Former DEA heads urge Holder to speak out against pot ballots Reuters / Alex Dobuzinskis / 8,7,2012 (Reuters) - Nine former heads of the Drug Enforcement Administration urged Attorney General Eric Holder on Friday to take a stand against possible legalization of recreational marijuana in three western states, saying silence would convey acceptance. The nine former officials, illustrating a likely clash between the states and the federal government if marijuana use was allowed for fun, said in a letter dated Friday that legalization would pose a direct conflict with federal law. "To continue to remain silent conveys to the American public and the global community a tacit acceptance of these dangerous initiatives," said a copy of the letter obtained by Reuters. Voters in Colorado, Washington state and Oregon are set to decide in the November polls whether to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes and to regulate and tax its sale. They would be the first states to make such a move. The letter from the former DEA heads is similar to one they sent Holder in 2010 urging him to oppose a recreational pot legalization ballot measure in California. That ultimately failed with 53.5 percent of voters rejecting it. A spokeswoman for Holder said she was not aware of Friday's letter. Holder came out strongly against the California measure in a letter to the former administrators before the vote, warning that top U.S. officials would enforce federal laws against pot in California despite any state-level legalization. Kevin Sabet, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama's administration on marijuana issues, said he would not be surprised if Holder gave the same response as he had to the California ballot. "Essentially, a state vote in favor of legalization is a moot point since federal laws would be, in (Holder's) own words (from 2010), 'vigorously enforced,'" Sabet said. "I can't imagine a scenario where the Feds would sit back and do nothing." Obama administration officials have until now said little about the new ballot measures, although the federal government has cracked down on medical cannabis dispensaries in several states by raiding them and threatening legal action. MESSAGE TO VOTERS The nine signatories to Friday's letter included John Bartels, who ran the DEA from 1973 to 1975, and Karen Tandy, who was in charge from 2003 to 2007, as well as all the heads of the federal law enforcement agency in the intervening years. Tom Constantine, who was in charge of the DEA from 1994 to 1999 and is one of the signatories to Friday's letter, said the former administrators hoped it would send a message to voters and alter the public debate. Constantine told Reuters the letter was sent "so that the voters would know in all fairness that no matter what they vote on in Colorado or wherever it is, that federal law still prevails." Obama administration drug czar Gil Kerlikowske, in response to a 2011 petition to legalize and regulate marijuana, said then that federal officials were concerned about the drug as it was "associated with addiction, respiratory disease and cognitive impairment." Legalization advocates contend that the decades-old drug war in the United States has failed and compare laws against pot to the unsuccessful prohibition of alcohol from 1920 to 1933. They say society would be better served if marijuana could be taxed and regulated. While no state currently allows recreational use of the drug, 17 states and the District of Columbia permit its use as medicine. If you do a search you will find that all these former heads of the DEA are "involved" in industries that will lose funding/profits if marijuana prohibition ends. Spin-off industries that were created by the incarceration nation they have built.
Really wtf is this guy talking about? They've been speaking out since its been illegal (mainly untruthful shit) and now its time for the cannabis smoking community and industry to speak out
Thanks Ole Tex ... if you or anyone has links or other research you can post here on these mofos, it'd be much appreciated.
The government is supposed to be "of the people, by the people, for the people." If these nimwits can't get that through their head they should lose their jobs.
Karen Tandy is a lobbyist for Motorola,,and Philips electronics is a subsidiary of Motorola,,owners of a portable saliva testing machine that will show "possible" active thc metabolites(according to Aussie resources the detectors do not work and give too many false readings)but they are behind the push for per se dui laws with the 5 nano limits that Kerlikowski raves about every time he gets close to a microphone,,,democracy in action because it will cost billions in tax dollars to distribute enough machines to effectively start up another revenue source for local police. If marijuana prohibition ends ,,billions will be lost and Tandy won't get her big big bonus check floating more drug war dollars to them.
5 bucks says most of them drink booze on a regular basis. But legalizing cannabis somehow sends the wrong message. What message is that? Americans believe in sensible drug laws?
I (as well as most of America I am sure) thought the DEA supported legalizing marijuana but now I know they are opposed to it thanks to that letter they wrote. Im glad that cleared up that confusion. I will now vote against legalization because I would not want to hurt the DEA's feelings, that would just be down right mean.
I feel your frustration in realizing the Machiavellian nature of the struggle; while posting this realization here is helpful, bringing it to the attention of your local voters may actually be more effective in derailing this runaway locomotive. One avenue of compassionate realism that has been ignored is through the fellowship of the ministers of all faiths. They are by nature salesmen and would be invaluable assets to sway the minds of those who feel uninvolved; by enlisting them as their true brother's keeper they could persuade untold others to see the truth separated from the political schemery. I would wish that those like Marapa, who are stepping up to the plate would see a chance to enlighten them as potential allies as well. Many people fail to find understanding of matters of this import in the cacophony of information and seemingly more urgent cries for their attention; a call for their focus by the most respected member of their beliefs would be a powerful motivator. If they could only be made to see the truth as we do; marijuana is only a plant, and the only harm caused is by its prohibition and the uncontrolled communities surrounding both the legal and illegal beneficiaries of it. Those jailed are indeed their brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, mothers and fathers and their loss to their family is truly the greater crime.
It's not that americans believe in sensible drug laws. It's that people need to understand that the government cannot baby you and control the substance's that a human consumes (Unless, they specifically want to do it for mind control techniques, MK ULTRA). It doesn't make any sense, and people are starting to realize that. Like seriously, people can smoke pot all the time and still function, drive and do everything. On the other hand, you take some alcohol for a good night and you might end up dead or arrested with a DUI bill. WEED is the way to go now because there is no enforcment for it. It's a revolutionary drug, and that's why the feds dont want it. Weed will only open the door for legalization of any drug that is not physically harmful.