| February 17, 1998 #34 | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A DrugSense publication | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Table of Contents
| ||||||||||||
Hepatitis C (HCV) & Harm Reduction (PART II) | ||||||||||||
By: Joey Tranchina, M.A. and Tom O'Connell, M.D. | ||||||||||||
Harm Reduction asks three basic questions: | ||||||||||||
"What's the problem? What can be done? & What can I do?" | ||||||||||||
It's estimated, perhaps conservatively, that 4,000,000 Americans are
already infected with HCV. As Poincare once wrote, "The scale constitutes
the phenomenon." The sheer number of people infected makes HCV a massive
problem, demanding particularly large resources, especially since new
infections are being acquired daily and can manifest themselves as serious
disease years hence. | ||||||||||||
Sadly, in America, the actual problem is usually not the only the only problem. Political considerations often intrude on the allocation of important public health resources. We know this from recent past experience with HIV disease, needle exchange, methadone maintenance, and medical cannabis, etc. Having promoted public understanding in all of these areas, it is time once again, based on new research information, to shine light into the dark corners of our political process-this time around the needs of people living with, or in danger of being infected by Hepatitis C. | ||||||||||||
Our problems with planning don't relate merely to how many are already
infected, but also to who is infected. When we make all the allowances
reasonable for acquisition through blood transfusion, sexual transmission,
healthcare accidents and "household" transmission, we are left with the
epidemiologic fact that over 90% of cases are acquired through drug use.
The vast majority of presently infected patients acquired their disease
from injecting drugs. From my perspective as an outreach worker at a
syringe exchange, the majority of the HCV+ population are, in short, my
clients, my co-workers and my friends. | ||||||||||||
In addition to those presently using drugs, there are many people who
acquired their infections years ago, during an episode of youthful
experimentation, who either never became habitual users, or did so briefly,
and have since quit. | ||||||||||||
If we allow HCV disease to be characterized and stigmatized as a "junkie
disease," underfunding it will be bigots' picnic. Our task is to present
an accurate picture of who is infected and the impact of this vira1 disease
upon communities. | ||||||||||||
With respect to treatment, there are disturbing signs that our medical
establishment already deems some people unworthy of available medical
treatments for HCV disease. Some transplant lists already exclude methadone
patients. One such list at UCSF, makes a fine distinction between patients
who are merely "clean" and those who are truly, "clean and sober." Many
interferon protocols continue to exclude active drug users because of
presumed compliance problems, even though HlV research has repeatedly
demonstrated that presumption to be ill-founded. The generic list of
unjustified exclusions is long. | ||||||||||||
Many years ago, I watched a New York City TV reporter ask a young boy in
Harlem; 'What do -you want to be when vou grow up?" This healthy,
bright-eyed eight or nine year old looked straight into the camera and
said; "when I grow up, I want to be an ex-junkie." We must successfully
communicate to policy makers, what is meant by "recovery" and what the
renewed energy, rededication and wisdom of those who have survived
addiction means to our community, so they wiII think twice before throwing
away the lives of drug users. | ||||||||||||
What must we do, to change what we do...? | ||||||||||||
The first two problems were simple to at least to define. It is relatively
easy for "us" to tell "them," what must be done. The third problem is more
complicated. What must we do,to change what we do to include the new and
significantly different demands of hepatitis C? | ||||||||||||
Our first reaction to Hep C, was to do the same things we do for HIV, only
more of it. More syringe exchange, more counseling; more referrals to ever
more threadbare services, but in many ways that won't work to prevent the
spread of HCV. | ||||||||||||
What can we do to prevent the spread of Hepatitis C? We must do more than
needle exchange. We must educate potential drug users, especially teens, to
the enormous risk of Hepatitis C from parenteral drug use; that there is no
"safe" way to inject drugs, particularly in the company of others, and that
snorting is not safe either. | ||||||||||||
We can also affect the course of the disease by encouraging high risk
populations to undergo routine testing and by educating them to the
benefits of early recognition: there is good evidence that early,
aggressive interferon treatment more than doubles the number who would
normally experience complete recovery, thereby precluding chronic active
hepatitis in a significant number of patients. We must also alert those
with established chronic Hepatitis C to the additive danger of any alcohol
use in accelerating the development of cirrhosis, and that a long and
ner-normal life is possible in many instances, particularly if the patients
take care of themselves. | ||||||||||||
"The first human right is the right to be human." | ||||||||||||
AIDS/Hepatitis Prevention ACTION Network Inc. | ||||||||||||
HCV Global Foundation | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||
Domestic News | ||||||||||||
The War On Drugs | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
MARIJUANA-LEGALIZATION SUPPORT GROWS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
This report is probably accurate. Support for decriminalization of recreational pot can be expected to grow as this generation comes of age, however we've been through this before. The political strength of the prohibition lobby still scares potential advocates into silence, particularly as they develop more of a stake in the establishment. | ||||||||||||
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Much like their parents a generation ago, today's
college students are just saying yes to marijuana and are increasingly
supportive of its legalization. | ||||||||||||
"It's out there, but it isn't a big deal. If you don't smoke, you just
disregard it," said Amy Kim, a freshman at the University of Arizona.
"I'm not surprised students think it should be legalized because it's the
most accessible thing out there next to liquor." | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
LIKELIEST DATE-RAPE 'DRUG' USED IS ALCOHOL, ACCORDING TO STUDY | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
This is hardly a surprise. If the concept of benefiting society by banning a drug had any validity, that agent would be alcohol and the 18th Amendment would have been a resounding success. | ||||||||||||
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Alcohol was by far the most common drug found in a study of urine samples taken from 578 rape victims who said they had been drugged before the attack, a forensic scientist said Friday. | ||||||||||||
In 40 percent of the samples, no drugs were found, while only five
samples showed the presence of the so-called date rape drug Rohypnol,
said Dr. Mahmoud ElSohly. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
WHITE HOUSE CRAFTS PLAN TO HALVE ILLICIT DRUG TRADE | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
This release provoked a response from Newt which attracted at least as
much attention. Note that McC, although continuing to pay lips service
to "prevention and treatment," remains enamored of interdiction. He
wasn't a general by accident. | ||||||||||||
Ambitious strategy for next decade outlines goals based on cooperation among federal agencies but allocates no additional money. | ||||||||||||
WASHINGTON--The White House, in perhaps the most ambitious anti-drug effort the nation has undertaken, has devised a plan that aims to cut illicit drug supply and demand in half over the next decade. | ||||||||||||
The plan, to be released Saturday by President Clinton but obtained by
The Times, contains specific 10-year goals for federal agencies involved
in stemming the flow of drugs into the United States, | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
The plan, authored by Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, the White House
coordinator of drug-control policy, says a cooperative approach by
agencies such as the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Customs
Service, the Coast Guard and Border Patrol can dramatically cut
production of cocaine and heroin abroad and that new technology can be
used to vastly decrease drug smuggling. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
Leave it to Newt to seize a political opportunity. Anyone who thinks Clinton hasn't been waging an expensive and destructive war on drugs hasn't been looking. Effectiveness is something else. The fact that the WOD "succeeds" by failing allows for this type of criticism. | ||||||||||||
WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) House Speaker Newt Gingrich says President Clinton's new plan to fight illegal drugs "is the definition of failure." | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
Gingrich urged Clinton "to renounce his timid defeatist attitude" toward
illegal drugs. | ||||||||||||
He said Republicans will wage a "World War II- style victory campaign
against illegal drugs." | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
TOBACCO WARS | ||||||||||||
PRESIDENT TOUTS CIGARETTE TAX HIKE | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
This is a revealing look at the utopian thinking which has permitted the
drug war to grow to its present grotesque dimensions. One of the time
honored ways to create illegal market for anything, especially an
addictive agent is to tax it unreasonably. The Canadians learned that in
the early Eighties, but I guess we weren't paying much attention. Or is
it that we really do want a bigger drug war? | ||||||||||||
$1.10 a pack increase could cut teen smoking in half, Clinton says | ||||||||||||
PHILADELPHIA -- President Clinton, trying to revive a settlement with the
tobacco industry, said Friday a new study shows a hike in cigarette taxes
could cut teen smoking by half. | ||||||||||||
The president, appearing before the nation's scientists, called on Congress
to act this year to pass bipartisan legislation. He endorsed a Senate
Democratic measure as a starting point. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
In an address to the American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Clinton said a new Treasury Department analysis indicates a cigarette tax
increase of $1.10 a pack could stop nearly 3 million young people from
smoking by 2003 and save 1 million lives. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
DEMOCRATS ON TRACK WITH TOBACCO BILL | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
It's difficult for me to conceive of any more disordered thinking than the idea that a marketer should be held responsible for assuring that demand for his product will diminish. This is especially true of tobacco where the rate of addiction among each new cohort of teens has remained constant, despite universal awareness of the health risks of smoking. Nevertheless, the editors at the SF Chronicle nod approvingly. | ||||||||||||
THE ANTI-TOBACCO bill unveiled yesterday by Vice President Al Gore and a
number of Democratic senators carries with it real potential to finally
reduce teenage smoking. | ||||||||||||
The provision that makes the measure by Senator Kent Conrad of North
Dakota so strong would impose harsh monetary penalties on the tobacco
companies for failing to meet a goal to reduce teenage smoking by 67
percent over 10 years. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
International News Canada | ||||||||||||
Rebagliati Case Concerns Educators, Police | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
The decision to strip a Canadian snow boarder of his gold medal
generated so much coverage, I've lumped all the comments and listed
several representative articles numerically. The original decision was
reversed on a technicality by cooler heads within 24 hours, thus
threatening to foreclose debate on the issue. Nevertheless, the incident
itself was undoubtedly damaging to the drug war overall, and diehard
drug warriors may once again prove to be their own worst enemies by
complaining long after the fact. | ||||||||||||
The first and fourth articles demonstrate that reefer madness is alive
and well in Canada, despite recent encouraging signs, the second, a
detailed analysis, shows, among other things, that the testing rules
themselves are chaotic, the third illustrates that prime ministers and
presidents are equally capricious and personal in their reasons for
espousing drug prohibition. | ||||||||||||
Late additions to the clamor are still appearing; they range from angry
(4) to humorous(5). | ||||||||||||
Part 1) REBAGLIATI CASE MESSAGE CONCERNS EDUCATORS, POLICE `IT SAYS . . .
THIS THING'S NOT SO BAD' | ||||||||||||
Hours of class time spent teaching kids the evils of drugs crashed up
against a very different message awash in nationalistic fervor when
Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati tested positive for pot, a
sociologist says. | ||||||||||||
"It says to . . . young people 'This marijuana thing's not so bad,' University of Western Ontario sociology professor Paul Whitehead said Thursday. "It sends the message `This is not a big deal.'" | ||||||||||||
Whitehead, also a school board trustee, said he was surprised by strong
public opinion | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Part 2) DID HE OR DIDN'T HE? THE EXPERTS SPEAK | ||||||||||||
Experts are divided on whether to believe snowboarder Ross Rebagliati's
claim that he inhaled -- but didn't smoke -- marijuana. | ||||||||||||
The amount of marijuana metabolites found in Mr. Rebagliati's bloodstream
was so insignificant, says Simon Fraser psychology professor Barry
Beyerstein, that the only thing it proves | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
'THERE WAS A LOT OF POT SMOKING GOING ON' (part 2) | ||||||||||||
WHISTLER, B.C. -- When Ross Rebagliati entered a popular Blackcomb bar
Jan. 13 for the wake of a good friend who died in an avalanche, the air
was thick with smoke. | ||||||||||||
``There was a lot of pot smoking going on,'' said Ptor Spricenieks, a friend of Mr. Rebagliati's. ``He was exposed to pot the way people are exposed to cigarette smoke. It's just a part of life here.'' | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
Part 3) DIFFERENT TESTS FOR DIFFERENT SPORTS | ||||||||||||
If Ross Rebagliati had won gold as an Olympic curler, there wouldn't have
been any question of him losing his medal. | ||||||||||||
Curling, bobsleigh, figure skating, luge and speed skating are Winter
Games sports whose athletes are not routinely tested for marijuana.
That's because the umbrella federations for those sports do not require
the tests, | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
CHRETIEN SAYS HE'S OPPOSED TO RELAXING MARIJUANA LAWS | ||||||||||||
WINNIPEG -- Prime Minister Jean Chretien says he's never touched
marijuana, with or without inhaling. | ||||||||||||
And he doesn't want to relax Canada's marijuana laws in the wake of the
controversy over Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati, who is being
allowed to keep his Olympic gold medal despite testing positive for the
drug. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
REBAGLIATI DISGRACES MEDAL | ||||||||||||
The tears and sympathy for Ross Rebagliati, jerk, are enough to make me
puke. | ||||||||||||
Marijuana isn't on the IOC's list of banned substances and therefore it
had no right to take away his gold medal? | ||||||||||||
Horse excrement! | ||||||||||||
[snip!] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
CANADA, WHAT ELSE CAN HAPPEN? | ||||||||||||
NAGANO,JAPAN - When the Canadians claimed they were going to win more Winter Olympic medals than the U.S. they weren't just blowing smoke. | ||||||||||||
Well, maybe one of them was. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
Our neighbors to the north are not taking this well. Dave Perkins, of the
Toronto Star, suggested his nation should change the national anthem to
"O Cannabis." And apparently somebody forgot to tell Rebagliati that
you're supposed to ride the halfpipe, not smoke it. | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Medical Marijuana (Canadian Division) | ||||||||||||
MARIJUANA 'BUYERS CLUBS' LAUNCHED | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
Cohesive efforts of Canadian activists in the wake of recent success stand in sharp contrast to current American squabbling over how to follow up on California and Arizona. Look northward and learn. | ||||||||||||
Six Ontario Outlets Planned For Users With Medical Need | ||||||||||||
The activist group pushing to have marijuana declared legal for medical use has announced the launch of its first six "buyers' clubs" in Ontario. | ||||||||||||
At a meeting last night in Toronto, the group stopped short of identifying store-front locations selling cannabis. But potential marijuana purchasers in the six cities where clubs have been formed are being advised to simply visit their nearest hemp store -- with a doctor's note -- to get further directions for obtaining the drug. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
POT 'CLUB' TO OPEN HERE | ||||||||||||
Lynn Harichy and Her Husband Will Handle the London Outlet | ||||||||||||
TORONTO -- "Marijuana clubs" in London and Toronto -- as well as six
similar outlets across Southern Ontario -- plan to openly sell pot to
medicinal users. | ||||||||||||
In a bold move they know will put them on a "collision course" with the
law and possible life sentences for trafficking, pot activists held a
news conference Friday to announce their grand opening. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Colombia | ||||||||||||
Colombian Army Accused in Massacre | ||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||
The civil war in Colombia smolders away, largely ignored ny the main
stream media. The war is not only over drugs, but control of the drug
trade has become a major prize for both sides, and the American WOD makes
peace unlikely anytime in the foreseeable future. | ||||||||||||
Chronicle News Services | ||||||||||||
Bogota | ||||||||||||
Colombian soldiers have done nothing to stop-and may have aided-paramilitary gunmen who descended on the southern city of Puerto Asis two weeks ago and methodically killed at least 48 civilians who were thought to be guerrilla sympathizers, the city's mayor charged this week. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
The anti-government guerrillas dominate the region's lucrative drug
trade, earning huge profits guarding crops of coca for top drug bosses.
Besides trying to end the political threat posed by rebels, the
paramilitary groups could also be seeking to wrest control of the cocaine
trade, as they have done in other regions recently. | ||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE WEB: | ||||||||||||
Internet Spreads the Word on Reform - McCaffrey worried | ||||||||||||
Barry McCaffrey recently acknowledged that the web presence of ONDCP has badly lagged behind that of the reform movement. They've taken some steps recently to improve their web presence. The results can be viewed at: | ||||||||||||
The new budget is there for inspection. That alone makes the trip
worthwhile. Of course the big advantage that reform holds is that it's
easier to spread truth than lies. The Internet is eroding the credibility
of the War on Drugs on a daily basis. | ||||||||||||
Meanwhile the reform movement continues to increase its web presence. | ||||||||||||
Check out: http://www.crrh.org/video.html | ||||||||||||
It is a terrific collection of major TV coverage including ABC's "Pot of
Gold" "Reefer Madness" and currently 26 other important video archives
mostly hemp and marijuana related. It can be viewed online with RealVideo
which is available to download at this site. | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
TIP OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||
DrugNews Archive an Outstanding Information Resource | ||||||||||||
The newly improved and ever expanding DrugNews archive is rapidly
becoming a tremendous information resource for the reform movement. There
are thousands of news articles collected over that last year on every
imaginable drug issue. | ||||||||||||
Even better the powerful and easy to use search engine will find information on virtually any topic quickly and easily. It even highlights the word(s) you search for within the article for quick scanning. | ||||||||||||
You can search current articles (last 30 days) or older from 1997 or
1998. Currently the last 12 months are archived but thanks to our | ||||||||||||
Some of the uses of this resource include: | ||||||||||||
- Quick research to augment your letter writing efforts. | ||||||||||||
- Easy fact checking for debates, discussions or presentations. | ||||||||||||
- Student research material for papers and reports. | ||||||||||||
This may be one of the most effective information resources available to the reform movement. Kudos to Matt Elrod and Richard Lake for their involvement in creating this terrific DrugSense feature. | ||||||||||||
Bookmarking and visiting this web page should be on your to do list TODAY.
Once you see what it can do you will visit it often. | ||||||||||||
Why not try it now? | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
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. | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
We wish to thank each and every one of our contributors. | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
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. | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Please help us help reform. Send any news articles you find on any drug
related issue to | ||||||||||||
DrugSense provides this service at no charge BUT IT IS NOT FREE TO PRODUCE. | ||||||||||||
We incur many costs in creating our many and varied services. If you are
able to help by contributing to the DrugSense effort please Make checks
payable to MAP Inc. send your contribution to: | ||||||||||||
The Media Awareness Project (MAP) Inc. | ||||||||||||
|