Antiwar Radio with Scott Horton » Drug Wars

Anthony Gregory

Scott Horton — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 05:56:14 +0000

Anthony Gregory, Editor in Chief of Campaign for Liberty, discusses the case for anarcho-capitalism – pushing beyond “limited government” to eliminate the last vestiges of “essential” state functions like police, courts and national defense; the possible market alternatives that, while theoretical and uncertain, could only be an improvement on state-run institutions; the disastrous war on drugs that has failed to reduce crime or eliminate drug use – but has boosted and militarized the ranks of law enforcement; and Anthony’s 2006 article, “Law-Enforcement Socialism.”

MP3 here. (18:58)

Anthony Gregory is a research analyst at the Independent Institute, Editor in Chief of Campaign for Liberty, moderator of the Beacon, policy adviser to the Future of Freedom Foundation and columnist for LewRockwell.com. He guest edits Strike the Root. His writing has appeared in such places as the Christian Science Monitor San Diego Union Tribune, Antiwar.com, the Journal of Libertarian Studies, Counterpunch, the American Conservative, Liberty Magazine, the Mises Institute blog, the Stress Blog, The Libertarian Enterprise and Liberty and Power, as well as in textbooks, journals and other outlets, and has been translated in several languages.

He wrote for Michael Badnarik’s 2004 campaign. He got his B.A. in history at UC Berkeley in 2003, where he wrote his thesis on the 1993 Waco disaster. He sings and plays in a rock band, the Melatones, and is an Eagle Scout. He gives talks frequently and is now writing an Independent Institute book on habeas corpus, detention policy and individual liberty.

Will Grigg

Scott Horton — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 04:46:22 +0000

Will Grigg, blogger and author of Liberty in Eclipse, discusses Rep. Michael McCaul’s (R-Texas) attempt to include Mexican drug cartels in an expanded war on terrorism; the winners on both sides of prohibition, including the cartels that profit from a huge risk premium and the drug and law enforcement agencies that get increased funding and employment; the Washington Post op-ed chiding Mexico for being too proud to “call in the marines;” and how Texas compensates for budget shortfalls: ramp up “asset forfeitures” near borders, where the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unlawful search and seizure apparently doesn’t apply.

MP3 here. (20:11)

Will Grigg writes the blog Pro Libertate and is the author of Liberty in Eclipse.

Christina Tobin

Scott Horton — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 04:24:57 +0000

Christina Tobin, Founder and Chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation, discusses the U.S. agreement with Costa Rica that allows 7,000 Marines to expand the War on Drugs in Central America, U.S. economic pressures that are forcing Costa Ricans to get on board with big agribusiness and abandon any ideas about marijuana legalization and how reformed election laws will help put and end to the two party duopoly in the U.S.

MP3 here. (10:39)

Christina is Founder and Chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation, a nonpartisan, nonprofit, public-policy and advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the rights of the politically marginalized and disenfranchised, particularly those of third party and Independent voters and candidates. She is also CEO of Free and Equal, Inc., a ballot access consulting and petitioning firm.

Christina is a 2010 candidate for Secretary of State in California.

Will Grigg

Scott Horton — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 07:41:06 +0000

Will Grigg, author of Liberty in Eclipse, discusses the loss of “local” police to a homogeneous federally-funded force designed to fight the war on drugs, how police departments facing budget cuts use asset forfeiture laws to make up the difference, the dramatic change of police portrayals in movies (and the culture’s acceptance of lawbreaking cops at large) following The French Connection and Dirty Harry, how the “Mosque at Ground Zero” exposed conservatives’ opposition to private property rights and how television’s idea of a balanced look at the criminal justice system means getting the story of cops and prosecutors.

MP3 here. (20:27)

Will Grigg writes the blog Pro Libertate, hosts the Pro Libertate Radio show on the Liberty News Radio Network and is the author of Liberty in Eclipse.

Zack Mellette

Scott Horton — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 07:06:51 +0000

Zack Mellette, cofounder of Give Us Names, discusses his organization’s short films that showcase the plight of displaced Colombian farmers, the U.S. creation of multi-billion dollar Plan Colombia in 1998 to continue the failed supply-side War on Drugs, the devastating effect of aerial fumigation on food crops (and lesser effect on the targeted coca plants), the economic incentives for Colombians to grow coca instead of food and the heavily-armed paramilitary groups that seize land and kill resisting farmers.

MP3 here. (18:50)

Zack Mellette is cofounder of Give Us Names, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization seeking to improve the lives of displaced Colombians.

Robert Parry

Scott Horton — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 04:48:10 +0000

Robert Parry, founder of ConsortiumNews.com, discusses the mainstream media’s persecution of journalist Gary Webb for daring to investigate the CIA/contra 1980s drug trafficking connection, how the empowered right wing media and associated personal-attack groups have created a generation of self-censoring and timid journalists, alternative media that can contest conventional wisdom but can’t compete with the MSM budget-wise and the recent hit pieces on classified documents leaker SPC. Bradley Manning.

MP3 here. (29:04)

Robert Parry is an investigative journalist who won the George Polk Award in 1984 for reporting on the Iran-Contra affair and uncovering Oliver North’s involvement in it. He is the founder and editor of ConsortiumNews.com and author of Neck Deep: The Disastrous Presidency of George W. Bush, Trick or Treason: The October Surprise Mystery and Secrecy & Privilege: Rise of the Bush Dynasty from Watergate to Iraq.

Will Grigg

Scott Horton — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 05:41:36 +0000

Will Grigg, author of Liberty in Eclipse, discusses the Second Amendment’s waning influence in the state of Massachusetts, the submit-to-authority indoctrination of children in public schools, the militaristic rituals that intrude on nearly all American social events, how the manufactured partisan divide functions as a political distraction and the Republican Party’s hijacking of the Tea Party movement.

MP3 here. (29:34)

Will Grigg writes the blog Pro Libertate, hosts a show on the Liberty News Radio Network and is the author of Liberty in Eclipse.

Guy Lawson

Scott Horton — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 05:57:15 +0000

Guy Lawson, author of the Rolling Stone article “The Making of a Narco State,” discusses Mexico’s increasingly violent and destabilizing drug war, the fundamental changes brought about by NAFTA, the rampant corruption throughout Mexico’s government and civil society and why legalizing Marijuana is probably the best long-term solution to the problem.

MP3 here. (28:35)

Guy Lawson is the author of The Brotherhoods: The True Story of Two Cops Who Murdered for the Mafia and journalist for Harper’s Magazine and Rolling Stone.

Anthony Gregory

Scott Horton — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 05:22:16 +0000

Anthony Gregory, research analyst at the Independent Institute, discusses the freedom-infringing U.S. War on Drugs, the racist origins of prohibition laws, the due-process violations inherent in civil asset forfeiture and the failure of drug courts to stem the non-violent prison population.

MP3 here. (34:05)

Anthony Gregory writes for the Future of Freedom Foundation and Antiwar.com. His article “The Drug War vs. American Civilization” is featured on Lewrockwell.com.

Alan Bock

Scott Horton — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 06:06:13 +0000

Alan Bock, senior editorial writer at the Orange County Register and regular Antiwar.com columnist, discusses the escalating drug-related violence in Mexico, how the Prohibition regulatory framework idled by the 21st Amendment found a second life policing marijuana use, the allure of black-market profits and the counterproductive and predictable results of the war on drugs.

MP3 here. (24:34)

Alan Bock is a columnist and the senior writer for the editorial page of the Orange County Register where he has written editorials and columns for more than 25 years. He is the author of Waiting to Inhale – The Politics of Medical Marijuana and Ambush at Ruby Ridge. His “Eye on the Empire” column is a regular feature on Antiwar.com.