Archive for the 'drugs' Category

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14
Apr

Citizens of Lima, Ohio, you may now rest easy

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: drug war, drugs, law enforcement, marijuana and medical marijuana

 

The dangerous evil-doers who lurked the streets of your city have been put to justice.  And by "put to justice," I mean their entire life savings has been taken away even though they did no harm to anyone.

From The Plain Dealer:

Last summer, two violent intruders broke into the Rickses’ house. Luther and his son fought with the burglars. After his son was stabbed, Luther broke free, got his gun and saved the family by shooting one of the intruders and scaring the other off.

When Lima police arrived, the Ricks’ nightmare should have been over – but it was just beginning.

The police entered the house and discovered the family safe. Because a small amount of marijuana was inside the home – used by Luther to ease his painful arthritis, hip replacement and shingles – the officers decided to confiscate Meredith and Luther’s entire life savings, more than $400,000.

Shortly afterward, the FBI got involved – not to help the stricken family, but to claim the money for the federal government.

The author is Bob Ewing, the assistant director of communications for the Institute for Justice, a property rights legal advocacy group, so this quickly becomes an editorial about the evils of civil forfeiture; which I’m sure are varied and awful.  Of course, the government would not have looked twice at the Rickses’ marijuana if it were legal, as it would be if this country was capable of discussing this issue in an honest, rational fashion.  The only thing these people did wrong was engage in profoundly unsound financial behavior. 

I have a message for you, America:

 

 

07
Mar

Another reason why The Wire is the G.O.A.T.

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: Politics, Television, The Wire, drug war and drugs

 

The writing staff of the show wrote this piece for Time magazine.  In this current, politically charged atmosphere, it’s worth remembering that there are many ways outside of the ballot box for a citizen to bring about a desired change .  I suggest you read it in its entirety, but the gist of it is:

If asked to serve on a jury deliberating a violation of state or federal drug laws, we will vote to acquit, regardless of the evidence presented. Save for a prosecution in which acts of violence or intended violence are alleged, we will — to borrow Justice Harry Blackmun’s manifesto against the death penalty — no longer tinker with the machinery of the drug war. No longer can we collaborate with a government that uses nonviolent drug offenses to fill prisons with its poorest, most damaged and most desperate citizens.

Indeed.

 

07
Nov

Congratulations, Denver

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: drug war, drugs, law enforcement and marijuana

Once again, your citizens have exhibited a desire for more rational marijuana laws.   I sincerely hope that more American cities will follow your lead.

More than half of Denver voters favored an initiative making marijuana the city’s lowest law enforcement priority.

With just a handful of ballots left to count, the measure had captured 55 percent of the vote. The result means the mayor must appoint a panel to monitor how marijuana cases are handled by the police and city prosecutors and issue a report.

I’ll let you write your own Mile High city jokes.

06
Jul

The drug war comes to Pine Ridge

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: Race, Television, documentary, drug war, drugs, hemp, law enforcement and marijuana

In 2000, Alex White Plume and his family had a great idea. After attempts to raise alfalfa, barley and corn on the tough soil of South Dakota’s Pine Ridge reservation, they decided to give industrial hemp a try.

Hemp is not marijuana.

Hemp has less than 1% THC, has over 25,000 uses, and is a hearty and relatively easy crop to grow. Buying hemp products in the US is totally and completely legal. Growing hemp, however, is not.
The White Plumes figured that, since their reservation is sovereign land, they would be able to grow hemp without the intrusion of the government. The DEA had other ideas.

Read more about their struggle in this NY Times article, and check out the website for the PBS series P.O.V, and the filmmakers own site.

Bonus hilarious video. Bush tries, in vain, to define sovereignty. What an idiot.

18
Jun

Incarcerex

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: Race, drug war, drugs, law enforcement and marijuana

Brought to you by the folks over at the Drug Policy Alliance.

29
Apr

More casualties from the other war that we’re losing

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: News, drug war, drugs, law enforcement and marijuana

Via the Chicago Sun-Times

Two police officers pleaded guilty Thursday to manslaughter in the shooting death of a 92-year-old woman during a botched drug raid last fall. A third officer still faces charges.

10
Apr

Oliver Stone: “All niggers like Scarface.”

By nick.adams 0 Comments
Categories: Movies, Music, Race and drugs

Apparently, this is what a coked-out Stone said to New Jack City screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper. Cooper tells the story to Michael A. Gonzales in the current edition of Stop Smiling magazine.

I met Oliver Stone at a party. It was me, Russell Simmons and Stan Lathan. It was Paula Abdul’s platinum party on Hacienda Boulevard. Eddie Murphy was there. I said, “Oliver Stone’s my hero,” so I went over to him, but he was tied up. I said, “Man, my name is Barry Michael Cooper.” This was after NJC had come out. “I wrote the movie.” He said, “Okay” and shook my hand. I said, “Man, I love your movie Wall Street. That’s how I learned to write. That was my tool and my instruction book for writing NJC.” He said to me, “Okay, thank you very much. I bet you like Scarface, too — all niggers like Scarface.” And he stumbled off.

Right before I could go after him and commit career suicide, Stan and Russell pulled on my arm and said, “No you don’t. Let it go. That’s just him, he’s high.” High or not, it was a crazy statement. Still, I respect the man.

Another quotable from the piece.

This is gonna sound freaky, but crack made hip-hop corporate, because the guys who emulated the crack dealers became rap stars. They wanted to be tough like them and wanted to floss. Crack made hip-hop very corporate. It took it beyond break dancing, graffiti and the South Bronx. The stories that Biggie told, that Jigga told, that Eazy-E told, all of them guys came out of the crack culture. It really had a profound change on the culture.

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