War on Drugs // Current TV

Why Police Are Turning Against Prohibition

For decades, police were convinced that total prohibition was the only way to end... more

lordsbassman
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11 months ago
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Man's bag of marijuana lands on cop's hood

State police say a man's effort to ditch some drugs from a moving car in western... more

Pfailblog
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11 months ago
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Barney Frank and Ron Paul will Introduce Legislation on Thursday to Fully Legalize Marijuana - Hit & Run : Reason Magazine

End the Drug War Now!

Daniel_Summers
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11 months ago
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Police pose as UPS driver to nab man receiving clocks filled with pot

Police on Monday posed as UPS employees to nab a west suburban man accepting packages... more

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Forty Year War on Drugs Incites New Orleanians to Protest

Advocates call for shift from incarceration to rehabilitation and legalization NEW... more

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The End of a 40 Year Old Drug War is finally Possible

In a new initiative, the Global Commission on Drug Policy has made some important new,... more

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Cost of the War on Drugs VIDEO

Brian Aitken just directed this video on the Cost of the War on Drugs through the Foundation for Economic Education with help from Jeffrey Miron, Harvard Economist and Senior Fellow at the CATO Institute.

After 40 years of violence, murder, and trillions of dollars spent with no end in sight the video begs you to ask yourself: Does it make sense?

The Foundation for Economic Education: FEE is the oldest free-market organization in America. Founded in 1946 FEE’s mission is to offer the most consistent case for the “first principles” of freedom: the sanctity of private property, individual liberty, the rule of law, the free market, and the moral superiority of individual choice and responsibility over coercion.

Brian Aitken: Best known for being sentenced to seven years in prison for possessing his legally owned firearms. After a two year legal battle where corruption reigned he spent four months in prison before being released by Governor Chris Christie. A Deprivation of Civil Rights suit is pending against the Police, Prosecutor and Judge (who has since been dismissed). Aitken is now the Director of New Media for FEE.

Jeffrey Miron: Jeffrey A. Miron is Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Economics at Harvard University and a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute. Miron has previously served on the faculties of the University of Michigan and Boston University; at the latter, he was Department chairman for six years. He has been the recipient of an Olin Fellowship from the National Bureau of Economic Research, an Earhart Foundation Fellowship, and a Sloan Foundation Faculty Research Fellowship. Miron holds a B.A. in economics, magna cum laude, from Swarthmore College and a Ph.D. in economics from M.I.T.

The CATO Institute: The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization — a think tank — dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues.Brian Aitken just directed this video on the Cost of the War on Drugs through the... more

highfallin
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12 months ago
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Police uncover largest pot site ever

Six suspects landed in jail Wednesday after law enforcement officers uncovered a... more

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12 months ago
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It was forty years ago today… The “War on Drugs” from Nixon’s White House Tapes

It was forty years ago today, Richard Nixon taught the world to hate The people who... more

love_is_my_religion
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12 months ago
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President Carter urges U.S. to decriminalize marijuana

Former President Jimmy Carter, in an editorial published by The New York Times on... more

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12 months ago
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It’s Ok To Get High: The Drug Users Union

There’s a saying that goes, “The road to hell is paved with the best... more

alovejoy
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12 months ago
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Wake’N'Bake 101: Chance

There’s a growing concensus that the “War on Drugs” has failed, but... more

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“old hippies who started smoking in their teens”

Addictions & Answers: The war on drugs in the age of medical marijuana

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Florida to require drug testing for all welfare recipients: Legislation signed today!

Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) signed legislation into law on Tuesday that requires anyone applying for temporary government assistance to pay for and undergo drug screening.

Under the new law, applicants for the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program who test positive for illegal drug use won't be eligible to receive benefits for one year or until they successfully complete a drug abuse program. Those who don't test positive will be reimbursed for the cost of the test.

Around 60,000 people would be affected, according to earlier reports.

“While there are certainly legitimate needs for public assistance, it is unfair for Florida taxpayers to subsidize drug addiction,” Scott said in a statement. “This new law will encourage personal accountability and will help to prevent the misuse of tax dollars.”

In March, Scott also issued an executive order requiring that all state employees be subjected to urine analysis once every quarter, with random screenings throughout. The order is expected to cost Florida taxpayers over $3.5 million.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, the drug testing of welfare recipients is likely unconstitutional and fiscally irresponsible. A Michigan law that required welfare recipients to receive random drug testing was struck down as unconstitutional by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 2003. The average cost of a drug test is about $42 per person tested, not including other costs associated with administering the tests.

Additionally, a 1996 study conducted by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that welfare recipients were no more likely to use illegal drugs than the rest of the U.S. population.

“Once again, this governor has demonstrated his dismissal of both the law and the right of Floridians to personal privacy by signing into law a bill that treats those who have lost their jobs like suspected criminals," Howard Simon, Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, said in a statement.

“The wasteful program created by this law subjects Floridians who are impacted by the economic downturn, as well as their families, to a humiliating search of their urine and body fluids without cause or even suspicion of drug abuse."

The Florida House passed the bill in April and the Senate approved it early May. Both chambers of the Florida Legislature have a veto-proof Republican majority.

Critics of random drug screenings say they tend to encourage use of substances that flush through the bloodstream quickly -- like cocaine or heroin -- as opposed to safer alternatives like marijuana that remains detectable for two weeks or longer.Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) signed legislation into law on Tuesday that requires... more