DEA continues pot raids Obama opposes

DEA continues pot raids Obama opposes

www.washingtontimes.com

“The president believes that federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws, and as he continues to appoint senior leadership to fill out the ranks of the federal government, he expects them to review their policies with that in mind,"

(visit the link for the full news article)

I'm starting to see a small movement here; NH and other states defining new actions to fire the fed if they do not respect the constitution, and more states than ever are slowly but surely getting something done. This is not much of a big deal but it could show the fed where the true power lies. So just thought i would share. Maybe this will lead to more state laws against the current federal government.

www.washingtontimes.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I wasn't aware that Obama could ignore a Supreme Court decision. The Fed trumps the State on this issue IMO.

OK, let me rephrase this. Basically, Obama is not supporting State law rights. What he is basically doing is telling his people not to enforce the Federal law. That kind of message could send the wrong meaning.

LOL that SCOTUS ruling was hogwash anyway; where does it say the Fed trumps the States in the Constitution?

*Snip*- this is good news overall.

Terms And Conditions Of Use

2e.) Illegal Activity: Discussion of illegal activities; specifically mind-altering drugs, computer hacking, criminal hate, sexual relations with minors, and stock scams are strictly forbidden. You will also not link to sites that contains discussion of such material.

[edit on 2/5/2009 by semperfortis]

Obama needs to just come out and legalize marijuana. It would instantly provide a boost to the economy and ease the demands made on the police departments and the judicial and prison systems. There's really no reason not too. Especially America's golden boy just got caught smoking the reefer.

The DEA, and the SCOTUS would do well to look into the tenth amendment.

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

As such, the constitution does not delegate these powers to the federal government, therefore, according to the Constitution, they remain with the state.

Case closed, there's no argument. 'Course, it doesn't matter, seeing as it's just a piece of paper.

Mail Tribune newspaper in Oregon in March

Q: A couple of other issues of interest to Oregonians involve initiatives passed by the voters that have come into conflict with the federal government: physician-assisted suicide and medical marijuana. Do you support those two concepts?
A: I am in favor of palliative medicine in circumstances where someone is terminally ill. ... I'm mindful of the legitimate interests of states to prevent a slide from palliative treatments into euthanasia. On the other hand, I think that the people of Oregon did a service for the country in recognizing that as the population gets older we've got to think about issues of end-of-life care. ...
As for medical marijuana ... I'm not familiar with all the details of the initiative that was passed, but I think the basic concept of using medical marijuana for the same purposes and with the same controls as other drugs prescribed by doctors, I think that's entirely appropriate. ...
I'm not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue.

I can't really see where hes not going to have the DEA fight the war on drugs. This is the quote the article bases its story on.

[edit on 5-2-2009 by JBA2848]

Originally posted by Riviera
LOL that SCOTUS ruling was hogwash anyway; where does it say the Fed trumps the States in the Constitution?

*Snip*- this is good news overall.

Terms And Conditions Of Use

2e.) Illegal Activity: Discussion of illegal activities; specifically mind-altering drugs, computer hacking, criminal hate, sexual relations with minors, and stock scams are strictly forbidden. You will also not link to sites that contains discussion of such material.

[edit on 2/5/2009 by semperfortis]

We are discussing state-made legal activity, and it's not like this article is straight out of high times. This is about the issue of medicinal marijuana, not about the act of doing it. If the mods think this is inappropriate than please feel free to delete this thread.

Originally posted by patent98310
We are discussing state-made legal activity, and it's not like this article is straight out of high times. This is about the issue of medicinal marijuana, not about the act of doing it. If the mods think this is inappropriate than please feel free to delete this thread.

That wasn't about the thread; that was about me and a comment i made, this thread as far as I can see is moving in the legit T&C.

Just keep in mind, that while Obama may oppose such action by the DEA, The President does not create the laws, Congress does. Obama would have to get congress to change the laws in order to prevent the DEA from taking action against medical use of illegal substances.

The DEA is just following it's mandate within the current laws.

I wonder how many congressmen would pass a drug test for all drug use? I'd include things like the use of unprescribed medications as well. There is a great deal of hypocrisy in DC. The DEA are just the pit bulls of Congress after all. That being said, I know several DEA agents across the country, and they are all good decent people, doing the job they were given.

reply to post by patent98310

Flag'd & Star'd. Good find, patent.

The movement is actually quite large. Lots of progressive reform happening
in many states, and more come closer to a 'pass' vote each time.

The actual prohibition of MJ is very suspect from the beginning. 1934, if I'm not mistaken. Since then, a variety of studies have concluded it's therapeutic value in helping treat numerous afflictions.

I've tracked the positive developments of MJ laws through NORML for some time, and would encourage any like-minded individuals to take a gander, or even participate & contribute.

The best method would be to cut the DEA's funding. Let them sell drugs to get by.

Everyone Should Watch This Documentary

It is very well made and really describes the economic and societal consequences of prohibition.

[edit on 6-2-2009 by Reddupo]

Just want to chime in here with some verifiable statistics and information on this supposed [sarcasm]'dangerous drug'[/sarcasm]

Nobody has EVER died from taking only cannabis. EVER. You want proof? Here you go...

LD50 (the dose required to kill half of the research subjects) is the consumption of roughly 1 kilogram (35.2739619 ounces) of cannabis in 1 minute!!

en.wikipedia.org...

There has never been a documented human fatality from marijuana. Information about THC's toxicity is derived from animal studies. The toxicity depends on the route of administration and the laboratory animal. Absorption is limited by serum lipids, which can become saturated with THC, mitigating toxicity. According to the Merck Index, 12th edition, THC has a LD50 (dose killing half of the research subjects) value of 1270 mg/kg (male rats) and 730 mg/kg (female rats) administered orally dissolved in sesame oil. The LD50 value for rats by inhalation of THC is 42 mg/kg of body weight. One estimate of Cannabis's LD50 for humans indicates that about 1500 pounds of marijuana would have to be smoked within 15 minutes. This estimate is supported by studies which indicate that the effective dose of THC is at least 1000 times lower than the estimated lethal dose (a "safety ratio" of 1000:1). This is much higher than alcohol (safety ratio of 10), coc aine (15), or heroin (6).

www.druglibrary.org...

What is the lethal dose of marijuana?

According to which US Government authority you want to believe, the lethal dose of marijuana is either about one-third your body weight, or about 1,500 pounds, consumed all at once.

In summary, enormous doses of Delta 9 THC, All THC and concentrated marihuana extract ingested by mouth were unable to produce death or organ pathology in large mammals but did produce fatalities in smaller rodents due to profound central nervous system depression.

The non-fatal consumption of 3000 mg/kg A THC by the dog and monkey would be comparable to a 154-pound human eating approximately 46 pounds (21 kilograms) of 1%-marihuana or 10 pounds of 5% hashish at one time. In addition, 92 mg/kg THC intravenously produced no fatalities in monkeys. These doses would be comparable to a 154-pound human smoking at one time almost three pounds (1.28 kg) of 1%-marihuana or 250,000 times the usual smoked dose and over a million times the minimal effective dose assuming 50% destruction of the THC by smoking.

Thus, evidence from animal studies and human case reports appears to indicate that the ratio of lethal dose to effective dose is quite large. This ratio is much more favorable than that of many other common psychoactive agents including alcohol and barbiturates (Phillips et al. 1971, Brill et al. 1970).

Now compare that to the likes of 'legal drugs' such as alcohol or tobacco. It blows them out of the water.

I would also like to point out that I have never heard of anyone smoking a couple joints, then starting a fight, unlike the guy who overdoes it on beer or whiskey.
Folks who smoke weed jsut get mellow, horny and hungry!

I would also like to refer you to the 2002 Canadian Senate report on cannabis, where they recommended that it be legalized in Canada, due to the reduction in crime it would create as well as the less harmful side effects. Here are some quotes:

...the current system of prohibition in Canada does not work and should be replaced by a regulated system that would focus on illegal trafficking, prevention programs and respecting individual and collective freedoms.

In our opinion, Canadian society is ready for a responsible policy of cannabis regulation that complies with these basic principles.

...recommends that the federal government amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act so that it can declare an amnesty for any Canadians convicted of possession of the drug under current or past legislation.

"Scientific evidence overwhelmingly indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than alcohol and should be treated not as a criminal issue but as a social and public health issue," Conservative Senator Pierre Nolin, the Committee Chairman.

"This report is a unanimous one," Liberal Senator Colin Kenny said. "No one on the committee wants to see an increase in the use of cannabis. In fact, we believe that the recommendations you see in this report will ultimately result in a reduction of use of the drug.

"We think that the main accomplishment we'll see here is a reduction in the criminality associated with the drug, and we think that is a very valuable benefit."

Full Canadian Senate Report on the Canadian Senate Website

I'm not one of those anal moralists who denounce weed while sipping on a beer, however I'm concerned about this Obama view and interpretation. Case law and precedent have established for 150+ years that Federal laws trump state laws, there is no debate about that. In any case. congressional passed legislation, affirmed by the SCOTUS, cannot be afterward selectively ignored or enforced by the POTUS. The executive must faithfully execute the law as it stand, not as it wants to. Granted this is Obama and not Bush, so people are generally more inclined to obey such authority without question. And granted this is weed and not say... warrant-less surveillance, however the point remains.




[edit on 6-2-2009 by WestPoint23]

No one was arrested, she said, but the raid is part of an ongoing investigation seeking to trace the marijuana back to its suppliers or source.

It looks like the DEA is just looking for a big bust to get their pictures taken and to make a case for additional funding. I mean, the article said they confiscated 224 kilograms of weed, that's nearly 500 lbs. That is a very hefty amount, yet they do nothing to the Cannabis Club operators. They are looking for the suppliers, aka the bigger bust.

This boggles my mind. These growers are providing their crops for MEDICINAL purposes, not selling it to street dealers. The DEA seriously needs o reevaluate their priorities. There are hundreds/thousands of meth labs, rock houses, smack dens, etc., yet they focus on a group of people that run a legitimate business (at least according to CA state law) for medicinal purposes.

I'd LOVE to see the DEA run up on Pfizer one of these days.