A brain on drugs

“WASHINGTON -- The Bush Administration spent nearly $3.5 million on two television commercials warning Americans who buy illegal drugs -- especially young people -- that they may be helping to fund terrorism.

About half of the international terrorist organizations identified by the United States have been linked to drug trafficking, said John Walters, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

"Our goal is to ... create awareness about the very link between drug use in this country and the funding of terror around the world," Walters said Monday. "We'll measure some of that awareness in subsequent surveys. But the ultimate goal here is to reduce drug use."

The first 30-second ad asks, "Where do terrorists get their money? If you buy drugs, some of it might come from you."

President Bush had no comment when asked how much he donated to terrorists via cocaine purchases he made during his 30's youthful indiscretions. "It was just innocent fun."

When asked if American's indulgence with gas-guzzling SUVs contributes to the oil revenues of states supporting terrorism (such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, etc.), Bush stated "America has an addiction to oil. We must not cut back on oil consumption for the sake of greedy corporations like Enron."”

“I see EVIL. My brain in not rotted from cocaine. Who is Kenneth Lay? Pretzels are trying to kill me.”

“If all the people who have ever bought drugs are indirectly responsible for all the deaths that the commercial implies,than so is anyone who has ever spent a dime in a casino in vegas or Atlantic City. Everyone knows that the majority of these establishments are run by organized crime syndacates. How many judges and cops do they kill a year. How much drugs do they push. You don't see any commercials telling you not to support the casinos. Can you guess why? Because the government makes to much $$$$$ off the casino's. Now if they were able to legalize drugs without a morral outcry from the majority of society, I think they would have done it long ago just to collect the tax $$. At least then we wouldn't have to sit and watch our tax dollars preach to us at a rate of $100,000 per second during the biggest game of the year!


Just my 2 cents.”

“Drugs suck.....”

“What about backpacking enhancing drugs??”

“Do they have such a thing?”

“over counter drugs are great!

lol”

“Maybe Dubya got his drugs from the "E" place?”

“I thought this was a thread about Tarpy!!! I thinking he was tripping on Tuesday...”

“Seems like a message that might work. Drugs = Terrorists might be enough to keep a few kids straight.”

“next thing you know they will come up with the rumor that terrorists are mixing anthrax spores into the cocaine that they sell just to get to the rich and powerful in this country - get that rumor going and a whole lot of coke heads will be switching to crack”

“WASHINGTON, DC -- The Super Bowl advertisements claiming that Americans who use illegal drugs help finance terrorists were dishonest, outrageous, and a waste of taxpayers' money, the Libertarian Party charged today. "These Super Bowl ads were Super Bowloney," said Ron Crickenberger, the
party's political director. "For the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy to claim that drug users are to blame for financing terrorists is like a maniac who kills his parents, and then throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan.

"The fact is, it's the War on Drugs that causes the very problem these ads complain about. The War on Drugs enriches terrorists, finances violence, and makes America less safe. And no amount of advertising spin can change that."

On Sunday, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) spent about $3.4 million to run two 30-second advertisements during the Super Bowl. It was the largest single government ad purchase in U.S. history.

One of the ads, which pretended to show a terrorist buying weapons, explosives, and fake passports, asked: "Where do terrorists get their money? If you buy drugs, some of it might come from you." In the other ad, young people matter-of-factly made statements like, "I helped kill a judge."

However, in reality, the War on Drugs -- not peaceful Americans who use drugs -- is responsible for funneling tens of billions of dollars into the hands of murderous terrorists, said Crickenberger.

According to the United Nations, the illegal drug trade is worth $400 billion a year, he noted. And according to the Hoover Institution, drug prohibition drives up the prices of drugs by about 17,000%.

"The War on Drugs is a price support system for terrorists and drug pushers," he said. "It turns ordinary, cheap plants like marijuana and poppies into fantastically lucrative black market products. Without the War on Drugs, the financial engine that fuels terrorist organizations would sputter to a halt."

That's not the only way the War on Drugs makes America more vulnerable to terrorists, said Crickenberger. The War on Drugs also misdirects police resources.

In 2000, for example, police arrested an estimated 734,498 people for marijuana violations, most for simple possession, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Report.

In addition, more than 8,000 military personnel participate in anti-
drug missions on U.S. soil, and more than 19,000 state and local police work full-time on drug cases. The total cost: About $50 billion a year at the federal, state, and local levels.

"Law enforcement agencies have only a finite amount of money, people, and time to investigate crimes," said Crickenberger. "It's clear that politicians have made the tragically ill-advised decision that detecting murderous terrorists is less important than arresting non-
violent Americans who choose to use marijuana or other drugs."

So who is really to blame for helping terrorists?

"Forget what you saw on the Super Bowl," said Crickenberger. "If you are looking for the real cause of the drugs and terrorism connection, you need look no further than the politicians who voted for the War on Drugs, the federal bureaucrats who administer it, and the ONDCP spin-
meisters who try to blame the 95 million Americans who have used illegal drugs."”

“You have to stop watching those "Godfather" movies and keep up with the times. The mob is out of the casino business now.

As for drugs, those who are for legalizing drugs are always going to come up with some lame rationalizations for doing so.”

“Anyone who watches TV is a direct supporter of false advertising campaigns such as this and is wasting our tax dollars! I say kill all the TV watching, scum bags.... KILL THEM ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“"If drug profits are criminal, only criminals will have drug profits."

I think that is a no-brainer. It is obvious than the criminalization of drugs creates huge profits for terrorist organizations and ruthless crime synidcates. Of course it is a bit more complicated than that.

While I do believe that the war on drugs does more harm than good, it is still true that people who purchase drugs that are provided by criminal organizations are contributing to the problem.

I really have no beef with people who grow/harvest/make their own. But I do believe that your right to alter your brain chemistry is less important than the choice not to support the illegal narcotics industry.”

“Do you do drugs?”

“if so, will you share? ;-)”

“There are many non-violent criminals sitting in jail due to drug convictions...for just possession. What about those folks?

Jail time and exorbanant fines is not the answer. Where's the justice, putting people with a *problem* in with uncontrolable nuisances to society who deserve to be incarcerated. Drug use needs to be treated as the problem that it is, a sickness, like alcoholism.”

“Hey Tarpy...thank for 9/11 ya richard.”

“One side feeds the other.....”

“Like our gov't hasn't done a thing, that in a round about way, supports the drug trade and terrorism! Sha!”

“Nigal,

You're welcome!”

“or do drugs do you?”

“"As for drugs, those who are for legalizing drugs are always going to come up with some lame rationalizations for doing so."

Gear Slut
07:13:41 AM
02/06/02

---

I have always been opposed to legalization, but I am now seriously reconsidering that position. The arguments for legalization, at least for marijuana, seem quite compelling to me right now.”

“De-criminalization FIRST...

...then maybe legalization.”

“Buddur, what's the difference?

(And who's Herb?)”

“Decriminilizing is where the cops turn a blind eye but its not on the books as legal. I think it's similar to what they have in Amsterdam. It's not technically legal but the cops just don't care. CA, of course, was the first state to take a step in that direction by allowing medical marijuana. A big, fat middle finger to the DEA who doesn't like it one bit. Of course, the DEA loves to put a pot smokers behind bars and then complain there's no room left in the prisons so they have to let the murderers and rapists out early. It's really a great system!”

“Legalize it and get the money out of the dirtbag's hands and into the tax kitty! It would open all kinds of economic industries such as the paper industry. As I said on the now defunked gunge thread, grow it, smoke it, fine. Pour money into the crime industry, smoke it, bad. Growing and tending something and then smoking it would be so much nicer too because it connects you to the earth it came from, yes?”

“Yup. Legalize it for personal consumption and allow every household to grow up to two ounces of their own. Sure. Keep it illegal to sell but don't penalize me for growing a weed in my own backyard.”

“I just don't want to see any sold to children. I son't want to see our hospitals and welfare system burdened with more brain fried druggies. I also don't want to see anyone else harmed. You think that taking drugs is a personal choice but it isn't when it starts having an impact others.”

“Good luck getting that threw the system. Hemp has many benifits and I'm not even talking about smoking. The lobbists and such will do there d@nmist to make sure that you go to jail for even thinkin' 'bout it.


"It aint fair, John Sinclair, ten for two, it just ain't fair..."”

“only 2 oz?”

“Nope, two rolled. It's an old "hub bub" from event that happened back in the early 70's. FBI wanted him off the streets and that's how they did it...”

“Anything more than two and they'd be able to make the argument you want to sell it.

GS: It seems to me that video games, the idiot box, McDonald's and general all around crappy parenting are creating more problems for today's children than drugs. Let's get our priorities straight here.”

“Does it seem fair to incarcerate someone, have him spend the night in jail, find bond, retain and pay attorney fees, go to a scheduled arraingment and face felony charges, fines and ultimately jail time for finding a small "personal" stach of magic mushrooms on a concert goer standing outside having fun in a festive crowd in the parking lot of the concertgrounds...rather than simply confiscating the contraband and sending the person on his merry way? Seems silly to me, but unfortunately that's the way it is in some parts of this country.”

“End Marijuana Prohibition!

www.norml.org”

“You know, it seems that the biggest problem with drugs is not the occasional use of them, but the addictive nature of them. Like alchoholism, drug addiction is a cause of family breakdown, bankruptcy and crime. The best solution would be to find a way to quickly and permanently "anti-addict" people of a substance that has negative affect on those people. Of course, some surgery mistakes might be encountered, but it would beat becoming someone's prison beeatch.”

“If you legalize consumption but keep distribution illegal, you potentially increase the demand for a product trafficked by criminals - even greater price support.”

“The surgery could be offered by an "arm" of the DEA....is that scary enough”

“I kinda thought you were trolling there Splash.

Is that any scarier than letting the Cali Cartel or the Gambinos do brain surgery piecemeal?”

“





Let's see if my html is forgotten”

“yep, gone!!!”

“No it's a bad link!”

“Those ads just hope you overlook the word "may" because then you can answer back, "maybe not."

And the campaign provides the perfect rationale for decriminalizing all drugs so that we can guarantee that they are produced here in the U.S. under good working conditions and proper quality control, with the SEC overseeing all investors in the new corporate drug industry that will spring up immediately. Remember, Buy American and Look for the Union Label.”

“Suckah's case sensitive???”

“What difference between marijuana and alcohol accounts for the fact that marijuana is illegal, while alcohol is not?

If marijuana was cheap, sold in regular retail establishments like cigs and alcohol, there would be no "pushers" targeting children. It would still be illegal to sell to/buy for minors.

Law enforcement, the court system, and the penal system would all be freed up to deal with serious crimes/criminals.”

“Drug users see themselves as victims not criminals. If the majority of Americans wanted to legalize drugs we would. We don't, so put that in your pipe and smoke it.”

“Tens of thousands of people killed annually in the US alone in alcohol-related accidents, let alone the greater number of innocent people who become crippled, mamed or vegetabilized, and yet alcohol is still legal and we're still allowed to drive to bars and drink??? Oh, it's OK...it's legal.”