Drug law and policy being reviewed!

I'm thinking I am in a dream. Okay it was Killer to watch march 31st news show of DemocracyNow where they exposed Vice President Cheney's assassination program but I get a letter from Norml today that tells me our representatives are going to review drug policy and law..

I am pinching myself.. OUCH!

Then it must be true our Government is actually doing their jobs on this issue..

Below is a copy of that Norml letter

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Support The National Criminal Justice Act of 2009!

Congressmen Jim Webb (D-VA) and Arlen Specter (R-PA), along with fifteen co-sponsors, have introduced legislation in the US Senate to critically evaluate America's drugs and prisons policies.

The bill, Senate Bill 714, the National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009, is now before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

As introduced, the proposal would establish a blue-ribbon commission to "undertake a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system; make findings related to current Federal and State criminal justice policies and practices; and make reform recommendations for the President, Congress, and State governments to improve public safety, cost-effectiveness, overall prison administration, and fairness in the implementation of the Nation's criminal justice system."

Specifically, the Commission will examine "current drug policy and its impact on incarceration, crime and violence, sentencing, and reentry programs, [including] an analysis of the general availability of drugs in our society, the impact and effectiveness of current policies on reducing that availability and on the incidence of crime, and in the case of criminal offenders, the availability of drug treatment programs before, during, and after incarceration."

Writing this past weekend in Parade Magazine, Sen. Webb stated: "Drug offenders, most of them passive users or minor dealers, are swamping our prisons. ... Justice statistics ... show that 47.5% of all the drug arrests in our country in 2007 were for marijuana offenses."

"America's criminal justice system has deteriorated to the point that it is a national disgrace. Its irregularities and inequities cut against the notion that we are a society founded on fundamental fairness. ... It is incumbent on our national leadership to find a way to fix our prison system."

Senate Bill 714 seeks to re-evaluate America's multi-decade long 'do drugs, do time' mentality. Please take time today to urge your senator to support Senate Bill 714. If your senator sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, then it is especially important that he or she hears from you.

[ NOTE the link has been removed for privacy reasons please visit or Join Norml ]


After you have written your senator, please take a moment to write or call Sen. Webb and thank him for raising this important issue. You may contact him here.

Thank you for assisting NORML's federal law reform efforts.

Sincerely,
The NORML Team

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Jack

It is great to hear they want to address the issues, though one must think of Nixon's 1972 commission that said decriminalize MJ that was ignored. 37 years later, and here we are again. Let's hope for the best.

Joey56789 said:

It is great to hear they want to address the issues, though one must think of Nixon's 1972 commission that said decriminalize MJ that was ignored. 37 years later, and here we are again. Let's hope for the best.

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I agree.. I remember Carter almost did.


Also here is what the letter looks like that I sent through the Norml link

I am writing you today to urge your support for Senate Bill 714, The
National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009.

Senate Bill 714 will establish a `National Criminal Justice Commission' to
"undertake a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system ... and
make reform recommendations for the President." I believe that this
evaluation is sorely needed.

The United States has the highest reported incarceration rate in the
world, imprisoning a higher percentage of its population than any other
country. The American incarceration rate is five times the world's average
incarceration rate. A total of 2,380,000 people are in prison.

The number of persons on probation and parole is equally alarming. There
are 7,300,000 Americans incarcerated or on probation or parole, equal to 1
in every 31 adults, an increase of 290 percent since 1980.

During this same time period, drug offenders in prisons and jails have
increased 1200 percent. Nearly a half million persons are in Federal or
State prison or local jail for a drug offense, compared to an estimated
41,100 in 1980. A significant percentage of these offenders have no
history of violence or high-level drug selling activity.

Finally, minorities make up a disproportionately large share of prison
populations. African American males have a 32 percent chance of serving
time in prison at some point in their lives; Hispanic males have a 17
percent chance. By contrast, white males have a 6 percent chance.

The National Criminal Justice Commission will evaluate these and other
criminal justice trends, and make recommendations to Congress on ways to
improve public safety, cost-effectiveness, and fairness in the
implementation of the America's criminal justice system.

I urge you to vote 'yes' on S. 714.

Sincerely,

Very VERY cool. Is it me, or is this whole marijuana issue suddenly got hot...

-The CA bill sounded interesting but then got postponed to next year
-Even though Obama dismissed the question, its still got big news and gets people to think
-Now a proposed senate commission. Sweet!

And I know theres other stuff, I'm just too


Eventually, something might just happen. It seems like the media/representatives are really realizing that public opinion has changed.

i hope it works, but they ignored reports in the 70's...

WoW maannnn said:

i hope it works, but they ignored reports in the 70's...

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Hippy hating NIXON ignored the reports in the 70's. Fucking asshole.