Marijuana/Drug Legalization
With his final election behind him, and the final attack ads safely off the air, President Obama now returns to his regularly scheduled programming — governing. Yet, the chatter about his second term agenda, from deficit reduction to immigration reform, ignores one critical issue: ending our nation’s inhumane, irrational — and ineffective — war on drugs . Since its launch in 1971 , when President Nixon successfully branded drug addicts as criminals, the war on drugs has resulted in 45 million arrests and destroyed countless families.
Katrina vanden Heuvel: Time to end the war on drugs
Brits Want Marijuana Reforms, Drug Policy Review
According to a new Ipsos Mori poll , a majority of Britons favor either decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana and two-thirds support a comprehensive review of all the options for controlling drugs, from legalization to tougher enforcement. The poll found that 53% of those surveyed supported either decriminalization or one form or another of legalization.
Homegrown.
Americans Overwhelmingly Want Feds to Let States Move Forward With Marijuana Legalization
Molly Davies: A Letter to the President: My Husband Is Not the "Bigger Fish to Fry" in Your Drug War
President Barack Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President:
He added: "The police department believes that, under state law, you may responsibly get baked, order some pizzas and enjoy a Lord of the Rings marathon in the privacy of your own home, if you want to."
Washington state lights up as smoking marijuana becomes legal
Maria Santos Gorrostieta had been stabbed, beaten and burned She defied Mexico's powerful drug gangs, who twice tried to gun her down She was kidnapped in broad daylight in front of her terrified daughter The former mayor leaves behind three children By Sam Webb PUBLISHED: 11:15 GMT, 26 November 2012 | UPDATED: 21:23 GMT, 26 November 2012 Brave: Dr Maria Santos Gorrostieta has been found beaten to death at the side of a road.
Maria Santos Gorrostieta 'executed' after surviving two assassination attempts
‘The Fight Over Medical Marijuana’
By Rebecca Richman Cohen The Fight Over Medical Marijuana: An Op-Doc profiles Chris Williams, a medical marijuana grower in Montana who now faces life in prison. Though the federal government considers marijuana a Schedule I Controlled Substance and bans its use for medical purposes, a growing number of states feel differently.
Federal Court Will Review Marijuana’s Classification As A Dangerous Drug With No Health Benefits by Aviva Shen , Think Progress August 1st, 2012 For the first time since 1994, the question of medical marijuana will go before a federal court. The United States Court of Appeals for the D.C.
ASA : Federal Court Will Review Marijuana’s Classification As A Dangerous Drug With No Health Benefits
The Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) released an audit of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) adoptive seizure process and equitable sharing requests. A couple of quick notes: 1.) Of instances involving federal adoption of assets seized, 65% of reported samples [41 of the 63 examined samples] required DEA headquarter approval to adopt the seizure because the instance lacked all of the following criteria:
OIG releases an audit of DEA adoptive seizure process and equitable sharing requests.
Texans can sleep more soundly at night knowing that Elisa Castillo, a grandmother and nonviolent first-time drug offender , is serving a life without parole sentence in Fort Worth. Yes, you read that right — the latest casualty of our War on Drugs is a grandmother who never even touched the drugs that sent her to prison. Though she may not look like public enemy No. 1, our persistently illogical criminal justice system has determined that this harsh punishment fits her crime. The truth, though, is that her fate was sealed, in large part because she didn't have a card to play when negotiating her sentence.
Without a Card to Play, Texas Grandma Sentenced to Life Without Parole for First-Time Drug Offense
Feds raid four reservation smoke shops
TONAWANDA RESERVATION (WIVB) - Agents seized thousands of dollars in merchandise in Thursday's early morning raids at the Tonawanda Seneca Reservation. Cigarettes in bags, counterfeit purses, and synthetic drugs all were seized from four smoke shops on the reservation. We tried finding information out from The Rez smoke shop, but as soon as we pulled in, the general manager walked out and said, "Yes, they were here, the ATF was here, but right now we're not speaking, if you want to leave your card." Fderal agents served search warrants on The Rez, ArrowHawk, Sacajawea, and Smoke Rings. From all four, DEA agents took away what they believe to be synthetic drugs. Resident DEA agent Dale Kasprzyk said, "The brand names are K-2, Spice, White Rhino, there's a variety of trademark names that they use."The House I Live In": New Documentary Exposes Economic, Moral Failure of U.S. War on Drugs
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form. AMY GOODMAN : As the Republican presidential candidates challenge President Obama with competing visions for how to improve the struggling U.S. economy, a new documentary questions the amount of money this country spends on the so-called "war on drugs." Over the last 40 years, more than 45 million drug-related arrests have cost an estimated $1 trillion.Light pot smoking easy on lungs
Light Pot Smoking Easy On Lungs
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Child rapist to get less time than pot grower
The police had reported her arrest to the state’s child welfare hot line, and city caseworkers quickly arrived and took the children away. Her son, then 10, spent more than a week in . Her niece, who was 8 and living with her as a foster child, was placed in another home and not returned by the foster care agency for more than a year. Ms. Harris, 31, had to weather a lengthy child neglect inquiry, though she had no criminal record and had never before been investigated by the child welfare authorities, Ms.