Stories from the week of June 17, 2011

 COPs on the Hill

Your Voice in the United States Congress

Postscript from my Rotary talk:  This from an attendee who wrote me: “You couldn’t have had a better setting than standing in front of the bar with hard liquor, all legal, talking about other drugs that are not legal!  I have a customs agent friend who has come, basically, to your same conclusions.”

 Good media week:  I started Monday with 90 minutes on the radio; one station covered all of Wyoming  and northern Colorado  and the other the Twin Falls area of Idaho.   Both radio jocks are now on the COPs side of the discussion. 

 On Tuesday I attended the LEAP event at the National Press Club.  Afterwards we walked to the Drug Czar’s office where Neill Franklin attempted to have a chat with the Czar, without success.  Fox News interviewed me for a few minutes, 9 seconds of which made the local news.  See Below & it comes near the end of the 3 minute report…

 ?Celebrate?  Across the nation on Friday many gathered to mark the 40^th anniversary of Nixon’s War on Drugs speech.   About 100 gathered in front of the White House for speeches and a candlelight vigil.*   See foto below.    Call me whatever but in reading all the ‘tea leaves,’  I believe 2011 will be marked in history as the watershed year of American drug prohibition policy.  The wind IS at our back, 14 years after I made this my issue.

 Yes, great news:  On Friday I received the final draft of the bill which will be introduced next week by Congressman Frank and friends.   It is called, “This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011’’.

 It does essentially four things:

      1. Empowers the States to set their own course on marijuana, free of federal interference.

2.  Makes it a federal crime to transport MJ from a ‘smokey’ state to a ‘smokeless’ state.

3. Removes marijuana from the schedule of drugs.

4. Treats marijuana issues, like the federal government treats alcohol

 The press conference is tentatively set for Wednesday the 22.   I will give you the bill # as soon as I have it.

 This is ground-breaking.*   Since 1937 no one has introduced a bill to repeal marijuana prohibition, period.  I am thrilled and will be working on this for the next several years till a president signs it.

*vigil = eine Wache

*watershed = Wendepunkt

* ground-breaking = einzigartig, nagel Neu

 http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/local/retired-officers-say-end-the-war-on-drugs-061411 –click into the window that says, „Ending the Drug War: A Dream Deferred

COPs 2nd year stats to date:

 155  presentations to Congressional staffers:  2 this week

TV appearances: 12 one this week (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX, cable) 

Newspaper stories: 7 dailes, 3 weeklies

Radio appearances: 10 two this week

Published LTE: 15 (  this week)

Other media (bloggers, cable TV, minor publications, etc): 12 ( this week)

 9 (Member of Congress) contacts:    

5 other VIP (MD state Senator & Rep):   

Consider being a member of COP at $30.00 or more per year.   All contributions are tax-deductible.   Your support keeps the COP 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:

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