Dennis James Murphy Flag Raising Sunday

Dennis James Murphy, who was killed in action in Vietnam, will be honored with a casket flag raising ceremony,  5 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 12 at the Delaware County Veterans Memorial,  4599 West Chester Pike, Newtown Square, Pa. 19073.

Murphy, who was graduated from Darby-Colywn High School in 1966, is a recipient of the Silver Star.

Dennis James Murphy Flag Raising Sunday

Dennis James Murphy Flag Raising Sunday

 

 

Opioid War Won’t Stop Epidemic

Opioid War Won't Stop EpidemicOpioid War Won’t Stop Epidemic

By Dale Kerns

President Trump, a few weeks ago, you addressed the opioid epidemic, which has gripped the country in recent years. In officially declaring the opioid crisis a national public health emergency, you took the important first step toward fixing this problem.

However, even more important is how we move forward in operating in the midst of this emergency. We have already tried treating the issue as a criminal one. Over the last 40 years, our nation has spent well over $1 trillion in taxpayer dollars on the War on Drugs as our federal prison population has increased by nearly 800 percent.

If one wishes to know the effectiveness of these policies, they need only learn that in spite of these strong steps, the United States remains the number 1 country in the world in illegal drug use.

With this “tough on crime” approach clearly failing, an alternative has emerged treat drug users not as criminals, but rather as human beings. In Portugal they decided to take this path less traveled in 2001. Once ravaged by chaos and disarray due to the drug trade, the country’s incidences of use and addiction has plummeted. Overdose deaths of adults are now the second lowest in the entire European Union, with 3 annually for every 1 million citizens.

Switzerland has embraced medical treatment for heroin addicts. The Swiss have experienced incredible results with their heroin-assisted treatment program, which began in 1994. The Swiss treat roughly 1,300 addicts with maintenance doses of heroin via more than 20 clinics. Perhaps the most incredible statistic, since the program’s inception there has not been a single occurrence of overdose in any of the clinics.

My own family has had a brush with the real-world ramifications of the failures of the current War on Drugs. Two years ago, we lost my cousin Dan. He had been a drug user, and when he needed help the most, the government ex- tended not a helping hand, but an iron fist. Thrown in jail, he never got the necessary treatment to help him kick his addiction.

Addiction is not a crime, and it shouldn’t be treated like one. If my family had been given the opportunity to help Dan, things could have turned out differently. It may be too late for him, but it is not too late to help the millions like him who suffer every day from the current Drug War.

In 1990, one leading business voice eloquently explained a path to winning the War on Drugs. He asserted, “You have to take the profit away from these drug czars.” That same business leader stated that by taking the drug trade out of the shadows, profits could then be used to educate the public about the “dangers of drugs,” rather than wasting that money on incarceration.

Mr. President, do you remember speaking these words? Your words could not have been more right then, and now you have the opportunity to prove yourself correct and enact this policy 27 years later. By taking the steps I’ve outlined in my “Addiction is Not a Crime” bill, I’m confident that we can work together to bring an end to the scourges that are drug addiction and the War on Drugs.

Dale Kerns is the Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania. 

Opioid War Won’t Stop Epidemic

Swamp Thing Attack SOP On Judge Moore

Swamp Thing Attack SOP On Judge Moore — Allegations that Alabama Judge Roy Moore sought to creepily date teenage girls 38 years ago are being trumpeted by noted swamp mouthpiece  and gay activist The Washington Post.

If you believe what the Post claims, we have some troubled assets to sell you.

Moore is the Republican nominee for the open Alabama U.S. Senate seat and the election is  Dec. 12.

Moore has vociferously denied the claims. Why do we unquestionably accept his denials?

Leaving aside that he has been a controversial public figure for two decades and was long a highly desired trophy by the anti-religious left hence ripe for such a take-down,  we have adopted the principle that any allegation made a month before an election against an anti-swamp candidate is false.

We remember Curt Weldon’s persecution by the Justice Department — the George (Swamp Can’t Be Spelled Without Dubya) Bush Justice Department  — in 2006. The allegations made three weeks before the election turned out unfounded but the damage was done and he lost.

We remember Alaska Senator Ted Stevens July 2008 indictment and his trial three months later which resulted in his conviction one week before the Nov. 4 election. It was later revealed that FBI agents conspired to withhold and conceal evidence and the verdict was overturned. No matter. He lost  the election by 3,724 votes to swamp-loving Democrat Mark Begich.

We remember the press conference by a Hillary swamp minion in October 2016 where several women came forward accusing Donald Trump of sexual harassment. Several of the allegations were easily debunked and none was ever established.

Most troubling, though, was a claim not made against a candidate but the economy.  In September 2008, the swamp media was screaming the economy was going to collapse and we were all going to starve unless the big banks were bailed out IMMEDIATELY. On Oct. 3, with Republican John McCain ahead in the polls, President George (Swamp Can’t Be Spelled Without Dubya)  Bush signed into law a bill giving the banks, along with Wall Street money men like Goldman Sachs, $700 billion of our money to save them from the stupid decisions they had been allowed to make during the Bush and Clinton years.

We don’t necessarily think it was to keep McCain out of the White House, albeit he would have been less of a tool than Obama. Without the pressure of a presidential election, however, and with discussion and debate we don’t think Goldman Sachs and the banks   would have gotten our money.

The repercussions of this disaster remain with us.

So stay in the fight Judge Moore and may you win.

 

Swamp Thing Attack SOP On Judge Moore

Swamp Thing Attack SOP On Judge Moore