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what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpolicy

bum Premier Member Registered on Mar-04-2001 More User Info Message #173348 posted by bum (Info) March 14, 2008 15:47:48 ET As everyone in the world now knows, New York’s Governor, Eliot Spitzer, is resigning amidst a sex scandal. On Monday, March 17, Lt. Governor David Paterson will assume his new role as the Governor of New York. What does this mean for drug policy reform in our state? How might this unprecedented shift in power impact our efforts to get rid of the Rockefeller Drug Laws and implement a new paradigm in New York, a public health approach to drugs? Albany is still dealing with the aftershocks from the Spitzer crisis, and there are still many unknown factors. Who will be Mr. Paterson’s key staff? What will his agenda be? Will he continue with Mr. Spitzer’s efforts to reform Albany? What’s going to happen with the Sentencing Reform Commission? As of now, we don’t know the answers to these questions. But we do know quite a bit about Lt. Governor Paterson, and his position on drug policy issues has historically been exceptionally good. Before being elected as Lt. Governor in 2006 on the Spitzer ticket, Mr. Paterson served as Minority Leader in the State Senate. A twenty-year veteran of the Senate, Mr. Paterson was a key champion of Rockefeller Drug Law reform. In 2004, he released a report which outlined proposals that are, even now, more progressive than anything previously considered. The Drug Policy Alliance and our allies have worked closely with Mr. Paterson over the years. I’ve met personally with him on numerous occasions to discuss the Rockefeller Drug Laws, and in every instance, without fail, he expressed his commitment to this cause. He always promised to do what he could to win real reform, and he always kept his word to us in our dealings with him. For further background on Mr. Paterson, you can read a NY Times article here. Like us, he shares the view that drug use and abuse should be viewed as a public health issue, rather than a criminal justice issue. Given the extensive alternative-to-incarceration infrastructure in New York State that can divert people convicted of low-level drug law offenses each year, we are confident that a public health approach to drug policy in New York is within sight. Stay tuned for future updates. And please consider becoming a member of DPA—we need you now more than ever. Thanks for all you do. gabriel sayegh Drug Policy Alliance Director of State Organizing and Policy Project

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

bizar4u Premier Member Registered on Dec-01-2003 More User Info Message #173354 posted by bizar4u (Info) March 14, 2008 17:32:40 ET In Reply to: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpolicy posted by bum (Info) March 14, 2008 15:47:48 ET The whole Spitzer thing is too wild. Talk about a tragedy in the classic greek sense -- the guy might be prosecuted under laws that he advocated last year! I was in New York this week, visiting my aunt, and she was very upset about it. I'm also a Jewish guy in my late 40s, and we got talking about secret lives. I said: "Ya know, I have a secret life as well. I've been a pot smoker for 35 years." Thanks to Spitzer, I came out of the dope closet! B

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

bum Premier Member Registered on Mar-04-2001 More User Info Message #173358 posted by bum (Info) March 14, 2008 19:16:33 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bizar4u (Info) March 14, 2008 17:32:40 ET lmao that's great, congrats bizar. :D

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

Dabullz Registered on Apr-14-2003 More User Info Message #173362 posted by Dabullz (Info) March 14, 2008 21:22:47 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bum (Info) March 14, 2008 19:16:33 ET Congrats biz! DB

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

Finger Hash Registered on Jul-15-2001 More User Info Message #173363 posted by Finger Hash (Info) March 14, 2008 21:33:12 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bizar4u (Info) March 14, 2008 17:32:40 ET I'm also a Jewish guy in my late 40s Damn B! I always thought you were a chick! I got thrown for a loop there. FH

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

forged registration Registered on Dec-17-2005 More User Info Message #173365 posted by forged registration (Info) March 14, 2008 23:00:30 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bizar4u (Info) March 14, 2008 17:32:40 ET so, what did you aunt have to say about your 35 year old secret? i told my parents and in-laws that i was a pothead shortly after i got married (didn't want to ruin the ceremony & honeymoon)...my parents were slightly uncomfortable, but my in-laws were, uhm, upset...it took me a few years and some unpleasantness to get everyone on my side

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

bizar4u Premier Member Registered on Dec-01-2003 More User Info Message #173368 posted by bizar4u (Info) March 15, 2008 09:40:19 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by forged registration (Info) March 14, 2008 23:00:30 ET FR, it's great that they got on your side. My feeling is that some folks will never get there -- their objection to pot is deeply emotional, and the best you can do is get limited tolerance. But how did you get your in-laws to accept it? As for my aunt, she was surprised and curious -- wanted to know what its effects were and where I obtained it. Her daughter (my older cousin) married a big pothead in the mid-1980s, and eventually asked him to stop smoking, which he didn't do. My cousin says that was one of the contributing factors to their eventual divorce (although I have my doubts about that as the reason). He is a very high functioning (pun intended) corporate executive, and he felt that he performed better as a pot smoker. So ... my aunt has some experience with potheads, but didn't think of me as one. She'd actually tried marijuana a long time ago -- back in the 1950s -- but it didn't do anything for her. Then we got talking about the time when my cousin was growing up, back in the mid-1970s, and how wild she was, and impossible to control. How difficult this was for my aunt, and how it seems like kids now are less rebellious. She did urge me to not smoke and drive, always sensible. One virtue of "coming out" to an 80 year old is that chances are they won't remember it later! And FH -- it's another strange kind of cognitive dissonance on these boards that you get a mental image of someone, and sometimes it fits exactly who they are, and sometimes it's completely off. B

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

SimaFrench Premier Member Registered on Oct-22-2001 More User Info Message #173371 posted by SimaFrench (Info) March 15, 2008 10:34:07 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bizar4u (Info) March 15, 2008 09:40:19 ET Ditto on the J thing, we could start a congregation! I hope that Mr. Patterson does indeed change the laws in NYC. I imagine he would not do that much in his interim time but would rather solidfy himself for the elections. THen maybe. How would it work tho? What we have to base on in the USA is only on the state level, as in California. There the people got the med MJ issue on a voter ballot and it was voted in. Now, you can fly to California or if you live there of course, you go to some DR. who will give you a prescription for as I understand $250, that allows you to buy excellent weed and hash. That is all we can hope for. A change on the federal leve would be required to have something like the Dutch have where anyone can license a place for sales and smoking of weed/hash. What they have in Vancouver is also local but a little different than Dutch that one is allowed to smoke in one or 2 places but sale is not allowed. THis is a local law simply the police will not enforce anything in that place except to assure that no sales are taking place. Thus my understanding is that it would not be David Patterson who would initiate the med law in NYC it would need to be local folks. Please correct me if I am not understanding this correctly.

Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo

forged registration Registered on Dec-17-2005 More User Info Message #173379 posted by forged registration (Info) March 15, 2008 19:47:32 ET In Reply to: Re: what spitzer's resignignation means for drugpo posted by bizar4u (Info) March 15, 2008 09:40:19 ET my in-laws still don't like cannabis, but they came around to liking me, warts and all...the issue simmered in the background for a few years with the odd snarky comment after i came back from smoking a joint while they were visiting (they stayed in our home for 2 weeks at a time so it wasn't like i ran out the door in the middle of dinner on thanksgiving)...one night it came to a head and i had a direct confrontation with the father in-law when my wife was out and i set him straight on the futility and pitfalls of trying to change anything about me that he doesn't like...after that he stopped criticizing my pot use, as well as my parenting, financial planning, cooking, etc: we both focus on the things we like about eachother...now we're good buds and i actually look forward to taking the in-laws along with us on our annual beach vacation this spring...we'll be sitting on the balcony, him with a beer, and me with a joint, and my mother in-law frozen in the cringe position with pillows over her ears my parents shrivelled a little inside when i told them, but now my mother consumes WAY more pot than me, and the old man keeps a bong in the closet for when i visit (he has never tried pot and never will) sneaking around makes it harder to explain cannabis use to straight people...to them, it means we know we're doing something wrong - going out for a 'walk', sucking on mints, and avoiding direct stares are evidence of guilt...so i tried to be very upfront about what i do, and when i do it so they don't feel like i'm hiding some secret life from them...honesty really is the best policy when it comes to family, but i don't blow smoke in their face when i'm at their home one of the *concerned* blabbermouth parents at my kids school got her tits in a knot after reading a letter to the editor i wrote in response to an article about cannabis...i didn't bother trying to convince her of anything because she wasn't worth the time...like you said, some folks are beyond redemption

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