Former Seattle US Attorney John McKay (aka "Legalizer!") [Lauren V. Burke / WDCPix.com
(Seattle Times) As Emery’s prosecutor and a former federal law-enforcement official, however, I’m not afraid to say out loud what most of my former colleagues know is true: Our marijuana policy is dangerous and wrong and should be changed through the legislative process to better protect the public safety.
• First, we need to honestly and courageously examine the true public-safety danger posed by criminalizing a drug used by millions and millions of Americans who ignore the law. Marijuana prohibition has failed — it’s time for a new policy crafted by informed policymakers with the help of those in law enforcement who have risked their lives battling pot-purveying drug cartels and gangs.
• Second, let’s talk about marijuana policy responsibly and with an eye toward sound science, not myth. We can start by acknowledging that our 1930s-era marijuana prohibition was overkill from the beginning and should be decoupled from any debate about “legalizing drugs.” We should study and disclose the findings of the real health risks of prolonged use, including its influence and effect on juveniles.
• Third, we should give serious consideration to heavy regulation and taxation of the marijuana industry (an industry that is very real and dangerously underground). We should limit pot’s content of the active ingredient THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), regulate its sale to adults who are dumb enough to want it and maintain criminal penalties for sales, possession or use by minors, drivers and boaters.
Aside from his frequent characterization of myself and 25 million Americans as “dumb” or “idiots’ and his use of the phrase “so called ‘medical’ marijuana”, it’s a pretty good condemnation of marijuana prohibition. He even makes the obvious comparison to our other failed prohibition – alcohol – though he never characterizes beer drinkers as “dumb” or “idiots”.
[...] of John McKay ," an excellent, in-depth personality profile from reporter Nina Shapiro. NORML Stash Former U.S. Attorney John McKay, who put Marc Emery in prison, now supports the [...]
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It sems that the people are unable to really understand the level of influence that the lobbies have on legislation. Consider this; who has the most to lose if marijuana is legalized? Everyone immediately identifies the cartels.
NOT! The liquor and pharmeceutical industries are the ones that stand to lose the most. The cartels are simply filling a demand that is artificially created by the lobbying of these industries against legalisation.
Honestly, read this again in the morning, then tell me I’m wrong!
Also as for Mark goes, they tried to set an example by doing this to him, but because of the outrage in Canada and the whole cannabis community in the US all turning to support Mark too, all that has happened is fade into nothingness, as far as the the public is concerned. Same as the bust of Chong for bongs he didnt even make or sell, started as an example instead faded into nothingness also.
All in all they havent scared anyone from doing the same, selling seeds or bongs and they sure havent stopped the main reason for busting Mark, spending millions supporting reform efforts around the world! We all can still order seeds online or buy them in Canada, we all know where we can get a bong or pipe online, down the road or across the state line, so just like pot, if we want it we will get it. We all are still funding reform groups, by many many small donations or even by one person funding say Prop 19 or one single donor propping up a single organization or event. Nothing has changed due to Marks arrest, nothing will but for legalizing of many states by the time he gets out.
If anything this guy is only giving cops a outline how to admit defeat, he has seen that their ploy to set examples has fail, 73yrs of arresting people has failed and that they are losing the fight very very fast. They now need to look at the future so he is suggesting they turn their efforts from one of fighting reform to spearheading and controlling any reform that does happen. To me this should give us more resolve to get legalizing done before they “legalize”, the way they want too. Their way is setting strict limits on amounts and quality that will leave a black market in operational. That way they can keep the funding rolling in from DC and stop about half of the reform community from seeking full legalized cannabis, thus killing two birds with one horrible law/stone.
I like how he kind of coddles LEO at the end. kind of warms the idea up for them that they wont all lose their jobs post-prohibition. While it was just short of an apology, i think this is as candid as Mr Mckay thought he could be while still appearing credible to his peers. Now if only more active government would start echoing his sentiments….
His comments on stupidity are backwards. He was the one supporting a 70 year pack of lies, And supposedly he has a college education.
Very nice that former prosecutors are coming out in favor of the legalization of cannabis.
The one thing that I totally disagree with concerns the comments concerning Marc Emery:
“If changing U.S. marijuana policy was ever Emery’s goal, the best that can be said is that he took the wrong path”.
It is probably because Marc is so prominently referenced in this article and is thus sitting in Seatac prison in Seattle that this article has been written at all.
The DEA document concerning Marc Emery admitted that their reasons for his arrest were purely political. No reference was made to the charges against him in that document.
Here is the original text of DEA Administrator Karen Tandy’s statement released on July 29th, 2005:
“Today’s DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture Magazine, and the founder of a marijuana legalization group — is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement.
His marijuana trade and propagandist marijuana magazine have generated nearly $5 million a year in profits that bolstered his trafficking efforts, but those have gone up in smoke today.
Emery and his organization had been designated as one of the Attorney General’s most wanted international drug trafficking organizational targets — one of only 46 in the world and the only one from Canada.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars of Emery’s illicit profits are known to have been channeled to marijuana legalization groups active in the United States and Canada. Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on”.
Thus Marc chose his path of campaigning and stuck with it.
It has been completely overlooked in this article that many people have been campaigning for cannabis legalization for over 40 years and all have been continually ignored by politicians and governments alike. I have personally been campaigning since 1969, that’s 41 years already. It is only because of Richard Lee’s Proposition 19 that people are now wanting to enhance their own position by jumping on the bandwagon in favor of legalization.
Marc Emery is and has been a long-time campaigner for cannabis legalization. As such, he put his effort and energy into action by putting himself on the front line of prohibition and offered himself up as another victim of the federal so-called ‘war on drugs.” Without Marc’s activism the Campaign would have reached the point to where it is today and thus debatable whether or not prominent people could even have come out in favor of cannabis legalization. Even as recent as one year ago, it would have been unimaginable to even consider that Senators, Congressmen and such like would be debating the legalization of cannabis.
Nobody can trump Marc Emery. He is the Patron Saint of cannabis and holds the undying respect of the cannabis community worldwide. We owe Marc a debt of gratitude than can NEVER be repaid. Marc and his wife, Jodie, are paying an enormous personal price for the strength of their convictions.
Yes, Marc is headed for prison, but his work and commitment to the Campaign ensures his prominent place in the history of cannabis legalization.
Apart from busting Marc Emery, what else can John McKay say regarding his own place in the history of cannabis legalization?
Jayelle Farmer
Legalise Cannabis International
http://www.legaliseinternational.com
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=360600757801
Same drivel of double talk legalization. He’s definitely not talking rational, cartel punishing, safety improving, underground market eliminating legalization.
He starts off saying cops and lawmakers should be setting the framework. We’ve seen the framework they consider fair for everything from traffic laws to 4th amendment rights. I think the citizenry has a much better concept on how to approach this.
Like all these power players, he’s just now speaking up during an exit. Just a short time ago he was standing behind claims of Emery and others being narco-terrorists trying to destroy the United States. I’m not sure what game he’s playing at but I dont believe him. Break out the tinfoil hate maybe, but this stinks like something awful from the bag of dirty tricks in support of some new angle.
Some law enforcement obviously can and will speak up while performing their duties. Some, for whatever reason wait until they have secured their pensions. I just dont see this guy having a recent epiphany or break through.
Thankfully though, it doesn’t matter what his angle is. It is another sound byte to be taken out of context and used to show that all levels of this psychotic pyramid are crumbling under the pressure of our efforts to dismiss a failed 70+ year failed policy.
Cops with half a brain,.calling us idiots ? Look at how this guy has aged in the few years since the arrest of Marc,Greg and Michelle. The stress from this prohibition and culture war, kill cops’ faster than the average toker. We both suffer, yet cops use tobacco-alcohol for stress. We use super safe cannabis,so science has validated our idiocy, or genius ?. Just a matter of time for hemp freedom. Remember, tossed salad/tomato voices can abstain,instead of voting NO.
The same way we have taxed and regulated tobacco for those too dumb to know it kills you? So we choose a safer less harmful herb and we are dumb? He comes out to say prohibition is harmful and marijuana should be removed from “drugs” but that it needs strict regulations like how much THC, he wants low grade weed, taxed and made hard to get by dumb adults. YEH that will close down the black market, sure! Like everyone will be happy with dirt weed when they can just go back to getting it from Fred down the road that grows the bomb! Not going to solve our problem, because Fred and I will still be criminals for growing selling and buying it outside of your dirt weed market!
This is totally a cop’s view of legalizing, low quality, hard to get, high priced weed, so there will still be a black market and arrests for them to profit from! If anything this guy has seen the future of cops being involved in legalizing, he knows its going to happen no matter what so why not mold it to what will benefit cops, continued arrests=federal money. He tried i guess maybe in another two yrs he will see the light.
First thing that came to my mind when he was making those remarks about cannabis consumers was, “I wonder how often this guy drinks alcohol. Likely every night.” Figures he feels more self righteous for choosing the much more dangerous but already legal drug.