Friday, August 30, 2013

Musings: Power Struggles


Summer's days are winding down. The smell of wild honey hangs heavily in the air in certain brushy places, pigs fat on fallen fruit meander casually across country lanes. The waning moon rides high in the sky at sunrise, while Venus is set like a sparkling jewel in a band of smoky-scarlet sunset smudge.

Seasons shift, and so do attitudes, which is why we're finally – five years into Obama's presidency — seeing an inkling that he might start to honor his 2008 campaign pledge to chill on cannabis. After years of harassing medical marijuana dispensaries in California and elsewhere, Attorney General Eric Holder has announced the feds will let Washington and Colorado implement the legalization laws that their voters adopted.

Not that the Justice Department is taking a hands-off approach. It's still leaving room for federal prosecutors to selectively enforce on such broad and nebulous grounds as “adverse public health consequences.” According to Huffington Post, part of the problem has come from rogue U.S. attorneys at the state level who can't step out of their rabid prosecutorial mind-sets, and aren't reigned in from above.

It's all about power and control, and that's an area where many prosecutors and cops have issues, which is precisely why they're drawn to those jobs. What other career allows you to wield such power over another person's life, other than, say, drone operator or drone of the CIA, NSA, TSA, ICE, DEA or other shadowy acronym agency?

Which brings me to Roger Christie of the Cannabis Ministry, who has been held without bail for three years now at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center for the dastardly deed of distributing marijuana to his willing parishoners. At least a federal judge has finally ruled that he can present a religious defense at trial.

Meanwhile, Joseph Genaro Bonachita, the knife-wielding ex-cop who broke into South Park creator Trey Parker's house while stalking his ex-girlfriend, Lauren Kagawa, and who was found to have more knives, guns and ammo in his car when he was arrested on July 1, 2009, has been free on bail all this time, until he was finally sentenced this week to one year in jail. In the meantime, Kagawa “mysteriously” showed up dead in her driveway just six weeks after the break-in and a month after getting a TRO against Bonachita, saying he had choked and sexually assaulted her, and she feared for her life.

Bonachita claimed he was drunk off his ass — you know, from that legal booze — and didn't remember a thing about the break-in. His attorney, Michael Soong, argued for just 30 days in the pokey, saying Bonachita was unlikely to reoffend. Mmm, yeah, cuz Lauren's dead, so that obsession is gone.

Like I said, it's all about power and control.

Uruguay has decided the way to wrest power and control from the drug cartels is by legalizing marijuana. Its House just passed the Regulation of Marijuana bill, which is expected to win easy approval in the Senate. The idea is to make cannabis legally and cheaply available, both to cut profits to drug cartels and keep people out of the black market where nastier substances are sold. So sensible!

Are we next? Not likely, even though a recent study on global addiction, published in the Lancet, found that countries with the worst drug problems were those with the harshest penalties. And that includes the U.S.

America currently spends $20 billion annually on drug enforcement, with drug law violations accounting for the single largest category of arrests reported to the FBI. Of those, 82% are for simple possession, and half of those are for marijuana. Yet we haven't seen any parallel drop in use. In other words, we're wasting billions on yet another senseless war. 

As a Time viewpoint notes:

Hopefully, the Obama administration’s decision paves the way for new thinking and better strategies for addressing drug problems— not by waging war, but by offering help to those who need it and leaving in peace those who don’t.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Does the Kagawa family and her friends agree with the police report on why she died? anyone know? this is sooo suspicious

Anonymous said...

Kagawa was Murdered and KPD covered up her murder. Google her name and you will find out that she was badly beaten beyond recognition.

The same syndicate cop covered up the identity of the serial killer.

How many of you believe Nola Thompson was killed?

How many of you believe KPD?

There's cameras at the Jetty in Nawiliwili where the Kid got shot some 10-15 times so I wonder if this is another Wilcox Hospital parking lot Taser incident.


The Militias and Kauai's Home grown terrorists are laying low until the Feds leave.

Anonymous said...

1027am you forgot to add that Kagawa had choke marks.

Choke marks, being badly beaten, and then being dropped off by an unknown number of people who were said to not be persons of interests.

This was a murder for retaliation.

This was a murder but not a mystery.

Anonymous said...

Joan

How would we label cannabis gmo or non gmo?

Anonymous said...

at 12:05
classic hybrid non GMO

Anonymous said...

The problem with most of the people in power is that they are the people who wanted power.

Anonymous said...

On behindthebluewall.blogspot- A preschool teacher for Lauren Kagawa states that she was beaten, choked and neighbors heard her screaming.

On forumhawaii.com- Kauaiboy03 states that Lauren was beaten and choked. The person also states that there were more than one person involved and looked like a bad domestic violence case.


In TGI Sep 17,2009 Autopsy: Drug cocktail killed Kagawa article- KPD states that she looked like she was grabbed and her wounds were superficial.


Who do you believe?

Anonymous said...

RIP Lauren, you are missed

Anonymous said...

Boys in blue have an unspoken code, protect (cover up for)each other no matter what. They can drive drunk, cause a head-on collision and walk away without so much as a slap on the wrist. Or they can beat up their wives/girlfriends while their comrades look the other way. Or they can be trigger happy and shoot first, think later, and never be in the wrong. Its the ultimate good old boys club.

Anonymous said...

Is Lauren's family doing anything about this? Filing a lawsuit, hiring a private investigator? If that was my daughter, I'd be fighting tooth and nail to get to the bottom of this.

Anonymous said...

Not if the boys that swore oaths to protect and serve threatens the family and neighbors.

Anonymous said...

So much crap goes on with Kauai government, yet the FBI is never investigating. How does this happen--or not happen?

Anonymous said...

Perhaps now this blog will focus more on murder than building code violations.

Anonymous said...

The unsolved murders and bldg code violations (illegal TVRs) are all apart of a systemic problem. All of the Rackets are tied to factions and cabals that exist on Kauai. Their motto "Together We Can" is their bond.

Anonymous said...

@ 8:20 AM.

This blog, IMO, hasn't really focused on a particular crime per se, but exposes the forces that allows the crimes to happen in the first place. KE looks at the forests AND the trees.

Anonymous said...

Even PMRF is not immune from Kauai's horrible dilemma. People from these cabals work on base.

The US military has problems with gang bangers and others infiltrating the armed forces. Kauai's national guard ranks are filled with the Cosa Nostra.

PMRF security is compromised. They better start using CID and keep survailence on these Maj Hasans.

They are no different from radical Muslims. "you are either with us or against us".

Anonymous said...

"Even PMRF is not immune from Kauai's horrible dilemma. People from these cabals work on base."

The gang members in the KPD are the scarier.

Joan Conrow said...

Thanks, 7:59 pm. That's what I'm striving for.

Anonymous said...

Nola (Becky) Thompsons death is another mystery. Google Nola Thompson Kauai and on Justanswers.com Feb 8, 2012 her mother writes about her ordeal with KPD.


This was about the same time when the serial killer appeared to be back on island.

This is when Gary Heu's email warning to his family and friends about the serial killer being back on Kauai.

This was also after Amber Jackson's body was found in a valley in Kealia.


There was another attack that occurred near Olohena Rd that was never reported in TGI. This lady was a survivor like the Kekaha home care lady.


Since boots hit ground the serial killer fled to the mainland. The Unsolved Murders on Kauai are Unsolved for a purpose.


Anonymous said...

Sorry but I can not agree with your point of view on this blogs priorities. "If" Joan had dug half as hard on the Murders as she has done on the TVR's they would have been solved.

Anonymous said...

On Civilbeat 04/17/2013 article Kauai Chief:Officers we know should not be here are coming back- written by Nick Grube


He fails to mention that many are already in uniform.

Anonymous said...

That is BS and you know it. All these high salaried people in county and state positions have failed Kauai.Not one of these public officials has given any effort in the Unsolved Murders. Why is that?Not even the YWCA who is so called the protectors of abused women. It's all a sham and they are in it together. All they want is federal dollars to support their incomes.

Anonymous said...

If Joan had dug as diligently and deep into these unsolved murders and other KPD failings as she has in the TVR fiasco and other matters she might have dug herself into her own grave. It's not nice to mess with the boys in blue!

Anonymous said...

And also I would add they are not all bad by any stretch of the imagination!!!

Anonymous said...

There are a few good cops but not many

Anonymous said...

I still see civilian vehicles fueling up (STEALING) Gas at county refueling stations. This pisses me off! Can I SUE the county and the person(s) for stealing from the Tax payers.


I guess its a free for all because in less that two years this carnival is going to END! I hope it'll be sooner than later and with federal criminal charges for all of these Crooked Clowns.