Free Republic

Libertarians on Drug Liberalization by: Emily Kanyi, July 30, 2009 President Barack Obama’s new drug czar, Gil Kerlikowske, picked up the mantle on the drug war scene by expressing a desire to shift from the descriptive language often used to refer to the drug problem. During an interview with the Wall Street Journal on May 14, Kerlikowske described the terminology “war on drugs” as unhelpful. “Regardless of how you try to explain to people ‘it’s a war on drugs’ or a ‘war on a product,’ people see a war as war on them. We’re not at war with the people...

Yes it is time for another “Hippie Report” from Humboldt county Ca. Join us as we explore The Triad of Death. Humboldt State University, the Ciy of Arcata Ca., and The glorification of marijuana aimed at the youth of the community by the local newspaper - The North Coast Journal. 01/07/09

(Goose Creek) Nov. 7, 2003 - Students in Goose Creek say they were minding their own business on Thursday when the police burst into Stratford High School with guns drawn. A full police raid interrupted classes, and drug sniffing dogs brought in indicated the presence of an illegal narcotic. One student was handcuffed as a result while his back pack was searched. No drugs, however, were actually found, and no arrests were made. The incident infuriated many parents, who say the children were treated like criminals. The school's principal says the raid sends a clear message to the students that...

COURT SAYS CHURCH CAN USE HALLUCINOGENIC TEA DENVER - A New Mexico church was handed a small victory Thursday when a federal appeals court ruled its use of hallucinogenic tea was likely to be protected under freedom of religion laws. The ruling, issued by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, upheld a preliminary injunction against the U.S. Attorney General, the Drug Enforcement Administration and other government agencies that sought to prohibit the tea's use. The appeals court agreed with the U.S. District Court in New Mexico that the Brazil-based O Centro Espirita Beneficiente Uniao do Vegetal church had...

MP Group Sought U.S. Help To Derail Pot Bill Ottawa -- A group of back-bench Liberals privately tried to enlist the U.S. deputy drug czar last month to help stop federal plans to decriminalize marijuana, a memo from a Canadian official in the meeting says. The memo, which comes out of a July 8 gathering in Ottawa with Dr. Barry Crane and other U.S. officials, says the MPs expressed deep concern about the bill and wanted the United States to stop it. In interviews yesterday, MPs who were there denied the suggestions. According to minutes of the meeting, a written...

The U.S. government has approved a return to anti-drug flights over Colombia. Those flights were suspended two years ago after a Peruvian fighter mistakenly shot down a plane, killing missionary Veronica Bowers and her infant daughter. The mistake was blamed on a breakdown in procedures and a lack of communication between U.S. operatives and the Peruvian air force. Those problems have been solved, according to government sources in the United States. However, the flights will not resume over Peru because of a lack of planes and radar in that South American country. The Bowerses were innocent victims of the war...

<p>Marion County Sheriff Frank Anderson has halted any more phony checkpoints on interstate highways until he reviews their effectiveness.</p> <p>Anderson met today with sheriff's Maj. Scott Robinett, the covert operations commander who organized a two-day campaign last week on the Northwestside. Deputies patrolled along the southbound lanes of I-65 between 71st and 86th streets, hoping to catch motorists trying to evade checkpoints.</p>

May 19, 2003 Student drug testing not effective in reducing drug use ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Drug testing of students in schools does not deter drug use, University of Michigan researchers have concluded, based on a large, multi-year national sample of the nation's high schools and middle schools. The findings were reported recently in the Journal of School Health. The research challenges the premise that has been central to the rationale for schools adopting a drug testing policy. The contention that testing is a deterrent to drug use also was an important consideration in a recent split decision by the United States...

I have a love/hate relationship with the War on Drugs. It provides such a wealth of subject matter to write about that I shudder to think what might happen if it were suddenly declared over. I might be forced into writing about positive subjects instead. The War on Drugs has had a profound effect on me. I used to be a proud Republican, but the more I listened to law-and-order Republicans chatter about the dire need for ever more enforcement of the controlled-substance laws, the more Libertarian I became. I'm still a registered Republican over at the courthouse, but in...

I-40 stop nets 52 pounds of cocaine 7-3-03 News & Record Posted 9:50 a.m. STATESVILLE (AP) -- Iredell County sheriff's deputies who stopped a car on Interstate 40 earlier this week netted 52 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $5.6 million, authorities said. "I think anytime you seize in excess of $5 million off the street, it's a pretty big lick," said sheriff's Lt. Jimmy Craven, director of Iredell's narcotics division. "That's a big loss to somebody, whoever the big man is." The car, carrying three Mexican nationals, was stopped Monday as it headed east on I-40 in the community...

In the so-called war against illegal drugs, we have lost every battle. Clear across the globe, just about every concerted effort to eradicate drug use has failed. The given reasons for the dismal results are many, but the prevailing theory is that there is just too much money involved in the drug trade. So much so that the key people fighting the war get paid off, and the “war” is in reality just a “war” in name only. While there might be spectacular sounding successes reported on the evening news, the reality on the ground is never a real setback...

On 13 and 14 March 2003, government representatives, including Dutch and American law enforcement officers, held a meeting on law enforcement and terrorism. However, the agreements that were reached have little to do with terrorism. Almost all of them relate to drugs, especially ecstasy. The American enforcement agencies’ wish to have the complete and unconditional cooperation of the Dutch legal system finally seems to be fulfilled.

<p>Indictments are expected to be announced today for as many as 17 Detroit Police officers on federal allegations that they looted money from drug dealers and prostitutes, police officials said Wednesday.</p> <p>Former Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown, who headed the department's public corruption unit, said Wednesday that his former staff had been working on the case with FBI agents since last summer.</p>

The libertarians are coming -- maybe to one of the Dakotas, maybe to Montana or Wyoming, maybe even to New Hampshire or Vermont. Maybe. A plan is gaining traction among libertarians nationwide to target the most "freedom living" state with a small population, and start moving there en masse. If all goes as planned, as many as 20,000 of them would be living in that state by the end of the decade, their numbers large enough to start affecting public policy and potentially taking over the state legislature. "We're serious about this," said Jason Sorens, founder of the Free State...

The experience of Ed Rosenthal of Oakland, California, accelerates the day when heavy dilemmas in our legal system might just force a fresh look at our marijuana laws. Presumably that will have to happen when state legislators, congressmen, and presidents are in recess, because the great enemy of sensible reform has been, of course, politicians high from righteousness What happened to Rosenthal was that he was convicted of marijuana cultivation and conspiracy, facing a conceivable sentence of l00 years in prison and a fine of $4.5 million. The defense attorney had been forbidden by presiding Federal District Judge Charles Breyer...

My brother is a drug addict. I’ve been told that’s something I should be ashamed of – that one is supposed to speak of such things in a whisper. There are a lot of emotions running through my mind, but I don’t feel ashamed. I know I feel angry, and while most of that is aimed at my brother, I’ve saved some of it for myself and a significant amount for the ridiculous government policies that have helped turn one person’s problem into something much bigger. I’ve only recently begun to call myself a Libertarian. Although the label is new,...

The Controlled Drug and Substances Act will keep marijuana illegal in Canada, but a bill has been proposed that would lessen the penalties for possession. Marijuana use is on the rise and the support for incarceration as a penalty is falling, according to a statement released by Health Canada, a department of the Canadian government that is responsible for developing health policies. The proposed plan would reduce penalties for those possessing small amounts of marijuana and strengthen penalties for those found to be growing or distributing. "They'll just focus on more serious offenses like trafficking and dealing," explained Sgt. Ed...

<p>O.C. judge wants to carry Libertarian Party banner and seek decriminalization.</p> <p>BOLD STROKES: Judge James P. Gray keeps his eye on the ball during a tennis match recently with a friend at Rancho Santiago College, but he has his sights set much higher.</p>