| March 30, 2007 #492 | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||
Table of Contents
| ||||||||||||||||
THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
(1) ALCOHOL TOLL BADLY UNDERESTIMATED, STUDY SAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Illicit Drug Dangers Get More Attention From Public
| ||||||||||||||||
OTTAWA - Days after the federal government unveiled a budget that
earmarked $64-million for a national anti-drug strategy, a new report
says the social and economic costs associated with alcohol are twice
as high as those racked up by illegal drug use. | ||||||||||||||||
The study says Canadians have an exaggerated view of the harm
associated with illegal drugs, possibly fuelled by vivid media
reports, and the emphasis given the subject by police organizations,
political leaders and policy-makers. | ||||||||||||||||
The study, released yesterday by the Canadian Centre on Substance
Abuse, suggests anti-drug strategies should include alcohol as a
significant part of the equation. | ||||||||||||||||
The study said the economic and social costs of alcohol abuse reached
$7.4-billion in 2002, more than twice the $3.6-billion associated with
illicit drug use. | ||||||||||||||||
But Canadians' perceptions of the two problems were out of proportion
with those figures, the study found. | ||||||||||||||||
It said that while only 25% of Canadians identified alcohol abuse as
"very serious" national problem, 45% felt illicit drug use was "very
serious."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
The report comes after the minority Conservative government, building
on its law-and-order agenda, announced plans in its March 19 budget to
spend $64- million over the next two years to combat the use of
illegal drugs. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
The anti-drug money builds on existing program and initiatives worth
$385-million, some of which are aimed at tackling alcohol abuse. All
of the new money, however, is aimed at cracking down on illegal drugs
by targeting marijuana-growing operations and clandestine
methamphetamine labs and gangs and by beefing up investigative
resources. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(2) BARR SHIFTS IN SUPPORT OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Washington -- Bob Barr, a former Georgia Republican congressman and
anti-drug crusader, has become a lobbyist for the Marijuana Policy
Project. | ||||||||||||||||
The switch marks the latest chapter in the surprising evolution of the
four-term lawmaker from Georgia's 7th District since he lost his seat
in 2002. | ||||||||||||||||
Once termed "the worst drug warrior" on Capitol Hill by the
Libertarian Party, Barr joined the Libertarians last year because, he
said, of the GOP's move "toward big government and disregard toward
privacy and civil liberties."
| ||||||||||||||||
Barr's move puts him in the unusual position of lobbying to overturn a
law he sponsored. | ||||||||||||||||
In 1999, Congress passed a spending bill for the District of Columbia
that included the so-called "Barr Amendment," which blocked the
District from allowing medical marijuana use even though 69 percent of
voters had approved a measure to legalize it. | ||||||||||||||||
Barr declined to comment for this story, but told the Politico
publication that "in light of the tremendous growth of government
power since 9/11, it has forced me and other conservatives to go back
and take a renewed look at how big and powerful we want the government
to be in people's lives."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(3) CORRUPTING GUARDS EASY, SAYS EX-INMATE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Allegations coming out of the Rimutaka Prison corruption scandal
reflect a reality that has been going on for years, a former prisoner
says. | ||||||||||||||||
"I'm just surprised anyone is surprised," he told The Dominion Post
yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||
Corrections need only look at items seized in past prison searches to
see there was a problem. "Prisoners had DVD players. How did they
think something like that got in there?"
| ||||||||||||||||
He said he could easily imagine how convicted rapist Peter McNamara
got sperm out of the prison for his wife to be artificially
inseminated. Searches were rigorous for people entering the prison,
but lax when staff and workgangs were going out. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
He doubted the current investigation would result in long-term
changes. "It's just something they can make a show of dealing with at
the moment."
| ||||||||||||||||
Eleven prison guards have been suspended and the Wellington prisons boss stood down, but guards say corruption investigators have not found "the really big fish" in the Rimutaka corruption scandal. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
The former prisoner said he had seen people who had started work at
the prison for the right reasons and wanted to do a good job, but none
had lasted more than a year. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(4) HOUSE REJECTS USE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
CONCORD - The House voted by a narrow margin yesterday to reject a
bill that would have allowed patients to use marijuana for relief of
painful symptoms. | ||||||||||||||||
HB 774 would have allowed a person who obtained a doctor's certificate to possess seven marijuana plants and 3 ounces of dried marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||
The bill was killed on a 186-177 vote, despite pleas from some House
members, including a cancer survivor, to pass it. The bill applies to
any patient suffering what it says are "debilitating medical
conditions." Opponents said that immunizing patients from state
prosecution would pit state law against federal law that bars
possession or use. | ||||||||||||||||
Rep. Evelyn Merrick, D-Lancaster, said she still suffers the lingering
effects of cancer treatment. | ||||||||||||||||
During chemotherapy after a bone transplant, she said, "no acceptable
pain killer, drug or remedy of any kind afforded relief. The treatment
was often worse than the disease."
| ||||||||||||||||
Rep. Joseph Miller, D-Durham, a retired physician, argued against
legalization. | ||||||||||||||||
"Marijuana is not a real medicine which is disease specific, nor is it
a pure substance," he said. It is often contaminated with pesticides
and microbes, he said. | ||||||||||||||||
"I, too, am distressed by end-of-life suffering, but there are an
abundance of other drugs," Miller said. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy
| ||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
The current war on methamphetamine is working so well that one county wants to sue psuedoephedrine makers. County officials apparently see meth turning into the cash cow that tobacco has become for state governments. Is this the path to drug reform? It certainly isn't the path to cold relief, as the primary replacement for psuedoephedrine is turning out to be virtually worthless. In Maryland, lawmakers narrowly defeated a measure that would have made second time drug offenders eligible for parole. And Bill O'Reilly flaunts his ignorance, this week in regard to medical marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(5) COUNTY TAKES ON DRUG GIANTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Independence County is taking a bold legal step. | ||||||||||||||||
The county is suing a pair of pharmaceutical giants as well as some
other distributors and makers of products containing ephedrine and
psuedoephedrine, both of which are used in the production of
methamphetamine. The purpose of the suit, which was filed in circuit
court Wednesday afternoon, is to recoup damages that the county has
incurred while combating meth use and addiction. | ||||||||||||||||
"Well we all know what a horrendous problem this is," Independence
County Judge Bill Hicks said. "We've fought it for many years and
something needs to be done."
| ||||||||||||||||
So using the "guidance" of the tobacco lawsuits that culminated in the multi-state tobacco settlement of 1998, the suit names Pfizer Inc., PDK Labs Inc., Warner Lambert, Johnson & Johnson, Perrigo Company, American Novelties and Cliff McQuay, Cliff McQuay Jr. and Ellen McQuay of Cliff McQuay Sales Company as defendants. | ||||||||||||||||
The suit contends that these defendants and others that may be
discovered through the course of the suit, have "knowingly sold far
in excess of the amount necessary for any legitimate use to
producers of the illicit drug methamphetamine."
| ||||||||||||||||
The county contends that the defendants "have been aware of the fact that ephedrine and psuedoephedrine from their products is used to manufacture methamphetamine." It further contends that "the county incurs significant costs treating this addiction and its side effects. These costs include, but are not limited to, treating users to overcome their addiction and treating the physical side effects of use, and investigating and remediating theft and violent actions taken by those using methamphetamine against law-abiding citizens." | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
While at press time most of the defendants had not returned phone
calls seeking comment, a representative at Priggo noted that the
company was ahead of efforts to put its products behind the counter
and that the representative would have more information after
consulting the firm's lawyers. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(6) NEW COLD MEDICINES CAUSING HEADACHES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Nikole Wilson-Ripsom and her son were stuffed up. | ||||||||||||||||
Not just any stuffed up, either. They were major league, big time,
plague of locusts, Bay Bridge at rush hour, congested. | ||||||||||||||||
So she tried her usual tricks, one by one. She gave her son some
Delsym. On herself she used a water-cleansing neti pot. Then a
menthol and eucalyptus steam. Then a little dab of Vicks under the
nose. Then a bit of Euphorbium, a homeopathic nasal spray. Then
Afrin Extreme Congestion 12 Hour Spray. | ||||||||||||||||
None of it worked. For either of them.
| ||||||||||||||||
So congested that she couldn't even swallow chicken soup,
Wilson-Ripsom brought out the big guns: the Sudafed. | ||||||||||||||||
She took one and waited 20 minutes, then 30 minutes, then 40
minutes, then an hour. But it didn't work. So then she took another.
And still, no relief. | ||||||||||||||||
On a lark, Wilson-Ripsom looked at the box. Something wasn't right.
This wasn't Sudafed. This was Sudafed PE. Instead of
| ||||||||||||||||
It didn't take a chemistry degree for Wilson-Ripsom to figure out
what was wrong. | ||||||||||||||||
"The new decongestants are crap," says Wilson-Ripsom, of Oakland.
"They're appallingly ineffective."
| ||||||||||||||||
Indeed, with the cold, allergy and flu season under way, the growing
consensus is that the nation's reformulated cold medicines don't
work. | ||||||||||||||||
And that's not even the worst of it. Though pseudoephedrine can still be purchased legally -- by showing identification and abiding by monthly federal quantity limits of the drug -- pharmacies are inconsistent in how they choose to dispense the medicine, sometimes restricting consumers to amounts well below what they're entitled. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(7) BILL ON DRUG OFFENDERS FAILS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Delegates Vote Against Making Second-Time Felons Eligible for Parole | ||||||||||||||||
After a fierce debate in which some lawmakers raised concerns about
the effectiveness of the nation's war on drugs, the Maryland House
of Delegates defeated by one vote a bill to allow some second-time
drug offenders to become eligible for parole. | ||||||||||||||||
Lawmakers opposing the measure, which failed 68-69, said it would
reward drug dealers and gang members while making communities more
dangerous. | ||||||||||||||||
"They are going to get more lenient treatment under the provision of
this bill," said Del Anthony J. O'Donnell, the House minority leader
from Southern Maryland. "I suggest our citizens are not willing to
hand down rewards for drug dealers who are preying on our children.
This is bad policy, serious bad policy."
| ||||||||||||||||
Del. Curtis S. Anderson, a Baltimore Democrat and lead sponsor of the measure, said the bill was written to offer a treatment option to low-level drug offenders, many of whom tend to be drug users. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(8) COLUMN: IF MARIJUANA CAN HELP THE SICK, LET DOCTORS PRESCRIBE IT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
It seemed like a good idea at the time, the Compassionate Use Act of
1996, which allowed Californians to use marijuana with a doctor's
permission to alleviate pain. The act was put on the ballot, and
California voters passed it 56 percent to 44 percent. | ||||||||||||||||
The biggest bankroller of the referendum was George Soros, the
secular-progressive billionaire who champions drug legalization. He
pumped about $350,000 into ads promoting the legalization of medical
use of marijuana, according to published reports. | ||||||||||||||||
Since the act was passed into law, thousands of pot "clinics" have
opened across the Golden State. In San Francisco, things got so out
of control that Mayor Gavin Newsom, a very liberal guy, had to close
many of the clinics because drug addicts were clustering around
them, causing fear among city residents. | ||||||||||||||||
In San Diego, there's another problem. Some high school kids have
found a loophole in the Compassion Act. Incredibly, there is no age
requirement to secure medical marijuana in California, and no
physical examination needed either. So some kids tell a doctor they
have a headache, pay him $150 for a card, and then can buy all the
pot they want. Unbelievable, but true.
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
Law Enforcement & Prisons
| ||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
In Pennsylvania, some good questions are being raised as
election-season dirt is thrown in a local sheriff's race. At issue:
where has the sheriff been spending all those federal anti-meth
dollars? Also last week, two separate state supreme courts ruled
against police in drug search cases; and the DEA (with the help of
their stenographer at USA Today) warned of sweet, tasty, sugary
meth. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(9) SOLICITOR EXAMINING SHERIFF'S GRANT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Bradford County solicitor Jonathan Foster reported Thursday that he is looking into the federal grant received by the sheriff's office to combat the local methamphetamine problem in the area. | ||||||||||||||||
Foster said that he would probably be able to provide a legal
opinion about the grant in about a week. The solicitor said he has
already contacted the sheriff's office on the matter, but has not
yet received a reply from the sheriff. | ||||||||||||||||
Bradford County Sheriff Steve Evans applied for the $246,000 grant
in August 2006 to assist his office in certain anti-methamphetamine
efforts. The grant was eventually received through Congressman Don
Sherwood's office. | ||||||||||||||||
However, the matter recently became a campaign issue when former
Troy police Chief Greg Hostettler -- who is running as a Republican
candidate in the May primary against Evans -- claimed that the
sheriff had "misrepresented" certain facts when he applied for the
grant. Hostettler has contended that Evans indicated in the grant
application that the money would be used by his office for law
enforcement in regards to methamphetamine. Hostettler has insisted
that -- according to certain cases in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court
- -- a sheriff and deputies cannot be considered law enforcement
officials. Hostettler has also pointed out that the Bradford County
Sheriff's office has -- since 2004 -- been prohibited by the
district attorney and Pennsylvania Attorney General's office from
filing criminal cases. | ||||||||||||||||
Evans responded to Hostettler's contentions by saying they were
"false," explaining that his office had assisted the Pennsylvania
Attorney General's office until around September 2006. The sheriff
also insisted that his office still has the authority to make
drug-related arrests, explaining that he and has deputies have been
working with the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration for the
past six months. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(10) WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT: VEHICLE SEARCH WAS ILLEGAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
MADISON, Wis. ( AP ) -- Police shouldn't have searched a man during a traffic stop simply because they saw him reach under the front seat and he fell down, the state Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||
The court said those actions weren't enough to support officers'
claim that they believed Gary Johnson was hiding a weapon or drugs.
Its 5-2 decision affirmed a 2005 appeals court ruling that reversed
his conviction on a drug charge. | ||||||||||||||||
"Given the circumstances, there was no reasonable grounds to believe
he was armed and dangerous," said Johnson's attorney, Eileen Hirsch.
"He's one very happy client today."
| ||||||||||||||||
The case stems from a November 2003 traffic stop in Racine. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(11) WARRANTLESS DRUG SEARCH UNCONSTITUTIONAL, SUPREME COURT SAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
CHEYENNE -- Drugs found in a Cheyenne man's trailer should not have been admitted as evidence at his trial because the warrantless search was unconstitutional, the Wyoming Supreme Court has ruled. | ||||||||||||||||
The court opinion, released late Friday, reversed the conviction of
Jeremy Fenton, who had entered a conditional plea of guilty to
possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. | ||||||||||||||||
The condition preserved his right to appeal a ruling by Laramie
County District Court Judge Peter Arnold denying his motion to
suppress evidence found and statements made during a search of his
home. | ||||||||||||||||
The Supreme Court, in an opinion written by Justice William Hill,
said the state failed to prove the search that disclosed the
evidence which was the basis for the charge against Benton was
reasonable under the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and
the Wyoming Constitution. | ||||||||||||||||
Hill's opinion quoted the amendment that protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures and case law because we wish to make clear that the issue presented in a case such as this is one of the most important known to Anglo-American jurisprudence. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(12) DEA SEES FLAVORED METH USE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Trend May Be Effort to Lure Young Market
| ||||||||||||||||
Reports of candy-flavored methamphetamine are emerging around the nation, stirring concern among police and abuse-prevention experts that drug dealers are marketing the drug to younger people. | ||||||||||||||||
The flavored crystals are available in California, Nevada,
Washington, Idaho, Texas, New Mexico, Missouri and Minnesota,
according to intelligence gathered by Drug Enforcement
| ||||||||||||||||
"Drug traffickers are trying to lure in new customers, no matter what their age, by making the meth seem less dangerous," he said. | ||||||||||||||||
Methamphetamine, a highly addictive stimulant, is usually a white or
brownish, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that dissolves in water.
It is usually smoked or snorted. | ||||||||||||||||
Among the new flavors are strawberry, known as "Strawberry Quick,"
chocolate, cola and other sodas, Robertson said. One agent reported
a red methamphetamine that had been marketed as a powdered form of
an energy drink, he said. | ||||||||||||||||
A patrol officer who stopped a car on Feb. 13 in a rural area of
Greene County, Mo., seized a bag of "strawberry meth" from a female
passenger, said Capt. Randy Gibson of the Greene County Sheriff's
Department. The seized drug had a slight strawberry smell to it, he
said. | ||||||||||||||||
Greene County deputies have seized colored meth before, Gibson said.
Several years ago, blue methamphetamine, known as "Smurf dope"
circulated in the area, Gibson said. | ||||||||||||||||
"It was nothing more than one of the local meth cooks taking a great
deal of pride in his purity," Gibson said. "He ground up blue chalk
to color it so he could market it as his."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
Cannabis & Hemp-
| ||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13-16) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
This weeks reality check begins with a rallying cry from disability
advocate, Sarah Margaret in Hawai'i, who had some hard hitting facts
about the reality of prejudicing the sick. She urges taxpayers to
take action against funding Green Harvest - the program that helps
to criminalize the sick who choose cannabis medicine. | ||||||||||||||||
More reality was brought to us courtesy of a UK journalist published
in a prominent paper that refutes the data published last week by
the UK tabloid, Independent on Sunday (IOS). It was the basis of an
apology for their long standing pro-legalization stance. Noting that
the science card gets played to back virtually any argument, the
rest of the research indicates the IOS data was manipulated to
exaggerate the strength of THC content. Along with the behind the
scenes agendas that finance and/or push studies into the limelight,
people are not sure what to believe anymore. | ||||||||||||||||
Rebellious Aussies down under seem to believe they should not be penalized at all for partaking of a particular herb, and are refusing to pay a $200 fine associated with cannabis offences limited to 30g or less of cannabis, two marijuana plants or a smoking implement. Despite being able to ditch any fine by attending a one hour education session, a whopping 30% ignores that offer too. | ||||||||||||||||
Green with envy is the only way to describe the reality of U.S. farmers who look longingly over the northern border to watch their Canadian counterparts celebrate 10 years of successfully growing hemp. Senator Lorna Milne, a frontwoman credited for making the hemp industry a reality, believes, "As long as oil prices continue to increase, it's looking better and better for the hemp industry." | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(13) SAY 'NO' TO GREEN HARVEST, 'YES' TO MEDICAL MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
Allowing public funds to go to the war on marijuana violates many
civil rights laws, for example:
| ||||||||||||||||
* Propaganda by the government against this medicine violates the
Americans with Disabilities Act by causing others -- the patient's
family, friends, employers and community -- to discriminate against
people with disabilities who have the right to use marijuana to
treat their medical condition. | ||||||||||||||||
* Not only do patients have the right to use, possess and grow
marijuana in 11 states, they have this right through the ADA of
1990. According to this act and the Rehabilitation Rights Act of
| ||||||||||||||||
* By imprisoning growers, suppliers of growing equipment and
distributors, we are illegally coercing and threatening people with
disabilities, their families, their medical doctors and providers,
further violating the ADA of 1990. | ||||||||||||||||
* People who are interfering with the legalization of medical
marijuana should understand fully that they are, in fact, personally
contributing to discriminating against, threatening, isolating and
harming people with disabilities. They are causing families to turn
against family members with disabilities, further isolating and
harming these patients with disabilities. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(14) CHERRY PICKING DATA TO PROVE A POINT ABOUT CANNABIS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
Last week's Independent on Sunday splashed with the headline:
Cannabis - An Apology. It went on: "In 1997 this newspaper launched
a campaign to decriminalise the drug. If only we had known then what
we can reveal today .. record numbers of teenagers are requiring
drug treatment as a result of smoking skunk, the highly potent
cannabis strain that is 25 times stronger than resin sold a decade
ago."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
Well I've got the Forensic Science Service data right here, and the
earlier data from the Laboratory of the Government Chemist, the UN
Drug Control Programme, and the EU's Monitoring Centre for Drugs and
Drug Addiction. I think that people are well able to make their own
minds up when given true facts. | ||||||||||||||||
The LGC data on mean potency goes from 1975 to 1989. Resin pootles
around between 6% and 10% THC, herbal between 4% and 6%, with no
clear trend. The Forensic Science Service data takes over to produce
more modern figures, showing not much change in resin, and
domestically produced indoor herbal cannabis doubling in strength to
between 12% and 14%. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
To get their scare figure, the Independent compared the worst
cannabis from the past with the best cannabis of today. But you
could have cooked the books the same way 30 years ago: in 1975 the
weakest herbal cannabis analysed was 0.2%; in 1978 the strongest was
12%. Oh my god: in just three years herbal cannabis has become 60
times stronger. This scare isn't new. In the US, in the mid 1980s,
during Reagan's "war on drugs", it was claimed that cannabis was 14
times stronger than in 1970. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(15) CANNABIS OFFENDERS SNUB FINES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
CANNABIS offenders are refusing to pay their fines. More than 30 per
cent of offenders have ignored fines or refused to complete a
cannabis education session since WA introduced softer cannabis laws
three years ago. | ||||||||||||||||
Of 9563 people issued with cannabis infringement notices since then, 4879 were referred to the Fines Enforcement Agency because they didn't pay fines or attend a one-hour counselling session. | ||||||||||||||||
And 3079 of them have escaped scot-free. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
"How can we teach children and young people about the dangers of
illicit drug use when we have such soft laws with respect to
cannabis, a drug seen as a gateway to harder drugs?
| ||||||||||||||||
"There is growing evidence of a link between cannabis use and the
incidence of severe mental health problems. | ||||||||||||||||
"Alan Carpenter must stop sending the wrong message to the community, particularly kids, that it is OK to smoke pot." | ||||||||||||||||
Under WA law, people caught with 30g or less of cannabis, two
marijuana plants or a smoking implement have a choice of paying a
fine of up to $200 or attending counselling. | ||||||||||||||||
A three-year review of cannabis legislation is expected to be tabled
in parliament in November. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(16) DECADE OF LEGALIZED INDUSTRIAL HEMP CELEBRATED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
Canada's hemp industry is far from the initial struggle it was with
10 years ago. | ||||||||||||||||
Though attitudes have changed about hemp and its many uses, there
are new challenges facing the growing market. | ||||||||||||||||
For one, it is difficult to get backing from banks for start-up
costs for hemp projects. As well, though hemp in fibre form has a
plethora of uses, its strong make-up makes processing the fibre into
products difficult. | ||||||||||||||||
"But the OHA is researching different and more efficient ways to
harvest the fibre," she said. | ||||||||||||||||
The senator also received questions or concerns on how the Canadian market will compete when the U.S. finally gets licensed to grow it. | ||||||||||||||||
But she's positive that Canada is up to the challenge. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
International News
| ||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (17-20) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Authoritarians in the Russian Duma (parliament) and elsewhere hailed a prospective new bill to force-treat "young drug addicts" the Moscow Times newspaper reported this week. "On average, one drug user gets 12 to 15 people to try drugs within a year," revealed bill supporter and Duma Deputy Valentina Ivanova, who also favors the forced-testing of all school children. While such a dragnet may be profitable for some, others note that "addiction" is defined broadly: in the proposed new laws, there's no distinction "between people who use drugs once or twice and those who are addicted." | ||||||||||||||||
The Daily Times in Pakistan this week reported that NATO leaders are
considering "legalisation of the drug trade" in neighboring
Afghanistan. "We are not bringing drug cultivation under control
with the concepts we have had up to now," realized one NATO general.
While the U.S. "prefers destroying" (poppy crops), this strategy
backfires badly, and bumper crops have been grown since the U.S.
invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. | ||||||||||||||||
Two different Canadian perspectives on the medical journal Lancet's
study of the use of drugs by young people. The Globe and Mail
emphasized the "alarming toll", the number of young people (people
for this statistic were considered "young" if under 29) who "died
from the use of alcohol or illicit drugs." The Victoria
Times-Colonist (in pot-friendly British Columbia), on the other
hand, played up the finding of the study that "the prohibition model
doesn't restrict its availability to young people; it appears to
encourage it," with the headline, "Legalize Drugs, Says UVic
Researcher." And the drug most responsible for the "alarming toll"?
That would be alcohol, which "causes 31.5 per cent of all deaths in
those between ages 15 and 29," revealed the Colonist. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(17) YOUNG DRUG ADDICTS FACE FORCED THERAPY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
ST. PETERSBURG -- Proposed legislation to force young drug addicts
into treatment is stirring up an outcry from doctors, who call the
bill the wrong solution to a growing problem. | ||||||||||||||||
The bill, which the State Duma is expected to start debating soon,
would enable schools to send children to treatment centers without
their parents' consent. The final decision in each case would be
left up to a judge. | ||||||||||||||||
Duma Deputy Valentina Ivanova, a supporter of the bill, said urgent
steps needed to be taken to separate children who use drugs from
those who do not. | ||||||||||||||||
"On average, one drug user gets 12 to 15 people to try drugs within a year," Ivanova told reporters in St. Petersburg late last week. | ||||||||||||||||
She said all schoolchildren and older students should be required to
undergo tests to make sure they are drug-free. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
"Treating a sick man like a criminal and placing him
| ||||||||||||||||
"We live in a country that claims to be a developing democracy, and
we need to make sure that we solve our problems with tools and
programs that don't contradict democratic principles," he said.
"Punishment without a crime is unacceptable."
| ||||||||||||||||
More important, said Maria Matskevich, senior researcher with the Institute of Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the proposed legislation does not make a clear distinction between people who use drugs once or twice and those who are addicted. | ||||||||||||||||
"Needless to say, it would be damaging to stick everyone in the same
boat," she said. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(18) NATO CONSIDERS LEGALISING AFGHAN OPIUM (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
"Governments in Berlin, Paris and Rome, along with NATO leadership
are discussing a potentially explosive new idea: the legalisation of
Afghanistan's opium production. The plan envisages farmers being
able to sell their poppies to officially licensed buyers for the
same price they currently get from the drug barons. The product
could then be sold to the pharmaceutical industry for pain
medication and other products," says the report. | ||||||||||||||||
"We are not bringing drug cultivation under control with the
concepts we have had up to now," the magazine quoted a NATO general
responsible for Afghanistan as saying. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
The UN suspects that many in the Afghan government may be complicit
in the opium trade. Afghan President Hamid Karzai's brother is
likewise suspect. | ||||||||||||||||
So far, the coalition forces and the Afghan government have focused
on trying to eradicate the poppies used to produce opium and heroin
and attempting to convince poor farmers to plant something else. The
U.S. likewise prefers destroying poppy crops. The strategy, though,
has served to force many desperate farmers into the arms of the
Taliban. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(19) REPORT SUGGESTS WAYS TO CURB SUBSTANCE ABUSE BY YOUNG PEOPLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
VANCOUVER -- A study published yesterday in the medical journal Lancet suggests a number of ways to curb substance by young people. | ||||||||||||||||
More than 300,000 people worldwide between the ages of 15 and 29
died from the use of alcohol or illicit drugs in 2000, according to
University of Victoria researcher Tim Stockwell and John Toumbourou
of Deakin University in Australia. | ||||||||||||||||
Their team surveyed the leading methods of prevention and
intervention for substance abuse by young people to determine what
actually works. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
"Controls on price, usually through taxation, are among the
interventions with the highest evidence for effectiveness in
reducing levels of harm in the population, especially for young
people," the study said. | ||||||||||||||||
That conclusion leads Dr. Stockwell to wonder if that type of model
is necessary for the sale of cannabis in Canada. | ||||||||||||||||
"The prohibition model doesn't restrict its availability to young
people; it appears to encourage it," he said. | ||||||||||||||||
"We'd probably have a better handle on the problem if it was taxed
and sold under very restrictive circumstances and if there were
public campaigns to reduce its attractiveness, particularly to young
people."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
(20) LEGALIZE DRUGS, SAYS UVIC RESEARCHER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Regulation Of Marijuana, Ecstasy Would Reduce Youth Death Toll, He
Says
| ||||||||||||||||
Marijuana and ecstasy pose a serious health threat to youth, but by
making these drugs legal we'd be better able to regulate and control
their use, a UVic researcher said yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||
"We're doing a much better job of regulating tobacco than we are the
illegal drugs," Dr. Tim Stockwell, a UVic psychology professor and
director with the Centre for Addictions Research of B.C., said in an
interview. | ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
"We may need to think about making some borderline illegal drugs,
like cannabis and ecstasy, legal so they can be better regulated and
controlled."
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
- - Alcohol causes 31.5 per cent of all deaths in those between ages
15 and 29
| ||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
UNDERSTANDING ADDICTION
| ||||||||||||||||
By John Hoffman
| ||||||||||||||||
Three years ago Sheila Nevins, president of HBO Documentary Films,
asked me to research and produce what has become the HBO series,
Addiction, which premiered Thursday, March 15th and can be seen
online anytime at http://hbo.com/addiction
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
ETHICS AND DRUG POLICY
| ||||||||||||||||
By Alex Wodak
| ||||||||||||||||
During the 20th century, support for a deontological approach to illicit drugs grew steadily. As a deontological framework was invoked, how goals were accomplished was considered more important than what was achieved. Accordingly, global drug prohibition was considered right even though illicit drug production and consumption, deaths, disease, crime and official corruption increased steadily. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
SUPERCASINOS, DRUGS AND ALCOHOL PROHIBITION
| ||||||||||||||||
More than a whiff of ministerial hypocrisy
| ||||||||||||||||
The sex industry, the drugs industry, and the gambling industry: Governments have always struggled with how to regulate certain pleasure seeking behaviors, especially when they clash with religious concepts of sin, which sex, drugs and gambling usually do. | ||||||||||||||||
http://transform-drugs.blogspot.com/2007/03/supercasinos-drugs-and-alcohol.html | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
COMPARING THE PERCEIVED SERIOUSNESS AND ACTUAL COSTS OF SUBSTANCE
| ||||||||||||||||
Public perceptions about the seriousness of substance abuse are not
consistent with actual costs, says new report by the Canadian Centre
on Substance Abuse. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
DAMAGE DONE - THE DRUG WAR ODYSSEY
| ||||||||||||||||
After 30 years of drug war, illegal narcotics are decreasing in price,
increasing in purity and demand continues to surge. The heroes of this
film are veterans of the drug war and they urge us to consider ending
drug prohibition. They have had a complete revolution in their
thinking. Now they are working to end the War on Drugs. Find out what
happened to change their minds. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
The "Homegrown" documentary about the world's largest pot rally ...
the Seattle Hempfest. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
SPECIAL FRIDAY EDITION OF MAP'S MEDIA ACTIVISM ROUNDTABLE
| ||||||||||||||||
Fri. March 30 /07, 10:00 p.m. ET
| ||||||||||||||||
Join leading hearts and minds from the drug policy reform movement as we discuss ways to write Letters to the Editor that get printed. | ||||||||||||||||
Discussion is conducted via the TeamSpeak voicechat and text messaging
program. See http://mapinc.org/resource/teamspeak/ for full details
on the easy, free download.
| ||||||||||||||||
Questions? Contact Steve Heath directly at | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
RESEARCH IS CLEAR ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA
| ||||||||||||||||
By David Lang
| ||||||||||||||||
As a family practitioner with more than 20 years of experience, I
have treated numerous patients who have told me that marijuana was
effective in combating their symptoms. This has been particularly
true of patients suffering from peripheral neuropathy, an
excruciatingly painful condition for which there is currently no
FDA-approved treatment. | ||||||||||||||||
Now a top-notch study, published in last month's issue of the peer-reviewed journal Neurology, has come to the exact same conclusion that my patients have been telling me for years: Medical marijuana is an effective treatment for this kind of pain. | ||||||||||||||||
So I had to shake my head when I heard that Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom testified that there are "no scientific studies" supporting marijuana's effectiveness. In addition to this very recent article, supportive studies have appeared in respected journals like the American Journal of Surgery, the British Journal of Cancer and Molecular Pharmacology, among many others. | ||||||||||||||||
If Backstrom feels that his training is sufficient to debate with
the researchers, doctors and patients who have firsthand knowledge
of medical marijuana's benefits, that's his prerogative. But to
claim that "no scientific studies" demonstrate those benefits is
demonstrably false. | ||||||||||||||||
DR. DAVID LANG BURNSVILLE
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
Bong Hits 4 Jesus - The Slogan Of A New Revolution?
| ||||||||||||||||
By Pete Guiter
| ||||||||||||||||
"It's rare that arguments about something as stupid as a banner declaring 'Bong Hits 4 Jesus' make their way to the U.S. Supreme Court," according to an editorial in the Austin-American Statesman. | ||||||||||||||||
This has been a fairly common theme in the press. I've read a number
of articles that have disparaged Joseph Frederick for his stupid,
immature banner, and the Supreme Court for choosing such a horrible
phrase to challenge first amendment case law, and yet, in most
cases, the only reason those articles were written was because of
the phrase "Bong Hits 4 Jesus."
| ||||||||||||||||
It's a phrase that has uncommon power. | ||||||||||||||||
Frederick says he got it off a surfboard sticker and just thought it was a nonsensical and funny way to test his freedom of speech. And it worked. Big time. Frederick hoped that he might get on TV, but he managed even better. He got his speech suppressed by Principal Morse, and "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" was loosed upon the world. | ||||||||||||||||
Last August, 3 1/2 years after the event, Anchorage Daily News' Beth Bragg noted that Frederick had been so massively successful, that a google search for "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" returned 14,100 results. | ||||||||||||||||
I just did a search on the exact phrase and got 1.2 million google results. Another 166,000 for the slightly incorrect "Bong Hits for Jesus." Over 700 current news items. Over 4,000 blog entries. As I saw this, I thought that maybe I should capitalize by selling "Bong Hits For Jesus" T-Shirts (and discovered that I wasn't the first). What other Supreme Court case gets this kind of interest? | ||||||||||||||||
There's something going on here. I think it's interesting to ask why
Principal Morse felt so powerfully compelled to remove the banner.
She admits that it was the content, and not merely that there was a
banner. Why is Ken Starr to eager to take on the case? Why are
people responding so strongly (in one way or the other) to the
phrase?
| ||||||||||||||||
"Bong hits," by itself, would clearly be about smoking pot. But when
you add "Jesus" it all changes. Otherwise, what are these bong hits
-- something to smoke while worshipping, or a gift of herb to the
Lord? Obviously, neither. The significance of "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" is
that it draws upon two very controversial (sometimes taboo) subjects
and puts them together in a disturbing way using a word structure
that is inherently funny. Even the use of the number "4" instead of
the word "for" is significant in terms of purposefully reducing
literal meaning. This takes an "immature, stupid phrase" and turns
it into a statement of individuality and defiance. | ||||||||||||||||
Do I think Frederick consciously thought all this out? No. I'm
guessing he instinctively recognized the brilliance of the phrase as
an abstract statement of rebellion and free speech. | ||||||||||||||||
And to people like Morse, they instinctively recognize the phrase as
an attack on their authoritarian power, even as they struggle to
attach a specific meaning. | ||||||||||||||||
In a day where authoritarian power has developed in strength,
attacks on that power are revolutionary. | ||||||||||||||||
"No Taxation Without Representation." "Don't Tread on Me." "Bong
Hits for Jesus"? Hmmm.... | ||||||||||||||||
Pete Guither is the author of Drug WarRant - www.drugwarrant.com - a
weblog at the front lines of the drug war, where this piece was
first presented. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||
"True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence
of justice." - Martin Luther King, Jr. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
DS Weekly is one of the many free educational services DrugSense
offers our members. Watch this feature to learn more about what
DrugSense can do for you. | ||||||||||||||||
TO SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS:
| ||||||||||||||||
Please utilize the following URLs
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
Policy and Law Enforcement/Prison content selection and analysis by
Stephen Young (), Cannabis/Hemp content selection
and analysis by Deb Harper (), International
content selection and analysis by Doug Snead (),
Layout by Matt Elrod (). Analysis comments
represent the personal views of editors, and not necessarily the
views of DrugSense. | ||||||||||||||||
We wish to thank all our contributors, editors, NewsHawks and letter writing activists. Please help us help reform. Become a NewsHawk See http://www.mapinc.org/hawk.htm for info on contributing clippings. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is
distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving the included information for research and
educational purposes. | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
MAKE A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION TO DRUGSENSE ON-LINE
| ||||||||||||||||
-OR-
| ||||||||||||||||
Mail in your contribution. Make checks payable to MAP Inc. send your
contribution to:
| ||||||||||||||||
The Media Awareness Project (MAP) Inc. |
 | current issue | this issue |