I Get No Kick from TV

Re: Federal sentencing and crack cocaine: you know, I think I'll urp if I listen to just one more commentator say that Congress imposed stiffer sentences for crack cocaine--by a factor of 100 to one over powdered cocaine because "Congress thought" that crack was more harmful.

Once again, children: we have no idea what Congress thought. We may know what "Congress" said. And for the moment, Ill even set aside the teensie problem of ever sussing a single meaning out of 531 refractory noggins. Rather, I want to recall two points (which ought to be familiar to anybody, but let it pass:

• One: Congress might have wanted to discriminate against crack cocaine because crack is the black street drug, while powder is the white suburban drug.

• We're talkin' racial discrimination here, and about racial discrimination, people lie.

I suppose we are permitted to say that "Congress said" blah blah on this topic, though a fair-minded presentation would quickly reminded viewers that there is another, murkier, explanation, set and ready in the wings. But enough with "Congress thought" already! Now and forever!

Afterthought: Actually, I can think of one more, rather different, possible reason for embracing 100-to-one penalties for crack cocaine. And that is that Congress wasn't thinking anything at all. We're talkin' poor black people here who are very unlikely to vote in any event. So why waste any brain cells considering whether there was any discrimination or not.

[Of course, you could always switch off the TV--hmmm.]