cannabisnews.com: Record Pot Arrests Highlight Even Bigger Pot Lies










  Record Pot Arrests Highlight Even Bigger Pot Lies

Posted by CN Staff on September 24, 2007 at 16:57:51 PT
By Paul Armentano 
Source: Huffington Post 

USA -- If I had a dime for every time A law enforcement officer claimed that busting petty pot offenders wasn't their priority, then I might have enough loose change to compensate each of the 829,625 Americans arrested for marijuana violations in 2006. Of course, like most statistics related to the war on drugs, the 2006 arrest data -- released earlier today by the FBI -- raises far more questions than answers.
For instance: If busting minor marijuana offenders -- of those charged with pot violations in 2006, approximately 89 percent (some 738,915 Americans) were charged with possession only -- isn't a law enforcement priority, then why have pot busts increased nearly 200 percent over the past 15 years, increasing from a modern low of 287,850 in 1991 to the all-time record high set last year? Police will tell you that it's because there's a whole lot more Americans using pot these days. However, America's top drug cop -- US Drug Czar John Walters -- says differently, bragging earlier this month that pot use has been declining for the past five years. (Curiously, pot arrests have increased more than 15 percent during this time.) Not surprisingly, the Czar is contradicted by his own statistics. Specifically, recently published survey data compiled by the federal Office of Applied Studies (OAS) indicates that the number of reported 'regular' users of pot (defined as having used the drug at least once over a 30-day period) has actually increased slightly -- from 14.6 million users in 2005 to 14.8 million in 2006. (Archived federal survey data indicates that this total has hovered consistently around 14 to 15 million users for most of the past decade.) Nevertheless, if the overall number of regular pot users has remained stagnant at a mere 14 million or so over the past few years, then just who the hell is making up the 700,000 to 800,000 Americans being arrested each year for smoking weed? After all, if we're to take both the FBI and OAS data at face value, then one could assume that some 8 million Americans -- or more than half of the American pot smoking population -- have been busted over the past ten years! Or, one can conclude that the federal survey's supposed pot data -- much like the claims of the Drug Czar and local law enforcement -- is most likely just a crock. Paul Armentano is the senior policy analyst for NORML and the NORML Foundation. He may be contacted via e-mail at: paul norml.org Marijuana Arrests For Year 2006 – 829,625 Tops Record High: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7370Source: Huffington Post (NY)Author:  Paul Armentano Published: September 24, 2007Copyright: 2007 HuffingtonPost.com, LLC Contact: scoop huffingtonpost.comWebsite: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/NORMLhttp://www.norml.org/CannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml

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Comment #32 posted by FoM on September 26, 2007 at 06:49:01 PT
whig
Our 25 acres is broken up into 5 acre tracts. We barely pay anything on the land that doesn't have a home on them which is good. We have 3 houses, a very big barn ( 80 by 132 feet ) and two garages that are the bulk of the tax. I know that our new Governor is working on sealing taxes on seniors and Obama said something about it too. That would help people who are on a fixed income. At some point taxes must stop increasing or the state will wind up housing elderly people because they won't be able to afford to stay in their home. We have home health, hospice and meals on wheels that help rural seniors that are ill to stay in their home and that's a good thing and way cheaper then a retirement home. 
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Comment #31 posted by whig on September 25, 2007 at 22:23:53 PT
FoM
That's why I think it's better to tax only the land value and not the house or building because why should someone destroy a perfectly good house to save taxes? I understand why, I mean, but why should that be something economically sensible?
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Comment #30 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 18:21:23 PT
OverwhelmSam
Sure they could but they won't. The more rural people are the easier it is to get by. The people won't take it. Our neighbor had his taxes go up on a home he inherited that needed a lot of work and instead of paying more taxes he burnt and bulldozed it down. Rural folks are like that so they don't push them as much.
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Comment #29 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 25, 2007 at 18:15:51 PT
FoM
And if the county raises annual property taxes to $50,000? My point is that until the people get control of the government, they can do anything they want.
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Comment #28 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 17:13:00 PT
OverwhelmSam 
We checked into Eminent Domain issues before we bought our land. When you buy land it better be far away from everything because they won't want it for anything. Our state is working on that issue too. Also when you live in a poor county your taxes aren't as high so they are affordable.Whig I agree with what you said. Our house is still worth about what it was a year or two ago. It didn't go up like many areas. You can still buy a house in the 30s in a town near us. Houses are realistically priced in non boom areas. 
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Comment #27 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 25, 2007 at 16:51:55 PT
Coming To A Neighborhood Near You
Ever see a ghost town? What if all of a sudden there were no services near you? Permanently interrupt the water supply to Las Vegas and property values would plunge to zero overnight. No electricity, no water, no sewer, no fuel, no food, Real Estate markets can be devastated, especially when banks, businesses and services fail. The wise understand how to self sustain if necessary. I learned that in the Boy Scouts.As far as owning a home and land and home are concerned: It used to be that you could own real property out right, but with property taxes and the power of escheat and condemnation, the government can take your property anytime and for just about any reason they want. Not much difference between paying rent, and a house payment except that you have a few more rights pertaining to modifications and disposition as a home owner. 
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Comment #26 posted by whig on September 25, 2007 at 16:42:56 PT
Housing prices
It's actually a good thing for the average person that housing prices fall, because presently they are unaffordable for many people. For homeowners, it doesn't seem like as good a deal but if your home is what you live in what does it matter what it is worth? And if your home value falls when the rest of the country's housing values are also falling, it won't be any harder (or easier) to trade your present house for a new one.The people who are getting pinched are those who loan or borrow lots of money on real estate values; and those who make unsuitable loans to unqualified borrowers have been rewarded with big commissions for years now. There is a reckoning.
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Comment #25 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 16:39:10 PT
OverwhelmSam
Since I am not into guns I would raise Rotts again and they would protect me as best as anyone would be protected. We have a gun, if I would need one, but we don't keep in on our property. I don't like even being around them. I don't know anyone that likes guns around here. We could buy meat from our neighbors and eggs from our neighbors. Rural America has a lot of advantages. We have plenty of wood for heat too. 
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Comment #24 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 16:34:31 PT
OverwhelmSam
I have always been afraid to live in a city because when we go down many people will be hurt. Back in the 70s we knew this would happen and many of us made decision about how to live for that reason. The hippies were right and we knew that.
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Comment #23 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 16:31:35 PT
OverwhelmSam 
I don't think the housing industry will totally go away but people who paid a lot of money for a home could lose a lot of money. A home is to live in and ultimately own free and clear but not as an investment I don't think A house is more secure then investing in the stock market I believe. As long as we keep getting more people in the USA, houses will be built to fill that need or a person who owns a rental can jack up the price and make money if they have less houses being built. I believe that a home is our best investment if we plan on staying in it for many years.
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Comment #22 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 25, 2007 at 16:31:16 PT
FoM
When the dollar becomes worhtless, I predict a lot more carnage. I've studied the depression and violent crime went through the roof when everyone lost everything. Especially in the cities. I have a really nice tent I got from Walmart, two bedroom one bath, and supplies at the ready. Having been tactical in the military, I can easily live out on the land. It will be like in the old West, just watch out for bush wackers.
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Comment #21 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 16:22:39 PT
OverwhelmSam 
Soon we will all be making the wages of 3rd world countries. I agree get ready to tightened our belts, go back to clipping coupons, stay home and don't waste money and survive. Even the trucking industry will be seriously affected by the mexican trucks coming into and around the whole United States. I am glad our equipment is paid off and our mortgage isn't high or I'd be very worried.
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Comment #20 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 25, 2007 at 16:15:43 PT
It's All Going Down The Tubes Anyway
Developing the people's clout enough to stop the drug war, or the war in Iraq means more than just showing the government who's boss. If we don't stop the government, the monetary system is going down and us with it. Probably right about the time Social Security shuts down, housing prices fall to about $5,000 or free and the national debt is so high that it cannot be repaid. I recommend the storage of canned goods, lots of them. And get a gun lest you discover human nature when everyone is starving. In the mean time, I think I'll smoke this bowl. Click!
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Comment #19 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 14:47:29 PT
kaptinemo
I don't know people where money is their primary issue. I haven't been around people that care about money but they do care about being fair to the citizens of the USA. They just keep printing more money so money doesn't mean much really.
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Comment #18 posted by kaptinemo on September 25, 2007 at 14:42:36 PT:
If I haven't made it clear enough, my apologies. 
I'll try again. The Average American doesn't think more than a nanosecond on this issue because it has never been explained to him/her just how the bi-weekly rape of their paychecks funds what amounts to a con game cum Russian Roulette enforced with guns...or who the real beneficiaries of it are. Glowing talk about preserving freedom and ringing denunciations about eroding civil liberties just doesn't register. Ever. It only makes sense to the ones who are already aware of the problems attendant to the prosecution of the DrugWar - or when it finally does affect them personally...or their offspring, i.e., such as said offspring not being able to get a school loan to enter college because of a drug conviction. Again, they do take notice when money is involved.I can't make it any plainer without getting insulting. Joe Sixpack does not believe that the Bill of Rights is essentially null-and-void. The damage began with the DrugWar. We know it...and so do the people responsible for making it so. Yet the latter can wrap themselves in a flag, work in a government office, and 'jones' for ever more destructive laws to build their power base at the expense of the citizens (which just goes to show that power is the most addictive drug of all). And Joe Sixpack listens to such with nary a blip.But...when you talk money, ah, here's where it starts to get interesting. Ask ol' Joe (and Josephine, lest anyone think I'm being a sexist) how much it costs to lock up a cannabist...and then tell them. Seeing as ol' Joe/Josephine may have had a more than a passing acquaintance with the herb in the past, it makes it personal, given that 70-90 million Americans have admitted as much. Then ask him why his local and State reps don't have money for schools, roads, etc. Then tell him it's partly because so much of what he had to go through to earn is paying for locking up those cannabists. Ding! Ding! Ding! Watch the eyes light up...and the face turn hard when he/she realizes that this is a con...and they are the marks. They don't like it one bit.This is what I am talking about. If you wish to argue ethics with folks, you'll find that few can agree on the ethic of the DrugWar. But point out all the money wasted, and you find almost instant agreement save amongst the most hardened True Believer DrugWar supporters...who are in fact a tiny, tiny minority.In this country, money is the primary consideration for the vast majority of people; if ethics were a concern of the vast majority of the population, then we wouldn't be in Iraq right now, hmmmmm? What we've done there isn't exactly kosher, but it doesn't seem to bother most Americans to really do something about it...just like the DrugWar. But mention how much money it's costing, and watch faces get red. A sad but true commentary on our times...but one we must acknowledge.
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Comment #17 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 14:25:45 PT

NikoKun 
You asked: Why are we taking it out on pot smokers?Because pot people are mostly nice people and they don't threatened the police. The drug war would fall apart without marijuana. 
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Comment #16 posted by NikoKun on September 25, 2007 at 14:09:21 PT

Congratulations...
To the DEA and others who think prohibition is the right thing to do... for they and their drug policies have, are, and will continue to cause more harm to the lives of Americans, than all the drugs combined could ever hoped to have caused on their own.These policies are counterproductive and cause more harm to people than they solve... they cause way more harm than the drugs originally were causing...Lets end this hypocritical war on drugs... for the good of our country!Besides, these are arrests for pot... not hard more dangerous drugs... Why are we taking it out on pot smokers?
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Comment #15 posted by whig on September 25, 2007 at 11:26:14 PT

kaptinemo
Anyone who is motivated purely by monetary considerations is not an ally of mine.
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Comment #14 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 25, 2007 at 09:25:19 PT

No Sweat Off of the Average American's Balls
The average American could give a shit less. Heck, they don't even know who is Vice President. I blame American citizens in general for the hateful policies. As far as money is concerned, in the government's eyes, twenty billion is only a token amount. Please don't encourage them to spend more. 
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Comment #13 posted by dongenero on September 25, 2007 at 07:51:05 PT

kaptinemo is probably correct
The average US citizens are apathetic to the issues of freedom beyond their own little world.Can I get my SUV where I need to go, get the kids to soccer, make it to work on time and then get home to see the game or the NASCAR race?Freedom? Constitution? Civil Rights? Bill of Rights?
Hmmm, let's get a beer, it's kick-off time.This is just the way many in power want it. No need to pay attention. That's what your benevolent rulers are here for.
Don't worry your pretty heads. The season openers are beginning, enjoy!It's cynical, yes, but I fear it's true for a large part of our population these days. That doesn't bode well for a vital, functional democracy.

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Comment #12 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 07:32:25 PT

kaptinemo
I'm not sure what you mean about money. When I look at marijuana reform I always think of the morality of having good people locked up over a medicinal plant. Money never plays into my thoughts. This is a social issue to me and it always has been. I don't think I am a civil libertarian but I actually have no idea what one is.
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 06:59:39 PT

potpal
Thank you. I have the article posted now.
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Comment #10 posted by potpal on September 25, 2007 at 06:44:37 PT

foolish feds
http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/62330/ 
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Comment #9 posted by kaptinemo on September 25, 2007 at 06:17:05 PT:

The issue is focused incorrectly
In the "Land of the Dollar Bill", the emphasis should be on the amount of taxpayer's dollars that were spent in the process of arrest and incarceration. Numbers of cannabists arrested makes nary a blip on Joe Sixpack's radar screen, but mention the money wasted in the process that could have gone into his wallet instead, and watch the eyes light up. Civil libertarian causes don't excite Joe Sixpack; face it, he's just not interested. Really. He has no conception of just how the DrugWar threatens him, if only by accident - Kathryn Johnston, anyone? - and wouldn't believe you. Bad things like that only happen to bad people...and if somebody gets hurt, they must have been doing something bad that hadn't been discovered yet; the police will let us know what they find out, right? Yeah, right after they cover up their incompetence in conducting a botched raid on the wrong house based on the lead and killed an old woman defending her home against what she thought were local thugs (well, weren't they?) , as was her Constitutional right under the 2nd Amendment . You've got to talk money, money, money to get the attention of those who naively believe they are not affected by all this. They could care less otherwise...unless they survive that kind of wrong-house raid. 
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Comment #8 posted by potpal on September 25, 2007 at 06:16:03 PT

foolish feds
http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/62330/ 
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on September 25, 2007 at 06:00:00 PT

Pot Lobbyists Target Conservatives in New York
Pot Lobbyists Target Conservatives in New York Legalization Drive ***By Jason RhynePublished: Tuesday September 25, 2007 Since 1996, 12 US states have enacted legislation permitting medical use of marijuana, prescribed under the supervision of a doctor, to patients who are seriously ill. Earlier this month, the Marijuana Policy Project, a top D.C. pot lobby group, announced it had designs on number 13: New York.While it is no surprise that New York and its blue-tinged electorate would make a logical target for the medical legalization push -- not to mention a nice East Coast bookend for advocates' successes in California ten years ago -- the pot policy group's tactics in the Empire State are not so predictable.They're wooing conservatives."We're focusing on Republicans in New York swing districts," the group's communications director, Bruce Mirken, told RAW STORY. "Places where these people are not dead certain they're going to win their elections."Complete Article: http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Pot_lobbyists_target_conservatives_in_New_0925.html
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Comment #6 posted by unkat27 on September 25, 2007 at 05:58:49 PT

Busting Pot Users is Collective Punishment
From what i recall and in answer to why busting pot users IS a priority, at least in principle, for the DEA and the Partnership for a Drug-Free America ilk, rests almost completely on the idea that they have to whip us to send a warning to the kids about the "dangers" of using marijuana.It is a form of collective punishment because it is being used to send a message to everyone, especially the kids (whom they fear so much for), that using marijuana will make ones life more difficult. It is collective punishment because, regardless of whether we are kids or adults, busting people for using marijuana is a form of punishment that makes us suffer, not simply for our own actions, but to send a message to everyone else that uses it, and that mesasage is, "if you use marijuana, we will hurt you!"Mandatory minimums for marijuana possession were established with this same message in mind. Despite all scientific evidence that marijuana is not a dangerous drug, the ruling-class fascists want to make us all suffer for using it, because they are sadistic control-freaks that don't like working-class people that think for themselves and they want to have as much control over our minds, our thoughts, and our lives as they can possibly maintain.The war on drugs and on cannabis gives them that edge. 
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Comment #5 posted by Toker00 on September 25, 2007 at 03:31:00 PT

The Disillusionaries: Four Public Awareness Questi
ons.This is so embarrassing. Will someone please go out into their community and conduct this survey so we can compare other parts of the country to see if the entire United States population is this stupid???http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/september2007/240907_b_Disillusionaries.htmToke.
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Comment #4 posted by Toker00 on September 25, 2007 at 02:53:19 PT

OT: Ron Paul and the War on Drugs.
Ron Paul chumps a chump on the War on Drugs.http://houston911truth.org/Toke.

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Comment #3 posted by FoM on September 24, 2007 at 19:41:47 PT

Taylor121
That's really good to hear. 
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Comment #2 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 24, 2007 at 18:40:54 PT

We're Number One! 
Frankly, I just don't know what to say. Time to vote everyone out of Congress, have a change of the guard in '08. The people in Congress now are not working for the people. At least I can light up and laugh at it all. 
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Comment #1 posted by Taylor121 on September 24, 2007 at 18:04:56 PT

Libertyindex back up
Just thought I would pass on that my blog is back up and running.http://libertyindex.blogspot.com
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