Pubdate: Sun, 16 May 2010
Source: Casper Star-Tribune (WY)
Copyright: 2010 Lee Enterprises
Contact:  http://www.trib.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/765
Author: Joe DePaul

DICTATORSHIP BY INACTION

Editor:

In the April 20 issue of the CS-T there was an article  about a man in
Colorado who was busted by the feds for  growing medical marijuana
even though he was licensed  by the state to do so. Events like this
raise some very  important constitutional questions.

First off, whatever happened to the 10th Amendment? You  see, the 10th
was supposed to act like a wall of  separation between direct federal
rule and the citizens  of each of the states. The only power the feds
had when  it came to the states was to regulate international  trade
and to rule on the constitutionality of state  laws. In order for
federal law to supersede state law,  there should be a constitutional
amendment repealing  the 10th. I don't think the 14th is that
amendment, by  the way.

Now when it comes to anti-pot/drug laws, didn't it take  a
constitutional amendment to bring about the failed  alcohol
prohibition? So where is the amendment giving  the feds the power to
regulate pot/drugs? There is  none.

Did you know that the original anti-pot/drug  legislation came in the
form of taxes like the Harrison  Tax Act of 1917 or the Marijuana Tax
Act of 1937? So  why do we think this was the case? Could it be that
forbidding the use by law of any intoxicants would have  violated the
Constitution? This was of course at a time  when the legal boundaries
set by the Constitution were  respected. Nowadays politicians spend
their time trying  to skirt around it. The perfect example are the
anti-pot/drug laws. This makes laws like these far more  dangerous to
the very fabric of our nation than the  pot/drug laws they're supposed
to protect us from.

What makes these laws so dangerous is that they set  precedents, that
then makes it easier to pass more  constitutional skirting laws. This
is the main reason  we're all losing so many of our rights and
freedoms.  It's laws like these that should no longer be tolerated  --
or the politicians that pass them -- or else we're  going to see a
dictatorship as a result of inaction on  your part.

JOE DePAUL, Casper
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake