AP story “Obama seeks crack cocaine sentence changes
Congress urged to equalize penalty, correct racial disparity”
Congress urged to equalize penalty, correct racial disparity”
Really, from the same guy that has nothing good to say about American business, the markets, capitalism, the banking and financial industry, self-interest for pursuing a profit. The essence of our self – interested dynamic economy, public enemy #1 for this guy. Do a simple Google search on Obama + Greed and you will get 4,600,000 hits. It’s a central belief in the Obamanation camp that ‘greed’ is the virus and ill of our country that must be curtailed and stopped.
Back to priorities and the above AP story on the MSNBC site. Apparently there were/are Senate hearings on the issue of the ‘disparity of sentences handed out between crack cocaine vs powdered cocaine’ and the impact this has on ‘African Americans’. Quote from U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton to the Senate – “Jails are loaded with people who look like me.” Brilliant, from a Federal judge no less. No kidding jails are loaded with cocaine users that look like you, there are just as many that look just like me and Tom, Harry and Sally next door.
On to the illustrious Senator Dick Durbin – “Under current law, mere possession of five grams of crack — the weight of five packets of sweetener — carries the same sentence as distribution of half a kilogram of powder or 500 packets of sweetener.” He goes on to say ”81 percent of those convicted for crack offenses in 2007 were African-American, although only about 25 percent of crack cocaine users are African Americans.”
Therein lies another new agenda for the Obamanation and the liberal-leftists in congress – to make sure that cocaine users will be treated more fairly and not as if they were ‘dealers’. The Obamanation also expressing a belief in these changes while campaigning last year and now stressing ‘recovery and rehabilitation’ vs hard time for users. I wish that he had such feeling for America’s #1 Public Enemy, the self-directed business class. Better and easier to clamour for protection and leniency for cocaine users than tea-party protesters, small-business owners, and concerned taxpayers.
(thanks to Hunter L for the article)
16 comments:
It’s amazing how relaxed they want to come on chemicals that help keep Americans looking the other way.
I believe you’re incorrect about the incarceration demographics, LCR, but I’ve got a better idea than this, one which sidesteps that issue altogether. Decriminalize it all. Let people convicted of nonviolent use or possession out of prison right now. Less strain (and expense) on the prison system, fewer complaints about racism built in to the law. More letting people decide for themselves what to put in their body and more of their having to live with the personal consequences of their choices.
LCR,
I saw this article and was thinking of posting on it. Only in a progressive government would we be worried which cocaine use is punished more. They want to disporportionately punish oil and coal energy, but the administration is worried about the unfairness of the brands of different cocaines. My heart bleeds. Obviously, the crack users should switch to doing lines.
Transplanted Lawyer said…
I believe you’re incorrect about the incarceration demographics, LCR, but I’ve got a better idea than this, one which sidesteps that issue altogether. Decriminalize it all. Let people convicted of nonviolent use or possession out of prison right now. Less strain (and expense) on the prison system, fewer complaints about racism built in to the law.
______________________________________________
Spoken like a true lawyer, so no real surprise there. What about the overrun cost of healthcare that we are going to be expected to pay for when their hearts give out? What about broken homes and abused children? You and I both know that even though you say ‘non-violent’ use, that there WILL be abuse of children in the form of neglect and learned behavior.
If anything, the penalty for all drug possession should be higher. There is no reason to have non-prescription drugs in one’s possession. If the people on the West Coast don’t like it, they can secede, or move to Vancouver where it’s already being run that way.
Transplanted L – I do know that the demographics of inmates on this issue is skewed towards blacks, my point was not in that this is not true but more in just simply making fun of the Left. The Left instantly incants racism, and unfairness, incarceration rates for blacks vs whites have much more to do with culture. It might surprise you that I do have a streak of decriminalization in me, I believe the war on drugs to be a failure on many fronts. Maybe one day we can get to the point in America where the goverment doesn’t sanction behaviour. Caveat to decriminalization would be drug testing for goverment services?
CG – These are the priorties of the progressive movement, things that don’t make sense don’t have to and they will never he held accountable for results because they ‘tried’
Bluepitbull — we’re paying for that health care now, while they’re in prison. And while I don’t dispute that many drug users also engage in domestic violence, it is also true that some do not. The problem is violence, not drugs and it’s very unclear that one causes the other. I’ve never seen a pot smoker get violent while high. (They get stupid, to be sure, but not violent.) If you want to put away someone for engaging in violent behavior or child abuse, I’m all for that.
LCR — point taken; reflexive cries of “racism!” in response to every problem. make the left lose credibility.
The crack smokers are firmly in the obamanation camp.
Fair enough Lawyer and sorry about the personal attack. Lawyers usually get under my skin. I still think there are more problems related to drugs than not.
LCR, this is a nice site you have here. I linked you.
Great, so now we take personal responsibility out of punishment of crimes too…*sigh*
I am so tired of people making things racial. The ones perpetuating the race issue are the leftist propaganda tyrants who try to add lemmings to their train every day.
Good post by the way 😀
Lawyer,
It’s proven that when cities build casinos crime rates increase, neighborhoods deteriorate. I point this out, because rampant drug addiction works the same way gambling addiction does. Social cost and consequences are harder to measure than the cost of an inmate, but that doesn’t mean that they might meet or exceed prison.
I feel you are right to a degree. Putting people in prison isn’t going to make things any better. We need to prevent drug use as well.
Side note: I love stats and I may be a little off base on this one, but the stat in the article said 81% were African American and 25% of users are African American. The problem with stats is that you can never establish cause in effect. How many in the demographic were racially profiled and how many were distributing, but not using? The stat is open ended and so is not concrete.
No one is treating “the self-directed business class” like victims of the “war on drugs”. It just feels that way sometimes when you’re in the minority.
Your business is not doing badly b/c of the president of the US. Business success depends on hard work, not the president.
The pendulum will eventually swing the other way. But until then, you’re in the minority.
–CJ in Madison, WI
BluePB – Thanks for the linkage, nice new look on your site too
Leslie – so true that ‘race’ is always an issue tacked onto leftist causes….
CJ – Thanks for stopping by. You are misinterpreting my points in the article. What I am saying, is that in essence the current administration seems to have an underlying prejudice against the business class, their very actions confirm this. When I see stories on how they are trying to ‘protect’ poor misguided drug users, I find the oozing hipocrisy shocking. It’s like they want to raise the lowest of society up, and strike down the highest achievers. This is the essence of socialism. I have never said that my business is doing bad because of the president, and I do agree that hard work is the key. I do believe however that the waning years of the Bush Admin (bailouts, stimulus,etc), and the first 100 days here (saber rattling against business, more bailouts, stimulus, socialism) have not been good for any business person in the US. I know that the pendulum will swing the other way, I just hope that my Constitutional rights are not determined by a current administration.
I’m throwing my lot in with Transplanted Lawyer. He’s got it right, stop throwing users in prison, save the cells for murderers and child molesters. I do believe that we should have the (Unpopular) right to put whatever we want in our bodies. As for cost of healthcare, get ready Obama is gonna make you pay for everybodies healthcare, drug users or not.
Oh and most people that abuse kids aren’t drug users. I would be willing to bet that the majority of child abusers are alcoholics. But nobody wants to make alcohol illegal.
Should it matter so much what race a person is that is in jail? For illegal drugs! No matter what anyone says crack is dangerous. It causes more violent crime, so it should stay illegal.
So, what do our leaders want to do? Let them free? Great, more crime. That’s just what we need.
Darth – I agree with you and T Lawyer to a degree as well….just not quite as sure to the legalazation of ‘hard’ drugs, the hit to us taxpayers, socialized med or not would be to the moon. Good point on alcohol
Elm – It shouldn’t and doesn’t! This is just wha the Left does –
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