Just like the American War on Terror, the American War on Drugs is a global war that reaches far beyond the borders. We Canadians have felt the effect in a very sad way, Canadian marijuana icon, activist and hero has been the center of a long running controversy with the American DEA, I've posted about this issue many times before and now I can tell you the Extradition hearing is going to begin on January 21st.
Here is the latest from the CBC National, aired January 15th. (Watch just to see Terry Milewski reporting from a bong shop.)
I understand this issue is getting no media time in the United States, putting people in jail for smoking a harmless weed is nothing new for you guys, right?
US Marijuana Arrests by Year
2004: 771,608
2003: 755,187
2002: 697,082
2001: 723,627
2000: 734,498
1999: 704,812
1998: 682,885
1997: 695,200
1996: 641,642
1995: 588,963
1994: 499,122
1993: 380,689
Marc Emery is getting lots of press up here in Canada, not to mention lots of positive editorials, like this sampling from todays The London Free Press, you can find many more articles about this case on Google News. When looking for background on this I recommend watching the documentaries by CBC and 60 Minutes.
Marc and his wife Jodie uploaded a message about the latest extradition news and it's posted below, if you want to find out ways to support the Emery's and their cause visit the noextradition.net.
Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 4)
1. Nobody says "I'm a proud alocholic", or "I love valium, take it every day, it's great!", yet it's somehow cool to be a stoner or pothead. Give me a break!
Marijuana is not completely benign like stoners claim. If you want to relax, you get a massage. If you want to get high, you smoke a joint - don't try to paint it as something that it's not.
I understand the need to defend your choice. Obese people try to rationalize their choices as well (I can't diet, I have low blood sugar).
There have been dozens of studies on the effects of marijuana use, short term and long term. Some side effects are beneficial or what we like to term 'medicinal'. The other side effects are not beneficial and include psychological problems, cell death and other psycho social conditions. Alcohol has some 'medicinal' or beneficial uses as well - and alcoholics use them as reasons (excuses) to continue their alcoholism.
Marijuana doesn't make you stupid, unknowledgable or unintelligent. It affects short term memory which can make one appear stupid, but has no direct effect on one's ability to learn or process information or to think abstractly. It does make you not care about school and it encourages apathy and lack of productive goal setting.
So, when you see a brilliant cosmologist like Carl Sagan admit to smoking pot every day of his life, keep in mind, not everybody is Carl Sagan. Most potheads would be lucky to be able to compare themselves with Carl from the Simpsons.
Whether you're a stoner, or an alcoholic, you are making a choice. Nobody is proud to be an alcoholic. You should not be proud to be a pothead.
Now, I see a lot of people getting all riled up about the evils of pot, others feeling insulted that they are called loser potheads, and others still defending pot as 'harmless and medicinal' when the fact of the matter is ---- NONE OF THAT MATTERS!
You have full ownership and control of your body. If you want to shave your head, get a tattoo, be a vegetarian or go on the all meat diet, you and only you make that decision. If you want to eat fattening foods or sniff glue, it's your body, it's your choice. You decide if you live or die, you can choose a natural death or you can commit suicide. It's your body, and it's your choice. That being said, if you want to smoke marijuana, drink alcohol, snort coke, eat a whopper, shoot heroine, that is your decision. There will be consequences for which you will be responsible no matter what choice you make. But the point is, it's your choice to make. You're a grown up, you can decide for yourself what is good for you and what is bad for you. You don't need anybody else telling you what to eat, drink, inject or smoke.
No country or government, scientist or doctor has the right to tell you what to do with your own body.
But don't delude yourself - 'pothead' does not equal 'progressive'. It is what it is. If you're so proud of it you wouldn't feel the need to make excuses to rationalize your choice.
And it IS your choice. Even if I don't make the same choice.
"If sex and creativity are often seen by dictators as subversive activities, it's because they lead to the knowledge that you own your own body (and with it your own voice,) and that's the most revolutionary insight of all." Erica Jong
Get it?
Controversyz at 12:43AM on Jan 25th 2008
2. The SOB should be executed. Canadian dope heads go home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Greg at 8:53PM on Jan 18th 2008
3. You're right..this isn't getting out too much down here. The guy isn't selling crack to kids. He's not raping college students or murdering little old ladies and my government is spending how much money and resource to lock him up for the rest of his life. I think WE THE PEOPLE would be better served by a government filled to the brim with common sense utilizers.
WAKE UP AMERICA.....VOTE FOR RON PAUL!
Natalie at 9:16PM on Jan 18th 2008
4. While I go back and forth with my own views about legalizing marijuana in the U.S. (I have no issue with medical marijuana for folks who are seriously ill) I admire Mr. Emery's courage. It takes guts to stand up for what you believe in. Most of us would not put ourselves out there the way he does.
I wish the U.S. would just leave the guy alone. The guy is not a terrorist or a threat to anyone.
Yeah, the guy is a stoner, but big deal.
David S. at 9:24PM on Jan 18th 2008
5. dammit greg!
took my firsties away from me..
ah well.
as for mr emery,
did he NOT realize that america is the world's police?
that it is our job and duty to not only police the world but to rid it of the "evil weed"?
and of course any other substance that we find offensive or "dangerous".
was mr emery un-aware that america has more citizen's in prison than anywhere else in the world COMBINED?
this country does not mess around with such evil and abhorrent substances such as weed!
and if he thinks he can sell seeds to our children and not pay the penalty for his hubris,he is SORELY mistaken!
this war on drugs has taken HUGE amounts of tax dollars to fight..BILLIONS spent to combat this scurge....
and we are WINNING!
so what if drugs are more available now..
we have the 3 strike law,that will put the fear of god into those criminal drug dealers.
who cares if the drugs are cheaper and 10 times more powerful than 30 yrs ago...
we have DEA agents in every sovereign nation that produces that filth.we even "suggest" who their leaders should be,and if they disagree...well..then we help the opposition get "elected".well..ok,there has been an assasination or two,but for righteous reasons dammit!
how dare these third world, ignorant countries think they can produce garbage like that and not have any consequences!
serves em right i tell ya.
we WILL win this war!
and i dont want to hear those mamby-pamby people saying how weed has little or no side effects,and how it helps relieve pain for the terminally ill.
get a script for oxy-contin like the rest of us!
"but it's addictive" they all cry..oh BOO-HOO,at least it's LEGAL,damn criminals.
ya know,when i come home at night and get me a chilled glass of grey goose,take me my oxy-contin for my back,my xanax for my anxiety/stress disorder and my zoloft for my depression.the last thing i want to see on TV is some canadian slacker thumbing his nose to my country while he poisons my countries youth with DRUGS!!!
mr emery and anybody else who breaks our laws deserves whatever they got coming to em.
this is america dammit!
excuse me for cutting this short,the room is starting to spin,need to go see if i have something for that.
/sarcasm OFF
till next time..peace.
Enoch D.D.S
enoch at 9:25PM on Jan 18th 2008
6. I have strong feelings on the marijuana issue.
I would wish to state the following facts: uh...ah..hugh...aaa....hahahah...uh.....yea.... i ah.... aaaah..... dude wait......uh....ah uuuh...ahhh....uhhh..........................................................................
mac at 9:26PM on Jan 18th 2008
7. Emery is a wanker with a limp noodle, but he's OUR wanker with a limp noodle! (Proud Canadian!)
Every human has the basic fundamental right of autonomy - which basically means they can put whatever crap into their body they want because it is their body. If the USA wants to crack down on something that really IS harmful, then fastfood and Monsanto's Milk would be off the market.
As every human has the right of autonomy, so does every nation. The USA is in no position to demand extradition of a Canadian citizen under ANY circumstances, especially with their penchant for ignoring basic human rights like habeas corpus.
According to Democracy Now, Canada has put the USA on their Torture Watch List. If nothing else, THIS should prevent an activist like Mard Emery from being extradited where he would no doubt be labelled a domestic terrorist.
Now, I personally don't like Emery, pot is lame and potheads are losers. I don't like the way potheads have been glorified as liberal activists. Maybe liberal sit-on-the-couch-watch-your-hand-for-an-hour-ists. But it doesn't change the fact that every pothead has the right to be a lame pothead, just like every fatty has the right to chow down at McDonald's.
Controversyz at 10:12PM on Jan 18th 2008
8. 1. The SOB should be executed. Canadian dope heads go home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Greg at 8:53PM
---------------------------------------------------
Greg,um, ...... What does the word "EXTRADITION" mean? And, uh, ....... In what country is Vancouver, BRITISH COLUMBIA IN?
BILL G at 10:46PM on Jan 18th 2008
9. Emery is an international drug/Pot Dealer-mostly to USA-and should be sent by Canada to USA. Emery has acknowledged he has sold over 4 million Pot Seeds that have for the most part, gone illegally across the border and into the USA.
Selleing Pot Seeds is just as illegeal where Emery lives as it is in USA.
Emery, keep your crap in Canada, or face the music like a man in the USA. Do the Crime, you do the time.
ROBERT OKANE at 11:01PM on Jan 18th 2008
10. when has selling pot seeds been illegal in canada?
and that still overlooks canada's sovereignty in regards to extradition.
and if you look into the case with mr emery you will find he is a huge pro-legalization supporter,not only in canada,but co-ordinates with people in the states.
looks to me as if the squeaky wheel gets the indictment.
it's your basic politic paradigm.
the war on drugs is an absolute and utter failure,but an immense cash cow for government spending.
a lot of big business makes a LOT of money failing at the war on drugs,they are not just going to let that money go quietly into the night.
consider that 80% of america's prison population are there for drug offenses.most of those are for weed.
so the vast majority of america's bloated prison population are non-violent potheads.
yeah..being non-violent and doing something in the privacy of your own home that harms no one,not even yourself..yeah..that should be illegal.how can we call ourselves free with a straight face?
what i find incredibly entertaining in its irony,
are the people who denigrate those who smoke weed,while they are getting hammered on whatever booze of choice,now THATS comedy!
it's about social acceptability.
in the late 30's and early 40's henry anslinger was able to manipulate the country through propaganda. inaccurate,misinformed and many times outright lies were told to create the illusion of the evil's of weed.
america had a prohibition,it didnt work then,it's not working now.
americans love their hooch,no matter what it's form.
but hey..without prohibition we would have never had the mafia,or the kennedy's.
now-a-days a large majority of the population has at least tried weed,and are aware thats it's pretty benign.so on a social scale,it's only a matter of time till its legalized.
im sure by then some addle brained whack nut will find a new crusade to have a "war" on.
sometimes my country borderlines on the sublimely ridiculous.
till next time..peace.
Enoch D.D.S
enoch at 12:36AM on Jan 19th 2008
11. I am a former "pothead" and I resent being characterized as a loser among other things. I am no longer a "pothead" b/c I don't have a resource.
I DO think marijuana should be legalized. It does no harm and it is not addictive. People who were pot smokers and moved on to other drugs would most likely have moved on anyway when they got bored with pot. Altho I tried cocaine twice (and didn't think it was worth the money) and did smoke hashish when available, I never really moved onto anything else. I loved pot, bottom line.
I particularly think it should be legalized for medicinal purposes. I know for a fact, first hand, that it does a fantastic job of easing/eliminating pain (or at least makes you not worry about it!!! J/K)... far better than the pain medication I am taking. And I understand it provides great relief for AIDS patients and others, like me, with chronic pain.
I am sure that former cocaine user Brainless Bush the son would secretly sign that into being legal.
Dottie at 1:24AM on Jan 19th 2008
12. pot is great, pot is natural, pot is god made, pot is good for you,been smoking for 30 plus years with no ill side affects. hold down a 50,000 year job. own my home. a few cars and lots of toys so all you naysayers come on over lets burn one and we well all be happy.
tracy at 8:07AM on Jan 19th 2008
13. I'm from New York and I can say that the US cracks down on the safest drug (pot), if any, out there because we're too big a pussy to go after the real problems: crack, cocaine, heroin, and speed.
Skye at 9:31AM on Jan 19th 2008
14. enoch, ROFLMAO!! bravo! love yer sarcasm!
whoops at 10:06AM on Jan 19th 2008
15. What a moron. Why did he sell to an American knowing it was illegal? Why can't Canadian potheads just sell to other Canadians and then they'd be safe. ROFL.
Mel at 12:51PM on Jan 19th 2008