Via Drug Policy Alliance:
A broad coalition of Christian leaders have taken the occasion of the holiest day on the Christian calendar to release a statement calling for the end of the war on drugs and mass incarceration.
“The cross that faith leaders are imploring others to take up is this unjust, and immoral war on drugs and mass incarceration of the poor. In particular, poor black and brown young adults whose futures are being ruined at the most critical point in their lives,†said Reverend John E. Jackson of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference.
“We are guided by our religious principles to serve those in need and give voice to those who have been marginalized and stigmatized by unjust policies. We cannot sit silently while a misguided war is waged on entire communities, ostensibly under the guise of combating the very real harms of drug abuse. The war on drugs has become a costly, ineffective and unjust failure,†says Reverend Edwin Sanders, who is a Board Member of the Drug Policy Alliance and the Senior Servant for the Metropolitan Interdenominational Church in Nashville, Tennessee.
The statement makes the following recommendations:
- Repeal laws that criminalize drug possession and replace them with policies that expand access to effective health approaches to drug use, including evidence-based drug treatment.
- Eliminate policies that result in racially disproportionate arrest and incarceration rates.
- End policies that unjustly exclude people with a record of arrest or conviction from key rights and opportunities.
They will be holding a teleconference today.
More on this: Pastors seek to end war on drugs by decriminalizing use
“God does not care if you smoke weed,” he said. “God is not that petty.”
After a twenty year absence, brave Ulysses comes home but this time maybe even his dog will disown him.
AMEN
That’s not a brick in the wall, that’s part of the foundation! Humpty’s days are down into the fractions me thinks.
OT: Pot related speech still being muzzled
This irks me about the media industry in general. It’s so passive-aggressive. The lap-dogs just roll over for any government milkbone, but if your beggin strips aren’t from the right source, they’ll take the bacon, but snap at you if you try to give a pat on the head.
Similar case in point, the term auto-complete on google. Start typing anything and it figures out what you are looking for pretty quickly. But get to “marij” and it has no idea what you might be talking about…
Wow. (maybe I should have said “Holy Shit!”)
I wonder if the coincidence of Easter and 4/20 this year had anything do with it. This year for the kids I will hide four toys and twenty eggs.
This year I’m going to bake 4 and twenty blackbirds in a pie.
Duncan, just ask your self: “WWJD?” (What would our lord and savior Jack do?)
It’s great that Rev. Edwin Sanders’ coalition is standing up to oppose the drug war. Religions often imitate one another, so maybe a few other religions such as Scientology, Mormonism, papist Catholicism, and Baha’i will get the drift. Islam, as far as I know, only proscribes alcohol consumption. As for Judaism, well, we know what happened after Moses smoked the burning bush and came down from the mountaintop.
WOLF WALL OF STREET
And, you’ve got an MBA? LOL
I want an MBA.
Where did you buy yours Mitch ?
Until they get these horrible, racist, unconstitutional laws off of the books, we always have Jury Nullification!!! (www.fija.org)
From Demon Weed To God’s Plant
http://cannabisnews.com/news/28/thread28011.shtml
Some pretty pathetic ignorant posts on that article about the pastors. I know I shouldn’t expect much from the readership of today’s usa today, but still sad.
For some of those that are ignorant, it will take no less than the Pope for their eyes to open. Most others will be enlightened by then.
Good on these pastors. However, they are still in the minority. Below is a link to some comments made by an official with the Southern Baptist Convention made back in January. Evidently knowing God and being clueless aren’t mutually exclusive.
http://www.abpnews.com/culture/social-issues/item/28274-sbc-leader-opposes-medical-marijuana#.UubxzSznY5s
Nice to know not all Christians are awful people.