One month ago today, we released the Obama Administration's 2012 National Drug Control Strategy, a drug policy grounded in sound research from the world's preeminent drug abuse researchers. This policy marks a departure from the debate I've seen develop during the past few years, which has lurched between two extreme views. On one side are those who suggest that drug legalization is the "silver bullet" solution to our nation's drug problem. On the other are those who still believe that the "War on Drugs," law-enforcement-only strategy is the way forward. Our policies reject both these extremes in favor of a "third way" to approach drug control.
The foundation of this "third way" approach is peer-reviewed, scientific research that provides us insight into the disease of addiction and a roadmap on how to prevent and treat it. The "third way" approach deals in facts -- not dogma -- and relies on research -- not ideology.
Here are what the facts show. Drug use and related crime strain the resources of this country. The latest evidence comes from the 2011 Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring Annual Report (ADAM II), released today, which tests for drugs in adult males arrested for a wide variety of crimes in 10 sites across the country. This study found a majority of adult males arrested for crimes tested positive for an illegal drug at the time of their arrest. In fact, positive drug tests among arrestees ranged from 64 percent in Atlanta, GA, to 81 percent in Sacramento, CA.
These data were obtained from individuals booked for all types of crimes, from misdemeanors to felonies, and not just those arrested on drug charges. The ADAM program tests only for drugs marijuana, cocaine, opiates (including heroin and prescription pain relievers), amphetamines/methamphetamine, Darvon, PCP, benzodiazepines, methadone, and barbiturates -- not alcohol.
This report highlights the urgent need for institutions at the federal, state, and local level to come together to support proven reforms that work to break the vicious cycle of drug use, crime, incarceration and re-arrest. It's a cycle my colleagues and I are committed to breaking because we care about the health and safety of our fellow citizens, our healthcare system, and our economy.
Too often, the caustic debate over drug policy in America leaves out some revolutionary and innovative programs taking hold in communities across America. I was pleased to see the Wall Street Journal recently brought attention to some of these programs in an essay by drug policy experts, who argued that there is no quick fix to the complex issue of drug abuse and addiction. These experts pointed to the success of programs such as Drug Market Interventions, which close down open-air drug markets through community-based strategies and offer drug offenders a second chance. Other successful initiatives like Hawaii's Project Hope probation program, which dramatically reduces probation violations through swift, predictable sanctions, represent the future of a progressive drug control strategy. These programs are part of the President's drug policy Strategy because they have demonstrated records of success not only in dissipating criminal activity, but in actively building community and reducing incarceration rates.
Although today's data show a high rate of arrestees testing positive for illicit drugs, over the long term, we are actually seeing declines in drug use rates among the general population. Over the past 30 years, the overall rate of current drug use in America has dropped by roughly one third. And more recently, the rates of current cocaine and meth use have dropped by 40 percent and 52 percent, respectively, and the number of cocaine overdoses has dropped by 42 percent.
The 2011 ADAM II findings are clear evidence of the link between drugs and crime. Too often, underlying substance use disorders are the driving force behind criminal activity. It is imperative, then, that we address our nation's drug problem not just as a criminal justice issue but as a public health issue. We cannot arrest our way out of the drug problem. What we need are evidence-based reforms that break the cycle of drug use and crime, reduce recidivism, and make our communities healthier and safer.
To read the ADAM II report, see an at-a-glance fact sheet on the findings, or view an interactive map reflecting the data by geographic region or drug type, please visit this page on our website.
Follow R. Gil Kerlikowske on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ONDCP
Russell Simmons: The Despicable Act of Paying for Prisoners!
The ratio of suicides to combat fatalities is 25:1 for our soldiers. For every soldier who dies overseas, 25 come home and kill themselves. States that have legalized medical cannabis have shown an 11% reduction in suicides for men in the 20-29 age group and a 9% drop for men 30-39. The response you gave our Veterans on Memorial Day weekend when they petitioned for access to Medical Cannabis: 'Use marijuana and go to prison'
Shame on you, Gil!
If the U.S. government were to decide today to start telling the truth about cannabis (a notion Mr. Kerlikowske does not seem to want to go with) then they will have earned back their credibility some time around 2082.
If anything, this study proves how ineffective prohibition of drugs is. We arrest more people than most other nations, drugs are ramptant, and we're spending billions a year. Yet people are clearly getting drugs even so.
"Drug use and related crime strain the resources of this country." Absolutely true, and yet instead of treating the problem we jail the addicts.
Drug screening results, including those from federally certified labs, may not always be reliable, according to a white paper published online this week by the National Workrights Institute.
“[Government] certified drug testing laboratories have significant reliability problems and that the government’s assurances that false positive test results are a thing of the past is untrue,” the paper concludes.
http://workrights.us/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/NewInformationDrugTesting.pdf
So not only is this claim an absolute no brainer regarding people who break the law doing drugs that are also illegal, its probably not even all that accurate considering how flawed drug tests are.
More misandry cloaked as "social awareness"
"I am convinced that there are genuine and valid levels of perception available with cannabis (and probably with other drugs) which are, through the defects of our society and our educational system, unavailable to us without such drugs." ~ Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan (1934-1996) was a lifelong user of marijuana.
Under the pseudonym "Mr. X," he contributed an essay about smoking cannabis to Dr. Lester Grinspoon's 1971 book Marihuana Reconsidered. After the famous astronomer's death, his friend Dr. Grinspoon revealed this information to Sagan's biographer, Keay Davidson.
The publishing of Davidon's biography, Carl Sagan: A Life in 1999 brought attention to Sagan's cannabis use and advocacy.
http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/06/cannabis_quote_of_the_day_carl_sagan.php
how can it be dangerous for adults?
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“In Jamaica, you learn as a child how to roll a joint. Everyone here has tried it. I did too”
- Usain Bolt, three-time Olympic gold medalist
http://www.dailysmoker.com/cannabis-quotes-9
“When I was a kid, I inhaled… frequently. That was the point.”
- Barack Obama
http://www.dailysmoker.com/cannabis-quotes-9
can't be intoxication..
because the plant is NON-toxic:
(CNN) -- Former U.S. Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders told CNN Sunday she supports legalizing marijuana.
The trend-setting state of California is voting next month on a ballot initiative to legalize pot, also known as Proposition 19. The measure would legalize recreational use in the state, though federal officials have said they would continue to enforce drug laws in California if the initiative is approved.
"What I think is horrible about all of this, is that we criminalize young people. And we use so many of our excellent resources ... for things that aren't really causing any problems," said Elders. "It's not a toxic substance."
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/10/18/former.surgeon.general.marijuana/index.html?hpt=T2