No more marijuana war
By Tony Newton, Alternet.com
For all of the progress in 2011, the war on drugs is as vicious as ever. The worst drug war policies remain entrenched, as more than three-quarters of a million people are arrested for marijuana possession every year, and more than half a million people are still behind bars today for nothing 
more than a drug law violation. The bloodbath in Mexico has taken 50,000 lives in the last five years and shows no signs of slowing down. There is a little-noticed overdose crisis in this country, even though overdose deaths have more than doubled in the last decade. The Obama administration is reversing their past commitments to stop the federal government from interfering with states that have passed medical marijuana laws.
We are at a paradoxical moment in our country. We are clearly moving in the right direction, toward a more rational drug policy based on science, compassion, health and human rights. But we need to step up our efforts, grow our numbers, and continue to win hearts and minds because the casualties from the war continue to mount every day. Please join the movement to the end the war on drugs. If the people lead, the leaders will follow.
Source: AlterNet.com by Tony Newton http://www.alternet.org/authors/5230/
J.Porter
Study: Legalizing medical marijuana reduces traffic fatalities
Source: Raw Story
By Stephen C. Webster
"States that have passed initiatives to legalize medical marijuana have also seen a decline in traffic fatalities, according to a new study out this week by the Institute for the Study of Labor.
Opponents of medical marijuana often focus on the social detriment to making America’s most valuable cash crop available to those approved by doctors, arguing that medical marijuana legalization makes it easier for teens to buy pot and that they’ll soon move to more dangerous drugs. They also suggest that legalization would increase the number of vehicle accidents — and that very argument was one of the main reasons why California voters did not approve full legalization in 2010.
But far from marijuana acting as a “gateway” to more dangerous drugs, as authorities often claim, researchers found that it’s more commonly used as a substitute for alcohol, which is often more harmful and inebriating than marijuana.
A further analysis of data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, spanning from 1990 to 2009, revealed that states which legalized medical marijuana saw a decline in alcohol consumption. A decline in traffic fatalities was a direct side effect of that.
Traffic fatalities are the leading cause of death for Americans age 35 and under.
“Specifically, we find that traffic fatalities fall by nearly 9 percent after the legalization of medical marijuana,” researchers wrote.
They also found that legalization has an even more pronounced impact on the overall instances of alcohol playing a role in traffic deaths, suggesting that its reductive effect on the number of drunk drivers is even stronger than its overall effect on fatalities.
“Every objective study on marijuana has concluded that it is far safer than alcohol for the user and society,” explained Mason Tvert, director of SAFER, a group which advocates for legalization in Colorado. “It should come as little surprise that when we allow adults to make the safer choice to use marijuana it results in less drinking and fewer alcohol-related problems.”
So far, just 16 states have legalized medical marijuana, even though polling shows eight in 10 voters, from both political parties, favor allowing marijuana use if recommended by a doctor. According to the polling firm Gallup, a full 50 percent of Americans even favor outright legalization and regulation, which would see marijuana treated similarly to alcohol.
Despite the White House’s recent admission that parts of the marijuana plant may have “some” medical value, President Barack Obama adamantly opposes legalization. Similarly, his administration’s Justice Department has continued the policy of cracking down on the sales of medical marijuana in states that allow it."
Source: The Raw Story http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/11/29/study-legalizing-medical-marijuana-reduces-traffic-fatalities/
Know Your Constitutional Rights
The recent US Supreme Court "We smelled marijuana" ruling that has libertarians and 4th Amendment Rights groups freaking out is based on circular reasoning and lawyering. According to this article on AlterNet.org as long as the occupants of the home retain their constitutional rights and say no to the police when they pound on the door everything is OK. To enter, the police will have to get a search warrant. Apparently we have the right to not answer the door. What happens if they claim our movements inside our home "constitute exigent conditions" (destroying evidence of a crime ** by smoking it! Ha!) and they break the door down and raid the house?
OK, let's see what holds up in court. It goes to show that we all need to know our constitutional rights and how to protect ourselves from over-zealous black-booted thugs (AKA police) with military weapons and war-trained tactics if they decide to raid our homes without a search warrant. CALL YOUR LAWYER.
Matter of fact, in this witch-hunt and punish environment, having a criminal defense lawyer on retainer is a good idea for everyone. Not being paranoid - but I've seen how the police work.... and they are truly scary people who enjoy putting people in jail.
Another suggestion - secure your property - or at least your front door. Fence & gate if you have to - at the very least, install a heavy security screen with a deadbolt and handle-lock. Then when you open the door, the police can't force their way in. Ask to see the search warrant. Tell them to go get a search warrant. DO NOT LET THEM IN. If they do force their way in, be compliant and SILENT.
They may try to be nice and helpful but always remember they really just want to arrest you. Arresting you is a positive outcome for them. Don't make it easy for them by fighting or cursing at them. Don't help them - hold your temper and your words. Don't make them wrestle you to the ground and handcuff you. Be polite to anyone with guns, my opinion.
Keep in mind, an arrest is a tangible statistic their grant and seizure money is tied to. More arrests, more money, more arrests, need for a larger jail, more arrests, more prosecutors and judges to hear all the new cases. The Correctional Industry has quite the merry financial future.
USA Now a Police State
The United States is officially a Police State after the recent ruling by the US Supreme Court that finds that a search warrant is not necessary to break down someone's door and enter if "they smell marijuana". This from RawStory.com:
The smell of marijuana smoke and sound of evidence being destroyed is enough reason for police to knock down an apartment door and search the place without a warrant, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday.
In an 8-1 decision [PDF], the nation's highest court said the warrantless search of an apartment in Lexington, Kentucky was legal because of "exigent circumstances," which permits law enforcement officers to conduct a warrantless search if there is a strong likelihood of destruction of evidence.
In the case Kentucky v. King, uniformed Lexington police officers pursued a suspected drug dealer to an apartment complex. The officers approached an apartment door where they believed the suspect had entered, knocked loudly and announced their presence.
The officers said they could smell marijuana smoke and heard noises consistent with the destruction of evidence after knocking.
The officers then kicked in the apartment door -- which turned out to be the wrong apartment -- and entered, finding marijuana and powder cocaine in plain sight and finding additional evidence during a second search.
Lexington police officers eventually entered another apartment in the complex where they found the initial target of their investigation.
The Supreme Court of Kentucky had ruled that the initial search of the apartment was not allowed under the exigent-circumstances rule because the officers should have foreseen that knocking on the door would prompt the occupants to attempt to destroy evidence. The court said the officers could not "deliberately create the exigent circumstances with the bad faith intent to avoid the warrant requirement."
The Supreme Court of the United States ruled there was no evidence that the police had acted in "bad faith" and that the smell of marijuana and the noises created inside the apartment were sufficient to establish that evidence was being destroyed.
"Where, as here, the police did not create the exigency by engaging or threatening to engage in conduct that violates the Fourth Amendment, warrantless entry to prevent the destruction of evidence is reasonable and thus allowed," Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote for the majority.
"Because the officers in this case did not violate or threaten to violate the Fourth Amendment prior to the exigency, we hold that the exigency justified the warrantless search of the apartment," the Supreme Court ruled, reversing the decision of the Kentucky Supreme Court.
"The court today arms the police with a way routinely to dishonor the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement in drug cases," Justice Ruth B. Ginsburg wrote in her lone dissent. "In lieu of presenting their evidence to a neutral magistrate, police officers may now knock, listen, then break the door down, nevermind that they had ample time to obtain a warrant."
Mothers Day Plea to End the War on Drugs
"As a mother, I have had a close encounter with prohibition violence. My son was killed with a friend in a random crime committed by two juveniles involved in gang activity and illegal drug use. Holidays are a constant challenge after a loss, and Mother’s Day can be especially difficult after the loss of a child. But this Mother’s Day holds special promise.
During our first fourteen years, Mothers Against Teen Violence worked valiantly, implementing school-based prevention and mentoring programs. But an NPR interview with Judge James P. Gray of Orange County, California three years ago, convinced me that MATV should be actively engaged in ending the drug war. Subsequently, we began the process of rebranding our organization, developing a three point plan for drug policy reform.
The first tenet of our plan is effective prevention targeting children and teens. Our youth need age appropriate information based on science so that they can make good choices about drugs; and they need parents that model responsible use of recreational and prescription drugs.
Secondly, we believe that a public health approach to drug use and addiction is preferable to punitive measures. Understanding that drug trafficking is a supply and demand problem, all drug policies should be re-evaluated to determine the impact on the supply or demand for drugs. That said, our best hope at reducing demand is to help people resolve the underlying issues that cause them to abuse drugs. Addiction is a disease, not a moral failure. Many drug abusers have suffered sexual abuse or other trauma. When we punish people for their addiction, often we are punishing them for being victims. Rehabilitation on demand is not only compassionate and cost effective, compared to incarceration, but also improves public safety.
And finally, we believe the time has come to end the racial disparity and encroachment on civil liberties that have been the hallmark of the drug war. All races use illegal drugs at remarkably similar rates. In fact, young white males are more likely to use and sell drugs than any other segment of the population. However, 74% of those incarcerated for drug related crimes are African Americans even though they make up only 13% of the population.
This Mother’s Day is special because— as an act of courage, commitment, and love—moms across America will launch a new national campaign aimed at ending the drug war. Moms United to End the War on Drugs will follow the model fashioned by moms in the 1930’s who led the successful fight to end Alcohol Prohibition.
We all want safer communities, but the drug war has not made our communities safer, helped people with addiction, or saved lives. Like Alcohol Prohibition, the drug war has led to gang violence and an overdose epidemic. Thanks to the drug war, America is the home of the largest prison system in world history. I am delighted to be part of a campaign focused on healing and ending forty years of a failed policy."