| August 19, 1998 #60 | ||||||||||||||
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A DrugSense publication | ||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||
Editor's Note: We felt that announcing this important symposium would be a good trade off to our usual weekly feature article. | ||||||||||||||
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REGULATING CANNABIS | ||||||||||||||
Options for control in the 21st Century | ||||||||||||||
An International Symposium | ||||||||||||||
Academics, lawyers, policy makers, scientists, public health officials, drug professionals, criminologists, politicians, policy institutes, law enforcement agencies, journalists, social scientists, researchers. | ||||||||||||||
The Lindesmith Center and Release invite individuals and organisations,
with a policy or professional interest, to attend a symposium on
options for the regulation and decriminalisation of cannabis. This
symposium will bring together leading experts from Europe, Australia
and North America in the fields of science, jurisprudence, sociology
and government to examine the legal and social implications of
regulating the world's most popular illicit drug. This interactive
conference aims to shed light on optimal cannabis controls and bring a
new maturity and clarity to public debate. Particular attention will
also be devoted to exploring pragmatic opportunities for reform within
the context of prohibition and examining recent constitutional and
judicial developments in the regulation of cannabis. | ||||||||||||||
THE ORGANISERS | ||||||||||||||
RELEASE and THE LINDESMITH CENTER | ||||||||||||||
This is a collaborative event organised by The Lindesmith Center and
Release. | ||||||||||||||
The Lindesmith Center is a drug policy research institute founded in
1994 as a project of the Open Society Institute, a private foundation
that encourages public debate and policy alternatives in complex and
often controversial fields. With offices in New York and San Francisco,
The Center undertakes and supports innovative projects relevant to
drugs, drug users, and drug policies overlooked or ignored in public
discussion and government-funded research. | ||||||||||||||
Release is the UK based drugs and legal advice charity which was
founded in 1967 when it established the world's first ever 24-hour
drugs and legal advice helpline. The organisation's range of innovative
services, pioneering work with young people as well as its commitment
to the civil rights of drug users, has contributed to its unique
credibility in the drugs and legal advice field. | ||||||||||||||
COST | ||||||||||||||
The cost of attendance, including refreshments, lunch and conference pack, is =A375 (sterling). A discount rate of =A337 for research students is available upon request. Delegates are responsible for their own accommodations but the symposium office at Release is pleased to assist with details of hotels available at a range of prices. | ||||||||||||||
VENUE | ||||||||||||||
The symposium will be held at The Regent's College Conference Centre,
situated within the formal gardens of London's Regent's Park. The
venue offers a quiet and idyllic setting for the symposium and is only
a half mile away from the arts, entertainment and heritage of London's
West End. | ||||||||||||||
PROGRAM | ||||||||||||||
Regulating Cannabis will explore various models of cannabis control,
both actual and proposed, address legal developments concerning
production, possession and sale and examine UN international
conventions. The meeting is intended not as a platform for advocating
any one solution but rather a forum for considering a range of
effective cannabis control schemes. | ||||||||||||||
Speakers and contributors include * | ||||||||||||||
Robert Ali, Chair of the Australian National Illicit Drugs Expert
Committee. | ||||||||||||||
* The majority of these speakers have confirmed attendance and will be
joined by others not mentioned. | ||||||||||||||
For more information regarding the agenda or supporting literature for
the symposium, please contact Mireille Jacobson at the Lindesmith
Center at (212) 548-0603, ext. 1469 or send an e-mail to
. On these matters as well as for registration
information, please contact Vicki Charles at Release at (44/171)
729-5255, fax (44/171) 729-2599 or send an e-mail to | ||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||
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Drug Policy - COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||||
As the rhetorical war between prohibition and reform heats up, it's probable that the prohibitionist tactic of vilification of "legalizers" might stimulate reformers to point out the inherent dishonesty of their tactics. Paul Bischke's letter is a good model for the best tone to use: logical, tough, and above all, not strident. | ||||||||||||||
In the same vein, outspoken editorial criticism of both the results and motives of present policy like this one by James Dickey in the Denver Post, once unthinkable, are no longer even rare. | ||||||||||||||
Even so, a number local stories attest to continuing grass roots support for policy; backlash against needle exchange has produced an important ballot initiative in Mass.; in Waukegan, reason prevailed over zealotry, but the rhetoric still favors the "drug free" mentality. | ||||||||||||||
In a supreme display of arrogance, "Doctor" Giuliani overruled the opinions of Qualified professionals and prescribed morality instead of methadone for New York city's addicts on maintenance therapy. | ||||||||||||||
`DRUG-WAR SPEAK' | ||||||||||||||
ST. PAUL - Stephen Chapman rightly chastises Gen. Barry McCaffrey for formulating public policy on an unfactual basis ("In the drug war, fantasy beats facts," Commentary, July 23), but he withheld the most important punch. McCaffrey's misinformation is not random; it is systematic. Whether it's his disingenuous characterizations of needle exchange, medical marijuana or drug legalization, McCaffrey does not misspeak in ways that make America's current drug policy look bad, only in ways that justify it. Politeness aside, Gen. McCaffrey is a liar. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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OUR EFFORTS HAVE FAILED MISERABLY | ||||||||||||||
Aug. 9 - We have spent almost $1 trillion since 1971 fighting the "war
on drugs.'' We have killed innocent people, raided unsuspecting
families, built dozens of prisons, confiscated billions of dollars of
property, violated the constitution, sacrificed our civil liberties
and, through it all, accepted the lies of those with a vested interest
in perpetuating this nonsense. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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SPRINGFIELD NEEDLE EXCHANGE FOES MOVE TO FORCE NOVEMBER REFERENDUM | ||||||||||||||
SPRINGFIELD -- Opponents of the city's recently approved needle
exchange program have submitted more than 10,000 signatures to force a
November referendum on the issue. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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WAUKEGAN HIGH SCHOOL SAYS NO TO DRUG TESTS | ||||||||||||||
In the wake of their decision not to pursue random drug testing of all
Waukegan High School students, Waukegan School District 60 officials
said Wednesday that they are satisfied to continue supporting
drug-awareness programs already in place. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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GIULIANI ORDERS 5 CITY HOSPITALS TO WEAN ADDICTS OFF METHADONE | ||||||||||||||
NEW YORK - Following through on his promise to overhaul drug treatment in New York City, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has decided that heroin addicts treated at city hospitals will generally be allowed to get methadone for no more than three months, city health officials Friday. The policy change, which will take place in about 60 days, will affect 2,000 addicts who take methadone, a synthetic drug that has been widely prescribed to blunt heroin cravings for the last 30 years. Under the new plan, addicts enrolled in programs at five city hospitals will be weaned from methadone within three months, instead of taking it indefinitely as they do now. The programs will continue to offer intensive counseling and other services after that time. | ||||||||||||||
The mayor has argued that methadone maintenance programs simply substitute one dependency for another, and that abstinence from drugs is a more moral and decent approach to curing addiction. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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Updates | ||||||||||||||
Three old stories were updated during the week; the Hernandez family
will receive money for their son's life- hardly a satisfactory
exchange; nor has the government renounced use of the military for
police duty or admitted guilt. | ||||||||||||||
Each new round of official denials of a CIA-Contra-coke connection
seems to be followed by new evidence casting doubt on those denials;
this time it's DOJ's own internal report reported on in embarrassing
detail by the SF Examiner. | ||||||||||||||
Was Gary Webb on to something, after all? | ||||||||||||||
Finally, Laura Kriho's case quietly began its long journey to the Supreme Court. While our legal profession has found it impossible to set aside professional hubris long enough to recognize the central position of juror immunity must occupy in British and American law, one can hope they and the general public will finally be educated by the discussion which is sure to be stimulated by this case. | ||||||||||||||
SETTLEMENT TOPS $1 MILLION IN SHOOTING BY MARINE | ||||||||||||||
Federal officials agreed to pay more than $1 million to settle the
claims of a Redford, Texas, family whose son was killed last year by a
U.S. Marine on a counter-drug patrol, the family's attorney said
Tuesday. | ||||||||||||||
A second state grand jury, meanwhile, finished deliberations this week
without returning criminal indictments in the death, said Jack
Zimmerman, an attorney for the Marine. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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CIA ROLE IN S.F. COKE CASE DISCLOSED | ||||||||||||||
Cables show U.S. attorney helped shield contras in '84 | ||||||||||||||
On a hot August day in 1984, a lawyer from CIA headquarters walked into the office of a federal prosecutor in San Francisco to ask for a favor. | ||||||||||||||
The CIA man was reluctant to give his name or his government affiliation, the assistant U.S. attorney recalled, and embarked on an "opaque conversation" about what he called an "uncomfortable situation" | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
The 407-page report by Inspector General Michael R. Bromwich sheds new
light on the controversial refund, saying it resulted partly from the
CIA's "desire to protect the public image of the contras or the CIA"
and thus raised a question of "propriety." | ||||||||||||||
The study confirms that the Justice Department and the CIA withheld
information about the case from a late 1980s U.S. Senate inquiry, a
former Senate investigator said. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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HEMP ACTIVIST APPEALS CHARGE OF CONTEMPT WHILE ON A JURY | ||||||||||||||
DENVER - The first juror convicted of contempt of court in over 300 years took her case to the Colorado Court of Appeals yesterday in a campaign to win legitimacy for the jury-nullification movement. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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Incarceration | ||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||||
Hard on the heels of news that we have set a record number of
Americans under lock and key, comes fresh evidence that prison
construction still lags the demand, providing opportunity for
fast-growing private prison industry. | ||||||||||||||
The number of inmates in American prisons is not distressing to
everyone; some are even gratified. | ||||||||||||||
TIME MAY BE RIGHT FOR PRIVATE PRISONS | ||||||||||||||
State's public prison system under scrutiny | ||||||||||||||
Bans on private prison stall | ||||||||||||||
FLORENCE, Ariz. - Just as Highway 79 greets this prison town sweltering
in the desert, the barbed wire and drab concrete walls of the Central
Arizona Detention Center emerge from a seemingly endless stretch of
cactus and rock. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
For California, this emblem of the private prison industry is no
mirage. In fact, the Arizona lockup may turn out to offer a glimpse
into what the future holds for the state's already overburdened prison
system. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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STATE WILL NEED PRIVATE PRISONS, OFFICIAL SAYS | ||||||||||||||
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (AP) - The state needs a private prison under
construction in northern Wisconsin even as it expands its own
penitentiary system, a corrections spokesman says. | ||||||||||||||
"It just keeps increasing," Department of Corrections spokesman William Clausius said of the inmate population. "In terms of the need for beds, we would need to build a new prison every year just to keep up." | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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WHEN PRISONS BULGE, IT'S GOOD NEWS | ||||||||||||||
EVERY year, the Justice Department releases figures on the nation's
prison population, and they invariably set off a gnashing of teeth by
liberals about the injustice of it all. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
I tend to rejoice when I see that prisons are bulging. It is evidence,
I think, that government is finally performing one of its fundamental
functions: protecting and safeguarding the population. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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Medical Marijuana COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||||
Medical use of Marijuana remained in the news, with California
manifesting polar extremes in acceptance of 215. In the South,
unrestrained repression of activists continued; Marvin Chavez seemed
to get a break when the judge who ruled against mention of 215 handed
the case off; however his judicial crony adopted the same unbelievable
logic. | ||||||||||||||
A particularly outrageous aspect of Peter McWilliams' incarceration
without proper medical treatment is that it's being ignored by the
local media. This LTE by Gary Storck to a Madison, WI paper the only
mention I found in ANY Daily newspaper. For shame. | ||||||||||||||
In the North, the Oakland City Council took innovative and courageous
action by implementing a suggestion first voiced several months ago by
a participant on DRCTalk. The legislation, which makes use of a
provision of the Controlled Substances Act, attracted nationwide press
attention, in marked contrast to McWilliams' plight in federal
detention. | ||||||||||||||
PROP. 215 DISALLOWED IN CHAVEZ CASE | ||||||||||||||
Medicinal pot: Activist to stand trial Aug. 24 on drug-sale
charges. | ||||||||||||||
SANTA ANA - A second judge has banned the use of Prop. 215, the
medicinal marijuana initiative, from being argued before a jury in the
defense of activist Marvin Chavez. | ||||||||||||||
Judge Frank F. Fasel said Prop. 215, known as the Compassionate Use Act
of 1996, is flawed, but said the state Legislature - and not the jury -
should make the measure workable. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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The recent indictment and arrest in Los Angeles of medical marijuana
patient-activists Peter McWilliams, Todd McCormick and others is
nothing but a cynical attempt by federal officials to silence these
outspoken defenders of medical rights. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
Not only is the federal government trying to silence these defenders of liberty, but in the case of Peter McWilliams, they are apparently trying to murder him by denying him his AIDS medications. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
This cruel and immoral war on medical marijuana patients must stop now. | ||||||||||||||
Gary Storck Madison | ||||||||||||||
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MARIJUANA CLUB GIVEN OFFICIAL ROLE IN OAKLAND | ||||||||||||||
LOS ANGELES - Opening a new front in the legal battle over medicinal
marijuana, Oakland leaders Thursday designated the outlawed Oakland
Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative an official arm of the city, thereby
becoming the first municipal government to dispense the drug to
seriously ill patients. | ||||||||||||||
In its new partnership, Oakland is attempting to find its own solution
to the unresolved issue of medicinal marijuana use in California.
Though voters in November 1996 approved a statewide ballot measure
allowing patients to grow and smoke marijuana under certain conditions,
the law has faced repeated challenges from the California attorney
general and the U.S. Justice Department. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||||
Global drug prohibition policy combines with geography to create both
"producer" and "transit" nations. All are governed by corrupt
governments in one of two molds: weak and controlled by successful
drug criminals, or repressive and indistinguishable from successful
drug criminals. Civil wars are the norm, with the rebels either
financed by drugs or by "taxes" on drugs. | ||||||||||||||
Colombia, a case in point, is obviously sliding deeper into crisis; a
weak Government allied with the United States is increasingly
overmatched by both the cartels and FARC rebels. The following
articles point to a looming catastrophe, one which doctrinaire and
unrealistic American policy is incapable of even acknowledging, let
alone correcting. | ||||||||||||||
COLOMBIA ON THE BRINK | ||||||||||||||
BOGOTA-A new president; big guerrilla attacks, yet fresh hopes of
peace; an economy to be revitalised; a new politics to be born; renewed
links with the United States; new tactics in an old drug war: Colombia
faces momentous change | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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U.S. DEA CHIEF, COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT PATCH UP TIES | ||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, (Reuters) - Top U.S. anti-drugs official Thomas Constantine met
Colombian President Andres Pastrana Thursday in the latest sign that
Washington was recovering its dented confidence in Bogota's commitment
to the drug war. | ||||||||||||||
Constantine, chief of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), was making his second visit this year to Colombia, the world's leading supplier of cocaine and a major player in the high-grade heroin trade. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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ANTI-DRUG BASE DESTROYED BY COLOMBIA REBELS | ||||||||||||||
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Bogota, Colombia - The faint voice crackled over the two-way radio: The
base has been destroyed. There is nothing left. The police have been
taken away as hostages, and the soldiers,too." | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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COLOMBIAN ARMY'S THIRD IN COMMAND ALLEGEDLY LED TWO LIVES | ||||||||||||||
General Reportedly Served as a Key CIA Informant While Maintaining Ties
to Death Squads Financed by Drug Traffickers | ||||||||||||||
For years Colombian Gen. Ivan Ramirez Quintero was a key intelligence source for the United States. After training in Washington he was the first head of a military intelligence organization designed by U.S. experts to fight Marxist guerrillas and drug traffickers, | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/edit/letters/letterform.htm
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EX-COLOMBIAN MINISTER SEEKS ASYLUM IN COSTA RICA | ||||||||||||||
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Reuters) - Colombia's former Energy and Mines
Minister, who fled his country after being charged with taking money
from drug traffickers, has sought political asylum in Costa Rica,
officials said on Thursday. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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SO LEGALISE THEM? | ||||||||||||||
No one country on its own can sensibly decriminalise illegal drugs. The
world could collectively, but won't. Yet suppose it did: would Colombia
be better off? Yes, says Ernesto Samper. | ||||||||||||||
It is a qualified yes. He points to the huge harm that drug money has
done to Colombia. To would-be legalisers, that strengthens the case for
change. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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U.S. WILL HELP COLOMBIA COCA GROWERS SWITCH TO OTHER CROPS | ||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, Colombia, Aug. 13, 1998 - After long refusing to pay for
programs to help Colombia's coca growers switch to legal crops, the
United States is now agreeing to finance alternative development under
this country's new administration. | ||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||
SEATTLE HEMP FEST AND COMMON SENSE DRUG NEWS TABLOID | ||||||||||||||
Check out the line up of guests and bands for this weeks exciting Seattle
Hemp Fest at: | ||||||||||||||
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Seattle is one of the first major events in a series of annual events
that help promote education of the public on drug policy issues.
Besides that it is just plain fun! | ||||||||||||||
This prestigious event will be the first distribution point for the
newly completed Drug Information Tabloid "Common Sense for Drug
Policy." It will be handed out at festivals, college campuses, concerts
and elsewhere nationwide to over 500,000 people between now and
October. This excellent publication is a single point information
resource for getting aware, informed, and involved in drug policy
issues. It includes most important reform organizations and URLs as
well as a wealth of information. | ||||||||||||||
Be sure to attend the Seattle Hempfest if you can and don't miss your
copy of the Common Sense for Drug Policy tabloid. | ||||||||||||||
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TIP OF THE WEEK | ||||||||||||||
The Drug War Facts collection at: | ||||||||||||||
is proving to be a very valuable resource indeed. In a recent interview on Salt Lake City radio station KTKK Mark Greer used the collection to augment the discussion and to provide facts and cites on a moments notice by having the web page loaded on his computer screen during the interview. It may be coincidence but 100% of those calling in to the show expressed agreement that reform was an idea whose time has come. | ||||||||||||||
This collection of valuable facts can be used in any number of creative
ways. Try logging onto this page the next time you write a letter or
article or just prior to a debate. The convenient index by subject will
provide facts and cites in seconds. Your letters, interviews,
discussions or debates can benefit from regular use and familiarization
of this worthwhile resource. | ||||||||||||||
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||
`A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will lose
both, and deserve neither' - Thomas Jefferson | ||||||||||||||
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FACT OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||
Eighty five percent (85%) of the increase in the federal prison population
from 1985 to 1995 was due to drug convictions. | ||||||||||||||
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