Re: Howard Dean on the Drug War

Brother Nate <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...
> 
> It boggles my mind that after saying things like that you
> can have any confusion at all about why your arguments and
> candidates are so thoroughly and consistently rejected.

The primary reason is that the parties other than the DemoPublicans
are unable to sell their influence to finance their election
campaigns.  I routinely hear members of both the major parties make
crack-pot statements (and frequently, support and PASS crackpot
legislation).

Case in point - The Patriot Act.  It's clear to anyone that has looked
at the data that America's intelligence agencies and the FBI had
plenty of information which - if it had been acted upon - would have
allowed them to stop the terrorists who committed the atrocities of
Sept. 11th.  They didn't because of institutional problems within
these agencies.  So, what is the response of Congress ?  They pass
legislation gutting our Constitutional Rights - rather than reform the
agencies who's bungling allowed the events to occur.

I, for one, do NOT feel safer because of the Patriot Act - in face, I
feel more vulnerable since I'm worried about terrorists AND the
government now.

Of course - reforming the agencies is HARD WORK.  It will require
imagination and dilligence - and won't get you on the evening news
with nice sound-bites.  So - our representatives don't care about it. 
Why do something that will actually solve a problem - when you can
just LOOK like you're doing something ?

Guido