Feds Vow Strict Enforcement of Drug Laws

[struggle4progress]

Authorities described this week's raids on San Francisco pot clubs as one of the largest drug crackdowns in the area in recent memory, and said the arrests were the first step in uncovering a major international drug operation.

US Attorney Kevin V. Ryan said agents raided three pot clubs that operated as fronts for marijuana and Ecstasy trafficking, and warned that federal drug laws would be strictly enforced even in cities tolerant of medical marijuana.

"We're empathetic to the ill and to the sick, however we cannot disregard federal law," said Drug Enforcement Administration Agent Javier Pena. "We have the power to enforce federal drug laws even in areas where it might not be popular." <snip>

http://health.dailynewscentral.com/content/view/0001134/38/

Republicans -- "getting government off your back" by spying on you in your bookstore and library, sneaking and peeking in your house, and intervening in your personal health care decisions ...

[bluestateguy]

1. Maybe John C. Calhoun and the South Carolina nullifiers were right

I'd like to see one of these states formally nullify "federal law" as it pertains to marijuana and see what happens.

[bullimiami]

2. really? can you say rush limbaugh and a trainload of pills.

pretty selective enforcement from where i sit.

[gate of the sun]

3. lets not forget the war at home

folks

[OKthatsIT]

4. This assures laundered money and drugs stays in the hands of

campaign financeers..."grow yur own' not allowed

[Old and In the Way]

5. Well, we all know what happens when people start smoking pot.

You think about things.

You start seeing the hypocrisy of spending enforcement dollars busting 15 year olds with dime bags instead of stopping real corruption and crime. You understand the economics of keeping it illegal....where a few people make a lot of money keeping politicians in their back pocket assuring that the laws remain in effect.

You begin to connect dots. About how corrupt the politicians who are stealing this country blind, are taking big money from Big Pharma and Big Beer to keep institutional drugs and recreational drugs, like beer, cheap and well marketed. And we all know how much damage these "legal" drugs do to society than something as harmless as marijuana.

You realize that pot laws are probably aimed at progressive and liberals who consume these with more frequency that the conservatives. Fact is, pots probably turned a lot of conservatives into liberals...it's the nature of the smoke.

They don't want society to think about things like this...that's why pot is so dangerous.

[slay]

8. Smoking pot

does indeed allow a person to examine things from a different perspective. I don't think I can say it any better than you did my friend so I'll just second you're statements. People have the right to choose what they put in their body and no government assholes will ever change that from being anything other than the truth. :smoke:

[bemildred]

6. Find a jury of their peers to convict them, asshole. nt

[teryang]

7. This is the reason for the ongoing attack on the jury system

...the last operating vestige of representative democracy is the petit jury.

Excellent analysis on the decline of the jury trial here:

http://www.counterpunch.org/conrad06232005.html

While the article focuses on the civil jury and the tort reform attack, statistics on the decline of the criminal jury are given. The totalitarian nature of the developement are only alluded to but when it comes to criminal juries the implications are obviously ominous. The criminal jury trial is under attack by republican legislative budgets for the judiciary and its supportive agencies, state attorney offices and defender offices. The population in an area may more than double but the number of staff assigned to manage the case load doesn't change. This increases the pressure by judges, prosecutors and defenders to settle. While threatening increased punishment for exercising jury trial rights is unconstitutional for judges, public defenders know this is exactly what is going on, and must advise their clients of the improvidence of going to trial because you open yourself up to reprisal sentencing in the draconian sentence ranges.

Medical pot growers for transfer or sale could be categorized as traffickers. Under my state's laws that would be a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years for each count. If the defendant were observed for a time, multiple counts would be on the information. For all practical purposes, the pot vendor would be looking at the risk of a life sentence, multiple counts times 15 year minimums for each count. Takes a lot of guts to go to trial under these conditions rather than to take a plea bargain.

[Occulus]

11. 'peers' is ridiculously loose

Any eligible adult. Period.

Oh, intentionally excluding your more specific peers (age, relationships). Those don't matter.

I've always had a problem with the common, practical application of the concept of 'jury of your peers', and I suspect I always will.

[Occulus]

9. "however we cannot disregard federal law"

Oh. Yes. You. CAN.

It's called free will. You CAN defy. You'll lose your job, but if enoug of you do it, and keep doing it, the laws will change. Quickly.

Oh, but God, we CAN'T disobey the law! Oh heavens, no! Never!

It would be wrong!!

:sarcasm:

[patdem]

12. Isn't that how the Nazi party got started, make their illegal acts legal

and the peoples legal acts illegal, then people 'obeyed' the law and viola...Nazi Germany!

[Selteri]

10. It looks more like they're hjust happy for easy busts NT

[salin]

13. Yep, medicinal marijuana is a much bigger problem than meth labs

so more resources and crack downs should go to the former. :eyes:

[saigon68]

14. the suffering cancer patients

better go UNDER GROUND.

[maddezmom]

15. so they'll go after pot smokers...but cut the budget for Drug Trafficking

Police Critical of Cuts to Anti-Drug Network
Updated: Friday, Jun. 24, 2005 - 6:09 AM

BALTIMORE (AP) - Local law enforcement officials decried budget cuts proposed by the Bush administration to a national network of drug-interdiction task forces, including one that provided more than $12 million to the Baltimore-Washington area this year.

Members of the Maryland State Police, Baltimore Police Department and the Charles County Sheriff's Department joined a bipartisan group of senators and representatives on Capitol Hill Thursday to protest President Bush's recommendations to cut funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area programs by more than half.

Under the administration's budget, funding would be reduced from $227 million to $100 million for the coming fiscal year.

Thomas H. Carr, director of the Washington-Baltimore regional program, said he has been told that the cuts would mean the end of his $3.5 million drug treatment program for nonviolent offenders offered at 12 sites, including Baltimore City and Baltimore County.

http://www.wtopnews.com/index.php?nid=25&sid=535239

[FormerOstrich]

16. Maybe from too many years of head planted firmly

in one place makes it spin easier now....however I just don't get it...


Let's screen everybody for mental health problems and most likely drug them....

but don't let them smoke any weed...

let's just test a downed cow every now and then and say statistically we will catch Mad Cow....

but let's test all the employees over and over again to see if they are smoking a little weed on the weekend.

Liberals don't know nothin' about war....

but we wage war to catch the number 3 man eight or nine times...

anthrax...what anthrax?

headache is setting in......

[Barrett808]

17. Tell it to Hamid Karzai. n/t

[Zhade]

18. Yes, let's keep attacking those who use a beneficial plant.

It's worked so well for so many decades!

[homeopathic]

19. THE REAL REASON CANNABIS HAS BEEN OUTLAWED

HAS NOTHING
TO DO WITH ITS EFFECTS ON THE MIND AND BODY.


MARIJUANA is DANGEROUS. Pot is NOT harmful to the human body or mind. Marijuana does NOT pose a threat to the general public. Marijuana is very much a danger to the oil companies, alcohol, tobacco industries and a large number of chemical corporations. Various big businesses, with plenty of dollars and influence, have suppressed the truth from the people.

The truth is if marijuana was utilized for its vast array of commercial products, it would create an industrial atomic bomb! Entrepreneurs have not been educated on the product potential of pot. The super rich have conspired to spread misinformation about an extremely versatile plant that, if used properly, would ruin their companies.

READ THE REST HERE:
http://www.illuminati-news.com/marijuana-conspiracy.htm

[Zhade]

20. Not a fan of the source, but the rest of your post is spot-on.

Welcome to DU.

[Erika]

21. Cannabis is mentioned in the Bible for pain

Pregnant women were given leaves to suck on while giving birth. It is a natural plant. But the GOP big brother will mandate their will against states. One day, the states might get enough guts, and say they will not remit one cent to the feds and keep their money at home. I predict the day is coming.

People have had enough of the GOP big brother federal government.