phr
Ex-Bluelighter
- Joined
- May 25, 2004
- Messages
- 36,682
FBI chances policy on hiring former drug users; What if past drug use barred you from running for president?
The FBI recently announced it is changing its policy of not hiring people with a history of marijuana or other illegal drug use because the policy disqualifies so many people the agency cannot fill needed positions. Asking job applicants about past drug use during polygraph tests was "tripping people up" said Mark S. Zaid, a defense lawyer who works on FBI employment disputes. According to Zaid, in an interview in the August 7, Washington Post, the FBI realized that their drug policy was causing them to "lose too many good people."
Despite 30 years of "Just Say No" rhetoric and the "Drug Free America" fantasy, an estimated one out of three adults have tried marijuana. Millions of people have smoked more than the previous FBI limit of 15 times. It would be hard to fill almost any position in any sector of the economy if people who have used marijuana or others illegal drugs were barred from applying.
Take for instance the president of the United States. If the previous FBI rules applied to people who are or have run for president, we would likely have to bar Democrats like Sen. Obama and former Vice President Al Gore and Republicans like President George W. Bush and New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg.
The Drug Czar's propaganda claims that marijuana is a gateway drug to heroin and that pot smokers are lazy couch potatoes. Decades of scientific research refutes these myths. In addition to research, there's common sense. The fact that so many elected officials, people applying for jobs at the FBI and successful people all around us have used or currently use marijuana and other drugs demonstrate the holes in drug war rhetoric.
The FBI's decision to stop discriminating against people who used illegal drugs in their past is encouraging. It's also positive that someone's drug use does not keep them from a serious run for the White House. But let's not forget that hundreds of thousands of other people are suffering from discrimination on a daily basis because of past drug use. Federal law denies school loans, food stamps, public housing and other benefits to people with a drug conviction. The conviction can be as minor as getting arrested with a joint.
Discrimination is wrong, whether it be because of race, gender, sexuality, religion, political beliefs, or what you choose to put in your body when you're not at work.
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Bill Piper is director of national affairs for the Drug Policy Alliance. Tony Newman is director of media relations for the Drug Policy Alliance
Link!
The FBI recently announced it is changing its policy of not hiring people with a history of marijuana or other illegal drug use because the policy disqualifies so many people the agency cannot fill needed positions. Asking job applicants about past drug use during polygraph tests was "tripping people up" said Mark S. Zaid, a defense lawyer who works on FBI employment disputes. According to Zaid, in an interview in the August 7, Washington Post, the FBI realized that their drug policy was causing them to "lose too many good people."
Despite 30 years of "Just Say No" rhetoric and the "Drug Free America" fantasy, an estimated one out of three adults have tried marijuana. Millions of people have smoked more than the previous FBI limit of 15 times. It would be hard to fill almost any position in any sector of the economy if people who have used marijuana or others illegal drugs were barred from applying.
Take for instance the president of the United States. If the previous FBI rules applied to people who are or have run for president, we would likely have to bar Democrats like Sen. Obama and former Vice President Al Gore and Republicans like President George W. Bush and New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg.
The Drug Czar's propaganda claims that marijuana is a gateway drug to heroin and that pot smokers are lazy couch potatoes. Decades of scientific research refutes these myths. In addition to research, there's common sense. The fact that so many elected officials, people applying for jobs at the FBI and successful people all around us have used or currently use marijuana and other drugs demonstrate the holes in drug war rhetoric.
The FBI's decision to stop discriminating against people who used illegal drugs in their past is encouraging. It's also positive that someone's drug use does not keep them from a serious run for the White House. But let's not forget that hundreds of thousands of other people are suffering from discrimination on a daily basis because of past drug use. Federal law denies school loans, food stamps, public housing and other benefits to people with a drug conviction. The conviction can be as minor as getting arrested with a joint.
Discrimination is wrong, whether it be because of race, gender, sexuality, religion, political beliefs, or what you choose to put in your body when you're not at work.
******
Bill Piper is director of national affairs for the Drug Policy Alliance. Tony Newman is director of media relations for the Drug Policy Alliance
Link!
