[quote]San Francisco Sheriff Mike Hennessey, who has run the county jail for 28 years, told CBS 5 that 60 to 75 percent of the 2,000 inmates currently held are there for drug crimes or have underlying substance abuse problems.
“No, the war on drugs is not working. The war on drugs is not working because we are relying on law enforcement instead of on treatment,” Hennessey said.
In a ten-minute tirade about the drug war’s failure, Newsom told reporters that most politicians - including those in his own party - just don’t have the guts to admit the obvious.
“It’s laughable that anyone could look at themselves with a straight face and say ‘oh,we’re really succeeding.’ I mean it’s comedy. And as I say, shame on my party, the democratic party, because they don’t have the courage of their private thoughts, because we don’t want to appear weak on this topic,” Newsom said.[/quote]
Fucking Amen. This hypocrisy has to stop. The number of people incarcerated for POT offenses alone is utterly ludicrous.