Open Thread

In this week’s Drug War Chronicle, there’s one thing in particular I wanted to point out:
Somewhat lost in the news of New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson signing a new medical marijuana law, is the fact that he also signed the 911 Good Samaritan Act, which provides “limited immunity from drug possession charges when an overdose victim or friend seeks emergency medical services.” According to the Chronicle, it’s the first of its kind in the country.
It has always amazed me that the various parent groups of those who died from overdoses (the Steve Steiner and Ginger Katz crowd) seem to ignore this important means of stopping tragic deaths, and instead focus their energies on the irrelevant (to overdose deaths) issue of opposing medical marijuana. Since they ally themselves with sado-moralists (abstinence or death), it’s hard to credit their protestations that they simply wish to “prevent this tragedy from happening to another family.”
“bullet”

“bullet” Other reading:

• Matthew Holt: Is the Drug War Nearing an End?
• Only slightly off-topic.. Jon Katz’ We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason.
• All I Want is Some Cheap Mexican Weed

“bullet” And finally, I don’t know what’s more absurd. Cincinnati police claiming that having a local ordinance to jail marijuana users is somehow necessary to reduce gun violence, or the White House touting that as “Public Safety Prevails in Cincinnati.”