| March 19, 2004 #342 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) RURAL METH LABS GROW, REPORT SAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Methamphetamine labs are rapidly infiltrating rural communities across
the country, according to a new report by the Council of State
Governments. | ||||||||||||||||||
Oklahoma is not immune, said the report released Wednesday. Only 10
such labs were seized in the state by federal and local law agencies
in 1994. | ||||||||||||||||||
In 2003, more than 1,200 were confiscated, or a nearly 11,900 percent
increase. | ||||||||||||||||||
But state authorities say the biggest increase in labs is in more
populated areas of Oklahoma. | ||||||||||||||||||
In 2003, Tulsa and Oklahoma counties were the top two in the state for
confiscated labs, with 239 and 222 labs, respectively. Statistics also
show that children are often living in these lab environments and are
exposed to the drug. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Tulsa County, for example, more than 90 percent of the children
found during 2003 in houses where labs were operating tested positive
for the drug, state officials said Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) UN DRUG POLICIES ALLOW MONEY TO FLOW TO TERRORISTS - THINK TANK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
VIENNA - A controversy has erupted here over stemming the use of drug
money to fund terrorism after the Madrid attacks, with a European
think-tank saying UN policies were fuelling the problem instead of
fighting it. | ||||||||||||||||||
Members of the Network of European Foundation's (NEF) Comite de Sages on Wednesday said by seeking to prohibit drugs the United Nations was creating a profitable black market for them. | ||||||||||||||||||
"This regime fosters terrorism because it provides the funds
for terrorism and it endangers international security," NEF member
Sir Keith Morris, a former British ambassador to Colombia, told a
press conference. | ||||||||||||||||||
Morris was speaking on the sidelines of the 47th session of the UN
Commission on Narcotic Drugs, after a symposium organised by the
Senlis Council, a think tank on drug policy. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The system is not working but it is not being debated at the UN,
it is a taboo," he said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) LEGAL PARTY DRUGS FACING BAN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Party pills derived from pepper plants could be made illegal if an expert committee meeting on Friday decides they are dangerous. | ||||||||||||||||||
The "herbal highs" under investigation by the independent Expert
Advisory Committee on Drugs, a heavyweight group of police, Customs,
health and drug experts, are legal and their use is soaring. All
are central nervous system stimulants that cause an adrenalin-type
rush. | ||||||||||||||||||
The widely sold pills go by names such as Nemi, Charge, Euphoria,
Rapture, Blast, Exodus and Frenzy. | ||||||||||||||||||
A dose - which can be more than one pill - costs about $40. Some,
such as Exodus, are sold with an R18 warning and most warn against
mixing with alcohol. | ||||||||||||||||||
They contain benzylpiperazine and trifluromethylphenylpiperazine,
substances derived from pepper plants which can also be produced
synthetically, says Dr Bob Boyd, the chairman of the advisory
committee and the Food Standards Australia-New Zealand Authority
chief medical adviser. Pills with these pepper-derived chemicals
have been illegal in the United States since 2002 and are illegal
in two Australian states. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
A frequent party-goer who takes Nemi and Euphoria so he can dance
all night says the pepper-based capsules are not a public health
issue. | ||||||||||||||||||
"If you take the stuff off the market, you're going to change
the nature of the purchase from legal to illegal," said the
Aucklander. | ||||||||||||||||||
"And you might increase the desire for Ecstasy, which is expensive,
illegal and of dubious quality, or worse, to P." | ||||||||||||||||||
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(4) LEGAL DRUGS POSE GREATEST HEALTH THREAT - WHO (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BRASILIA, Brazil, March 18 (Reuters) - The health threat from legal drugs like alcohol and tobacco is much greater than that from illegal narcotics, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. | ||||||||||||||||||
The first report of its kind by the global body found that dependence
on alcohol and cigarettes has a much greater cost for societies than
illegal drugs like cocaine and crack. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Neuroscience of Psychoactive Substance Use and Dependence report said that drug addiction is a growing problem, especially in poor countries which have rising rates of alcohol consumption and smoking. | ||||||||||||||||||
There are about 200 million illegal drugs users worldwide, or 3.4
percent of the world population, it said. Illegal drugs contributed
0.8 percent to global ill health in 2000, while alcohol accounted for | ||||||||||||||||||
The percentages are based on a measurement used by WHO which gauges
the burden that premature deaths and years lived with disability
impose on society. | ||||||||||||||||||
The "main global health burden is due to licit rather than illicit
substances," the report said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Men in rich countries are especially vulnerable to suffer from
alcohol- and cigarette-related bad health. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Universal drug testing has come to the small town of Seabrook, New Hampshire. The town voted by a stunning majority to implement a random drug testing for all town employees and volunteers. Details, like union contracts and actually finding the funds for the tests, have yet to be determined. Like their counterparts in New Hampshire, urinanalysis labs in Oregon may be set to rake in additional money. A proposed bill in the state legislature would make high school students who volunteer to take drug tests eligible for college scholarships. Imagine the pride of future collegians as they explain, "Yeah, I didn't do so well on the ACT or SAT, but my PP results really helped me into this fine educational institution." | ||||||||||||||||||
The Office of National Drug Control Policy is starting a new ad
campaign, and they're pretty sure this one's going to work, even if
none in the past have. Why not try again, if you've got the
bottomless pockets of the American taxpayer to reach into, along
with the official authorization to lie and interfere with state
politics from the U.S. Government Accounting Office. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) RANDOM DRUG, ALCOHOL TESTS NOW REQUIRED IN SEABROOK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
All Seabrook town officials, employees and volunteers are subject to
random testing for alcohol and drugs with the passage of a
petitioned town meeting warrant article last week. The mandated
testing also applies to volunteers who serve on town committees and
boards. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I can't tell you what extent of drug testing there is in cities and
towns and school districts," said John Andrews, executive director
of the New Hampshire Municipal Association, "but (testing) is not
illegal under state law. | ||||||||||||||||||
"A lot of private employers do it and municipalities can. You can
test anyone as long as it's random," Andrews said. | ||||||||||||||||||
But testing selectmen? | ||||||||||||||||||
"I guess I never heard of a situation where they test local
officials, but there could be a sense of, 'If we apply it to some,
we should apply it to others,'" Andrews said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Though questions of logistics - such as application of the ordinance
to union contracts - were raised by Seabrook citizens at a Board of
Selectmen meeting on Wednesday, no evidence of opposition to the new
ordinance was discernible in Sunday News interviews with town
leaders yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Voters had overwhelmingly approved the new ordinance, 1,521 to 464. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(6) HOUSE OKS STUDENT 'KEEP CLEAN' BILL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Alcohol, Tobacco Would Prohibit Scholarships | ||||||||||||||||||
The Idaho House passed a bill that would offer state scholarships to high schoolers who stayed drug-, alcohol- and tobacco-free. | ||||||||||||||||||
The measure would offer some money for one semester for each year
the student tested negative for the substances. | ||||||||||||||||||
But time is running out on the bill because there's likely just one
week left in the session and the Senate Education Committee is still
wrangling with sweeping charter school legislation. | ||||||||||||||||||
The point, the bill's sponsor Sharon Block said, is to have Idaho
teenagers saying, "Sorry, I cannot do drugs with you. I cannot do
alcohol with you. I cannot smoke with you." | ||||||||||||||||||
Block's plan would be optional for school districts; it's really aimed at the 17 districts that already do drug testing for athletes and others in extracurricular activities. For those districts, those students who want scholarships would simply join the pool of students randomly tested for drugs and alcohol. The tests, including the one for tobacco, cost less than $4 each, Block said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) U.S. CRAFTS ANTI-DRUG MESSAGE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
NEW YORK -- Parents know how difficult it is to get teenagers to
listen. Compound that with the temptations that abound for teen drug
and alcohol abuse and parents can have a daunting problem on their
hands. | ||||||||||||||||||
But now, they're getting parenting tips from an unlikely source: the
U.S. government. | ||||||||||||||||||
As part of its $200 million anti-drug program, the White House
Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has created a new
campaign of ads. For the first time, ONDCP's anti-drug ads address
parents and friends rather than the potential user. | ||||||||||||||||||
Previous ads warning of the physical and mental damage from drug use
may have gone unnoticed by the users they targeted. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Kids consider themselves immortal, so that limits how much they
will be receptive to ads about drug use affecting health," says Tom
Riley, public affairs director of ONDCP. "These are designed to give
people permission to do something. This gets other people into the
dialogue." | ||||||||||||||||||
As measured by Ad Track, USA TODAY's weekly consumer poll, the ads
are a hit with young adults. Even more impressive, the ads also
resonate just as much with middle-aged folks old enough to be their
parents. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(8) ANTI-POT CAMPAIGN NOT PROPAGANDA, SAYS GAO (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
With the General Accounting Office (GAO) declaring that White House
ads touting the benefits of the new Medicare law stray into a gray
area of political advocacy, another, less noticed GAO opinion states
that an election-year, anti-medical-marijuana initiative by the
White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) was
perfectly legal. | ||||||||||||||||||
In the run-up to the November 2002 elections, with medical marijuana
initiatives on the ballot in several states, ONDCP Deputy Director
Scott Burns wrote to local prosecutors stressing their role in
"fighting the normalization of marijuana." | ||||||||||||||||||
His letter made a number of statements that medical marijuana
advocates considered inaccurate, including that "marijuana and
violence are linked" and "no credible research suggests" that
marijuana has medical uses. | ||||||||||||||||||
In April of last year, libertarian Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) asked the
GAO to investigate whether the Burns letter violated the ban on
using taxpayer funds for "publicity and propaganda" as well as the
long-standing GAO position that "the government should not
disseminate misleading information." | ||||||||||||||||||
In responding to Paul nearly a year later, just last week, the GAO
declared, in essence, that the veracity of ONDCP's statements is
irrelevant. "Even though the statements may have been controversial,
wrote GAO General Counsel Anthony Gamboa, "they were made within the
context of ONDCP's statuatory responsibilities, which include taking
such actions as necessary to oppose efforts to legalize certain
substances." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (9-13) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The line between law enforcement in the U.S. and Canada is growing
thinner and thinner. Now a prosecutor from each nation actually
trading homes and trying to break through the nasty inconvenience of
diplomatic process. But one wonders why the effort is being made. In
Canada, prison officials are now ready to utilize drug-sniffing dogs
in prisons, since other methods haven't kept the drugs out. Here in
the U.S., the courts are already overwhelmed by drug and other types
of cases, so it doesn't appear any more are needed from across the
border. | ||||||||||||||||||
While the drug war is taxing the resources of the court system, it's
paying off for police in New Hampshire, who will be overhauling
their "dingy" workout room with funds from drug seizures. Finally,
it seems like one good thing is coming out of the scandal in Tulia.
Wrongly convicted drug defendants will receive a cash settlement,
which probably means the end of an area drug task force which helped
to stir up Tulia's troubles in the first place. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) PROSECUTORS SWAP PLACES TO COMBAT DRUG RUNNERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Two Trade Homes, Jobs for Perspective to Better Fight Drugs Crossing
the U.S.-Canadian Border | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
U.S. Attorney John McKay McKay said authorities are conducting a
joint investigation of a complex cross-border criminal enterprise
but would not offer details. | ||||||||||||||||||
He and Prior said the prosecutor exchange was designed to give each
office a closer look at the nuts and bolts of each legal system to
improve the effectiveness of joint investigations. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We're talking about the exchange of information, documents, and
we're also talking about investigations," McKay said. "What was
needed is a deeper understanding of the procedures used by the two
governments." | ||||||||||||||||||
For example, Freeman cited the need to obtain testimony from a
reluctant a witness in Canada in time to meet speedy trial
requirements. | ||||||||||||||||||
"As you can imagine, a diplomatic process takes time because you are
involving several layers of review," Freeman said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(10) DOGS TO SNIFF OUT DRUGS IN JAIL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
EDMONTON - Alberta is going to the dogs in an attempt to stamp out
drugs in its jails. | ||||||||||||||||||
The province will pay the RCMP about $100,000 a year to use their trained dogs to track down illegal drugs in provincial institutions. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We've brought the service dogs into Alberta correctional facilities
as another tool to sniff out drugs and deter smuggling of illicit
substances," said Solicitor General Heather Forsyth. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It needs to be clear," she said. "Illegal drugs won't be tolerated
in our jails." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) JUDGES SAY U.S. COURTS ARE SWAMPED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON -- Federal courts are swamped, partly because of Bush
administration get-tough-on-crime policies that lead to more trials,
the head of a federal judges' group said yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Judge Carolyn Dineen King of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth
Circuit singled out drug and immigration prosecutions along the
US-Mexican border and Attorney General John Ashcroft's order last
year that federal prosecutors should seek the severest charges and
penalties. | ||||||||||||||||||
Federal spending has not come close to keeping pace with the
increase in caseloads prompted by decisions like those, she said
following a meeting of the policy-setting Judicial Conference of the
United States, which she chairs. "More trials take place because of
that, more prosecutions ensue because of their policies," King said.
"Our criminal caseload keeps going up, but our resources go down
every year." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) MERRIMACK POLICE TO LET CRIMINALS DO HEAVY LIFTING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
MERRIMACK -- The town's police station will soon have a new fitness center -- and it will be paid for by drug dealers, not taxpayers. | ||||||||||||||||||
On Thursday, selectmen voted unanimously to release $27,015 from the
town's deferred revenue fund, where money accumulated through
drug-related seizures is deposited. | ||||||||||||||||||
Combined with a $1,985 grant from Crimeline, a local crime tip
telephone line, the funds will renovate an on-site gym and build two
storage sheds at the rear of the police station. | ||||||||||||||||||
According to Deputy Chief Paul Stavenger, who presented the idea to selectmen, the existing gym is "dingy" and has no fresh air. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) TULIA DRUG STING RUINS PRNTF (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Amarillo's $5 million settlement with the victims of the infamous 1999
Tulia drug sting likely will be the end of the Panhandle Regional
Narcotics Task Force. Amarillo, the lead agency for the PRNTF, will
end its association with the task force May 31. Considering the steep
price Amarillo had to pay for what happened in Tulia under the
auspices of the PRNTF, few can blame the city. However, the inevitable
demise of the PRNTF is a classic case of throwing out the baby with
the bath water. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (14-18) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Pot and the Pendulum - Good news from several states this week,
as pro-cannabis initiatives inch their way closer to appearing on
the November ballot. In Connecticut, the legislature's Judiciary
Committee voted 24-15 to approve a bill that would allow medical
users to grow up to 5 plants for personal use. The Bill now goes
back to the House for approval. Meanwhile in Arkansas the wording of
a ballot initiative allowing medicinal users to grow up to 6 plants
and to possess up to an ounce has just been approved. Proponents
must now gather 65,000 signatures by July 2nd in order to get the
initiative on the ballot. | ||||||||||||||||||
While John Walters made a stop in Nevada this week to discuss
prescription drug abuse, he took the opportunity to criticize an
initiative organized by the Committee to Regulate and Control
Marijuana which would allow for the sale of up to 1 ounce of
cannabis to adults through state-run dispensaries. Walters said that
legalizing cannabis is "not an are for legitimate debate". Of course
not, John: it's an area for propaganda and misinformation, right? As
we continue to see state pressure on the federal government in
regards to medicinal cannabis, I'm reminded of Poe's "Pit and the
Pendulum". With Walter's and the Bush administration continuing to
fight this losing war against responsible adult cannabis use, I
wonder how long they can hold in their breath while the pot pendulum
continues to swing closer and closer to their misguided war on
personal freedoms. | ||||||||||||||||||
The recent moves to decriminalize the minor possession of cannabis in Canada has lead to an RCMP memo suggesting that moving to a ticketing system for possession of 15 grams or less may be more expensive than the current system of arrest and prosecution if those receiving fines chose to fight them in court. Of course, that is exactly what Canadian activists had planned to do all along. If there was ever an argument for full-scale legalization of personal use, this is it. And lastly this week, news that Ed Rosenthal is suing Bob Martin, one of San Francisco's largest suppliers of medicinal cannabis, for non-payment of services. Rosenthal claims that he supplied the Harm Reduction Club with clones on contract with Martin, and that he never received payment for the services. As Dylan said, "to live outside the law you must be honest". | ||||||||||||||||||
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(14) CONNECTICUT POT CULTIVATION BILL FOR THE SICK ADVANCES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A bill that will allow sick people to grow marijuana for medicinal
purposes cleared its first legislative hurdle Monday, despite
opposition from lawmakers who described the measure as a backdoor
attempt to legalize the drug. | ||||||||||||||||||
The legislature's Judiciary Committee voted 24-15 to approve the
bill, which is nearly identical to a measure that made it out of
committee last year before failing on the House floor. This year's
bill decreases the number of plants that can be grown from six to
five and would require the plants be grown in a secure, indoor area,
said bill sponsor state Rep. Jim Abrams, D-Meriden. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(15) BEEBE OKS WORDING OF 'POT' ACT 64,456 SIGNATURES NEEDED BY JULY 2 (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Advocates for using marijuana as a doctor-prescribed pain reliever
finally got the legal OK on Friday to begin collecting signatures to
put an initiated act on the Nov. 2 election ballot. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
"I'm thrilled. It's been a struggle to get the wording right,"
Denele Campbell of West Fork, executive director of Arkansas
Alliance for Medical Marijuana, said Friday. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
With the approval of the wording, Campbell's group now has a
relatively short time to gather signatures needed to place the
proposed act on the ballot. The alliance must turn in at least
64,456 signatures of registered Arkansas voters on its petition to
the secretary of state by July 2. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) DRUG CZAR CRITICAL OF MARIJUANA INITIATIVE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The nation's drug czar described as foolhardy Thursday the latest Nevada initiative to legalize marijuana. John Walters, in Las Vegas to push for a crackdown on the abuse of prescriptions drugs, said legalizing marijuana is "not an area for legitimate debate." | ||||||||||||||||||
Walters, who oversees all federal anti-drug programs and spending,
said studies have shown that 60 percent of the 7 million Americans
who need treatment for addiction are dependent on marijuana. Walters
also said people are killing each other by driving under the
influence of the drug, which is smoked or chewed for its euphoric
effect. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The new proposal calls for legalizing possession of 1 ounce of
marijuana and would increase penalties for vehicular manslaughter
and delivery of marijuana to a minor. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) POT LAW NOT CHEAP (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The federal plan to decriminalize possession of small amounts of
marijuana could increase policing costs, not reduce them as many
predict, according to internal RCMP notes. | ||||||||||||||||||
The revelation is among several uncertainties and reservations regarding the proposed pot bill spelled out in newly disclosed briefing materials prepared by the national police force. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
"If a large percentage of the tickets issued were contested in court
and police officers were called to testify, our costs might actually
increase." | ||||||||||||||||||
A number of activists pushing for legalization - not just
decriminalization - of marijuana have promised to protest the
federal changes by routinely challenging fines. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(18) OAKLAND'S 'GANJA GURU' SUES FOR GREEN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Perhaps only here could someone go to court to enforce the terms of
a marijuana deal gone bad. | ||||||||||||||||||
Ed Rosenthal, the Oakland "Guru of Ganja" who was convicted but
avoided prison time on federal marijuana charges last year, was back
in court Monday, but this time of his own volition. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Rosenthal claims Martin a few years ago wrote him several checks for
marijuana "clones" -- plants grown from cuttings of other plants --
that he created and delivered to the Harm Reduction Center, a
dispensary on Sixth Street. These checks bounced, and Rosenthal now
wants his money. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (19-22) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Prohibitionists assert the jailing of cannabis users is based on
scientific facts. Cannabis is harmful, thus anything government does
is justified. When one begs to differ with the "facts" supporting
prohibition, we can see how high platitudes such as "freedom of the
press" are held. Prohibitionists don't like criticism, and like
other authoritarians, seek to shut up those who disagree. Sometimes
they succeed. In Russia last week, the book "Marijuana, the
Forbidden Medicine" was declared to be "propaganda" by anti-drug
courts and was censored. Publication of the classic was halted;
copies were ordered removed from store shelves. Citing the "battle
against drugs," Russian drug warriors denied banning the book's
publication and distribution was "censorship" at all. | ||||||||||||||||||
The commander of Colombia's FARC rebels last week denounced as "CIA
agents" U.S. Defense Department contractors who were shot down and
captured last year, while on a US-funded plant-poison spray plane
operation. "Our information is they are CIA agents. Verified,"
stated FARC commander Raul Reyes for Colombian news. The U.S. and
the men themselves deny they were working for the CIA, insisting
they are merely contractors, who were simply paid to kill coca
plants. | ||||||||||||||||||
The roof came crashing down on open sales of hashish in the "hippy
enclave" of Christiania in Copenhagen, Denmark this week, as police
raids ended in the arrest of some 50 people. In early morning raids
Tuesday, about 200 officers in helmets tore down sheds and tables in
the battle against hash. Official assurances attempted to dispel
notions that a full-blown culture war had been joined: "The raid is
not against Christiania, it's against the hashish sale," claimed
Copenhagen police. | ||||||||||||||||||
And in Scotland this week, prohibitionists have hit upon the eugenic
idea of sterilizing "drug addicts" by paying them to take long term
contraception. Citing similar programs in the US, Scottish
prohibitionists felt the "crisis" called for "drastic action," hence
the plan to prevent users of illegal drugs from having children.
Prohibitionists also proposed parents labelled "addicts" by
government should have their children (forcibly) removed and put up
for adoption. Critics denounced the plan as draconian and wondered
what would prevent the expansion of such programs. "If you are going
to sterilise drug-addicted women, why stop there? Why not sterilise
alcoholics?," asked Peter Kearney, spokesman for the Catholic
Church. The proposal's author, Neil McKeganey -- drug misuse
researcher at Glasgow University and a leading adviser to the
Scottish government -- did not elaborate on the types of drugs for
which women would be sterilized. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(19) PUBLISHER CONDEMNS ATTEMPTED DRUG BOOK SEIZURES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A controversial publishing house accused the Federal Anti-Drug Service
of censorship Tuesday after it ordered that a book about marijuana be
pulled from the shelves. | ||||||||||||||||||
The service issued the order last week, citing a ruling two weeks ago
by an Ulyanovsk court that declared the book "Marijuana, the Forbidden
Medicine" to be drug propaganda. | ||||||||||||||||||
At a press conference Tuesday, Ultra Kultura, which published the
Russian translation, said the order was reminiscent of Soviet
censorship. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Society has a right to access to information," Ultra Kultura editor
Vladimir Kharitonov said. "The government is starting to interfere in
ways we have not seen for a long, long time." | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1993 book, by Lester Grinspoon and James Bakalar, is a compilation
of testimonials on the medical uses of marijuana. Article 6.13 of the
Administrative Code prohibits "propaganda or illegal advertisement of
narcotics." | ||||||||||||||||||
Ultra Kultura editor-in-chief Ilya Kormiltsev, speaking at the press
conference via telephone from London, said the Anti-Drug Service was
too late: Almost all of the 2,000 copies of the book that were printed
have already been sold. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
In an interview with Kommersant published Tuesday, Alexander
Mikhailov, deputy director of the Anti-Drug Service, denied it was
censorship. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We're tracking adherence to laws and leading an uncompromising battle against drugs," he said. "Censorship is interference in the stage of preparation to publish books and printed materials. We don't do that." | ||||||||||||||||||
Mikhailov said that if Kormiltsev does not change his publishing
policy, sanctions may be imposed on him personally. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(20) COLOMBIAN REBELS CALL U.S. HOSTAGES CIA AGENTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, Colombia, March 15 (Reuters) - A Colombian rebel commander
told local television three U.S. Defense Department contractors held
prisoner for a year are CIA agents and that chances for a deal to
free them and other hostages are slim. | ||||||||||||||||||
"They're Americans. Our information is they are CIA agents.
Verified," Raul Reyes, a senior member of the Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia, a guerrilla army known by the Spanish initials
FARC, told Noticias Uno late on Sunday. | ||||||||||||||||||
The FARC captured civilian contractors Thomas Howes, Marc Gonsalves and Keith Stansell when their light aircraft crashed on a mission to spray drug crops in southern Colombia in February 2003. The rebels killed another American and a Colombian who survived the crash. | ||||||||||||||||||
The United States and the three men themselves have denied they work for the CIA, saying they were among hundreds of civilian contractors hired by Washington to assist Colombia's war on cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(21) DANISH POLICE ARREST 53 IN DRUGS RAID ON CHRISTIANIA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The hippy enclave Christiania in Copenhagen was raided by Danish
police yesterday in an early-morning crackdown on the sale of hashish,
leading to the arrest of 53 people. | ||||||||||||||||||
The raid marked a toughening of the authorities' attitude towards the
community, an oasis of psychedelic-coloured buildings without
government, cars or police. Residents banned the sale of harder drugs
in 1980, but hashish has remained widespread. | ||||||||||||||||||
Yesterday about 200 police officers moved into the 84-acre enclave at 5am in an operation which also included a series of raids on homes in the city. Helmeted officers tore down a few small woodsheds and removed some tables that were said to have been used to sell hashish. | ||||||||||||||||||
Flemming Steen Munch, a spokesman for Copenhagen's police, said: "The raid is not against Christiania, it's against the hashish sale." Mr Munch promised that those people arrested would be charged with selling drugs and could face sentences of up to 10 years in jail. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Yesterday's raid is the latest in a long-running guerrilla battle
between the police and the Christiania community. In January, hashish
dealers demolished their sales booths to avoid a crackdown they feared
would lead to their eviction and end the unique Danish social
experiment. Although the booths had disappeared, hashish was still
being sold. | ||||||||||||||||||
In fact, since January of last year 1,903lbs of hashish, estimated
to be worth about Dkr45m (UKP4m), have been seized. | ||||||||||||||||||
After yesterday's show of police force, Ole Wagner Hansen, the head
of the department's drug squad, said police had seized some hashish
but could not say how much. | ||||||||||||||||||
Peter Plett, a spokesman for the more than 900 residents of the
enclave, criticised the police actions. Mr Plett said: "The whole
thing is a big media stunt. We have decided not to do anything
unless they start tearing down our houses." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(22) OUTRAGE AT PLAN TO PAY DRUG MUMS TO TAKE PILL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
THE Roman Catholic Church last night condemned a controversial
proposal to pay female drug addicts to take contraception long term as
"social engineering on a massive scale". | ||||||||||||||||||
The radical plan will be outlined today in a lecture by Neil
McKeganey, professor of drug misuse research at Glasgow University, to
tackle the "crisis" of neglect experienced by tens of thousands of
children with drug-addict parents. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
But the Catholic Church criticised the scheme as a breach of basic
human rights. Spokesman Peter Kearney said: "If you are going to
sterilise drug-addicted women, why stop there? Why not sterilise
alcoholics? | ||||||||||||||||||
"There must be as many women with chronic alcohol problems as there
are women with drug problems. This is social engineering on a massive
scale and it's completely unacceptable." | ||||||||||||||||||
McKeganey, a leading adviser to the Scottish Executive, will argue for
the radical move at a meeting of professionals on the child protection
committee in Dumfries and Galloway. His research suggested that more
than 60% of addict mothers and 85% of addict fathers no longer looked
after their children, many of whom were now looked after by friends or
local authorities. Around 60,000 children in Scotland now had
drug-addicted parents and drastic action must be taken to halt the
crisis, said McKeganey. | ||||||||||||||||||
He said that in parts of the US, female drug users were given
government cash to take long-term contraception. He added: "We now
have such a crisis in Scotland that we ought to give active
consideration to paying female drug users to take long-term
contraception." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Under the plans, drug addicts who were already parents could also be
given a year to kick the habit or face having their children put up
for adoption. | ||||||||||||||||||
Alistair Ramsey, director of Scotland Against Drugs, called
McKeganey's plans "draconian". | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WHAT GOOD CAN A DRUG CZAR DO? | ||||||||||||||||||
by Doug McVay, for DrugWar.com | ||||||||||||||||||
Will Czar Walters finally do some good? | ||||||||||||||||||
Sometimes, getting a federal official to take a good stand and get involved in a policy debate is simple. It can be about being at the right place, at the right time, to ask the right question. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
RANDOM TESTING, DISAPPOINTING RESULTS | ||||||||||||||||||
Today Fresno hosts the second of four Office of National Drug Control
Policy-sponsored summits on student drug testing. | ||||||||||||||||||
In January, in his State of the Union address, President Bush credited
recent declines in illegal drug use among teenagers to random drug
testing. He then proposed $23 million go to schools opting to use what
national drug czar John Walters touts a "silver bullet" and Mayor Alan
Autry has vigorously supported. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
COCA DECRIMINALIZATION IN DEBATE | ||||||||||||||||||
The U.S. Pressures Bolivia While the Government and Coca Growers
Hold Talks | ||||||||||||||||||
By Alex Contreras Baspineiro, Narco News South American Bureau Chief | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||
"Mea Culpa" | ||||||||||||||||||
Host Dean Becker and guests from 4 of Houston's top musical
groups share drug war stories. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
The Chosen Cartel of Haiti | ||||||||||||||||||
US Congressman John Conyers is scheduled to join us, to discuss
his recent travels to Jamaica to discuss the situation in Haiti
with exiled President Aristede. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
THE HILARY BLACK SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||
Interviews with Mishka, a French cannabis author and the founder
of the Smoker's Museum in Paris, as well Sandra Karpetas of the
Iboga Therapy House talks about her work curing drug addicts with
a shamanic plant. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
TELL CONGRESS TO IDENTIFY IMPAIRED DRIVERS, NOT MARIJUANA SMOKERS | ||||||||||||||||||
Urge Your Congressman To Reject H.R. 3907 And H.R. 3922 | ||||||||||||||||||
NORML needs your help convincing Congress to reject a pair of bills
that would criminally punish marijuana smokers for "drugged driving"
simply if inactive marijuana metabolites are detected in their
bodily fluids - even if the individual is neither under the
influence nor impaired to drive. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Drug Lobby | ||||||||||||||||||
By Suzanne Wills | ||||||||||||||||||
Dallas -- Columnist Steve Chapman is correct ("Medical marijuana and its witless enemies," Commentary, Feb. 29). To keep cannabis illegal in a medical setting, the administration and other politicians must ignore the scientific evidence and the will of the great majority (80 percent) of Americans. He does not speculate about why. | ||||||||||||||||||
The conflict over medical marijuana is really a conflict over
whether this very easily grown herb should be allowed to compete
against pharmaceutical products. Cannabis is well known for treating
nausea from chemotherapy, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma and the AIDS
Wasting Syndrome. It is also effective against migraine headaches,
depression, Nail Patella Syndrome and countless other maladies. It
would compete against hundreds of pharmaceutical products for
pennies on the dollar. | ||||||||||||||||||
According to Public Citizen's report The Other Drug War 2003, the
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America hired 112
lobbyists in 2002. Since 1997, the industry has spent nearly $478
million lobbying the federal government. | ||||||||||||||||||
Is it any surprise that suffering patients don't stand a chance? | ||||||||||||||||||
Suzanne Wills, | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Student Drug Testing Summit: Urine Trouble With The Follicle Follies | ||||||||||||||||||
By Stephen Young | ||||||||||||||||||
Public school students without hair may not participate in extracurricular activities in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. | ||||||||||||||||||
Zero tolerance for hairlessness may sound arbitrary and silly. It
may function as a literal drag on competitive swimmers, who
sometimes shave their bodies to improve times. But for proponents of
school drug testing, it's a logical extension of the quest for
chemical integrity in student bodies. | ||||||||||||||||||
A few chuckles could be heard in the audience at the Office of
National Drug Control Policy's "Student Drug Testing Summit" in
suburban Chicago earlier this week when the issue of follicle
policing was raised. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Jefferson Parish school district, you see, uses hair testing to
check students for traces of drug use. After the program was
implemented, some athletes arrived at school without any hair to
test. Such tactics were quickly confronted with the no-hair/no-play
rule, which does not apply students with medical conditions that
cause hairlessness. Such young people are graciously offered the
opportunity to have their urine inspected instead. | ||||||||||||||||||
Jefferson Parish District Attorney Paul Connick was at the student
drug testing summit. He pushed to the implement hair testing policy
in his local school district. Connick told of the lengths he went to
get the program in place, including forcing the issue during a
school board election. Connick said he approached school board
members in the race and said they needed to vote in favor of student
drug testing in order to have the District Attorney's support in the
election. He said all the incumbents did go on to vote for the drug
testing policy. | ||||||||||||||||||
"You gotta use whatever trick you can," said Connick, coining what
could be an apt new motto for the ONDCP (particularly since the
office is now officially authorized to spread disinformation, see
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n447/a05.html ). | ||||||||||||||||||
There was lots of information at the so-called summit, but it hardly
seemed complete. I didn't attend every session throughout the day,
but I didn't hear any talk about a federally-funded 2003 study
published in the Journal of School Health. Described in the New York
Times as the biggest study of its kind, the research indicated that
school districts with drug testing had similar drug use rates
compared with schools that didn't test for drugs (see | ||||||||||||||||||
At the time of the study's release, some ONDCP reps argued about different interpretations of the data, but one of the study's authors did not mince words when he commented on the results. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It suggests that there isn't really an impact from drug testing as
practiced," researcher Lloyd D. Johnston told the New York Times.
"It's the kind of intervention that doesn't win the hearts and minds
of children. I don't think it brings about any constructive changes
in their attitudes about drugs or their belief in the dangers
associated with them." | ||||||||||||||||||
Views like Johnston's were not readily apparent at the drug testing summit. A handout from the ONDCP distributed at the summit featured answers to frequently asked questions, but the Journal of School Health study is not mentioned in response to the question, "Are student drug testing programs effective at deterring use?" | ||||||||||||||||||
To make things worse, the answer begins with misleading certainty:
"Yes, random student drug testing is effective at deterring drug
use." | ||||||||||||||||||
So the summit was far from objective, but I did enjoy one presentation by Bryan S. Finkle, a drug-testing authority with an impressive page-long bio that included stints at Scotland Yard and as past president of the International Association of Forensic Toxicologists. Finkle gave a talk and answered questions on current drug testing technology. Much of the conference seemed to advocate student drug testing as a clearly good option, and Finkle didn't explicitly contradict that notion, but he did lay out some of the controversies and consequences in a straight forward manner. | ||||||||||||||||||
"If you get into this business, there will be a lawsuit sooner or
later," Finkle told school administrators who were considering
student drug testing programs. He said competent drug testing labs
can be found, but not all labs are equally competent. | ||||||||||||||||||
All types of drug testing, from urine testing to hair testing, carry
positive and negative attributes, he said, as well as weaknesses
that can be exploited. And if school districts expect accurate
results, they can't cut corners with cheap tests. | ||||||||||||||||||
Add these issues to questions of privacy, trust and constitutional
rights, it's difficult to see how any possible benefits outweigh the
costs of student drug testing. | ||||||||||||||||||
But I didn't hear other discussion of the ambiguities, flaws and
risks of drug testing students at the summit. I did hear many
speakers say that drug testing isn't about drawing young people into
the criminal justice system. No, no, they insisted, it's all about
saving the kiddies from brushes with the law. | ||||||||||||||||||
Here in Illinois, where the summit was held, don't be so sure. Right
now a bill is making its way through the state legislature that
would criminalize the act of attempting to defraud a drug test (see
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n402/a05.html ). If that bill
becomes law, one could imagine a situation where an enterprising
chemistry club member educates himself about ways to create false
negatives on drug tests. If he decides to experiment on himself, he
will be breaking the law. Is it farfetched to envision his
prosecution? | ||||||||||||||||||
Perhaps, but active students in the Jefferson Parish school district
probably never imagined they could be blackballed for excessive
shaving. | ||||||||||||||||||
Stephen Young is an editor with DrugSense Weekly and author of
Maximizing Harm www.maximizingharm.com | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"Imagine the outcry if IRS staff traveled the country arguing against tax cuts at the state level! Drug laws, like virtually all criminal laws, are wholly the province of states. Neither Congress nor any administration had the authority to create and fund a federal drug-war cheerleading agency." - U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, see http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n447/a05.html for more details. | ||||||||||||||||||
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