Old Friends Say Drugs Played Only Bit Part in Obama’s Young Life

Source: NY Times

Nearly three decades ago, Barack Obama stood out on the small campus of Occidental College in Los Angeles for his eloquence, intellect and activism against apartheid in South Africa. But Mr. Obama, then known as Barry, also joined in the party scene.

-----

Mr. Obama, of Illinois, has never quantified his illicit drug use or provided many details. He wrote about his two years at Occidental, a predominantly white liberal arts college, as a gradual but profound awakening from a slumber of indifference that gave rise to his activism there and his fears that drugs could lead him to addiction or apathy, as they had for many other black men.

Mr. Obama’s account of his younger self and drugs, though, significantly differs from the recollections of others who do not recall his drug use. That could suggest he was so private about his usage that few people were aware of it, that the memories of those who knew him decades ago are fuzzy or rosier out of a desire to protect him, or that he added some writerly touches in his memoir to make the challenges he overcame seem more dramatic.

In more than three dozen interviews, friends, classmates and mentors from his high school and Occidental recalled Mr. Obama as being grounded, motivated and poised, someone who did not appear to be grappling with any drug problems and seemed to dabble only with marijuana.




Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/09/us/politics/09obama.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

...in college or high school?

Next...

But I also realize what a rare bird I am, and that not everyone who DID dabble is an addled junkie.

In other words, no one has to tell me any silly "But I didn't inhale" lies to get me to think they're a decent person.

so it would last the entire school year. It was sort of like the fishes and the loaves because there were always people at our house. How did that work?! I did a lot more passing than anything because it just made me sleepy.

It all seems so innocent to me now, after my kids had to deal with a crack scene at their high school.

And if you cut the pot with something else, it lasts longer. We were poor starving acting students and I swear that thing lasted most of the school year. lol

Nobody got hurt and everyone got out alive. :)

I went through at least a lid every week, probably averaged 1 1/2, over my first 2 years in college. Decent stuff at the time, low grade Mexican, $15 each.

Need I mention, I dropped out?

lol

:)

not saying me, just sayin'....a lot of folk :D

and when Hillary was in college she supported Barry Goldwater? There's a contrast for you.

so get over your cheap self

:grr:

No Value for Their Money
by Bridget Gibson & James G. Wilson February 1, 2002

http://www.americaheldhostile.com/ed020102.shtml

"All families have their problems," is becoming a familiar refrain. Privacy for these families should be afforded so that they can "work out" their problems, we are told. The media spends too much time focusing on these problems when they are reporting on certain people's children, we hear. Although such courtesies were never afforded to the previous first family and their relatives, America's conservatives seem to have recently had a change of heart.

Public opinion of Bill Clinton and his extended family was shaped largely by tales of their private lives. The conservative media hammered away mercilessly at them with every rumor, innuendo and outright lie imaginable. Now we are supposed to turn the other cheek and let George W. Bush and his family rule in peace? We don't think so.

If these questions were appropriate regarding the Clinton family, there is no reason to believe that they are now "inappropriate" regarding the Bush family. To ignore reality will make one delusional and ill-informed. It is important that the behaviors of our nation's leaders be examined closely so that we can be certain that our country is being led by one that is capable of leading.

Much about this family has been draped in secrecy and we wish to draw back the curtains and let the light of day shine in. Let's turn a few stones and see what's revealed to us:

On January 29, the eve of the State of the Union address by George W. Bush, a girl was arrested for fraud. In this particular instance, she impersonated a physician to prescribe herself narcotics. This "girl" was twenty-four year old Noelle Bush, one of three children of Governor Jeb Bush of Florida. We thought that it might have been an isolated incident, but it would appear that the Florida Bushes have a number of issues with law enforcement.

It would seem that Noelle was also arrested in Flagstaff, Arizona for shoplifting in 1995. Her brother, George P. Bush, was busted for burglary and criminal mischief in 1994, and her other brother, Jeb Jr., was cited for sexual misconduct on October 2, 2000, in a shopping center parking lot. Knowing that the apples don't fall far from the tree, we must look to the parents of these wayward children.

Their mother, Columba Gallo Bush, was fined for smuggling clothing and jewelry into the United States after a $19,000 Parisian shopping spree. A cursory search on Jeb Bush showed that marital fidelity was not his strong suit. Seems that he really really liked a lady named Cynthia Henderson. They were the talk of the town after several of Florida's major newspapers broke the story.

A lack of "family values" is not, however, limited to the Bush clan in Florida. Last year, there were twin troubles in Texas. Jenna Bush had her day in court on May 16 for underage possession of alcohol. Experimentation with alcohol netted her eight hours of community service and 6 hours of anti-drinking lectures. Being lightly tapped on the shoulder did not appear to deter Jenna. On May 29 (a mere eight days later), Jenna and her twin sister, Barbara, were arrested for attempting to purchase alcohol and possession of fraudulent identification.

Looking up the tree a little higher, one finds George W. Bush. Knowing that he has admitted to frittering his "youth" away and becoming "responsible" at the age of 40, we looked to see what that entailed. In 1968, G. W. Bush was arrested for what he calls a "college prank." It turned out to be a vandalism charge. Not a respecter of other people's property, our George.

While the draft was scooping up the sons of less fortunate Americans, George managed to become a part of the Texas Air National Guard, learning how to fly a plane that had been discontinued in combat, and generously agreeing to spend a few weekends, plus two weeks of every year in service to the war effort.

On August 1, 1972, George was suspended from flying for failure to comply with a physical examination. He apparently refused to take the exam. Why would a healthy young man in his 20s refuse to take a physical examination? Also, he did not attend any drills or perform any service for nearly a year, from May 1972 until May 1973. Did George forget about the obligation to serve and just not show up as required to complete his tour of duty?

Perhaps some other civic duty called to his conscience. In 1972, George uncharacteristically had a sudden desire to perform community service at Project P.U.L.L., an inner-city youth center. There have been some rumors that this desire was linked to a court order stemming from a cocaine arrest and that the record was "fixed" by his father in Houston, Texas.

In 1976, at the tender age of 30, Maine police arrested George for driving under the influence of alcohol. George plead guilty to this charge, paid a $150 fine and had his driving privileges revoked in the State of Maine. In 1986, being the dutiful son of former president, George H. W. Bush, he defended him in a drunken rage in a restaurant in Dallas, Texas.

After studying George's behaviors, it was almost refreshing to find that the only baggage his wife, Laura, brings to the table consists of a poor driving record. It was unfortunate that when her abilities were outstripped by reality, the "friend" that she inadvertently killed was her fiancé. Could it be that the smile that appears on her face at all times has been firmly placed there to disguise the horror that must live daily in her soul?

Even further up the tree of Bush "family values" is George HW Bush. He, like his son Jeb, had a real problem with fidelity. While Vice-President, he apparently had an affair with a staffer named Jennifer Fitzgerald. They met back in the days when Bush was the Ambassador to China and the relationship continued into his presidency. It is said that when Barbara Bush found out about it, she went back to D.C. in a state of depression. The press eventually found out about it, and CNN's Mary Tillotson asked Bush if he was having an adulterous affair. Bush was humiliated and refused to answer. The term "believable deniability" may have begun with George H. W. Bush. He later sent someone out to tell the press, 'The answer to the 'A' question is a big NO.' That person was none other than George W. Bush. Was this the father teaching the son that it's okay to lie to the public when you hold office?

Let's come back to George W. for minute here. His record at the age of 40 shows him to be an unemployed alcoholic, an aging ne'er-do-well with a predilection for avoiding the truth. We know that everyone lies on occasion- it's human nature. Many lies are harmless, as in "Oh, yes, that dress (or suit) looks quite becoming." However, George W. may have stretched that loose acceptance to a breaking point this past December.

In a "Town Hall Meeting," he was asked to recount his experiences on the morning of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11th. Here's just some of what he said, "I was sitting outside the classroom waiting to go in, and I saw an airplane hit the first tower -- the TV was obviously on." Now, we all know that none of the networks had footage of the first plane hitting the tower until much later in the day. So, how could he have seen "an airplane hit the tower" before it was aired? This is the kind of fabrication that would cost most presidents their credibility.

The truth of that moment, was that he was reading in a classroom of students in the state of Florida and was notified (we were shown the moment on television) by Andrew Card, Chief of Staff, whispering in his ear. The four words that were spoken by Card were "America is under attack." At that time, George W. continued to read to the children for an additional thirty minutes. Obviously, he didn't think it was such a big deal. He later boarded Air Force One and flew about the country while we were told that Air Force One was a target. This, too, proved to be a lie fabricated to justify his unwillingness to deal with the magnitude of the disaster that had stricken all Americans on September 11, 2001.

Given all that we've come to know about the Bush family dynasty's clashes with the law and the truth, they should have been discredited as politicians and legitimate business people long ago. How is it that these people of questionable character (to put it mildly) have risen to some of the highest offices in the land? They do not have a leg on which to stand when it comes to preaching their self-righteous rhetoric. The next time you hear a Bush pontificate on the virtues of morality, integrity and family values, just remember that they don't even know what these words mean.

That was something concocted by people like Billy Shaheen. I always figured he "dabbled" the way most of us did.

I'm not a fan of Obama but I find this stuff a lot of nonsense

Where was the NYT when Bush was running for office? Or a lot of other politicians? But all of a sudden they have a background investigation for Obama.

this is a description of what he wrote in his book about his use of drugs.

He was attending a predominately white liberal arts college when he experimented with drugs.

"Mr. Obama, of Illinois, has never quantified his illicit drug use or provided many details. He wrote about his two years at Occidental, a predominantly white liberal arts college, as a gradual but profound awakening from a slumber of indifference that gave rise to his activism there and his fears that drugs could lead him to addiction or apathy, as they had for many other black men."

liberal arts college (white kids have all the good drugs) he discovered that despite his natural ambition he really liked getting high.

I don't see anything wrong with that. I sometimes wonder where I might be today if I hadn't toked up about 10lbs of weed over a 5 year period in the early seventies.

fifty five year span.

and having you yourself speculated that you might have gone farther without the 10lbs of weed, would you call that an example of the "excesses of the 60's and 70's"?


We so often end up defending drugs from those who think they are the source of all evil that we forget that drug use isn't always benign. For example; my husband and son enjoy having a beer together after working hard all day. That doesn't mean that my uncles' alcoholism wasn't devastating to their families.

I think Obama was a kid wise enough to see that he had a choice of two paths. He was strong enough to back away from a path that would have seen him fritter away his talents.

I know now that I was rootless and ungrounded back then, and I got myself in some pretty serious trouble because of it. As a result, politics is a diversion and hobby instead of something I could ever do for real, because I wouldn't want my candidate to ever be connected to someone with my background. Of course, if I were to go republican that wouldn't be a hindrance, but I just can't quite do that.

Frankly, Obama seeing where he was potentially headed is no different from Bill 'not inhaling'. I knew a kid, in those days, always made sure it was I who was holding, even if it was his smoke, because he had political ambitions and didn't want anyone to be able to say they saw him with the stuff. Good choice, too, because now, 30 years later, I have no idea what his name is. Don't remember much of that decade.

And now I work to jobs to stay above water, and am still trying to finish my first novel.

Dope DOES kil...brain cells.

In any case, the genre of memoir is not exactly the same as the biography or even auto biography. It is normal for facts to be replaced with emotional truths in a memoir.

In a new introduction to the reissued edition of "Dreams," he noted that the dangers of writing an autobiography included "the temptation to color events in ways favorable to the writer ... and selective lapses of memory. I can't say that I've avoided all, or any, of these hazards successfully."

Isn't that the funniest thing you've ever heard??? I saw it on Red State update and it made me laugh so hard I peed my pants. Unfortunately we are dealing with an American populace that has somehow been given the right to vote even though many of them are stupid enough to actually believe such a statement or the other ridiculous rumors that the bigotted idiots on the Religious right like to spread around.

While in Utah last weekend I overheard a local gas station attendant say that she likes Obama exceptin for his religion. "I just don't agree with a Islam and I don't want it forced on my kids in school." I asked her where she gleaned such information and she said she heard it was on a list somewhere, maybe the Salt Lake Tribune. Not only did she just rely on some hearsay but she had the stupidity to repeat it out of context and then use it as a rudder to steer her stupidity.

And they let these people have drivers liscences!!!

There's about 29% of the American populace that are dumber than a fucking sack of hammers.

I hear the Obama-Islam thing everywhere. WTF?


BTW, no offense to hammers.

enjoyed it a lot, didn't let recreational drug use interfere with anything important. Certainly don't hold it against Obama.

Hillary sends a big thanks to her buddies in the corporate MSM, who stand to benefit best from her DINO/DLC pseudo-dem stances.

J

hilarious is watching people at one end insist that he is covering something up, that he must have been a drug lord with a stable of hookers while people at the other end insist that life was perfectly rosy for him and that he made up stories about drugs and problems of racial identity to make himself more interesting!

Hell, I find it hard to trust anybody over 40 or so who did NOT smoke a little dope (or says they never did)...
:eyes:

Oh, I forgot. She gets a pass because the NYT endorsed her. :eyes:

I read both his books. This article puts forward 2 theories: 1- he is fantasizing drug use to be a romantic writer, 2- He hid his excessive drug use... guess what? The 3rd theory which is much more fitting with his personality, is that HIS idea of too much was enough to make him worried. Maybe he has high expectations of himself, and even a little of something that doesn't serve him is too much.

I know that feeling. With a strong sense of purpose and easy prey to guilt, anyone's simple pleasures can become a road block to success.
For a young man of mixed heritage, even occasional partying may bring up demons of a lives wasted.

My own child in college can see that. We have all seen the difference between the occasional partier and the friend in trouble. On a bad day you hope that it is not you.

The only difference between Barack, and say a politician who said he did not inhale, is that Barack is honest. He is up front.

BOY oh BOY do we need that.

However one comes to power that is the way one will govern.

Our very planet is in trouble, it is time to cut the crap and get real.

Barack Obama is real.

That's a novel approach for the media to take. This may be a foretaste of what the corporate media tries to do to him, should he win the election:

"Someone said you did drugs, but I stuck up for you and said you hardly took any drugs, and were just fibbing when you said you took lots."

"Don't Bogart that joint my friend,..."