I am the first to rejoice in the Bush Administration taking an interest in domestic problems, and though it has not made headlines, they have put time and energy into solving some of America's biggest problems. Where have they focused their attentions, you ask? Is it on the budgetary and economic crises that currently plague our country? The failing stock market? The dangerously unemplyoment rate? The critical underfunding of our schools and law enforcement agencies?

Or perhaps the drug war.

Is that still around? Apparently it is. The war on drugs (which, as Bill Hicks eloquently stated, is "not a war on drugs, but a war on Americans with drugs") seems to be back in full swing. Though there are well-intentioned and intelligent arguments to be made for both the drug war and the legalisation of drugs, I think it is safe to say that our government has gone too far with this latest development.

The DEA reported on February 24th, 2003, that their agency, along with Attorney General John Ashcroft, had begun national sweeps on what has been deemed "illegal drug paraphernalia".

The main problem I have with this assault, other than the obvious economic issues, is that the largest targeted groups were headshops, singeld out for their sale of pipes. Indeed, the two main investigations are code-named "Operation Pipe Dreams" and "Operation Headhunter". Distributers, from .coms to nationwide store distros, are all fair game, and the DEA has deemed headshps akin to pushers:

"People selling drug paraphernalia are in essence no different than drug dealers," said Acting Administrator Brown. "They are as much a part of drug trafficking as silencers are a part of criminal homicide. These criminals operate a multimillion dollar enterprise, selling their paraphernalia in headshops, distributing out of huge warehouses, and using the worldwide web as a worldwide paraphernalia market. With Operations Pipe Dreams and Headhunter, these criminals are out of business and 11 illicit dot.coms are dot.gone."

Harsh words; but, as any of us who have actually BEEN to a headshop can attest, the majority of them market their products as "tobacco pipes", and they can easily be used as such. This creates a large grey area, as we search for a clear definition of what drug paraphernalia truly is. For example, in high school a number of my friends used to use pens, apples, and soda cans to smoke pot. Does this mean that, some day soon, we may need a background check to purchase produce or office supplies? People DO get high from sniffing White Out...

Point being, it is considered illegal to purchase a glass pipe (which is marketed and perfectly usable as a tobacco related product), yet it is still perfectly legal to purchase a gun, which by US standards is in no way connected with murder, or a bottle of vodka, which is in no way responsible for DUI; it is the improper usage of THESE items which defines the crime, not the items themselves. Which also goes for items such as straws, razor blades, mirrors, tin foil, lighters...

Has our current administration gone too far? I think so in general, but especially at a time when that funding and manpower could be put to much more beneficial uses.

Source: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea

Have you ever known anyone to smoke Drum through a water pipe? I mean, outside of trying to convince suspicious parents that the four-foot, three chambered Graffix is being used for something other than smoking chronic? Let's not delude ourselves. If people actually smoked tobacco through these pipes, they'd be for sale at the Tinderbox at your local mall. And no, the porcelain gnomes that you find in the glass case are not bongs incognito.

People, there's a war going on, whether or not you agree with it in principle. The gummint is arresting everyone they can get their hands on for possession, dealing, and transport of illegal narcotics. They have been for years. Everyone knows it. It isn't even noteworthy unless huge quantities are involved. And that's the underlying premise of these raids. The powers that be needed a PR move.

And it has worked. I recently went to a head shop in Austin, TX to find an eerie lack of pipes. I wouldn't even call it a head shop except for the Hendrix black light posters, the rude bumper stickers, and the nauseating stench of patchouli. This place did sell, however, blunt wrappers and rolling papers. People do actually use these for tobacco, which is why you can buy them in just about every gas station in the country.

The (counter) point is this: at this point, the drug war is little more than a last ditch effort for certain people in government and law enforcement to keep their jobs and budgets. No significant dents have been made in the effort to curb the distribution and use of illegal drugs. This doesn't even seem to be a goal. It seems more like law enforcement needs to make a big bust once in a while just to get a little extra funding. If you think that drugs are evil, can you say that the DEA isn't getting results after reading about Operations Pipe Dreams and Headhunter? Whether or not you think the administrations is going too far is a matter of context but, as had been said, all's fair in love and war.

As an irregular combatant in the war against drugs, I will admit that the government has better things to do than busting Joe Bong. But given the nature of this conflict, it isn't going too far to scare a bunch of hippies out of engaging in an act that no doubt contributes to a culture that promoted illegal activity. So until we actually put someone in office who will treat drug use as a health care issue instead of a criminal issue, learn to roll a joint or smoke through an apple.