More than a ton and a half of pot seized

Darn. I mean: Obviously pot doesn’t make you paranoid enough.

Seriously, don’t the feds have something better to do, like hunt down violent criminals and rouge bankers?

Let’s stop goofing around and legalize pot. We can tax it, goodness knows the government needs the cash. “They” can smoke it. Everyone’s happy.

According to the complaint, federal agents watching the shop Jan. 20 followed a white GMC Yukon from there to the Thoroughbred Lounge on Rozzelles Ferry Road.

It then crossed I-85, doubled back and met a green Freightliner tractor-trailer with Texas tags.

Agents watched the Yukon lead the truck back to the automotive shop. The Yukon continued driving around the shop, conducting what the agents believe was counter-surveillance.

Several men spent the night in the shop, sending out runners for food while they worked, agents said.

At 5:50 a.m. the next morning, a white Ford van drove out of the garage with its headlights on. Surveillance units followed the van from I-85 to I-485 south, when a CMPD K-9 unit pulled the van over.

Read the rest of this account of the bust from the Charlotte Observer‘s Ely Portillo here.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=DwX9U-8NMPo%26hl%3Den_US%26fs%3D1%26rel%3D0

This article appears in Jan 26 – Feb 1, 2010.

This “War on Drugs” is a total failure. The prohibition of cannabis is a gold mine for cartels, law enforcement, and the prison industry. They are the ones who want this boondoggle to continue. They make billions from all of this destruction and chaos. Some want to blame the consumer, but this is a flawed argument. Consumers will always find a way to buy what they want, and this cannot be changed. Prohibition in the 1930’s and the failed drug war has proven this fact. Drug use has only increased, much to the delight of the cartels, law enforcement, and the prison industry. These three, are the “Axis of Evil” of drugs. Cartels make billions selling and wreaking havoc while protecting their drug trade. Law enforcement simply busts small time users and pushers to make their “Statistics” look better to get more Federal Dollars. Now, let me be very clear, most individual law enforcement officers are good people and believe that the drug war is lost. L.E.A.P “Law Enforcement Against Prohibition” is an organization that acknowledges that drug abuse is bad, but the drug war is worse. The third beast in the “Axis of Evil” is the prison industry. The prison industry is starting to privatize, which feeds the incentive to incarcerate everyone, not just non-violent drug offenders. The US incarcerates 25% of the world’s prisoners. Just over 1 in every 100 US citizens is either in jail, prison or on probation. We, as a country, are either the most evil society in the world or we have a very broken criminal justice system. The “Axis of Evil” also has a very strong lobbying arm that lines the pockets of our US politicians. This powerful lobby is buying political protection, and will fight tirelessly to perpetuate their lie called the “War of Drugs”. Al Capone’s mob is the same problem as Pablo Escobar’s drug cartel and the solution to both are the same. The end of alcohol prohibition in the 1930’s was such a success not just because of the legalization of alcohol but rather the regulation and taxation of alcohol. When alcohol was regulated, consumers became safer. They could determine for themselves, the proof (% of alcohol) they wanted. They knew what they were buying and not left to whatever mystery-potion the supplier may have available. The regulated alcohol did not contain lead or other contaminates because the Government regulated the distilling process. The bootleggers where instantly out of business and the government spent less money policing and more time collecting all the new tax dollars created. Answer this! How many convenience store clerks hand out free samples of beer? How many drug dealers check ID’s before the sale? Teenagers can buy a bag of weed easier than they can buy a six pack of beer. Here are a few more questions to answer. Would it not be cheaper and easier to rehabilitate an addict than trying to resurrect murdered innocents and incarcerate non-violent drug participants? The first step toward sanity for America is to legalize, regulate, and tax cannabis. Ironically, the matrix for regulation is already in place. Basically, the state ABC board simply has to substitute the word alcohol with the word cannabis. Otherwise, if we keep perpetuating the status quo, the “Axis of Evil” will continue to count their blood-money and destroy the lives of non-violent cannabis users as well as innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire.

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1 Comment

Regulate_This says:

March 4, 2010 at 8:03 pm

This “War on Drugs” is a total failure. The prohibition of cannabis is a gold mine for cartels, law enforcement, and the prison industry. They are the ones who want this boondoggle to continue. They make billions from all of this destruction and chaos. Some want to blame the consumer, but this is a flawed argument. Consumers will always find a way to buy what they want, and this cannot be changed. Prohibition in the 1930’s and the failed drug war has proven this fact. Drug use has only increased, much to the delight of the cartels, law enforcement, and the prison industry. These three, are the “Axis of Evil” of drugs. Cartels make billions selling and wreaking havoc while protecting their drug trade. Law enforcement simply busts small time users and pushers to make their “Statistics” look better to get more Federal Dollars. Now, let me be very clear, most individual law enforcement officers are good people and believe that the drug war is lost. L.E.A.P “Law Enforcement Against Prohibition” is an organization that acknowledges that drug abuse is bad, but the drug war is worse. The third beast in the “Axis of Evil” is the prison industry. The prison industry is starting to privatize, which feeds the incentive to incarcerate everyone, not just non-violent drug offenders. The US incarcerates 25% of the world’s prisoners. Just over 1 in every 100 US citizens is either in jail, prison or on probation. We, as a country, are either the most evil society in the world or we have a very broken criminal justice system. The “Axis of Evil” also has a very strong lobbying arm that lines the pockets of our US politicians. This powerful lobby is buying political protection, and will fight tirelessly to perpetuate their lie called the “War of Drugs”. Al Capone’s mob is the same problem as Pablo Escobar’s drug cartel and the solution to both are the same. The end of alcohol prohibition in the 1930’s was such a success not just because of the legalization of alcohol but rather the regulation and taxation of alcohol. When alcohol was regulated, consumers became safer. They could determine for themselves, the proof (% of alcohol) they wanted. They knew what they were buying and not left to whatever mystery-potion the supplier may have available. The regulated alcohol did not contain lead or other contaminates because the Government regulated the distilling process. The bootleggers where instantly out of business and the government spent less money policing and more time collecting all the new tax dollars created. Answer this! How many convenience store clerks hand out free samples of beer? How many drug dealers check ID’s before the sale? Teenagers can buy a bag of weed easier than they can buy a six pack of beer. Here are a few more questions to answer. Would it not be cheaper and easier to rehabilitate an addict than trying to resurrect murdered innocents and incarcerate non-violent drug participants? The first step toward sanity for America is to legalize, regulate, and tax cannabis. Ironically, the matrix for regulation is already in place. Basically, the state ABC board simply has to substitute the word alcohol with the word cannabis. Otherwise, if we keep perpetuating the status quo, the “Axis of Evil” will continue to count their blood-money and destroy the lives of non-violent cannabis users as well as innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire.