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DrugSense Weekly
October 8, 1999 #118


Table of Contents

* Breaking News (03/29/24)


* Feature Article


A LETTER TO BARBARA BUSH by members of The November Coalition

* Weekly News in Review


Drug War Policy-

COMMENT: (1)
(1) American's Attitude To Illegal Drugs Softening
COMMENT: (2-4)
(2) N.M. Gov Clarifies Drug Position
(3) Drug Stance Worries Bradley
(4) Drug Czar Criticizes Governor Johnson
COMMENT: (5)
(5) Gilmore's Plan May Be Bountiful
COMMENT: (6)
(6) High Court Refuses To Halt Drug Tests

Law Enforcement & Prisons-

COMMENT: (7)
(7) Ex-Officers In Oregon Case Set To Appear In Court Today
COMMENT: (8-9)
(8) Police Balk At Tracking Racial Data
(9) Walk A Mile In Black Shoes Before Denying Racial Profiling

Cannabis-

COMMENT: (10)
(10) Ventura Sends Letter To President Clinton On Hemp
COMMENT: (11)
(11) Santa Cruz Turns Down $12,500 Cannabis Eradication Funding

International News-

COMMENT: (12-13)
(12) Bird Food Is A Casualty Of The U.S. War On Drugs
(13) U.S. Halts Ontario Hemp At Border
COMMENT: (14-15)
(14) Rock Okays Pot Use For 14 Smokers
(15) Pot Too Mild To Be Criminal, London Case Lawyer Argues

* Hot Off The 'Net


    Right-Sizing Justice
    Cato Institute conference, "Beyond Prohibition"
    The First The National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics

* Volunteer of the Month


    Thomas J. O'Connell, M.D.

* Quote of the Week


    Dennis Miller


FEATURE ARTICLE    (Top)

A LETTER TO BARBARA BUSH

This week, Sean Gonsalves, a Cape Cod Times staff writer and syndicated columnist published the following column with a letter from members of The November Coalition http://www.november.org/ - an organization we provide both website and mailing list support for.  The column is as follows:

I recently received a copy of a letter that was sent to the former first lady, Barbara Bush.

The letter was written by six mothers whose children are in jail because of the "war on drugs" - a "war" avidly supported by Mrs.  Bush's son, George W., who is running for president.  All six mothers are members of the November Coalition, which is based in Colville, Wash.

What follows is the full-text of the letter.  You may find it as interesting and moving as I did.

"Dear Mrs.  Bush,

"In recent weeks, your son, Texas Governor George W.  Bush, has faced questions regarding his youthful drug use.  Recently, you responded to the media onslaught regarding the matter, saying that possible illicit drug use by your son or any other candidate for political office in their youth is largely 'irrelevant.' You asked the media to stop 'trashing' candidates.

"We are mothers too, and we understand your maternal instinct to defend your son.  We agree that a person should not have their integrity questioned, nor their future put in jeopardy, simply because of a youthful indiscretion involving an illicit substance.  Young people, we all know, are prone to disregard risks to their health and safety.  This is especially true when a young person is already abusing a drug like alcohol, as your son has bravely acknowledged doing in his own youth.

"Despite our sympathy for your position, we respectfully believe that Governor Bush's implied past drug use, and his views about it, are extremely relevant for evaluating his sense of fairness and justice. This is a different question from whether his drug use, if any, is by itself a disqualification from being president.  We, too, do not think it is a disqualification.

"You see, our boys also committed 'youthful indiscretions.' But in their cases, the prosecutors and courts called them 'felonies.' They are each serving sentences of a decade or more (some far more) for their poor choices.  But those bad choices didn't have to ruin their lives, or the lives of their families.  Most young people mature, including those who act foolishly and self-destructively by using drugs.  Most go on to become productive citizens - just like your son.

"Today, there are nearly 500,000 men and women serving time in America's prisons and jails for drug law offenses - overwhelmingly low-level, nonviolent offenses.  Incarcerating these men and women costs taxpayers more than $10 billion annually.  Most of these prisoners are poor, and increasingly non-white.

"Last year, more than 700,000 Americans were arrested for marijuana possession alone.  These young people cannot apply for any job without disclosing their own 'youthful indiscretions,' because their indiscretions became criminal records that are permanent.  Many can never vote again, much less dream of running for public office.

"Youthful drug use, an issue that you and your son both claim is 'irrelevant' to the governor's personal history, has been made permanently relevant to us by the drug polices of the federal government and the 50 states, including Texas.  Our sons will have no second chances.

"Mrs.  Bush, we suggest it is time that you have a mother-to-son talk with George Jr.  Every mother wants her children to succeed and be healthy and happy.  As mothers, we teach our children that equal protection under the law insures them that they can not be unfairly held back by accidents of birth, race, disability, class, gender, etc. Equal opportunity applies to all kids, even those who make youthful mistakes.

"Please tell your son that not every child in America grew up with the many advantages that he has enjoyed.  Share with him the reality that without the advantages of position and class - access to excellent attorneys, adequate educational and employment opportunities, etc.  - hundreds of thousands of young men and former young men sit in our nation's prisons; many in Texas, many for nonviolent crimes.  The essence of these crimes is that they were young and reckless, that they lacked faith in themselves or in their economic opportunities.

"Please remind him that hundreds of thousands of mothers, wives and children cry themselves to sleep at night, hoping and praying to live long enough to see their loved ones free.  Please ask your son to promise you that if he becomes president, he will think long and hard about the injustices of our nation's longest war - the 'war on drugs.'

"We know in our hearts that you are profoundly proud of your children, Mrs.  Bush. Perhaps you can convince George W. that if he becomes president he should give loving mothers, just like you, another chance to rekindle pride and hope in their children.

"Sincerely,

"Mothers of Drug War Prisoners: Marianne Bassett, Mattapoisett, Mass.; Susan Bobby, Valparaiso, Ind.; Diane Muscoreil, Wilson, N.Y.; Virginia Traylor, Duncanville, Texas; Nancy Wall, Merrit Island, Fla.; Carol A. Walt, Vista, Calif."


WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW    (Top)

Domestic News- Policy


COMMENT: (1)    (Top)

Many high-profile citizens are admitting to past use of drugs without shame and/or declaring that drug users should not be locked away in our prison system.  There is hope that sane drug policy discussions can finally begin.

(1) AMERICAN'S ATTITUDE TO ILLEGAL DRUGS SOFTENING    (Top)

WASHINGTON - In what some see as a signal that American attitudes toward narcotics are softening, yet another American would-be political candidate has admitted he used illegal drugs during a wilder youth.

This time it's macho movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger, who says he's thinking about a run for governor on California in 2002.  Asked about past drug use, he responded, "I inhaled, exhaled, everything." Two weeks earlier, Bill Bradley, the challenger for the Democratic presidential nomination, said in a nationally televised interview: "I have used marijuana several times in my life."

Neither revelation raised a murmur of interest.

"The politicians are starting to catch up to the people in some ways," said Mark Mauer, head of the Sentencing Project, a Washington-based think tank that studies the fight against drugs.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Mon, 04 Oct 1999
Source:   National Post (Canada)
Copyright:   Southam Inc.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.nationalpost.com/
Forum:   http://forums.canada.com/~canada
Author:   Jan Cienski, National Post
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99/n636/a03.html
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1086.a09.html


COMMENT: (2-4)    (Top)

While Governor Gary Johnson of New Mexico spoke of legalizing drugs his Lt.  Gov, Walter Bradley, was singing the old song of "What message is this sending to our children?!".  The governor's views also brought on an attack by our Drug Czar, Barry McCaffrey, who accused Johnson of ignorance and irresponsibility - something McCaffrey is an expert on.

(2) N.M.  GOV CLARIFIES DRUGS POSITION

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Pressed to clarify his views on legalizing drugs, New Mexico Gov.  Gary Johnson said Tuesday he foresees a process that would start with marijuana.  "I don't see legalization of dangerous drugs any time soon," Johnson told reporters after speaking for drug legalization at the libertarian Cato Institute.

Johnson, a Republican in his second term, drew strong criticism from anti-drug leaders last week when he became the first sitting governor to advocate legalized narcotics.  Johnson said the nation's war on drugs has been a multibillion-dollar failure that throws too many people in prison.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 05 Oct 1999
Source:   Associated Press
Copyright:   1999 Associated Press
Author:   Matt Kelley, Associated Press
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99.n1085.a11.html?1029
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/johnson.htm


(3) DRUG STANCE WORRIES BRADLEY    (Top)

Gov.  Gary Johnson could be sending the wrong message to children with his call for legalization of drugs such as marijuana and heroin, Lt. Gov.  Walter Bradley said Thursday.

"There is some validity to the question of whether a leader who is taking this position is sending the wrong signal," Johnson's two-time running mate and second-in-command said in a telephone interview. Bradley, a former state senator from conservative eastern New Mexico, said he and Johnson disagree on national drug policy, which the governor has described as a "miserable failure."

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 01 Oct 1999
Source:   Albuquerque Journal (NM)
Copyright:   1999 Albuquerque Journal
Contact:  
Address:   P.O.  Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103
Website:   http://www.abqjournal.com/
Author:   Michael Coleman
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/alert/0120.html
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99.n1074.a04.html?1029


(4) DRUG CZAR CRITICIZES GOVERNOR JOHNSON    (Top)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - White House drug czar Barry McCaffrey Tuesday accused the governor of New Mexico of ignorance and irresponsibility in calling for the legalization of marijuana and heroin.  Responding to Republican Gov.  Gary Johnson's radical alternative to the "expensive failure" of the war on drugs, McCaffrey told reporters: "I am astonished.  Gov. Johnson in New Mexico is acting in an irresponsible manner.  This is the same governor last year who vetoed a $2.6 million drug treatment program.

"Obviously the governor hasn't seen the nature of drug addiction in the same manner that drug treatment professionals in that state and law enforcement have encountered," said McCaffrey.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 05 Oct 1999
Source:   Reuters
Copyright:   1999 Reuters Limited.
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99.n1080.a07.html?1029


COMMENT: (5)    (Top)

Columnist Bill McKelway's satirical view of Virginian Governor Jim Gilmore's plan to bring back the Wild West bounty hunt on drug kingpins brings a bit of humor to expose the folly of this approach.

(5) GILMORE'S PLAN MAY BE BOUNTIFUL    (Top)

Gov.  Jim Gilmore's plan to offer $10,000 bounties for drug kingpins has my mouth watering.

With a little luck, a concealed weapons permit, and a set of shiny new scales, I could collect the equivalent of my newspaper salary in a week or two.  Where I live, the streets are crawling with potential suspects.

The details aren't ironed out yet, but I can only presume that this Wild West sort of language presages an official tolerance for a new Wild West sort of culture.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 28 Sept 1999
Source:   Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA)
Copyright:   1999 Richmond Newspapers Inc.
Address:   P.O.  Box 85333, Richmond, VA 23293-0001 (LTEs by FAX or mail only!)
Fax:   (804) 775-8072
Website:   http://www.gateway-va.com/
Author:   Bill McKelway
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1081.a02.html


COMMENT: (6)    (Top)

While the rest of America begins to discuss the end to our failing drug war, the highest court continues to mock the 4th amendment.

(6) HIGH COURT REFUSES TO HALT DRUG TESTS    (Top)

Appeals Rejected: Teachers Must Submit To Procedure

(Washington) -- The Supreme Court cleared the way Monday for mandatory drug testing for schoolteachers, rejecting a constitutional challenge that called the program "an exercise in symbolism."

The justices turned down an appeal filed by the National Education Association, the largest teachers union, which argued that educators should not be forced to undergo urine testing unless there is evidence of a drug problem on the faculty.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 05 Oct 1999
Source:   San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright:   1999 Mercury Center
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.sjmercury.com/
Author:   David G.  Savage
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1085.a09.html


Law Enforcement & Prisons


COMMENT: (7)    (Top)

The wheels of justice turn slow.  Over one year after killing an innocent citizen the case is just beginning.  An average citizen would have spent this time in a jail cell.

(7) EX-OFFICERS IN OREGON CASE SET TO APPEAR IN COURT TODAY    (Top)

Two former Houston police officers charged in the shooting death of Pedro Oregon Navarro are scheduled for initial appearances -- and possible arraignment -- before a federal magistrate at 10 a.m.  today. U.S.  Magistrate Judge Calvin Botley will read the civil rights charges against former Sgt.  Darrel H. Strouse, 35, and James R. Willis, 29. The two were indicted last week on charges of conspiracy to violate the civil rights of Oregon and his brother, Rogelio, to be free from unreasonable search and seizure when the officers entered Rogelio's apartment July 12, 1998.

Prosecutors said the officers did not have a search warrant or consent to enter when they and four other officers went to the apartment.  Once inside, some of the officers pursued Oregon to a bedroom, where he was shot.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 28 Sep 1999
Source:   Houston Chronicle (TX)
Copyright:   1999 Houston Chronicle
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.chron.com/
Forum:   http://www.chron.com/content/hcitalk/index.html
Author:   Deborah Tedford
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1071.a05.html


COMMENT: (8-9)    (Top)

California Governor Davis vetoed a bill that would have required all police departments to record the race of drivers pulled over for traffic stops due to cost.  The following two articles show the difference in attitude about racial profiling between the police and the citizens that they serve.

(8) POLICE BALK AT TRACKING RACIAL DATA    (Top)

Profiling:   Davis' Plea Falls On Deaf Ears For Most Valley Law
Enforcers.  Despite last week's plea from Gov. Gray Davis, most Silicon Valley police departments have no intention of tracking the race of drivers pulled over for traffic stops.

While the biggest departments have volunteered to collect the information, they had already agreed to do so before the governor urged them to, according to an informal Mercury News survey of law-enforcement agencies.

Those departments that don't plan to collect the data -- most of them in smaller communities -- are simply relieved that the governor vetoed a bill last week that would have required every department in California to do so.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Sun, 3 Oct 1999
Source:   San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright:   1999 Mercury Center
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.sjmercury.com
Author:   Ben Stocking
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1085.a10.html

(9) WALK A MILE IN BLACK SHOES BEFORE DENYING RACIAL PROFILING    (Top)

Gray Davis has been a white male all of his life and walked in white male shoes.

My sons have been black males all of theirs and walked in black male shoes.

I suppose that is why Davis said the bill to measure the scope of racial profiling would be too costly.  He didn't understand what it has cost African-American males and other males of color in this society.

Pubdate:   Sun, 03 Oct 1999
Source:   San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright:   1999 Mercury Center
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.sjmercury.com/
Author:   Loretta Green
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1084.a06.html


Cannabis


COMMENT: (10)    (Top)

Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura outlined his plan to implement hemp cultivation in a letter to President Clinton.  This plan would require the cooperation of the Drug Enforcement Agency which has strongly opposed reviving the U.S.  hemp industry. The governor mentioned Canada's success with its hemp industry and expressed his desire to move forward on legislation.

(10) VENTURA SENDS LETTER TO PRESIDENT CLINTON ON HEMP    (Top)

Gov.  Jesse Ventura is taking his push to allow farmers to grow hemp all the way to President Clinton.  Ventura sent a letter to Clinton late Thursday, outlining his plan to implement pro-hemp state legislation enacted last spring.

"Given the success we have seen in Canada and the continuing economic challenges Minnesota farmers face, I am anxious to move forward," Ventura wrote.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 01 Oct 1999
Source:   Associated Press
Copyright:   1999 Associated Press
Author:   Ashley H.  Grant
Note:   Governor Jesse Ventura's Web Site:
http://www.mainserver.state.mn.us/governor/
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99.n1074.a05.html?190


COMMENT: (11)    (Top)

Prohibitionist can never get enough funds.  Santa Cruz Deputy claims that $12,500 will 'hamper' their marijuana eradication efforts since they only have $275,000 to work with.

(11) SANTA CRUZ TURNS DOWN $12,500 CANNABIS ERADICATION FUNDING    (Top)

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.  (AP) -- The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors turned down money needed to pay overtime for deputies who hunt down marijuana crops.  Losing the money will "significantly hamper our ability to move forward with our yearly eradication efforts," said sheriff's spokesman Deputy Kim Allyn.

The supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday to accept $12,500 from the Federal Department of Justice to cover the overtime.  After the vote was taken, however, the board learned it required four votes to accept the money because it is "unanticipated revenue." The cash would have been given to supplement the $275,000 already awarded for the program.

[snip]

Pubdate:   1 Oct, 1999
Source:   Associated Press
Copyright:   1999 Associated Press
Note:   Headline by MAP
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v99.n1073.a02.html?180


International News

COMMENT: (12-13)    (Top)

The DEA move to destroy a large segment of the US hemp industry, and at the same time destroy the major market for Canadian hemp seed hit the news this week.  Extending the drug war to birdseed, the DEA ignored over sixty years of practice based on law and international agreements to block hemp seed from Canada from entering the US.

Just as the first major Canadian harvest is being shipped to markets, the DEA claims to have suddenly found that hemp seed was being used in food for humans, and that it had tiny traces of THC, in violation of law.  Does anyone really believe that these agents were so inept as to not have known for years that traces of THC existed in oils and foods? Our news clipping archives contains articles about false positives from hemp oil, and major newspapers, including The New York Times, have published articles about hemp food.  For example, see the 1997 article "Hemp: Out of the Fields and Onto Menus" at
http://www.mapinc.org/clipping/v97/n154/a01.html?190

What next? Will the DEA block hemp cloth because they find some with .0000001% THC which could cause a contact high? Destroying a fledgling industry - with thousands of jobs on the line - and proponents which include state legislatures, will not be as easy as busting a medical marijuana user, as the DEA is finding out.

(12) BIRD FOOD IS A CASUALTY OF THE U.S. WAR ON DRUGS    (Top)

What do 40,000 pounds of birdseed have in common with America's war on drugs? Nothing, says Jean Laprise, an Ontario farmer who shipped the birdseed to his American customers only to have it seized when it crossed the U.S.-Canadian border.

Everything, say the U.S.  government and its critics, but for altogether different reasons.

[snip]

The birdseed seized in Detroit had a THC content of barely .0014 percent, which wouldn't give a bird a buzz.

[snip]

Last year, Canada declared hemp a legitimate crop and has granted growers' licenses for 35,000 acres.  Britain, France and Germany also have commercial hemp industries.  Hawaii, North Dakota and Minnesota passed laws approving hemp this year as a crop for hard-pressed farmers.

Kenex's customers, who snap up Laprise's hemp seeds and fibers for everything from food for animals and people to beauty products and horse bedding, have been outraged by the seizure in Detroit.

[snip]

Meanwhile, a report by the U.S.  Department of Agriculture assessing the potential of hemp growing has made the rounds of the federal government.  The report's beige cover is stamped "Classified."

[snip]

Pubdate:   Sun, 03 Oct 1999
Source:   New York Times (NY)
Copyright:   1999 The New York Times Company
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.nytimes.com/
Forum:   http://www10.nytimes.com/comment/
Author:   Christopher S.  Wren
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1077.a10.html
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/hemp.htm
Related:   http://www.hempembargo.com/

(13) U.S. HALTS ONTARIO HEMP AT BORDER    (Top)

The U.S.  Drug Enforcement Agency has delivered a body blow to Ontario's fledgling hemp industry, stopping a shipment of hemp products to the U.S.  and ordering the processor to recall 17 other tractor-trailer loads.

Jean Laprise, president of Kenex Ltd., said his Chatham-Kent company now faces more than $700,000 in penalties and has lost the major market for its products.

"It's not just us.  It will seriously affect several Canadian operations," Laprise said yesterday.

Laprise said he also expects several U.S.  customers will be forced out of business because they won't be able to get supplies from Canada. Many have poured money into developing and marketing hemp products.

[snip]

Laprise said Kenex has not broken any rules and filed an objection yesterday under the Free Trade Agreement.  The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency isn't following the rules, he said.

Ontario Agriculture Minister Ernie Hardeman said he has asked the federal government to take quick action to deal with the Kenex situation.

"We hope the federal government will get on it," he said.

Production of hemp in Ontario has been supported by the provincial government with grants to get the industry going.

[snip]

Laprise said Kenex can't pay the $700,000 in penalties imposed by the DEA.  Jobs at Kenex are also in jeopardy.

"Twenty people are working here.  Those jobs didn't exist a year and a half ago," said Laprise.  "We were hoping to add another 10 jobs, not take away 10 or 20 jobs."

Pubdate:   Tue, 05 Oct 1999
Source:   London Free Press (Canada)
Copyright:   1999 The London Free Press a division of Sun Media Corporation.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.canoe.ca/LondonFreePress/home.html
Forum:   http://www.lfpress.com/londoncalling/SelectForum.asp
Author:   John Miner
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1088.a09.html


COMMENT: (14-15)    (Top)

Meanwhile, the Canadian government has just increased the number of persons authorized to use marijuana as medicine to sixteen, twice the number authorized in the US.  Plus, a we have long been following reached the appeal level on the way to the Supreme Court.

(14) ROCK OKAYS POT USE FOR 14 SMOKERS    (Top)

Health Minister Allan Rock is granting 14 more criminal exemptions to Canadians who have satisfied his department they need to smoke marijuana to alleviate suffering from chronic illnesses.

Rock said yesterday his department has received about 100 applications from Canadians who say they need marijuana to help control their disease.

Of those, 14 have been given the go-ahead and another six are under consideration.  The remainder, an official said, are incomplete, but none have been rejected outright.

Today's exemptions bring to 16 the number of Canadians who can smoke marijuana without fear of prosecution.  The exemptions are granted under a section of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Wed, 06 Oct, 1999
Source:   Toronto Star (Canada)
Copyright:   1999, The Toronto Star
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.thestar.com/
Author:   Tim Harper
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1090.a06.html
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm


(15) POT TOO MILD TO BE CRIMINAL, LONDON CASE LAWYER ARGUES    (Top)

TORONTO -- Smoking pot should be legal because it's harmless compared with other drugs, a lawyer will argue today before Ontario's Court of Appeal.

Alan Young is challenging a lower court ruling that convicted recreational pot smoker Chris Clay in London, despite the trial judge's finding the drug didn't do any harm.

Young argues Parliament has no constitutional right to criminalize marijuana because it's so benign.

"Whatever evidence there is of harm is so inconsequential that it is not worthy of criminal law attention," Young said.

"This substance has been called by learned academics, scientists and jurists as one of the safest drugs in the history of mankind."

[snip]

Justice John McCart of Ontario's Superior Court said he believed pot-smoking was harmless and caused no serious physical or psychological damage and that it didn't lead to the use of other drugs.

But the judge ruled it would be up to Parliament to determine what's illegal and said the drug charges didn't infringe on Clay's constitutional rights.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Wed, 06 Oct 1999
Source:   London Free Press (Canada)
Copyright:   1999 The London Free Press a division of Sun Media Corporation.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.canoe.ca/LondonFreePress/home.html
Forum:   http://www.lfpress.com/londoncalling/SelectForum.asp
Author:   Hollie Shaw, CP
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1091.a05.html
Related:   http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm


HOT OFF THE 'NET    (Top)

Cato Institute conference, "Beyond Prohibition"

Last Tuesday's Cato Institute conference, "Beyond Prohibition: an adult approach to drug policies in the 21st century", is now on line in RealVideo at:

http://www.cato.org/realaudio/drugwar/index.html

Right-Sizing Justice

A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Imprisonment in Three States is the title of a very well documented research paper now on the web that provides a superb analysis of the costs to society of various crimes, including drug war crimes.  It is available in both text and portable document format (.pdf) versions at:

http://www.manhattaninstitute.org/html/cr_8.htm


The First The National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics

As announcements of Spring conferences by NORML and DPF have gone out across the 'net, here is one you may not have seen.  The First The National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics will be held on 7 and 8 April at the University of Iowa.  The schedule is at the following URL.  We have been promised more details soon.

http://mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/MEDICAL/POT/Conference.html


DRUGSENSE VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH    (Top)

DrugSense Volunteer of the Month

Thomas J.  O'Connell, M.D.

This month we recognize Tom O'Connell

Tom was recognized in the very first issue of DSW for a letter published in USA Today on 24 June 1997.  Now there are 36 published letters by Tom in our archives at: http://www.mapinc.org/to/lte/

Within months Tom became the editor for this, the DrugSense Weekly, spending many hours each week selecting news items and providing his comments on the news.

Except for this week, as Tom is on the east coast, having attended the Cato conference.  Thus we believe this announcement is a surprise!

Tom, along with Mark Greer, Kendra Wright, Nora Callahan and Jerry Epstein serve on the MAP/DrugSense Board of Directors.  Kevin Zeese, Esq.  serves as board member emeritus. We all appreciate the sound guidance Tom provides which has helped so much in the growth of our organization.

Oh, and as if he was not already doing enough, Tom takes time when he can to join with other activists in our Saturday and Sunday evening chats in the DrugSense Chat Room at: http://www.drugsense.org/chat/

If you would like to know more about our Dr.  Tom, please check his Biographical Sketch at http://www.mapinc.org/to/

Thank you, Tom, for all that you are doing! Tom O'Connell's name will be added to the list of honored volunteers on the following web page within the next few days: http://www.drugsense.org/dswvol.htm


QUOTE OF THE WEEK    (Top)

"The government could take away all the drugs in the world and people would spin around on their lawns until they fell down and saw God." -- Dennis Miller


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This week's DSW was created by Jo-D () and Richard (), with assistance from Matt () while Tom O'Connell and Mark Greer took the week off to attend the Cato conference.  We now know from experience the considerable amount of work involved in producing each week's edition!

We wish to thank all our contributors, editors, Newshawks and letter writing activists.

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NOW YOU CAN DONATE TO DRUGSENSE ONLINE AND IT'S TAX DEDUCTIBLE

DrugSense provides many services to at no charge BUT THEY ARE 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 visit our convenient donation web site at: http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm

-OR-

Mail in your contribution.  Make checks payable to MAP Inc. send your contribution to:

The Media Awareness Project (MAP) Inc.
d/b/a DrugSense
PO Box 651
Porterville,
CA 93258
(800) 266 5759

http://www.mapinc.org/
http://www.drugsense.org/


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