| May 13, 2005 #399 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) DRUG CZAR BLASTED OVER POT STORY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group Objects After Marijuana Blamed for Colo. Teen's Death | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - A marijuana advocacy group has accused the White House drug czar of manipulating the story of a Colorado teen's suicide in order to "perpetrate a fraud" about the dangers of marijuana use. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
That charge drew an angry response Thursday from Ernest and Tanya
Skaggs, a Colorado Springs couple who told the story of their son
Christopher's marijuana use and suicide at a White House Office of
National Drug Control Policy event May 3. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"You can tell those dumb b------- up there I buried my 15-year-old
son because of marijuana, and that's how I feel," Ernest Skaggs
said. "Ain't no one using me at all." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates the reform of anti- marijuana laws, issued a statement Thursday sympathizing with the parents but accusing ONDCP Director John Walters of exploiting them with an incomplete and misleading story of how the teen died. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Walters and other officials cited Christopher Skaggs' suicide in
July 2004 as an example of purported links between marijuana use
and serious mental health problems, particularly in people who use
marijuana at younger ages. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project, said it was
misleading for Walters and other officials to blame Christopher
-Skaggs' death on marijuana use, since drug testing had not detected
any continued marijuana usage and only alcohol was found in his system
at the time of his death. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(2) SIDES AGREE ON CRACK PIPE PLAN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chief backs program as long as minors excluded | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Police Chief Vince Bevan now says he can live with the city's crack pipe program as long as the kits aren't handed out to youth under 18. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"There's a place for harm reduction," in the fight against drugs, Bevan said yesterday as he reversed his position on the issue. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bevan had led the charge against the new city program delivering free
crack pipe kits to drug addicts, but he tempered his criticism this
week as Mayor Bob Chiarelli stepped in with a larger plan to tackle
drugs in the community. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As the chief softened his stance, Dr. Robert Cushman, the city's
medical officer of health, said he's also willing to compromise on the
issue and stop handing out the devices to youth. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Clearly, I'm not going to jeopardize the program for 2% of our
population," said Cushman. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(3) MAKING PUSH FOR LEGALIZED POT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Talk-Show Host And Elected State Officials Deliver A Proposal To
Allow Patients Access To Medical Marijuana | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ALBANY - Television talk-show host and multiple-sclerosis patient
Montel Williams lobbied yesterday for the legalization of marijuana
for medical purposes, joining state lawmakers who say the intoxicant
is a credible pain killer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"New York needs to act now to make marijuana legally available for
medical use," said Williams, a Manhattan resident who said he has been
buying the drug legally through a state-sanctioned provider in
California. "Every day that we delay is another day of needless
suffering for patients like me across the state." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
State Sen. Vincent L. Leibell (R-Patterson) and Assemb. Richard N.
Gottfried (D-Manhattan) flanked the star, along with elected and
health officials who outlined a proposal that would allow patients
with life-threatening conditions to be prescribed the drug by
certified practitioners. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Their backing was reinforced by the support of Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, who issued a statement late in the day saying he had met with Williams and medical experts and was convinced that a bill permitting medical marijuana use "in tightly controlled instances" must be passed before the legislative session ends next month. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Despite the safeguards, opponents of the proposal yesterday characterized Williams as a renegade, and said the proposal was designed to lead to more expansive legalization of the drug. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(4) HOUSE MOVES TO MAKE CRACK, COCAINE EQUAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
HARTFORD -- The huge racial disparities in Connecticut's prisons is one major reason why state House lawmakers voted 93-52 Tuesday to equalize state penalties for the sale of crack and powdered cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Advocates of the new legislation argued that, by penalizing the sale
of crack much more harshly than the sale of powdered cocaine, state
law has helped create a prison system where 72 percent of all
inmates are black or Latino. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Crack has been called the "drug of choice" of inner-city minorities
in part because it is sold in smaller quantities at cheaper prices
than powdered cocaine, which tends to be favored by more affluent,
white suburban drug users. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The House chairman of the legislature's Judiciary Committee, state
Rep. Michael P. Lawlor, D-East Haven, said current law triggers a
mandatory minimum five-year sentence for possession with intent to
sell one-half of one gram of crack. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
But the five-year mandatory sentence for selling powdered cocaine
doesn't kick in until someone is caught with at least an ounce of the
drug -- an amount 56 times greater than the threshold for crack
cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bill would set the threshold for a five-year prison term at one
ounce for both crack and powdered cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Critics of the measure warned that equalizing the penalties would
send the wrong message to drug users. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Some members of the U.S. Congress are feeling punitive, judging by
action on two new harsh crime bills. The bills add new categories of
mandatory minimum sentences as well as a provision which calls for
punishment of those who don't snitch when they have the opportunity.
Fortunately, state legislators in Alaska showed restraint in
refusing the governor's call to recriminalize marijuana. Elsewhere,
a drug search/lockdown terrorizes high school students left in the
dark; and an Indiana city uses police resources to help landlords
evict tenants accused of drug sales. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(5) CONGRESS REKINDLES BATTLE ON MANDATORY SENTENCES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Just months after the Supreme Court struck down federal sentencing formulas, the House is moving to institute new mandatory minimum sentences, beginning with a sweeping bill to fight street gangs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bill, which the House is expected to approve on Wednesday, would
greatly increase federal penalties for gang-related crimes. It would
change the definition of a criminal street gang to three people who
have committed at least two crimes together, at least one of them
violent, from five. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Also pending is a bill passed by the House Judiciary Committee that would apply much harsher mandatory minimums to federal drug offenses. A third bill intended to protect judicial officials would establish mandatory minimum sentences for courthouse crimes. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(6) POT BILL IS OUT OF TIME (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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JUNEAU -- The governor's attempt to outlaw at-home marijuana appears
dead for this legislative session. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
With the Legislature scheduled to adjourn for the year on Tuesday,
lawmakers said Saturday the bill is out of time. The news came just
two days after Gov. Frank Murkowski declared it one of his "must
have" bills. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"I want marijuana -- this session," Murkowski said on Thursday. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bill could rise from the ashes if the governor forces the Legislature into a special session. Murkowski has threatened to do so if lawmakers do not pass controversial changes to public employee retirement benefits and injured workers' compensation laws. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(7) LOCKDOWN, DOG SEARCH SCARE SOME (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A lockdown combined with another search for weapons and drugs with a
trained search dog at Durango High School left some students rattled
Friday. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Officials at Durango High School learned a couple of lessons from
the incident. One, students aren't bringing drugs and weapons to
school. And two, practicing a lockdown while doing a drug search
with dogs may not be the best idea. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
At 8:35 a.m., an announcement was made over the intercom of a
lockdown at the school. Teachers locked classroom doors. Students
congregated in the corners of the classrooms away from the windows.
The lights were turned off. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
An assistant principal unlocked the door to Jason Cline's classroom
and "burst" into the room with a dog handler with a drug-sniffing
dog in tow. "They told us all to get out and stand in the hallway on
the opposite wall," said Cline, a senior. The room, then the school,
were searched for drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By 9 a.m. the search ended, but Cline said many students were
unnerved by the search. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"All the students were scared for their lives. They feared a shooting was under way, especially with the recent shooting downtown," he said, referring to the April 14 shooting of Lori "Star" Sutherland. "They never told us what was happening." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(8) LANDLORDS, CITY RECLAIM DRUG HOUSES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The landlord was waiting in a sport utility vehicle parked in the
back when Joe Musi arrived out front, followed by a couple of
sheriff's deputies. Their target was a house in an older
neighborhood off South Anthony Boulevard, not far from the Fort
Wayne police headquarters. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sure, Musi said, you can watch us go about our business, as long as
you don't put the address in the paper. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Then the deputies and Musi, a special police officer who works for
the vice and narcotics division of the Fort Wayne Police Department,
quickly did their jobs. Walking to an apartment in the rear of the
building, they found people on the porch. One man was pulling a
large, new-looking piece of luggage, the kind with wheels and a
handle, out of the apartment, while another man milled about beside
the porch, saying nothing. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No one was taken by surprise. Everyone knew what was going to happen
that morning. The apartment's occupants were being evicted for
violating the city's drug house ordinance. They had been living in
an apartment where the renter had been caught selling drugs. The
landlord had taken the tenant to court, asking for an emergency
eviction order. Now it was Musi's job, as drug house ordinance
coordinator, to get them out. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Evictions for normal tenant problems, such as unruly behavior or failure to pay rent, can take two months. An emergency order for someone in the drug trade, though, takes 24 hours. The landlord had been in court the day before, and the results of that court hearing were being carried out. The dealers were being put on the street. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The drug war is still padding the budgets of local police, but a
couple other stories make one wonder where seized money and
contraband are really going. And, a Georgia police chief who
apparently doesn't have good access to a highway where jackpot
seizures can be found, wants to cut programs like DARE to get more
officers on the street to protect the public. City council officials
are resistant. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(9) SHADY CASH FATTENS TOWNS' COFFERS ALONG DRUG ROUTES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
HOGANSVILLE, Ga. -- For years, this small town nestled in the pine
forests off Interstate Highway 85 has struggled to keep its Police
Department financially afloat. But the town is riding high these
days on a $2.4 million windfall--thanks to drug dealers who happened
to be passing through. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Three or four days a week a police officer aided by a drug-sniffing
German shepherd named Bella parks his cruiser on the side of the
expressway, looking for any vehicle that seems suspicious--a broken
taillight, an expired license plate or simply a car that changes
lanes excessively. That is all it takes to pull over a suspected
drug courier, and if the officer is lucky, he confiscates not only
drugs but also bundles of money. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
With the help of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, small
towns across the country are filling their coffers with drug money
as a result of federal asset forfeiture laws that allow authorities
to seize drug dealers' property, including cars, cash and houses
used to facilitate crime. Local police keep 80 percent of the
proceeds, and 20 percent goes to the DEA. If a police department
makes a bust on its own and processes the case locally, it can keep
all of the proceeds, officials said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Small towns with dwindling populations and shrinking tax bases have
confiscated millions of dollars by forming highway interdiction
units. Once barely able to buy police cars, towns along major
thoroughfares that are used to transport drugs and cash between
Florida and Texas and the North are building new police stations and
equipping officers with bulletproof vests and new cars. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(10) SLED STARTS TO INVESTIGATE EX-COLLETON COUNTY SHERIFF (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Use Of Drug-Seizure Funds Questioned | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WALTERBORO (AP) - The Colleton County sheriff and a councilman have
asked state authorities to investigate whether former Sheriff Allan
Beach improperly spent any of the millions of dollars in federal
drug-seizure funds his office received. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The State Law Enforcement Division has been asked to investigate
"possible financial improprieties" within the sheriff's office,
attorney general spokesman Trey Walker said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Beach said all the money was spent using federal guidelines and he
is not worried about the investigation. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No specific evidence of misconduct has been discovered, but County
Council Chairman Steven Murdaugh and Sheriff George Malone sent a
letter to Attorney General Henry McMaster last week asking he look
into "numerous and wide-ranging speculations concerning possible
financial improprieties" between Jan. 1, 2000, and Dec. 31, 2004,
when Beach was in office. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Much of the money came from drug-related seizures on Interstate 95
by the Colleton County's drug interdiction team. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Once a case is successfully prosecuted, the sheriff gets a portion of the money and can spend it without the council's approval. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Beach said he does not know how many millions of dollars his office
spent or received but that it bought new vehicles, a new 911 system
and helped improve the jail. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Malone, who took office in January, said at least part of the reason
he asked for an investigation comes after he received a $300,000
bill from Alutiiq, an Alaskan-based security company that worked on
the jail. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(11) EX-POLICE PROPERTY MANAGER FINED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Put On Probation, To Work 600 Hours | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A former Memphis police employee who stole from the department's
property room -- after he was brought in to clean it up -- was
sentenced Friday. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
U.S. Dist. Judge Jon McCalla sentenced Jay T. Liner to three years of probation, 600 hours of community service and fined him $3,000. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Liner, 54, faced up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but
prosecutors recommended that he not go to prison, based on
information he gave them about others involved in the high-profile
property room scandal. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In September 2003, 16 people were indicted in a scheme that put more than 560 pounds of marijuana, 320 pounds of cocaine, and 66 guns that had been stored in the property room back on the street. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(12) REPRIEVE SOUGHT FOR POPULAR PROGRAMS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Solutions Include Hiring Retired Police Officers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Plans to subject some popular city programs to the budget axe -- including youth drug- and crime-fighting efforts and before- and after-school recreation programs -- are getting a second look from councilors in just the second week of their budget study. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday's budget review session had barely begun before City Manager
Isaiah Hugley was asked to place the DARE, Conditional Discharge and
GREAT programs on a list that could lead to their continuation,
instead of abolishing them as recommended in the proposed $184.5
million city budget. Shortly after, Columbus Juvenile Court's youth
diversion program was tacked onto the "drop and add list" for
possible return to the budget. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Columbus Police Chief Ricky Boren told councilors he did not lightly
reach his recommendation to shut down those youth drug-, gang- and
crime-prevention programs. Shutting them down would help him with
his main objective -- "putting more officers on the street to answer
911 calls," he said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13-17) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In an effort to curb the establishment of compassionate cannabis
dispensaries in unincorporated areas, Supervisor Nate Miley has
proposed opening one up in Alameda County's Fairmont Hospital. This
Monday the board's two-member planning and transportation committee
approved a draft plan that may be put to a vote before the full
Board of Supervisors as early as May 24th. Last weekend was time
again for the international Global Marijuana March, and so our
second story is an article from Toronto, where 3000 brave
cannaphiles marched through Queen's Park to support an end to the
war on marijuana. To the disappointment of drug warriors everywhere,
the whole thing went off without incident or arrest. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Our third story is a comprehensive article on the geriatric use of cannabis from the San Francisco chronicle. This is a "do not miss" story for anyone wishing to help an elderly friend or relative get through some of the pains associated with aging. Fourth on this buffet of bud-related business is a story from British Columbia, where B.C. Marijuana Party candidates in the upcoming provincial elections have been banned from participating in recent all-candidate debates taking place in public schools. And thank god, because you'd hate to think what might happen if high school kids ever found out about pot=85instead we'll use this opportunity to teach them about intolerance, irrational fear, and the suppression of democracy and freedom of speech; I hope that they take notes, because this is a life lesson that you don't want to miss. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
And lastly another great article by Fred Gardner which transcribes
an incredible speech by travel guru Rick Steves from this year's
NORML conference. I wonder if they'll now ban him from speaking in
B.C. high schools? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(13) POT CLUB CALLED FOR AT FAIRMONT HOSPITAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Supervisor Nate Miley wants officials to consider opening a medical marijuana dispensary at the county-owned Fairmont Hospital -- a revolutionary idea that puts a twist in long-standing efforts to craft an ordinance governing dispensaries in unincorporated areas. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Miley said the idea would add legitimacy to efforts to dispense
cannabis for medicinal use and would address community concerns
about dispensaries in their neighborhoods. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"I think it's the right thing to do," Miley said. "If we're saying
it's medicine, let's put it in a medical setting." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(14) DOWNTOWN POT RALLY BRINGS WHIFF OF THE '60S (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Unsuspecting tourists walking through Queen's Park yesterday might
have wondered if they had passed through a time machine and wound up
at a U.S. college peace rally in the 1960s. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tie-dyed T-shirts, laid-back people with bongs and the heady scent
of pot hung in a haze just north of where the provincial government
sits. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Close to 3,000 people celebrated cannabis culture as part of the
sixth "Global Million Marijuana March," marked in more than 200
cities worldwide. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"We want to see it legalized and decriminalized," said organizer
Franklin Skanks. He believes legalizing pot would bring in more
revenue via "sin taxes," boost tourism and help shut down organized
marijuana grow-ops. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Supervised by Toronto police, the rally went off without a hitch. No
one was charged. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(15) ELDERLY, AILING SPEAK OUT AS POT RULING NEARS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Betty Hiatt's morning wakeup call comes with the purr and persistent
kneading by the cat atop her bedspread. Under predawn gray, Hiatt
blinks awake. It is 6 a.m., and Kato, an opinionated Siamese who
Hiatt swears can tell time, wants to be fed. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Reaching for a cane, the frail grandmother pads with uncertain steps
to the alcove kitchen in her two-room flat. Her feline alarm clock
gets his grub, then Hiatt turns to her own needs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
She is, at 81, both a medical train wreck and a miracle, surviving
cancer, Crohn's disease and the onset of Parkinson's. Each morning
Hiatt takes more than a dozen pills. But first, she turns to a
translucent orange prescription bottle stuffed with a drug not found
on her pharmacist's shelf - -- marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(16) B.C. MARIJUANA PARTY SHUT OUT OF SCHOOLS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
B.C. Marijuana Party candidates won't be allowed to participate in
all-candidates meetings at Surrey schools. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Amanda Boggan, who's representing the Marijuana party in
Surrey-Green Timbers, was invited to attend a political debate for
students at Queen Elizabeth Secondary Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
However, she was contacted by a student organizer the night before
and asked not to show up. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"I was a bit stunned. I've never been disinvited to anything in my
life," Boggan said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"I got off the phone and felt like a bad person for a while, and then realized it was actually detrimental to the students' education about the electoral process for certain parties to be excluded." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(17) RICK STEVES: A VOICE OF SANITY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rick Steves is a travel guide and writer who lives in Edmunds,
Washington, and spends about 100 days a year in Europe. His TV shows
on PBS are seen by millions of viewers like you. He is in his late
40s; sandy-haired, bespectacled, intelligent, and so calm that he
seems slightly bemused even when he's expressing outrage. A family
man, a church-goer, pragmatic | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Two years ago Allen St. Pierre of NORML noticed Steves's name on the membership list and invited him to join the advisory board and to talk at the annual meeting. "I took my pastor out for a walk," said Steves on that occasion, "And I explained to him that there's a lot of good Christians who find marijuana actually helps them get closer to God... I think that was an accomplishment there: to find a leader in your community who respects you, but would be disinclined to understand what you're doing, and take the time to explain to him. I'm trying to do that and I think we all need to do that." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
At this year's NORML meeting in San Francisco, Steves reprised his practical advice in a keynote talk, excerpted below. Is there anyone better suited to begin guiding this country towards sanity? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (18-21) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Philippine prohibitionists have little to show for all their
efforts. They "got tough." Drug warriors there passed laws applying
the death penalty to miniscule amounts of cannabis. Drug warriors
unleashed extra-legal death squads to shoot down drug suspects in
cold blood. Prohibitionists even hosted conferences with American
drug warriors, to learn how it is done back in the States. This week
Philippine drug warriors admitted their grand battles have been for
nothing: "the number of pushers in the city has not decreased,"
revealed top Philippine drug fighters. "New pushers would surface
whenever a drug suspect is arrested," the amazed drug warriors
confessed. Even worse, the price of shabu (meth pills) in the
Philippines is at an all-time low, indicating no shortage in
supplies. Philippine drug warriors have an answer for that: more of
the same. A new government program "will be patterned after the one
being used by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency," so expect
similar results. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
While the U.S. Government makes pronouncement after lofty
pronouncement, telling the world how righteous the fight against
"drugs" and "terror" is, this week U.S. soldiers were caught
smuggling "a huge amount of munitions" to militants in Colombia.
This revelation follows in the wake of the March 29 arrest of U.S.
troops caught smuggling cocaine from Colombia to the United States.
Colombian leftist rebels and rightist paramilitaries (labeled
"terrorist" by the U.S. Government) profit from the prohibition of
cocaine and other drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Malaysian prosecutors are seeking to make drug laws there even more
harsh, and to hang more people for drug offences, according to a
report in the New Straits Times. Earlier Malaysian court rulings had
decreed that government must prove "positive and affirmative
possession" of drugs to get a trafficking conviction. This formality
is proving irksome to prosecutors, who apparently want their word
alone to be enough for a drug conviction. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(18) NEW APPROACH VS. DRUGS SOON (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Beginning next month, the police will introduce a new approach in their campaign against the illegal drugs trade after they found out that the number of pushers in the city has not decreased. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Drug Enforcement Section chief George Ylanan told reporters
yesterday that an updated watchlist of drug personalities has been
compiled based on reports from station commanders. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The data reveals that there are about 200 drug pushers in the city. But the police could not claim progress in their campaign because new pushers would surface whenever a drug suspect is arrested. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The new approach against drug pushers in the city was agreed during
a meeting with Councilor Augustus Jun Pe, who heads the council
committee on dangerous drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
It will be patterned after the one being used by the United States
Drug Enforcement Agency. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As this developed, intelligence reports revealed that the price of shabu has significantly decreased with five grams which used to be at P16,000 to P28,000 last November can now be bought at P8,000. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(19) DRUGS BACK IN "LITTLE PASIL" (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A year after a saturation drive was conducted in sitio Dita barangay
Pulangbato, nearly wiping out the illegal drug trade there,
intelligence reports yesterday suggested that the situation is back
to square one again. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Branch chief Paul Labra said
that pushers are again peddling shabu along the road to anybody
passing by. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(20) COLOMBIANS ARREST TWO U.S. SOLDIERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Allegations of Arms Trafficking Are Latest Blow to Relations
Between the Two Nations | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA - Colombian police announced Wednesday that two
American soldiers have been arrested in a plot to traffic
ammunition, the second time in recent weeks that U.S. troops
stationed here were detained on smuggling allegations. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Americans were captured Tuesday in the town of Carmen de Apicala, 56 miles southwest of Bogota, after authorities raided a condominium there and found 32,900 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, according to National Police Chief Jorge Daniel Castro. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"It's a huge amount of munitions," Castro said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A U.S. Embassy spokesman confirmed the arrests but provided few details. The names and ranks of the Americans were not released. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Colombia, which receives about $800 million annually in U.S. aid, is
mired in a three-way civil war involving the army, paramilitaries
and Marxist guerrillas. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The rebels and the paramilitaries earn millions of dollars from the
illegal drug trade and have been declared terrorist organizations by
the United States. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
March 29, five troops were arrested after 35 pounds of cocaine was
found aboard a U.S. military aircraft bound from Colombia to El
Paso. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
But critics contend that Americans are exposed to the risks of war
and the threat of kidnappings, as well as the temptation of easy
money through drug and arms trafficking. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In 2000, for example, the wife of a U.S. Army colonel was sentenced
to five years in prison for trying to smuggle heroin to the United
States. Her husband received a five-month sentence after he admitted
that he knew his wife was laundering drug profits. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(21) "CHANGE THE LAW" (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brickwall In Drug Trafficking Cases | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PUTRAJAYA, Mon: Prosecutors are coming up against a brick wall in
drug trafficking cases. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Archive Since 1991 In many cases, the suspects they hope to send to
the gallows are getting away with lighter sentences for the less
serious offence of possession. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The reason: A Federal Court ruling in February that the prosecution
had to prove positive and affirmative possession in order to invoke
presumption of trafficking. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Today, Court of Appeal judge Datuk Abdul Kadir Sulaiman suggested
that the Attorney-General recommend to the Government that the
Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 be amended. "We are prepared to stand by if
the laws are amended," he said, noting that the dadah problem was
the number one threat in the country. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Every day, there are 58 new drug addicts in Malaysia and the
authorities are in the midst of trying to cobble together a more
effective anti-drug strategy. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The judge said the DDA was a man-made law and could be amended to
keep up with the times. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In 1998, the court decided that if the prosecution could not prove
with actual and affirmative evidence that an accused person was in
possession of drugs, the prosecution could not invoke the
presumption that the accused was a trafficker. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
To do so, the court ruled, would be tantamount to double
presumption. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This means that the court must first presume that the accused had possession of the drugs, and again presume he was a trafficker. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In another appeal before the same panel, the prosecution failed to
convince that lorry attendant S. Letchumanan was trafficking 56.2 gm
of heroin and monoacetylmorphine. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In the unanimous decision, the appellate court allowed the appeal
but only set aside the trafficking charge and substituted it with
possession. Letchumanan, 31, was acquitted without his defence being
called on April 17, 2000, by Paul. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The court said the prosecution could only prove custody and control
of the dadah, but not knowledge. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TELL CONGRESS TO OPPOSE HR 1528 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
We're in the fight of our lives in Washington, DC. High-ranking
members of Congress want to take the war on drugs to a whole new
level. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
They want to increase penalties for every drug offense. They want a
mandatory 2-year prison term for anyone who knows someone is selling
marijuana on a college campus and fails to report it to the police
within 24 hours. They want a mandatory 5-year prison term for
someone at a party who passes a marijuana joint to someone who has
been enrolled in drug treatment at some point in their life. They
want to expand the federal "three strikes and you're out" law to
include new offenses, including mandating life imprisonment (with no
possibility of parole) for anyone convicted a third time under the
RAVE Act. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Take Action Here: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MAP MEDIA ACTIVISM TRAINING SCHEDULE UPDATED | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Each week the MAP's Media Activism Center | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In the days ahead sessions will be held on effective writing letters to the editor and other efforts like press releases, press conferences, and radio/TV appearances. A session is also scheduled about writing OPEDs, longer opinion items that you may marked to newspapers - and that, if accepted, most newspapers pay you for! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Details about these public sessions are at | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Instructions for obtaining the special free software needed to participate are at http://www.mapinc.org/resource/paltalk.htm#setup | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
If you have media activism related topics you would like to see
scheduled,= or if you have suggestions for scheduling times more
convenient to you, please send an email to MAP's Media Activism
Facilitator, Steve Heath, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MARIJUANA AND ME | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Burt Prelutsky at Intellectual Conservative | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
UP IN SMOKE: ONDCP'S WASTED EFFORTS IN THE WAR ON DRUGS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
From Citizens Against Government Waste - http://wwwcagw.org | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.cagw.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8906#_ftn5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
THE ANDES: INSTITUTIONALIZING SUCCESS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Statement by John P. Walters, Director, Office of National Drug
Control Policy Before the House Committee on International Relations
Chairman Henry Hyde, 109th Congress | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
May 11, 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/news/testimony05/051105/051105.pdf | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MARIJUANANEWS WORLD REPORT FOR MAY 12, 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
With Richard Cowan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LA Times Still Has Not Reported Club Raid; Narks Attack Clubs,
But There Will Be No Cannabis In Alameda Hospital. New York
Times Still Has Not Reported Prospect Of State Medical | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
THE LINK BETWEEN MARIJUANA USE AND MENTAL ILLNESS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
5/3/2005: WASHINGTON, DC: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Speakers John P. Walters, Director of National Drug Control Policy;
Charles G. Curie, Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration; Neil McKeganey, B.A., M.Sc., Ph.D.,
Professor of Drug Misuse Research and Director of the Centre for
Drug Misuse Research at the University of Glasgow in Scotland,
the parents of a 15-year-old who committed suicide, Richard
Suchinsky, M.D., from the American Psychiatric Association Council
on Addiction Psychiatry, and Robert L. DuPont, M.D., President of
the Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc.; talk about the link
between marijuana use and mental illness. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
You may need to paste the video link below into your Real Player | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/news/press05/050305.html | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MONTEL'S MISSION | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Betsy Rothstein, The Hill. Posted May 13, 2005. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The talk show host discusses his support for medical marijuana,
the psychic Sylvia Browne, and how to get a meeting on Capitol
Hill. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
COSTS FOR DRUG WAR INTOLERABLE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Jerry Epstein | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Chronicle's May 2 article "In Mexico, some stories can't be
told" reported on the tragic deaths of reporters at the hands of
drug lords. This is just a repeat of the intolerable costs of
alcohol Prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Law enforcers are just mopping the floor while the faucet is
running! Massive profits allow drug dealers and cartel leaders to be
replaced easily, and the drug war is irrelevant to drug abuse. The
ones who really care will get their drugs, anyway. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The drug lords are the biggest enemy and do far more harm than the
drugs themselves. They make the drugs more dangerous and available
to teens in ways that regulated supply would not. The 12-to-17 age
group gets illegal drugs more easily than regulated alcohol, and
almost a million of them sold illegal drugs in 2003. A similar
number carried guns. If you're a drug lord or a special interest
that gets political power, profit or employment from the drug war,
it works great. For the rest of us -- the ones who suffer from
wasted hundreds of billions in taxes and prohibition created crime,
violence and corruption -- it is a disaster. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
We have the power to eliminate these drug lords and dealers and
regain control of the drugs. For the sake of the courageous
reporters who died and all of us, we must begin to discuss less
risky ways to repeal Prohibition again. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
JERRY EPSTEIN Houston | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LETTER WRITER OF THE MONTH - APRIL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
DrugSense recognizes Kirk Muse of Mesa, Arizona for his amazing
success in having 23 of his letters published during April. This
brings Kirk's total published letters, that we know of, to 544 as
noted at http://www.mapinc.org/lte/ Besides writing letters, Kirk is
a very active MAP Newshawk. You may read his letters at | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Review: Kids, Cannabinoids And Our Bodies | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Bryan W. Brickner, Phd | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A Review of Jeffrey's Journey: Healing a Child's Violent Rages By Debbie Jeffries and LaRayne Jeffries (2005; Quick American) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
I'm not a parent, but if I were, I would do whatever was necessary
for my child. I'm supposing that is a common sentiment, and that is
where Debbie Jeffries found herself - having to do what was
necessary. She found herself as a single parent with a child who
kept having violent rages. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As I have had some experience with rage myself, I know that when uncontrolled it is terrible for adults to endure, but at least we have recourse to reason and logic. Those two in-and-of themselves, reason and logic in adults, cannot eliminate rage - it's ingrained in us - but most of us are able to control and manage it. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
But imagine being three years old and having violent rages -
hitting, biting, and screaming - and then you enter Debbie and
Jeffrey's world. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Now, it shouldn't surprise anyone that our moods and thoughts are
based on chemicals: the scientists refer to these chemicals as
neuro-transmitters. If you watch the evening news or read a popular
magazine, you will no doubt come across an advertisement for a
pharmaceutical drug. What the drug attempts to heal is an imbalance
in one's chemicals - in our processing of neuro-transmitters.
Frankly, drugs are a good thing: we can help more individuals today
than we have ever been able to help before. The drugs that focus on
the brain, such as Ritalin, Dexedrine, Imipramine, Zoloft, Tegretal,
and all the others, have to focus on these neuro-transmitters - on
getting the right "balance" - in order for the patient to heal.
Depending on the diagnoses, that is, it depends on if the individual
is fighting depression, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD), Bipolar Disorder (BD), Oppositional Defiance Disorder, or,
in the case of Jeffrey and his family, they were fighting all of
these diagnoses - and a handful of others! - all at the same time.
So imagine being three years old and having your chemicals out of
balance, and the balance was tipped toward violence, and you can see
the importance of books like Jeffrey's Journey -= a point of
diversity on a diverse issue - one's health. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jeffrey's Journey is a family's story on dealing with one of life's
many surprises - parenthood. The dream is generally of the perfect
healthy child; the reality is sometimes just the opposite. Jeffrey
was a healthy strong boy in every respect except his temper, which
he couldn't control.= In reading the book you realize you won't find
another story like this: Jeffrey hails from a conservative Christian
family that pursued all options - from prayer, spanking, and sixteen
prescriptions drugs to help his mind work better - all by the time
he was seven-and-half-years old! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jeff had no fear as a young child, which produced continual
confrontation.= By the age of three he was hitting pre-school
teachers in the face with metal objects and showed no fear of adults
or other children. To control his rage he was prescribed Ritalin;
this was an experiment, as Ritalin is not recommended for children
under age six, but everyone involved - teachers, family, and the
medical professionals - all supported what they called an
"extraordinary intervention." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
But the intervention didn't work: nine months later they switched him to Dexedrine. This lasted only three days, at which time, Jeffrey was "suspended from school for having very aggressive combative behavior and explosive anger." (27) At this point he was diagnosed with ADHD and Impulse Disorder and given a trial prescription of Imipramine - an antidepressant usually prescribed as a short-term therapy for bedwetting. Imipramine, like all the other drugs that target neuro-transmitter activity, comes with a legal qualifier: Safety and effectiveness in children under the age of 6 have not been established. It also has the following list of most common side effects for children: "anxiety, collapse, constipation, convulsions,= emotional instability, fainting, nervousness, sleep disorders, stomach and intestinal problems, and tiredness." (30) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As if all of these possible side effects weren't enough, Jeffrey had
also,= as his mother expressed, developed an "infatuation with
killing - himself,= me, and animals, mainly." (31) In what I found
to be the most disturbing passage in the book, his mother describes
Jeffrey's first night on Depakote, a drug to treat BD, seizures,
convulsions, and migraine headaches: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This drug had a very serious psychotic side effect. The night he
started it, I awoke to find him standing beside my bed, his hands
around my throat.= He was trying to strangle me. I sat up, pulled
his hands away, and asked him what he was doing. "I have robots
living in my stomach," he said with an eerie calm. "They're telling
me to kill my mother." (40) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Well, it took two-and-half more years of psychoactive drugs, periods of no drugs, mental hospitals, and special classes, but in the final analysis, nothing was working. Then, through her own research, and with a variety of governmental agencies advising her they could not help her or Jeffrey, she turned to her last hope - marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
That's crazy, right? Giving a child a dose of marijuana muffin,
well, that's criminal, right? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The answer to both questions is a resounding - No! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Jeffries live in California, a place where the citizens voted in
1996 to protect patients and doctors as it concerned medical
marijuana. The federal government has a different opinion, but,
given the fact that Debbie was going to have to place Jeffrey in
special custody - care away from her - she followed California law.
This meant she could consult with a doctor,= see if the treatment
would work, and, if so, then possess marijuana. What she found was
as experimental as all the other treatments had been: marijuana,
better known from a health perspective as cannabis, had never been
recommended for a child as young as Jeffrey and no doctor had ever
treated a case like his. Through the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical
Marijuana (WAMM), a collective of mostly terminally ill patients in
Santa Clara, Debbie met Valerie Laveroni Corral, WAMM's director.
Valerie put her in contact with a medical professional in Oakland, a
Dr. Michael Alcalay. They met and talked about Jeffrey's condition
and treatment options. Dr.= Alcalay and Debbie discussed
cannabinoids, which are neuro-transmitters that occur naturally in
the human body and in cannabis (marijuana). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Now, to understand how cannabis might be able to help a | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The receptor CB1 seems to be present in all vertebrate species,
suggesting that systems employing the brain's own marijuana have
been in existence for about 500 million years. During that time,
endocannabinoids have been adapted to serve numerous, often subtle
functions. We have learned that they do not affect the development
of fear, but the forgetting of fear; they do not alter the ability
to eat, but the desirability of the food, and so on. Their presence
in parts of the brain associated with complex motor behavior,
cognition, learning and memory implies that much remains to be
discovered about the uses to which evolution has put these
interesting messengers. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Interesting messengers indeed: that is the science of cannabinoids, and like the article says, "much remains to be discovered." Jeffrey found a degree of peace from his violent rages: the cannabinoids, those interesting messengers, facilitated his thinking process. On that first day when Debbie gave Jeffrey some medicine in a muffin, and within a few minutes of medicating, his first comment to her was "Mommy, I feel happy, not mad -= And my head doesn't feel noisy." She had been waiting a long time to hear such kind words. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Well, the cannabinoid-based treatment worked for sixteen months, but
then everything changed on September 6, 2002, when the federal
government raided WAMM and literally took away the medicine - they
cut down plants and hauled them away. Jeffrey's plant, his medicine,
was a unique product: like a special medicine, the cannabinoids in
this particular plant were the ones helping him the most. It had
taken several attempts to find the right cannabinoid, and after some
trial and error, they had done so. The Jeffries had hope for a
little over a year and Jeffrey had a medicine, a cannabinoid-based
treatment that he could take orally with no harmful side effects.
According to his mom, "unlike previous treatments, medical marijuana
allowed Jeff to participate in therapy, go to school, live at home,
and have friends." (86) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Without his medicine, Jeffrey relapsed. He was unprepared to deal
with his burgeoning adolescence, and his violent behavior returned.
Currently he is away from his mother and the rest of his family: he
is participating in a treatment center in Utah that gives him
one-on-one care. They report that he is well, but, as we all might
suspect, the "What-ifs?" linger for his family. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The government didn't bother to ask "What-if?" when they raided WAMM
- a question like "What-if we are wrong?" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
It is time they did so, and the reason is cannabinoids. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bryan W. Brickner received his doctorate in political science from
Purdue University in 1997. He is the author of "The Promise Keepers:
Politics and Promises" and writes for Newtopia Magazine. He
co-founded two cannabis law reform groups in Illinois - Illinois
NORML and IDEAL Reform - and is currently a freelance writer
living in Chicago. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Fear grows in darkness; if you think there's a bogeyman around,
turn on the light." -Dorothy Thompson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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