Prohibitionists say the strangest things. Jeff Sessions claiming that ‘good people don’t smoke marijuana’ is just the tip of the iceberg. Some of the most disturbing anti-weed prohibitionist propaganda we’ve seen recently has come from a sheriff in Illinois. As state officials and lawmakers debate whether to legalize recreational cannabis and possession of up to an ounce, one prohibitionist is pulling on the heart strings of animal lovers. Macon County Sheriff Howard Buffett claimed that if cannabis is legalized in the state, drug-sniffing K-9s would have to be replaced, and that some may even be euthanized.
“The biggest thing for law enforcement is, you’re going to have to replace all of your dogs. So to me, it’s a giant step forward for drug dealers, and it’s a giant step backwards for law enforcements and the residents of the community,” Buffett said.
He went on to suggest that the dogs might have to be killed because retraining them would cost millions. First of all, dispensary owners are not drug dealers. If Sheriff Buffett believes that, then every liquor store in the state of Illinois is a drug dealer. It’s a fact that legal cannabis is a step backwards for the black market. Second, several U.S. states have legalized recreational cannabis, and as far as we know, no K-9s had to be euthanized in those states. The dogs are simply trained to sniff out hard drugs instead.
Lastly, even if the dogs no longer served any kind of purpose for police, why would they need to be euthanized? Are there no shelters that would take them in, or no families that would want a German Shepard? Assuming that these dogs are highly intelligent, well-trained and well-adjusted, meaning they should make great family pets. The head scratching statements that come out the mouths of those who are anti-cannabis seem to keep getting stranger and stranger.
As is the case with many hyperbolic and absurd prohibitionist claims, Buffett has a huge financial interest in the continued illegality of the plant medicine. In 2016, Buffett’s private foundation paid $2.2 million to help with the costs of training K-9 units in 33 counties across the state of Illinois. He wouldn’t want to lose all of that money he sunk into training dogs to sniff out a plant. Sheriff Buffett is the son of billionaire investor Warren Buffett.
Let me understand this. Cannabis should not be legalized in Illinois because that would then compel Macon County Sheriff Howard Buffet to MURDER his drug-trained K-9 dogs? Wow. And…scary. As a former resident of Illinois, I offer Macon County residents my condolences for having a sheriff with THIS kind of logic in office. Perhaps, if retraining is not feasible, someone should suggest to the sheriff that he put his dogs up for free adoption by retired-LEOs or others. You know, make the solution good for everyone involved instead of committing knee-jerk canine murder because he doesn’t have enough fund$ in his budget to retrain these wonderful animals who serve us so faithfully.