Been reading all the threads here about what's schedule what here and there but it seems to me that the problem lies in the root cause of how certain medicines are regulated/controlled by the government. I read this book called "drug Crazy" at
http://libertary.com which lets you read entire books for free.
Reading the book by Mike Gary or whatever really opened up my eyes as to what is wrong with our current policies etc.....

I am a chronic pain sufferer and have GAD as well and until recently had a very understanding PCP who took care of my needs but having been recently layed off and looking at the prospect of having to go without insurance may have to look to other sources.

Just my two cents. But it is time for a change, real change in our medical system and how we handle drugs in general.

Ahhhh my favorite topic. If people really knew the true effects of the drug war and who it actually benefits they would be shocked.

Stop the Drug War is a website loaded with information. It's free and its sure worth looking at.

To see the true cost of what all this means click here Drug War Clock

The ONLY thing thats going to change the war on drugs is Police Officers stepping up and being real men/women and saying "I will not enforce unconstitutional laws, and almost all drug laws are unconstitutional and cause more harm than good for the public"

But unfortunately police officers take pride in ruining people lives. If an officer makes a bust and arrest a NON-violent heroin or pill addict, they get a big pat on the back and everyone at the department says "great job getting that scum off the street!" They dont care that addiction is a medical disease and now that non violent person is a convicted felon, unable to get a real job or even vote.

Think about this.

How did millions of Germans and Nazi troops wake up every morning and did the horrible stuff they did for almost 10 years?

Because they all told each other what they were doing was "right" and "good for the nation".

We need doctors treating addicts, not correctional officers.
the past 40 years has shown that the war on drugs is a total farce.

Amen,bro...Amen

weve talked about this before. unfortunately the police, legislators, district attorneys that know this is a moral issue. only speak out once there careers are over.

(www.Leap.com)

know one is going to step up and say im not doing my job today. because there just following the Rules and the Rules are what needs to be changed. unfortunately the people we "elect" to change the Rules really only care about there own agendas and getting elected again.

question why is it considered that incarceration is a form of rehabilitation or correcting bad behavior? you know the term correctional facility?
when in fact its really a business thats there to make money?
why when a person pays there debt to society are they stigmatized for ten years after, with a criminal record that prevents them from supporting themselves there children and becoming a contributing member of society? isnt that unconstitutional as well?

in nazi Germany there were many who disagreed with the establishment and knew hitler was a psycho. (the movie Valkyrie is very informative on this subject) there were 15 cues and attempts on hitlers life by Germans before the war ended. but unfrotunately the guys with the bigger guns always win.

uh... I came here to say something about the "War on Drugs"... but come to think of it, I'd be here all night and still not be done ranting..... there is nothing whatsoever about it that is "sane". But real quick... I believe it boils down to the same things that just about everything else does... money, power and control - not necessarily in any order. The beaucrats can't be powerful unless others are powerless, just as they can't have conrol without others to control. As for money... well, assuning they are aware that gangs control the black market, and that there would be no black market if they had no product, and that they would have no product if the government took the cr*p and turned it into regulated pharmaceuticls and/or treated some like alcohol... also regulated and taxed... one would think that they would do that in a heartbeat! End the gangs and start colllecting a whole lot more taxes than they already are.. all in one fell swoop! But, being that they are doing nothing of the kind, suggests that the government itself might find the black market more profitable the way it is.... if this is the case, it could also explain why legit scripts are getting harder and harder to come by... maybe to strengthen the black market?

O.K. just my 3 cents.....

The war on drugs is a huge money maker for the government.

As long as there is a demand for drugs there will be someone willing to sell it!

How exactly? All I see, is how they spend tax dollars to pursue the war on drugs.

Whereas, the state level legalization of mj (in several states now) for medical use is making money for the state. Sales tax.

Colorado has even been experiencing a bit of a real estate boom as the doctors and the dispensaries buy/rent office space.

Hope they don't use that money to fund state-level harassment of docs scripting pain meds.

Oh, the irony.

Three things come to mind:

1). High PAY for DEA, FDA, LE enforcement and higher ranking officers.
2). Confiscated property income.
3). "side" income for the "few" less than scrupulous agents.

I'm sure there are more. Those just "pop up" in my mind.

Got it now.

I worked as a contractor for the Federal Govt for years. EPA was a big client.

One thing I learned was that if an agency did not spend all of their allotted $ w/in the budget year, they lost it. AND they had trouble getting the same amount of money given to them the following year.

Close to the end of budget year, my boss would figure out who had money left and we would go try to sell them on new ideas.

Wrong, really. Just wrong.

The wrong part is not my boss trying to sell work, but the fact that the agencies go nuts trying to spend every last cent.

I had a friend who was a prison guard in Ohio. Very conservative guy. But one day he told me he was in favor of legalizing drugs. Shocked me. Asked him why.

He said they can't keep drugs out of the hands of prisoners. He asked - if we can't keep drugs out of the hands of guys who are in open prison cells, guarded 24 hours a day, inside of guarded walls, what are the odds we'll EVER keep people outside from getting all the drugs they want?

And, he said, the majority of the people in his prison were there with some kind of drug link - gangs killing over drugs and drug control in their area, people breaking into houses or committing armed assaults and robberies for money for drugs, etc. He said imagine what would happen to all of the thugs making huge money trafficking drugs if suddenly they were legal and controlled?

Artlover,
I've heard the same thing from one old cop. That the war against people was hopeless.
The bad part is that half the people in prison for drugs are "non-violent" offenders. Generally addicts trying to support their habit or the wives of drug dealers who lived in the house and got hard time.
The most honest HVAC repair man I ever knew got 7 years in Federal. Turns out he was a cocaine addict and was selling on the side to support his habit.
He had never done anything violent.

I believe the whole "War on prescription drugs" is because the DEA has totally lost their war on schedule I illegal drugs and are now going after an easy target ?
I hardly ever hear about the illegal drugs they once went after.
Just a way to justify their continued high budget ?

Resorts,
You are not kidding about crooked cops !
The first "Narc" on the local police force retired early and lives in a giant house with inground pool, etc. Way beyond the means of a cop's pay.
Like the old song said--
"The Lure of Easy Money
It has a Very Strong Appeal"


Meonlyits,
I've seen the same kind of spending on the local level. A school system. The end of the budget year arrives and they go nuts and buy stuff they don't even need because "If we don't spend it, we won't get as much next year."
And at the same time, telling the public that they must have more money for the poor schools !!

What a crazy country ?
Someone should cut up the governments credit card.
And that may happen soon ?

Undercover operations and have you ever watched cops? Every bust they make just about is drug related. Wouldn't their time be better spent fighting other types of crime instead of taking down the guy who bought a little weed to go home and smoke and relax after a long day at work?

I completely agree.

I think all victimless crimes should be legalized, like drug use, prostitution and suicide.

But there is always a victim. Family and/or friends pay the price usually. The wife whose husband carries home a nasty disease from a hooker. The kids who don't have a father anymore because the person thought thins were hopeless one day. It IS very complex.

True. I was thinking that as I posted.

Can you imagine trying to commit suicide and then ending up in jail? Talk about cruel and unusual punishment.

But prostitution is truly the oldest profession right, beside apple picking, no? If it was legalized, we could tax it and pay for healthcare.

And drugs, well don't even get me started on that. Thank goodness the states are moving in the right direction w/medical mj.

Meon:

I agree with everything EXCEPT Suicide....I believe anyone succeeding in comitting suicide should be locked up in a federal penatentary for life without parole!!

Would make for quieter prisons.

I don't agree with suicide because I am a christian and as long as the hooker understands and it doesn't hurt her mentally then I think that is her decision. I would kill my husband if he did that though. Not really but you know what I mean.

Reading your post number 3 came into mind. about 2 yrs ago i had some freinds that lived in East TN. well they got busted with 1/4 lb. of pot, guess how much evidence showed up in court. 1 and 1/2 ounces, just enough to make it a felony. anything under one ounce in TN. is simple possession (sp) Guess who the judge believed. Those boys who wear the badge that says to protect and serve. I have also heard of this happening with sch IV pills, you have to carry them in the original bottle, these people put them in a small nitroglycerin container on their key chain , (they had about 50 zanax) , guess how much showed up in court 15 can't remember what their charges were but the judge (the judge was a real ahole he would not let them bring in the original bottle) of course believed those boys in blue with the badge. IMO there is a shite load of unscrupulous officers.

Yikes I live in East TN and that makes me nervous. I always keep my prescriptions in my purse.

jackie01, maybe you should just put the amount of medication you need for the day(s) and leave the rest at home in the original or a refill bottle (if you have not thrown them away). Just a thought.

Peace...

Are not the laws of the land the laws demanded by the people living there?
I am pretty sure that if the people that visit this board voted on relaxing drug laws or not... the results would be not to do it...

Make sure you have the original bottle they were dispensed in, you can always put it in the trunk or glove box. But TN. law say's clearly that the bottle they came in at the pharmacy must be in your possesion. This applies only to scheduled meds. I have known of the TN. Highway Patrol(THP) counting your meds too and questiong why the days and the amount do not match. I have a little metal box, and i always carry my meds in it when ever i leave home. We are loosing our freedoms slowly one at a time. If you are a chronic pain patient its like you are already singled out for diversion the law does not understand that there are days when it rains or its cold you may need more than scripted. i discussed this with my doctor and he has put the hours taken plus the words "as needed "on my scheduled meds so this puts a monkey wrentch in the THP's nasty hands from handling my pills.

The laws will not change here because this is the buckle of the Bible Belt. Plus the people who enforce the law are crooked.

Any Atty worth his salt will get you off on a "pill counting Geastapo". Wait till the court date and all the Atty has to say is "BUT...Yo honor, He weren't carrying ALL his meds with him, Just what he needed for the trip. The rest were in another bottle at home which he's since taken as prescribed....POOF...The Brown shirted Geastapo loses his case.

It is not like that. The people are pulling on the belt. The police, the sherif, and the mayor only hear complains about crime and demands for action and that is what they do and that is what they tell the governor that people want... and that is what gets to Washington as what people want...
Zero tolerance, three strikes and you are out, right to shoot intruders, laws that say you are a drug dealer even if you never sold a thing, mandatory prison sentences... are all things demanded by the people, (mainly because they do not think it is going to negatively affect them or their families)...

"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted." is in the constitution... and the only conclusion for the laws and punishments in rigor should be that what is happening is not perceived as excessive bail, nor excessive fines, nor cruel and unusual punishment...

3 strike laws, zero tolerance, etc. have an adverse affect. Places like California create a lot of professional criminals by sending users and low level dealers into jails where they become students of crime. JMHO.

I actually do carry more in the bottle than is prescribed and I guess I should stop doing that. The thing is I have been in an accident before and it was my fault I ran into the back of another car when I thought they were going to go through a yellow light but they hit the brakes and stopped. I was not prepared and hit them hard enough from behind that their car was not driveable. The state highway officer was extremely nice and did not question me hardly at all. I did not even get a ticket. Maybe it was my lucky day?