| January 17, 2003 #284 | ||||||||||||||||||
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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) THE INTERNATIONAL DRUGS FIFTH COLUMN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The sensational disclosure that the former deputy drug czar Mike
Trace has assembled a secret network to pressurise governments into
legalising drugs lifts a veil on an operation as sinister as it is
extensive. | ||||||||||||||||||
The implications are simply astounding. Despite his official role in combating drugs in Britain, Europe and the United Nations, Mr Trace is revealed to be the driving force behind a co-ordinated international effort to disband the world's anti-drug laws by stealth. | ||||||||||||||||||
As a result of the relentless bombardment of legalising propaganda disguised as "harm reduction",he public in Britain and Europe have become increasingly receptive to the idea that the real problem is not the drugs themselves but the law that makes them illegal. | ||||||||||||||||||
With the public thus softened up, the legalisers'main obstacle now
is the UN conventions on drugs, passed in 1961, 1971 and 1988.
These require countries to prevent possession, use, production
and distribution of illegal narcotics. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) DRUGS AND TERROR DON'T MIX (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
It is one thing to have our intelligence insulted by advertisers
attempting to separate us from our money. It is quite another when our
own government uses our tax dollars to spread disinformation, as with
new TV ads linking drug use in America to terrorism. | ||||||||||||||||||
In the latest attempt to bolster public support (and funding) for the
failed war on drugs, the White House has unleashed a slick ad series
featuring fictional debaters, Nick and Norm, two middle-aged white
businessmen dining at an expensive restaurant, talking drugs and
terror. In four 30-second vignettes, their argument plays out. After
initial resistance, the dark-haired one concedes a connection between
drug money and terror. He maintains, however, that the amount is
"peanuts" and that "If I buy drugs, I might be supporting terror. Might
is the moral loophole." | ||||||||||||||||||
The gray-haired hero, appalled by this rationalization, responds, "If
you buy drugs, you might be helping drug dealers shoot little kids --
and you might be helping terrorists do things so awful that we cannot
conceive of them yet." | ||||||||||||||||||
What is especially galling about this campaign is that it propagates
lies about not one, but two of the Bush administration's priorities: a
moral crusade to end drug use in America, and a military crusade to
control the Middle East. It suggests that our allies, the good guys who
helped depose the Taliban and search for bin Laden don't deal drugs
(they do), and that Americans who buy drugs fund terrorism (they
don't). | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Glenn Backes is director of the California capital office of the Drug
Policy Alliance, http://www.drugpolicy.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) U.S. FAILS TO ACHIEVE ANTI-DRUG GOAL IN COLOMBIA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The State Department has failed to meet its 2002 goal of eradicating
more than 11,000 acres of Colombian opium poppy fields at a time when
heroin from that South American country is flooding into cities all
along the East Coast. | ||||||||||||||||||
According to information sent by Colombian police officials to the
House Committee on International Relations, only about 7,400 acres of
Colombian opium poppy fields identified by authorities were eradicated
last year - continuing a steady decline in the U.S. program to cut
Colombian poppy production. | ||||||||||||||||||
Opium poppy-field eradication in Colombia in 2001 was down 80 percent
from 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
"There is a direct link between opium production and the heroin in
every city and town in the East Coast," said one official close to the
program. "Police throughout the Northeast are finding Colombian heroin
on every street corner and in every school, and overdose deaths have
skyrocketed. | ||||||||||||||||||
"If it hasn't reached your street or your neighborhood, it will - and soon," said the official, who asked not to be identified. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(4) POTHEADS, PUNDITS NOT SWALLOWING PROMISE OF DRUG-LAW REFORM (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
OTTAWA (CP) - Don't expect marijuana to be decriminalized any time soon
despite promises from Justice Minister Martin Cauchon, say some experts
and drug advocates. | ||||||||||||||||||
Skeptics predict Cauchon's promised legislation, expected by spring, will die on the order paper at the end of the current session of Parliament. They suggest it is being introduced as a time-buying sop without backing from the prime minister. "There won't be enough time to pass it," said Alan Young, a law professor at Osgoode Hall law school. "He (Cauchon) knows it's going to die on the order paper." | ||||||||||||||||||
Last month, a House of Commons committee recommended that people be
allowed to possess up to 30 grams of marijuana without risking criminal
penalties. | ||||||||||||||||||
Cauchon welcomed the recommendation and promised to introduce a bill
within months, but Prime Minister Jean Chretien has not taken a clear
position on the issue. | ||||||||||||||||||
Young said the biggest obstacle to decriminalization in Canada is U.S. opposition -- a view shared by many marijuana crusaders. | ||||||||||||||||||
"That is the only obstacle," said Mark Emery of the B.C. Marijuana Party. "There is no real internal opposition in Canada any more." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-11) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The drug war has again paved the way to a more authoritarian future.
A DEA agent was sentenced last week to a year in prison for passing
unclassified, but "sensitive" information to a reporter. The harsh
sentence appears to be a warning to other government employees not
to embarrass their bosses. | ||||||||||||||||||
More legal drugs are being targeted by drug warriors. Two bills in two separate states impose new, onerous regulations on common over-the-counter medications. The U.S. military, however, may be a little more lax with controlled substances. As a pair of American pilots are undergo hearings regarding the "friendly fire" deaths of Canadian soldiers, the drug policies that led to the use of amphetamine before the flight are being closely scrutinized. | ||||||||||||||||||
Speed may be OK for Air Force pilots, but medical cannabis is not OK for some employees. According to a court ruling handed down last week, private employers may fire employees for using medical marijuana, even if it's authorized by doctors and state authorities. | ||||||||||||||||||
In cheerier news, the local press in Tampa, Fla., is rightfully criticizing a measure that would allow police to use suspicion as the sole basis for drug arrests, and Discover Magazine this month carries an encouraging story about the medical potential of Peyote. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) U.S. ATTORNEY SENDING A MESSAGE TO THOSE WHO LEAK INFORMATION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A federal judge in Atlanta has imposed a one-year prison sentence on
a former intelligence analyst charged with stealing government
information and leaking it to a London newspaper. | ||||||||||||||||||
In a case that the U.S. attorney here says establishes a significant
precedent, federal prosecutors assigned a media market price to the
leaked information high enough to ensure a felony charge and
increase the anticipated prison term. | ||||||||||||||||||
William S. Duffey Jr., U.S. attorney for the Northern District of
Georgia, said the successful prosecution of former Atlanta Drug
Enforcement Administration analyst Jonathan Randel stands as a
warning to government employees, particularly law enforcement
agents, who might consider providing sensitive, unclassified
information to anyone, including journalists, outside of the federal
government. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(6) BILL TARGETS COUGH SYRUP DRUG ABUSED BY TEENS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
AUSTIN - Popular cough medicines that contain an ingredient used as
a recreational drug by teenagers would become harder to purchase
under a bill filed this week by San Antonio Rep. Carlos Uresti. Abuse
of over-the-counter medications such as Robitussin DM and Coricidin
Cough & Cold, which contain Dextromethopan, known as DXM, sends
about 1,000 teenagers a year to the Palmer Drug Abuse Center in San
Antonio, Executive Director Will Brown said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The measure by Uresti would make it a Class B misdemeanor to sell or
deliver products containing DXM to anyone under the age of 18. House
Bill 340 also would outlaw DXM abuse by minors. | ||||||||||||||||||
Uresti's proposal would require medications containing DXM be kept out-of-reach. Customers would need assistance from store employees to get them. His bill would punish businesses that don't comply. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) BILLS WOULD CRIMP METH MAKERS' PLANS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Under legislation proposed in Arnold, it won't be as easy to find
relief from the common cold. But backers of two bills say they will
make it much more difficult to buy and steal ingredients used to
manufacture methamphetamine. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police say meth has been Jefferson County's top crime problem for
years, but stepped-up police efforts last year led to a record
number of raids on drug labs and seizures of meth and meth-related
ingredients and equipment. In fact, more meth-related arrests have
been made in Jefferson County than in several states combined in the
eastern part of the United States. | ||||||||||||||||||
Most drug experts agree that the easiest way to strike a blow against drug production here is to make it harder for meth cooks to get key ingredients. Arnold councilmen will consider bills that would do just that by requiring stores to keep drugs containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine behind store counters and by requiring a signature of a shopper who buys more than one box of cold pills. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(8) F16 PILOTS GOT PILLS PRIOR TO FATAL BOMB INCIDENT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- Two U.S. pilots who mistakenly
dropped a bomb that killed four Canadians in Afghanistan had been
issued amphetamines before the mission to stay awake, a defense lawyer
argued Tuesday at the opening of a military hearing to determine
whether they should be court-martialed. | ||||||||||||||||||
The pills issued by the Air Force may have impaired the pilots'
judgment, said David Beck, lawyer for Maj. William Umbach. He also
said the pilots were given antidepressants upon returning from their
mission. | ||||||||||||||||||
Umbach and Maj. Harry Schmidt are charged with involuntary
manslaughter for dropping the guided bomb near Kandahar on April 17.
The Air Force has said they failed to make sure there were no allied
troops in the area. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) FIRING OVER MEDICAL POT IS UPHELD (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In the latest twist to California's controversial medicinal
marijuana law, a Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled Thursday that
a man using doctor-prescribed marijuana has no right to sue his
former employer for firing him. | ||||||||||||||||||
The ruling, unlike dozens of others involving medicinal marijuana in
the state, is unusual because it involves the workplace. But like
other court challenges, experts said it does little to resolve
lingering questions in the law. | ||||||||||||||||||
Thursday's ruling found that while fired workers may avoid criminal
prosecution by state officials under Proposition 215, their
employers may still fire them because marijuana is illegal under
federal law. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(10) EDITORIAL: TAMPA'S DRUG PROBLEM (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The city of Tampa is considering whether to resurrect a law that was
struck down before because it criminalizes speech. | ||||||||||||||||||
The measure would give police the power to arrest any person they
suspect is "intent" on selling drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
Having cops act on a transcendental hunch, like the lady at the fair
who guesses weight, is a good way to violate civil rights but a poor
way to fight the scourge of drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) PEYOTE ON THE BRAIN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Even with several tablespoons of peyote in me, by 3 in the morning
I'm fading. For almost six hours I have been sitting in a tepee in
the Navajo Nation, the largest Indian reservation in the United
States, with 20 Navajo men, women, and children. They belong to the
Native American Church, which has 250,000 members nationwide.
Everyone except the four children has eaten the ground-up tops, or
buttons, of peyote, Lophophora williamsii. U.S. law classifies the
squat cactus and its primary active ingredient, mescaline, as
Schedule 1 substances, illegal to sell, possess, or ingest. The law
exempts members of the Native American Church, who revere peyote as
a sacred medicine. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
While recognizing that psychedelics are toxic substances that should
not be treated lightly, John Halpern (a 34-year-old psychiatrist
from Harvard Medical School) thinks some of the drug compounds could
have beneficial uses. "There are medicines here," he says, that
could prove to be "fundamentally valuable." He hopes the
mind-revealing power of psychedelics can be harnessed to help
alleviate the pain and suffering caused by two deadly diseases that
have long been notoriously resistant to treatment: alcoholism and
addiction. More than 12 million Americans abuse alcohol, and another
1 million abuse cocaine or heroin. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (12-15) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
At least two local police chiefs are standing behind their officers' reckless behavior during drug investigations. Despite that support, an Oklahoma police officer was charged with manslaughter last week, months after he gunned down an unarmed man who was allegedly stealing materials used to make methamphetamine. Also charged was an Indiana woman who shot a police officer during a raid at her house that she thought was a burglary. Though local policies require SWAT teams to identify themselves in such raids, no identification was offered in this case. But the local police chief believes his officers aren't at fault, because the raid was a "covert action." | ||||||||||||||||||
Also last week, the New York Times published a long piece about how
prison life becomes engrained in some communities, and Racine, Wisc.
officials continued to back off the mass ticketing of innocent
attendees at an alleged rave. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) OFFICER CHARGED IN SLAYING OF SUSPECT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
STILLWATER -- Prosecutors filed a manslaughter charge Friday against
a Perkins Police Department reserve officer in the September death
of an unarmed man police were pursuing. Toby Grant Mason, 32, faces
one count of second-degree manslaughter in the Sept. 28 shooting
death of Kenneth Wayne Bailey, 22. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police Chief Robert Williams said Mason will remain on | ||||||||||||||||||
"We're in full support of him. I don't agree with the charges,"
Williams said. | ||||||||||||||||||
On Sept. 28, Mason was working with Payne County sheriff's deputies
to capture a person who fled from an oil field near Perry that Noble
County authorities had staked out. | ||||||||||||||||||
Authorities suspected someone was stealing anhydrous ammonia, used to make methamphetamine, from storage tanks at the site. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) WOMAN THOUGHT COP WAS BURGLAR (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
MUNCIE - A Muncie woman accused of shooting a police SWAT team
member told investigators she thought the policeman was a burglar,
authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||
The woman, 29-year-old Jillian D. King, 1002 E. First St., was being
held in the Delaware County jail without bond Wednesday,
preliminarily charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery and
criminal recklessness. | ||||||||||||||||||
Patrolman Steve Cox, 34, was hit near his groin when King fired two
shots from a .44-caliber handgun Tuesday night. He was still being
treated late Wednesday at Ball Memorial Hospital for non-life
threatening injuries, authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police officials said Wednesday that members of the SWAT team, who
were about to conduct a drug raid at King's home around 9:30 p.m.
Tuesday, were easily identified as police officers. | ||||||||||||||||||
When the nine-member team first approached the house, floodlights
came on. Under the police department's policy, SWAT team members are
required to announce they are police officers before breaking down a
door. | ||||||||||||||||||
"They never had the opportunity to announce," Police Chief Joe
Winkle said Wednesday. "It's a covert action; the idea is to get in
there before they know that you are there." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(14) PRISON IS A MEMBER OF THEIR FAMILY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
As long as Nina could remember, the prison system held uncles and
cousins and grandfathers and always her father. Nina, like Toney and
Lolli, was raised in the inner city; for all three, prison further
demarcated the already insular social geography. Along with the baby
showers of teenagers, they attended prisoners' going-away and
coming-home parties. Drug dealing and arrests were common on the
afternoons Nina spent playing on the sidewalk as she and her parents
hung out with their friends. People would be hauled away, while
others would unexpectedly reappear, angrier or subdued. Corrections
officers escorted one handcuffed cousin to Nina's | ||||||||||||||||||
Since 1974, the year Toney was born, the incarceration rate for
young men in America has quadrupled. In his Bronx neighborhood, as
in the poorest communities around the country, prison is now a
well-established rite of passage. A 2000 study by the U.S.
Department of Justice found that about half of the nation's inmates
are parents of children under 18. The study also found that almost
1.5 million children had a parent in prison, an increase of more | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(15) COURT DATES FOR RAVERS CANCELED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Racine - The ravers may win yet. | ||||||||||||||||||
Two months ago, police issued $968 citations to more than 440 people who attended a rave, a party with distinctive music - and, often, drugs - that teens and young adults will drive hours to attend. | ||||||||||||||||||
News of the crackdown shocked the rave community nationwide, and the
Racine City Attorney's Office quickly offered to reduce the
forfeiture to $100. Then it offered to remove any reference to
controlled substances from the ticket. | ||||||||||||||||||
But most of the ravers refused the plea bargain, leaving the city with the potentially costly prospect of holding hundreds of trials. | ||||||||||||||||||
Now the city has blinked again. | ||||||||||||||||||
Some 75 pretrial conferences scheduled for Friday and other Municipal Court proceedings for the citations were canceled. Instead, city prosecutors are negotiating with American Civil Liberties Union attorneys in an effort to resolve the cases. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (16-20) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Like it or not, Ed Rosenthal is going to trial. The legendary pot activist has been charged with cultivation and trafficking following the bust of San Francisco 's Harm Reduction Center. A jury was selected last week only after dozens potential jurors were dismissed due to their support for medical cannabis. Also dismissed was Rosenthal's central defense - the judge ruled that evidence about medical necessity and state law will not be allowed at the trial. | ||||||||||||||||||
Better news from Ontario: dismissing a man in possession of under
one gram of cannabis, a second Ontario judge has declared that
personal possession of cannabis is legal in Ontario. Judge John
Moore agreed with a Windsor judge' s decision last week that the
current laws are unconstitutional. And medical marijuana activists
continued to celebrate last week's landmark ruling by Justice Sidney
Lederman which gave the federal government six months to begin
distributing medicinal cannabis. If the government fails to do so,
Canada's laws governing personal possession will be struck down for
good. | ||||||||||||||||||
And in Isreal, the pro-legalization Green Leaf Party looks set to
win between 2 and 8 seats in the January 28th federal election. In
light of the threat of war in Iraq, the party has been touting
cannabis as an antidote for the nerve gas Soman, one of the chemical
weapons suspected to be part of Saddam's arsenal. | ||||||||||||||||||
Finally, a column by the Globe and Mail's David McFarlane takes a
good-natured look at the irrationality of the U.S. governments war
on cannabis in regards to Canada's inevitable decriminalization of
the herb. Mr. Rosenthal, if I could suggest a few vacation spots;
Canada and Isreal are nice this time of year. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) MEDICAL ISSUES, CITY LAW DISALLOWED IN POT TRIAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Jury selection began Tuesday for the trial of pro-marijuana author and activist Ed Rosenthal of Oakland, who faces federal drug charges for growing marijuana under the state's medical marijuana law. | ||||||||||||||||||
But evidence of that state law and Oakland's city ordinances will be
excluded from his trial under an order U.S. District Judge Charles
Breyer of San Francisco issued Monday barring Rosenthal from
mounting a defense based on medical issues. The trial begins next
Tuesday and is expected to last more than a week. | ||||||||||||||||||
Defense attorneys had hoped to show jurors that California voters in
1996 passed a ballot measure permitting medical marijuana use, and
that Oakland has passed ordinances to regulate medical marijuana
cultivation and distribution and protect cultivators from
prosecution. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) MARIJUANA LAWS TAKE ANOTHER POUNDING IN ONTARIO (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Canada's marijuana laws absorbed another punishing blow yesterday
when a Toronto judge concluded that the law is invalid and acquitted
a man of possession. | ||||||||||||||||||
Ontario Court Judge John Moore added momentum to a string of recent
court rulings that have pummelled the law, saying their combined
force leads down "a common-sense path." | ||||||||||||||||||
Judge Moore endorsed a ruling by a Windsor, Ont., judge last week.
He said the government erred when it created regulations to govern
medicinal marijuana without enacting them in Parliament as
legislation. He said the procedure was at odds with instructions
from the Ontario Court of Appeal in a 2000 ruling. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(18) LAWYERS, CLIENTS ON A HIGH OVER CANADIAN POT RULING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Lawyers and their clients who persuaded a judge to strike down the
medicinal marijuana regulations as unconstitutional were high on
yesterday's "bold" landmark ruling. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Canada rules, that's for sure," Warren Hitzig, an applicants in the
constitutional challenge, said. "I'm very surprised, extremely
ecstatic. The judge made a fantastic decision. I would not have
wanted to be in his shoes." | ||||||||||||||||||
"The judge said it's unconstitutional for medical users to use the
unconventional measures they had to use," said Hitzig, a founder of
the Toronto Compassion Centre, which sold medicinal pot to about
1,500 terminally ill people until it was raided last year. He and
three others still face charges. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(19) KEEP ON THE GRASS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Israeli Pot Party Battles Nerve Gas | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
We're having elections at the end of this month. You've probably
heard more about them than you ever wanted to know. Same here. The
TV and newspapers talk about nothing else, except the sunny
prospects for war with Iraq. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
That's right: On January 28 it looks like we will have a clear vote for war, economic ruin, corruption, and legal marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
But Sharon is not the only politician playing the Saddam card. Now
we have the Green Leaf Party touting the potential of marijuana as
an antidote to Saddam's nerve gas of choice, soman. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(20) AMERICAN THINKING FUZZY ON MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
I see that marijuana is now sort-of decriminalized. This doesn't
seem so very far along from marijuana being sort-of criminalized.
But I ask you: Was Rome built in a day? | ||||||||||||||||||
Not if there were any politicians involved, it wasn't. | ||||||||||||||||||
I also see that one of the few remaining rational arguments against
outright legalization of marijuana in Canada is that such a step
would really irritate the Americans. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
One underestimates American irritation at one's peril. As King
George III figured out a little late in the game. As, I have a
feeling, Saddam Hussein soon will. But as much as I respect
Americans, and as much as I like to take the repercussions of their
irritation into account, I have to say that there are certain
subjects that Americans are just a little bit nutty about. And
marijuana is one of them. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (21-25) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In Bolivia last week, government forces killed two demonstrators, as
the poor mount nationwide protests against US-dictated coca
eradication plans. Troops opened fire on the civilians Tuesday,
shooting to death one demonstrator, and killing another by tear gas
asphyxiation. Demonstrations began after talks between coca leaders
and the US-backed government broke down in December. Evo Morales,
leader of the coca growers and runner-up in last year's presidential
elections, said the demonstrations would continue. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, authorities mounted an offensive against "suspected drug traffickers," killing eleven people in the assault. Government spokesmen claim the shooting started as more than 250 police moved in to make arrests in the Rebu and Corea shantytowns. One policeman was also killed and another wounded in the raid. | ||||||||||||||||||
Mexican anti-drug authorities have once again saved the gringo from
the dread marihuana: this time the drug -- five tons of "unreported"
pot -- was discovered in the offices of the FEADS anti-narcotics
squad in Tijuana. Squad members were arrested and the offices closed
and surrounded by troops. The military claimed to have stumbled upon
the cache of cannabis during a "routine" inspection. Other sources
say the military had been tipped off. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Colombia, the U.S. has temporarily suspended aid to a Colombian
Air Force unit accused of dropping bombs which killed 17 civilians
in 1998 in the town of Santo Domingo. The First Aerial Command Unit
insisted the explosion was caused by a rebel car-bomb, but analysis
showed a standard US-supplied air-dropped fragmentation bomb was
used. | ||||||||||||||||||
Also from Colombia, several "top drug lords" offered to surrender,
in exchange for promises of non-extradition. Colombian government
officials see little need for negotiation, boasting that spraying
will "totally eliminate coca," so that by the end of 2003 "the
balance of power is going to be radically different." | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(21) BOLIVIAN DEMONSTRATORS KILLED DURING NATIONWIDE (Top)PROTEST | ||||||||||||||||||
KAYARANI, Bolivia (AP) -- Two demonstrators were killed in fighting
on the nation's largest highway between government forces and
thousands of poor protesting Bolivia's plan to eradicate coca crops
and other government policies. | ||||||||||||||||||
Soldiers opened fire on demonstrators at a roadblock Tuesday, killing Romulo Gonzalez, 19, who was shot in the neck, the government said in a statement. The incident happened in Aguirre, a small town 260 kilometers (160 miles) to the southeast of La Paz. | ||||||||||||||||||
A second man died from asphyxiation in a clash with soldiers, the
government said. Radio reports said the man was overcome by tear
gas. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The protests broke out after talks between the government and coca
leaders collapsed in late December. | ||||||||||||||||||
The government continues to plead with the opposition to resume
peace talks, but Evo Morales, the leader of the coca growers who
finished second in last year's presidential elections, said the
government has lost its chance for dialogue. He said the
demonstrations would continue until the government deals with the
widespread poverty in Bolivia. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The United States embassy has not responded to the violence, but in
prior years has praised Bolivia's government as a model nation for
its efforts with the war on drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(22) TWELVE DIE IN BRAZIL 'DRUGS' BATTLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Gangs Control The Warren-Like Slums | ||||||||||||||||||
At least 12 people have been killed in a gun battle between police
and suspected drug traffickers in the Brazilian city of Rio de
Janeiro, authorities say. | ||||||||||||||||||
A policeman died in the shooting in a slum of the city, the Secretary for Public Safety in Rio, Colonel Josias Quintal, said. | ||||||||||||||||||
He said the shooting began when officers tried to arrest suspected
drug traffickers. | ||||||||||||||||||
More than 250 policemen took part in the operation. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The gunfight began at about 0800 local time (1000 GMT ) after police
entered the Rebu and Corea shantytowns, police spokesman Renato
Homen said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Eleven drug traffickers died in the battle, he said. | ||||||||||||||||||
One policeman was in serious condition after being shot in the head,
Mr Homen said. Two more were wounded, but their injuries were not
believed to be life-threatening. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(23) MEXICO SHUTTERS ANTI-DRUG OFFICE, DETAINS 7 (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
TIJUANA - Members of a Mexican federal anti-narcotics squad were
detained and their office abruptly closed Friday night after
soldiers found almost five tons of unreported marijuana in their
building. | ||||||||||||||||||
According to the Mexican Attorney General's Office, at least seven
agents with the group known by its Spanish acronym FEADS were being
questioned, as well as two civilians who are believed to be linked
to the 1,897 packets of drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
The civilians had apparently been held at the group's office for
three days, a federal law enforcement source said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The military found the marijuana when soldiers were doing a routine
check of firearms and security measures at the FEADS' Tijuana
headquarters, according to a news release issued yesterday by the
Mexican Attorney General's Office. | ||||||||||||||||||
However, the federal law enforcement source said the military was
tipped off about the drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(24) U.S. HALTS AID TO COLOMBIA AIR FORCE UNIT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - The United States has cut off aid to a
Colombian Air Force unit suspected in the killing of 17 civilians
more than four years ago, a U.S. official said. | ||||||||||||||||||
A squadron of the First Aerial Command Unit was fighting rebels near
Santo Domingo town in December 1998 when a bomb killed the
civilians. The Air Force has said it was a rebel car bomb, but FBI
forensic analysis concluded the shrapnel was ``consistent with'' a
fragmentation bomb meant to be dropped from the air. Residents of
Santo Domingo insist they were bombed from the air. | ||||||||||||||||||
The State Department decided to revoke the human rights | ||||||||||||||||||
The decertification means the unit can no longer receive U.S. aid or
buy American munitions. It was not clear how much aid the unit had
received. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Three U.S. citizens have been accused of pinpointing the targets for
the bombing during a battle. One of the pilots was apparently an
active-duty member of the U.S. Coast Guard, the Coast Guard has
confirmed. The men had been working for a Florida-based company that
provided aircraft services to oil companies in the region. They are
not currently in Colombia. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(25) COLOMBIA SAYS TOP DRUG LORDS OFFER TO SURRENDER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, Colombia - Colombia's government is studying an offer to
surrender from the country's most powerful drug lords and is on
course to crush the world's biggest cocaine trade, the Interior
Minister said on Monday. | ||||||||||||||||||
The bosses of the Norte del Valle drug smuggling ring, which
security sources say is now Colombia's biggest following the
destruction of the infamous Cali and Medellin cartels in the 1990s,
contacted the government via the Roman Catholic Church, Interior
Minister Fernando Londono told local radio. | ||||||||||||||||||
Local newspapers, quoting cartel sources, reported drug smugglers
including Hernando Gomez and Diego Leon Montoya, known by their
underworld nicknames "Scratch" and "Don Diego," want promises they
will serve sentences in Colombia and not be extradited to the United
States. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Asked if the government would agree not to extradite the drug lords,
he replied: "That's an issue to study." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Londono said spraying would totally eliminate coca from the jungles of Putumayo near the border with Ecuador by the end of the year. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
"By December 31, the balance of power is going to be radically
different," Londono said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Colombia's spraying program has been backed by almost $2 billion in
mostly military U.S. aid, but so far has struggled to make much of a
dent in output, as peasants have fled the crop dusters to plant in
other parts of the country. But U.S. officials say Uribe's more
aggressive spraying should slash the crop to a third or less of
present levels by 2004 or 2005. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
RAVE ACT RE-INTRODUCED | ||||||||||||||||||
An Action Alert from the Drug Policy Alliance. | ||||||||||||||||||
http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=1448 | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
MARC-BORIS ST-MAURICE ON CULTURAL BAGGAGE | ||||||||||||||||||
Interview now archived. Just click on the link for "LISTEN" for Jan.
10th show. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
THE RIGHT NOT TO BE IN PAIN | ||||||||||||||||||
The Feds vs. Ed Rosenthal | ||||||||||||||||||
by Alexander Cockburn | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
UPDATES ON THE ROSENTHAL TRIAL | ||||||||||||||||||
See the latest on the well-known activist's court case. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
POT FLASHBACK | ||||||||||||||||||
Published on Reason Online, an account of the Nevada Secretary of State
forcing Drug Czar John Walters to defend his anti-initiative campaigning
in that state. | ||||||||||||||||||
Thought you might find it of interest. Please disseminate this note or
URL below (rather than cutting and pasting the body of the article) as
you see fit. And feel free to contact me with any original story ideas
you might encounter. | ||||||||||||||||||
The article is at: http://www.reason.com/hod/df011603.shtml | ||||||||||||||||||
Regards, | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
MPP ESCALATES "WAR ON DRUG CZAR" | ||||||||||||||||||
We are launching the next prong of our "War on Drug Czar" campaign.
Please vote on which of MPP's six TV ads you think we should run to
challenge the drug czar's TV ads by visiting: | ||||||||||||||||||
Every dollar you donate will count as one vote for your favorite ad.
The more money you donate, the more votes you get. | ||||||||||||||||||
The six ads are in production as I write this, and we will begin
airing the two or three most popular ads early next month in
Washington, D.C. | ||||||||||||||||||
Rob Kampia | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
POT REFUGEES PORTRAYED ON CANADIAN TV | ||||||||||||||||||
Running Time: 45 min | ||||||||||||||||||
"NOT WITHOUT MY REEFER" (originally aired January 14th): | ||||||||||||||||||
A top Canadian dramatic series, The Eleventh Hour, presents a realistic
and compelling look at America's Reefer Refugees and the Canadian
response to their plight. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
LETTERS OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Who's Right? | ||||||||||||||||||
By Jerry Epstein | ||||||||||||||||||
I take great offense to the letter cited by you from the president of the National District Attorneys Association, Dan M. Alsobrook's saying (1) they (those of us who wish to legalize drugs) do not mind deceiving the American public as well. (2) And to absurd claims about marijuana from Scott Burns, a bureaucrat at ONDCP. | ||||||||||||||||||
One question: Do you trust the world's leading medical journal for
over a century, The Lancet, or U.S. politicians, police and
bureaucrats to more accurately assess marijuana? The Lancet: "... on
the medical evidence available, moderate indulgence in cannabis has
little ill-effect on health...." (1) | ||||||||||||||||||
"But decriminalization of possession does not go far enough in our view.... Sooner or later politicians will have to stop running scared and address the evidence: cannabis per se is not a hazard to society but driving it further underground may well be." (2) | ||||||||||||||||||
How can Lancet be so at odds with U.S. propaganda? One of them is
lying. Guess who? | ||||||||||||||||||
I have been fighting modern prohibition, the drug war, for the basic
reasons that my parents fought alcohol prohibition. It doesn't work
and it does great damage to our children and society. And, like
nearly all of my friends who help lead state groups for the drug
reform movement, I personally haven't taken a penny in over seven
years of our "well financed" fight. | ||||||||||||||||||
The modern phase of the drug war was first brought to you by the
same folks who brought you Watergate. See E. Jay Epstein's "Agency
of Fear," Dan Baum's "Smoke and Mirrors," Alan Bock's "Waiting to
Inhale" and Mike Gray's "Drug Crazy" - among many, for the
remarkable history of government duplicity regarding drugs from
decade to decade since 1914 (and earlier). | ||||||||||||||||||
Jerry Epstein, | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Stop Demonizing Pot Users | ||||||||||||||||||
By Jo-D Harrison | ||||||||||||||||||
Another medical marijuana dove, Thomas Bradford Dunbar, 52, attained
final relief from his long-failing, physical being Friday afternoon,
Jan 3. Although he witnessed some small victories, he left the
battlefield with the excruciating knowledge that too many other sick
and dying Californians will suffer due to the general public's
willingness to silently witness the mounting atrocities of our War
on Drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
I would like to thank the New Times staff for their | ||||||||||||||||||
R.I.P. is the typical phrase sympathizers offer. I don't believe Tom
will find that peace until we stop discarding human beings in cages
for utilizing a natural gift which has been demonized by mere
mortals. | ||||||||||||||||||
For those who still have difficulty interpreting the simple text of
California's Compassionate Use Act of 1996, PLEASE take a moment to
view the cartoon version: http://www.adrugwarcarol.com/ | ||||||||||||||||||
Jo-D Harrison, | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Your Government Is Lying To You (Again) About Marijuana | ||||||||||||||||||
By Keith Stroup | ||||||||||||||||||
It will come as no surprise to most Americans to learn that our
federal officials tend to exaggerate the potential dangers of
marijuana in order to justify our nation's criminal drug policies. But
recently, the White House's anti-marijuana propaganda campaign has
taken on an increasingly alarmist and extremist tone arguably crossing
over any reasonable line of probity. The Bush Administration's latest
rhetoric does not qualify as a mere exaggeration; they are flat-out
lying to the American public. They are purposely misrepresenting the
available research in an attempt to justify federal and state policies
that result in the arrest of more than 650,000 Americans annually on
minor marijuana possession charges. | ||||||||||||||||||
Specifically, in an "open letter" to America s prosecutors (dated November 1, 2002), ONDCP Deputy Director Scott Burns insists, "Nationwide, no drug matches the threat posed by marijuana," and urges law enforcement officials to "aggressively prosecute" marijuana violators. The letter further advocates prosecutors "tell the truth" about marijuana, and then lists more than a dozen unsubstantiated, misleading and fallacious statements regarding cannabis including the allegation that marijuana is more addictive than "alcohol, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and all other illegal drugs combined." Apparently the Drug Czar's office has forgotten about the very real risks of truly dangerous drugs such as heroin, methamphetamine, crack and powder cocaine as well as tobacco and alcohol, two legal but far more lethal drugs than marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
NORML has decided it is time to blow the whistle on this shameful exercise in government propaganda by launching our own marijuana "truth" campaign. The first salvo in this campaign is presented here: a index.htmpoint-by-point refutation of the ONDCP's "open letter" to America's prosecutors. We invite all who are interested in learning the truth about marijuana to read the Drug Czar's letter, http://www.norml.org/pdf_files/whitehouse_fax.pdf, and then read NORML's rebuttal, http://www.norml.org/pdf_files/your_gov_is_lying.pdf and decide for yourself who is lying about marijuana and why. | ||||||||||||||||||
NORML believes there is nothing to be gained by exaggerating marijuana's harmfulness. On the contrary, by overstating marijuana's potential harms, our policy-makers and law enforcement community undermine their credibility, and their ability to effectively educate the public of the legitimate harms associated with more dangerous drugs. In addition, exaggerating the dangers associated with the responsible use of marijuana results in the needless arrest of hundreds of thousands of good, productive citizens each year in this country. We cannot any longer remain silent and permit this taxpayer-funded propaganda to occur without a challenge. | ||||||||||||||||||
Finally, if you believe the Drug Czar has been lying to the public
about marijuana, then please join us in protesting their behavior by
sending an e-mail, | ||||||||||||||||||
Let's reel-in the government propaganda machine, and begin an honest
public education campaign about the minimal risks presented by
marijuana. In essence, let's allow the science (as opposed to the
rhetoric) to dictate our public policy regarding marijuana. As you
will see, the facts speak for themselves. | ||||||||||||||||||
Keith Stroup is NORML's Executive Director. | ||||||||||||||||||
For more information about NORML's Truth campaign, see | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"The Constitution of the Republic should make provision for medical
freedom as well as religious freedom. To restrict the art of healing
to one class of men and deny equal privilege to others will
constitute the Bastille of medical science." | ||||||||||||||||||
- Benjamin Rush | ||||||||||||||||||
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