Posted January 22nd, 2011 by hiwayhowie
Annual Report: Citizens Opposing Prohibition – 2009/2010
The House Crime Subcommittee adjourned and I made contact with the Member who is the presumptive chairman, when the Republicans take control of the House in 2011. This was our sixth (6th) chat in three years. He had already agreed that current policy was ineffective but he asked, “What do we do? Just give up on these (addicts) people?” “No.” I replied, “But arresting them wastes precious police time. The government can not fix stupid. Only family and friends might have a chance.” He nodded and we chatted another minute. I knew his Chief of Staff was on board to end marijuana prohibition from a chat earlier this year.
This type of ‘Grass Tops’ contact is what COPs is all about. In our first year you kept an anti-prohibition, law enforcement voice on Capitol Hill and in the DC area, a voice which generates instant credibility. The transition from carrying a LEAP card to a COPs card was a smooth one. My cowboy hat and politics are what staffers and Members remember, not my card. COPs had ‘sit-down’ conversations with 443 Congressional staffers and chats with seven more Members. This steady contact reminded all of them that solid, law enforcement professionals oppose the current prohibition approach to some drugs.
Since 2005 I have been educating/advocating to Members and their staff for a drug policy commission, even before Senator Webb (D-VA) was elected in November 2006. These efforts bore fruit in 2009, when Webb introduced the National Criminal Justice Commission bill which cleared the Senate’s Judiciary Committee with a unanimous vote in early 2010. In the summer of 2010 the House passed the bill on a voice vote. Though it died during the lame duck session, it will be introduced again in 11. Through educational efforts these past five years, I have prepared the ground for the passage of the Webb bill. As members of Citizens Opposing Prohibition, you can take credit for the progress made in 2009 and 2010.
Moving forward into its second year, COPs is in poised to add to the progress already made and enter new areas. We will educate the Congress on the advantages of allowing the several States to set their own couse for drug policy, starting with marijuana. I will attend two, new national conferences in 2011: the LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens- similar to NAACP) and the NRA (National Rifle Association). As I have done the past five years, I will attend the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) and the three day conference in DC sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus. Weekly, I attend the Grover Norquist brunch (120 conservative VIPs attending) and monthly I attend the Leadership Institutes’ breakfast which features conservative speakers, including Members of Congress. I will seek out and go to the groups who do not yet agree with our position on drug policy. We are adding speaking engagements to service clubs, churches and other community groups to our list of activities as well.
The ‘bread and butter’ of COPs will continue to be spending time in the Congress, meeting staff and Members. Ending federal drug prohibition is a crucial part of the national strategy. The prohibition crowd delights in repeating that federal law trumps any state law. Our first year stats are below for your review. I hope and trust you will continue to support these efforts.
Thank you,
Howard Wooldridge
Drug Policy Specialist and Executive Director, Citizens Opposing Prohibition
COPs First Year Stats 2009-2010
443 presentations to Congressional Staffers
7 presentations to VIPs (elected officials)
37 published Letters to the Editor
Numerous conferences, hearings & briefings attended. C-Span broadcast my question at a Senate briefing.
12 radio shows
8 TV interviews (Colombian TV, Fox and Univision, NBC, cable)
Posted January 21st, 2011 by hiwayhowie
COPs on the Hill
How did you do that?: I was flabbergasted *(never happened in five years), when for a normal ‘meet and greet’ presentation with a Senate Republican staffer, her boss –Legislative Director -invited himself. As always when I meet a staffer & give them my background, I always include my Long Ride for a head snap…. As you can imagine, the boss dominated the chat for the first 25 minutes. He then turned to his colleague and asked if she had any questions or concerns about my presentation. She said, “I want to know how you rode your horse across America!”
I gave her a one minute overview of 23 miles/day, six days week for six months — park the horse in baseball fields, in the woods, tied to a tree & with much help from strangers, it was a piece of cake. Smile. For a bonus I showed her the February Reason magazine which has Misty and me as the centerfold. And the meeting ended.
BTW, the LD and I hit it off well, he agreed in theory with the COP position and said he would recommend to the boss to sign onto a Senate repeal marijuana prohibition bill. Given 22,000 lobbyists in DC, being remembered is the ‘coin of the realm.’ My hat and Long Ride continue to pay dividends.
Webb Commission take two or ¡Homework!: I attended the first organizational meeting of the year for a new National Crime Commission bill. After I spoke of the need to emphasize this year the “Thin Blue Line getting thinner” reality, the chairwoman volunteered me to put together a fact sheet showing police and fire layoffs. Sadly, using google ‘police layoffs ’ and add any state, too many stories appear. On the other hand, it strengthens our case to end at least marijuana prohibition ASAP.
*flabbergasted = ich war platt
*coin of the realm = Gold Standard
COPs 2nd year stats to date:
TV appearances: 12 (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX, cable)
Newspaper stories: 6 dailes, 3 weeklies
Radio appearances: 6
Published LTE: 6
46 presentations to Congressional staffers: (9 this week)
2 VIP (Member of Congress) presentations:
Consider being a member of COPs at $30.00 or more per year. Your support keeps the COPs voice loud and strong in the halls of the United States Congress. We agree that Modern Prohibition/War on Drugs is the most destructive, dysfunctional and immoral policy since slavery & Jim Crow. Go to: www.CitizensOpposingProhibition.org and click on Donate/Join – by credit card or send a check to:
COP
POB 772
Buckeystown, MD 21717
Howard
Detective/Officer Howard Wooldridge (retired)
Drug Policy Specialist, COP – www.CitizensOpposingProhibition.org
Washington, DC
817-975-1110 Cell
howard@citizensopposingprohibition.org
Domino el español
Ich verstehe mich gut auf Deutsch
Je parle français assez bien pour un petit, timide, moyen cowboy
Citizens Opposing Prohibition – Become a Member
PO Box 772
Buckeystown, MD 21717-0772
Modern Prohibition/The War on Drugs is the most destructive, dysfunctional & immoral domestic policy since slavery & Jim Crow.
Posted January 14th, 2011 by hiwayhowie
COPs on the Hill
End game coming: This Wednesday I arranged* a meeting with Congressman Polis’ office (D-CO) which ended up including reps all DC based organization which want to repeal federal prohibition of marijuana. (MPP, SSDP, DPA, NORML and COPs). After 30 minutes with the primary aide on this issue, the Congressman came in for the last 20 minutes. More happened here which I can not disclose.*
Early this session it will happen(late this month, early Feb.) & I will let you know immediately when the US House has a bill to repeal fed MJ prohibition. Also, I will take that bill to the 6 (six) Senate offices whose aides have said they will bring it to their boss for a possible companion bill in the Senate. I am encouraged that so many Senate offices will even consider this… and I am just getting started on the Senate side. Recall I work the Senate from December to March & the House the rest of the year.
Keep in mind = don’t get too excited >> from introduction to the President signing a bill nearly always takes a number of years. On the other hand, this type of bill, when signed by the President, will shift the battle to the States – where it belongs. And we will go home to Texas.
*in the past I would NOT toot my horn about what I did but now that I have raise $$, with reluctance, I will start doing this.
Homework done and turned in: This week I gave 3 briefing papers (1. How youth are harmed by MJ prohibition. 2) How prohibition hurts business. 3) How prohibition hurts America in general) to the legislative aide of a New England Senator I mentioned before the New Year. Main paper on MJ is at the bottom (8 minute read). Many thanks to Eric Sterling, Jerry Epstein, Paul Armentano, Steve Fox and Dr. Mitch Earlywine for their review and many edits which made this effort shine like a new penny, IMHO.
I will let you know if the aide passed it on the prohibitionist Senator.
*disclose – teilen
A star is born: A staffer I did not know stopped me in the Longworth café this week, saying he had seen my foto in Reason magazine (February edition). Ah shucks. Here is the foto by the way which was spread over two entire pages. The foto is so large, you can read the buckle: LONG RIDER
COPs 2nd year stats to date:
TV appearances: 12 (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX, cable)
Newspaper stories: 6 dailes, 3 weeklies
Radio appearances: 6
Published LTE: 6 (one this week)
37 presentations to Congressional staffers: one this week
2 VIP (Member of Congress) presentations: one this week
Consider being a member of COPs at $30.00 or more per year. Add your voice to those who agree that Modern Prohibition/War on Drugs is the most destructive, dysfunctional and immoral policy since slavery & Jim Crow. Go to: www.CitizensOpposingProhibition.org and click on Donate/Join – by credit card or check.
Howard
Harm to Youth Due to Marijuana Prohibition
SUMMARY: Although the intent of marijuana prohibition was to limit the ability of youth to buy it, this result has not been achieved, quite the contrary. Since 1975 teens in government surveys report that marijuana is readily available and easier to obtain than alcohol. Teen use has recently overtaken their consumption of tobacco. The strength of marijuana has increased. By these metrics, prohibition has been at best a failure and perhaps made the situation worse.
As law enforcement has increased its marijuana arrests (new record number of arrests for simple possession in 2009), the result has been more teens have suffered and died than need be. Detectives assigned to marijuana enforcement arrest no pedophiles and those possessing child porn. Road officers have caught fewer deadly DUIs, due to more and more time spent searching cars for marijuana. Teens have been murdered after they took the job option of selling marijuana. College tuition has risen dramatically in the past twenty (20) years, as tax money was diverted to increase prison populations due in part to marijuana prohibition. Those teens unlucky enough to have been caught are burdened by a life-long, drug-related criminal record which restricts their ability to get a job, a student loan, a license, a credit card etc.
Personal Safety. Child cyber pornography continues to be a serious threat to little boys and girls in America. Per Senator Biden’s hearing in April of 2008, law enforcement so under-resources this problem that only 2% (12,000) of these criminals were caught in 2008. Per recent news, that figure is now 4% per year are caught. At the end of 2008 about 190,000 little boys and girls were still in the home of a sexually abusive parent or guardian. This while the police arrested 800,000 for marijuana crimes, mostly possession.
Many teens are subjected to random drug tests to play sports, etc. They all know that consuming alcohol or even meth and cocaine on Friday night will allow them a ‘clean’ urine on Monday morning. Marijuana, since it is fat soluble, will show up on a urine test on Monday. Thus, many teens choose the much more dangerous alcohol over the use of marijuana.
Prohibition creates tens of thousands of part and full-time jobs for teens to sell pot. No legal job available to teens is as easy to obtain or as rewarding. Teens sell pot for profit and or to be popular with their peer group. This can end up with them having a criminal record, in prison or dead. Although not broken down by drug, SAMHSA reported in 2005 that 900,000 teens were selling prohibited drugs.
The vast majority of teens who are getting high or “partying” choose between alcohol and marijuana. Marijuana use is actually safer than alcohol for the user, those nearby and the community. Consumption does not provoke aggressive or violent behavior. On average, those teens who use marijuana in place of alcohol have better health outcomes: no overdose deaths from marijuana; far fewer homicides, suicides, rapes, assaults, car crashes, and other problems caused by drinking & not by marijuana. We need to make unwanted but inevitable experimentation less risky.
Marijuana use does NOT increase use of harder drugs. The last federal study concluded that marijuana was the “terminus” illegal drug for 72 percent of users. The most recent research in 1999 done by the Institute of Medicine (division of the National Institute of Health) concluded, “There is no evidence that marijuana serves as a stepping stone [to other drugs] on the basis of its particular physiological effect.” 96% of marijuana smokers never try heroin. One of prohibition’s greatest dangers is having a teen meet a drug dealer to buy marijuana and be offered a low cost or free sample of drugs like heroin. Or, the dealer puts meth or heroin into the marijuana to hook the teen on the much more dangerous and expensive drug. This does happen.
NOTE: If marijuana were legal for adults, teens would buy it from older siblings or other adults, much like alcohol reaches teens. This would continue to be against the law, similar to an adult can not furnish alcohol to a minor. The advantage of legal, regulated and taxed marijuana is the adult would provide the teen pure marijuana inspected by the government. The older sibling would not offer the teen other drugs for sale, certainly no free or low cost samples of hard drugs.
Also, the consumption of alcohol causes the death of more teens than all other drugs combined. If marijuana were legal for adults, educators could put the proper focus on what is by far the biggest drug threat to teens – alcohol.
Minority youth are severely impacted: Studies show these groups use at about same rate, but youth of color are stopped, searched and arrested at rates as high as four times the white rate. Former police chiefs – George Napper of Atlanta, Anthony Bouza of Minneapolis and Norman Stamper of Seattle – have criticized this outrageous feature of marijuana enforcement.
Prohibition causes disrespect for all laws. Teens see the hypocrisy of marijuana being illegal, while cigarettes, alcohol, Oxycodone, Valium & Prozac are legal. Young adults who have their cars or persons illegally searched by over-zealous police become bitter and don’t respect the law. The long-term damage to our society of developing contempt for law and authority at an early age is hard to measure, but evolves into lack of respect for government and the Congress, and admiration for outlaws.
Educational costs. Tuition costs at colleges are much higher, as states fund narcotics units and then build more prisons to hold those they arrest. Thus fewer young people can attend or they are burdened with huge debts upon graduation. Many students now graduate with the equivalent of a home mortgage.
The best studies have shown that the criminal justice system in 2009 spent about 12 billion to enforce marijuana prohibition and about 6 billion in taxes was not collected from its sale. This money was unavailable for pressing public purposes of all kinds. The money is truly lost in the sense that its expenditure fails to accomplish any worthwhile public purpose.
Long term consequences: President Jimmy Carter told Congress in 1977, “Penalties against drug use should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself. Nowhere is this clearer than in the laws against the possession of marijuana in private for personal use.” This ball and chain follows the young person all the way thru life, decreasing their ability to obtain good employment and wages. When Michael Phelps the swimmer was arrested as a drunk driver, that crime was no problem for Kellogg. However, his smoking cannabis lost him a million dollar contract.
Has marijuana prohibition protected our teens from using it? No. Those who support prohibition have testified that marijuana would become easier for teens to buy, if legal for adults. The federal government reports that marijuana “is readily available to America’s youth.” How could it become easier to obtain than “readily available?”
Would more teens try it, if it were legal for adults i.e. send the wrong message? No. Medical doctors –board certified in addiction psychology – have stated that at least as many teens try marijuana because of the glamour and excitement factors created by its prohibition, as are deterred by it being illegal for everyone.
Respectfully submitted,
Detective Officer Howard Wooldridge (retired)
Posted January 10th, 2011 by hiwayhowie
COPS on the Hill
Year in review:
Here are the cold statistics of what COPs accomplished in its first fiscal year. None of this was possible without the monetary support of COP members. It was always a humbling moment, when the check came in or PayPal sent a report of a donation. You believed that drug prohibition was a serious national problem & COPs was an effective vehicle to end it at the federal level. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Of the 106 persons who receive this newsletter, half have become members of Citizens Opposing Prohibition.
From cold stats to how does that translate into change? The old adage is true: it is not what you know but who you know. After five years of wearing out boot leather, the cowboy hat and anti-prohibition message have penetrated all offices of the Congress. An aide called out this week, “Hey, I saw your picture in Reason magazine.” Several Congressmen on judiciary will give me 1-2 minutes of their time after a hearing because they listened to me in the past make sense. I have put together a list of 94 House offices whose aide said they he would bring a positive recommendation to the Member, when a marijuana repeal bill is submitted in a few weeks. This is the fruit of my labor and your support.
Your support for COPs meant–
Final COP First Year Stats 2009-2010:
443 presentations to Congressional Staffers
7 presentations to VIPs (elected officials)
37 published Letters to the Editor (I am now 8th on the list of the most prolific writers)
Numerous conferences, hearings & briefings attended. C-Span broadcast my question at a Senate briefing.
12 radio shows
8 TV interviews (Colombian TV, Fox and Univision, NBC, cable)
Since the end of our financial year, I was asked by Pulitzer prize-winning & nationally syndicated columnist talk show host Kathleen Parker to provide background information for a segment on drug prohibition. Andre Oppenheimer whose Spanish language show reaches 60 million households in Latin America (per his website), had me on his show again. My horse Misty and I were on television 11 times in California, 9 newspaper articles and 5 radio programs. Reason magazine published an article on Prop 19 which started with us as a two page ‘centerfold’ while we worked a corner in Redding, California. I have met with two Congressmen to discuss strategy in 2011. And of course I am in the halls of Congress every week to meet with staffers from all 535 offices.
I hope and trust I have made you feel that your money has been well spent.
If you have not yet joined, this is my once a year appeal for money.
COPs 2nd year stats to date:
TV appearances: 12 (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX, cable)
Newspaper stories: 6 dailes, 3 weeklies
Radio appearances: 6
Published LTE: 5 (one this week)
36 presentations to Congressional staffers
1 VIP (Member of Congress) presentations:
Consider being a member of COPs at $30.00 or more per year. Add your voice to those who agree that Modern Prohibition/War on Drugs is the most destructive, dysfunctional and immoral policy since slavery & Jim Crow. Go to: www.CitizensOpposingProhibition.org and click on Donate/Join – by credit card or check.
Howard
