| Jan. 12, 2007 #482 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
(1) FATAL RAID LINKED TO LIES FOR WARRANT IN DRUG CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
ATLANTA -- A narcotics team that shot and killed an elderly woman while raiding her home lied to obtain the search warrant, one team member has told federal investigators, according to news reports confirmed by a person familiar with the investigation who requested anonymity. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The officers falsely claimed that a confidential informant had bought
$50 worth of crack at the house, the team member, Gregg Junnier, told
the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Junnier retired from the
Atlanta Police Department last week. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The story backs up statements by Alex White, a police informant, who said that after the shooting the police had asked him to claim, falsely, that he had bought crack at the modest home of the woman, Kathryn Johnston, whose age has been reported as both 88 and 92. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ms. Johnston, pictured wearing a birthday crown in a widely used
photograph, quickly became Exhibit A for complaints of excessive force
by the police, prompting packed, angry town-hall-style meetings,
accusations of systematic civil rights violations and calls for
civilian review of police shootings in Atlanta. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The incident has also demoralized a police force where the number of
narcotics officers has dwindled while, some critics say, pressure to
make arrests has increased. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(2) U.S. DEFENDS ITS EFFORTS TO FIGHT DRUG TRADE IN HAITI (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Haiti -- The United States on Wednesday defended its anti-drug efforts
in Haiti, two days after the nation's president accused America and
other major drug-consuming countries of failing to adequately fight the
narcotics trade. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In a strongly worded speech to Parliament on Monday, President Rene Preval called drug trafficking the main cause of instability in his impoverished nation and said failed efforts by the United States and other countries to stop the trade had made Haiti a victim. | ||||||||||||||||||||
U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Shaila B. Manyam said Wednesday that the
United States has undertaken measures to defend Haiti against drug
trafficking, including strengthening its weak justice system and
training its coast guard. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The United States has contributed more than $40 million to Haiti's
national police since 2004, Manyam said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The United States shares Haiti's concern about drug trafficking," Manyam said. "Our two countries have a long history of cooperation on combating this scourge, and that cooperation will continue." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(3) PRISONERS FACE HIGH DEATH RATE AFTER RELEASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Study Finds Their First Two Weeks of Freedom Are the Riskiest,
Largely Because of Drug Use. | ||||||||||||||||||||
During their first two weeks out of prison, ex-convicts face nearly 13 times greater risk of death than the general population, according to a study of more than 30,000 former inmates published today. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The leading cause was overdose of illegal narcotics, the researchers
found. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Though the study did not look at the reason for the high number of drug
overdoses, the researchers surmised that the stress of release and the
former prisoners' reduced tolerance to drugs after their incarceration
were major factors. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"If people have been avoiding drug use and they return to their usual
doses after release, they will have lost tolerance," said lead
researcher Dr. Ingrid Binswanger of the University of Colorado Health
Sciences Center. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, suggests
that the criminal justice system is doing an inadequate job of easing
the transition to society, experts said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(4) MAN SLAIN IN HOME, WIFE HURT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Family Disputes Police Theory That Attack Was Somehow Involved With
Illegal Drugs | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rex Farrance was a popular senior editor at PC World magazine in San Francisco, a physical-fitness buff and a family man known for his enthusiasm for life and his sensitivity to others, friends say. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But according to police, Farrance, 59, was involved with illegal drugs
and possibly dealing them along with his wife at their Pittsburg home.
The activity, police said Wednesday, led to a home-invasion robbery
Tuesday night in which Farrance was killed and his wife, a registered
nurse, was pistol-whipped. | ||||||||||||||||||||
However, Farrance's son, Sterling Farrance, 19, blasted the police
assertion that his parents were involved with illegal drugs in any way.
Sterling Farrance told The Chronicle on Wednesday night that he grew
and stored medical marijuana at his parents' home with his father's
permission. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I have a prescription. I'm a patient. It was medical," he said. "This
one officer I remember at the house, he had this predisposition to
think it was all illegal." | ||||||||||||||||||||
At about 9 p.m. Tuesday, four masked men burst into the Farrance home on Argosy Court, a usually tranquil cul-de-sac near an elementary school. They fatally shot Rex Farrance in the chest and hit his wife in the head with a gun, Pittsburg police Inspector John Conaty said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rex Farrance's wife, Lenore Vantosh-Farrance, 56, called 911, but the
assailants fled on foot before police arrived. No arrests have been
made in what investigators said was a targeted attack possibly linked
to narcotics. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Some interesting contrasts in the news last week. It was revealed (as had been long rumored) that the late U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice went through a period of addiction to a prescription painkiller while he was serving on the Supreme Court. Withdrawal symptoms from the drug apparently included hallucinations, but observers said the drug didn't seem to impact his work on the court. At roughly the same time last week, the mainstream media tried to revive an ancient story about the drug use of likely U.S. presidential contender Barack Obama. A book written several years ago by Obama mentioned youthful drug experimentation; Washington Post writers, seemingly just got around to reading the book. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Also, while a county in Indiana presses the idea that, "Meth is death," and infant is killed in a drive-by shooting in Florida. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(5) LATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICE HALLUCINATED, BATTLED ADDICTION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A late chief justice, William Rehnquist, hallucinated about being
the victim of a CIA plot while struggling to break a decade-long
dependence on a prescription sedative, according to newly released
FBI files. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rehnquist's use of large doses of the medication, Placidyl, became
public in 1981 when he was hospitalized for back pain and
drug-related complications. The issue arose again in 1986 when he
was nominated as chief justice, but it did not impede his
confirmation. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Much of the information disclosed last week under the Freedom of
Information Act comes from an FBI investigation conducted in
connection with Rehnquist's 1986 nomination. Part of the inquiry
sought to determine how the jurist obtained about 1500 milligrams of
the drug each day when the recommended maximum dose was 500
milligrams. | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Washington newspaper that requested the file, Legal Times,
reported that one doctor interviewed by the FBI said Rehnquist was
so disoriented during his hospitalization that he went "to the lobby
in his pajamas in order to try to escape." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Prior to the 1981 treatment, the justice sometimes slurred his
speech, court observers said, but no evidence indicated that his
work was affected. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(6) EFFECT OF OBAMA'S CANDOR REMAINS TO BE SEEN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Senator Admitted Trying Cocaine in a Memoir Written 11 Years Ago | ||||||||||||||||||||
Long before the national media spotlight began to shine on every
twist and turn of his life's journey, Barack Obama had this to say
about himself: "Junkie. Pothead. That's where I'd been headed: the
final, fatal role of the young would-be black man. . . . I got high
[to] push questions of who I was out of my mind." | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Democratic senator from Illinois and likely presidential candidate offered the confession in a memoir written 11 years ago, not long after he graduated from law school and well before he contemplated life on the national stage. At the time, 20,000 copies were printed and the book seemed destined for the remainders stacks. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Today, Obama, 45, is near the top of polls on potential Democratic
presidential contenders, and "Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race
and Inheritance" has regularly been on the bestseller lists, with
800,000 copies in print. Taken along with his latest bestseller,
"The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream,"
Obama has become a genuine publishing phenomenon. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Obama's revelations were not an issue during his Senate campaign two
years ago. But now his open narrative of early, bad choices,
including drug use starting in high school and ending in college, as
well as his tortured search for racial identity, are sure to receive
new scrutiny. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(7) COMMISSIONERS SUPPORT 'METH IS DEATH WEEK' IN COUNTY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Greene County Commissioners went on record Tuesday morning
supporting a county-wide methamphetamine public awareness campaign
planned later this month. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The commissioners approved and signed a resolution of support for what is being billed as "Meth is Death Week" in Greene County. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The campaign is sponsored by Greene United Against Meth ( GUAM ), a
pro-active grassroots organization that has been involved in
educating the public about the perils of methamphetamine-use in the
community for more than three years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The campaign is set for Jan. 21-27. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It presents a more united, county-wide effort," GUAM member and one of the campaign organizers Nancy Cummings said commenting on the importance of getting the commissioners to approve the resolution. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(8) INFANT DIES IN SPRAY OF BULLETS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
RIVIERA BEACH - In the last hour of New Year's Day, when the men
with assault rifles fired wildly, a bullet found a baby boy strapped
in his car seat. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tavares Carter Jr. was shot once in the back and died behind the passenger seat of a 1998 Oldsmobile at the age of 8 months. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It was a bloody attack, indiscriminate and intense. At least 37
shots were fired from a sport utility vehicle and five more people
were caught in the cross hairs Monday night. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Two bullets hit Tavares' mother, who is barely 18, in the hand and
leg. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Her friend Bettie Ford, also 18, was shot in the back and neck. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ford's boyfriend, Jason Bell, 23, was caught in the left arm, thigh
and abdomen. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ira Shaw, 54, was working on a car when he was hit in the right arm
and twice in the right leg. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And Godfrey Pratt, 24, stopped by to ask Shaw to work on another car
stereo when he was caught in the left leg and hip. | ||||||||||||||||||||
They were all in front of a home at 1630 Avenue H West. Witnesses
say a maroon Lincoln Navigator pulled up around 11:30 p.m. and two
men pointed guns out the window, according to the Palm Beach County
Sheriff's Office. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Unfortunately the innocent victim here, the 8-month-old, was the
only one who couldn't run from the scene," sheriff's spokesman Paul
Miller said. "They were running for their lives." | ||||||||||||||||||||
The adults survived and are hospitalized, some with serious
injuries. | ||||||||||||||||||||
When police first arrived at the shooting scene, they found
marijuana on the lawn, Miller said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"This may be retaliation," Miller said. "They were spraying the
whole area." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tavares' life ended while his mother, Chandell Wiley, is still a
teenager and his father is in the Martin County jail. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
More contrasts apparent this week in the world of drug law enforcement. In Newark, where the murder rate is climbing to horrible rates, the mayor thinks a narcotics squad will help solve the problem. However, in Los Angeles, where they've had multiple narcotics units for decades, police are trying new approaches. Maybe some day they will all realize that prohibition is the real problem. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Also last week, a lawsuit was settled after a young woman was detained for three weeks for carrying flour. The settlement means no one will know why tests indicated that flour was an illegal drug. And a drug court will now be run by teens in Mississippi. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(9) IN EFFORT TO CUT HOMICIDE RATE, NEWARK MAYOR CREATES NARCOTICS (Top)UNIT | ||||||||||||||||||||
NEWARK -- Mayor Cory A. Booker and his police director announced the
formation of a new narcotics division on Monday to try to reduce the
city's stubbornly high homicide rate, firmly linking the illegal
drug trade to the persistent violence. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The announcement was made a day after two teenagers were shot and killed during a gun battle in a housing project here. Those were the fourth and fifth murders of 2007, after a year in which Newark's homicide rate reached its highest level, 104, in a decade. | ||||||||||||||||||||
City officials have said all five killings this year were
drug-related. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It's clear we have a problem," Mayor Booker said. "This last seven days -- we cannot avoid it, we cannot apologize for it." He was speaking to an audience that included high-ranking police officers; members of the Central Narcotics Division, as the new unit is called; and the local head of the Drug Enforcement Administration. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Mr. Booker has staked his efforts to revive Newark -- where drugs are openly sold in many neighborhoods, including Mr. Booker's -- on reducing the crime rate, which has fallen since Mr. Booker took office in July. The announcement had previously been scheduled and was not in response to the killings, the mayor's office said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The police director, Garry F. McCarthy, said, "The bottom line is
this: If we're going to reduce violence in this city, we have to
affect the narcotics trade." For years, he said, Newark had no
narcotics unit, in part because of fears that investigators involved
in such work would be tempted by corruption. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(10) L.A. SHIFTS TACTICS AGAINST GANGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The City Will Focus on the Worst Ones Regardless of Size and Use
'Stay-Away' Orders Against Leaders. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Los Angeles' top law enforcement officials have agreed on a new
attack on gang violence, one that focuses more enforcement on
smaller neighborhood gangs and uses a new legal tool tried last year
on skid row. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The effort comes as L.A. officials are trying to quell a 14% increase in gang-related crime during the last year, marked by several high-profile incidents of race-motivated violence. | ||||||||||||||||||||
LAPD Chief William J. Bratton met this week with Dist. Atty. Steve
Cooley and representatives of City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo to begin
formulating the plan. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bratton announced Tuesday that his department is developing a "Top
10" list of gangs to target based on a complex formula -- and then
the three agencies will devote additional officers and attorneys
specifically to those gangs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The campaign will include targeting the leaders and headquarters of
the worst gangs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Police have identified 720 street gangs in Los Angeles, with 39,315 members. But officials said a small number of them are causing a disproportionate amount of crime in the hardest-hit neighborhoods. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The new strategy is something of a shift for law enforcement
officials, who have until now focused much attention on larger gangs
that run drug rings and other criminal enterprises. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(11) STUDENT MISTAKENLY HELD ON DRUG CHARGE SETTLES WITH PHILA. (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Bryn Mawr College student wrongly jailed for three weeks on drug
charges by Philadelphia police has settled her civil-rights case for
$180,000. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Janet H. Lee, now a senior, was arrested at Philadelphia International Airport in 2003 after screeners found three condoms filled with white powder in her carry-on and city police said field tests showed that the substances likely contained opium and cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Lee was held in lieu of $500,000 bond for 21 days, until further
drug testing proved that her unlikely story - that the powder was
just flour - was true. | ||||||||||||||||||||
As part of an exam ritual in her dorm, Lee had filled the condoms
with flour to make a phallic toy that freshmen squeezed to reduce
stress. She had found it so funny that she had packed them to take
home to California to show friends after exams. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Lee's civil-rights case against the city had been scheduled for
trial today in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Everyone wants their day in court, so it was difficult" to settle,
in part because she will never know why the flour initially tested
positive for drugs, she said yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It's like everyone was at fault, but no one was responsible," Lee
said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(12) TEENS TO PROSECUTE, DEFEND AND JUDGE IN YOUTH DRUG COURT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Pascagoula - Young offenders will be be prosecuted, defended and judged by their peers in a new drug court in Jackson County. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Jim Yancey, executive director of the Jackson County Community
Coalition, said the project had been on the drawing board three
years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
A recent $37,366 grant from the Mississippi Department of Public
Safety's Office of Justice Program will allow the project to become
reality. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Jackson County Youth Court is a program partner. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"What happens is the judge oversees the process . The kids will have their cases heard by the judge and other teens," said Yancey. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Young non-offenders and offenders alike will be trained by attorneys
to fill the roles of lawyers, prosecutors, defenders and judges on
actual cases. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13-16) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
An oped published by a Michigan NORML member is a great rebuttal to the claim made last week by experts that cannabis is better in pill form. It is good to see that both sides are getting ink. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The reality of ten years of medical cannabis use in California
compared to the dire predictions of the drug warriors of the day is
depicted in another article that lends balance to the debate. Let's
keep them coming! | ||||||||||||||||||||
Reports of indoor "grow op" busts are so common in Canada, but not
so in the USA. We should expect that trend to change as America
comes to grips with its number one cash crop. | ||||||||||||||||||||
They tried fear, now British drug warriors are playing the guilt
card by telling cannabis consumers they fund criminal organizations
and conveniently overlook why consumers are forced to buy from
criminals instead of state regulated stores in the first place.
Although cannabis consumers worldwide have heard the same claim,
they are still waiting for a viable alternative. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(13) MARIJUANA HAS MEDICINAL VALUES LSJ DIDN'T REPORT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The LSJ's front page article, "Experts: Medical marijuana best as
pill" (Dec. 29) was almost entirely wrong. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Let's start with the headline: In fact, experts on medical marijuana are nearly unanimous that ingestion is the wrong way to administer marijuana's active components, called cannabinoids. In an extensive 2003 review, the medical journal The Lancet Neurology concluded, "Oral administration is probably the least satisfactory route for cannabis," because oral cannabinoids are absorbed slowly and unevenly, making proper dose adjustment nearly impossible. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
But smoking is not the only alternative. Devices called vaporizers
give patients using whole marijuana the advantages of inhalation -
fast action and ease of dose adjustment - without the tars and other
irritants in smoke. A study of one such device, published last year
in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, found it "a safe and
effective delivery system." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Yes, medical marijuana will help a comparatively small number of people: possibly you or someone you care about. Will you refuse the medicine that works, or risk going to jail for using it? If that seems wrong to you, it's time to change Michigan's laws. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(14) MEDICAL POT LAWS DON'T BLOW SMOKE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
When Proposition 215 appeared on the California ballot, political
leaders and pundits of all stripes urged voters to oppose it. They
made some dramatic predictions about what would happen if it passed.
Let's go back and see how right, or wrong, they were. | ||||||||||||||||||||
President Bill Clinton's drug czar, General Barry McCaffrey, was
blunt: Legal acceptance of the medical use of marijuana would "cause
drug abuse to increase among our children." | ||||||||||||||||||||
McCaffrey was wrong. The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance survey, done in conjunction with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, compared teen marijuana use in 1995 to 2003. It found an 11 percent decrease nationally in ninth-graders' frequent marijuana use (defined as use during the previous 30 days). But the decrease among California ninth-graders was a staggering 47 percent. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Only a relaxation of federal obstacles can encourage researchers,
physicians and more state legislatures to develop policies that can
bring the benefits of this much-misunderstood medicine to all
Americans. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(15) THE POWER BEHIND THE POT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
They looked like ordinary suburban homes. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In fact, police say, they were clandestine marijuana labs, each one hiding an intricate system of ventilation ducts, high-wattage lighting and enough stolen electricity to power a small high school. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Last month's blockbuster pot bust, believed to be the largest in New Hampshire history, revealed a web of high-tech marijuana farms in upscale neighborhoods across southern New Hampshire. Police cracked the ring open last month, raiding 11 houses in a single day. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Suspecting more labs are still hidden, Colantuono is asking for the
public's help. Neighbors should be vigilant, he said, and may be
right to be suspicious of new residents who are rarely seen, who
keep strange hours or who don't tend their lawns. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tips might also come from professionals who may be interacting with
the growers, such as real estate agents, mortgage brokers and people
who sell fertilizer, he said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"If there are more of these out there," he said, "we would like to
find them." | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(16) POLICE DRUGS CHIEF HITS OUT AT 'MORALLY IRRESPONSIBLE' CANNABIS (Top)HOMEGROWERS | ||||||||||||||||||||
ONE OF Scotland's most senior police officers has warned that
cannabis remains a dangerous drug, despite its reclassification, and
those who buy it are funding serious criminal activity such as human
trafficking. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Although the SDEA was created to tackle serious and organised crime,
Wood also warned police will be tough on households found to be
cultivating cannabis. She said: "Homegrowing has become more of an
issue, it is not something we are seeing decline. It is not a
harmless hobby by any means - it has a serious effect on the
community and on people round about them." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I would urge the public if they know someone who is engaging in
homegrowing to contact the police as the practice is not a hippy
throwback. It has serious repercussions." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Drugs experts said yesterday there was no evidence that cannabis use
has increased since it was reclassified. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Harry Shapiro, of the charity Drugscope, said while cannabis use "has not skyrocketed because of reclassification" it remains "one of the most popular drugs in the UK, especially with young people". | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (17-20) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Mexican President Calderon continues to wage "war" against what are
called cartels and organized criminals last week, striking against the
Tijuiana police. As predicted, the decentralized nature of the illegal
drug trade responded by splitting up into smaller groups. Last week's
Investor's Business Daily, while cheering the war against "lowlife
Mexican dopers", did admit, "It's happened before. In the 1980s, the
DEA crushed Colombian traffic rings in Miami and then watched them
move into northern Mexico." Confessed the DEA: "It's the way things
operate," he said. "Take enforcement one place and criminal
organizations move to other areas." | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Wall Street Journal last week excoriated Bolivian President Evo Morales as a "dictator" and willing dupe of Fidel Castro. All of this "naturally alarms Washington," writes Mary Anastasia O'Grady in the January 8th edition of the Journal, but fortunately (for bureaucrats and businesses growing fat on drug prohibition) "not enough to halt its war on drugs." President Morales, who got tremendous boosts in popularity when the U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia railed against him prior to his successful election, announced last month that he would double the amount of coca that could be legally grown by peasants. "This is where U.S. drug policy comes in. Railing against the Yankees who want to destroy peasant income has proven extremely effective in keeping the Morales base -- the country's indigenous coca growers who brought him to power -- energized and his numbers afloat." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Canadian Members of Parliament last week added their voices to a growing chorus of observers who wonder why don't western governments simply buy the opium crop from impoverished Afghan farmers? "The cost of purchasing poppies will be extensive, but 'it will be an awful lot cheaper than waging a war,' noted MP Keith Martin. "Unless we deal with that, the opium crop is the financial fuel for the Taliban and al-Qaida." Said MP Denise Savoie, "I'm told by many that have looked at it that there are many legal, medicinal uses for (poppies)." | ||||||||||||||||||||
And finally this week, we leave you with a piece from the The Age
newspaper in Australia. Despite perpetual media hysteria over the
latest drug "epidemic", remember this: the use of "drugs" to change
one's state of consciousness is "ancient,": according to
anthropologist David Mitchell. "Every society, going back to hunter-
gatherer days, uses drugs that affect the mental state... The Andean
Indians chew coca leaves to stave off hunger and give them the energy
to travel far at high altitudes, Native Americans use peyote to seek
spiritual knowledge, and Aborigines have used nicotine-like plants for
long-distance endurance." | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(17) MEXICO'S BIG WAR (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Last week Calderon dispatched 3,000 federal troops to Mexico's second-
worst crime haven, Tijuana -- where traffickers murdered 300 people in
2006 -- in a head-on confrontation with the enemy. This is Calderon's
second dispatch of troops to fight organized criminal mafias,
following a dispatch of 7,200 federal troops into crime-racked
Michoacan state in the south. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Yes, we think there's a connection. The governor of Sonora, the Mexican
state on Arizona's border, warned a day earlier that Calderon's march
to retake Tijuana could drive organized criminals eastward into his
state. Turns out, he was right. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In Washington, Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman Steven
Robertson agreed that the Arizona border attack may well be spillover
from the Tijuana crackdown. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It's the way things operate," he said. "Take enforcement one place
and criminal organizations move to other areas." | ||||||||||||||||||||
It's happened before. In the 1980s, the DEA crushed Colombian traffic
rings in Miami and then watched them move into northern Mexico --
where the drug war is being fought now. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Al-Qaida terrorists have been eyeing our unfortified order with interest for some time. They must be Looking at this rout of the U.S. military by mere lowlife Mexican dopers with pure fascination. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(18) COCA DEMOCRACY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Evo Morales is an anti-American extremist who wants to turn Bolivia
into another Venezuela. That naturally alarms Washington, but not
enough to halt its war on drugs, which is aiding the president -- and
leader of Bolivia's coca-growing peasant movement -- in his bid to
become a dictator. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
The process Fidel advised requires the slow dismantling of institutions
that act as checks on the executive while maintaining the guise of
democracy. This calls for healthy poll numbers even while the rule of
law is being trampled. Mr. Chavez had oil revenues to keep the masses
happy while he put a noose around democracy. But Evo isn't so fortunate
and he can't push through a constitutional coup without popular
backing. So to generate support he has relied heavily on his defense of
coca growers against a U.S. policy that presses countries in Latin
America to destroy their crops. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
This is where U.S. drug policy comes in. Railing against the Yankees who want to destroy peasant income has proven extremely effective in keeping the Morales base -- the country's indigenous coca growers who brought him to power -- energized and his numbers afloat. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He reaffirmed this last month. As his opposition swelled he suddenly
announced that he would authorize a near doubling of the number of
hectares that may legally produce coca. Then last week he inaugurated a
coca industrialization plant in the province of Cochabamba, financed by
his government along with Cuba and Venezuela. According to press
reports, Mr. Morales told the Cochabamba crowd that coca "never killed
anyone" and that the U.S. "should have a law to do away with drug
addicts." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Mr. Morales shouldn't wish too hard for that. If Washington policy makers ever decide to tackle the demand for cocaine and stop blaming supply, Mr. Morales's political career would be in jeopardy. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(19) AFGHANISTAN RULED BY THE POWER OF POPPIES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Liberal MP Suggests Alternatives to Destroying Critical Afghanistan
Crop | ||||||||||||||||||||
Opium is a key element of the current conflict in Afghanistan. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Opium poppies are now a form of livelihood for many farmers. But U.S. commanders with NATO forces have ordered poppy fields destroyed, sending farmers stripped of their livelihood straight to the Taliban. At least the Taliban and drug lords allow the farmers means to put food on the table, Liberal MP Keith Martin (Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca) said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The Americans only want to destroy more of the poppy crop, which
drives the subsistence farmers to the Taliban." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
That has only enriched and empowered the warlords and drug lords in
Afghanistan, creating more power struggles and conflicts, said NDP MP
Denise Savoie ( Victoria ). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Martin suggested that Western countries should purchase opium poppies,
and use those materials in the manufacture of legitimate opiate-based
pharmaceuticals. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
The cost of purchasing poppies will be extensive, but "it will be an
awful lot cheaper than waging a war," Martin said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Unless we deal with that, the opium crop is the financial fuel for the
Taliban and al-Qaida." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Conservative MP Gary Lunn (Saanich-Gulf Islands) did not wish to discuss the role of the opium crop in the ongoing conflict. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
"There's no easy answer and I'm not an expert, but I'm told by many
that have looked at it that there are many legal, medicinal uses for
(poppies)," she said, echoing Martin's thoughts. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"There would be, I am told, a way of dealing with it that could be channeled into a legal way that would not take away - and that's the key - that would not take away a farmer's only livelihood." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(20) ALTERED STATES 'ANCIENT HUMAN HOBBY' (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Says anthropologist and psychiatrist David Mitchell: "Every society,
going back to hunter-gatherer days, uses drugs that affect the mental
state." | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Andean Indians chew coca leaves to stave off hunger and give them
the energy to travel far at high altitudes, Native Americans use peyote
to seek spiritual knowledge, and Aborigines have used nicotine-like
plants for long-distance endurance. Most famously, Amazonian Indians
used the entire rainforest as a pharmacy. For at least 40 years,
international drug companies have been profitably exploiting that
knowledge. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Much of Dr Mitchell's research has been in Indonesia, where the betel
nut is chewed to stave off hunger, keep alert, lubricate social
meetings and, when taken in larger doses, aid sleep. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
While just about every social group in the world "has their favourite
drugs of social importance, there are always rules that govern
acceptable use that are always deeply embedded in the culture", he
says, including rules on behaviour when intoxicated. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Dr Moodie notes: "There are other prosperous societies who aren't
popping as many pills as we are. In amphetamine use, we are among the
global leaders. I'm not quite sure why that is. Are we just good-time
charlies? Or maybe we're just bored." | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
WARNING ISSUED OVER CANNABIS ADULTERATED WITH GLASS BEADS | ||||||||||||||||||||
Drug campaigners have warned that a batch of cannabis adulterated with
tiny glass beads which they say could pose a risk to health has flooded
the UK market. Anecdotal reports suggest it is being sold in almost
every part of the country. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
ETHAN NADELMANN OF THE DRUG POLICY ALLIANCE ON THE COLBERT REPORT | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=6902888107576712413&hl=en-CA | ||||||||||||||||||||
=== | ||||||||||||||||||||
DRUG WAR AND HUMAN RIGHTS RADIO/NET/TALK | ||||||||||||||||||||
January 13 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rob Ryan of Group 86 Cincinnati hosts the Amnesty International Hour
show. On this show we will be discussing the Drug War and Human Rights
Abuses with Laura Osborn-Coffey, Group 86 coordinator, Cecil Thomas
Cincinnati Councilman/retired City Police Officer and Jerry Cameron,
a retired Police Chief, and speaker for Law Enforcement Against
Prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.amnestyusa.org/events/midwestern/01132007grp86.html | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
NJ SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE HEARING ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA | ||||||||||||||||||||
Audio recording of a hearing held June 8, 2006 on SB 88, the New
Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act sponsored by Sen.
Nicholas Scutari (D-Linden). | ||||||||||||||||||||
The medical marijuana segment begins at about minute 16:00, and
continues for about two hours. Speakers include Sen. Scutari Dr. John
Morgan, Sharon Rainer, RN from NJSNA, Montel Williams and Scott Burns
from the ONDCP. | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://rmserver.njleg.state.nj.us/internet/2006/SHH/0608-0100PM-1.wma | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
2007 REGIONAL STUDENT DRUG TESTING SUMMITS | ||||||||||||||||||||
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) will
once again sponsor a series of regional summits to encourage middle-
school and high-school administrators to enact federally sponsored
random student drug testing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Here are some tips and tools for those able to attend: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
SPIDERS ON DRUGS (HUMOR) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
BECOME A MEDIA ACTIVIST | ||||||||||||||||||||
Check out the Media Activism Center of MAP, and help to influence
the media today. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
MUCH TO BE BLAMED ON DRUG WAR | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Ken Salzman | ||||||||||||||||||||
I agreed with the Chronicle's Dec. 24 editorial, "Merchants of
corruption," that corruption is a cancer that can "undermine whole
societies, including our own." I also agreed that the obscene
profits generated by trafficking in illegal drugs and which fund
much of the corruption is our own problem. But it is not "fed by
American vices." On the contrary. | ||||||||||||||||||||
This problem is a direct result of the U.S. policy of drug
prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Many experts assert that 95 percent of U.S. drug-related problems
are caused by the war against drugs. Most people would probably be
at a loss to define the objective of the war on drugs. And as to its
success? According to government reports, illegal drugs are now
cheaper, more readily available and purer than ever. According to a
20-year survey of 12- to 18-year-olds conducted by the University of
Michigan, it is easier to obtain marijuana than beer. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Then consider the fact that marijuana is prohibited -- and beer is
regulated. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The United States imprisons nearly 500,000 of our citizens on
drug-related charges. This is 100,000 more than the total prison
population of the European Union -- and the population of the EU is
100 million greater than that of the United States. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And 60 percent of this U.S. population is incarcerated for
possession of small amounts of marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Does any of this make sense to the average American? | ||||||||||||||||||||
The war against drugs is strictly a political exercise. And nothing
is going to change until we, the people, give politicians the
backbone to say, "This isn't working." | ||||||||||||||||||||
We should each let our state representatives know that we support
"getting smarter" about the U.S. drug policies. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ken Salzman | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
THE TIME HAS COME TO STOP THE WAR AND REFORM OUR DRUG POLICIES | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Robert L. Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||
The time has come for peace talks in the war on drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It's not time to cut and run or to declare victory and head home.
Nor is it time to encourage or tolerate violations of existing law.
Instead, it's time to devise an intelligent exit strategy, one that
includes consideration of a regulated public health approach to
drugs instead of our current criminal justice model. | ||||||||||||||||||||
As a career prosecutor, I see strong indications that our
enforcement model may actually be counterproductive to public and
personal safety. Violence spawned by the war on drugs continues to
plague our communities. Violence exists in the form of assaults and
murder by drug sellers as a result of deals gone awry or territorial
disputes. | ||||||||||||||||||||
We see violence in the form of robberies and burglaries by users
stealing money or guns to purchase or trade for drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And, to a much lesser extent, we see random violence caused by drug-impaired people unwilling or unable to control their behavior. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Drug policy reform, to include regulated access to drugs, could
substantially reduce all three types of drug crimes. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Any inquiry into drug policy must answer five critical questions: 1) If we are serious about addressing substance abuse, why do we treat addicts as criminals? 2) Given the addictive and dangerous nature of certain drugs, why do we allow criminals to control their distribution - -- criminals with a financial interest in finding new customers and keeping others addicted? 3) Why does this newspaper ( Editorial Dec. 6, 2006) reject a regulatory approach to drugs yet we regulate alcohol and tobacco, two highly addictive and dangerous substances? 4) If a regulatory approach would increase health care costs, would those costs be more than offset by savings in the criminal justice system? and, 5) If our current approach is working, why have drug use, potency, arrest, and incarceration rates increased and not decreased as enforcement expenditures have gone | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
What about young people and access to drugs? | ||||||||||||||||||||
Would a regulatory approach result in an increase in use by those
most susceptible to the damaging effects of drugs? | ||||||||||||||||||||
Maybe, but not necessarily so. Many adolescents will tell you it is
easier to get marijuana than it is to get alcohol. | ||||||||||||||||||||
This suggests a regulatory approach might contain drug use by
minors. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Moreover, if we intelligently reallocated criminal justice dollars into education and drug prevention, we might minimize the allure of these "forbidden fruits" and not see an escalation in drug use. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Drug policy reform should appeal to a broad political spectrum. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Reform would allow us to treat addicts more compassionately and
effectively. It would remove government from the private choices of
adults. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And it could result in substantial savings by reducing criminal
justice and correctional expenditures. To suggest that proposing
reform is tantamount to "being soft on drugs" is to reduce a highly
complex issue into a one-dimensional catch phrase. | ||||||||||||||||||||
We can, and must, be more thoughtful than that. | ||||||||||||||||||||
There are no easy answers in the drug policy debate. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And certainly there are more questions to be asked than those raised
above. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But we must ask the questions. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And we must ask them not only of our state elected officials and
policy makers but also of our congressional delegation. The drug
problem is both a state and federal issue. | ||||||||||||||||||||
With the recent elections, Vermont now has substantial power in the
Congress -- power that can bring resources to the state but also
power that can influence change. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Even if Vermonters sought a bold and courageous new approach to drug
policy, the federal government might seek to stifle innovation. The
states and the federal government must try to work in partnership on
these issues. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The war on drugs is a war on people. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The time has come to discuss a better approach to this vexing
problem. | ||||||||||||||||||||
I look forward to the discussion. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Robert L. Sand is Windsor County state's attorney. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
"You don't want to give kids an idea that they might not have thought
of." -- John Walters | ||||||||||||||||||||
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