| June 29, 2001 #205 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Listen On-line at: http://www.drugsense.org/radio/ | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) THINK TANKS DRUG WAR LOST (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON, June 26 (UPI) -- The United States is losing the war on
drugs because of the shortcomings and failures of current U.S. drug
policy, says a recent report from a major think tank. | ||||||||||||||||||
U.S. policy, which is focused on interdiction and incarceration, has
failed to reduce the availability of drugs, while forcing U.S.
anti-drug institutions to watch helplessly as street prices of illegal
substances mysteriously fell, said the report. | ||||||||||||||||||
The report's author Peter Reuter -- a drug policy analyst with the RAND Institute and the founder and former director of RAND's Drug Policy Research Center -- said that this failure occurred despite a more than threefold increase in allotted drug war spending, from $10 billion annually in the 1980s to $35 billion in the late 1990s | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) TRUE LIES? (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Ken Bucchi says he was a drug-running spook. | ||||||||||||||||||
The CIA says he's an impostor. | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1980s. The U.S. appetite for cocaine is insatiable. Everyone's snorting. Nancy Reagan's screaming, "Just say no!" The government decides to kick ass. Uncle Sam goes straight to the source: Central America. South America. Any America that's not North America. We go down there. | ||||||||||||||||||
A familiar face smiles back. The CIA's been there for years. "What took you so long?" The CIA had already hopped from one impoverished country to another. | ||||||||||||||||||
The CIA had already propped up one repressive regime after another. | ||||||||||||||||||
The CIA knows the drug trade. "Fight your silly Drug War," the CIA says. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) US CRITICIZES EUROPE ON DRUG FIGHT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Lawmakers and the Bush administration expressed frustration Thursday with the aid European nations have provided so far to help drug fighting efforts in the Andean nations of South America. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(4) THE RIGHT TO RAVE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Techno Music Lovers Are Fighting Back Against Law Enforcement Policies
That Threaten To Destroy Dallas' Rave Scene | ||||||||||||||||||
Sean Anderson wanted to throw an intense, all-night rave featuring the
pulsating electronic dance rhythms of techno music--plus his favorite
DJs and friends. So last March, the 21-year-old promoter and turntable
jockey rented the Forest, an old movie theater near Fair Park that
regularly holds concerts ranging from rap to jazz. With laconic flair,
he dubbed his event "Truth 2.01," sequel to a successful party held a
year earlier. Everything seemed ready for a celebration of hundreds,
if not a thousand or more. Anderson put together colorful fliers
announcing the party, and word went out through the subterranean
word-of-mouth and e-mail network that amazingly connects thousands of
techno music enthusiasts. He checked with the theater to make sure its
permits were in order. He organized his vinyl collection for his own
set of "progressive house," featuring works by John Digweed, Julias
Papp, Peace Division and other personal favorites. | ||||||||||||||||||
But Anderson's party was nearly ruined when the venue owner pulled out
at the last minute. While details are fuzzy, the cancellation came
after a visit by 10 to 12 Dallas police vice officers concerned about
possible drug use. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-7) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
America's two rural drug menaces continued their slow progress across
the nation; "meth" from the West and "Oxy" from the East. The latter
was hyped in a national magazine and also claimed the career of a
country doctor, while the Witchita Times-Record became the umpteenth
small town newspaper to run a series on the horrors of meth labs in
their community. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) DRUGS - PROFITS VS. PAIN RELIEF (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Does Its Maker Push Oxycontin Too Hard? | ||||||||||||||||||
They've watched an epidemic of painkiller abuse sweep through their
rural towns. | ||||||||||||||||||
Now fed-up residents of Appalachia are striking back against what they see as the chief scourge-OxyContin, a powerful prescription drug designed to relieve debilitating pain ("Playing With Painkillers," NEWSWEEK, April 9). In Virginia, disgruntled OxyContin users and their relatives have filed a $5.2 billion class-action lawsuit against the drugs maker, Purdue Pharma, charging that the company failed to adequately warn consumers of the risks of using an addictive opioid like OxyContin and that it marketed the drug irresponsibly in order to fuel $1 billion in sales last year alone. "They have done more to devastate our region than the Colombian drug lords ever thought of doing," says Abington, Va., lawyer Emmitt Yeary. Purdue calls the claims "completely baseless" and has vowed to fight the charges. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(6) GRUNDY DOCTOR FOUND GUILTY IN PRESCRIPTION DRUG CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
ABINGDON _ A Grundy doctor faces multiple life prison terms after a
jury convicted him Friday of writing hundreds of drug prescriptions to
apparently addicted patients. | ||||||||||||||||||
After three days of deliberating, a federal jury found Dr. Franklin J.
Sutherland, 46, guilty of 430 counts of prescribing narcotics without
legitimate medical purpose. | ||||||||||||||||||
The jury acquitted him of 135 of the 565 counts in the indictment. He
was charged with prescribing high-powered pain pills, including
morphine-like OxyContin. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) ON OUR STREETS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
War On Methamphetamine Fought Right Here At Home | ||||||||||||||||||
The Oscar-nominated film, "Traffic," left moviegoers horrified, aghast
at the ravages of drug addiction and dumbfounded as to why users would
wreak such havoc on their bodies for brief, artificial happiness. And
undoubtedly, many walked away from the theater with detached relief,
thanking God that the drug war is mainly fought in faraway lands, in
seedy parts of town, away from our manicured lawns and white-picket
fences. But as our weeklong series, "Recipe for ruin," highlighted, a
fierce drug battle is being fought right here in Wichita Falls, and far
too many of the walking wounded wrestle their demons right before our
eyes. ... | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (8-9) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile, ecstasy, our third new "menace." was never regional;
synthesized mostly overseas, it's smuggled by air and has gained
popularity even more quickly than meth or Oxy-- seeming to be
everywhere at once. | ||||||||||||||||||
Because it's a favorite at raves, it has created new problems for
communities: how to deal with mass youth gatherings. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(8) VIOLENCE ESCALATES AS CLUB-DRUG USE SPREADS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
LOS ANGELES - It was finding an Israeli drug dealer dead in a car trunk
at Los Angeles International Airport 18 months ago that gave
authorities here the first hint that the club drug Ecstasy was becoming
a serious problem. He had been killed by two hit men from Israel, said
officials of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). | ||||||||||||||||||
Then there was the shipment of 2.1 million Ecstasy pills, worth as much as b$40 million, that the U.S. Customs Service seized at the airport in July. The authorities say it was the world's largest Ecstasy bust. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
And now law-enforcement officials say they have seen another worrisome
development. At a number of large all-night dance parties called raves,
which draw thousands of young people to the desert east of Los Angeles,
rival gangs have fought over the sale of Ecstasy. At one rave in March,
102 people were arrested on charges of selling Ecstasy, assault or
resisting arrest, according to the DEA. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) PARTY STILL PLANNED AT RANCH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - A 24-hour long concert planned for Saturday on a
ranch is not a rave, a lawyer said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Cris Campbell of Denver represents Ha Hau, owner of Triad Dragons
Entertainment of Denver. Hau is the promoter of the concert on a
pasture at the Terry Bison Ranch south of Cheyenne. | ||||||||||||||||||
The event will feature some of the most well-known electronic music
performers in the country. Most notable among them will be DJ Micro
from New York. | ||||||||||||||||||
News that the event will be held in Laramie County has touched off a firestorm of controversy because some say it is really a rave. | ||||||||||||||||||
Tom Pagel, the director of the state Division of Criminal Investigation,said the event is a rave, an all-night dance event featuring technomusic and the use of drugs like Ecstasy. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (10-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In other news, the feds undertook some tactical maneuvers aimed at
muting criticism of Peru's drug interdiction program; also a review
of the status of syringe exchange is disappointing to say the least;
given the solid scientific evidence that it works and mounting
concerns over our failure to contain AIDS. | ||||||||||||||||||
Finally, a hard-headed conservative columnist deconstructed the drug
war and found it lacking. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(10) U.S. TO REVIEW ANTI-DRUG PLAN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
With skepticism arising in Congress over a program to intercept aerial drug shipments in Colombia and Peru, the State Department has named Morris Busby, a former ambassador to Colombia, to oversee a ``broad review'' of the policy and delayed a final report on the April shoot-down of a missionaries' plane mistaken for a drug flight. | ||||||||||||||||||
On Capitol Hill, where support for the aerial interdiction program has eroded since the accident, Busby can help defend the seven-year program to track and intercept drug flights, a big part of the drug war in Peru and Colombia, said two GOP staffers involved in drug issues. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) FEW INROADS FOR NEEDLE-TRADING PROGRAMS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
LYNN, Mass., June 20 -- That February night, Gary Langis was doing his
usual thing. That is, he was delivering sterile hypodermic needles to
two heroin addicts here, and picking up dirty needles to be sure they
were disposed of safely. | ||||||||||||||||||
A former addict himself, whose wife died of AIDS she contracted from
drug use, Mr. Langis said he felt compelled to make such deliveries
often, working with an underground group of needle-exchange volunteers
called the New England Prevention Alliance. | ||||||||||||||||||
Needle exchange is explicitly legal in Massachusetts only in a handful
of cities running pilot programs, and Lynn, a northern suburb of
Boston,is not one of them. As he walked away from the delivery, Mr.
Langis was arrested. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The result, in Massachusetts and other states, is a patchwork unusual
for criminal law: a town where it is legal to distribute needles sits
next to a town where distribution remains a crime. And national experts
say such patchworks exist across the country. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) THE STRAIGHT DOPE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In The War On Drugs, America's Soul Is The Casualty | ||||||||||||||||||
The drug warriors among us mock even the concept of drug law "reform."
They dismiss it as the far-out whimsy of subscribers to Mother Jones
magazine and billionaire oddballs like George Soros. The genuine
conservatives calling out for reform -- the likes of William F.
Buckley, Milton Friedman and former Secretary of State George Shultz --
are just ignored. | ||||||||||||||||||
But after 28 years of fighting Richard Nixon's war, the drug warriors
have a lot to answer for. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13-14) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The DEA claimed that an 18 month investigation "took down" a major drug smuggling operation. Although the cooperation of Mexican authorities was lavishly praised, Mexican response seemed muted. | ||||||||||||||||||
In other news from the Mexican border, it was quietly revealed that
the Army has resumed drug interdiction flights. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) 268 ARRESTS CRUSH DRUG OPERATION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Sweep Shuts Major Pipeline Into U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - Federal law-enforcement authorities said Wednesday they
have crushed a major drug trafficking operation responsible for
smuggling Colombian cocaine and marijuana through Mexico into Texas
and other U.S. destinations. | ||||||||||||||||||
The 18-month "Operation Marquis," which involved participation from Mexican and Colombian law enforcement, netted 268 arrests, 76 of them occurring in an early-morning sweep Wednesday in 16 U.S. cities. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The operation, which involved the participation of numerous federal
and local law enforcement agencies, also received assistance south of
the border. | ||||||||||||||||||
DEA officials praised improved cooperation between U.S. and Mexican law enforcement. Mexico's President Vicente Fox has called for a closer law-enforcement relationship between the two countries. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(14) ARMY IS BACK IN THE SKY LOOKING FOR DRUG SMUGGLERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
COCHISE COUNTY - The sounds of Army helicopters are being heard over
Cochise County as the military's Joint Task Force Six and the U.S.
Border Patrol again join to try and stop drug smugglers coming into the
country from Mexico. | ||||||||||||||||||
Armando Carrasco, a spokesman for JTF-6, said that although much of the
information about the missions is not being released for "operational
security and force protection reasons," the flights are being flown by
active-duty soldiers. | ||||||||||||||||||
The helicopters flying out of Fort Huachuca's Libby Army Airfield include OH-58 Kiowa Warriors and UH-60 Blackhawks, which are equipped with electronic reconnaissance equipment allowing soldiers to identify and report suspected drug-smuggling activities along the border, said Rob Daniels, the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector spokesman. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (15-16) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A study which looked at both profiling and lesser forms of
discrimination suggests that police stops are only one form of
America's endemic racism. | ||||||||||||||||||
A strongly worded editorial in a conservative newspaper illustrates
the frustration that can occur when a reform measure favored by a
majority of voters is blocked by conservative politicians catering (as
usual) to the power structure. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(15) SURVEY EXPLORES PERVASIVENESS OF RACIAL PROFILING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
More than half of all black men report that they've been victims of racial profiling by police, according to a survey by the Washington Post, the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University. | ||||||||||||||||||
Overall, 37 percent of blacks said they've been unfairly stopped by
police because they were black, including 52 percent of black men and
25 percent of black women. | ||||||||||||||||||
Blacks aren't the only Americans who say they've been the targets of racial or ethnic profiling by law enforcement. One in five Latino and Asian men reported being victims of racially motivated police stops. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) THE DAS ARE STILL WRONG (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In An Appeal To Assembly Speaker Silver, They Hope To Prevent Needed
Drug Law Reform | ||||||||||||||||||
In a 14-page letter to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney decries proposed reform of the state's Rockefeller Drug Laws as a "recipe for disaster" that would "free thousands of violent and predatory drug dealers and undermine existing programs for the treatment of drug addicts." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The Rockefeller Drug Laws have had 27 years to prove themselves as
effective deterrents to drug crime. But they have failed miserably.
They were touted as the toughest in the nation and the scourge of drug
kingpins,... The record shows that the small-time dealers, the first
offenders, the nonviolent, have suffered disproportionately under these
laws. The kingpins, by and large, have walked. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||
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O Canada! This week a jury acquitted a MS patient on trafficking
charges, a survey revealed that nearly 50% of Canadians favor
legalization and a MP declared he would follow the wishes of his
constituents - yet law enforcement continues to escalate its
harassment of these peaceful citizens. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) JURY CLEARS THE AIR IN MEDICINAL-POT CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Twelve ordinary Calgarians had the courage to do yesterday what our federal government has been unable or unwilling to do for years. | ||||||||||||||||||
The 11 women and one man who formed the jury at Grant Krieger's trial found the 46-year-old Calgary cannabis crusader not guilty of possession of marijuana for the purposes of trafficking. | ||||||||||||||||||
It was a remarkable finding considering Krieger himself took the stand
and admitted that not only did he grow the 29 marijuana plants seized
by police from his Bowness home on August 25, 1999, but that he
regularly sells marijuana too. | ||||||||||||||||||
And still the jury didn't find him guilty. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(18) MOST ALBERTANS BACK POT PROHIBITION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Opposition To Marijuana Legalization Highest Here | ||||||||||||||||||
Keep your stash well hidden, as Albertans are the least likely
Canadians to weed out pot laws, a survey suggests. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Leger Marketing study found only about 37% of Albertans favour
legalization of marijuana for personal use, compared to 53% in Quebec,
52% in B.C., 46% in Ontario, 45% in the Maritimes and 37.4% in Manitoba
and Saskatchewan. | ||||||||||||||||||
Overall, about 47% of Canadians favour legalization while the same
amount are against it, the survey showed. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(19) NATIONAL POST LOOKS FOR POT IN THE VALLEY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Slocan Valley is making national news, this time for its
alternative economy. National Post editor-at-large Diane Francis was
in the area last week to research the "marijuana subculture" in the
valley. She interviewed MP Jim Gouk and New Denver mayor Gary Wright,
who told her he feels the subculture "is as vital a part of our
community as anyone else that lives here." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Gouk, an Alliance MP, is in favour of using marijuana for medical
purposes. He surveyed people and found about 50% were in favour, the
rest were split between 'no' and wanting more info. | ||||||||||||||||||
Asked about decriminalizing marijuana use, Gouk said people tend to
react to rumours and sometimes inaccurate info. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Whatever they [constituents] choose I will act accordingly. I think
it's time we had public discussion on this subject, providing full info
to the public and then asking them to make an informed choice. And I
will vote on any bill according to my constituents, after following
that process." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(20) POT STILL ILLEGAL -- AND POLICE STEP UP BUSTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Vancouver Police Department has no truck with those calling for
decriminalizing dope. | ||||||||||||||||||
Far from turning a blind eye to simple possession of marijuana, the
force has been hauling in more and more people with too little pot to
warrant a trafficking charge. | ||||||||||||||||||
Figures released last week by the force show that possession charges numbered 71 in 1979, 76 in 1998 and 155 in 1999 -- then 562 in 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
Charges of possession in the opening 80 days of this year number 85, showing a slight lessening in the vigour of the campaign. | ||||||||||||||||||
The rate at which possession charges have climbed is matched by an
increase in the number of grow-ops raided. | ||||||||||||||||||
In 1997 Vancouver police busted four home-grows, in 1998 three. Twelve grow-ops were investigated in 1999 and the count leaped to 145 in 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (21) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Here in the States, a Maine District Attorney forced a landowner to
withdraw his offer to allow a pro-marijuana festival at his place by
threatening him with forfeiture proceedings. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(21) VOCALS LEADER ACCUSES OFFICIAL OF THREAT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
POWNAL - The Maine Vocals' plan to hold a pro-marijuana festival in
Cumberland County this weekend came to a screeching halt this week, but
not without the group's leadership crying foul. | ||||||||||||||||||
"She's overstepping," Vocals founder Don Christen said Wednesday,
charging that Cumberland County District Attorney Stephanie Anderson
threatened landowner Andy Jordan. "We've talked to some attorneys who
think we have a hell of a case. | ||||||||||||||||||
"There will be more to come," he added, referring to the group's plans to consult an attorney who specializes in similar cases. | ||||||||||||||||||
Earlier this month, Pownal selectmen denied the group a permit to hold
the gathering on Jordan's land. Christen vowed to hold the event
regardless, citing a constitutional right to assemble. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Cumberland County Hemp Festival was scheduled to go on as planned
until Jordan abruptly withdrew the use of his land. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Anderson sent a letter to Jordan informing him that "it is my intention
to seek a forfeiture of your property" if "evidence of qualifying
crimes" was discovered during the event. She cited the state's right to
seize property in connection with Class A, B, or C crimes "involving
controlled substances other than marijuana committed during the
festival." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (22-29) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The contradictions and absurdities of the drug war stood out this week
as the corrupt, drug-trafficking former spymaster of Peru was
captured. Buried in many reports were his close ties to the CIA and
U.S. anti-drug efforts. In Mexico, a drug cartel raided police
officials, not the other way around. | ||||||||||||||||||
At the other U.S. border, US law enforcement officials are trying to
further muscle their way into Canada on the pretext of fighting drugs,
even as Canadian tax-payers learn they are financing record legal fees
to pursue the drug war. | ||||||||||||||||||
Australian anti-drug officials patted themselves on the back for
record seizures, despite other reports showing rising drug use rates
among the young. | ||||||||||||||||||
And, in a pleasant respite from the insanity elsewhere, the British
home secretary displayed some common sense as he supported relaxed
enforcement of cannabis possession laws, while insisting on punishment
for the police leaders of a deadly drug raid. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(22) PERUVIAN SPY CHIEF SEIZED IN VENEZUELA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
RIO DE JANEIRO -- Peruvian spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos, who allegedly amassed a fortune from drug trafficking, arms deals and money laundering while working as the right-hand-man of Peru's leader Alberto Fujimori, was captured in Caracas, officials said Sunday. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Montesinos' legacy also has cast a spotlight on his longtime connection
with the Central Intelligence Agency and his former support from U.S.
officials. During his years as intelligence chief, Montesinos was a
strong U.S. ally in the Andean drug war, but prosecutors now describe
him as half intelligence chief, half crime boss. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(23) MEXICO OFFICIALS WORRY ABOUT DRUG VIOLENCE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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MATAMOROS, Mexico - The six state police officers handed over their
guns and laid down on the floor of their headquarters, obediently
following the orders of the masked assailants. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The dozen AK-47 toting men dressed in black and wearing bulletproof
vests had controlled the three-story police building within minutes and
rescued a man who was being questioned in connection with a
drug-related kidnapping. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(24) U.S. COPPERS TO CANADA TO HELP STANCH CROSS BORDER CRIME (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
U.S. law enforcement agencies are placing agents and other officials in Canada to fight drug smuggling and other crimes that cross the border, Attorney General John Ashcroft ( news - web sites ) said Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Addressing the Cross-Border Crime Forum, a gathering of top law
enforcement officials from both countries, Ashcroft cited
U.S.-purchased weapons used in Canadian crime and the shipment from
Canada of legally available chemicals for making drugs such as Ecstasy
as major challenges along the 3,000-mile border. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(25) DRUG WAR LEADS TO RECORD LEGAL BILL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Government Spent $52.7m On Private Law Firms | ||||||||||||||||||
Drug Prosecution Costs Up 20% | ||||||||||||||||||
The federal government spent more than $50 million last year on legal
work done by private law firms -- the largest legal tab in Canadian
history. | ||||||||||||||||||
Internal records from the Department of Justice disclose that
skyrocketing costs for the war on drugs, aboriginal-related litigation,
and the government's novel U.S. tobacco smuggling suit were the main
reasons.... | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(26) AUSTRALIA A LEADER IN DRUG BUSTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Australia has the third best record in the world at seizing hard drugs.
An international study shows only the UK and the Netherlands seized
larger amounts of heroin, cocaine and ecstasy per head of population
between 1995 and 1998.Australian Federal Police figures due later this
year are expected to paint an even better picture by putting Australia
in the top spot. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(27) 'JUST SAY NO' DRUG CAMPAIGN NOT GETTING THROUGH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre says the "Just Say No to
Drugs" campaign is failing more than ever. | ||||||||||||||||||
Federal Government figures show that a third of 12-year-old school students have used inhalants such as glues and aerosol sprays. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(28) BLUNKETT BACKS RELAXING APPROACH TO CANNABIS USE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
David Blunkett has shown his backing for a radical experiment to adopt
a more relaxed approach to cannabis users, concentrating police
resources instead on the fight against hard drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
The home secretary said he was interested in an experiment under which
cannabis users who are caught will be cautioned rather than given a
criminal record. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(29) BLUNKETT URGES SACK FOR CHIEF CONSTABLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Home Secretary Demands Urgent Steps To Restore Confidence After Fatal
Shooting In Bungled Operation | ||||||||||||||||||
The home secretary, David Blunkett, yesterday invited a police authority to sack its chief constable after a bungled operation in which a naked and unarmed man was shot dead during a drugs raid. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Elizabeth Wehrman June 2001 | ||||||||||||||||||
Beth is our highest producing MAP editor! Once she got the hang of how to take an article from a Newshawk and get it into our archives - she never stopped. Her throughput is averaging 400 articles per month which means she probably scans through 20-30 submissions every day. | ||||||||||||||||||
Please read her interesting interview at: | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Kay Lee's And Jodi James's Visit To The Drug Policy Forum | ||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday, June 26, the NYTimes-com's Drug Policy forum hosted Kay Lee
and Jodi James from http://journeyforjustice.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||
This discussion was the third in a series organized by forum
participants. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Kevin Zeese on DrugSense Chat Sunday July 1, 8 PM ET | ||||||||||||||||||
Kevin Zeese will be the guest on an Internet chat hosted by DrugSense
this Sunday, July 1, at 8pm eastern (5pm Pacific). For those interested
in participating, the log-in page is at: | ||||||||||||||||||
You should have a Java enabled browser to participate. Failing that, you can download a small, undemanding chat program from the chat page. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
GAO Report ONDCP Youth Media Campaign Indicates "Mismanagement" | ||||||||||||||||||
The GAO has released a report on mismanagement by federal authorities
and improper billing by contractors in the anti-drug media campaign.
The URL to access a copy of the report is below. | ||||||||||||||||||
REPORTS AND CORRESPONDENCE | ||||||||||||||||||
1. Anti-Drug Media Campaign: Aspects of Advertising Contract | ||||||||||||||||||
Submitted by Doug McVay | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Tracy and I were in a full page ad Willamette Week. (June 27th issue.)
The heading, next to a small photo of us, says: | ||||||||||||||||||
We're Jeff and Tracy | ||||||||||||||||||
If you want to download a PDF of the ad, you can find it at: | ||||||||||||||||||
Once you get there, you will need to click on the Town Hall tab to get
to the PDF link. | ||||||||||||||||||
Submitted by Jeff Jarvis | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Antwerpen, 26 June 2001 | ||||||||||||||||||
Dear friends, | ||||||||||||||||||
Today, on the UN-declared 'International Day Against Drugs Abuse', ICN
presents 'An opportunity for Europe', on Guidelines for European Drugs
Policy in the 21st Century. This document, in English, French, Spanish,
German and Italian can be seen at: | ||||||||||||||||||
The document has been edited by mainly European members of the ICN
coalition, and will be presented to Members of the European Parliament in
the course of this year, in order to propose them to carry out an
independent and thorough evaluation of drugs policies. | ||||||||||||||||||
Perhaps you could send it to your press contacts. If you want to receive a
hard copy (or more), please let me know. | ||||||||||||||||||
Best wishes, | ||||||||||||||||||
Joep Oomen | ||||||||||||||||||
EUROPEAN NGO COUNCIL ON DRUGS AND DEVELOPMENT
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Coming July 11, 2001 | ||||||||||||||||||
A record two million Americans are behind bars today in "the land of the free." One-fourth are locked up for drug offenses. Nearly half are African American. Total cost to American taxpayers: $40 billion. | ||||||||||||||||||
On July 11, MotherJones.com debuts a unique investigation into and
resource on the prison population explosion, and its enormous costs to
all of us. A package of hard-hitting articles by an award-winning team of
journalists and a clickable Prison Action Atlas will provide the most
comprehensive data ever assembled in one place on the growth of the
prison population, growth of spending on prisons, changes in spending on
public education, racial breakdown of the prison population and number of
drug prisoners in each of the 50 states. | ||||||||||||||||||
To be alerted when "Debt to Society" goes live, e-mail us at:
| ||||||||||||||||||
Or write: | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
The Coalition for Compassionate Leadership on Drug Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
A non-partisan, broad-based coalition of policy groups, brings a civil
rights and public health perspective to the selection of public
officials dealing with the issue of drug abuse. | ||||||||||||||||||
CCLDP is currently researching and evaluating the positions of several of President Bush's nominees, including John Walters, Bush's proposed drug czar, and Rep. Asa Hutchinson, Bush's proposed DEA director. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Law's Provision Unfair | ||||||||||||||||||
How fortunate that the two lovely Bush daughters have parents and a
family given to unconditional love and support, with reasonable
discipline and penalties under the law, for their recent illegal
drinking behavior. | ||||||||||||||||||
They are flirting with one of the most potentially dangerous of all
recreational drugs: alcohol. | ||||||||||||||||||
Thousands of other equally lovely young people are not so fortunate.
They may not come from such secure backgrounds, and if they have
flirted with other potentially dangerous drugs - the illegal ones -
they may find themselves subject to the overly harsh and punitive
provision of the Higher Education Act, which asks them if they have
ever been convicted of involvement with an illegal drug. They lose
financial aid if they answer yes, or if they refuse to answer the
question. | ||||||||||||||||||
This smacks of McCarthyism. It either robs these otherwise qualified
people or encourages them to lie on the application. Murders, rapists
and other violent criminals are not required to answer a question
about their crimes. | ||||||||||||||||||
But the nonviolent end up being denied the help they need. Because
illegal drugs have been demonized, these people often lose jobs they
have held responsibly for years, and their savings go to pay legal
fees instead of toward their education. It's not a good law. It
should be taken off the books. President Bush needs to be more
compassionate, and stop the enforcement of this law. | ||||||||||||||||||
Jean Liittschwager, | ||||||||||||||||||
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Honorable Mention Letters of the Week | ||||||||||||||||||
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"Truth forever on the scaffold, Wrong forever on the throne,
Yet that scaffold sways the future, and, behind the dim unknown."
-- James Russell Lowell, _The Present Crisis_ (1844) | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
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Content selection and analyses by Tom O'Connell (), Cannabis/Hemp content selection and analysis by Jo-D Dunbar (), International content selection by Stephen Young (), Layout by Matt Elrod () | ||||||||||||||||||
We wish to thank all our contributors, editors, NewsHawks and letter writing activists. Please help us help reform. Become a NewsHawk See http://www.mapinc.org/hawk.htm for info on contributing clippings. | ||||||||||||||||||
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