I never believe what Bush says

I’m not saying President Bush is a liar. No, I believe he presents a story in the best possible light, even when it's fictional. Take his radio address today. He talked about the war on drugs. He told a story in order to spin the 8 year effort as a success. He also took the opportunity to plug his faith-based efforts to cure drug addiction. The success of these faith-based programs are questionable at best.

Taken together, our efforts to reduce demand, cut supply, and help people break the chains of addiction are yielding measurable results. Over the past seven years, marijuana use by young people has dropped by 25 percent. Methamphetamine use by young people is down by 50 percent. And the use of cocaine, hallucinogens, steroids, and alcohol by America's youth are all on the decline. Overall, illegal drug use by Americans is down by 25 percent -- meaning we have helped approximately 900,000 young people stay clean.

Source: Radio Address by President Bush to the Nation

The problem is that Bush’s policies have also helped several million young people find their way into America’s jails and prisons. NORML keeps track for a reason. It’s because President Bush will never say we arrested eight hundred and seventy thousand people for marijuana offenses in 2007 alone, and several million people since he redoubled the government’s war on drugs.

Nor will he mention that the war on drugs has produced ruthlessly efficient drug cartels who routinely murder people in in Mexican border towns like Juarez, where 1500 people have been gunned down this year. We cause this by creating demand and limiting supply. In legal parlance, we are culpable.

Instead, President Bush shills for Christian fundamentalist who do not want to see the faith-based gravy train come to an end with the Bush administration. Our President acts as a Christian surrogate by delivering the testimony of Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers. I appreciate the story of Josh Hamilton. I like seeing people get their lives together. My problem is that Josh Hamilton has nothing to do with the war on drugs or with faith-based efforts to help drug addicts. Hamilton was a rich self-absorbed coke addict who cleaned his life up when faced with losing everything. He did it through religion. Great, whatever works. But Bush’s radio address was misdirection, plain and simple.

I think Bush’s radio address is government sponsored evangelism.It focused attention on Josh Hamilton’s ministry – Triple Play Ministries, while trying to link religion to our nations failed drug policies. It’s enough to make this life long libertarian vote for a democrat. I wonder if President-elect Obama will end the drug war by legalizing marijuana?

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