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Prospects for Drug Reform in Obama's Washington

Prospects for Drug Reform in Obama's Washington

http://cannabisnews.com/news/24/thread24319.shtml
By Phillip S. Smith, Drug War Chronicle
Source: AlterNet

USA -- The political landscape in Washington, DC, is undergoing a dramatic shift as the Democratic tide rolls in, and, after eight years of drug war status quo under the Republicans, drug reformers are now hoping the change in administrations will lead to positive changes in federal drug policies. As with every other aspect of federal policy, groups interested in criminal justice and drug policy reform are coming out of the woodwork with their own recommendations for Obama and the Democratic Congress. This week, we will look at some of those proposals and attempt to assess the prospects for real change.

One of the most comprehensive criminal justice reform proposals, of which drug-related reform is only a small part, comes from a nonpartisan consortium of organizations and individuals coordinated by the Constitution Project, including groups such as the Sentencing Project, Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), and the Open Society Policy Center. The set of proposals, Smart on Crime: Recommendations for the Next Administration and Congress, includes the following recommendations:
* Mandatory Minimum Reforms:
Eliminate the crack cocaine sentencing disparity
Improve and expand the federal "safety valve"
Create a sunset provision on existing and new mandatory minimums
Clarify that the 924(c) recidivism provisions apply only to true repeat offenders

* Alternatives to Incarceration:
Expand alternatives to incarceration in federal sentencing guidelines
Enact a deferred adjudication statute
Support alternatives to incarceration through expansion of federal drug and other problem solving courts.

* Incentives and Sentencing Management:
Expand the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP)
Clarify good time credit
Expand the amount of good time conduct credit prisoners may receive and ways they can receive it
Enhance sentence reductions for extraordinary and compelling circumstances
Expand elderly prisoners release program
Revive executive clemency

* Promoting Fairness and Addressing Disparity:
Support racial impact statements as a means of reducing unwarranted sentencing disparities
Support analysis of racial and ethnic disparity in the federal justice system
Add a federal public defender as an ex officio member of the United States Sentencing Commission

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has also issued a set of recommendations, Actions for Restoring America: How to Begin Repairing the Damage to Freedom in America Under Bush, which include some drug reform provisions:

* Crack/Powder Sentencing: The attorney general should revise the US Attorneys' Manual to require that crack offenses are charged as "cocaine" and not "cocaine base," effectively resulting in elimination of the disparity.

* Medical Marijuana: Halt the use of Justice Department funds to arrest and prosecute medical marijuana users in states with current laws permitting access to physician-supervised medical marijuana. In particular, the US Attorney general should update the US Attorneys' Manual to de-prioritize the arrest and prosecution of medical marijuana users in medical marijuana states. There is currently no regulation in place to be amended or repealed; there is, of course, a federal statutory scheme that prohibits marijuana use unless pursuant to approved research. But US Attorneys have broad charging discretion in determining what types of cases to prosecute, and with drugs, what threshold amounts that will trigger prosecution. The US Attorneys' Manual contains guidelines promulgated by the Attorney general and followed by US Attorneys and their assistants.

* The DEA Administrator should grant Lyle Craker's application for a Schedule I license to produce research-grade medical marijuana for use in DEA- and FDA-approved studies. This would only require DEA to approve the current recommendation of its own Administrative Law Judge.

* All relevant agencies should stop denying the existence of medical uses of marijuana -- as nearly one-third of states have done by enacting laws -- and therefore, under existing legal criteria, reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule V.

* Issue an executive order stating that, "No veteran shall be denied care solely on the basis of using marijuana for medical purposes in compliance with state law." Although there are many known instances of veterans being denied care as a result of medical marijuana use, we have not been able to identify a specific regulation that mandates or authorizes this policy.

* Federal Racial Profiling: Issue an executive order prohibiting racial profiling by federal officers and banning law enforcement practices that disproportionately target people for investigation and enforcement based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sex or religion. Include in the order a mandate that federal agencies collect data on hit rates for stops and searches, and that such data be disaggregated by group. DOJ should issue guidelines regarding the use of race by federal law enforcement agencies. The new guidelines should clarify that federal law enforcement officials may not use race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, or sex to any degree, except that officers may rely on these factors in a specific suspect description as they would any noticeable characteristic of a subject.

Looking to the south, the Latin America Working Group, a coalition of nonprofit groups, has issued a petition urging Obama "to build a just policy towards Latin America and the Caribbean that unites us with our neighbors." Included in its proposals are:

* Actively work for peace in Colombia. In a war that threatens to go on indefinitely, the immense suffering of the civilian population demands that the United States takes risks to achieve peace. If the United States is to actively support peace, it must stop endlessly bankrolling war and help bring an end to the hemisphere's worst humanitarian crisis.

* Get serious -- and smart -- about drug policy. Our current drug policy isn't only expensive and ineffective, it's also inhumane. Instead of continuing a failed approach that brings soldiers into Latin America's streets and fields, we must invest in alternative development projects in the Andes and drug treatment and prevention here at home.

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) has some suggestions as well. As NORML's Paul Armentano wrote last week on Alternet:

* President Obama must uphold his campaign promise to cease the federal arrest and prosecution of (state) law-abiding medical cannabis patients and dispensaries by appointing leaders at the US Drug Enforcement Administration, the US Department of Justice, and the US Attorney General's office who will respect the will of the voters in the thirteen states that have legalized the physician-supervised use of medicinal marijuana.

* President Obama should use the power of the bully pulpit to reframe the drug policy debate from one of criminal policy to one of public health. Obama can stimulate this change by appointing directors to the Office of National Drug Control Policy who possess professional backgrounds in public health, addiction, and treatment rather than in law enforcement.

* President Obama should follow up on statements he made earlier in his career in favor of marijuana decriminalization by establishing a bi-partisan presidential commission to review the budgetary, social, and health costs associated with federal marijuana prohibition, and to make progressive recommendations for future policy changes.

Clearly, the drug reform community and its allies see the change of administrations as an opportunity to advance the cause. The question is how receptive will the Obama administration and the Democratic Congress be to drug reform efforts.

"We've examined Obama's record and his statements, and 90% of it is good," said David Borden, executive director of StoptheDrugWar.org (publisher of this newsletter). "But we don't know what he intends to do in office. There is an enormous amount of good he can do," Borden said, mentioning opening up funding for needle exchange programs, US Attorney appointments, and stopping DEA raids on medical marijuana providers. "Will Obama make some attempt to actualize the progressive drug reform positions he has taken? He has a lot on his plate, and drug policy reform has tended to be the first thing dropped by left-leaning politicians."

There will be some early indicators of administration interest in drug reform, said Bill Piper, national affairs director for the Drug Policy Alliance. "We will be watching to see if he issues an executive order stopping the DEA raids; that would be a huge sign," he said. "He could also repeal the needle exchange funding ban. The congressional ban would still be in place, but that would show some great leadership. If they started taking on drug policy issues in the first 100 days, that would be a great sign, but I don't think people should expect that. There are many other issues, and it's going to take awhile just to clean up Bush's mess. I'm optimistic, but I don't expect big changes to come quickly."

"We are hoping to see a new direction," said Nkechi Taifa, senior policy analyst for civil and criminal justice reform for the Open Society Policy Center. "We couldn't have a better scenario with the incoming vice president having sponsored the one-to-one crack/powder bill in the Senate and the incoming president being a sponsor. And we have a situation in Congress, and particularly in the Senate, where there is bipartisan interest in sentencing reform. Both sides of the aisle want some sort of movement on this, it's been studied and vetted, and now Congress needs to do the right thing. It's time to get smart on crime, and this is not a radical agenda. As far as I'm concerned, fixing the crack/powder disparity is the compromise, and elimination of mandatory minimums is what really needs to be on the agenda."

"With the Smart on Crime proposals, we tried to focus on what was feasible," said the Sentencing Project's Kara Gotsch. "These are items where we think we are likely to get support, where the community has demonstrated support, or where there has been legislation proposed to deal with these issues. It prioritizes the issues we think are most likely to move, and crack sentencing reform is on that list."

The marijuana reform groups are more narrowly focused, of course, but they, too are looking for positive change. "Obama has made it very clear on the campaign trail that he disagrees with the use of federal agencies to undo medical marijuana laws in states that have passed them," said Dan Bernath, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project. "He has vowed to stop that. Obama seems to be someone who values facts and reasoned decision-making. If he applies that to marijuana policy, that could be a good thing".

While the list of possible drug reforms is long and varied, it is also notable for what has not been included. Only NORML even mentions marijuana decriminalization, and no one is talking about ending the drug war -- only making it a bit kinder and gentler. The L-word remains unutterable.

"While we're optimistic about reducing the harms of prohibition, legalization is not something that I think they will take on," said Piper. "But any movement toward drug reform is good. If we can begin to shift to a more health-oriented approach, that will change how Americans think about this issue and create a space where regulation can be discussed in a a rational manner. Now, because of our moralist criminal justice framework, it is difficult to have a sane discussion about legalization."

"We didn't talk that much about legalization," said Gotsch in reference to the Smart on Crime proposals. "A lot of organizations involved have more ambitious goals, but that wouldn't get the kind of reaction we want. There just isn't the political support yet for legalization, even of marijuana."

"We should be talking about legalization, yes," said StoptheDrugWar.org's Borden, "but should we be talking about it in communications to the new president who has shown no sign of supporting it? Not necessarily. We must push the envelope, but if we push it too far in lobbying communications to national leadership, we risk losing their attention."

"I do think it would be a mistake to blend that kind of caution into ideological caution over what we are willing to talk about at all," Borden continued. "I think we should be talking about legalization, it's just a question of when and where," he argued.

Talking legalization is premature, said Eric Sterling, formerly counsel to the US House Judiciary Committee and now president of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation. "What we are not yet doing as a movement is building upon our successes," he said. "We just saw medical marijuana win overwhelmingly in Michigan and decriminalization in Massachusetts, but the nation's commentariat has not picked up on it, and our movement has not been sufficiently aggressive in getting those votes translated into the political discourse. We haven't broken out of the making fun phase of marijuana policy yet."

Sterling pointed in particular to the medical marijuana issue. "Everyone recognizes that the state-federal conflict on medical marijuana is a major impediment, and we have 26 senators representing medical marijuana states, but not a single senator has introduced a medical marijuana bill," he said. "It's an obvious area for legislative activity in the Senate, but it hasn't happened. This suggests that we as a movement still lack the political muscle even on something as uncontroversial as the medical use of marijuana."

Even the apparent obvious targets for reform, such as the crack/powder sentencing disparity, are going to require a lot of work, said Sterling. "It will continue to be a struggle," he said. "The best crack bill was Biden's, cosponsored by Obama and Clinton, but I'm not sure who is going to pick that up this year. The sentencing reform community continues to struggle to frame the issue as effective law enforcement, and I think it's only on those terms that we can win."

Reformers also face the reality that the politics of crime continues to be a sensitive issue for the majority Democrats, Sterling said. "Crime is an issue members are frightened about, and it's an area where Republicans traditionally feel they have the upper ground. The Democrats are going to be reluctant to open themselves up to attack in areas where there is not a strong political upside. On many issues, Congress acts when there is a clear universe of allies who will benefit and who are pushing for action. I don't know if we are there yet."

Change is the mantra of the Obama administration, and change is what the drug reform community is hoping for. Now, the community must act to ensure that change happens, and that the right changes happen.
 

Tanuvan

Member
Hardy said:

MRSA possibly...but there are a host of pathogens out there. Including but not limited to H.I.V. which requires anti-viral treatment. Amazing how people actually miss the point of a post. I am not in any way suggesting that MJ lacks medicinal benefits. However, you would be foolish to think that it can cure everything. The point again is that there are enough medical conditions where MJ does not apply. I am pretty sure that Pharmaceutical companies are not that worried.

But for those who keep coming up with specifics and missing the point...

How about birth control pills? Testosterone supplementation, immuno-suppressive drugs for organ transplantation. ACE inhibitors,Anti-Platelet Agents, Antifibrolytic agents (treatment of hemophilia).
 

bambam

Member
Haps said:
Do you chaps have a good nominee? Is there a good one, I don't know. Whomever gets the job will be an asshole, but hopefully an asshole that will do as he is told. Do you think the first black pres should make Snoop the drug czar? Don't be hating on our new pres, give the guy a chance to do what he said he would.
H


No good pick. They are all assholes. Pink black white blue red and brown, if you are the pres. Its cause the powers that be made you the pres.



Lets hope that we can just get the cali raids over and done with so people can be or feel a bit more free. :fsu:
 

Hardy

New member
Tanuvan said:
MRSA possibly...but there are a host of pathogens out there. Including but not limited to H.I.V. which requires anti-viral treatment. Amazing how people actually miss the point of a post. I am not in any way suggesting that MJ lacks medicinal benefits. However, you would be foolish to think that it can cure everything. The point again is that there are enough medical conditions where MJ does not apply. I am pretty sure that Pharmaceutical companies are not that worried.

But for those who keep coming up with specifics and missing the point...

How about birth control pills? Testosterone supplementation, immuno-suppressive drugs for organ transplantation. ACE inhibitors,Anti-Platelet Agents, Antifibrolytic agents (treatment of hemophilia).
Hah I'm sorry but it's ironic that you would say that :D Yes, it is amazing how people can miss the point of a post, you clearly missed the point of mine. I was simply pointing out an error in your post, cannabis is indeed an antibiotic. It would take some kind of dumbass to miss your point :)

Of course there are a host of conditions that cannabis can't help, but there's also a lot of conditions it can help. There is NO DOUBT that legalising cannabis will hurt the revenue of the pharmaceutical industry. Check out the price of the MS drug Tysabri for an example.

For the record, cannabis can help diabetes patients too http://www.diabetesmine.com/2005/10/treating_diabet.html
 

Tanuvan

Member
Hardy said:
...

Of course there are a host of conditions that cannabis can't help, but there's also a lot of conditions it can help. There is NO DOUBT that legalising cannabis will hurt the revenue of the pharmaceutical industry. Check out the price of the MS drug Tysabri for an example.

For the record, cannabis can help diabetes patients too http://www.diabetesmine.com/2005/10/treating_diabet.html

What proof do you have that it will hurt the pharmaceutical industry? Perhaps you don't realize just how many medications that industry produces. About the only thing that would put a real dent in the industry is generic medications that will flood the market when the larger companies patents run out. THAT is what they are more afraid of.

Did you by chance read their proof of cannabis and diabetes management that you linked?

"While cannabis is not generally thought to be an anti-hypertensive and is no replacement for ACE inhibitors, it does contribute to lower blood pressure which is vital in diabetes management. "

None of what they say has anything to do with the regulation of glucose levels (Which is the main issue of Diabetes) or the restoration of the Insulin mediated response. Nothing AT ALL. What they suggest is that Cannabis has some vasodilation properties which MAY help in circulation. But guess what, so can exercise.

Here is a direct excerpt from the article you linked...

* stabilizing blood sugars (confirmed via “a large body of anecdotal evidence building among diabetes sufferers”)

Where is the scientific evidence? Where are the lowered glucose levels? If you are going to refute something, at the very least, provide some scientific evidence of what you are suggesting.


As an aside, the reason why I say MAY help in circulation is because at the periphery cannabis restricts blood flow, but causes vasodilation at the larger arteries. So in actually there may be no net gain in circulation.


P.S. I was generalizing about Antibiotics specifically while making a general point.
 
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Tanuvan

Member
I was initially concerned about Biden and his affiliation with ONDCP. I am even more concerned with whom the next drug Czar might be. While I voted for Obama, I hope the change he stands for includes drug policy as well. It is long overdue.
 
D

DryAndHigh

Tanuvan said:
What proof do you have that it will hurt the pharmaceutical industry? Perhaps you don't realize just how many medications that industry produces.

dude are you really asking for proof when it can't even be researched? really? Do you think that the pharmaceutical companies would want even one person to have the option of choosing marijuana over one of their drugs? Even if it is just a drop in the bucket it still hurts.

Put down the APA styled research booklets and use some common sense.
 

hyposomniac

Well-known member
Veteran
Tanuvan said:
Peanutbutter, I think you missed my point...but I will entertain your comment.

Insulin dependent Diabetes is related to (as I am sure you know) the body's (or more specifically the Islets of Langerhans in the pancreas) inability to mediate an insulin response in order to metabolize glucose. Can you tell me how "hemp oil" sugar has anything to do with glucose? It makes no sense at all. The body cannot produce insulin to regulate the sugar. How is cannabis going to cause the body to produce insulin...when the pathway is destroyed?


PB mentioned his type2 diabetes, which is non-insulin dependent.
You don't think specific dietary fats can have an effect on blood glucose and/or insulin sensitivity?
I haven't studied hempseed oil, but fish oil has shown positive effects on the aforementioned parameters in research.

This being one quickly found example..
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...nel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

I've also seen research suggesting positive effects on type1 diabetes as well (it's not neccessarily accurate to say the body cannot produce insulin.. sometimes its a case of not nearly enough of it).

So is hemp effective? I don't know... but I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it, that's just medical hubris.
 

Tanuvan

Member
Before you jump on the bandwagon...what I am saying is that the pharmaceutical industry is not likely to be the MAIN group that wants to keep MJ illegal. MJ is used MORE AS A RECREATIONAL DRUG. The industry that it competes with directly are alcohol and tobacco.
 
D

DryAndHigh

Tanuvan said:
Before you jump on the bandwagon...what I am saying is that the pharmaceutical industry is not likely to be the MAIN group that wants to keep MJ illegal. MJ is used MORE AS A RECREATIONAL DRUG. The industry that it competes with directly are alcohol and tobacco.

I agree completely, but to imply that the pharm companies would welcome the medicinal use with open arms is dumb, no research has to tell me that.

edit - I know that's not what you meant, but w/e
 
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hyposomniac

Well-known member
Veteran
Tanuvan said:
Before you jump on the bandwagon...what I am saying is that the pharmaceutical industry is not likely to be the MAIN group that wants to keep MJ illegal. MJ is used MORE AS A RECREATIONAL DRUG. The industry that it competes with directly are alcohol and tobacco.

I agree with you there. Not to mention the big business of law enforcement.. I guess that MJ busts are low-risk high-profit endeavors. Pharmas play dirty pool though... and every penny counts.
 
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Tanuvan

Member
hyposomniac said:
PB mentioned his type2 diabetes, which is non-insulin dependent.
You don't think specific dietary fats can have an effect on blood glucose and/or insulin sensitivity?
I haven't studied hempseed oil, but fish oil has shown positive effects on the aforementioned parameters in research.

This being one quickly found example..
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...nel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

I've also seen research suggesting positive effects on type1 diabetes as well (it's not neccessarily accurate to say the body cannot produce insulin.. sometimes its a case of not nearly enough of it).

So is hemp effective? I don't know... but I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it, that's just medical hubris.

And I would not be so quick to justify it either. I am saying it isn't a catch all miracle plant. The plant is GREAT, no arguing that...but I have read some pretty far fetched claims. I'd rather keep it at the level of biochemistry and science, not anecdotal evidence and hearsay.

(it's not neccessarily accurate to say the body cannot produce insulin.. sometimes its a case of not nearly enough of it). The diagnosis and disease state results in the same. This is an argument of semantics. You have Type I and Type II, insulin dependent and non. Not a little bit insulin dependent.
 
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Tanuvan

Member
hyposomniac said:
I agree with you there. Not to mention the big business of law enforcement.. I guess that MJ busts are low-risk high-profit endeavors. Pharmas play dirty pool though... and every penny counts.

I suspect the drug test vendors would be a large lobby, more so than the pharmaceuticals. They stand to lose more than the pharmaceutical companies. Drug testing is BIG business. On the ONDCP website, they have a list of who contributed, and how much. You'd be surprised who is on that list.
 

Hardy

New member
Tanuvan said:
What proof do you have that it will hurt the pharmaceutical industry? Perhaps you don't realize just how many medications that industry produces. About the only thing that would put a real dent in the industry is generic medications that will flood the market when the larger companies patents run out. THAT is what they are more afraid of.
That they are more afraid of something else isn't relevant. Read this, realise that pain management medication revenued $16 billion in the USA in 1999, and tell me that the pharmaceutical industry won't lobby against the legalisation of cannabis.

Tanuvan said:
Did you by chance read their proof of cannabis and diabetes management that you linked?

"While cannabis is not generally thought to be an anti-hypertensive and is no replacement for ACE inhibitors, it does contribute to lower blood pressure which is vital in diabetes management. "

None of what they say has anything to do with the regulation of glucose levels (Which is the main issue of Diabetes) or the restoration of the Insulin mediated response. Nothing AT ALL. What they suggest is that Cannabis has some vasodilation properties which MAY help in circulation. But guess what, so can exercise.

Here is a direct excerpt from the article you linked...

* stabilizing blood sugars (confirmed via “a large body of anecdotal evidence building among diabetes sufferers”)

Where is the scientific evidence? Where are the lowered glucose levels? If you are going to refute something, at the very least, provide some scientific evidence of what you are suggesting.


As an aside, the reason why I say MAY help in circulation is because at the periphery cannabis restricts blood flow, but causes vasodilation at the larger arteries. So in actually there may be no net gain in circulation.
I claimed nothing more than "cannabis can help diabetes patients", please refrain from creating strawmen. Here are a couple of studies further supporting my claim though: http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0944711306000407 http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a745984763~db=all

Tanuvan said:
P.S. I was generalizing about Antibiotics specifically while making a general point.
Fair enough.
 

Tanuvan

Member
Believe me, I know full well about the pharmaceutical lobbyist. Do understand that the medical profession is slow to change. Just because MJ gets approved for treatment in pain management does not automatically mean that physicians everywhere will start prescribing it. There are in fact already pain medications on the market. Doctors get perks from pharmacy companies.

What will likely happen is that the pharmaceutical industry will come up with more derivatives of cannabis and these will be marketed directly to physicians. I don't need to make "strawmen" arguments. I have nothing to lose or gain in debating with you.

What you posted intially contained speculation and anecdotal evidence to which I responded accordingly.
 
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hyposomniac

Well-known member
Veteran
Tanuvan said:
(it's not neccessarily accurate to say the body cannot produce insulin.. sometimes its a case of not nearly enough of it). The diagnosis and disease state results in the same. This is an argument of semantics. You have Type I and Type II, insulin dependent and non. Not a little bit insulin dependent.


Yes, but I think the semantics are important, especially in science. The devil is in the details. As a diabetes researcher, I think it would be important to know the level of disability in the affected organs. This distinction surely is important to someone, even if not relevant to our conversation.

I admit that I laugh when I hear some of the conditions people claim MJ helps with, and chalk it up to marijuana's effects on perception.
 

hyposomniac

Well-known member
Veteran
Tanuvan said:
I suspect the drug test vendors would be a large lobby, more so than the pharmaceuticals. They stand to lose more than the pharmaceutical companies. Drug testing is BIG business. On the ONDCP website, they have a list of who contributed, and how much. You'd be surprised who is on that list.

Hahah.. nothing surprises me anymore. But I can't find that list, link me if you can. Thanks
 

Uncle Remus

Member
Remember where the guy is coming from...I don't care what he says, what he's "gonna" change...Just another cog in the Chicago/Daley machine...Ryan, Blagovich, ect., ect.

If they were honest, they wouldn't be in politics
 

wygram

Member
"Sometimes it is said that man cannot be trusted with the government of himself. Can he, then, be trusted with the government of others?" --Thomas Jefferson

"Was the government to prescribe to us our medicine and diet, our bodies would be in such keeping as our souls are now." --Thomas Jefferson

"But their virtuous feelings have been played on by some fact with more fiction; they have been the dupes of artful maneuvers, and made for a moment to be willing instruments in forging chains for themselves. But times and truth dissipated the delusion, and opened their eyes." --Thomas Jefferson

"When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty." --Thomas Jefferson

"Force cannot change right." --Thomas Jefferson

"What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?" --Thomas Jefferson
 
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