Domestic Spying, Witch Hunts, and Medical Marijuana.
Monday, March 24th, 2008 at 8:08 pmFrom the article published by Ars Technica, the U.S. has created “a nationwide network of ‘fusion centers’—low-profile, highly secure sites where federal and state officials with top secret clearance meet in order to collect, analyze, and redistribute information on ‘all hazards, all threats.’ ” following 9/11 Commission Report recommendations on increasing cooperation between various agencies….
But now moving through the Virginia state legislature is considering passing a bill that opponents suspect the federal government is pushing the state to adopt “which will render all of the Virginia Fusion Center’s databases and records exempt from FOIA requests. The bill also proposes to make Fusion Center employees exempt from subpoena in civil actions related to ‘criminal intelligence information,’ and it would grant to call-in tipsters immunity to defamation and invasion of privacy claims. “
The really terrible thing about this is the potential for colonial era style “witch hunts” this system encourages by giving cover and immunity to disgruntled or revenge seeking members of the community.
One question I have about the Fusion Center system as it is in place now, is will this or has it already had an impact on California’s (or other state’s) Medical Marijuana Programs? It would be almost irresistible for the FEDs to use local police in disingenuous investigations aimed at sacking patients and providers… ESPECIALLY if they were free from scrutiny under the FOIA.
March 24th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
You can bet on it! That it has had an effect on the MMJ Program Nation, if not , worldwide. My question is why do they even consider marijuana a threat of any kind? It is only a threat to those companies who would suffer financially if medical/recreational marijuana use and industrial hemp were legalized. However, those who would be affected need to be good business people and learn ways they can make money from legalized medical/recreational marijuana and Industrial Hemp rather than trying to keep marijuana illegal. This way millions of loyal, taxpaying Americans do not have to suffer medically or financially by arrest, incarceration and fines. As it was clearly put to Congress and the President in 1988 by their own DEA Chief Administative Law Judge, “Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the most theraputically active substances known. It would be unreasonable, arbutrary and capricious for the DEA to continue to stand between those sufferer’s and the substance.”—Francis L. Young Chief Administrative Law Judge DEA 1988. So why does our government deny these facts? Why does the government of the USA want marijuana kept illegal even though their medical reasons for keeping it illegal have been blown out of the water and that 75-80% of the American public are for Medical Marijuana legalization? The only thing I can think of is greed. If you have an answer post it on www.greenpassion.org, refer to this article i.e. (Domestic Spying, Witch hunts and Medical Marijuana.)
March 24th, 2008 at 11:20 pm
[…] Domestic Spying, Witch Hunts, and Medical Marijuana. One question I have about the Fusion Center system as it is in place now, is will this or has it already had an impact on California?s (or other state?s) Medical Marijuana Programs? It would be almost irresistible for the FEDs to use … More… […]