Here’s an article from Reason magazine:
Some 18 states permit medical use of marijuana, and in November, Colorado and Washington voted to allow recreational use. Nationally, support for legalization is steadily rising. A decade ago, one of every three Americans favored the idea. Today, nearly half do—and among those under 50, a large majority does.
These trends have diehard drug warriors screaming bloody murder. Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., has formed a new organization to stop what he imagines to be the “300-miles-per-hour freight train to legalization.” He says that such a change would be especially harmful to teenagers.
Does the name Patrick Kennedy sound familiar? Maybe this is why:
Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, who lost control of his car near the Capitol last month in what he says was a drug-induced stupor, pleaded guilty yesterday to driving under the influence of prescription medication and could face 10 days in jail if he fails to comply with a long list of court-imposed conditions.
Placed on probation for a year, Kennedy (D-R.I.) must meet monthly with the psychiatrist overseeing his after-care treatment and attend weekly meetings of a recovery group and Alcoholics Anonymous. Kennedy also must submit to random drug screening and meet regularly with a psychiatrist to monitor his mood and anxiety and use of mental health medications.
“I’ve always said that I wanted to take full responsibility for my actions,” Kennedy said in a brief statement outside the D.C. courthouse. “Today in court, I did just that. I accepted the consequences of my actions.”
The plea agreement, which was in the works when Kennedy returned from a month-long stay at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, was presented yesterday afternoon in D.C. Superior Court. Earlier in the day, Kennedy was charged with driving under the influence, reckless driving, and driving without a permit. The latter two charges were dropped in return for the guilty plea.
So he didn’t take “full responsibility.” He weaseled out of two very serious charges. But then Kennedy is not a young black male.
U.S. Capitol Police officers suspected that Kennedy was intoxicated when he staggered out of his Ford Mustang shortly before 3 a.m. after he nearly hit a police car and then crashed into a security barrier. But the six-term congressman — who said he was trying to reach the Capitol for a vote — was not given a sobriety test. Instead, Capitol Police commanders ordered that Kennedy be driven to his nearby home, touching off complaints that the son of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) received special treatment.
Appearing yesterday before Magistrate Judge Aida L. Melendez in a courtroom filled with reporters and curious courthouse employees, Kennedy looked calm and attentive as the events of that night were recounted.
Deputy D.C. Attorney General David M. Rubenstein said that after emerging from his green 1997 Ford Mustang, Kennedy was slurring his words and nearly fell over at one point. Kennedy was not carrying his driver’s license or his congressional identification, and his eyes were red and watery, Rubenstein said.
When officers brought him home, Kennedy spent several minutes trying to open a gate before realizing that his house was next door, Rubenstein said.
A day later, Kennedy left for the Mayo Clinic to be treated for an addiction to prescription medicines. It was his second trip to the clinic in less than a year, he said.
And it’s not just the Kennedys. Much of the American press corp is just as corrupt, just as hypocritical as the Kennedys. Consider what happened to Anthony Weiner. He sent out a few dirty emails. And almost our entire press corp got on their high horse and demanded he resign from Congress. The Very Serious People. Meanwhile the Kennedys go around driving into police cars while drunk, and in one case killing someone, and then get off scot-free. And then they have the nerve to demand drug laws that cause 100,000s of minorities to be put in prison.
And the press plays right along with this absurd Puritan hypocrisy. Imagine what future generations will think of our morality.
It almost makes me want to move to France.