Testing

Not sure anyone really cares, so I'll spare any details. But it's been around 18 months since my last post, which means the chances of this being read are rather slim. In any event, my thanks for your eyeballs today.

As you may know, this site is devoted to the history of drugs, drug use and the politics of drug prohibition. Subjects I cover in my book, The Naked Truth About Drugs. By clicking the book pic on the left side of this homepage, you can read the Author's Preface for free. If you like that, individual chapters can be purchased for just 99 cents each. But if you wait awhile (a month?), you can download the book in its entirety for free. And then if you like it, maybe you could paypal me a buck or two. OK, that's my shameless plug.

So, raise your hand if you still believe drug policy reform has a friend in Obama. Obama has acted beyond shameless, made all the more stunning due to his pandering to the drug policy reform movement while a candidate. The Obama administration continues to set record arrest numbers for cannabis possession, as well as for virtually every other drug. Our president has, at almost every turn, gone out of his way to humiliate and ridicule those of us questioning his cannabis policy - that is, when he's not ignoring us. And our drug policy reform leaders; Ethan Nadelmann et al., will no doubt fall victim to the same charisma trap that lead them astray in 2008 to believe Obama was a serious reformer. When Obama told them he had too much on his plate to do drug policy reform during his first term, and promised that things would be different in his second term, reform leaders bought it. And, by and large, they still do. Of course, all that hinges on Obama getting a second turn. If unemployment and gas prices both remain high come this summer, and the Republicans put up anyone other than that slush of fecal matter Santorum, Obama may just fulfill his prophecy of being a one-term president.

Whether that happens or not, and I pray the election gods turn Obama out, new leadership is required inside the drug policy reform movement. After over 40 years leading our parade, the current group has been the proverbial tits on a bull - useless. With less than a third of our states having medical marijuana laws on their books, and a relentless assault by the Obama Justice Department on all of them, not to mention the surreal state of Mexico, excuse me if I don't consider that worthy of 40 years effort.

Stay healthy and high when it helps~

Daniel