"A new day for the 'war on drugs'"

[applegrove]

A new day for the 'war on drugs'

by Steve Benen at Maddow Blog

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/04/25/17913914-a-new-day-for-the-war-on-drugs#.UXljp0Ki0PY.reddit

"SNIP......................

It didn't get much attention, but the Obama administration did something interesting yesterday: it unveiled a new approach on U.S. drug policy. As Keli Goff reported, "It appears that the administration may finally be ready to put the so-called drug war to bed and replace it with a much more commonsense drug policy focused on rehabilitation, not incarceration."

[D]uring a call with reporters, Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, signaled that the administration's approach to marijuana going forward would deprioritize criminalization.... This acknowledgment -- that marijuana can, in fact, uproot lives and land individuals in the criminal-justice system -- is an important one, which up until now the White House has downplayed. [...]

But perhaps the most significant component of the new strategy is that the White House is making a commitment to work to reform laws and restrictions that penalize drug offenders by limiting their employment, housing and educational prospects.

This issue has been lurking, just below the surface for quite a while, and last summer, Obama aides signaled that reforming drug policies would be a priority in a second term. The promises were part of a long-term strategy that began in 2009, with President Obama putting the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy in the hands of Gil Kerlikowske, who said the whole concept of a "war on drugs" is misguided, and called for a massive shift in emphasis away from incarceration and towards treatment.



.....................SNIP"

[immoderate]

1. "De-prioritize criminalization?" WTF??

So far they "prioritize" it. So far, there's a "signal." But it's still prioritized.

--imm

[bahrbearian]

2. Who are we going to fill the prisons with?

I Guess we are going to have Debtors Prisons.

[Fumesucker]

5. Nah, they'll just call them "treatment centers"

And stuff them full of pot smokers in dire need of treatment.

[Danascot]

3. If they're serious a good first step would be

to boot Kerlikowske

[Scurrilous]

4. K & R

[TheKentuckian]

6. Seems I've heard a similar tune from this band before on an earlier album.