| Sept. 15, 2006 #466 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
(1) COCAINE AIRWAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A former CIA pilot says secret flights to El Toro could explain a
Marine officer's `suicide'
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When we first spoke, a decade ago, the fear in his voice--the staccato
pace, the tremor--was unmistakable. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I can't talk to you," he said. "This is all classified." | ||||||||||||||||||||
He answered just one question: if he told me what he knew, he'd go straight to federal prison for violating U.S. national security laws. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Then he hung up the telephone. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Two weeks ago, I tracked the man to his home in rural Pennsylvania.
This time, he didn't hang up on me. The terror in his voice was gone,
replaced by the cheerful nonchalance that maybe just comes with being
69 years old and knowing that your kids have finished college, you're
well into retirement, and it's too late for anyone to ruin your life
for talking to a reporter about matters that powerful people would
rather keep secret. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He laughed when he recalled our conversation a decade ago. He
apologized for not answering my questions. He asked me what I wanted to
know. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Over the course of the next several days, the man told me his life
story. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(2) WHEN MALLS STAY OPEN ON SUNDAYS, THE PIOUS PARTY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Who knew Satan worked at the local mall?
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While bars, cheap hotels and similar places of questionable repute may
remain America's favorite spots to sin, two economists say that giving
people an extra day to shop at the mall also contributes significantly
to wicked behavior -- particularly among people who are the most
religious. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Jonathan Gruber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Daniel M. Hungerman of the University of Notre Dame discovered the malevolent Mall Effect by studying what happened when states and counties repeal "blue laws." Those statutes prohibit the sale on Sunday of certain nonessential items, such as appliances, furniture and jewelry, typically sold in shopping malls, as well as liquor and cigarettes. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Gruber and Hungerman found that when states eliminated blue laws, church attendance declined while drinking and drug use increased significantly among young adults. Even more striking, the biggest change in bad behavior mostly occurred among those who frequently attended religious services, they report in a working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, "The Church vs. the Mall: What Happens When Religion Faces Increased Secular Competition?" | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(3) AFGHAN FIGHTING BLAMED FOR OPIUM BONANZA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Government was accused of self-delusion last night over the Army's
mission in Afghanistan after a Foreign Office minister admitted that
the campaign against the Taliban was responsible for a bumper opium
crop. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Kim Howells said instability in Helmand province, where 4,500 British
troops are trying to eliminate Taliban forces, had hindered efforts to
purge poppy fields. | ||||||||||||||||||||
An emboldened coalition of "drug-runners" and "gangsters" was thriving as programmes to discourage cultivation ground to a halt. He said: "The operation to establish stability has set us back a good deal and it's going to be hard work to establish the stability the Afghans need. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"That's why the reserve force that Nato has requested to provide the flexibility to cope and stabilise the province is so important. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I am very disappointed in the latest [opium] figures. Clearly, we face
a very difficult task to ensure this year that the crop next year is
not the same or even bigger."
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[snip]
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With a mandate to bring schools, police posts and medical clinics to
the villages of southern Afghanistan, Nato quickly fell foul of local
rumours that foreign forces were out to destroy the poppy crop. To
farmers with no other means of gaining cash, such claims became a
rallying cry for the insurgency. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Liam Fox, the Conservative defence spokesman, said the Government
should abandon any pretence of prosecuting a counter-narcotics policy
in Afghanistan. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"This Government was living in cloud cuckoo land on this," he said. "To
tell Parliament and the Labour Party that this deployment was part of
the war on drugs was self-delusion."
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[snip]
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(4) EDITORIAL: SEIZING PROPERTY ON A SUSPICION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Americans have gotten used to the sometimes otherworldly decisions that
come out of the federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in California,
which has a reputation as a left-wing hothouse. Yet we can't recall a
decision that the 9th Circuit has recently made that comes close to the
lunacy expressed by the 8th Circuit in the Midwest. In essence, the
court ruled last month that anyone driving with large quantities of
cash must be assumed to be guilty of something, and that the government
can take that cash from its owner. No evidence of wrongdoing need be
found for the police to take the money and run. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In 2003, Emiliano Gomez Gonzolez was pulled over by a state trooper in
his rental car for speeding along a Nebraska interstate highway.
Gonzolez handed the trooper a Nevada license and the car's rental
contract. However, a different man's name was on the contract. After
Gonzolez told the officer that he had never been arrested, the officer
checked with his dispatcher and found that Gonzolez had indeed been
arrested for a DUI earlier that same year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Those suspicions led to a search of the car, which led to the discovery
of $124,700 in cash in a cooler. Later, as the court explained, a drug-
sniffing dog named Rico got a scent of drugs on some of the cash and in
the rental cars, but no drugs, drug residue or drug paraphernalia were
found. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The government claimed that "the dog's alert, along with the large amount of cash that was seized, the circumstances of Gonzolez's travel, and Gonzolez's initial false denials that he was carrying cash or that he had a criminal history, showed that the currency was substantially connected to a drug transaction," according to the court analysis. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy
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COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sneaky and deceitful as federal drug warriors appeared last week
when a report criticizing the government's anti-drug ad campaign was
released, it turns out they were even more sneaky and deceitful.
They actually worked behind the scenes to hold the report long
enough to get more tax dollars appropriated for the failing
campaign. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In Mississippi, former the former state drug czar is now a city
mayor, but he can't seem to get out of that bust-down the door (or
tear down the building) mentality. A local newspaper is appalled by
the mayor's actions, as well as the city council's failure to
challenge him. Also last week, the U.S. Senate approved more money
for opium eradication in Afghanistan. And, if the government is to
believed, baby boomers are using more drugs. Or, maybe they are just
sick of lying about it. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(5) A WHITE HOUSE DRUG DEAL GONE BAD (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sitting on the Negative Results of a Study of Anti-Marijuana Ads. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Since 1998, the federal government has spent more than $1.4 billion
on an ad campaign aimed primarily at dissuading teens from using
marijuana. You've seen the ads--high on pot, stoners commit a host
of horrible acts, including running over a little girl on a bike at
a drive-through. Or a kid sits in the hospital with his fist stuck
in his mouth. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the arm of the federal government that funds research on drug abuse and addiction, partnered to study the ad campaign's effectiveness. The White House provided the funding and NIDA contracted with a research firm, Westat, which gathered data between November 1999 and June 2004. The report Westat produced cost the government $42.7 million. It shows that the ad campaign isn't working, as the Associated Press reported in late August. Instead of reducing the likelihood that kids would smoke marijuana, the ads increased it. Westat found that "greater exposure to the campaign was associated with weaker anti-drug norms and increases in the perceptions that others use marijuana." More exposure to the ads led to higher rates of first-time drug use among certain groups, like 14- to 16-year-olds and white kids. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Five years and $43 million to show that a billion-dollar ad campaign doesn't work? That's bad. But perhaps worse, and as yet unreported, NIDA and the White House drug office sat on the Westat report for a year and a half beginning in early 2005--while spending $220 million on the anti-marijuana ads in fiscal years 2005 and 2006. | ||||||||||||||||||||
NIDA dated Westat's report as "delivered" in June 2006. In fact, it was delivered in February 2005, according to the Government Accountability Office, the federal watchdog agency charged with reviewing the study. In the time that has elapsed since, the White House justified the $220 million ongoing expenditure on the campaign on the grounds that the campaign was being scientifically evaluated. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(6) CITY COUNCIL INACTION ENDORSES MAYOR'S ACT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Jackson City Council President Ben Allen was actually insightful in
explaining his logic for wimpish inaction instead of taking a stand
against Mayor Frank Melton. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"This isn't Iraq. This is the United States of America . . . We are
the legislative branch of government. We are not the Gestapo," Allen
said in explaining why he joined three colleagues in deciding not to
investigate the mayor's possible participation in the partial
demolition of a Virden Addition duplex. | ||||||||||||||||||||
That this is Jackson, not Baghdad or Moscow, is precisely the point.
Citizens by law are afforded due process and a presumption of
innocence and not subjected to financial penalties based on
suspicion, even if it's the mayor. | ||||||||||||||||||||
No one expected Allen and the council to become investigators and bring the mayor up on charges. That's the responsibility of the district attorney and the sheriff. It is more than reasonable, however, for council members to help set the city's tone. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The council's inaction is a de facto endorsement of the mayor's
Gestapolike actions. | ||||||||||||||||||||
LEADERSHIP NEEDED
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Occasional displays of leadership are a reasonable expectation. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Leadership is crucial in this situation when the actions involved
are so deplorable. Most law-abiding citizens are offended by drug
houses. The city and the Police Department should do everything
within reason to remedy these neighborhood cancers. | ||||||||||||||||||||
At the same time, however, no one's property should be destroyed
based on suspicion, even if it is the mayor's suspicion. Melton, as
part of his anti-drug campaign, has acknowledged he was present when
the Ridgeway Street house was damaged. | ||||||||||||||||||||
No one should be allowed to convict a tenant and condemn the
property owner as if they were Saddam Hussein or Leonid Brezhnev,
even if it is the mayor. What's even more outrageous is a council
majority chose to ignore these irrational, immoral and possibly
illegal actions. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(7) SENATE APPROVES $700 MN TO FIGHT AFGHAN OPIUM PRODUCTION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The U.S. Senate voted to step up Washington's efforts to fight
Afghanistan's flourishing production of opium poppies, setting aside
$700 million to fund U.S. Defence Department counter-narcotics
measures. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Democratic Senator Charles Schumer, who wrote the measure, said that
the revenue generated from Afghan poppies, which are used to produce
heroin, is funding a resurgence of the Taliban, the fundamentalist
Islamic regime deposed by US-led forces following the September 11,
2001 terror attacks. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Our soldiers fought long and hard to rid Afghanistan of terrorists
and the Taliban. However, if the drug trade continues to surge and
consume the nation, their heroic efforts may be undone," Schumer
said on Thursday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(8) DRUG USE RISES IN 50s, DIPS AMONG TEENS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Boomers, Young Adults Push Up Overall Rates
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Baby boomers' use of marijuana and other drugs is increasing usage
rates among older adults, while teens' drug use is declining,
according to a national survey released Thursday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Overall, illicit drug use among Americans rose slightly from 2004 to
2005, driven in part by small increases in cocaine and
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[snip]
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Law Enforcement & Prisons
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COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
After a Chinese restaurant owner in a poor Philadelphia neighborhood
was shot to death during a robbery, local police blame Chinese
restaurants in poor neighborhoods for the city's drug problems. A
Maryland court said mothers shouldn't be jailed for endangering
unborn children by using drugs, but it didn't say they can't be
punished. Also last week, more drug-related rural police corruption,
and DARE makes a comeback, at least in one town. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(9) FOR TAKEOUT OPERATORS, DREAMS UNDAUNTED BY DANGER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese takeouts risk danger to provide a better life. | ||||||||||||||||||||
His eyes glistening with tears, Zhong Hui Wang, 20, stood before a brick furnace Sunday tossing folded pieces of gold and silver paper into the fire, promising wealth to his father in the afterlife. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Nearby, Zong Xiang Wang's body rested in a dark cherry casket,
partially covered in a reddish-pink blanket he once shared with his
wife of two decades, Yun Ying Yao, 42. The inclusion of a cherished
possession is a burial custom from his native Fujian province in
southeastern China. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The elder Wang came to the United States in 1993 seeking the promise
of a better life for himself and his family. As with many Chinese
immigrants in Philadelphia, he wound up selling take-out food in a
crime-ridden section of the city. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It's a dangerous business the Chinese learn not to enjoy. But often with little grasp of English and no other marketable skills, they see no other way to make money and save for that better life. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wang, 44, who lived with his family in Feltonville, died Aug. 25 at
Temple University Hospital, 14 days after he was shot during a
late-afternoon robbery behind his China Taste takeout at Fifth and
Lehigh in North Philadelphia. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He had been robbed before, and he explained to his sons, Zhong Hui
and Zhong Jie Wang, 16, how they should respond. " 'If people rob
you, give them the money. Nothing will happen to you,' he always
tell me," Zhong Hui recalled. "This time, after the robbery, they
shot him." Police reported no arrest in the case. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Some residents and police have criticized Chinese takeouts and other
stores that stay open late in rough neighborhoods for being magnets
for drug activity and other crimes. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Police Officer Jeff Smith, who conducts tactical patrols in North
Philadelphia, called them a "total nuisance. They give the drug
dealers a reason to hang on the corner."
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But owners say that if their takeouts weren't open, drug dealing and
other crimes would still afflict these neighborhoods. Also, the
owners say they are threatened by drug dealers and have trouble
getting police help. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(10) DRUGS WHILE PREGNANT: DANGEROUS VS. "ENDANGERMENT"? (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Maryland Court Rules That Addicted Moms-To-Be Would Be Best Served
by Treatment, Not Imprisonment
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Let's say you're pregnant. Driving without a seatbelt, playing ice
hockey, subsisting on Cheetos: They may not be recommended by What
to Expect When You're Expecting, but do they constitute illegal
reckless "child endangerment" -- punishable by imprisonment? In a
decision hailed by National Advocates for Pregnant Women, Maryland's
highest court has, in effect, said no. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Imprisonment is not only the most costly thing the state could do,"
Lynn Paltrow of NAPW told the Washington Post. "It's the most
family-destructive thing the state could do."
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The cases that led to this decision were those of two women
convicted of reckless endangerment -- and sentenced to several years
in prison - -- for apparent cocaine use during pregnancy. Three
other women in the same jurisdiction, Maryland's Talbot County, had
faced such charges -- putting the county out of step, actually, with
some of its neighbors and a handful of other rulings. But according
to the Post, "Some experts say they believe there have been more
such cases in recent years, driven perhaps by the increase in
methamphetamine use in some parts of the country and by recent laws
that allow prosecutors to treat some crimes against pregnant women
as cases with two victims."
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Keep in mind, though, that an endangerment charge could also, in
theory, be brought in situations less immediately appealing to those
who support narrow definitions of the rights of the "unborn."
Including, as the Maryland Court of Appeals noted in its decision,
"becoming ( or remaining ) pregnant with knowledge that the child
likely will have a genetic disorder that may cause serious
disability or death."
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[snip]
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(11) RURAL DEPUTIES FACE CORRUPTION CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Prosecutors Allege Kidnapping, Theft, Drug-Dealer Protection | ||||||||||||||||||||
Six men, some of them drug dealers, drove north from Robeson County in southeastern N.C. a couple of years ago to kidnap two Virginia men, prosecutors say. The would-be kidnappers thought the Virginia men had $450,000 in cash hidden inside a black Chevrolet van. | ||||||||||||||||||||
At a gas station in Norfolk, Va., prosecutors say, the men jumped out of a red, four-door sedan with badges around their necks and guns in their hands, yelling that they were the police. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In fact, two of those eventually charged were in law enforcement --
deputies with the Robeson County Sheriff's Office. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The deputies also were on the payroll of the drug dealers, according
to an attorney for one of the deputies. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Corruption in law enforcement has long been suspected in Robeson
County, which is plagued by a high murder rate and a widespread drug
problem fed by trafficking along Interstate 95. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(12) DISTRICT TAKING A D.A.R.E. IN VIDOR
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Former City Police Chief Brings Drug Prevention Program Back | ||||||||||||||||||||
VIDOR - Because a teenager using illegal narcotics is not something
any school administrator wishes to see, the Vidor school district
has brought back the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program to try
to reach students at a younger age. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The D.A.R.E. program was originally taught in area schools by two
certified officers within the Orange County Sheriff's Department,
however, on Sept. 13, 2004, Orange County Commissioners officially
abolished it, according to the county clerk's office. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The two officers were moved to other areas of the sheriff's department, and the D.A.R.E. program closed in Orange County. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But that will change this year, Sally Kirkpatrick, director of community relations for the Vidor school district, said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The program will be taught for two days during the week for an
entire semester for our fifthgrade students at Vidor Middle School,"
Kirkpatrick said. "Children in the first semester will take the
D.A.R.E. class instead of art and will take art the second
semester."
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[snip]
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Cannabis & Hemp-
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COMMENT: (13-16) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Seasoned Wisconsin activist Ben Masel, a Weedstock organizer for 35 years, was unable to oust incumbent Herb Kohl in last Tuesday's primary as both sought the Democratic ticket for U.S. Senate. He received over 2,000 votes, so better luck next time, Ben! | ||||||||||||||||||||
Deliberate sabotage or innocent mistake? SAFER is headed to court in
Colorado in an attempt to delay production of an official voters'
guide because its analysis of Amendment 44 is inaccurate. According
to the guide, Amendment 44 would make it legal to give up to one
ounce of marijuana to anyone ages 15 through 20, as long as no money
changes hands. SAFER spokesperson, Mason Tvert said the ballot
initiative is actually seeking fines for any one under the age of
21. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Reminiscent of the medical marijuana situation, California and seven other states are on the brink of forcing a showdown with the fed's over hemp agriculture. The United States imports a large quantity of hemp that is grown in more than 30 countries instead of at home, which makes some U.S. farmers and manufacturers very unhappy. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Shaking Things Up, Down Under Dept: Australia's conservative Country
Women's Association stunned everyone by announcing it will lobby
governments to begin trials in the medicinal use of marijuana as a
treatment for chronic pain. Senator Joyce said, "If it was virtually
anyone else I'd say 'no way', but I've always respected them for
having their heads screwed on, so if they came out and said
something, you'd have to have a look at it."
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(13) WEEDSTOCK ORGANIZER TRIES TO UNSEAT KOHL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Activism Began in High School, Masel Says
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MILWAUKEE - Ben Masel says his top interests include "good hash" and
"getting acquitted" - not exactly what you'd expect from a candidate
for U.S. Senate. But the 51-year-old liberal activist from Madison
has made a career of doing things his own way. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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Political experts say Masel, pronounced MAY-zell, has no chance of
knocking off incumbent Sen. Herb Kohl in the Wisconsin primary on
Tuesday. Kohl, a Democrat, seeks re-election to a fourth consecutive
six-year term. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Kohl's Washington office referred all comment to his Madison campaign office, which did not return several messages left. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(14) POT AMENDMENT HEADED TO COURT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
DENVER - Amendment 44 would make it legal to give up to one ounce of
marijuana to anyone ages 15 through 20, as long as no money changes
hands, according to a ballot-information booklet the Legislature has
prepared for Colorado voters. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"This was not our intention," Amendment 44 proponent Mason Tvert
told the Legislative Council last week. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It's also untrue, Tvert said Monday, because anyone giving marijuana
to anyone younger than 18 could still be charged with contributing
to the delinquency of a minor. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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The measure seeks to make it legal under state drug laws for anyone
age 21 and older to possess up to one ounce of marijuana. Under
Colorado law, anyone caught possessing an ounce or less of marijuana
can be charged with a Class 2 petty offense, punishable by a fine of
up to $100. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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Tvert and Steve Fox, an attorney for SAFER, were unable last week to
get the Legislative Council to remove the voters' guide statement
that under Amendment 44, the types of "possession" the measure would
legalize for adults 21 and older would "include transferring up to
one ounce of marijuana to another individual 15 years of age or
older, as long as there is no compensation."
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Tvert and Fox say Amendment 44 would not change current law's
definition of possession. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But Robert McGuire, an attorney for Guarding Our Children Against
Marijuana, said adoption of Amendment 44 would amount to "legalizing
a favorite marketing tactic" of drug dealers, "giving away free
samples."
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House Minority Leader Mike May, R-Parker, told Tvert that "it's not our responsibility to fix your poorly worded amendment." | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(15) BRING ON THE HEMP (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson both farmed it.
The U.S. Navy sailed with it. And today it is used in hundreds of
products, from energy bars to auto parts. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Hemp is an agricultural product with an enormous potential,
especially in North Carolina, where the idea of legalizing it has
been floated several times. But hemp is a cousin of marijuana, and
no amount of reasoning about the differences in the two has overcome
political fears of being associated with dope. The federal
government will hear nothing of it, either. | ||||||||||||||||||||
California and seven other states are on the brink of forcing a
showdown on the federal government's refusal to sanction hemp
agriculture. The New York Times reports that Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger must decide whether he will allow a recently passed
hemp bill to become law. He could veto it, sign it, or allow it to
become law without his signature. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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The main fear expressed in news articles on the topic is that hemp
cultivation would mask marijuana farms. A huge crop of hemp planted
alongside marijuana would make it difficult for police to find the
marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
That's why North Dakota officials, who want to allow hemp farming,
say they are ready to enact tough regulations for hemp growers.
They'd register any such farms, open them to inspection, and require
their owners to be fingerprinted by authorities. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Back in California, those who support the bill passed by the
California legislature contend that a federal appellate court
decision backs their position that the federal government has no
authority to block hemp cultivation. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(16) CWA VOTES TO PUSH FOR MARIJUANA TRIALS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
THE normally conservative Country Women's Association will lobby governments to begin trials in the medicinal use of marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In a decision that may send ripples of concern through conservative parties, the CWA national executive voted in Darwin 11 days ago to lobby for cannabis to be tested as a treatment for chronic pain. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
"Cannabis is another option for people who are terminally and
chronically ill," Ms Young said. "We'd just like them to do the
trials and find out."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Ms Young, a trained nurse who runs a vegetable and livestock farm
with her husband and 28-year-old son at East Sassafras near
Devonport, does not believe the move puts the CWA in conflict with
its traditionally conservative members. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"We don't look at those things; we're just concerned with the issues
important to our members. I'm not aware of other groups pushing
this," she said. "Our members have taken the position that anything
that helps relieve pain and chronic illness should be made
available."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The Australian Medical Association was cautiously supportive of the
CWA's position, with spokeswoman Choong-Siew Yong saying "the AMA
don't have an official position on this, but I think most doctors
would be OK with further research."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
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International News
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COMMENT: (17-20) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
"If at first you don't succeed try, try, again," seems to be the
motto of the U.N. when it comes to opium in Afghanistan. Opium
production has soared from virtually nothing to record levels in
Afghanistan since the U.S-led U.N. coalition invaded the country in
2002. "I call on NATO forces to destroy the heroin labs, disband the
open opium bazaars, attack the opium convoys and bring to justice
the big traders," proclaimed chief U.N. prohibitionist, Antonio
Maria Costa. "In the turbulent southern region, counterinsurgency
and counter-narcotics efforts must reinforce each other so as to
stop the vicious circle of drugs funding terrorists and terrorists
protecting drug traffickers," Costa continued. And the opium grown
and processed by the U.S.-friendly Northern Alliance in Afghanistan?
No problem. An article from Reason Magazine this week puts things in
perspective: "Western governments, the U.S. foremost among them,
created this incentive by banning opium to begin with, thereby
enabling criminals (including terrorists) to earn a risk premium.
Having artificially boosted the price of opium, the U.S. now asks
desperately poor Afghan peasants to resist this financial attraction
for the sake of Westerners who fail to resist the pharmacological
attraction of heroin... Prohibition started this vicious circle, and
more vigorous enforcement will only strengthen it."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile in China, a country known for "getting tough" on drugs
(read: jailing and shooting drug offenders to supply slave labor and
a ready stock of transplantable organs), a surprise report this week
from the Shanghai Daily announced that about 200 new methadone
clinics are to be built all over the nation, with 30 new methadone
clinics to be opened in Guangdong Province alone. "Methadone therapy
has won acclaim and support from people of all walks of life,
especially family members of drug addicts," stated Huang Fei, deputy
director of the Guangdong Provincial Health Bureau. As in the
ostensibly democratic U.S., communist Chinese officials likewise
seek to impose total control over people, who are seen as government
property. "The Ministry of Public Security said those who persist in
using drugs will be sent to institutions for compulsory drug
abstinence."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
And while the Canadian government may be waffling on the Vancouver
supervised injection center (Insite), other Canadian cities like
Victoria are moving ahead with plans for similar sites of their own.
"The Insite project in Vancouver has proved to be successful, and a
facility similar to that will be beneficial to Victoria," announced
Victoria Mayor Alan Lowe last week. Straddling the political fence,
Lowe was forced to toss a bone to the powerful police unions. "I
also agree with the Canadian Police Association that you cannot rely
on the supervised injection site alone."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(17) UN URGES NATO TROOPS: WIPE OUT OPIUM INDUSTRY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Anti-Drug Chief Links Efforts to Beat Taliban With Curbing Narcotics | ||||||||||||||||||||
BRUSSELS, Belgium - The United Nations urged NATO forces Tuesday to take military action to destroy the opium industry in southern Afghanistan, saying cultivation of the crop is out of control in the embattled nation. U.N. anti-drug chief Antonio Maria Costa said opium production is being used to fund terrorist groups, and that eradicating it is crucial to establishing order in the south. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"In the turbulent southern region, counterinsurgency and
counter-narcotics efforts must reinforce each other so as to stop
the vicious circle of drugs funding terrorists and terrorists
protecting drug traffickers," Costa said. He urged NATO countries to
give the alliance the mandate and added resources to expand its
mission in southern Afghanistan and take action against production
of the crop used to make heroin. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I call on NATO forces to destroy the heroin labs, disband the open
opium bazaars, attack the opium convoys and bring to justice the big
traders," he said. [snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The U.N.'s Office on Drugs and Crime's annual survey of
Afghanistan's poppy crop in Kabul, released this month, said opium
cultivation rose 59 percent this year to produce a record 6,100 tons
of opium -- a massive 92 percent of world supply. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
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(18) THE LATEST DOPE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Drug Warriors Are Playing Into The Taliban's Hands
| ||||||||||||||||||||
After years of hard work by drug warriors in Afghanistan, the country no longer produces 87 percent of the world's illicit opium. Now it produces 92 percent, according to the latest suspiciously precise estimate from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). | ||||||||||||||||||||
On Tuesday, citing ties between opium trafficking and the Taliban
insurgency, UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa called upon
NATO forces in Afghanistan to get more involved in efforts to stamp
out the opium trade. This is exactly the right strategy to pursue if
the aim is to alienate the Afghan people, undermine their
government, and strengthen the insurgency. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
According to the UNODC, a hectare of poppies earned farmers some
$5,400 last year, about 10 times what they could get by growing
wheat. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Western governments, the U.S. foremost among them, created this
incentive by banning opium to begin with, thereby enabling criminals
(including terrorists) to earn a risk premium. Having artificially
boosted the price of opium, the U.S. now asks desperately poor
Afghan peasants to resist this financial attraction for the sake of
Westerners who fail to resist the pharmacological attraction of
heroin. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Even if drug warriors were successful in curbing Afghan opium
production, an effort Costa says could take 20 years, there are
plenty of other places to grow poppies. As with coca, the most that
has been achieved by attempts to eradicate opium has been to move
production from one country to another, with no lasting effect on
drug use. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile, a NATO-backed crackdown on opium would drive farmers
further into the Taliban's arms and jeopardize Afghanistan's future.
"Counter-insurgency and counter-narcotics efforts must reinforce
each other," says Costa, "so as to stop the vicious circle of drugs
funding terrorists and terrorists protecting drug traffickers."
Prohibition started this vicious circle, and more vigorous
enforcement will only strengthen it. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(19) 30 DRUG TREATMENT CLINICS TO OPEN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
PUBLIC health authorities in south China's Guangdong Province said
they will open 30 more methadone replacement clinics over the next
few months. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Huang Fei, deputy director of Guangdong Provincial Health Bureau,
said procedures for construction of 27 of the planned new methadone
clinics had been assessed by a provincial-level expert panel and are
now awaiting approval by the State. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The new methadone clinics will be built in at least 16 cities,
including three in Guangzhou, the provincial capital, according to
the official. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Guangdong currently has two methadone clinics. They started offering
replacement doses last January and have so far treated 155 drug
addicts. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Methadone therapy has won acclaim and support from people of all walks of life, especially family members of drug addicts," said Huang. So far, 101 methadone clinics have been set up across China and the number will increase to 305 by the end of the year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The Ministry of Public Security said those who persist in using drugs will be sent to institutions for compulsory drug abstinence. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(20) SETBACK NOT STOPPING INJECTION-SITE PLANS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Victoria, Prince George Ready Proposals Despite Limited Extension in
Vancouver
| ||||||||||||||||||||
VANCOUVER -- Officials in Victoria and Prince George say they still
hope to open supervised injection sites in their cities soon,
despite the federal government's limited extension for the Vancouver
facility. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Victoria Mayor Alan Lowe said it's regrettable that Health Canada
will not consider any new applications for injection sites until
Ottawa reviews the effectiveness of Vancouver's Insite clinic. But
he said his city still intends to submit its proposal by early next
year, adding that Victoria would learn from the Vancouver
experience. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The Insite project in Vancouver has proved to be successful, and a
facility similar to that will be beneficial to Victoria, but I also
agree with the Canadian Police Association that you cannot rely on
the supervised injection site alone. In Vancouver, they only focused
on the supervised injection site and I think there are fears that
the other pillars aren't getting the same focus."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Last week, the Canadian Police Association said the federal
government should close Insite and focus on education, enforcement
and treatment. A few hours later, federal Health Minister Tony
Clement announced he would keep the site open until December, 2007,
but was unable to approve a request to keep it open another 3 1/2
years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The province provides most of the funds for the injection site but Ottawa must provide an exemption from federal drug laws so that addicts can take drugs inside without fear of being arrested. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Insite, the first such facility in North America, accommodates more
than 600 drug users a day. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
TERRORIST POSADA
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House Of Death Informant Are Stark Reminders Of The Big Pretense | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Bill Conroy from the Narcosphere
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| ||||||||||||||||||||
SEATTLE HEMPFEST 2006
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Some Cannabis Culturalists travelled to the U.S. of A. to join in the celebration at the annual Seattle Hempfest. Speakers and interviews include Jack Herer, Angel Raiche, Eddie Lepp, Ed Rosenthal and Kirk Tousaw. Shot by Brandon, music by Los Marijuanos, and edited by MM. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
UNODC MAKES THE CASE FOR ENDING CANNABIS PROHIBITION-INADVERTENTLY
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The world press missed the chance to report that the United Nations Office of Drug Control, or UNODC, had inadvertently made the case for ending cannabis prohibition in its 2006 World Drug Report. | ||||||||||||||||||||
by John Hickman
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CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW
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Listen Live Fridays 8:00 PM, ET, 7:00 CT, 6:00 MT & 5:00 PT at
http://www.KPFT.org/
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MULTIDISCIPLINARY ASSOCIATION FOR PSYCHEDELIC STUDIES EMAIL NEWS
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September 2006
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"Following MAPS' 20th anniversary gathering at Burning Man, the MAPS
staff is dusty and sleep-deprived, yet immensely fulfilled, and
enthused by the breadth of support that we received. Now, we're looking
forward to initiating MDMA/PTSD pilot studies in Switzerland and Israel
and a long-awaited long-term observational case study of ibogaine
treatment for opiate-dependent subjects. We're also eagerly awaiting a
recommendation from the DEA Administrative Law Judge in Prof. Craker's
lawsuit for a MAPS-sponsored pharmaceutical-grade marijuana production
facility -- it might come any day!"
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
ONDCP PUBLICLY DEBATES DRUG REFORM LEADERS
| ||||||||||||||||||||
by Scott Morgan
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Last night I attended the D.C. premiere of Jed Riffe's film Waiting
to Inhale, which was followed by a debate that pitted Special
Assistant to the Drug Czar David Murray against MPP's Rob Kampia,
and DPA's Ethan Nadelmann (Former ONDCP staffer Andrea Barthwell
didn't show). | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://stopthedrugwar.org/speakeasy_main/2006/sep/14/ondcp_publicly_debates_drug_refo | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
THE EUROPEAN LEGAL DATABASE ON DRUGS
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Possession of cannabis for personal use
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The legal status of cannabis for personal use is one of the most
controversial policy issues in the European Union. Although
cannabis is a classified narcotic drug placed under control by
the United Nations and by all EU Member States, the measures
adopted to control it at national level vary considerably,
as shown in the table below.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Recent (last year) use of cannabis among young adults (15-34 years
old) in Europe and the USA
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WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
TELL CONGRESS TO OPPOSE UNREASONABLE SCHOOL SEARCHES
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Students for Sensible Drug Policy is asking for your help to stop a
bill that would further curtail the rights of students in public
schools all across the country. The so-called "Student and Teacher
Safety Act of 2006" (H.R. 5295) would make it easier for teachers and
school administrators to search students' lockers and bags for drugs
and other contraband. SSDP needs your help to make sure that this bill
never becomes law. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Please send a letter to your member of Congress right away by visiting http://capwiz.com/mobilize/issues/alert/?alertid=8779706&type=CO | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
BOSTON FREEDOM RALLY CELEBRATES 17 YEARS THIS WEEKEND
| ||||||||||||||||||||
September 13, 2006 - Boston, MA, USA
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Boston, MA: Event organizers are expecting more than 50,000 attendees
at this weekend's 17th annual NORML Mass/Cann Boston Freedom Rally,
taking place this Saturday at the Boston Commons in downtown Boston.
The annual event is the largest marijuana law reform rally held on
the east coast. | ||||||||||||||||||||
For a complete listing of Freedom Rally speakers and performers,
please visit: http://www.masscann.org/
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LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
PAY ATTENTION TO SCRIPTURE
| ||||||||||||||||||||
By Meril Draper
| ||||||||||||||||||||
It seems to me Dr. Ted Beam, senior pastor, should pay a little more
attention to the actual wording of scripture. The verses that are
being referred to in his letter, "Medical Against legalized
Marijuana, Sun. Sept. 3, 2006," are Gen: 1 verses 29-31. It states
"GREEN, SEED bearing HERBS," depending on what version of the Bible
you are reading. | ||||||||||||||||||||
I didn't know poison ivy and many other poisonous plants were seed
bearing "herbs." I don't know of an herb that is greener or produces
more seeds than the cannabis hemp plant ( also known as marijuana ).
I am surprised that Beam condemns God-created mind-altering
substances that he doesn't understand, and condones man created
synthetics. Like it or not, God created pot.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
In February of 1983, I returned home after four very good years in the United States Submarine Force to find my grandfather dying of cancer. Early one spring morning, I received a phone call from my grandmother asking me if I knew where she could find some marijuana. I was very shocked and surprised. Then she went on to explain why. | ||||||||||||||||||||
A doctor had told her that marijuana might help my grandfather's
appetite. My grandmother would allow my grandfather one hand rolled
Bull Durham cigarette a day. She started adding small amounts of
marijuana to his cigarette. I will never forget the excitement in
her voice the next time she called me, which was the very next day,
stating that my grandfather had eaten five times since the day
before and hadn't thrown up once. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It was less than three weeks and my grandfather was able to get out
of bed, the same bed the doctors were saying he would never get out
of again, and eat at the table. It wasn't very long until my
grandfather was able to walk outside and enjoy his beautiful garden
he had spent the better part of 40 years creating. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Marijuana was allowing the medicines that were able to save his life
to stay in his stomach to do the job they were meant to do. I don't
care what or how many pills you take, they cannot work if they keep
being thrown up. Bottom line, munchies save lives!
| ||||||||||||||||||||
There are synthetic marijuanas being created, but no one can make it
better than God. | ||||||||||||||||||||
I have two questions for Dr. Ted Beam.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Is he going to go out and start smoking marijuana if it becomes legal? I'm sure his answer would be "no." My second question is, then why does Beam think everyone else will? Education and regulation is the answer, not prohibition and incarceration. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Rev. Meril Draper
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LETTER WRITER OF THE MONTH - AUGUST (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
DrugSense recognizes Russell Barth of Ottawa, Canada for his eleven
letters published during August. Russell writes most often as a
representative of Educators For Sensible Drug Policy
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Russell's total published letters, that we know of, are up to 238,
adding 91 letters in the last year, as shown at
| ||||||||||||||||||||
You may read all of his published letters at
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Book Review: Help At Any Cost by Maia Szalavitz
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Reviewed by Stephen Young
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Help At Any Cost by Maia Szalavitz (Riverhead Books, 325 pages,
$25.95)
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Under what moral system would it be considered perfectly reasonable
to torture children, both physically and emotionally, sometimes to
death? What moral system would insist such actions are the best
thing for those children?
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Maia Szalavitz's book "Help At Any Cost" doesn't directly ask or answer those questions, but the questions lurk around the margins of Szalavitz's engaging text, as she explores how "tough love" morphed from a cult-like catch-phrase to a hugely profitable industry. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The coercive treatment programs examined in the book claim to deal
with issues beyond drugs, and some kids end up in such programs for
years at a time even though they never tried drugs. But drugs are
never far from the subject at hand (with some young people being
dragged into programs for merely dressing like "druggies"), offering
disturbing clues to the moral sensibility guiding the drug war
itself. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The financial and emotional exploitation of a family in crisis
serves as the starting point for many of the episodes described in
the book. Things generally get worse from there.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The author interviewed hundreds of people involved with programs such as STRAIGHT and WWASP, both those who were coerced into the programs and their parents, as well as employees of the programs. The stories of shattered families and remorseful parents who thought they were doing the best for their kids can be heart-breaking to read. Imagine the pain of Sally Bacon, who sent her 16-year-old son off to a wilderness treatment experience from which he would not return alive, as she read the blood-spattered pages of a journal describing the torment of his experience, and knowing that she ignored his pleas for help (as instructed by staff from the wilderness program), precisely when he needed her most. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Difficult as episodes like that are to read, particularly if you are a parent, Szalavitz has performed an important service for those want to understand both the psychology and morality of the drug war. | ||||||||||||||||||||
While drugs and drug culture are frequently blamed for moral decay,
"Help At Any Cost" shows a moral code within the tough love movement
which is fluid to the point of nihilism. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The stated goal of the programs is behavior modification and
personality change. Adolescents are supposed to come back from the
programs literally as different people, though the always fact-based
Szalavitz finds no evidence to show such efforts succeeding. While
there are anecdotal success stories, the anecdotal failure stories
are more convincing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Anyone who claims to know how to properly rearrange another
individual's personality claims God-like insight. Starting from that
position, and insisting that they are saving the other person from
themselves, it's not hard to see how clearly immoral behavior can
come to be justified. And there's a disgusting amount of immoral
behavior described at these treatment facilities: Past sexual abuse
is used as an emotional weapon; basic nutrition is withheld; privacy
is denied 24 hours a day; physical attacks are encouraged; and acute
humiliation is viewed as therapy. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Even after deaths in such programs and former clients being diagnosed problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, some tough love advocates still refuse to acknowledge any shortcomings. | ||||||||||||||||||||
One section of the book shows how parents who committed their
children to one coercive program were themselves subjected to
mind-control techniques during weekend-long seminars. "From the very
beginning of the seminar, efforts were made to undermine our current
belief systems and values. We were told early in the game that our
current belief system was what was causing our problems in life,"
one parent reported after attending a seminar. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The parent was told by one of the seminar speakers, "There is no right or wrong, only what works and what doesn't work." | ||||||||||||||||||||
While most of the book consists of straight reporting, Szalavitz offers pointed analysis at the end. Regarding the seminar speaker who said, "There is no right and wrong," Szalavitz pulls no punches: | ||||||||||||||||||||
"This is unquestionably a sociopathic ideology: it means that people
are morally justified in doing whatever they believe 'works' and
that they aren't responsible for the harm this may cause to others,
because others' own choices put them in whatever situation they now
find themselves. While many of the other programs are less obvious
about presenting these ideas, they all teach that the ends justify
the means and that altruism is foolish."
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Her point is illustrated repeatedly in stories from the facilities, particularly by one anecdote from a harsh treatment center in Jamaica for boys. A rumor spread among the group that if anyone died, the program would be shut down for six months. So some desperate boys made a detailed plan to murder the weakest of their cohorts. The plot was stopped before it could be carried out, but the idea that even troubled teens would contemplate such a thing shows the real way these programs influence young people. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Hatred of certain drugs and their users seems to be the prime moral directive of the tough love movement. Like anything that defines itself strictly by what it hates, that movement, along with the larger drug war, remain exercises in fundamental amorality. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Stephen Young is an editor with DrugSense Weekly. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Vices are their own punishment." - Aesop
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Policy and Law Enforcement/Prison content selection and analysis by
Stephen Young (), Cannabis/Hemp content selection
and analysis by Deb Harper (), International
content selection and analysis by Doug Snead (),
Layout by Matt Elrod (). Analysis comments
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