November 30, 2000

Is Robert Downey Jr. a Criminal?
Lawyers Group Supports Test Ban Treaty
Council on Foreign Relations Proposes Easing Cuba Sanctions

Is Robert Downey Jr. a Criminal?

In his Washington Post column today, Richard Cohen writes about the trials and tribulations of actor Robert Downey Jr., who was recently arrested again on drug charges. Cohen makes the argument that "a drug addict is a sick person and not a criminal."

Downey had previously spent a year at Corcoran State Prison where Charles Manson and Sirhan Sirhan, killers both, are held. "With Manson and Sirhan we can all name their victims," Cohen writes, "But who is Downey's? It has to be himself. He has committed no violent crime, robbed no bank nor, may I add, offered me a cell phone service that works only sporadically." Cohen continues: "Prisoners convicted of drug-related crimes clog the jails.... Altogether, federal prisons hold almost 240,000 persons convicted of drug--not violent--crimes, and the states hold about 200,000 more."

The new Cato book, "Beyond Prohibition: An Adult Approach to Drug Policies in the 21st Century," argues that drug prohibition has proven to be a costly failure and explores alternative approaches to drug policy. It is edited by Timothy Lynch with an introduction by Milton Friedman and features chapters by New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, Roger Pilon and others.

Lawyers Group Supports Test Ban Treaty

Declaring that the spread of nuclear weapons technology may be the most serious threat to U.S. security, a group of former U.S. arms negotiators and scientists is trying to rally the next administration to push for Senate approval of a treaty to ban testing, according to the Associated Press.

George W. Bush is against the ban. Vice President Al Gore supports the treaty.

It was turned down by the Senate a year ago. A "white paper" issued by the group, the Lawyers Alliance for World Security, partly blamed the Clinton administration and other backers of the treaty for "lack of preparation."

In "The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty: The Costs Outweigh the Benefits," defense analyst Kathleen C. Bailey warns that while the treaty will constrain the United States from modernizing and developing weapons, it will be possible for other nations to cheat with little or no risk of being caught because the CTBT cannot be verified.

Council on Foreign Relations Proposes Easing Cuba Sanctions

The United States should ease the Cuban embargo to help the island's transition to a post-Castro era and reduce chances of U.S. military intervention, a Council on Foreign Relations panel recommended yesterday, according to the Associated Press.

The task force urged that the United States eliminate travel restrictions to Cuba, allow regular commercial flights between the two nations and permit U.S. companies whose businesses were nationalized by Cuba to resolve their claims by entering into joint ventures in Cuba.

In the recent Cato study "A Policy toward Cuba That Serves U.S. Interests," Philip Peters argues that U.S. sanctions have failed to promote change in Cuba and have placed Castro in the world political limelight while renewing his claim to victimhood.

"Whether or not the embargo is lifted completely," he writes, "a policy that respects the rights of Americans to trade with, invest in, and travel to Cuba would more effectively serve U.S. interests in post-Soviet Cuba: defending human rights, helping the Cuban people, and connecting with the generation of Cubans that will govern that country in the early 21st century."

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