cannabisnews.com: Anderson's Drug Policy A Hit in L.A. 





Anderson's Drug Policy A Hit in L.A. 
Posted by FoM on August 16, 2000 at 06:39:25 PT
By Dan Harrie, Salt Lake Tribune
Source: Salt Lake Tribune
Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson irked many constituents when he cut off support for the popular DARE anti-drug abuse program in city schools this summer.   But the outspoken mayor drew rousing acclaim Tuesday at the offbeat "Shadow Convention," offering provocative political alternative views to the tamer Democratic National Convention down the street. 
 Anderson's DARE-busting action earned him an invitation as a guest speaker during a session on "The Failed War on Drugs." His fiery comments denouncing the country's drug policy brought wild applause and cheers, ending in a standing ovation.   Anderson called the get-tough approach to drug prevention "absolute insanity," pointing out that the number of Americans imprisoned for drug offenses has grown from 41,000 to 458,000 in 20 years.   "It is the war on drugs -- a war that was manufactured for political gain; a war that has backfired on the American people, viciously and relentlessly; a war that history will forever condemn as poorly conceived and pathetically, yet brutally, executed," he said.   Anderson said the only effective way to fight narcotics is to attack the demand side -- with education, prevention and treatment programs -- rather than the supply side that is currently the focus of law enforcement. He also advocated a policy of helping people break their addictions rather than locking them up.   In an interview, he said he was not advocating the legalization of any drugs. But, he added, " Decriminalization of marijuana might be more workable. To throw people in jail for smoking a joint of marijuana is really destructive to everyone, including the taxpayer."   He later said he was not advocating decriminalization of pot, only suggesting that it "might be" one way to begin a more rational approach to drug fighting. "It is something we need more dialogue on," he added.   Anderson, a defense attorney, acknowledged to The Salt Lake Tribune in an interview in October that he had used marijuana as a young man.   The topic came up in the aftermath of a detailed 31-question survey submitted by the Deseret News to Anderson and rival mayoral candidate Stuart Reid during last year's Salt Lake City election.   Both candidates criticized the questionnaire as too personal. But Anderson answered a question about drug use by saying he had not used any illegal substances in the past 17 years -- a time corresponding with the age of his son. He declined to comment on his activities before that time, saying it was "no one's business."   Later in the mayoral campaign, however, the 48-year-old Anderson acknowledged to The Tribune that he had used marijuana more than 17 years earlier. The newspaper did not publish his admission because of its questionable relevancy at the time.   But with Anderson's newly launched public campaign advocating drug policy reforms, and his comments about the merit of considering decriminalization of marijuana, his previous admission gained relevance.   Anderson said he did not share the views of some speakers at the Shadow Convention who were clearly advocating the decriminalization of marijuana. Included among those was New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, a Republican.   "I'm far more conservative than a lot of people at this convention," said Anderson. He added that he supports criminal laws against the use of hard drugs such as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.   "One person in my life, whom I won't name, is addicted to crack cocaine," said Anderson.   He added that legal consequences facing her were "life-altering in very positive ways."    Tribune reporter Rebecca Walsh contributed to this report.    Published:  Wednesday, August 16, 2000 Source: Salt Lake Tribune (UT)Copyright: 2000 The Salt Lake TribuneContact: letters sltrib.comAddress: 143 S Main, Salt Lake City UT 84111Fax: (801)257-8950Website: http://www.sltrib.com/Forum: http://www.sltrib.com/tribtalk/ Related Articles & Web Sites:The Shadow Conventionshttp://www.shadowconventions.com/Rocky Slams War on Drugs During Shadow Conventionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6723.shtmlShadow Convention 2000 News Boardhttp://homepages.go.com/~marthag1/Shadcon.htm MapInc. Articles On The Shadow Conventions:http://mapinc.org/shadow.htm CannabisNews Articles On The Shadow Conventions:http://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=shadow 
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Comment #3 posted by dddd on August 17, 2000 at 05:15:51 PT
Bullworth
Natrous....Thanx,,,I'm gonna check out Bullworth... And to the Kapster;,,I am also tempted to trust Anderson.I get the feeling that if no one was watching,he would smile after taking a stout puff. I am amazed that he is the mayor of Salt Lake City!...I'm pretty sure it was Willie Nelson,who said about Salt Lake City;;;;"Narrow streets,and narrow minds"............dddd
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Comment #2 posted by Natrous on August 16, 2000 at 08:28:46 PT
Bullworth
I finally saw this movie about four days ago. It was interesting, because after a day of being infuriated (by the actions of the czar, narcs, people with their fingers in their ears saying over and over "drugs are bad! drugs are bad! drugs are bad!) the movie just happened to be playing. If you haven't seen it, I'd recommend it. Bullworth is a Senator who starts telling it like it is, for those who don't know.Among my favorite lines:"You want honest politicians? Give free press to all of them!"This following a rant about how the tv stations have vested intrests in what the pols say and do.The reason I bring all this up is because the kapt remined me of it when he mentioned tv. It's almost as if Warren Beatty (who wrote it) took all the lines directly from discussion boards like this... there's some really excellent statements and ideas there. And ironically, it was only in theaters for a few weeks...
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on August 16, 2000 at 07:25:00 PT:
More 'fire in the belly'!
Anderson is one pol I am tempted to trust. Like the brave Governor Johnson, his outspokenness did not appear to be grandstanding, but an honest expression that many of us have felt for a long time. I am reminded of an old movie whose title escapes me. It had to do with a somewhat unhinged TV commentator, who, after railing against the many injustices suffered by Americans, enjoined his listeners to go to their windows and shout to the world that they are "Mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore!!!" And they did.We here have already known for years that the DrugWar was 'roust' and a 'humbug'. But the average American was insulated from the ugly reality of what it was doing to our rights as a nation. The facade of the government as being the 'white hats' in this war was carefully scripted from the get-go. But the cancerous moles on the body politic caused by too much exposure to the DrugWar's tactics have become so noticeable that only the legally blind - or willfully so - could fail to see them. And some pols are starting to get on the bandwagon in pointing them out.Yep, many of us are 'mad as hell'. And we are not going to take it anymore. And some of the pols, whose fire in the belly has not gone out, are listening.
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