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Mexican President Felipe Calderon with US President Barack Obama (Alfredo Guerrero/Federal Gov't of Mexico)
As Mexico’s government announced the death toll in the four-year-long war with drug cartels totaled more than 28,000, President Felipe Calderon called for a debate on legalizing drugs to fight the cartels.
“It’s a fundamental debate in which I think, first of all, you must allow a democratic plurality (of opinions),” he said. “You have to analyze carefully the pros and cons and the key arguments on both sides.”
Three former presidents — Cesar Gaviria of Colombia, Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico and Fernando Cardoso of Brazil — urged Latin American countries last year to consider legalizing marijuana to undermine a major source of income for cartels. And Mexico’s congress also has debated the issue.
But Calderon has so far said he is opposed to the idea.
Despite Calderon’s feelings on legalization, his call for debate is an encouraging step forward. But it’s not the first call for legalization from Mexico’s government. In December 2009, a Mexican official said that “there is no other argument or solution other than legalization, at least of marijuana.”
Growing numbers of Mexican and U.S. officials say—at least privately—that the biggest step in hurting the business operations of Mexican cartels would be simply to legalize their main product: marijuana. Long the world’s most popular illegal drug, marijuana accounts for more than half the revenues of Mexican cartels.
“Economically, there is no argument or solution other than legalization, at least of marijuana,” said the top Mexican official matter-of-factly. The official said such a move would likely shift marijuana production entirely to places like California, where the drug can be grown more efficiently and closer to consumers. “Mexico’s objective should be to make the U.S. self-sufficient in marijuana,” he added with a grin.
In response to Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s call for a debate on legalization, Norm Stamper, a 34-year veteran police officer who was Seattle’s chief of police and is now a speaker with the group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and an adviser to our Just Say Now campaign, called on President Obama to join the debate on legalizing marijuana.
“President Calderon’s call for a debate on legalization is a big step forward in putting an end to the war raging in Mexico and along our borders. More than 28,000 people have been killed by Mexico’s drug cartels since 2006 – including 1200 in July, the deadliest month yet in this drug war.“Legalizing marijuana is the most sensible approach to stopping this border war. Cartels thrive on marijuana prohibition. Around 70% of the cartels’ profits come from the illegal sale of marijuana, which they turn around to buy guns that have killed thousands of Mexicans and that terrorize police on America’s streets.
“Just Say Now welcomes President Calderon to this debate. We hope that President Obama will join this debate to end the war on marijuana.”
Stand with Norm Stamper and Just Say Now to end the war on marijuana. Please add your name to our petition to President Obama to end the wasteful war on marijuana.
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Any thinking person has to understand that the cartels prefer to keep the laws as they are, and view legalization as a threat.
It’s also obvious that one of the ways they take care of those that threaten their income is to kill them.
So it’s understandible that Calderon would be at least a bit hesitant to push this issue agressively.
The US government should understand his problem in this reguard and act on it’s own so as to give the man cover.
O would need one of those rectangular boosters under his suit jacket on his back to participate in such a debate, or at least answers written on his hand.
How many more people must die and be apprehended before this dumbass law goes away?
It won’t happen under the Obama administration. Because of the racist nature of the law and the stereotypes associated with African Americans and marijuana. He is the first “Black” president. He has a legacy to protect. It’s not his fault. He has no choice in the matter. Unfortunately, this is bad news for us and Mexico. 28,000 people dead. Over a damn weed.
Well, he’s adopted Republican solutions before.
How many more people have to die in our wars? How many more people have to remain in poverty? How many species have to die as the planet roasts? — while boomers spend their money and energy in search of easy access to pot?
Some set of priorities!
Wow, I didn’t see that coming.
Trying to get rid of the law will set off a Republic frenzy of law and order chest pounding.
26,000 Mexicans and uncounted Americans have died in the last 4 yrs because of Drugs. In Mexico the Cartels are held responsible for most of the deaths surrounding Marijuana. In the US 99% of the deaths contributed to Marijuana have been cause by Police SWAT Teams. It is as if we have Iraqs war happening next door and no one is paying attention to the deaths of the innocents just as Bush refused to count the so-called “Collateral Damage” also know as civilians in Iraq.
If one were to look closely I’m convinced they would see the hands of our own Government using its Patriot Act Powers to facilitate the arrests or deaths of the many Cartel Leaders in recent times. There has been way too many busted so closely together to think otherwise. Americans may never know the real facts of these busts or if our help has even been legal. If our Pres. can order the assassination of Terrorists what would of stopped a Pres. from targeting Cartel members just across the Border ? Personally it scares me that such actions could be going on just miles from my home and children. Just the other day it was reported that the Cartels had put a Million dollar hit out of the crazy Sheriff Arpaio. One should assume others have been targeted in the same way making the old Bush fear-mongering saying about fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them here moot.
It may be more wise for Obama to hang in the background and not announce a position. Let the thing play out a bit. Maybe release an anonymous statement from an administration official or two. Later, if things go well he can swoop in to take credit and if things fall apart well it wasn’t his doing. More suffering along the border really doesn’t push the equation so best to not overcommit.
Change you can believe in.
And that would be why, exactly?
Even though there’s about a 100% chance that there are Repugs who smoke weed under the radar.
fyi firedogs – Just Say Now! on MSNBC First Read
that Whitney fella is a bad mam-a jammah!
Of course, but that won’t stop them from taking simplistic political stands.
Jon Walker has a fresh cross-post available: What If People Actually Vote for Hard-Right, Tea Party Republicans?
We Progressives are a diverse lot. :-} I couldn’t care less who smokes pot or what the laws are. I just don’t see this as a high priority for a serious movement. The legal drug platform of the Libertarians didn’t work all that well. I don’t see how it can work for liberals. But that is just my (minority) opinion, To be serious for a moment. My response was likely one the right could take up and use against us..
That’s because of the other Libertarian platforms not because of marijuana legalization. Some more bizarre than others. http://www.lp.org/platform
Soooo.. spending billions of dollars on a lost war is the way to go? Money that could be allocated to the very complaints you’re listing.
Those billions will be spent anyway. I don’t have any moral objection to legalizing MJ. Just like with alcohol or tobacco, those who are determined to abuse it will do so. With legalization a few will not get put in jail but the real disgrace and abuse of imprisonment is the high percentage of mentally ill simply being housed and the racial disparities that are creating large numbers of African American felons.
I just don’t find a push to legalize a politically serious issue in comparison with all the rest that is going on.
But you do care that readers don’t infer from your comments that you support the laws that punish marijuana users, right?
Previous serious efforts and attempts to end marijuana prohibition all preceded the present Internet/telecom colossus. It used to be much much easier for a few to control the debate and its terms.
The Just Say Now! campaign is a new and very fresh approach, and it’s entitled to its current news flow.
It’s not more important or as important as war, poverty, unemployment, or medical care. Maybe we need a law like Godwin’s Law for the raising of the World Peace issue in a discussion.
I spent 15 + yr working in the mental health field and my experience was the reports of the impact of those laws to average US persons are overblown. particularly as to young white folks.
Everyone is certainly entitled to advocate for whatever feel good thing they want. If it distracts activists from wars, oil spills, global heating, poverty, racism — what the hey! It’s the marketplace of ideas! From the young kids I know I think most however have those higher priorities..
If the ‘War On Drugs’ weren’t so fucken racist, I also couldn’t care less – because there wouldn’t be prohibition in the first place. In the meantime, I can hardly expect anyone in this society except the privileged white folks to make better laws, to correct the racist ‘policies’, and to form a more perfect union. Plus, as long as it’s also self-serving or enlightened self-interest, it’s not noblesse oblige or radical chic.
Certainly agree with the egregious legal and prison systems racist misapplication of all our laws, and especially the drug laws. That is an issue worthy of more and more investigative reporting and activist protest.
C’mon, TalkingStick, I don’t take your well-meaning comments out of their contexts. Who’s ‘distracted’? The Just Say Now! campaign hasn’t pushed anything out of ‘the news’. It gets a notice on CNN, on HuffingtonPost, on MSNBC, at other places; then it’s replaced by another news item, and very quickly. Do you think it dominates?
Only time will answer that question.
But my seminal point is I don’t think it is politically a good issue to take up.
I trust Jane Hamsher’s judgment as far as that goes, but I think the ‘pot brownies’ counterattack is immature and can’t be helpful.
Oh, I don’t know about that. Not that I expect him to but he should make the bold moves that separates chicago politicians from statesmen. I’m bored with the race excuse.
This is Obama though so any hint of race being involved means Obama will have nothing to do with it. Marijuana legalization makes sense but this administration hasn’t had a track record of doing what makes sense.
I really don’t see any point in petitioning the government anymore. However, I did add my name, as I have long supported legalization and I do support this campaign.
TalkingStick, you are one of the stellar members of this community, and your level-headed comments are some of the best in the threads. I would like to point out that, along with the obvious benefits we all discuss, I think the legalization of marijuana will have many unforeseeable benefits cascading from the action. The tentacles of prohibition screw up a lot of non-obvious things in a hurtful way.
Peace.
I am honored by your compliments. Thank you..There are many others. I am awed by the level of commentary as well as articles on FDL.
Isn’t it nice we can have some diversity of opinion? I do hope you are right that there will be a cascade of benefits if legalization comes about. I obviously have my doubts and see the problem of justice and abuse of the prison system to be the real problem. And as I have said I question the issue benfitting our liberal and progressive cause in the coming elections.
I am as much an advocate for legalizing marijuana as the next guy/gal but right now, I would really appreciate it if Firedoglake would concentrate on beating republicans rather than giving them one more thing to rile them up about – like legalizing a “drug”.
Just a matter of priorities, 3 months before an election. I do also wish you luck in changing the failed war on drugs.
Just please – These monsters are now talking about repealing the 14th Amendment. Can we please tighten our focus a bit? Repugs are very good at that – we need to be too.
Your site is great. Killing prop 8 is a human rights issue… I agree 100%. Legalizing pot just seems a little superfluous at the moment.
I thought it was awesome for team building, but that was only in the context of gay marriage and freedom of religion. The real argument is constitutional law and the first amendment, thus the need for starting up a Tea Party to make the point.
There is also an ecological religious reformation aspect, but I can’t possibly be expected to see you take any interest in that, can I?
As a dad, I’ve asked myself, “If my child or grandchild got a little off track and got caught with a little marijuana, would I want him or her to go to jail, lose their college financial aid, spend a few days locked up with the sexual predators…?”
Or would I rather have the chance to help them work through it WITHOUT a criminal record?
Californians: register to vote at
h t t p s://w w w .sos.ca.gov/nvrc/fedform/ Just fill out the form and mail it in!
Citizens of other states can Google your state name and “voter registration” to find out how to register; a lot of states allow instant on-line registration. Do it now so you can vote in November!
Actually he does have a choice in the matter.
Who cares?
Hey Stick. U.S. marijuana prohibition hurts many innocent people and enriches criminals. You can count American tax payers among the losers. You may be right to question the political advantage to legalization for liberals. But what good are liberals if they won’t do the right thing for the people.
The Democrats already beat the Republicans. Yet we still have the insane prohibition of marijuana. Just like we still have all the other problems we used to blame on Republicans. Your priorities, with respect, are backward.