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June 9, 2005
Mastering the Possibilities
Comments
It is beyond ironic to note this comes immediately after the Supremes said it was okay for the DEA to bust people for medical marijuana that is grown in their state and that their states’ doctors have recommended.
the two issues are different, legally, but socially the issues are clear: $$$$$$
And then there’s the Sensenbrenner Stasi thing. He wants to send parents to prison who don’t turn their kids in for smoking pot. Anybody wanna make a bet that, if that law were to pass, most of the parents in jail wouldn’t be white, republican and middle class, even if they did not follow the law?
I thought that rehabilitation, not jail, was the issue…but that’s only if you actually want to help people, not ruin their lives.
If I were a comic book superhero-ette, I would want my strange and special power to be the ability to make stupid politicians suffer repeatedly from the laws they pass.
Posted by: fauxreal | Jun 9 2005 12:32 utc | 1
To my mind Judas Iscariot was nothing but a low, mean, premature Congressman.
There is no country in the world… that pursues corruption as inveterately as we do. I think there is something great in being a model for the whole civilized world. – Mark Twain
Posted by: Outraged | Jun 9 2005 12:43 utc | 2
“Anybody wanna make a bet that, if that law were to pass, most of the parents in jail wouldn’t be white, republican and middle class…”
…and would be probable Democratic voters.
Posted by: beq | Jun 9 2005 13:14 utc | 3
Bill Gates proved this thesis; hence forth he alone will be the poster child for Justice Department payola.
A Canadian Microsoft would have made for strange brew error messages, eh; however, big Tobacco HQ in Mexico might bring the Fiesta back to Medical Marijuana land.
Posted by: Glenn | Jun 9 2005 14:50 utc | 4
The massive cave-in by the government lawyers on the tobacco case is truly unprecedented, from an attorney-client perspective. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it. Or maybe I should say smelled anything like it.
Makes you wonder [rhetorically] if the government lawyers who torpedoed their own case were representing the citizens of the United States or the Republican Party? When asked to scuttle their case [by whom?], the government lawyers should have done the only honorable thing they could have ethically done at that point, which would have been to resign.
The fact that they didn’t should lead to the call for disbarment proceedings and at least attempted discovery into who gave the marching orders. Special prosecutor, anyone?
Posted by: bcf | Jun 9 2005 14:51 utc | 5
And let’s not forget to mention the alcohol lobby for the DNC, Ted Kennedy chief among them. Seagram is running Dean’s campaign, get people freaked out, means more boozing. Alcohol kills way more people than smoking, it’s a growing menace to our school kids (Google “binge drinking”), but the Dem’s have blocked legislative action, can’t ding their chief contributor! Look it up!
Posted by: lash marks | Jun 9 2005 15:06 utc | 6
And let’s not forget to mention the alcohol lobby for the DNC, Ted Kennedy chief among them. Seagram is running Dean’s campaign, get people freaked out, means more boozing. Alcohol kills way more people than smoking, it’s a growing menace to our school kids (Google “binge drinking”), but the Dem’s have blocked legislative action, can’t ding their chief contributor! Look it up!
Posted by: lash marks | Jun 9 2005 15:07 utc | 7
Just out of curiousity — and because I suspected our repetitive wingnut friend here was blowing smoke (so to speak)– I DID look it up. And here’s what I found:
Beer, wine & liquor industry contributions to candidates, 1990-2004
Republicans: $40.1 million (57%)
Democrats: $30.6 million (43%)
True, not as lopsided as Big Tobacco, but it’s pretty clear Big Booze also knows who it’s real daddy is.
Posted by: Billmon | Jun 9 2005 19:00 utc | 8
According to WHO estimates, smoking will kill 1 out of 12 people alive right now. That means 500 mio people. Stalin and Hitler were rank amateurs compared to that.
So, still convinced this is pretty harmless compared to pot or beer drinking? (not that I actually thinki highly of these either)
Posted by: Clueless Joe | Jun 10 2005 8:42 utc | 10