| November 5, 1997 #019 | ||||||||
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A DrugSense publication
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Table of Contents
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SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
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NEWS BULLETIN: WASHINGTON STATE INITIATIVE DEFEATED. DRUG POLICY REFORM
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Washington State I-685 Lost in a Landslide
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The consensus of political consultants is that the opposition successfully
portrayed I-685 as a measure that legalized heroin and LSD in a last minute
$100,000 media blitz. | ||||||||
Campaign organizers responded with a plea for compassion for those suffering
and not able to receive their proper medication. | ||||||||
Next week's issue will feature commentary from the sponsor of I-685, Dr. Rob Killian reviewing the effort and the next steps for the reform movement. | ||||||||
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FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||
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TO TEST OR NOT TO TEST -- That is The Question
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A kit that tests for illegal drugs recently appeared on local pharmacy
shelves, and, while some parents are ecstatic about possessing the
technology to check their progeny's urine, and some manufacturers are
licking their chops at the prospect of big profits from scared parents, not
everyone (especially the youth who might be subjected to such tests) is
doing back flips. | ||||||||
The new home drug testing kits are quite simple: Urine is placed on a sterile blotter like surface, sealed, and then sent off to the company for analysis. The purchaser has a coded number to use when calling in for the results. More complicated is, what parents should do with the information. | ||||||||
Typically, they will confront their offspring with the information, but what
will happen then? Will mommy and daddy knowing about junior's drug use be
enough to prevent use in the future?
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Parents are not first and foremost attempting to find out if their children
are using; they are attempting to deter their child from using drugs with
the threat of discovery. This plan just won't work.
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The threat of discovery is far too nebulous and too distant. Drug use
provides immediate gratification, potential delayed punishment will not be
effective. Children will think, "I'll do the drugs now, and deal with the
consequences when (and if) they come." Many youth will believe they will
escape detection. In fact if the kits become widely used tricks that avoid
detection will become commonplace. | ||||||||
If the test results come back negative, this doesn't necessarily mean no
drug use, it only means that no drug residues were not detected when the
test was administered. A false negative can be as confusing and potentially
dangerous as a false positive. Will the parents re-test again, and again or
be placated by the result? The only way to effectively use drug testing as a
deterrent is to carry it out on a regular basis. How many times can the
parents send the message that they don't trust their children before the
relationship ruptures?
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Of course parents can legally do anything they please in regards to testing their own minors. They can't control the resentment the child will feel in return. To use the test a parent must conclude that knowing their child is using drugs is worth the risking resentment and distrust. | ||||||||
Drug testing is nothing more than a convenience for lazy parents. Any parent
worthy of the title should be able to tell if their child is using drugs
without a kit. If they have been doing their job, they notice the alteration
of mood, habits and friends drug use is often related to =96 parents who are
doing their job should not need a kit. | ||||||||
The recent FDA approval of home test kits, which came in the midst of the last presidential campaign when the incumbent was being attacked for being soft on drugs and at a time when adolescent use was reported to be rising, reverses the FDA's traditional view. The FDA used to oppose over the counter testing urging that testing be part of an overall program of counseling by a professional. Drug testing could be conducted by a professional as part of an overall program of counseling. In this manner the counselor was able to act as a buffer between the child and parent so that detrimental resentments between parent and child do not develop. Perhaps parents would be wise to follow this traditional course and not let a policy decision, made in the heat of a presidential campaign, ruin their relationship with their child. | ||||||||
Mansfield B. Frazier is an associate editor of The Downtown Tab, an
award winning Cleveland, OH twice monthly newsmagazine. His first book,
"From Behind the Wall," was released the same month he got out of prison in
1995. | ||||||||
The book is available through bookstores nationwide, via the web at
http://www.Amazon.com/ or from the author. | ||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||
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Drugs & Our Youth
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HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Despite high school football players' charges that teammates use marijuana, cocaine and LSD, a school cannot randomly test athletes for drugs without more proof of widespread abuse, a judge says. | ||||||||
Tuesday's ruling by Superior Court Judge Sybil Moses means Ridgefield Park school district must bring guidance counselors, coaches, teachers and students into court to testify about drug use among athletes. | ||||||||
Ridgefield Park unanimously adopted a testing policy in June. Two months
later, civil liberties lawyers filed a challenge on behalf of a high school
football player. | ||||||||
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WASHINGTON - A new survey shows that drug use among junior high students
continues to climb, reinforcing fears that young teenagers remain vulnerable
to a new wave of drug abuse. | ||||||||
The rise in teenage drug use, however, appeared to be slowing compared with
steeper rises shown in recent years, according to the survey conducted by
Pride, an Atlanta based drug awareness organization. | ||||||||
"We are beginning to see some signs of progress in reducing teenage drug
use," said Doug Hall, a Pride senior consultant. | ||||||||
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International News
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BOGOTA, Colombia -- President Ernesto Samper criticized "foreign
interference" in Colombian politics Tuesday after a front running
presidential candidate denounced a U.S.- inspired "dirty war" against his
campaign. | ||||||||
Samper, coming to the aid of his ex-interior minister and right hand man
Horacio Serpa, also deplored what he described as "trafficking in the honor
of Colombians abroad."
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Samper's remarks were his first about a mushrooming controversy in Bogota over a report in this week's editions of Newsweek. The magazine quoted senior U.S. officials, who it did not identify by name, as saying Washington had "solid proof" of Serpa's alleged ties to the drug trade. | ||||||||
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THE Conservatives accused Labour of hypocrisy on drugs after members of
Oasis and a scene from the controversial film Trainspotting were featured in
a video promoting Britain. | ||||||||
The eight minute video, which was shown last week to representatives of 51
Commonwealth leaders at the summit in Edinburgh, provoked outrage in the
shadow cabinet. | ||||||||
"Many people in this country will be appalled that Tony Blair's vision of
so-called new Britain has at its heart people like the Gallagher brothers
with their well known views on drug taking," said Sir Brian Mawhinney,
shadow home secretary. | ||||||||
"Many will be ashamed that theirs was the image that was portrayed to the
Commonwealth leaders."
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Medical Marijuana
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Diane R. Densmore had hopes a Halloween party would help raise money for the
Alternative Health Center, the downtown office that dispenses marijuana for
what it says is medicinal use only. | ||||||||
Instead of ghosts and goblins, police officers showed up at the facility Wednesday afternoon. Serving a search warrant, they arrested Densmore at the facility, and three other people they traced to a North Portland home. | ||||||||
The arrests came a month after police first raided the center at 333 S.W.
Park Ave., an action that startled Densmore, who said she had operated for
nine months, supplying marijuana to people who used it for their pain and
illnesses. | ||||||||
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As a parent, I am deeply concerned about whether our current drug policies
are working to effectively protect our state's children from the dangerous
effects of drugs. | ||||||||
But do we completely give up on our stand against dangerous drugs and vote
yes to a hastily written initiative funded and drafted by out of state
billionaires? Or do we continue seeking new and innovative methods
empowering local communities, schools and parents - those who know best how
to deal with the drug problems in our state?
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If we are to continue protecting our children against the ravages of drug abuse in Washington state, we must stand up and say no to the one size fits all, abandon ship method and vote no on Initiative 685. | ||||||||
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Never shy to embrace a trendy cause, especially during the November sweeps, next Wednesday CBS'S Murphy Brown, recovering from breast cancer surgery, will smoke marijuana to relieve chemotherapy induced nausea. The day before the show airs, voters in Washington state will cast ballots on the nation's third initiative to decriminalize the use of "medicinal" marijuana. Advocates of similar initiatives in Alaska, Arkansas, Oregon and Washington, D.C., are collecting signatures for elections next year. | ||||||||
Last year's ballot victories in California and Arizona showed how deftly
proponents of decriminalizing pot have exploited compassion for the
desperately ill. And make no mistake: These initiatives, with their
notoriously loose provisions, are stalking horses for outright legalization.
The Washington, D.C., measure, for example, wouldn't even require a
prescription: A physician's "oral recommendation" would authorize up to four
"best friends" to cultivate pot for an ill pal. | ||||||||
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OLYMPIA - Initiative 685, which would loosen state drug laws, could mean the immediate release of 400 inmates from state prisons. Or it could mean inmates with drug convictions are barred from early release. | ||||||||
It might free hundreds of people from county jails. It might not free any. | ||||||||
It calls for people convicted of violent crimes while under the influence of
drugs to serve their full sentences. But there aren't likely to be many
people who fit that bill, thus mitigating the initiative's one
get-tough-on-crime element. | ||||||||
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For several decades, researchers have sought to determine whether marijuana
has legitimate medical uses, and narcotics control agencies have discouraged
them from finding out. Now a new round of federally funded research may
provide some answers - or will it? The latest skirmish between scientists
and
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Barry McCaffrey, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, derided the propositions as "hoax referendums," and insisted that voters had been "duped" by deceitful ad campaigns whose real intent was to legalize drugs. Attorney General Janet Reno announced that prescribing or recommending marijuana was still a violation of federal law, and that any doctors who did so could be prosecuted and lose their license to prescribe all drugs regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). | ||||||||
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LANSING, Mich. -- AIDS and cancer patient Peter McWilliams hopes a judge
will let him fight to set a legal precedent for the medical use of marijuana
in Michigan. | ||||||||
Judge Tina Green is expected to rule at a hearing on Wednesday at 8:30 a.m.
whether McWilliams can fight a marijuana possession charge because the drug
is essential to his medical treatment. Judge Green is the chief judge of the
34th District Court located at the corner of Wayne and Goddard roads in
Romulus. | ||||||||
"Medical marijuana keeps down the pills that are keeping me alive,"
McWilliams said. | ||||||||
McWilliams, who grew up in Allen Park, was arrested Dec. 17, 1996 at Detroit
Metropolitan Airport after a visit to his mother. Authorities found he was
carrying seven marijuana cigarettes and arrested him. | ||||||||
"I'm counting on Judge Green to give me the opportunity to fight this legal
battle for all patients whose lives could and should be improved through the
medical use of marijuana," McWilliams said. "This is something I must do
for the rights of all Michigan patients."
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A group of Mainers believes voters will do what legislators have not:
legalize marijuana for medical purposes. | ||||||||
The group expects to place the question on the November 1998 ballot. Today,
Maine Citizens for Medical Marijuana plans to file with the state as a
political action committee. | ||||||||
Stephanie Hart of Sidney, who is coordinating the effort, said she believes
she will have more than 51,000 signatures on petitions by the end of January
-- enough to get the question on the ballot. | ||||||||
"We know from everything we've heard and done so far that Maine people will
come forward" to sign petitions, she said Monday. | ||||||||
Hart, who once was an aide to former Sen. George Mitchell and former Rep.
Tom Andrews, is working closely with the California based Americans for
Medical Rights. That organization sponsored the successful Proposition 215,
California's medical marijuana law. | ||||||||
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Needle Exchange
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NEW YORK -- Americans believe that cities and states -- and not the federal
government -- should decide whether federal HIV prevention funds can be
spent on needle exchange programs, according to a recent Harris poll
commissioned by the Lindesmith Center. The poll, which surveyed 1,003
American adults by telephone from October 15 through 19, found that 71% of
American adults agree that current law should be changed so that decisions
on how to use federal funding for HIV prevention programs be made by states
and localities rather than the federal government. Currently, federal law
bans the use of federal HIV prevention funding, for needle exchange
programs. | ||||||||
Numerous studies have concluded that needle exchange programs dramatically
reduce the spread of HIV and do not encourage drug use. Needle exchange
programs are supported by the American Medical Association, the National
Academy of Sciences, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the
American Public Health Association as well as other prestigious medical and
public health organizations. In addition, the American Bar Association and
the U.S. Conference of Mayors have urged the federal government to allow
states and localities to use federal HIV prevention funds to implement
needle exchange programs. | ||||||||
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The grandfather of needle exchange programs grins as he describes how his
summer project turned into a nationwide crusade. | ||||||||
"There's no question when we all wind up in the old folks needle exchange
home, I'll have some great lies to tell," said Dave Purchase, in Denver
Thursday and today for the Drugs and HIV in the Rocky Mountain States
conference at the Adam's Mark Hotel. | ||||||||
"But there's too much to do now. There's too much ignorance to fight." | ||||||||
Scores of public health officials, AIDS activists and drug users have converged in Denver to share information about "harm reduction," a philosophy that says drug use won't go away, so let's minimize its impact. | ||||||||
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Trials & Sentencing
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MIAMI - U.S. prosecutors said Wednesday they were prepared to try again to convict two U.S. lawyers of committing crimes for Colombia's Cali drug cartel after the first five month trial ended in a near stalemate. | ||||||||
On Monday, the 12 member jury said that it had acquitted attorneys Michael
Abbell and William Moran on one count of conspiracy in the case, but was
deadlocked on four other charges against the two men, both former federal
prosecutors. | ||||||||
On Wednesday, senior U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler declared a
mistrial on the undecided counts. | ||||||||
Prosecutors told the court they were prepared to try the case again. "We are
ready to go forward to retry those counts that the jury is hung on,"
Assistant U.S. Attorney William Pearson said. He declined any further
comment. | ||||||||
Abbell is a former top U.S. Justice Department official who went from pursuing drug lords to representing them. Moran is a former U.S. prosecutor who also became a defense attorney who represented cartel leaders. | ||||||||
In a case that broadened the traditional scope of its drug war to include defense attorneys, the government charged that Abbell and Moran crossed a line from representing the drug gang to participating in trafficking. | ||||||||
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War on Drugs
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In a relatively sleepy ballot measure season, Washington state provides a
wake-up call. | ||||||||
Voters there will contemplate a particularly lively ballot Tuesday, with
proposals to ban workplace discrimination against gays, further restrict gun
ownership, legalize marijuana for medicinal use and dramatically expand
choice of doctors in health plans. | ||||||||
It's an off year election, with only 43 statewide propositions in nine
states. Nevertheless, the questions on state and local ballots tackle meaty
issues, including assisted suicide in Oregon, affirmative action in Houston,
bilingual education in Orange, Calif., and voting rights for the mentally
ill in Maine. | ||||||||
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NBA Players Association executive director Billy Hunter blasted commissioner
David Stern's claim that the league has offered a plan of education
regarding reported widespread marijuana use among players, saying the
proposal only deals in punishment. | ||||||||
"David Stern's statements today regarding the union's stance on the NBA drug
policy are unseemly and patently false," Hunter said in a statement
Wednesday. "It is a transparent attempt to sway public opinion and gain an
edge in the upcoming negotiations."
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Stern called the NBA's 41 page proposal it submitted to the NBPA
"educational," but the plan calls for stiff penalties for marijuana use,
including an automatic six month suspension for a second offense and a
lifetime ban for the distribution of marijuana. A first offense mandates a
five game suspension. | ||||||||
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Conceding that 41 percent of inmates are infected with the potentially fatal hepatitis C virus, state officials told lawmakers in Sacramento on Tuesday that there is no quick fix plan for addressing the problem. | ||||||||
At an interim hearing by the Senate Public Safety Subcommittee on Prison Construction and Operations, Sen. Richard Polanco, D-Los Angeles, grilled officials from the state health and corrections departments about why there is no plan for screening and treatment for hepatitis C. | ||||||||
Health department officials said they are awaiting development of a national
plan. | ||||||||
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The Drug Enforcement Administration has subpoenaed a Berkeley publisher for
the names of all Arizonans who have bought a book about growing marijuana,
an action the company considers unconstitutional. | ||||||||
Ronin Publishing Inc. was subpoenaed by the DEA in July for the names and addresses of all Arizona residents who bought copies of "Marijuana
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On a tranquil fall afternoon in Washington Square Park, a drug dealer using
the alias "Jerry Budso" slumps on a bench, sets down the large box of corn
flakes he's carrying and frets. | ||||||||
"I'm on the edge right now," says Budso, who estimates he's been busted more
than 50 times in the popular Greenwich Village park. "The cops. I feel it.
They're up to something."
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Something is up: Mayor Rudolph Giuliani wants to evict Budso and the other
resident druggies from the park as part of an $80-million, anti-drug
campaign - an election year encore to the city's dramatic drop in serious
crime. | ||||||||
The mayor announced this week his aim is to make the park, which has been one of the city's most notorious open air drug markets for decades, off limits to drug convicts as a condition of probation. The plan is designed to thwart repeat offenders who, despite prodigious rap sheets, rarely serve more than a month in jail before they're back in the park. | ||||||||
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Over the past 15 years, the federal government has increased its power to seize property without a trial -- mostly to facilitate the "war" on drugs. | ||||||||
In many cases, people only suspected of a crime, or charged but not yet
convicted, lose their homes, savings and other property. And the laws place
the burden of proof on the person whose property has been seized. In some
instances, however, the person cannot financially mount a defense because
the government has his assets. | ||||||||
This power has grown despite the Fourth Amendment's protection of the "right
of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects,
against unreasonable searches and seizures... ."
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To fully restore that right, earlier this year Rep. Henry Hyde, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, introduced H.R. 1835, the Civil Forfeiture Reform Act of 1997. The bill was a straightforward reform -- simply requiring the government to return seized property pending a trial. | ||||||||
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||
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HEMPEN GOLD UNVEILED BY FREDERICK BREWING CO. | ||||||||
Cream Ale is First Extension in Line of Craft Beers Brewed with Hemp Seeds | ||||||||
FREDERICK, MD -- Frederick Brewing Co. (NASDAQ: BLUE) today introduced
Hempen Gold (TM), a cream ale brewed with hemp seeds. It is the brewery's
first line extension of their popular Hempen Ale. Like, Hempen Ale (TM),
Hempen Gold is also brewed with hemp seeds, but is lighter in taste, body
and color. | ||||||||
"Hempen Gold is smooth and mild - very, very drinkable," comments Steve
Nordahl, FBC's VP of Brewing Operations and originator of Hempen Ale. "The
hemp seeds give it a silky mouth feel and a rich creamy head, perfectly
complementing the style. Now consumers will have a broader spectrum of
Hempen Ales from which to choose."
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Hempen Gold will be immediately available to distributors in 24 states and
is expected to receive a reception similar to that of Hempen Ale, which was
first released in May of this year. | ||||||||
"Sales in existing Hempen Ale markets are holding steady at an extraordinary
65% of the original shipments," says Marjorie A. McGinnis, president of FBC.
"Typically, a product is considered highly successful if it holds steady at
20% to 30% of the original shipment." She adds, "That proves that this
product has found a receptive audience beyond the traditional micro brew
drinker. We expect the lighter Hempen Gold to be popular with an even wider
group of beer lovers."
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Phil Berry, State Manager of Bryant Distributing's Beer Division in
Louisville, Kentucky, echoes those sentiments, "Hempen Ale has been very
well received in our state. Following an incredible introduction, sell
through began immediately. People are coming back for more because the beer
has great flavor. We are delighted with the addition of Hempen Gold, it
promises to bring a new category of consumers into the Hempen Ale
phenomenon."
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The original Hempen Ale, a brown ale, was recently awarded a Bronze medal
for brewing excellence in the Herb/Spice category at the 16th annual Great
American Beer Festival, the nation's largest and most prestigious beer
event. During the two day professional panel blind tasting, 85
internationally renowned judges evaluated over 1800 entries submitted by 457
domestic breweries from 45 states. | ||||||||
Hempen Ale was also presented with an award for Product Innovation at the
recent Hemp Industries Association conference. The "Hempy" was awarded by
HempWorld Magazine recognizing a practical, marketable product that is
innovative in its use of hemp as an ingredient. | ||||||||
Hemp and marijuana both belong to the species cannabis sativa, but differ in
appearance and bio-chemistry. Unlike marijuana, which is grown for the
psychoactive drug THC in its flowers and leaves, hemp is grown for the long
strong fibers of its stalk, and for its seeds. The hemp plant contains only
trace amounts of THC, and none in the seeds, which are imported from Eastern
Europe and China, then sterilized. | ||||||||
There is a growing movement in the U.S. to support the cultivation and use
of industrial hemp because of its economic and environmental benefits and
multiple commercial uses. | ||||||||
Artwork (labels, photos, etc.) available at http://www.fredbrew.com/prphotos
or hard copies by request. | ||||||||
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DRUGSENSE TIP OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||
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MAP/DrugSense Asks Your Help
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We are, for the first time ever, asking our members and supporters to
endeavor to help us out financially. This is actually the result of some
very good news. Because we have grown faster than first envisioned when we
created our 1997 budget we are short of funds to get us through the end of
the year. | ||||||||
It has been a dynamite year for the MAP/DrugSense organization as far as accomplishments are concerned. We have topped $1 million in advertising value for the reform movement when factoring in press coverage, published letters and articles and radio and TV appearances generated throughout the year. We have managed this impressive achievement with the help of a tremendously dedicated, overworked and underpaid staff and our awesome, knowledgeable, and productive group of volunteer activists. | ||||||||
MAP/DrugSense has managed to grow to this impressive size on an incredibly small amount of money and our return in the form of publicity for the reform movement has been close to two dollars for each dime we have spent. | ||||||||
The addition of staff in order to maintain and increase features like
MAPNews, The DrugNews-Digest, the DrugSense Weekly and our weekly FOCUS
Alerts puts us $8,500 short of our needed revenue despite contributions from
a few generous donors. | ||||||||
If you or anyone you know can make a contribution to help us through this
shortfall, you have our promise that we will continue to work night and day
throughout 1998 to grow and improve the MAP/DrugSense organization.
Increasing our effectiveness in educating the media, persons committed to
reform, the public, policy leaders, politicians and corporations can only
help to end this insane drug war all the sooner. | ||||||||
Please send your tax deductible contribution to:
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MAP Inc. | ||||||||
(800) 266-5759
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Thank you in advance for your help. | ||||||||
Mark Greer, Executive Director
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DS Weekly is just another of the many free services DrugSense offers our
members. Watch this feature to learn more about what DrugSense can do for
you. | ||||||||
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We wish to thank each and every one of our contributors. | ||||||||
Mark Greer
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