Monthly Archives: November 2007

Eliminate Racist Drug Laws

This entry was posted in Drug Laws on by

Papa’s headline reads Congress Must Fix Racist Crack/Powder Disparity Laws

Criminal penalties for possession and sales of cocaine are severe. But the penalties for crack cocaine are much more severe, despite the fact that pharmacologically they are the same drug. If these suggested changes, take affect and are applied retroactively, it will do a lot to balance the scales of justice in reforming a bad law that has dished out unfair sentences to people convicted of crack cocaine offenses.

Within its context this is right. There is no excuse for the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine. In fact, any sentence related to the drug trade is unfair.
Fixing this bit of congressional stupidity does nothing though to fix the problem and relatively little to fix the racist aspects of the drug war.
The problem is the drug war itself. Our supposed public servants have no business in the prohibition business.
Remove the anti-drug laws now and receive a myriad of benefits including, inter alia, a rapid reduction in jail and prison population, substantially reduced law enforcement budgets, improved relations with drug producing countries and their people, dramatically reduced drug prices by eliminating the risk premium and an end to drug trade related violence. And, yes, it will eliminate the massive racial bias in drug law enforcement and sentencing that has existed for decades

STOP THE DRUG WAR.

Tuesday Skritch’n

This entry was posted in Bird Blogging Cat Blogging Dog Blogging Invertebrate Blogging on by

Need to relax after a long weekend of housecleaning? Well, I do!
Let’s go skritch’m:

If you prefer dogs a few boarded last week’s Friday Ark. For feathers head over to I and the Bird #61 and if you need things a bit squishier try out Circus of the Spineless #26.

Enjoy!

Friday Ark #164

This entry was posted in Bird Blogging Cat Blogging Dog Blogging Entymology Friday Ark Invertebrate Blogging Pet Blogging Pets Weekend Cat Blogging Weekend Dog Blogging on by

We’ll post links to sites that have Friday (plus or minus a few days) photos of their chosen animals (photoshops at our discretion and humans only in supporting roles). Watch the Exception category for rocks, beer, coffee cups, and….?

Visit all the boarders, Link to the Ark and check back for updates through Sunday afternoon!

You can find out how to board the Friday Ark at the Arkive page.

Cats

High Bribery?

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Maybe, maybe not.
But in whose pocket is this money ending up:

In fact, however, a considerable amount of the money the U.S. gives to Pakistan is administered not through U.S. agencies or joint U.S.-Pakistani programs. Instead, the U.S. gives Musharraf’s government about $200 million annually and his military $100 million monthly in the form of direct cash transfers.

Shouldn’t there be some public accounting of how this money, or any foreign aid, is being used?
dear leader and his little helpers would argue that once they have taken it from us or borrowed it from the Chinese we have no right to know. This is, of course, wrong. A government doing the people’s business must be completely transparent!

Via Danger Room.

Having Drank the democrat’s Kool-Aid

This entry was posted in bush administration cheney Democrats on by

Bob Cesca paints a glowing expectation of democratic party behavior:

Public perception can beat the shit out of political nuance. The Bush Republicans know this and they have abused it for their own nefarious ends. The Democrats, on the other hand, have somehow overlooked this very basic rule of 21st Century American politics, which is a shame since they would more often than not use it for the betterment of the nation.

If only the betterment of the nation were their goal….
Cesca spends the rest of this otherwise excellent article berating the dems for their abject failure to work toward the betterment of the nation since taking control of congress.
There is no reason to expect anything different anytime soon. As Arthur notes;

This is where we’ve come: two criminal gangs run the United States from Washington. Neither of them understands the supreme and sacred value of an individual human life. Neither understands any matter of principle relating to liberty or peace. Both of them are intent upon power, no matter how many innocent people must die, and regardless of how many countries must be destroyed, including our own.
This is your government today. Two murdering, thieving, plundering, power-mad gangs, both of which deserve the worst fate that can be imagined. These are the people who will rule you for years to come.

If you are going to be a democrat or a republican you should own up to the thuggery you are supporting. Nora and John, there really is an alternative.
Being an independent feels pretty good right now.