Reefer Madness
Full Disclosure: I don't use marijuana, alcohol or any other recreational drug.
I was driving through Massachusetts recently and saw a roadside billboard that pictured a prison wall, barbed wire fence and guard tower. The sign read: "5.2 million marijuana arrests cost you 5.4 billion. Is it really worth it? www.changetheclimate.org " I checked the site and found that the person who runs it isn't a doper, either. He's just a guy who sees indefensible expense, irrationality and unfairness in laws surrounding marijuana use.
I just read that high schools in my area are using drug-sniffing dogs to find illegal drugs in school. Police and high school administrators were surveyed and the only thing dogs had found were a few pills prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a girl's locker. The same kind that dozens of other kids report to the nurse to take. No self-respecting school administrators would want to appear "soft on drugs," so they tolerate cultivation of a police state climate of fear and intimidation in their schools, even though there seems to be little justification for this degree of heavy-handedness.
So I don't work knee-jerk Bushies into a defensive lather on this issue, keep in mind that Bill Clinton has an administrative record at least equally shameful to Bush's on this issue. In 1997, the Libertarian Party wrote: " 641,642 people were arrested on marijuana charges in 1996 -- of which 85.2% were for mere possession." This more than doubled the number of arrests per year under Bush I. Additionally, over 50,000 people go to jail each year over marijuana offenses. Here's the link: http://www.lp.org/press/archive.php?function=view&record=308
Partisan experts can forever debate pharmacological dangers or lack thereof in marijuana. And for my two cents, I'll add that I don't think adolescence, a time when young people begin learning to cope with the vicissitudes of life, is a good time for using any substance that short-circuits this process. Adult use may continue to pose problems for many. Having said this, I am certain of one thing: whatever deleterious effects marijuana use may pose, the response by the criminal justice system to users is far more harmful, dangerous and expensive than the drug itself. Arresting, jailing, fining, proclaiming users in the news media (the modern stocks) to be criminals has not reduced marijuana use and is certainly not therapeutic.
Americans tend to look upon Saudi Arabia's prohibition of alcohol with dread and incredulity. We would be better served by soul searching and facing our own draconian treatment of marijuana users.
I was driving through Massachusetts recently and saw a roadside billboard that pictured a prison wall, barbed wire fence and guard tower. The sign read: "5.2 million marijuana arrests cost you 5.4 billion. Is it really worth it? www.changetheclimate.org " I checked the site and found that the person who runs it isn't a doper, either. He's just a guy who sees indefensible expense, irrationality and unfairness in laws surrounding marijuana use.
I just read that high schools in my area are using drug-sniffing dogs to find illegal drugs in school. Police and high school administrators were surveyed and the only thing dogs had found were a few pills prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a girl's locker. The same kind that dozens of other kids report to the nurse to take. No self-respecting school administrators would want to appear "soft on drugs," so they tolerate cultivation of a police state climate of fear and intimidation in their schools, even though there seems to be little justification for this degree of heavy-handedness.
So I don't work knee-jerk Bushies into a defensive lather on this issue, keep in mind that Bill Clinton has an administrative record at least equally shameful to Bush's on this issue. In 1997, the Libertarian Party wrote: " 641,642 people were arrested on marijuana charges in 1996 -- of which 85.2% were for mere possession." This more than doubled the number of arrests per year under Bush I. Additionally, over 50,000 people go to jail each year over marijuana offenses. Here's the link: http://www.lp.org/press/archive.php?function=view&record=308
Partisan experts can forever debate pharmacological dangers or lack thereof in marijuana. And for my two cents, I'll add that I don't think adolescence, a time when young people begin learning to cope with the vicissitudes of life, is a good time for using any substance that short-circuits this process. Adult use may continue to pose problems for many. Having said this, I am certain of one thing: whatever deleterious effects marijuana use may pose, the response by the criminal justice system to users is far more harmful, dangerous and expensive than the drug itself. Arresting, jailing, fining, proclaiming users in the news media (the modern stocks) to be criminals has not reduced marijuana use and is certainly not therapeutic.
Americans tend to look upon Saudi Arabia's prohibition of alcohol with dread and incredulity. We would be better served by soul searching and facing our own draconian treatment of marijuana users.
posted by Man of Ages at 12:00 PM
6 Comments:
I am glad that organizations such as www.changetheclimate.org are investing resources to get the hard stats and information to the people. I think most Americans are not aware of the hypocritical laws in place and the vast resources that are wasted on this stupid war. Once people get the knowledge, the political will to stop the nonsense will grow and things will change.
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AmerCyb-
I think most Americans probably agree with us on this, but tend to be passive until a friend or relative is made a criminal by irrational laws.
I'll reiterate my position on such laws: if your actions don't affect anyone else, then it's not a crime. If you want to smoke marijuana in your own home, I could care less. If you die of cancer, it's your responsibility.
The same thing goes for, say, music downloading - if you copy a CD from a neighbor it's fine but if you download the same songs it's illegal? Laws like these need to be changed.
-Steve
Games are for Children
Thanks for posting this, MOA. I don't think you needed to tell every one you don't smoke pot. Thats your business, however I understand why you did it. Great Post. Drug Laws are Useless the only hurt, they don't help.
Truth Addict-
Thanks for the compliment. As you indicate, you know I disclosed my non-user status to make it clear that I'm not simply a stoner lobbying for the right to "get high" (although I would have no objection to other adults legally and safely pursuing this option).
Recently I took a friend to court to clear up a possession charge. In a room of about 50 people more than half were there for the same reason, possession of marijana. All this court room was doing was collecting revenue. It's just a way cities and counties make money. I wish I'd had a calculator that day.
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