It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" - as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. [continues 537 words]
It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" as if anyone is really in favor of crime as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The War also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars still not a typo from the treasury. [continues 398 words]
Fixing Jail Time Disparities Doesn't End at War on Drugs, Leonard Pitts Says It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" - as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the War on Drugs didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The War also made America the biggest jailer on earth and drained $1 trillion - also not a typo - from the treasury. [continues 485 words]
It swallowed people up. By the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" as they imposed long, inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "war on drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Use rose by 2,800 percent (that's not a typo) in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "war" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars (still not a typo) from the treasury. [continues 443 words]
It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" - as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "War" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars - still not a typo - from the treasury. [continues 514 words]
It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" - as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "War" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars - still not a typo - from the treasury. [continues 517 words]
Leonard Pitts Jr. says the move to extend clemency to nonviolent drug offenders may be Barack Obama's most transformative legacy. It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" -as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "War" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars - still not a typo - from the treasury. [continues 515 words]
It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" - as if anyone is really in favor of crime - as they imposed ever longer and inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - that's not a typo - in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "War" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars - still not a typo - from the treasury. [continues 464 words]
It swallowed people up. That's what it really did, if you want to know the truth. It swallowed them up whole, swallowed them up by the millions. In the process, it hollowed out communities, broke families, stranded hope. Politicians brayed that they were being "tough on crime" -- as if anyone is really in favor of crime -- as they imposed ever longer and more inflexible sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. But the "War on Drugs" didn't hurt drugs at all: Usage rose by 2,800 percent - -- that's not a typo -- in the 40 years after it began in 1971. The "War" also made America the biggest jailer on Earth and drained a trillion dollars -- still not a typo -- from the treasury. [continues 515 words]
Leader Says He Hopes for Breakthrough on Drug War in Peace Talks With FARC Guerrillas MEXICO CITY--Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said the war against drugs has failed, and the world must come up with new approaches to deal with a scourge that has killed thousands of Colombians. In an interview on Monday with The Wall Street Journal, Mr. Santos noted a softening of hard-line antidrug policies both in the U.S. and in Latin America. He said the world had to develop more "realistic and pragmatic" ways to fight drug trafficking. [continues 1070 words]
LOS ANGELES - Ken Dobson, a retired police officer, said he received quite a welcome when he landed his single-engine Cessna in Detroit two days after leaving his home in Palm Desert, Calif. Five sheriff's cars surrounded the plane and deputies got out with guns drawn. Then a helicopter arrived with four federal agents and a drug-sniffing dog. They demanded to see Dobson's pilot's license, asked about the flight and mentioned that his long trip from Southern California was suspicious. [continues 843 words]
With drug addiction among Punjab youths becoming a hot election topic, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley is not mincing words on the issue in the course of his campaign for the Amritsar seat though his political partners, especially some senior Akali leaders, are accused of encouraging the illicit trade. As Jaitley put it in his blog on Friday, "Yesterday, I was addressing a public meeting at Rajasansi. The loudest cheer was reserved for a comment made against the drug addiction in the state. Enthusiastic applause came from that section of the audiences where a large number of women were seated. This explains it all." [continues 367 words]
Federal Tracking System Is Snaring Law-Abiding Private Pilots Ken Dobson, a retired police officer, said he received quite a welcome when he landed his single-engine Cessna in Detroit two days after leaving his home in Palm Desert. Gina Ferazzi Five sheriff 's cars surrounded the plane and deputies got out with guns drawn. Then a helicopter arrived with four federal agents and a drug-sniffing dog. They demanded to see Dobson's pilot's license, asked about the flight and mentioned that his long trip from Southern California was suspicious. [continues 996 words]
The War on Drugs Shouldn't Bother With Marijuana In a world defined by a growing political divide, international terrorism and reduced economic confidence, it's surprising how many Americans are up in arms about recreational marijuana use. Two states, Colorado and Washington, started this recent trend. In the November 2012 election, voters supported separate ballot questions (Colorado Amendment 64 and Washington Initiative 502) to legalize cannabis. In particular, Colorado's marijuana experiment involves 40 Denver-based stores, all regulated by the state, that are open to consumers who are 21 years of age or older. [continues 685 words]
The Colorado Department of Revenue earlier this month released its first data on the tax, fee and license revenue from legalized marijuana sales in the state. For January, the figure is $3.5 million when you combine revenue from medical ($1.5 million) and recreational marijuana ($2 million). This implies annual revenue of $42 million for Colorado. The amount collected so far is below other projections. In a 2010 white paper published by the Cato Institute, I predicted that if the federal government and all states legalized, Colorado would collect roughly $55 million to $60 million per year. And as recently as mid-February, Gov. John Hickenlooper predicted that the taxes, licenses and fees on medical-plus-recreational marijuana would generate $134 million for the fiscal year starting in July. [continues 544 words]
Legal Highs Blow Yet Another Hole in Our Drugs Policy Professor David Nutt is rocking the boat once again.The former chief drugs adviser to the Government, who was sacked in 2009 after saying that tobacco and alcohol are more harmful than some illicit substances, has now added his name to a letter to The Lancet raising questions about the perceived dangers of so-called legal highs. In fact, many of the recorded fatalities were caused by substances that were already illegal, Professor Nutt and Dr Leslie King claim. [continues 300 words]
Ottawa's Folly: B. C. Judges, U. S. See Flaws in Mandatory Minimum B.C. Provincial Court Judge Joseph Galati has joined a handful of his colleagues in thumbing his nose at Ottawa's tough-on-crime legislation. Along with their counterparts in Ontario and elsewhere, he and his fellow judges are finding it hard to stomach sending non-violent, chronic drug offenders to prison under recently imposed mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines. In their opinion, when dealing with these by-and-large addled and addicted adults, compassion not incarceration is the answer, and to imprison them for at least a year constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. [continues 557 words]