OFFICIAL WHITE HOUSE RESPONSE TO Legalize and Regulate Marijuana

[Ichingcarpenter]

What We Have to Say About Legalizing Marijuana
By: Gil Kerlikowske

When the President took office, he directed all of his policymakers to develop policies based on science and research, not ideology or politics. So our concern about marijuana is based on what the science tells us about the drug's effects.

According to scientists at the National Institutes of Health- the world's largest source of drug abuse research - marijuana use is associated with addiction, respiratory disease, and cognitive impairment. We know from an array of treatment admission information and Federal data that marijuana use is a significant source for voluntary drug treatment admissions and visits to emergency rooms. Studies also reveal that marijuana potency has almost tripled over the past 20 years, raising serious concerns about what this means for public health – especially among young people who use the drug because research shows their brains continue to develop well into their 20's. Simply put, it is not a benign drug.

Like many, we are interested in the potential marijuana may have in providing relief to individuals diagnosed with certain serious illnesses. That is why we ardently support ongoing research into determining what components of the marijuana plant can be used as medicine. To date, however, neither the FDA nor the Institute of Medicine have found smoked marijuana to meet the modern standard for safe or effective medicine for any condition.

As a former police chief, I recognize we are not going to arrest our way out of the problem. We also recognize that legalizing marijuana would not provide the answer to any of the health, social, youth education, criminal justice, and community quality of life challenges associated with drug use.

That is why the President's National Drug Control Strategy is balanced and comprehensive, emphasizing prevention and treatment while at the same time supporting innovative law enforcement efforts that protect public safety and disrupt the supply of drugs entering our communities. Preventing drug use is the most cost-effective way to reduce drug use and its consequences in America. And, as we've seen in our work through community coalitions across the country, this approach works in making communities healthier and safer. We're also focused on expanding access to drug treatment for addicts. Treatment works. In fact, millions of Americans are in successful recovery for drug and alcoholism today. And through our work with innovative drug courts across the Nation, we are improving our criminal justice system to divert non-violent offenders into treatment.

Our commitment to a balanced approach to drug control is real. This last fiscal year alone, the Federal Government spent over $10 billion on drug education and treatment programs compared to just over $9 billion on drug related law enforcement in the U.S.

Thank you for making your voice heard. I encourage you to take a moment to read about the President's approach to drug control to learn more.

Resources:

National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Marijuana Facts (ONDCP)
Drug Abuse Warning Network (HHS)
Treatment Episode Data Set (HHS)
National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS)
Monitoring the Future Survey, University of Michigan
Gil Kerlikowske is Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy


https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions#!/response/what-w...
Bullshit, lies and propaganda..... the administration lied

I was asked to repost this because someone thought I did it as a personal attack
even thought it remained for 14 hours.
please nominate again to show the administration's hypocrisy and false statements
they have issued over the years.

[Poll_Blind]

1. I see. Only when big pharma can produce it. Lovely. I love this quote too:

"To date, however, neither the FDA nor the Institute of Medicine have found smoked marijuana to meet the modern standard for safe or effective medicine for any condition."

Heh heh, you mean safe like Lamisil? Makes the toenail fungus go away but might also destroy your liver? LOL.

The administration could move this through if they wanted to. They don't.

PB

[krispos42]

2. "marijuana use is a significant source for voluntary drug treatment admissions"

Yeah, I bet it's voluntary. :eyes:

[Fozzledick]

3. A few words to describe this disingenuous obscenity (without using lesser obscenities)

Machiavellian

Orwellian

Boolean value of zero

treasonous betrayal

Big Lie (specific historical meaning)

gross fraud (specific legal meaning)

satanic (original Hebrew meaning)

Satanic (later Christian meaning)

[Uncle Joe]

5. Well done, Fozzledick and not a cuss-word in the bunch, but I believe you nailed it.

:thumbsup:

[Angleae]

4. "marijuana use is associated with addiction, respiratory disease, and cognitive impairment"

Alcohol is associated with addiction, liver disease, and cognitive impairment. It's also a "significant source for voluntary drug treatment admissions and visits to emergency rooms." Yet it's legal.

[Tiggeroshii]

6. Reminds me of one of those automatic emails from my Republican congressman

...and just about as genuine

[inna]

7. "marijuana use is a significant source for visits to emergency rooms"?? WTF are they smoking??

seriously, :wtf:


k&r for info

[Fumesucker]

14. I think that might have been the cop who ate the brownies and thought he was gonna die..

http://www.911lol.com/911-calls/2010/02/cop-eats-pot-brownies-calls-911/

[rusty fender]

8. So the Obama admin. is against all medical marijuana

that is self-administered because their "studies" show that smoking marijuana is not a sufficiently effective way to administer the palliative and beneficial properties of marijuana. Bullshit! Smoking marijuana is a very effective way for pain and nausea relief. What a bunch of crap the DEA and the Obama admin. are trying to get us to swallow.:puke:

[Tsiyu]

9. Kerlikowske- SHAME on you for these blatant lies

You sound like a cheerleader for FOR-PROFIT prisons and Big PHARMA, not like a man who has any honesty in his character at all.

In the first place, cannabis laws are destroying lives. To claim that there will be no relief in legalization is the Mother of All Lies. The War on a Plant is tearing families apart, destroying young peoples' lives before they've even begun, and costing American taxpayers billions.

Imagine how much disposable income there would be in this country if 40% of incarcerations for cannabis were not our reality? Imagine the money spent on lawyers, court costs, fines and jail "bills" being put back in the economy. Imagine the kids who plead to felonies to avoid prison having their rights back - the right to vote, attend college, travel. Imagine parents being re-united with their kids....

To pretend that this War is not harming Americans more than cannabis ever did is shameful. Disgraceful.

We Americans are being treated like pawns, just to make LAw enforcement, Pharma and For-profit prisons RICH beyond their wildest dreams.

The Obama administration should be ashamed.

SHAME on you Obama. Right now, if I lived in a state where it was legal, I'd be firing up a fat one just so I don't say what I really want to say.

REGULATE BANKS, the INSURANCE INDUSTRY, PHARMA (who spew out billions of dangerous drugs every day for profit while you turn your pretty heads), not a PLANT, you self-serving, greedy politicians.

Enough is enough. And STOP LYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hootinholler]

10. Paging Fly By Night!

I would love to hear his rebuttal to this.

[RainDog]

16. I'm not fly by night

but I posted this on the earlier thread and reposted in this one.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=2209522&mesg_id=2209565

[derby378]

11. Part of the problem could be in how the dispensaries presented themselves

As far as I know, the dispensaries in CA only provided marijuana to those who had legitimate doctor's prescriptions, which is fine with me. However, the various crops offered for sale were often sold with labels you might expect to find at an Amsterdam hash bar, with little attempt to standardize potency or quality control.

One other problem (which is not the fault of the dispensaries by any stretch) is the sourcing of all this marijuana from growers in California, Texas, Kentucky, Tennessee, and south of the border - and only the California growers were technically legal as far as state law was concerned.

I want the Tenth Amendment brought to bear so that these dispensaries get a little more breathing room.

[slay]

12. THANKS FOR REPOSTING THIS Ichingcarpenter! I can't believe it was locked earlier

very uncalled for by the mod - who will probably delete my post now - hell the mods have been on a deleting rampage the last few days. fuck it i'll repost this if i have to. big K&R to call out the white house on their bullshit propaganda. i'll re-post my comments from the unnecessarily locked thread as well.

[slay]

13. What a steaming pile of shit. Vaporizers and cooking it kill their respiratory BS argument

i expected WAY more from Obama. the drug war is bullshit enriching criminals and keeping regular smokers down and poor - just how they like it - people divided - think of all the tax money to be had that just vanished now - and we REALLY need it now! let people be free to smoke if they want! the Obama admin is SO FUCKING OWNED by the pharmaceutical companies. i can not vote for this shit to continue - he's lost my vote. fuck it i'll write in willie nelson.

[Fumesucker]

15. For your viewing pleasure..

[Fozzledick]

17. and then...

[ellisonz]

18. "and visits to emergency rooms."

Seriously? Time to take away the booze and cigarettes:rofl:

[Danascot]

19. "As a former police chief..."

Figures

A lot of the administration's problem has been hiring the wrong people.

[shanti]

24. hiring?

the old crew seemingly never left!

[slay]

20. Well, you know what this means...

we just say - fuck you white house - and keep on smokin. :evilgrin: seriously we're adults - wtf. their propaganda is failing fast.

what a stupid waste of lots of potential money - we need tax money right now - people are gonna smoke - let them - and tax it. keeping it illegal is so stupid, in so many ways, it just doesn't even make sense logically.

[Ichingcarpenter]

21. NORML takes apart the bullshit White House response with FACTS and studies

The article breaks down each BULLSHIT point with scientific studies, more graphs and rebuttals

[Ichingcarpenter]

22. Why did President Obama appoint Gil Kerlikowske

n 2009 President Obama appointed former police chief Gil Kerlikowske as head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, a position informally referred to as 'drug czar.' When President Obama took office there was a great deal of hope that he would move to end the failed war on drugs. Indeed, candidate Obama had made repeated statements that he would do so. Unfortunately, despite his past statements and the wishes of most Americans, the Obama administration has only intensified counter-productive law enforcement efforts.

What can explain that sudden shift in policy? It cannot be because doing otherwise would be unpopular, nor is it the case that doing so would such changes would imperil efforts to control increasingly terroristic drug cartels. Even as the Obama administration has been stepping up enforcement efforts there has been a growing consensus that prohibitionistic policies are a part of the problem. Foreign leaders like Felipe Calderon and Juan Manuel Santos have called for the exploration of market-based solutions that would stop the revenue from marijuana sales going to violent cartels. They aren't alone. Recently the U.N.'s Global Commission on Drug policy, made up of former Presidents from Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia, endorsed the same solution.

It is doubtful that the continuation of the drug war has been a result of President Obama's direct efforts. After all, the President of the United States is a very busy man. Drug policy is carried out by political appointees, in this case Mr. Kerlikowske. A brief look at the personal history of Kerlikowske reveals shocking misconduct that ought to render him unfit for his office. That he was appointed by President Obama is, at best, evidence of remarkable hypocrisy on the part of the administration.

In 2007 Kerlikowske was the Chief of the Seattle PD. In this capacity he made exceptional efforts to protect officers accused of wrongdoing despite the existence of clear video and audio evidence against them. In one case an artist with no criminal record was beaten while officers made racially inflammatory statements. Forensic evidence and one case an artist with no criminal record was beaten while officers made racially inflammatory statements. Forensic evidence and recorded audio validated the artist's story, and the office overseeing cases of police misconduct found two of the officers guilty of using excessive force. Chief Kerlikowske overruled that finding on a technicality resulting from misplaced paperwork, allowing the responsible officers to escape any punishment.


More about him at

http://plusroyalistequeleroi.blogspot.com/2011/10/why-did-president-obama-appoint-gil.html

[Xicano]

23. Well, there's your answer and its a big fuck you and lies right to our faces.

What a shame.