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Speaker: The beginning of the end of the Drug War

9 Responses

  • Kumara Republic,

    But it wasn’t until a man named William Bennett became the first ever ‘Drug Czar’, that the conflict took off. Bennett, with his policies driven by fear and moral conservatism, turned America’s law enforcement apparatus into a machine for chewing up human — mainly Black and Latin — lives.

    Where there's smoke there's fire. William Bennett also happens to think gangsta rap (not that I'm a diehard fan of it) and video games are right down there with weed.

    The southernmost capital … • Since Nov 2006 • 5446 posts Report Reply

  • Mark Graham,

    Brilliant. Love to help.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 218 posts Report Reply

  • Rob Stowell,

    I'm hanging out to celebrate the Drug Peace :)

    Whakaraupo • Since Nov 2006 • 2120 posts Report Reply

  • Jackson James Wood, in reply to Rob Stowell,

    I'm hanging out to celebrate the Drug Peace

    That was something else that Nadelman was talking about. What happens next. Well there are all sorts of other things to keep us busy on the human rights front, because it's not just about drugs, it's about racism and inequality too.

    New Zealand • Since May 2011 • 21 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Jackson James Wood,

    because it’s not just about drugs, it’s about racism and inequality too.

    I have a Matters of Substance story coming up based on interviews with Maori MPs about drug law. There is a quite a range of positions, but a broad recognition of the way the justice system hurts Maori.

    But man, I think we need everyone to have a clear understanding of words like "decriminalisation", because that's not the case right now.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Steve Barnes, in reply to Rob Stowell,

    I’m hanging out to celebrate the Drug Peace :)

    I thought that about the Cod Wars…

    Joking aside, we have to realise a vast industry has grown up around the demonisation of drugs, the “Meth House Cleaners” for a start.
    It cost as much to “clean” a house as it does to refurbish the entire property, around $30,000 and how is it even necessary to have to “clean” a house after the consumption of 2 or 3 “pipes”?.
    It is as bad as the Asbestos over reaction.

    Peria • Since Dec 2006 • 5521 posts Report Reply

  • tussock,

    There's stuff from political folk in the US that said the whole point of the drug laws in the 80's was a new way to criminalise and ostracise black people by the Republican party. It's not that the harshest laws hit the minorities hardest, it's that attacking minorities was the whole point of the thing.

    When they talked about "inner city drug problems" it was just dog-whistle politics. It got votes because it really only hurt black people and everyone knew that. Ferguson running the city budget on crazy fines for black people and the associated riots and brutal enforcement aren't new there.

    Or here, really. "Māori privilege", "Māori violence in the home", "Māori underachievement", and all that. How we help by having the state steal more land and sell it to keep taxes lower. Still.

    These days it's the "war on terror", which is obviously there to harass people of the currently demonised ethnicity who have something we want, which is exactly why people vote for it.

    Since Nov 2006 • 611 posts Report Reply

  • Rich of Observationz, in reply to Steve Barnes,

    The "Meth House Cleaning Industry" reminds me of Breaking Bad's Vamonos Pest, where they use a house fumigation company as cover for their meth lab. Taking this one stage further, a miscreant could use a meth lab cleanup firm as cover to run their own meth lab for a few days before they finish their "cleanup".

    Back in Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 5550 posts Report Reply

  • Jackson James Wood, in reply to Rich of Observationz,

    Now there's an idea…

    New Zealand • Since May 2011 • 21 posts Report Reply

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