Monday, August 8, 2011

Shock- I Agree With the NAACP- On One Item

There is apparently one area where the NAACP and I are in agreement- It is time to end "the War on Drugs."

Now, before you close your browser, I must also add that the NAACP and I agree on the concept, but for entirely different reasons.  

My primary reason for believing that the War On Drugs should be ended is that I believe it is UNCONSTITUTIONAL for the Federal Government to regulate drugs.  I cite the 10th Amendment to the Constitution:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Can someone PLEASE tell me, WHERE does the Constitution give the Federal Government the right to regulate the practice of medicine or determine what drugs are "have medicinal value" or not.  That is the crux of the matter.   Each of the several states has a medical board, which governs the licensing of physicians and what constitutes the practice of Medicine in the state.

Of course there will be those that point to "Interstate Commerce," and cite Gonzales v. Raich, 545 US 1In Raich I must disagree, respectfully, with Justice Scalia and instead agree with the late Chief Justice Rehnquist, Justice O'Connor, and Justice Thomas in their dissents.   The Raich case involved a woman who grew and distributed medicinal marijuana legally within the state of California.  However,  Raich was prosecuted under Federal law.   The marijuana NEVER left the state of California- therefore it would seem that interstate commerce did not apply, and therefore this was not a "Federal" issue.   This was the opinion of Chief Justice Rehnquist, Justice O'Connor, and Justice Thomas.    BREAKING with the CONSERVATIVE side of the court, Justice Scalia sided with the Liberals (and Justice Kennedy) in stating that there was a "chance" that the marijuana "might" cross a state line (it had not, remember) and therefore "Interstate Commerce" applied and therefore the Feds had the right to prosecute.   This, I believe, is one of the WORST decisions ever made by The Court.   If I go to McDonald's in Blythe, there is a very good possibility that my french fries will cross a state line.  Those same french fries would almost CERTAINLY cross the state line between Kansas and Missouri, as there are McDonald's on State Line Road! (As the name implies, State Line Road is on the State Line between Kansas and Missouri in Kansas City).  Does that mean that ALL McDonald's should now be Federally regulated, instead of being licensed by the city, county or state?

I am not advocating legalization of drugs.  I am however stating that this should be a State issue, and we should let the States make their laws, based on Consent of the Governed, and leave the Fed out of it.
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