| Nov. 14, 2003 #325 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) WATAUGA PROSECUTOR FIGHTS RULING ON USING TERROR LAW IN METH CASES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BOONE - The Watauga County prosecutor who used a law intended to combat
terrorism to fight the spread of clandestine methamphetamine
laboratories in Northwest North Carolina will fight a judge's recent
ruling against him. | ||||||||||||||||||
Judge James Baker of Watauga Superior Court ruled Friday that the
process of "cooking" methamphetamine does not create a weapon of mass
destruction - throwing out 15 charges against at least 10 people in the
process. | ||||||||||||||||||
Jerry Wilson, Watauga's district attorney, filed an appeal yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Since July. Wilson has charged a number of Watauga County residents
under the North Carolina weapons-of-mass-destruction statute because
meth "cooks" combine toxic and volatile chemicals to produce the
illegal drug. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
He said yesterday that he still thinks that his application
of the weapons statute was appropriate because of the threat to
society posed by the toxic compounds and deadly gases created
in meth production. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) BOLIVIAN LEADER SEEKS MORE MONEY TO QUELL UNREST (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
LA PAZ, Bolivia -- The U.S. hasn't fairly compensated Bolivia for the
economic loss suffered as a result of its coca-eradication program,
complained the country's new president, who issued an appeal for
stepped-up aid from the international community. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Coca production has fallen, but Bolivia's income has fallen as well
and we haven't received the equivalent compensation," said President
Carlos Mesa, in an interview at his ornate office. Mr. Mesa assumed the
presidency of this poor, landlocked country last month after violent
protests, including demonstrations by angry coca growers, forced the
resignation of President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada. | ||||||||||||||||||
Mr. Mesa emphasized that he doesn't plan "essentially" to change the
country's U.S.-backed program to limit the production of coca, the key
ingredient in cocaine. Between 1995 and 2002, the Bolivian government
eradicated nearly 50% of the country's coca crop and urged peasants to
plant alternative crops. The U.S., which has hailed the program as a
victory in the war on narcotics, last year gave $174 million in foreign
aid to Bolivia. | ||||||||||||||||||
But Mr. Mesa, a one-time television newscaster who had served as Mr. Lozada's vice president, appeared to signal some willingness to reach a compromise with angry growers, saying he would try to deal "rationally" with eradication. He didn't elaborate, but those comments may raise hackles here. A U.S. official said Washington is sympathetic to Mr. Mesa's internal political situation but adds that he believes the Bolivian government understands the threat posed by coca production. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) CANNABIS CHANGES AGREED BY LORDS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Peers have backed a move to downgrade cannabis, putting it in the same
group as tranquilisers and steroids. | ||||||||||||||||||
The reclassification of the drug from Class B to C - meaning people
will not usually be arrested for possession - will now go ahead in
January. | ||||||||||||||||||
The change was approved in the Lords by 63 votes to 37, but peers
also agreed an amendment attacking the plans. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It may lead to increased use of cannabis, with risks to the health
of young people," they said. | ||||||||||||||||||
'Risky' | ||||||||||||||||||
In the amendment, moved by Tory peer Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts,
they added that the government should have waited to deal with cannabis
until after its proposals for making penalties tougher for all Class C
drugs had been finalised. | ||||||||||||||||||
The amendment has no legal effect, however, and the reclassification
will come into force on 29 January as planned. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(4) COMPASSION CLUBBED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Health Canada Sniffs At Court Ruling That Was Supposed To Open The
Door For Growers | ||||||||||||||||||
Imagine city hall just deciding not to grant marriage licences to gay
couples in Ontario even though there was a court order demanding they
do so. Health Canada is doing just that to medical marijuana users.
Health Canada, despite the recent Court of Appeal decision to make
medical marijuana more available, isn't budging. | ||||||||||||||||||
Last month, when the court tinkered with the medical marijuana access
regulations to make them constitutional in a way that medicinal
marijuana activists thought beneficial, I struck faster than the
stereotypical pothead lunging for that last roach. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The drug war is often justified by invoking the need to "save the
children," but once again last week, the drug war endangered and
terrorized the children while saving no one. In a much publicized
drug raid at a South Carolina high school, local police burst into
the school and ordered students to the floor at gunpoint. They also
restrained students they perceived as uncooperative. No drugs were
found during the searches. For more on the searches, see this week's
feature article. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Illinois, not only kids, but young adults must be saved from
drugs ... by concentrating more law enforcement attention on them.
The state plans to put millions of dollars in resources toward
monitoring college campuses for club drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
While the criminalization of youth continues in the name of the drug war, it seems the prohibitionists can't protect an elementary school from a large cocaine shipment. An alert civilian delivery driver found the 15 pound package before taking it into the Mississippi school, an action which may have saved the little tykes from a lockdown situation while administrators called in the SWAT team. | ||||||||||||||||||
School drug searches often come up empty, but more school districts
seem eager to let the sniffer dogs loose in the hallways.
Fortunately, there are some people who recognize where those
searches lead, like an astute critic of a proposed drug search
policy in Montana schools. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) STRATFORD RAID CRITICIZED, PRAISED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Parents Address School Board, Goose Creek Officials | ||||||||||||||||||
MONCKS CORNER--Parents demanded accountability Tuesday for last
week's drug raid at Stratford High School, in which police officers
charged into the school with guns drawn. | ||||||||||||||||||
Some called for the resignation of Principal George McCrackin for
inviting police into Berkeley County's largest school. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I'm angry," Sharon Smalls, parent of a 14-year-old at Stratford
High, said during the Berkeley County School Board meeting. "My
child was slammed to the ground with a gun to his head. These police
had to be invited into Stratford. Someone has to take | ||||||||||||||||||
In Goose Creek, discussion of the Stratford High School incident was brief at the City Council meeting Tuesday night with only one person in the crowd speaking out against the police actions. "They way overstated the problem," said Rick Porter of Goose Creek. "It was scare tactic for the kids, and it scared them. It worked." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(6) ILLINOIS TARGETS CAMPUS CLUB DRUGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
You won't find "Club U" on any map. | ||||||||||||||||||
Club U is the nickname of a new State Police undercover effort to
ferret out club drugs in and around the state's major colleges and
universities. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's part of an anti-drug campaign targeting Ecstasy and
methamphetamine announced Sunday by Gov. Blagojevich. | ||||||||||||||||||
Blagojevich said the campaign, dubbed Project X, will use $2.5 million -- primarily from confiscated drug money -- to combat club drugs with public service announcements, treatment services and the Club U undercover effort, as well as other law enforcement plans. | ||||||||||||||||||
An estimated $200,000 is earmarked for public service announcements
that are to begin appearing this week in newspapers and on radio and
TV, said gubernatorial spokeswoman Angelynne Amores. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) DRUGS DELIVERED WITH SCHOOL SUPPLIES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Cocaine discovered in shipment of food to Ellisville Elementary | ||||||||||||||||||
ELLISVILLE - Police are investigating the discovery this week of 15 pounds of cocaine in a shipment of food to an elementary school. | ||||||||||||||||||
No arrest have been made in the case, police said Friday. | ||||||||||||||||||
"This shows just how big a drug problem this nation has when this
kind of illegal substance can be delivered to a school," Police
Chief Bruce Russell said. "It's not every day you come across a
large amount of cocaine like this. But to a school?" | ||||||||||||||||||
Scott Brown, driver of the delivery truck, owned by the Merchants
Company of Hattiesburg, became suspicious while unloading a shipment
of food Wednesday at Ellisville Elementary School. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The boxes are supposed to weigh 40 pounds each and I'd already
unloaded several of them," Brown said. "But when I lifted this one
box, I almost threw it through the roof of the truck. It was so much
lighter than the rest." | ||||||||||||||||||
Brown notified cafeteria staff and other school officials. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(8) CALL OFF THOSE SCHOOL DOGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Recently I attended a public meeting of the Helena Public School
Board of Trustees for the purpose of discussing their continuing to
allow law enforcement officers with police dogs to sniff all high
school lockers while teachers and students are locked in their rooms
under the suspicion of being common criminals. | ||||||||||||||||||
We pay administrators of public schools generous salaries because we
expect them to use good judgment in providing a quality education to
our students, the most important resource in the community. On the
issue of police dogs running down the hall with no warning, the
policy is disruptive and is doing more harm than good. It is time to
call off the dogs. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Board has adopted as their motto "Helena Public Schools foster
dynamic educational experiences that prepare all students for life."
Becoming an arm of law enforcement to prosecute students hardly
meets their chosen standard. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A ruling from a North Carolina appeals court has changed the status of simple cocaine possession from a felony to a misdemeanor in the state. The ruling is expected to impact other simple drug possession charges as well, and prosecutors aren't happy about it. | ||||||||||||||||||
The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case last week about police car
searches. Court observers indicated that most justices seemed
willing to extend the ability of police to arrest passengers in cars
where drugs are found. But, even if drugs are found, are they real?
As trials approach for police involved in the Texas fake drug
scandal, the Dallas Morning News examined the impact of the scandal
on its victims. And in North Carolina, some hotel residents are
losing their tolerance for repeated drug searches that seem to occur
whenever local police feel like it. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) N.C. COURT RULES SIMPLE POSSESSION OF COCAINE A MISDEMEANOR (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
RALEIGH - The North Carolina Court of Appeals has ruled that simple
possession of cocaine is a misdemeanor, not a felony, a decision
that could impact thousands of cases in Cleveland County and many
more across the state. | ||||||||||||||||||
The ruling means that someone could be arrested for having as many
as 150 $20 rocks of cocaine, and be charged with only a misdemeanor,
according to state and local officials. | ||||||||||||||||||
The ruling will affect multiple areas of the judicial system - from
habitual felon prosecutions to sentencing guidelines to cases
already disposed. And it also applies to different drugs, including
PCP and methamphetamine, said Robert Farb, professor of public law
and government at the Institute of Government. | ||||||||||||||||||
The court's ruling stemmed from a Forsyth County case, State vs.
Norman Jones, in which the defendant pleaded guilty to possession
with intent to sell and deliver cocaine. This plea classified Jones
as a habitual felon. | ||||||||||||||||||
Jones appealed and the Court of Appeals ruled that statutes were
conflicting on the issue of whether possession of cocaine is a
felony or misdemeanor. The court sided with the defense contention
that it is a misdemeanor. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(10) SUPPORT SEEN FOR LATITUDE IN CAR ARRESTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON -- In a case that could give law enforcement greater
power to arrest passengers in vehicles, Supreme Court justices
Monday appeared skeptical of arguments that police went too far when
they arrested a man in the front seat of a car after they found
drugs behind a back-seat armrest. | ||||||||||||||||||
A lawyer for Joseph Pringle argued that police violated his
constitutional rights when they arrested him after discovering the
drugs stuffed behind the armrest. She said police had no evidence
that Pringle, who was riding in the front passenger seat, knew about
the drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
But several justices, including liberals David Souter and Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, suggested that police acted reasonably when they arrested
Pringle, the driver of the car and another man riding in the back
seat. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It just doesn't strike me as plausible . . . that one would stuff
drugs into an armrest unless the other two knew about it," Justice
Stephen Breyer told Pringle's lawyer, Nancy Forster. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) FAKE-DRUG VICTIMS STRUGGLING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
'Because Of The Police, I Lost Everything' | ||||||||||||||||||
Lorenzo Escamilla lost his wife and four children. Yvonne Gwyn's
auto repair shop went out of business. Victor Alvarado Deleon missed
the birth of his second son. | ||||||||||||||||||
Less tangible but just as difficult to reclaim are the feelings of
self-respect, dignity and peace of mind that faded as they sat in
jail for crimes they didn't commit. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I couldn't sleep thinking about my family and why they did this to
me," said Jorge Hernandez, who spent more than three months behind
bars. "It's not easy to forget." | ||||||||||||||||||
On the eve of the federal criminal trial for the former Dallas
detective who arrested them, some of the 24 victims of the city's
so-called fake drug scandal are still struggling. | ||||||||||||||||||
Those arrested in the scandal share an immigrant heritage and a
strong work ethic as mechanics, day laborers, small-business owners
and carpet layers. All were arrested between April and October 2001
by the same detective, who worked with a stable of corrupt criminal
informants. | ||||||||||||||||||
Three informants have pleaded guilty to fabricating drugs and setting up innocent people for arrest. The motive: more than $275,000 in cash paid by Dallas police for the seizures of white powdery substances that ultimately proved to be mostly crushed gypsum, the main ingredient in pool chalk and wallboard. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) TACTICS ANGER RESIDENTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
GREENSBORO -- Six times this summer police officers knocked on Janet Washington's door. Each time, they asked to search her room for drugs. Each time, she agreed and officers went away with nothing. | ||||||||||||||||||
Officers returned twice in the past two weeks with the same request.
Both times her answer was different. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I said no," Washington said. "I've decided not to let them do it anymore. I get upset when they come and harass me like that." | ||||||||||||||||||
What Washington calls harassment police call standard procedure. | ||||||||||||||||||
The tactic that agitates Washington and other residents of the
Southgate Motor Inn on Randleman Road is commonly called a
"knock-and-talk." Officers who are suspicious that illegal activity
is happening in an apartment or house often ask the residents for
permission to search the home rather than getting a written search
warrant from a judge. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Knock-and-talks" are a quick way for officers to handle complaints of drug activity without the red tape, said Capt. Richard Hunt, who heads the patrol district that includes the Southgate Motor Inn. | ||||||||||||||||||
Last month Hunt headed an investigation into officer conduct at the
Southgate Motor Inn, prompted by complaints filed by 17 residents at
the hotel who said officers were violating their 4th Amendment
rights by illegally searching their rooms. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13-17) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The times they are a changin': with the Democratic presidential
candidacy still up for grabs, candidates participating in the
youth-centered Rock the Vote forum in Boston were asked whether or
not they would admit to using marijuana in the past. The fact that
all of the presidential hopefuls were essentially candid in their
responses bodes well for those who hope for a less hypocritical
approach to cannabis use from the federal government. | ||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile compassion clubs in Oakland are experiencing problems that
for once have nothing to do with federal law enforcement. Last
Sunday morning, the Compassionate Caregivers club on Telegraph Ave.
was robbed at gunpoint after the club's bouncer was tied up. The
thieves, who are still at large, made away with an unspecified
amount of cash and cannabis. To further add to the growing pains of
the Telegraph Ave. dispensaries, the 420 Cafe was served with a
warning that it may | ||||||||||||||||||
face high fines if it did not post "no smoking" signs throughout,
and move to curb smoking in and around the organization. The city of
Oakland claims that it is merely enforcing the "no smoking"
regulations that affect all city businesses. | ||||||||||||||||||
From Australia this week, news that New South Wales will be establishing clinics aimed at helping youths and chronic cannabis users deal with their addiction to pot. The program is part of a $2.4 million program to address the high use of cannabis in the region. And finally from Canada, federal NDP leader Jack Layton has caused a bit of a furor by endorsing the legalization of cannabis, calling it a "wonderful substance". And so the see-saw of international cannabis policy continues its rocky, nauseating ride. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) CAMPAIGNS NO LONGER GO UP IN SMOKE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Past Marijuana Use Now More Acceptable | ||||||||||||||||||
Near the end of the Rock the Vote presidential candidates' forum in Boston this week, the moderator posed a question that once filled | ||||||||||||||||||
politicians with dread. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Which of you are ready to admit to having used marijuana in the
past?" | ||||||||||||||||||
Though Howard Dean joked that the candidates would "keep our hands
down on this one," only former ambassador Carol Moseley Braun
declined to answer the question. Dean, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry
and North Carolina Sen. John Edwards said they had. The Rev. Al
Sharpton said he had not. | ||||||||||||||||||
Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich said he hadn't but added that he would
decriminalize marijuana use. | ||||||||||||||||||
Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman actually apologized - for not having
smoked pot. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(14) ROBBERS INVADE OAKLAND POT CLUB (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A medical marijuana club in Oakland's so-called Oaksterdam district | ||||||||||||||||||
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the target of an invasion-style armed robbery Sunday morning. | ||||||||||||||||||
Four men, one with a gun, tied up a bouncer outside Compassionate
Caregivers at about 8:10 a.m. and barrelled their way to where the
cannabis club is located on the top floor of the three-story
building, police said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Several medical marijuana patients and staff members were inside the
club at 1740 Telegraph Ave., part of an area known as Oaksterdam
because of the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries that have
opened in the triangle between Telegraph Avenue, Broadway and 17th
and 19th streets in recent months. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(15) ANTI-SMOKING LAWS THREATEN 'OAKSTERDAM' (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The city's conflict with medical marijuana clubs in the "Oaksterdam" area continued this week, when one club was threatened with hundreds of dollars in fines for violating Oakland's anti-smoking laws. | ||||||||||||||||||
The city sent a letter Friday to the 420 Cafe on Telegraph Avenue,
charging the club with violating city ordinances by allowing patrons
to smoke inside and outside the building, and by not posting "No
Smoking" signs. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) AUSTRALIAN CLINICS TO HELP CANNABIS ADDICTS QUIT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Cannabis clinics designed to curb use of the drug by young people | ||||||||||||||||||
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help heavy users quit will be established in NSW. | ||||||||||||||||||
Detoxification, counselling and psychological assistance will be
available for clinic patients, but cannabis will not be provided as
part of the treatment. | ||||||||||||||||||
Special Minister of State John Della Bosca said the Parramatta clinic would open by the end of the year. It would be the first of four such facilities to be set up under a $2.4 million program. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) NDP LEADER BOOSTS LEGALIZATION OF 'WONDERFUL' POT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Marijuana is a "wonderful substance" that should be legalized, not
just decriminalized, says NDP Leader Jack Layton. | ||||||||||||||||||
Canadians must be able to freely purchase or grow their own pot,
Layton | ||||||||||||||||||
said in a recent interview with Pot TV, a Vancouver-based Internet
site. | ||||||||||||||||||
He accused the Liberal government of "not going nearly far enough"
with its current plan to ensure simple possession doesn't result in
a criminal record. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
(Decrim/Legalization)
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (18-21) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Amnesty International last week finally acknowledged that more than
2000 summary executions (of suspected drug users over the past year)
were committed by the Thai government. "The Thai government appeared
to condone killing of drug suspects by unknown assailants as one
method of fighting the drugs war," admitted Amnesty. Police death
squads worked off of lists drawn up by government; drug suspects
would often be killed returning home from a police station, Amnesty
reports confirmed. Still, shabu (amphetamines) production is rising
in bordering Burma, according to Thai anti-drug officials. Rising
production often indicates a rising demand, which means a strong
demand for shabu still exists in neighboring Thailand, despite
death-squad government prohibition tactics. | ||||||||||||||||||
Brazilian officials last week admitted that U.S. military forces now
"occupy" Colombia and will never leave it. Confessed Brazilian
presidential Chief of | ||||||||||||||||||
Staff Jose Dirceu: "If the U.S. occupies Colombia, they will occupy
the Amazon region." Dirceu made the remarks during the | ||||||||||||||||||
And from Vancouver, Canada, this week reports say that North
America's first safe-injection site is a success, with over 450
people a day using the facilities. Staff at the site, which provides
supervision, clean water and hypodermic needles, has intervened in
over 20 recorded overdoses so far. "If those people (who overdosed)
had been on the street or in a hotel, | ||||||||||||||||||
obviously some of them would be dead," noted officials running the
so-called shooting-gallery. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(18) AMNESTY SLAMS THAILAND FOR DRUG WAR KILLINGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BANGKOK -- THE Thai government appears to have condoned the killings
of more than 2,000 suspected drug dealers as a way to win its war on
drugs, Amnesty International said on Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||||
It said Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's government had failed to
bring anyone to justice for the killings, despite its promises to
investigate the deaths of 2,245 people, most of them killed by
"unknown assailants" during a bloody 90-day campaign. Thaksin has
consistently denied police were guilty of extrajudicial killings.
His government says 2,194 of the deaths were the result of drug
traffickers killing one another. The rest were killed in shootouts
with police. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The government has failed to initiate independent, impartial,
effective and prompt investigations into these killings," the group
said in a 30-page report on | ||||||||||||||||||
alleged rights abuses in the Southeast Asian country. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The Thai government appeared to condone killing of drug suspects by
unknown assailants as one method of fighting the drugs war," it
said. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The lack of political will has been exacerbated by the weak
criminal justice system in Thailand, which is open to corruption,
undermined by undue delays and a lack of investigative skills on the
part of law enforcement officials," the report said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Rights groups say most of the deaths were extrajudicial killings by
police and security forces, in some cases under pressure to clear
so-called blacklists of suspected drug dealers and users in their
areas. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police used the lists, usually drawn up by local officials, to summon people for questioning. In some cases cited by Amnesty, suspects were killed soon after returing home from a police station. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(19) DRUG PRODUCTION RISING IN AREAS BORDERING BURMA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Drug armies operating on the Burmese side of the border have
recently boosted methamphetamine production, a senior narcotics
officer said yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Units of the United Wa State Army and the Kokang Chinese have
stepped up production of the illegal drug in the area adjacent to
Mae Hong Son, said the director of the Narcotic Control Board's
Chiang Mai branch, Pithaya Jinawat. He also singled out two villages
in Mae Hong Son as transit points for the drugs trade. The area in
Burma was once a stronghold of opium warlord Khun Sa, who
surrendered in early 1996 to the Burmese government in return for a
generous amnesty. | ||||||||||||||||||
Pithaya said Ban Rak Thai and Ban Rung Arun, two villages in Mae
Hong Son, were transit points for methamphetamines from clandestine
labs belonging to the | ||||||||||||||||||
two armies. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(20) BRAZIL OFFICIAL: U.S. MAY 'OCCUPY' COLOMBIA, AMAZON AREA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP)--Latin American countries must join together in efforts to help Colombia fight guerrillas and drug trafficking, otherwise the U.S. will "occupy" the neighboring country and never leave it, a top Brazilian policy-maker was quoted as saying. | ||||||||||||||||||
"If the U.S. occupies Colombia, they will occupy the Amazon region,"
presidential Chief of Staff Jose Dirceu said at a meeting Sunday,
according to Rio de Janeiro's daily O Globo. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The Ibero-American Forum is a non-governmental | ||||||||||||||||||
organization that annually gathers leaders from Latin America, Spain and Portugal. Among attendants this year were former Uruguayan president Luis Maria Sanguinetti, former Spanish Primer Minister Felipe Gonzalez, Mexican industrialist Carlos Slim, Venezuelan media magnate Gustavo Cisneros, and diplomats from Argentina and Mexico. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Brazil has opposed the military aspects of the U.S.-sponsored
Colombia Plan to fight drug trafficking and guerillas in the
neighboring country. But it was the first time that a high official
mentioned the possibility of an "occupation" of Colombia and of the
Amazon region. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Dirceu was talking about security in the region and the | ||||||||||||||||||
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(21) SAFE INJECTION SITE PROVING A SUCCESS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Canadian Press | ||||||||||||||||||
VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Less than seven weeks after North | ||||||||||||||||||
America's first legal supervised injection site opened its doors, the site's operators say they are surprised by its early popularity. | ||||||||||||||||||
On average, the site's nurses are supervising about 450 drug
injections per day. Since the site opened Sept. 21, they have
intervened in 25 overdoses. | ||||||||||||||||||
"If those people (who overdosed) had been on the street or in a
hotel, obviously some of them would be dead," said Mark Townsend of
the Portland Hotel Society which runs the site in conjunction with
the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
There is no official capacity at the site but both Townsend and
Viviana Zanocco, spokeswoman for the Vancouver Coastal Health
Authority, said 600 visits would be close to capacity during an
18-hour day. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Jeb Bush Invades Doctor/Patient Privacy | ||||||||||||||||||
A DrugSense Focus Alert | ||||||||||||||||||
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If Cannabis Could Cure Cancer, They Would Tell Us, Right? | ||||||||||||||||||
By Richard Cowan at Marijuananews.com | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Cultural Baggage Radio Show | ||||||||||||||||||
Tues, 11/11/03 | ||||||||||||||||||
Voices from the Drug Policy Alliance Biennial Conference | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
The Special Comittee on the Non-Medical Use of Drugs | ||||||||||||||||||
Canada's Special Committee on the Non-medical Use of Drugs
convened to discuss Bill C-38, An Act to amend the Contraventions
Act and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
John Stewart of Comedy Central on the Goose Creek South Carolina
Drug Raid | ||||||||||||||||||
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LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Take Criminal Element Out Of Marijuana | ||||||||||||||||||
By Tim Meehan | ||||||||||||||||||
Re: 'An organized crime gang war,' News, Oct. 24. | ||||||||||||||||||
Another grow-op, another shootout. Another comparison to Chicago
during alcohol prohibition and yet another police spokesperson who
doesn't get it. Enough. It's time to get the profit motive and the
criminal element out of this business. It's time to stop coming up
with specious, easily disproven health reasons for not treating
marijuana like tobacco and alcohol. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's time to stop using children as an excuse that we might send the
wrong message when they have an easier time buying marijuana than
cigarettes and beer because drug dealers don't ask for proof of age.
It's time to stop butting into the private lives of people who
prefer marijuana to martinis. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's also time to stop treating everyone like children because some
people make the bad choice to drive after smoking pot (even though
it has been convincingly argued that impairment is minimal compared
to cellphones, CD players and liquor). | ||||||||||||||||||
It's time to stop listening to special interests like the police
unions, ill-informed MPs bent on scoring political points and the
United States, who we now know fight wars, be it drug or
conventional, based on lies. It's time to legalize, regulate and
gently tax marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's also time for closet cannabis consumers - and there are many in
Scarborough - to speak out for our community and put an end to the
violence that organized crime brings to underground markets. More
police resources and more intrusions of privacy are not the answer.
A half-hearted decriminalization bill that makes it easier to bust
people isn't either. | ||||||||||||||||||
Tim Meehan, Communications director, Ontario Consumers for Safe
Access to Recreational Cannabis | ||||||||||||||||||
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LETTER WRITER OF THE MONTH - OCTOBER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
DrugSense recognizes Scott Russ of Baton Rouge, Louisiana for his ten letters to the editor published during October. Scott's first published letter was that we know of was in August. He has reached a career total of eighteen published letters. Scott is an active member of the Drug Policy Forum of Florida http://www.dpffl.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||
Scott exemplifies a person who has dedicated a real effort to
sending letters to the editor, which he also posts to MAP's Sent
Letter list for others to see and gain ideas for their own letters.
The Sent Letter digests can be viewed at | ||||||||||||||||||
You can read all of Scott's excellent published letters by clicking
this link: | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Score One For The Good Guys | ||||||||||||||||||
In a crowded field, a new frontrunner has emerged for this year's worst abuse of power in the War on Drugs. The latest harbinger of liberty's death comes from unsuspecting Goose Creek, S. C. Last Wednesday, a small army of cops stormed Stratford High School, following a student's tip that others were dealing drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
Fourteen officers burst into a crowded hallway with guns drawn,
handcuffing students who were insufficiently submissive. Snarling
drug dogs roamed the halls sniffing for contraband. | ||||||||||||||||||
They didn't find anything. No drugs, no weapons, pretty much no
reason whatsoever for the raid. | ||||||||||||||||||
Missing the point entirely is Principal George McCrackin. "I'll
utilize whatever forces I deem necessary to keep this campus safe
and clean," he decreed. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's a good thing for him that kids today don't know anything about
history or civics. If they did, they might realize that the Fourth
Amendment's protection against "unreasonable search and seizure"
doesn't stop at the schoolhouse doors. They might realize that
America was supposed to be a place where you can go about your day
without being harassed by the government. They might realize that
our forefathers fought a bloody revolution to ensure things like
this wouldn't happen. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I'm sure it was an inconvenience to those individuals who were in
the hallway, but there is a valuable experience there," the
principal said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Yes, those kids did learn an important lesson. They learned that the
biggest threat to your freedom is your own government. | ||||||||||||||||||
The tyrant comes in the guise of savior. Power is not stolen, but swindled. No one blinks at giving the king carte blanche to slay the dragon, but the sword is inevitably turned upon the people. | ||||||||||||||||||
Americans have gladly sacrificed liberty after liberty at the altar
of Ashcroft in the name of fighting the crime du jour--drugs,
terrorism, it doesn't matter. History's most egregious abuses are
always born of irrational fear--the Inquisition, the Salem Witch
Trials, McCarthyism and now the War on Drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
I like to say that if you're free to call your country a police
state, then you don't live in one, but how long can that excuse hold
up? Parents might fear that their child will have a gun stuck in
their face at school, but until now they didn't have to worry that a
cop would be on the other end of it. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sadly, it should come as no surprise. The Supreme Court considers
participating in any extracurricular activity at a public school
probable cause for a drug test. Maybe if we didn't treat kids like
drug dealers, they wouldn't act like them. | ||||||||||||||||||
I mean no disrespect to police in general--by and large, they do more to defend our rights to life, liberty and property than anyone else. But can we not agree that a line was crossed here? | ||||||||||||||||||
An entire school should not be treated like criminals because some
people may be breaking the law. It is not worth throwing away our
basic principles of justice and fairness to stop a few kids from
getting high. | ||||||||||||||||||
No doubt the hundreds of innocent students degraded in this incident have gained a new respect for authority. As they lay facedown on the floor, hands behind their heads with a German shepherd's breath on their neck, they must have been thanking their wise elders for the opportunity to prove their innocence in such dramatic fashion. | ||||||||||||||||||
If there is a War on Drugs, then this was a war crime. There will be
no Nuremberg for these criminals, but their judgment will come in
time. The people of this nation are slowly realizing that drug
prohibition is a moral and practical failure, as any attempt to
regulate peaceful commerce must be. | ||||||||||||||||||
To you, Principal McCrackin, and your compatriots in fascism, I tip
my hat--slowly, with my hands where you can see them. | ||||||||||||||||||
David Mackey is a journalism student at Auburn University. This
piece originally appeared in the Auburn Plainsman. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the
need for illusion is deep." - Saul Bellow | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
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Policy and Law Enforcement/Prison content selection and analysis by Stephen Young (), Cannabis/Hemp content selection and analysis by Philippe Lucas (), International content selection and analysis by Doug Snead (), Layout by Matt Elrod () | ||||||||||||||||||
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