea Party if he/she believes that other Tea Party candidates, such as Palin or Santorum, or any other ultra conservatives, for that matter, would be more inclined to support MJ legalization than Obama has.

The FACT of the matter is, is that under Obama's watch, there is more access to medical marijuana than under any other modern day President. That's a fact, regardless of the current federal crackdown.

 

[SpaceKracker]

The FACT of the matter is, is that under Obama's watch, there is more access to medical marijuana than under any other modern day President. That's a fact, regardless of the current federal crackdown.

I'm not supporting the repubs at all (we all know they are worse when it comes to mj), but the increased access has been inspite of Obama, not because of him. I've lost all faith in the political system bringing an end to prohibition after this last go around with a democrate. We have no political party that will support us on a federal level.

 

[lwien]

I never said that it was "because" of him, but one does have to wonder if the increased access would have happened under Bush.

 

[turk]

....if there is one cogent thing we have (or should have) learned about the american political landascape it's that....none of the "accepted" political parties (dems/repubs) care one iota about the "people" they represent....unless you mean corporations are people....maybe romney will announce G.E. as his vice president running mate...these people are ALL bought and sold...our gov't is in the pocket of the banks, insurance, pharmaceutical, and all the other corp's that shower them with cash....we cannot compete with that...and as long as we "look" to these "millionaires" to lead us...they will....straight to hell.

 

[Magic9]

What the fuck Obama. We expected much, much better. It's 2012 and our well educated president is oblivious.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/...ed-richard-lee-oaksterdam-raid_n_1427435.html

 

[t-dub]

Nice article Magic9.

I never said that it was "because" of him, but one does have to wonder if the increased access would have happened under Bush.

From the article:

"the (O'Bama) administration has unleashed an interagency cannabis crackdown that goes beyond anything seen under the Bush administration, with more than 100 raids, primarily on California pot dispensaries, many of them operating in full compliance with state laws. Since October 2009, the Justice Department has conducted more than 170 aggressive SWAT-style raids in 9 medical marijuana states, resulting in at least 61 federal indictments, according to data compiled by Americans for Safe Access, an advocacy group. Federal authorities have also seized property from landlords who rent space to growers, threatening them with prosecution, and authorities have even considered taking action against newspapers selling ad space to dispensaries."

Now, I voted for O'Bama, expected better, and am bitterly disappointed. If the choice is between him or Romney . . .

Found this interesting graphic from a Gallup poll from late 2011 that demonstrates the landscape of attitudes towards legalization from certain groups:

 

[lwien]

What's interesting about that poll is Democrats, Liberals and Independents are almost 100% more likely to support the legalization of MJ as Republicans and Conservatives, so one has to ask, why isn't Obama more supportive? Maybe it's because of the senior crowd, who not only is the least supportive of MJ, but also, the largest voting block.

I think for MJ to gain acceptance, the same thing has to happen for gay marriage to gain acceptance................my generation has to die off.
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From that same site under that article:

COMMUNITY PUNDITS

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elfish 3 hours ago ( 4:09 PM)

3115 Fans​

Unfortunately, there is little Obama can do to change the drug war.

1. The Federal Attorneys and the DEA are completely independent of The President. Remember when Bush tried to get the Federal Attornies to prosecute Democrats for Voter Fraud and they Refused? His only choice was to fire them and that created a huge scandal.

2. 223 of Obama's nominees are still being held up by the Read More... These include key personel at high levels of in the DOJ and DEA. The post are currently held by Bush-appointees. These are people that file the cases and make major legal decisions and they are given complete independence to make those decisions on their own. (This is the way it is supposed to be to insure independence from political pressure.) If Obama were to fire the current Federal attorneys for not following his directives, the Senate would never confirm his replacements and even more of the decisions would fall to upper management who are all Bush appointees.

3. Although the current Obama policies are not what we want, voting for anyone else but Obama, would return to the country to Bush-era policies. Under Bush, there were no clinics and only a small number of Medical Marijuana Patients in Colorado, even though the law legalizing MMJ had been approved 2000. Under Obama, there are 700 Medical Marijuana clinics in Colorado.

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I just think that there's more going on here. Obama doesn't exhibit the religious and moral dogmas that have been expressed by past Presidents that would justify his direction for a federal crackdown on the medical dispensaries.

 

[SpaceKracker]

I think for MJ to gain acceptance, the same thing has to happen for gay marriage to gain acceptance................my generation has to die off.
.

So cutting medicare and medicaid might actually bring about legalized pot?

 

[lwien]

Which is all kind of odd really, being that we were the WoodStock generation. We were the hippies. We were the counter-culture revolution. WE were the ones that brought marijuana and "free love" into the mainstream. Then we grew up, and became..............just like them.

So the question now becomes..................will you do the same?

 

[turk]

...well obama is full of shit....romney is full of shit....so are all the republicans....so are most democrats...o.k. there maybe two or three dems...but does that justify the existence of that party?....we have reduced every argument in this country (over two thousand years of human evolution) to two "accepted" arguments...democrat/republican...and we ponder why the rich get richer and the poor stay poor...

 

[JustOnCloud9]

Obama is the President. If he wanted to he can show some FLEX to pressure anyone in the government. The DEA maybe independent from the President, but the buck stops at the President. Whoever the Drug Czar's boss is, their boss and the boss of his boss eventually goes all the way to the President of the U.S.A. Surely the President knows how to play the game and can be an X factor towards the legalization of cannabis.

Edit: @turk the 2 party system is undemocratic imo. @lwein I think change just takes time. The hippie generation had their impact. As humans and our short lifespans we are some impatient mofos. This whole farming thing for food only happened 10,000 years ago. Small time for a species

 

[turk]

....not me...I didn't become "just like them"....I was always a radical....and I have stayed a radical.....

 

[lwien]

Surely the President knows how to play the game and can be an X factor towards the legalization of cannabis.

Well, lets see what he does IF he gets reelected and doesn't have to contend with an effort to get reelected for a third term, 'cause THAT dynamic can change things quite a bit.

 

[turk]

....it didn't with clinton....it was worse...and this guy is NOT doing anything innovative...

 

[turk]

...the people/corp who pay our politicians would never...never accept the excuses from our "leaders" that we do....and that's why we get what we get....because we are suckers....

 

[SpaceKracker]

...the people/corp who pay our politicians would never...never accept the excuses from our "leaders" that we do....and that's why we get what we get....because we are suckers....

It has less to do with being suckers and more to do with us not having the money to buy the politicians we would need to accomplish our goals.

 

[Magic9]

Since this issue pisses me off like no other, I'll try to keep the tirade short. Money controls politics and as long as it does, we're fucked. Not just as cannabis enthusiasts, but as a civilization.

One thing that needs to be done, and soon, is we have to come out of the closet. We're not all dirty hippies and jazz musicians. Easier said than done, I know. A lot of people who support this "war", think that it has no impact on them. Most have no idea how close to home this issue is. Would the older crowd still be against legalization/decrim, if they realized how bad the fallout could be if their grandchild is caught with a joint?

Liberals, conservatives (small govt. my ass), religious, economics, human rights, civil liberties, constitutionalist, health organizations, rank and file LE, and a whole other host of groups should be supporting the legalization efforts.

My hope with Obama, is that this has all been a cold, calculated political plan. When the increased aggression began, it was clear they would have a tough re-election campaign. If it looks like it could go either way closer to the election, it's a sure way to motivate those elusive young people to get back to the polls again. It's a long shot, but I can dream.

Either way, Obama lost credibility with me. He pandered to us, laughed at us, dismissed us, and is now attacking us. Even though he was at one time, a cannabis user. The fact he is still the lesser of two evils makes me even sicker.

Our govt. (for the people, by the people lol), will be of little help. This is always going to be a grassroots issue. On that end, I have very high hopes for the upcoming votes in WA. and especially in CO. Hopefully the medical community in CO has learned from the raids in CA, to support this. It won't be the end, not by far, but it will be the turning point for the cause.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/16/colorado-democratic-party_n_1429648.html

 

[JustOnCloud9]

I wonder, if a state does legalize cannabis what will be the reaction from the Fed? Will there be a Supreme Court case on whether or not it is possible for a State to legalize a substance that the Fed prohibits? OR will they just legalize it all together?

 

[SpaceKracker]

I wonder, if a state does legalize cannabis what will be the reaction from the Fed? Will there be a Supreme Court case on whether or not it is possible for a State to legalize a substance that the Fed prohibits? OR will they just legalize it all together?

It would remain illegal under federal law, and the feds will continue to bust people even if the state LEO's don't.

 

[Magic9]

The Supreme Court has already ruled that Fed law trumps State. The Feds will likely sue them. This will bring the issue into the public light like never before. Hopefully ushering in an open and honest debate. We will also have a state, as opposed to a foreign country, that we can cite as evidence that this works. CO, with their strict regulations and taxation already in place, is the perfect state for this. The Feds won't budge, we have to change it at a state level, and work our way up. Like I said, it won't be the end, but the beginning of the end for this bs war on a plant.

On the other end, if these measures are shot down, Sativex will be released in a couple of years. We can expect states with new medical laws to push that off onto people, while states that have dispensaries now, will feel the pressure from the govt. to switch to that. These are important votes coming up. We either take a giant leap forward, or a giant leap back.

The US still holds the patent.
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6630507.PN.&OS=PN/6630507&RS=PN/6630507

 

[lwien]

Wow. I never heard of Saivex before. I then read this: http://www.drugdevelopment-technology.com/projects/sativex/

Thanks Magic.

 

[Vicki]

From the article:

"Sativex is a cannabis extract containing tetranabinex and nabidiolex as its principal component."

How is that anything like real cannabis?

I am more excited about strains of cannabis that help pain, but don't get you high. I know growers are working on these strains in the U.S.