Re: "extreme right winger like Bill Buckley"
I wouldn't call Bill Buckley an 'extreme conservative'.
It's more accurate to call him a 'consistent conservative', a 'true conservative', or some such.
He has consistently held to traditional conservative principles for a very long time --- unlike this current Big Government, Big Deficit, Big Spending, Big Interventionist, 'Neo Con' crowd that holds the reins of power in Washington now.
Buckley has very little in common with this later-day crowd --- who seem to expouse traditionally 'Liberal' positions on everything except for Social Issues.
I can give you another example: Buckley has supported the end of federal marijuana prohibition for a very long time.
He opposes prohibition --- not because he's some kind of 'liberal hippie' --- but for the most traditionally conservative of reasons... he doesn't believe the US Constitution grants the Federal Government authority to prohibit this. He believes such authority is reserved for the States (which is a quite traditional 'States' Rights' argument).
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Conservatives Leaders Say: Legalize Pot
Three important articles this month indicate the growing support among conservatives -- yes, conservatives -- for reform of marijuana laws, even outright legalization.
National Review is the world's leading conservative magazine, and it has -- surprisingly to many -- supported ending the War on Drugs since 1996. The June 29, 2004 cover story is "An End to Marijuana Prohibition: The Drive To Legalize Picks Up." Written by Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance, the article begins:
"Never before have so many Americans supported decriminalizing and even legalizing marijuana.
"Seventy-two percent say that for simple marijuana possession, people should not be incarcerated but fined: the generally accepted definition of "decriminalization." Even more Americans support making marijuana legal for medical purposes.
"Support for broader legalization ranges between 25 and 42 percent, depending on how one asks the question.
"Two of every five Americans -- according to a 2003 Zogby poll -- say "the government should treat marijuana more or less the same way it treats alcohol: It should regulate it, control it, tax it, and only make it illegal for children."
Nadelmann's article goes on to make a powerful case for legalizing marijuana, and is well worth reading.
A few days later, William F. Buckley, arguably America's leading conservative spokesman, cited Nadelmann's arguments in his syndicated column (July 5), and called for legalizing marijuana (as he has in the past). Wrote Buckley:
"Conservatives pride themselves on resisting change, which is as it should be. But intelligent deference to tradition and stability can evolve into intellectual sloth and moral fanaticism, as when conservatives simply decline to look up from dogma because the effort to raise their heads and reconsider is too great…
"[A]lthough there is a perfectly respectable case against using marijuana, the penalties imposed on those who reject that case, or who give way to weakness of resolution, are very difficult to defend. If all our laws were paradigmatic, imagine what we would do to anyone caught lighting a cigarette, or drinking a beer. Or -- exulting in life in the paradigm -- committing adultery. Send them all to Guantanamo?
"Legal practices should be informed by realities. These are enlightening in the matter of marijuana. There are approximately 700,000 marijuana-related arrests made every year. Most of these -- 87 percent -- involve nothing more than mere possession of small amounts of marijuana."
Buckley goes on to note there is a growing movement for legalizing medical marijuana. "What is required is a genuine republican groundswell. It is happening, but ever so gradually."
Finally, The Republican, a Massachusetts daily newspaper, called for legalization of marijuana for medical reasons, and for easing penalties for personal use. The Republican wrote: "At the very least, Congress should amend the law to allow for the medical use of marijuana. Some lawmakers might fear that voters will think they are soft on drugs if they approve such a change. Such thinking, to borrow a phrase from the cult movie on the dangers of marijuana, is reefer madness."
Sources: National Review
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William F. Buckley:
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The Republican (Massachusetts):
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