In a post appropriately titled: Canada Officially 51st State Now, Linda Nall provides the details of how the U.S. ordered Canadian police to aid them in the the arrest of Marc Emery, famed marijuana activist and publisher of the magazine Cannabis Culture.
"The search warrants were authorized at the highest levels of the provincial government in concert with a cross-border US-Canada law enforcement pact created by a US-authored Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters treaty (MLAT) between the US and Canada.
The US has issued extradition orders for Marc Emery, who was arrested while traveling in Halifax to a hemp festival; two other Emery associates, including the media icon known as “Marijuana Man,” were arrested in Vancouver.
In a major press conference held in Seattle, American officials accused Emery of “conspiracy to produce marijuana and distribute marijuana seeds, and money laundering." The DEA and other agencies are claiming that by selling seeds to pot-growing Americans, Emery engaged in a criminal enterprise with the growers.
In the eyes of his accusers, providing marijuana seeds is the same as selling marijuana produced from those seeds."Their activities resulted in the growing of tens of thousands of marijuana plants in America," claimed US federal attorney Jeff Sullivan. "[Emery] was involved, allegedly, in an illegal distribution of marijuana in [the United States.] He is a drug dealer." "
Hell, in the U.S., pretty well anybody can be classified as a drug dealer. That's how we fund government. Catch someone with marijuana seeds, or say you did, call them a dealer, seize their bank accounts, house, car. Voila! You now have funds for tax breaks for the wealthy and weapons of mass destruction, but, sorry, nothing for healthcare.
In Tennessee, if police say you have been caught with more than 42.5 ounces of pot, or a little bitty pot plant, within days armed goons in flak jackets and jack boots will appear at your door to demand your car, your home, your bank account and anything else they can think of.
No trial, no conviction is necessary. They'll start selling your stuff before you go to trial.
This law became effective in January 2005. The state is currently being flooded with lawsuits. If there is any justice left in this country, the people will win. But the people will also lose. Once the state gets through settling the slew of lawsuits, it will turn to the people and say, sorry, we have no money left for services (as usual).
But I digress. Back to the Prince of Pot. If the U.S. succeeds in persuading Canada to let them have Emery, he can get life - for selling seeds. They say he has made $3 million selling seeds.
Translation: everything he owns is their's, and this ain't the land of the free.
Canadians are pissed:
About 200 people rallied in Vancouver on Saturday to protest the arrest of three B.C. Marijuana Party members, including leader Marc Emery.
One demonstrator sarcastically told CTV News Vancouver: "I'm an American, and I just wanted to visit our latest colony and see if all our Canadian slaves are behaving in a properly respectful way, because that's really what happened yesterday -- the Canadian police became a branch of the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency)."
drug war
Civil Rights
marijuana
