Corporations instead of cartels -- or be careful what you wish for.

[Peace Patriot]

14. Yes, I noticed Obama's iffy language, too. Very interesting.

I think it is notable that rightwing presidents in LatAm are the ones pushing for legalization. Santos in Colombia (of all places--the Cocaine Capitol of the World!). Perez in Guatemala. And, just prior to them, a commission of former presidents of Mexico (mostly right or centrist). They said legalize marijuana and re-think the entire "war on drugs." Santos and Perez have not fudged it that way--they are for legalization of all the outlawed drugs.

You'd think it would be the leftist presidents: Say, Chavez in Venezuela and Morales in Bolivia, who threw the DEA out of their countries. Morales, who legalized the coca leaf (Indigenous medicine, not cocaine). Correa in Ecuador who threw the U.S. military base out (ostensible purpose of the base--drug surveillance).

But nope, this is coming from the right. And who does the right serve? Corporate interests. And which corporate interest would profiteer nicely from legalization and has probably completed their R&D by now?

Big Pharma.

Another fact into this mix. Colombia is a U.S. client state and no one becomes president of Colombia without vetting and approval by the U.S. Leon Panetta's first visible action as CIA Director was to go to Bogota amidst rumors that its Bush Junta-approved president, 'mafia boss' Alvaro Uribe, was planning a coup to stay in power. Panetta yanked Uribe from the stage--but gently, with guarantees of U.S. protection against prosecution and nice perks (such as cushy academic sinecures at Georgetown and Harvard)--and vetted and approved Santos. Santos is also a rightwinger but hated by Uribe and his criminal organization, and sometimes sounds like a leftist. (Santos' first act in office was to make peace with Venezuela; then he proposed universal health care for Colombians; then he came out for legalization of drugs.)

My suspicion all along has been that Santos was "running" legalization "up the flagpole" with a secret okay from the U.S. (Obama). These leaders (Obama, Santos) are turning Colombia into a U.S. "free trade for the rich" zone--after a decade of bloody prep by Bush/Uribe (thousands of trade unionists, human rights workers, teachers, community activists and other advocates of the poor slaughtered by the Colombian military and closely tied death squads, on our dollar, and FIVE MILLION peasant farmers brutally displaced from their lands, also using $7 BILLION in U.S. military aid). How does drug legalization fit into this picture?

Big Pharma.

Obama has a problem, if Big Pharma wants legalization. How can he serve two masters--the War Profiteers and Big Pharma (and associated corporations, for instance, Monsanto and Chiquita)? Legalization has to come from outside the U.S. And who would do that for him? Not Chavez. Not Morales. Not Correa. Not most LatAm leaders. Who would he and his administration have cache with? Only the rightwing.

That's my best guess about what is going on with this. Big Pharma is making its big push to legalize and monopolize herbal, recreational and addictive drugs. Obama, if he favors the idea (and his language at the conference means maybe he does) needs strong allies (for instance, the man in charge of completing the corporatization of Colombia--Santos), and he needs rightwing allies (Santos, of course, and also Perez in Guatemala, who has a history of suspected involvement with the horrors against the peasants in that country), to deal with the fascists and war profiteers in this country, who will, of course, try to "crucify" him if he should propose anything as sensible as legalization. (That's the word that Santos used when he first proposed it. He said that he didn't want to be "crucified" so he wouldn't propose it himself but he could go along if someone else proposed it. Then Perez did and Santos strengthened his position.)

The big plus for Obama is that he could wipe out the federal debt and put the U.S. in the black through legalization. (Costs of the "war on drugs," including numerous U.S. military bases in LatAm ostensibly for that purpose, costs of prisons and long prison sentences--SEVENTY-FIVE PERCENT in prison for non-violent offenses, mostly drug related--costs of federal, state and local police enforcement, costs of border enforcement, costs of courts, etc., etc.--taken as a whole, an ENORMOUS cost. Add in taxes on the newly legalized drugs, and--presto!--the U.S. is back in business again. In fact, this could be how he sells it to the War Profiteers--more money for the Oil Wars.)

Big Pharma. That's my best guess. All of LatAm wants legalization but it is the right that is pushing this very hard and publicly. Why would they do that? At the risk of being "crucified" by their own war profiteers (not to mention ours)?