“Whenever the offense inspires less horror than the punishment, the rigor of penal law is obliged to give way to the common feelings of mankind.”
Edward Gibbon,
“The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

The rule of law has become the law of rule.
Those that rule the law will become zealots, jingoes, and hypocrites.
Ray DiPasquale

Obama could have a real impact on change by decriminalizing marijuana (and all other drugs for that matter). Besides. . .how else is he going to fund all of the wonderfully Socialist government programs that he plans to enact? Think of how massive the economy would become if marijuana were legalized?

Now think of how massive the economy would become if the Fair Tax were also enacted?

Willie Nelson for President \m/

On a separate note, during prohibition, Joe Kennedy, JFK’s father was a bootlegger, which in today’s world would be like a “dope dealer” yet he could amass great wealth and the Kennedy’s became very rich and even his son was allowed to run for President. I doubt that any candidate that ever sold pot, or grew it or whose family amassed their fortunes that way today would have the same out come.How many High Driver’s do you hear about killing folks on the road, when drunk drivers kill thousands a day. Where’s the common sense in that. Drunks get into liver issues as well, fights, alcohol poisoning, but we turn a blind eye to that reality. In the worse case of someone who smoked too much is they will fall asleep or instead of causing a bar room brawl will eat all the peanuts set out along the bar!!!

Yet, today, we could even using the freekin’ drug lobbyist , make MJ a Cash crop, allow it for medical use and help to greatly reduce the debt instead of wasting valuable resources on this bogus drug war. I am disabled and on 4 opiate/narcotics that will eventually kill my liver and kidney’s but they’d rather use drugs far more dangerous with horrible side effects than wake up and realize the incredible value of Medical Marijuana. Even the American Academy of Physicians favor it but the legalization of it will hit many road blocks for years to come. I will never be able to get off these horrible meds, even though I am grateful to have a doctor willing to help me, in light of the DEA’s absurd policies.It’s sad that they would rather risk addiction, more serious and costly health issues for long term opiate/narcotic users than to legalize Marijuana for medical use.

But special comment to Lib Mac:It’s OK if you smoked the last bit but eating all the candy…that was criminal!!!!! : )

Steve

Obama chose joe biden as his VP. Biden is the architect of the some of the most draconian aspects of our current drug war.

Obama “doubts the efficacy,” of medical marijuana, and he is not sure if he will stop medical marijuana dispensary raids and patients prosecutions.

Do not believe for a second that the Obama administration will deliver or even propose or even discuss any change to the status quuo.

You will hear, again, this would be sending the wrong message to children.

This will probably be said over and over by biden, as VPs need an assignment, and Obama wants to distance himself from your belief that he was going to ring in a new period for cannabis and its users.

Forget it. It isn’t going to happen.

And for all you people who blame G W Bush for the status-quo, please remember that it was Clinton and his incredi-lying drug czar who tripled marijuana arrests during the first 3 years of his administration through a program of grants that militarized police forces across the country for the purpose of conducting a war on cannabis and its users. They were successful.

The annual numbers have been only marginally increased yearly during the Bush administration.

So Clinton tripled arrests, and Bush just improved on the year on year totals.

But what role does the Congress play in drug law creation and lack of reform?

When were most of the draconian drug war measures passed? And which party was in control when that happened?

You people who blame the Bush admin or Republicans have been caught in a trap set for you by both Democrats and Republicans, who, working in a bi partisan fashion, want we in the reform movement to be pointing fingers at each other and trying to blame the other and his/her party.

This fix-the-blame (on Republicans) game diverts the energy of reform advocates and the volunteers and contributors it needs to do just that… fixing blame on one party.

The fact is that continued prohibition is supported and loved and cherished by both parties equally.

Go look up who was in control of the congress in 1961, 1971, 1986, 1989, and during the Bush Administration.

Then try and blame Bush (whom I am not a particular fan of, as I need medical marijuana, and his lie about what he thought before 2000 that the states should be allowed to do with it was not matched by the actions of the Bush administration while in office.)

This threat to my personal safety drove me from the USA to the Netherlands from 1993 to 2007, when I decided that Medical Marijuana in California was here to stay.

Notice I left in 1993, when the tripling of marijuana arrests and the militarization of the local police forces through federal grants began.

People. Stop wasting your time trying to blame the other party. That is what they want us to do. Why dance to the music they set on?

They are both equally responsible.

Eric Johnson