On Fri, 22 Jan 2021 11:50:36 -0800 (PST), John Kuthe
<
johnk...@gmail.com> wrote:
>It's a fucking SPY DEVICE!
>
>Have you read ANY of Shoshana Zuboff's book "Surveillance Capitalism and Democracy"? I have, and I'm damned glad I never GOT one of those infernal Spy Devices!
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kriskrane/2020/08/19/a-vp-kamala-harris-would-be-a-disaster-for-marijuana-policy/?sh=2baa6a3dc3c8
Kamala Is A Cop. No matter how excited Democratic voters may be about
having the first woman of color on a presidential ticket, and no
matter how liberal her Senate voting record may be, there is no
escaping the fact that Senator Kamala Harris built her political
career on her record as a prosecutor. In that position she oversaw the
arrest and prosecution of thousands of people, mostly young people of
color, for marijuana and other drug offenses.
That record has her selection as Biden’s running mate being roundly
criticized, and not only by progressives who see her history as a
“law-and-order” prosecutor and record of fighting to uphold wrongful
convictions while in office. Conservatives, particularly libertarian
leaning Republicans who have long been supportive of criminal justice
reform have been harshly critical of her support for prosecuting
so-called “quality of life” crimes that generally involve low level
non-violent offenses like marijuana charges. Even the Trump campaign,
in its drive to win over African American voters, has gotten in on the
“Kamala Is A Cop” action.
These criticisms from the left and right should have supporters of
legalization concerned, especially as they review her history and
record from her time as a prosecutor, before it became politically
advantageous and popular to support cannabis reform once she became a
U.S. Senator. In a look back at her record as California Attorney
General, the Washington Free Beacon concluded that 1,560 people were
sent to prison in California for marijuana offenses between 2011 and
2016. Harris was unapologetic about her position on locking up
non-violent offenders, writing in her 2008 book “Smart on Crime” that
"Nonviolent crimes exact a huge toll on America's communities…It's
important to fight all crime. Drug crimes in particular exact a
terrible toll and rob people young and old of hope."
It was during this time period that Kamala Harris had a chance to show
her true colors on this issue, when California voters had the chance
to vote on Prop. 19, a ballot initiative that would have legalized
marijuana in the state. A candidate for state Attorney General in the
same election, Harris not only spoke out in opposition to the
initiative, she chose to author an opposition statement in the state’s
official ballot guide, claiming that legalization “seriously
compromises the safety of our communities, roadways, and workplaces.”
It is fair to wonder if California politicians like Harris had shown
the political fortitude to support reform, whether the initiative
would have passed instead of falling only 3.5% short of victory.