The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a landmark decision yesterday in which California state courts found that its medical cannabis law is not preempted by federal law.
The Supreme Court’s decision in Garden Grove v. Superior Court means that federal law does not prevent state and local governments from implementing medical cannabis laws adopted by voters or state legislatures. In short: the group Americans for Safe Access, says federal law does not override state law on medical cannabis.
Understanding
This is really an issue of state’s rights. We learned this back in high school. The way this nation is run is like a collective of mini nations that work together (supposedly). The federal government is that collective at work in the form of the executive, legislature, and judicial. Whatever the federal government doesn’t legislate, it leaves up to the individual states. In this way, the states can react to their own respective situations quickly.
What’s been happening is that some police officers in medical marijuana states, in their supreme arrogance and stupidity, try to decide which laws they want to enforce – state or federal. What they don’t realize is that they are NOT federal employees. They are state employees. Therefore, they have absolutely NO business, nor right, playing the role of federal law enforcement. That means whatever state laws are on the books for medical marijuana, they MUST follow. Otherwise, they’re just violent weapon-wielding vigilantes hiding behind their badges.
The supreme court simply solidifies this distinction effectively telling local police around the nation: DO THE DAMN JOB YOU WERE HIRED TO DO. YOU DO NOT WORK FOR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT! That means, if you’re in a medical marijuana state, DEAL WITH IT. If local police are enforcing federal laws, it undermines the will of the people. What if the federal government decides that murder was now legal? But, your state still has laws against murder. Do you want local police enforcing state laws against the will of the people or federal laws?
DEA Next to get Bitch Slapped (Hopefully)
Also noted in the article is a case in which a California officer, Patrick Hedges, felt it necessary to call in the DEA when he couldn’t find anything against a specific marijuana dispensary. This is how sad and arrogant some local police departments have become. However, all of that may come to an end soon. President-elect Obama said (and it IS just words for now) he would put an end to DEA raids on medical marijuana dispensaries.
In this weak economic climate, it’s going to be great when Obama looks over the DEA budget to realize they’re blowing billions of dollars annually with, at best, minimal returns on investment. In other words, these pricks better catch more than 1-5% of drugs in the nation and start arresting real criminals (not sick patients) to justify that level of expenditure. It’s pitiful. With that much money, this nation can do a lot more than throw it down a hole. Healthcare. Education. Infrastructure.
How are truly serious addicts (cocaine, heroin, meth) getting OFF the drugs by going in and out of prison? They’re not. Think about it. How much money is spent per prisoner per year? Only the most ignorant, or devoid of humanity, would believe it makes sense to allow addiction to continue while spending billions per year NOT addressing the problem. It’s pitiful.
