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UPDATE: SAFER ended its boycott after Starbucks and several of the
other companies listed as "sponsors" on CDIA's Web site publicly
distanced themselves from the group (and in some cases said they had no
knowledge of them or why they were listed as "sponsors"). Not surprisingly, CDIA has
taken down its entire Web site. CLICK HERE to read more.
  Law
enforcement groups are fighting to maintain Marijuana Prohibition and
their industry of arresting and prosecuting people for marijuana. SAFER
is fighting back and we need your help.
According to a recent report in The Denver Post,
state and federal law enforcement officials have been meddling in
Colorado's legislative process in hopes of rolling back the state's
progress toward safer, more rational marijuana laws. As a result, bills are being introduced on their behalf, which
threaten to shut down every medical marijuana dispensary in the state
and allow these officials to continue harassing medical marijuana
patients.
We wish this weren't the case,
but these law enforcement officials are not motivated by maintaining
public safety or developing a workable system of medical marijuana
regulation. They are motivated by one thing -- job security. Perhaps
even more unsettling is the source of the financial support behind the
arrest and prosecution industry's war on marijuana.
In particular, the Colorado Drug Investigators Association (CDIA),
the group spearheading anti-marijuana lobbying efforts, is sponsored by
several local and national businesses including Starbucks Coffee, Glock
handguns, and -- you guessed it -- members of the alcohol industry!
This might seem a bit odd, but when you consider the fact that their
Web site and merchandise features the grim reaper and military
helicopters, a skull motif, and the slogan, "Death on Drugs," it all
makes a little more sense. These guys are not out to protect people;
they're out to fight a literal war on marijuana, ensuring alcohol --
the substance that contributes most to the crime and violence that
keeps them busy -- is the only legal recreational drug available.
It's no surprise that the
Arrest and Prosecution Industry is determined to maintain the war on
marijuana. But Starbucks and other companies' funding of this war
should strike any marijuana consumer or reform supporter as truly
appalling. It's time to stand up and send them all a message. |
Former Oakland prosecutor James Anthony was featured on CBS.com making his case for