An Information Age Revolution

"Legalize Pot Now" has a wide variety of great arguments supporting the decriminalization of marijuana in America. It is one of the most complete articles I have read sharing my stance. I am proud to say I have posted a number of links citing the same stories and numbers.

Below he comments on Gil Kerlikowske's recent call for the end of the "war on drugs".

It wouldn't be surprising if Kerlikowske's speech was actually a subtle testing of the political landscape surrounding the marijuana question, as we find ourselves, quite suddenly, at a pivotal moment in the push for pot legalization. The horrific violence of Mexican cartels, which make perhaps as much as 75 percent of their money from marijuana (in Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard's estimation), has started ebbing across our Southwestern borders.

My favorite part of the article is below.

So far, the president — who supported decriminalization when running for Senate in 2004, but not when running for president in 2008 — hasn't exactly been a profile in courage. (His answer, at that town hall, to the question of taxing marijuana was wincingly flippant.) But that may not matter all that much. "Obama is against gay marriage, at least nominally, yet that issue is moving forward, too," statistician Nate Silver, founder of fivethirtyeight.com, tells the Phoenix. "Once one state does something, then other states start to think about it."

While I was disappointed with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's response about marijuana in his "Digg Dialogue".(full video at end of post) I believe it was a good step in rehabbing his image. I think online event's like this are really the politics of the future. The information age is just beginning, there is no telling where it will take us. The radio and fireside chats helped FDR become President, while some credit JFK's victory to his good looks and demeanor on television.

The internet helped Current President Obama raise crucial funds for his campaign, and helped get him elected. Back in July of 2007 Time magazine was discussing Obama's unique fundraising ability. So far he has displayed grand visions of the internet to help America recover from this recession, but it may have a much bigger side effect. It could change the way countries our governed all across the world. Obama has held online town halls answering questions to mixed reviews, but the key might be him setting a precedent for our politicians of the future.

His administration's website already offers a long list of tools and services; with the goals of transparency, and increased communication between the people and their government. They include: Your Weekly Address, Presidential Blog, America's Recovery, Whitehouse Youtube Channel, and the list appears to be growing as we speak.

Marijuana Myths

Sorting fact from fiction when discussing marijuana isn't an easy task. No one should expect it to be either, but more people should realize it is just a plant. Watching "Reefer Madness" in its entirety is difficult propaganda to stand today, but coming out of the depression the film scared alot of Americans. The short clip below is a great illustration of the misinformation our government has sponsored beginning in the 1930's.



A Star Tribune article written by Rob Kampia discusses three of the biggest myths surrounding marijuana. It appeared in Saturday's opinion section as a reaction to Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty vetoing a medical marijuana bill on Friday. I don't really understand how myth number one has gone overlooked in our country for so long.

Myth No. 1: Marijuana is illegal because it's dangerous. In fact, the first national marijuana ban was passed in 1937 based on a wave of hysterical propaganda and newspaper stories that had nothing to do with marijuana's actual effects. Goaded by Federal Bureau of Narcotics chief Harry Anslinger, newspapers printed wild stories such as the San Francisco Examiner's claim that "Marihuana makes fiends of boys in thirty days -- Hashish goads users to bloodlust."

Kampia is The Executive Director of the Marijuana Policy Project, they produced the short below about why marijuana is illegal.

What if?

Last Friday The New York Times pondered a big what if question, "What Would Happen if Marijuana Were Decriminalized? A Freakonomics Quorum". Wanting to cover all aspects of the issue they presented five people from various backgrounds with a challenge.

to think about a national decriminalization of marijuana (unlikely, let’s be honest) and answer the following: What would be some of the most powerful economic, social, and criminal-justice effects?

Robert Platshorn also known as "The Black Tuna" tells part of his story. He was a marijuana smuggler back in the 70's; after spending 29 years of his life in prison he is working with NORML.

On May 2, 1979, a headline read “$300 Million Drug Ring Reported Cracked in Florida.” The “ring” consisted of my two partners and myself. We hadn’t made 10 percent of that, but the government had reasons for turning a couple of small fish into “The Black Tuna Gang.” Those were the early days of the DEA, and they needed to justify their mission and their budget.

Obviously the drug dealer is going to side with decriminalizing marijuana, so they also had an economist on their panel. In 2005 Jeff Miron completed "The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition". Currently he is the director of undergraduate studies, in Harvard University's economics department. In March of this year he contributed this article to CNN. In the beginning he talks about what decriminalization would do to our society.

Legalizing marijuana would produce important benefits for the United States.

Legalization would allow people who use marijuana, without harm to themselves or others, to do so without fear of arrest or incarceration. This is exactly what occurs now for alcohol and tobacco.

After discussing several benefits he wanted to end by exploring the things legalization wouldn't do.

One thing legalization would not do is produce a major increase in marijuana use; existing evidence suggests prohibition has only a modest impact. Alcohol consumption declined moderately but not dramatically during alcohol prohibition, for example.

A second thing legalization would not do is eliminate the bulk of violence, crime, and corruption induced by drug prohibition, since much of that relates to cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. To achieve the full benefits of legalization, policy must legalize all drugs.

Marijuana legalization is thus not a panacea; rather, it is a significant step in the direction of saner drug policy.

Asking & Answering Questions

Congressman Steve Cohen (D-Tenn) asks some valid questions to FBI director Robert Mueller, hopefully these questions increase throughout this legislative session in Congress. Our elected officials might be starting to take notice of the publics opinion and when more of them start asking questions in Washington, real change will start to happen. Soon decriminalizing marijuana could become a reality that people actually consider. Nate Silver points out age trends in marijuana use, the numbers make me believe that as Congress gets younger they will realize that drug policy reform is a necessity.






Paul Armentano offers his opinion about the interrogation.

It’s been clear for quite some time that proponents of marijuana prohibition have nary a leg to stand on. When their position is scrutinized, even the least bit, it ends up collapsing like a house of cards. In this case, the look on FBI Director Robert Mueller’s face two minutes and forty-three seconds into the video says it all. His empty rhetoric has failed and he has no more artillery left in his arsenal. He’s been defeated and he knows it.

Meanwhile Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has agreed to participate in a "Digg Dialogue", described below. Digg users have until Tuesday, May 26th 12:00pm pacific time to submit and Digg questions.

Digg Dialogg lets you submit your questions to notable leaders and luminaries. Rather than editors or journalists, the Digg community decides the most popular questions to be posed in the interview, so submit a question for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger!

Saving Phoenix

Decriminalization might be Phoenix's only answer to solve its rising crime problem. Today's CNN feature on the drug cartels investigates the kidnapping epidemic currently growing in Phoenix. The stories while shocking, are even more grotesque. I advise you not to read the full article if you just ate, as torture appears to be common in these situations. Below is just part of Jaime Andrade's story and what he had to endure while being held hostage.

Andrade was pistol-whipped and beaten with a baseball bat and the butt of a rifle. The kidnappers tried to gouge out his eye and slashed open his left eyebrow. They burned his back as well -- presumably, police said, with a blowtorch found at the scene.

Usually these kidnappings are criminal on criminal offenses but mistaken identity can only increase with the continued escalation and frequency of these crimes. Another story highlighted was an innocent 13 year old girl trying to play basketball in her driveway. Phoenix police have even formed a special unit to assist in investigations.

Phoenix police formed the HIKE squad in October after two years of unprecedented kidnapping numbers -- 357 in 2007 and 368 in 2008 -- gave the city the dubious distinction of being the nation's kidnapping capital. Home invasions were not far behind: 317 in 2007 and 337 in 2008.

It would be hard for any city to adapt to this increase in terrible violent crimes. The resources simply aren't there to combat the problem. It is growing too rapidly, alternative solutions need to be looked into. While MPP is currently fighting a battle to get a medical marijuana initiative on the ballot in Arizona, there is little evidence to prove it would be effective against cartel violence.

Money Wrong Solution to Drug Cartels

CNN is in the middle of a four part feature on drug cartels. Monday's story helped put how much death and money is involved in this border crisis. The fear that this violence will start spreading into states along the Mexican border is real, however the real impact has yet to be seen. Below are a couple of excerpts from the story.

So far, the U.S. has largely been spared the violence seen in Mexico, where the cartels' running gunbattles with police, the military and each other claimed about 6,500 lives last year. It was a sharp spike from the 2,600 deaths attributed to cartel violence in 2007.

Once again, drug war casualties are mounting on the Mexican side at a record pace in 2009 -- more than 1,000 during the first three months of the year, Arabit said.

I don't believe America can solve this crisis by throwing more money at the problem. When will people start to understand that money can't solve every problem? Our government is burning their money with this increases. It's frustrating to admit, but I think doubling the amount of troops will only increase in the amount of American bloodshed. A DEA agent comments to CNN about the violence spilling over and effecting innocent American lives.

"It's coming. I guarantee, it's coming," said Michael Sanders, a DEA spokesman in Washington.

Sinaloa cartel leader Guzman's shoot-to-kill instructions aren't limited to Mexican authorities and cartel rivals; they also include U.S. law enforcement officials, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing sources and intelligence memos. The move is seen as dangerously brazen, the newspaper reported. In the past, the cartels have tried to avoid direct confrontation with U.S. law enforcement.

U.S. officials are trying to stop the violence from crossing the border.The Obama administration committed to spending an additional $700 million to help Mexico fight the cartels and agreed to double the number of U.S. agents working the border.

Full Circle

The new drug czar, Gil Kerlikowske, recently had a Q & A session with the Wall Street Journal. In this interview he doesn't hesitate in admitting that the United States has been fighting a losing war. In fact he wants to end this so called "war" altogether. Finally someone is recognizing the federal governments failures with this public health issue.

What do you mean when you talk about how our drug efforts have been in a silo with either/or choices?

The either/or to me has been you either support law enforcement and money and funds and resources, that includes international, border protection and domestic, or you support treatment and whose going to pay the cost of treatment. What I'd like to do is break down those barriers that kind of exist. It really isn't an either/or.

The other part of breaking down the barrier is to completely and forever end the war analogy, the war on drugs.

Since I used to stand in front of the helicopter for President Nixon who brought the term in vogue, it's fitting that I'm almost back in the same spot and trying to put an end to the war analogy.

Kerlikowske has been involved since the beginning and is showing signs of his deeper understanding of this issue. His law enforcement background blended with the belief that this is a public health issue at heart, could lead to promising changes for America. He has been on the front lines of this "drug war" and realized no one can win if it continues. I think this L.A. Times editorial summarizes it best.

It's in that context that Kerlikowske's comments matter: By thinking of drug users as combatants in a war, the nation militarized a health problem. The phrase itself shaped flawed thinking and yielded disastrous policies. When he campaigned for the presidency, Obama promised bold change on drugs. The old paradigm should follow the now-discarded phrase into history.

In "Paying With Our Sins" the N.Y. Times has some more radical opinions on how to speed up America's recovery from this recession. Author Nick Gillespie takes the economists opinion and questions how much the extra revenue America could raise by taxing then country's vices.

Based on estimates from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Americans spend at least $64 billion a year on illegal drugs. And according to a 2006 study by the former president of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Jon Gettman, marijuana is already the top cash crop in a dozen states and among the top five crops in 39 states, with a total annual value of $36 billion.

I believe Kerlikowske has the knowledge and experience to help lead our country down this new path. As Seattle's chief of police he disagreed with I-75, a law that led to Seattle making marijuana possession law enforcements lowest priority. However, after the initiative passed he respected the people's wishes and Seattle is still standing.

California's Ripple Effect

As most people have heard, Assemblyman Tom Ammiano-D San Francisco, has written and introduced a bill that would make California the first state to legalize marijuana. Bill AB 390 is seen as a longshot by Ammiano himself, but that hasn't stopped the media frenzy.

This is a long term strategy, Ammiano plans to try and gain wider support before ever trying to get the bill voted on. During this dormant stage the public knowledge about marijuana can only increase. Gone are the days of Reefer Madness, the information age has unforeseen potential in revolutionizing democracy.

"Pot proposals impact depends on federal law" discusses some of Ammiano's goals and raises some provocative questions at the same time.

Ammiano introduced AB390 in February but says he will not try to bring it to a vote until next year, which means it could not take effect until 2011. And its prospects have been dimmed by the unyielding opposition of police organizations...

-- Decriminalize personal use, sale, possession and cultivation of marijuana in California.

-- If the federal ban on possession, cultivation and sale of marijuana were repealed, the state would allow marijuana growers and sellers and impose a $50-an-ounce tax.

Government propaganda can be sniffed out much quicker now. One day I envision audio files recording trials then transcribing it into a computer database. How much money, paperwork, manpower would this save the government? It would also eliminate any possibility of human error. The defendant could have easy access to both audio and text files.

President Obama's attempt at increasing transparency in the government has seen the birth of many new .gov sites. With his weekly address being broadcast on youtube and the new White House website, one has to be reminded of President Franklin Delano Roosevolt's fireside chats. Whatever your opinion may be of our new President, I believe Obama has grand intentions and is trying to pattern aspects of his first 100 days in office after the great FDR.

Former President's Opinion

As I am typing this article is the second most viewed on CNN's website. His opinions below shouldn't be a surprise to many.

Former Mexican President Vicente Fox has joined three other ex-leaders of Latin American nations calling for the decriminalization of marijuana.

Fox, who was Mexico's president from 2000 to 2006, said the current policy is clearly not working.

"I believe it's time to open the debate over legalizing drugs," he told CNN on Tuesday. "It must be done in conjunction with the United States, but it is time to open the debate."

He pointed to how the end of Prohibition in the United States in 1933 lessened organized crime violence.

"It can't be that the only way is for the state to use force," he said.

Fox was mirroring a position adopted earlier this year by his predecessor as president of Mexico, Ernesto Zedillo, and the former heads of Colombia and Brazil. The three former chief executives are members of the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy.

Along the same lines. NORML has a whole page dedicated to Government & Private Commissions Supporting Marijuana Law Reform. This excerpt is from the introduction.

"Penalties against drug use should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself. Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against the possession of marijuana in private for personal use."
-President Jimmy Carter: Message to Congress, August 2, 1977.

A Federalist Perspective

Ross Raffin from the Stanford Progressive brings up a number of great points in his article, "Legalizing Marijuana the Federalist Way". Raffin suggests that President Obama laughing off the marijuana issue in his town hall meeting, doesn't necessarily mean he has thought about this issue seriously.

But the reality is that the Obama administration has turned the tides in favor of legalization and decriminalization in a much stronger and subtler way than open rhetorical endorsements.

Optimism for drug reform began when Obama ended federal raids on cannabis dispensaries in states which allow medical marijuana. What marijuana advocates fail to realize is that with this the Obama administration initiated a small but extremely important step towards legalization. More importantly, it has done so in a way to insulate itself from Republican attacks and attempts to distract the public.

The new administration has declared the federal government will only intervene in medical marijuana cases where both state and federal laws are being broken. This change may seem minor but Raffin views it as a logical stepping stone in the legalization process.

In the case of California, because medical marijuana is legal, federal intervention is no longer allowed in cases where California's medical marijuana laws are not broken. Thus, if California were to fully legalize marijuana, under current policy the federal government would not intervene.

Raffin continues to argue that marijuana reform in our country must be started with individual states, then only can it be a reality in America.

If Obama or the Democrats proposed legalization, all the Republicans have to do is have several governors or senators who refuse to implement the federal law. This would frame the argument as Obama trying to extend the government's power to regulate what some consider the moral fabric of society...

When Obama tells the country that marijuana legalization is not the path he chooses for America, he means to say that the path must first be drawn by us.

Video Highlights

I have a personalized "marijuana" section on my google news page. It makes finding all the latest news from across the globe easy. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and The Marijuana Policy Project are two of the most influential organizations supporting marijuana, they help keep people informed with current events regarding the drug war.

Both sites run blogs and have a wealth of information on the subject. If you are just curious about some of the facts/myths of marijuana or are interested in becoming a member, these are the perfect places to start. MPP has its own youtube channel, while both are increasing their presence on national TV. Below are some clips of their appearances.

Cato's Mission

The mission of the Cato Institute is to increase the understanding of public policies based on the principles of limited government, free markets, individual liberty, and peace. The Institute will use the most effective means to originate, advocate, promote, and disseminate applicable policy proposals that create free, open, and civil societies in the United States and throughout the world.

To maintain independence and integrity the Cato Institute accepts no government funding, and is a non profit public policy research foundation. Started in 1977 Cato delivers a wide range of publications on social issues. Visit there about page for more info.

Cato sponsored the Glenn Greenwald investigation into Portugal's decriminalization framework I mentioned last post. The libertarian think tank offers their opinions on issues in a handbook for policymakers. Check out the chapter dealing with the war on drugs. Below is an excerpt describing the handbook.

Now in its seventh edition, the Cato Handbook for Policymakers sets the standard in Washington for real cuts in federal spending, taxes, and power. It offers an issue-by-issue detailed blueprint for reducing the federal government to the limits intended by the Founding Fathers.

I decided there were a few other TIME articles I wanted to point out. From 1968 "Pot: Safer than Alcohol" to neurosurgeon Sanjay Gupta's recent opinion. In 2006 Dr. Scott Haig wrote "Why I'm Not Against, Like, Oh Wow man, Pot".

"I Smoke Pot, and I like it" is an admission Will Wilkinson from the Cato Institute is willing to make. He stresses the importance of making America realize that millions of everyday people just like them are regular marijuana users. He ends the article with this.

If we're to begin to roll back our stupid and deadly drug war, the stigma of responsible drug use has got to end, and marijuana is the best place to start. The super-savvy Barack Obama managed to turn a buck by coming out of the cannabis (and cocaine) closet in a bestselling memoir. That's progress. But his admission came with the politicians' caveat of regret. We'll make real progress when solid, upstanding folk come out of the cannabis closet, heads held high.

So here we go. My name is Will Wilkinson. I smoke marijuana, and I like it.

Big Media Musings

I thought it would be interesting to gage the media's stance regarding marijuana. Concentrating on mainstream publications that are well known. Using links from; metro newspapers, magazines, major news sites and video from TV networks.

In March of this year CNN's Jack Cafferty asked, "Time for US to legalize drugs", on his blog. Cafferty sounds off hourly on the "Situation Room", a weekday afternoon program on CNN. This topic is still on his radar, and was the subject of his blog post yesterday as well.

This article from the San Francisco Chronicle regarding Governor Schwarzeneggers recent comments provides a skeptical view. In the heartland of the country, the Kansas City Star had this interesting perspective that was a little different.


I believe TIME magazine's website offers some of the best commentary regarding the "war on drugs". Searching "marijuana" yields 1455 articles and a 2002 cover. That November issue had two long feature articles, click the cover to your left for one and "The New Politics of Pot" for the other piece.

Ranging back to 1968 "The Morality of Marijuana" was questioned. In April of this year, Joe Klein wrote "Why Legalizing Marijuana Makes Sense".

TIME expresses their concern regarding the recent problems with Mexican drug cartels and the carnage around the US border. They also have chronicled the lighter side of the battle in "The Grass-Roots Marijuana Wars".

"Drugs in Portugal: Did Decriminalization Work?" was published by TIME in April 2009. It investigates a report written by Glenn Greenwald for the Cato Institute. While the report itself can be a little boring, (full 34 pages here) it is more of an empirical examination of the issue in Portugal and how their country has been impacted since they decriminalized ALL drugs in 2001.

So that is probably more reading than anyone has time to get done, I recommend checking out those links when you have a little time to kill. Over the weekend I'll delve more into the Cato Institutes thoughts on the subject and post some videos too.

A Conservative Inquiry

It's funny how history repeats itself. In 1971 Nixon appointed republican Raymond Schafer to chair of The National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse, and 9 of the total 13 members. Their report was cast aside, at least it gave me a name for this blog. Almost 40 years later The O'Leary report, a conservative publication, teamed with Zogby to conduct a public opinion poll . The revelation is just as historic, I can only hope it plays a more significant role in impacting todays society. Here is what 3,919 Americans were asked to respond to.

Scarce law enforcement and prison resources, a desire to neutralize drug cartels and the need for new sources of revenue have resurrected the topic of legalizing marijuana. Proponents say it makes sense to tax and regulate the drug while opponents say that legalization would lead marijuana users to use other illegal drugs. Would you favor or oppose the government's effort to legalize marijuana?

A small majority of the Americans, %52 favored legalizing marijuana compared to the %37 who opposed it. This British headline and recent poll was music to my ears. It is remarkable that the government has spent countless amounts of money trying to convince the public the exact opposite.

Ben Morris from MPP called it "The Marijuana Tipping Point". The "tipping point" phrase was popularized by Malcolm Gladwell's best selling book of the same title. A must read for anyone who enjoys the hobby. While I credit the Michael Phelps bong photo impact in an information age of society; that is still very new, I believe there have been many micro victories that will lead to an eventual unlikely victor in the "war on drugs". The Phelps incident gave America something to talk about besides the financial crisis we are in.

The silly situation was blown out of epic proportion and some Americans realized there was a larger problem that was being overlooked. President Obama was quoted saying "the drug was has been a complete and utter failure" back in 2004. The problem only grown since then. Below is one of my favorite quotes, from Ralph Waldo Emerson.

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.

Last Ditch Effort?

Arnold Schwarzenegger appears to be struggling at something for the first time in his life. This New York Times article reports his approval rating has plummeted to around the 30's. The Governor has apparently been abandoned by the Republican party and he may be endorsing a Democrat to replace him. He still has 18 months left in office that will largely determine if his stint was a failure.

Today he welcomed a public debate on the subject of marijuana. While at a public appearance promoting wildfire preparedness, he was asked about the idea of treating marijuana like alcohol. The Austrian born Schwarzenegger offered his opinion.

"No, I don't think it's time for that, but I think it's time for a debate," he said. "And I think we ought to study very carefully what other countries are doing that have legalized marijuana and other drugs, what affect it had on those countries, and are they happy with that decision."

This is a great step forward towards change in our country. If more people start believing, a close examination of our drug laws could soon be a reality. This might be one of the Governors last chances to show real progress of some kind during his term. I think Schwarzenegger has a need to be liked and that it wasn't a coincidence his comments came after this recent poll.

"Schwarzenegger's comments come days after a statewide Field Poll found that 56 percent of California voters support the idea of legalizing cannabis for recreational use and taxing its proceeds."