Drugs & Vice

Congress To Holder: Explain Why NSA Supplies DEA Info Which It Then Launders

"For example, they might send info to the DEA about a likely drug deal, and the DEA would then tell its agents that they should come up with a pretense to stop a certain truck at a certain truck stop at a certain time. The agents would work with local police to concoct a reason to pull the truck over, and voila, drugs found. But, most importantly, at no point would the fact that such information was used to lead to the stop be revealed, and that's unconstitutional. If you're accused, you're supposed to have access to all of the evidence being used against you. Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCongress To Holder: Explain Why NSA Supplies DEA Info Which It Then Launders

2.7 Million Children Under the Age of 18 Have a Parent in Prison or Jail

"Most prisoners are parents of children under 18 years of age. Two-thirds of incarcerated parents are nonviolent offenders, often locked up on minor drug-related charges. They make up the majority of parents in prison, and they and their children are the ones criminal justice reform will most affect. One in 28 kids in the United States (as of 2010) has a mother or father, or both, in lockup – a dramatic change from the one in 125 rate a quarter of a century ago. One in nine black children have an imprisoned parent, four times as many 25 years ago. 14,000 or more children of the imprisoned annually enter foster care, while an undetermined number enter juvenile detention and adult prisons." Continue reading →

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Missouri Democrat busted for marijuana possession

"A Missouri Democrat was arrested on Sunday after police officers discovered marijuana and drug paraphernalia in his car. State Rep. Jeremy LaFaver (D-Kansas City) was pulled over by police for failing to respond to a previous charge that he had driven with an expired license tag and without insurance. The lawmaker was booked into the Boone County jail and released after posting bond. The Missouri Republican Party has called on LaFaver to resign, citing his 'open disrespect for the law.' But he told local media networks that he has no plans to quit. Unlike other lawmakers arrested for marijuana, LaFaver supported legislation that would have decriminalized small amounts of marijuana." Continue reading →

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Great Moments In Drug War Propaganda

"Yes, so America and its allies may have failed in the 100-year war on (some) drugs. We may have spent well over a trillion dollars, imprisoned tens of thousands of nonviolent offenders, caused who knows how much violence and who knows how many deaths in collateral damage, and wreaked havoc on the Bill of Rights. But at least the drug war has provided us with some great entertainment. Here, a retrospective on some of the greatest (or perhaps most ignominious) moments in drug war propaganda." Continue reading →

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Air Force Bans Greek Yogurt With Hemp Seeds Over Anti-Drug Policy Concerns

"The Air Force warned personnel over the weekend to steer clear of a specific flavor of Chobani Greek yogurt that includes hemp seeds. Hemp contains trace amounts of THC, the psychoactive ingredient also found in marijuana, classified alongside heroin and LSD as a Schedule I drug under federal law. The Air Force, as part of its anti-drug policy, added hemp seed oil products and hemp seed to a list of forbidden substances in 1999, over concerns that they could confuse the results of drug tests regularly given to service members. Chobani's Blueberry Power Flip is the latest victim of that prohibition. The Air Force made clear that yogurt flavors without hemp were still fine to eat." Continue reading →

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Afghanistan’s opium cultivation to surge in 2013: UN

"Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan is expected to increase for a third straight year, expanding even to poppy-free areas this year, a United Nations report warned. 'The assessment suggests that poppy cultivation is not only expected to expand in areas where it already existed in 2012… but also in new areas or in areas where poppy cultivation was stopped,' the survey said. Cultivation is mostly increasing in southern provinces where the Taliban are more active and thousands of international troops are set to withdraw this year. Poppy farmers are taxed by Taliban militants who use the cash to help fund their insurgency against the government and NATO forces." Continue reading →

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How can you buy illegal drugs online?

"Imagine if there were an Amazon.com for drugs. That, roughly, is what the Silk Road, a mail-order drugs service hidden in the dark parts of the internet, tries to be. Many drug users cannot wait two or three days for delivery of their next hit. But it is all a lot easier than waiting for the man. The police may not agree. Still, there is probably less chance of a drug deal on the Silk Road turning into a murder scene, and customer reviews may be a better guide to quality—and so the risk of overdose and death—than a street-corner salesman’s patter. Buying a line online has never been easier." Continue reading →

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Arbitrary enforcement, secrecy, self-interest, and the loss of government legitimacy

"The drug war and the national security scandals have overlapped in so many ways, not the least of which is a growing sense of the erosion of the very foundation of legitimacy of government. There are laws you must follow, but we’re not going to tell you what they are, or our interpretation of what they mean, but you must follow them anyway, and we’re going to gag you so you can’t talk about these laws you must follow, and if you try to take it to court, we’re going to invoke national security and say that the courts can’t be allowed to discuss it, plus since it’s secret it doesn’t exist anyway." Continue reading →

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UK’s former top drug official: Coke-head bankers caused financial crisis

"The former top drugs adviser to Britain’s parliament told UK newspaper The Telegraph on Sunday that risk-taking behaviors behind the financial crisis of 2008 were driven by excessive cocaine consumption by the world’s banking elite. Nutt was fired from his post as Britain’s top drugs adviser in 2009, after he criticized the government’s drug policies for inhibiting research into Schedule I substances like psilocybin, which Nutt has studies for its potential to alleviate symptoms of depression. At the time he’d said that consuming the unadulterated, pure form of the drug ecstasy is safer than riding a horse. Nutt was ordered to apologize for his statement on ecstasy." Continue reading →

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Stop Cops’ Carjacking

"Civil asset forfeiture became law over 40 years ago as part of the failed and insane 'War on Drugs.' But seizures from ACTUAL drug couriers are a small expense for the drug lords. Police also have an incentive to ALLOW drug deals to be made so they can seize more money afterward. That's because the wealth they steal helps fund their departments and often pays for their bonuses. As a result, cops become carjackers. Police stole a woman’s car because she loaned it to her son, who was carrying a handgun. Police stole $28,500 in church offerings. Police stole FORTY cars in one night at an art gallery event. An outdated Detroit 'speakeasy' law was the excuse. Of course, the police also steal houses and other valuables. In Philadelphia, the police steal 100 houses each year." Continue reading →

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