SHOCKING: President Nixon Aide, John Ehrlichman Reportedly Admitted Drug War Was Meant To Target Black People.... “Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.”

03/22/2016 12:58 pm ET

An eye-opening remark from a former aide to President Richard Nixon pulls back the curtain on the true motivation of the United States’ war on drugs.

John Ehrlichman, who served 18 months in prison for his central role in the Watergate scandal, was Nixon’s chief domestic advisor when the president announced the “war on drugs” in 1971. The administration cited a high death toll and the negative social impacts of drugs to justify expanding federal drug control agencies. Doing so set the scene for decades of socially and economically disastrous policies.

John Ehrlichman

Journalist Dan Baum wrote in the April cover story of Harper’s about how he interviewed Ehrlichman in 1994 while working on a book about drug prohibition. Ehrlichman provided some shockingly honest insight into the motives behind the drug war. From Harper’s:

“You want to know what this was really all about?” he asked with the bluntness of a man who, after public disgrace and a stretch in federal prison, had little left to protect. “The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying? We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news. Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.”

In other words, the intense racial targeting that’s become synonymous with the drug war wasn’t an unintended side effect — it was the whole point. more

UPDATE : 2 Americans Killed In Brussels.... Bombings Secretary of State John Kerry met with Belgian leaders and offered condolences and help following the attacks.

03/25/2016 06:51 am ET

BRUSSELS, March 25 (Reuters) - Two Americans were killed in Tuesday’s suicide bombings in Brussels, a senior U.S. official said on Friday, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Belgian leaders and offered condolences and help following the attack.

The family of siblings Sascha and Alexander Pinczowski confirmed their deaths to CBS.  We are grateful to have closure on this tragic situation, and are thankful for the thoughts and prayers from all,” relatives of the two New York residents said in a statement.  They had been reported missing since the blasts.

Kerry, traveling back to Washington after talks in Moscow, stopped in Belgium to demonstrate solidarity after the attacks, which killed 31 people and injured hundreds of others.

“The United States is praying and grieving with you for the loved ones of those cruelly taken from us, including Americans, and for the many who were injured in these despicable attacks,” Kerry said after meeting Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel.

“The United States stands firmly with Belgium and with the nations of Europe in the face of this tragedy,” he said.

“We will continue to provide any assistance necessary in investigating these heinous acts of terrorism and bringing those responsible to justice,” Kerry added.

Michel offered his condolences for the death of the Americans, but did not elaborate. “We want to cooperate with you, do our best with you in order to face these very sensitive issues,” he said.

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CONGRATULATIONS : SHAGGY donated a bombastic cheque valued JA$55.0 million to the Bustamante Hospital for Children in JAMAICA.

Wednesday, March 23, 2016— Simone Morgan

YESTERDAY, the Shaggy Make a Difference Foundation handed over a cheque valued at $55 million to the Bustamante Hospital for Children in St Andrew.

The money represents proceeds from the Shaggy and Friends Concert held on the lawns of Kings House in January.

Shaggy donated $55Million Cheque to the Bustamante Hospital for Children

Businessman Kenneth Benjamin, chairman of the hospital, said so far, more than 450 pieces of medical equipment have been purchased with proceeds from biennial concerts.

“Over 77,000 children are treated at this hospital yearly. This is the only children’s hospital in the the Caribbean, so we attend to children from the region also. Shaggy and his team has proven that they are all about making a change and not just another avenue for talk,” said Benjamin at the handing-over ceremony. This year’s proceeds will go towards several different ventures in the hospital, including the Intensive Care Unit which currently has a total of five beds — far fewer than the required amount.

Before handing over the cheque, director of the Shaggy Make A Difference Foundation, Orville ‘Shaggy’ Burrell thanked the Jamaican acts and sponsors who took the time to lend their support.

“The figure that we make is nothing compared to what we spend. What we make is a drop in the bucket from what we really need; however, we are grateful for all the support,” he said.

This year Shaggy and Friends partnered with iHeartRadio, which broadcasted the concert on over 18 stations in the United States. However, Shaggy said while the radio station did their part, the Jamaicans living overseas were not that supportive.

“There are over four millions Jamaicans living in the United States, more than who live in Jamaica. But the Jamaicans didn’t step up to do their part. We raised way less than we expected from them,” he said.

Managing director of the Wisynco Group, William Mahfood, handed over a cheque valued little over $8 million dollars to the foundation. During January, three dollars was donated to The Shaggy Make a Difference Foundation and the Bustamante Hospital for Children from every specially marked bottle of WATA sold. WATA released two million of the specially marked bottles on December 22.

New-car dealership Stewart’s Auto also contributed $1.5 million to the Shaggy Make a Difference Foundation.

Since its inception in 2009, the concert has raised more than $255 million dollars for the Bustamante Hospital for Children.

JIMMY RILEY has died at 61 y-o after battle with cancer (R.I.P)....Jimmy is the father of reggae artist Tarrus Riley

  

"He was in New York at the time,he had been getting treatment for the cancer. The family is devastated," a source close to the family told Loopjamaica.com.

Jimmy Riley

Tarrus Rliey posted an image with the expletive, "F... Cancer" in response to his father's death. 

Jimmy Riley was born Martin James Ziggy Norman Riley, 22 May 1954. He is best known as a solo act but had carved out a great reputation as a member of the Sensations and The Uniques. 

He had several hits in the 1970s, including Tell The Youths The Truth, Nyah Bingi, and Clean up the Streets, and continued to be successful in the 1980s, working with Sly & Robbie's Taxi productions. In 1983, Riley topped the UK reggae chart with his version of Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing. In the late 1980s, Riley moved to Miami, and put his career on hold, but returned to Jamaica in the early 1990s.

Riley's son Tarrus followed him into music and the success of Tarrus gave a boost to Jimmy's career. They have performed together several times, headlining a number of festivals including the Ocho Rios Seafood Festival in 2007.

In September 2013, he released the album Contradiction, that featured guest appearances from his son Tarrus, Sizzla, and Fantan Mojah.