Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2002 07:18:27 -0700
Subject:CA: Feds Threaten San Diego MMJ Patients' Coop Up TOC

- - Cal NORML Release, Sept 19, 2002 -

Feds Tell San Diego Medical Marijuana Patient
Steve McWilliams to Destroy His Caregiver Garden

         San Diego, Sept. 19:The US Attorney has warned medical
marijuana activist Steve McWilliams of the Shelter from the Storm
patients' collective  to destroy his home  marijuana garden or face
criminal prosecution.
         The threat came two days after Mc Williams, a prominent Prop.
215 advocate and member of the city's medical marijuana task force,
led a public handout of medical cannabis to patients at city hall.
         With his partner, nurse Barbara MacKenzie, McWilliams
cultivates a modest 30-plant garden in his side yard, from which they
grow medicine for themselves and a half dozen other  patients for
whom they are legal Prop. 215 "caregivers".  Among them are a
73-year-old woman with leukemia, a 70-year-old with prostate cancer,
and a terminal transplant patient. McWilliams' group has been
officially recognized  by the city of San Diego as a legal patients'
collective in compliance with the city's Prop. 215 guidelines.
         McWilliams says that a federal undercover agent followed him
while he was out shopping and presented him with a letter from  U.S.
Attorney Carol C. Lam warning him to desist from his activities.
         "Federal law enforcement agencies have received information
that you are cultivating possessing and distributing marijuana," the
letter reads, "Failure to immediately terminate your marijuana
growing and distributing activities and to destroy any marijuana
plants in your possession... will subject you to federal criminal
prosecution, regardless of the provisions of Proposition 215."
          McWilliams and MacKenzie vow to resist the federal threat.
"We're not going away," says MacKenzie,  "We have a right to legally
grow."
         Shelter from the Storm is the latest in a series of
well-regarded patients' groups to be attacked by federal authorities.
Earlier this month, the DEA raided the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical
marijuana in Santa Cruz, a collective of 250 seriously ill patients
that shared medicine amongst themselves.  A number of smaller,
personal use patient gardens have also been attacked, despite
previous avowals by DEA Commissioner Asa Hutchinson that the
government is only interested in major traffickers.
         Prop 215 supporters charge that the raids are politically
targeted against patient activists who dare to exercise their First
Amendment rights to speak publicly about their activities.
"Recent federal actions make a mockery of DEA Commissioner Asa
Hutchinson's claims that they are targeting major trafficking," says
California NORML coordinator Dale Gieringer, "If the DEA were truly
concerned about narco-terrorism, it would be targeting large-scale
smuggling rings that supply the recreational market, not small-scale,
responsible, medical cannabis caregivers who follow Prop. 215."
California NORML estimates that there are presently some 30,000
medical marijuana patients in the state, about 1% of the state's
total marijuana using population.  Nevertheless, medical marijuana
now accounts for 50% of all federal marijuana busts in San Francisco,
suggesting that medical marijuana has become a major enforcement
priority.
Word from US attorneys is that a crackdown has been ordered by
Attorney General Ashcroft, an ardent opponent of freedom of choice in
medicine.
         "The Bush administration's assault on Prop. 215 make a
mockery of its supposed devotion to state's rights and federalism,"
says Gieringer.  "There isn't a word in the Constitution giving the
federal government the power to dictate what kinds of medicine
patients may use to alleviate pain and suffering."
         Patients' groups plan to challenge the federal government in
court, arguing among other things that the recent raids violate
rights reserved to individuals and the states under the 5th, 9th and
10th amendments, and exceed the federal government's authority under
the interstate commerce clause.
         "The Department of Justice is biting off more than it can
chew," says Gieringer, "The federal government has no business
persecuting legal medical marijuana patients in California."

    Contacts:  Dale Gieringer, 415-563-5858
     Steve McWilliams/Shelter from the Storm 619- 521-0337

- -- 
- ----
Dale Gieringer (415) 563-5858  // canorml@igc.org
2215-R Market St. #278, San Francisco CA 94114
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attachment: http://www.drugsense.org/temp/part2294.html

 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2002 09:21:17 -0700
Subject:NV: Pot Initiative Leader Challenges Drug Czar Up TOC

Newshawk: Libertarians 1 - Drug Warriors 0 - http://www.plylar.org
Pubdate: Thu, 19 Sep 2002
Source: Las Vegas Sun (NV)
Copyright: 2002 Las Vegas Sun, Inc
Contact: letters@lasvegassun.com
Website: http://www.lasvegassun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/234
Author: Emily Richmond
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/walters.htm (Walters, John)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?162 (Nevadans for Responsible Law
Enforcement)

POT INITIATIVE LEADER CHALLENGES DRUG CZAR

The leader of Nevada's ballot initiative to legalize marijuana challenged
the nation's drug czar to a debate Wednesday, and even offered to pay for a
plane ticket for John Walters, the director of the White House's Office of
National Drug Control Policy.

Billy Rogers, spokesman for Nevadans for Responsible Law Enforcement, said
Wednesday he was dismayed to learn Walters' trip to Las Vegas would be paid
for with taxpayer dollars. Rogers offered to front Walters the cost of a
round-trip airline ticket, provided it was an economy class seat.

"It's outrageous that a federal official would spend public funds to come
here and tell citizens how to vote," Rogers said. "(Walters) is coming to
the wrong state. Nevadans don't look kindly on government types telling
them how to live their lives."

Walters is planning to visit Nevada Oct. 10, and will likely talk with law
enforcement officials and visit treatment centers, said spokeswoman
Jennifer de Vallance.

Walters' itinerary is being planned now, and Rogers was welcome to send a
formal invitation to a debate with possible times, locations and formats,
de Vallance said.

"We would certainly take a look at it," de Vallance said.

As for the offer of a plane ticket, it's against federal regulations for
employees to accept gifts worth more than $20, de Vallance said.
Additionally, Walters' visit is part of a West Coast tour that includes
other states besides Nevada, his spokeswoman said.

"For legal and safety reasons, we prefer to handle our own transportation,"
de Vallance said.

Walters visited Nevada this summer to speak out against the ballot
initiative. His office has also launched an aggressive campaign targeting
marijuana use, calling it a potent, addictive drug that often serves as a
gateway to high-risk behavior.

Rogers left his job as state director of the Washington, D.C.-based
Marijuana Policy Project to head the Nevada coalition. The group garnered
109,048 signatures to place the question on the ballot, well over the
61,336 required by the secretary of state's office. The Washington
organization has provided substantial support to the initiative, Rogers said.

If approved by Nevada voters in November and again in 2004, Question 9
would amend the state constitution to legalize possession of up to 3 ounces
of marijuana by adults at least 21 years of age.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom

 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2002 12:05:04 -0700
From: webmaster@drugsense.org (DrugSense)
Subject:DrugSense Weekly, Sept. 20, 2002, #268 Up TOC

**********************************************************************

DRUGSENSE WEEKLY

**********************************************************************

DrugSense Weekly,            Sept. 20, 2002                       #268

Read This Publication On-line at: http://www.drugsense.org/current.htm 

Listen On-line at: http://www.drugsense.org/radio/

- ------------------

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

* This Just In

     (1) Court Blocks D.C. Vote On Medical Use Of Marijuana 
     (2) Legalize All Drugs, U.S. Governor Tells Vancouver
     (3) Legalise All Drugs Worldwide, Says Mowlam
     (4) Santa Cruz Defies U.S. On Marijuana

* Weekly News in Review

Drug Policy-

     (5) Parents Warned On Pot's Toll
     (6) New Drug War
     (7) Tests Look For Drugs' Residue In Toms River, Southern Schools
     (8) 13 Teens Treated For Ritalin Ingestion
     (9) Hotel Drug Sweep Surprises Drug Treatment Experts

Law Enforcement & Prisons-

     (10) LAPD Probe Alleges Ex-Deputy Chief Laundered Drug Money
     (11) Captain Is Fired After Verdict In Police Trial
     (12) Rig Puts Meth Labs In The Tank
     (13) Kinloch Police Officer Says He Accidentally Shot Motorist

Cannabis & Hemp-

     (14) Thousands Gather For Marijuana Rally
     (15) Marijuana Club Owner Charged In Federal Court
     (16) Odd Twists Leave Couple In Center Of Pot Debate
     (17) The Whole Omelet
     (18) Canada's Pot Policy Under Fire From U.S.

International News-

     (19) EU Pledges To Help Afghans Stop Producing Heroin
     (20) Farmers Return To Growing Cannabis
     (21) Canadian In Dutch Jail Wants Trial At Home
     (22) Random Tests Urged To Catch Motorists Using Drugs
     (23) Smuggling Case Against Drug Mule, 13, Dropped

* Hot Off The 'Net

      Rise Up for Medical Marijuana!
      They Live Among Us (Cartoon)
      Telling The Truth About Medical Marijuana Raids
      Editorial: Striking at the Heart of Democracy
      Medical Marijuana Advocates Want Pot From Ottawa
      Cultural Baggage Radio Show 

* Letter Of The Week

     Drug War Hurts / By Thomas J. O'Connell

* Feature Article

     Transcript Of Call To An Orlando Police Dispatcher

* Quote of the Week

     Aldous Huxley

***********************************************************************

THIS JUST IN
=======================================================================

(1) COURT BLOCKS D.C. VOTE ON MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA 

Efforts to legalize marijuana for medical purposes in the District were 
blocked  yesterday  when  a federal appeals court overturned, without 
explanation, an earlier court ruling that had cleared the way for the 
issue to be put before D.C. voters.

The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit reversed 
a  ruling  by  the  U.S.  District  Court,  which  in  March declared 
unconstitutional a congressional amendment that prevented the city from 
spending  money  to  put a medical marijuana initiative on the ballot.

The  three  appellate justices said in their order that they made the 
ruling  yesterday  because  today is the city's deadline for printing 
ballots  for  the  November  election. Appeals judges David S. Tatel, 
Merrick  B. Garland and Stephen F. Williams said their decision "will 
be  more  fully  explained in an opinion to be filed at a later date."

The decision ends a 14-month campaign by the District-based Marijuana 
Policy  Project  to again put the marijuana initiative before voters. 
It  would  protect  from  arrest  people  who, on the advice of their 
doctors,  use  marijuana  to  alleviate nausea, stimulate appetite or 
ease  pain.  Eight  states  have  similar  medical  marijuana  laws.

This  is  the  second  time  that the measure has been blocked in the 
District. In 1998, D.C. voters passed a similar initiative, 69 percent 
to  31  percent. But a congressional rider to the D.C. appropriations 
bill prevented the initiative from taking effect.

Rep.  Robert  L. Barr Jr. (R-Ga.), who sponsored the rider, said in a 
statement  yesterday  that  "despite  a  concerted  public  relations 
campaign to distort the real dangers of drugs, such as marijuana, the 
pro-drug  lobby  ran  head-on today with the rule of law and a court, 
which  recognized the right and responsibility of Congress to protect 
citizens from dangerous, mind-altering narcotics."

 [snip]

Source: Washington Post (DC)
Author: Arthur Santana, Washington Post Staff Writer
Published: Friday, September 20, 2002; Page A04
Copyright: 2002 The Washington Post Company
Website: http://www.washingtonpost.com 
Cited: http://www.mpp.org/
Continues  http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread14185.shtml

===

(2) LEGALIZE ALL DRUGS, U.S. GOVERNOR TELLS VANCOUVER

VANCOUVER  -  Before  he  addressed  a  conference  on  this  city's  
staggering  drug  problem,  Gary Johnson, the Governor of New Mexico, 
went  for  a  walk  through  the  Downtown  Eastside,  where  addicts 
openly smoke crack cocaine and shoot up heroin.

"Those  people, if they were in the United States, would be in jail," 
Mr. Johnson would say later.

But  what  he  saw  in  Vancouver's  streets, where illicit drugs are 
openly sold and consumed, didn't convince him to soften his message.  
Mr. Johnson is an advocate of legalizing all drugs.

 Watch Governor Johnson's address online at: 
 http://www.pot-tv.net/archive/shows/pottvshowse-1529.html

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 19 Sep 2002
Source: National Post (Canada)
Copyright: 2002 Southam Inc.
Author: Mark Hume, National Post
Continues: http://www.nationalpost.com/national/story.html?id=FB431A58-89F6-4B90-8CC1-9C558C42EA62

===

(3) LEGALISE ALL DRUGS WORLDWIDE, SAYS MOWLAM

Mo Mowlam, the former cabinet minister responsible for drugs policy, is
calling  for the international legalisation of the drugs trade as part
of a more effective drive to combat terrorism.

Writing  in  the  Guardian today, Ms Mowlam says: "Rather than bombing
civilians  in  various Muslim countries, the United States and Britain
should  begin to take a more intelligent approach to the international
drugs trade, namely to legalise it internationally."

Ms  Mowlam,  already  an  advocate  of the legalisation of cannabis in
Britain,  is  unlikely to find her latest proposal embraced by Downing
Street  but  she  will  find  support from some drugs specialists, who
believe  the  battle  to stop trafficking, with its inextricable links
with terrorism, cannot succeed through mere suppression.

In  her article she joins another ex-cabinet minister, Chris Smith, in
questioning the need to topple Saddam Hussein, arguing instead that an
effort  to  neutralise  the  illegal trade will do more to win the war
against terrorism.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 19 Sep 2002
Source: Guardian, The (UK)
Copyright: 2002 Guardian Newspapers Limited
Website: http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardian/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/175
Author: Patrick Wintour, chief political correspondent
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1763/a03.html
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1763.a02.html

===

(4) SANTA CRUZ DEFIES U.S. ON MARIJUANA

City Officials Vow to Defend Medical Uses

SANTA  CRUZ, Calif., Sept 17 -- There were speeches from lawyers about
freedom and pleas from doctors for compassion and some rhetoric against
the  Bush  administration.  Then the patients began to roll forward in
their  wheelchairs  to get their prescriptions -- their marijuana buds
and pot cupcakes -- on the steps of City Hall.

The gaunt AIDS patient said marijuana helped him eat again. An elderly
man with post-polio syndrome grinned and picked up his vial. A patient
suffering  from  pancreatic cancer simply said "thank you." Then Jodie
Lombardo,  who  has  lupus,  decried  the  recent  bust of the popular
medical-marijuana  cooperative here as inhumane and asked what federal
authorities  would do if their own loved ones were sick and needed the
relief these patients say they find in this weed.

With  the mayor and most of the city council in attendance, Santa Cruz
today  pledged  that  its efforts to deliver marijuana to the sick and
dying  would  continue -- despite the armed raid by federal agents two
weeks  ago against a marijuana pharmacy that has been openly operating
here for years.

"We are not the enemy," said Valerie Corral, one of the founders of the
medical marijuana cooperative. "Our message is not about defiance, but
peace, and we plead for the same from the government."

 [snip]

Pubdate: Wed, 18 Sep 2002
Source: Washington Post (DC)
Copyright: 2002 The Washington Post Company
Website: http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/491
Author: William Booth, Washington Post Staff Writer
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1751.a02.html

***********************************************************************

WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW
=======================================================================

Domestic News- Policy
- ----------------------------------

COMMENT: (5-9)

 The  feds  seem to be fixated on casual cannabis use. A new series of
 ads  highlights  the alleged pitfalls of marijuana. Most news outlets
 followed  the  script  suggested by the ads, but some reports touched
 on  criticism  suggesting  the  ads  will  continue  their expensive,
 taxpayer-funded  failure.  Of  course,  the  feds  might  be facing a
 backlash  on  marijuana,  as  California medical marijuana raids last
 week  continues  to  generate  an  outcry and a favorable coverage of
 that  outcry in the mainstream press. More on that issue can be found
 in this week's Cannabis news section of DrugSense Weekly.

 In  New  Jersey,  a  high school is part of a pilot program that uses
 drug  residue detection kits around the school to check for traces of
 drugs  anywhere in the school. Those detection kits probably won't be
 looking  for Ritalin, and the federal propaganda campaign won't focus
 on  the  fact  that  the  stimulant is not harmless. However, Ritalin
 sent  a  number  of  students  from  a  California high school to the
 emergency room last week.

 And,  in  Illinois,  a  conference of drug counselors were shocked to
 find  police  using  a  drug  dog to sniff hotel corridors in the wee
 hours,  and wake up guests deemed suspicious by the dog. Local police
 said  the  practice  is  long-standing,  and  a  hotel  manager  said
 complaints are rare.

===

(5) PARENTS WARNED ON POT'S TOLL

WASHINGTON  --  The  nation's  drug  policy  director  warned  parents
Tuesday  against  trivializing the dangers of marijuana to their kids,
warning  them  that  more teens are addicted to pot than to alcohol or
to all other illegal drugs combined.

Many  parents  and children have outdated perceptions about marijuana,
said  John  Walters,  director  of the Office of National Drug Control
Policy.  They  believe  marijuana  is  not  addictive,  that it's less
dangerous  than  cigarettes  or  that  it  has  few  long-term  health
consequences.

In  reality,  more  teens  enter  rehabilitation  centers  to  treat
marijuana  addiction  than  alcohol  or  all  illegal  drugs combined,
Walters said.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Wed, 18 Sep 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Associated Press
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/campaign.htm (ONDCP Media Campaign)
Video: http://www.health.org/multimedia/webcasts/w.asp?ID=147&wrap=marijuana

===

(6) NEW DRUG WAR

A  new  round  of  anti-drug ads that start running on TV today pack a
tough  message  about  the "terrible things" - from street violence to
drug cartels - that drug users unwittingly support.

But  the  question  that  has  haunted past anti-drug ad campaigns are
expected  to  resurface  with  this batch. Will the ads actually work?

 [snip]

Dr.  Drew  Pinsky,  an  addiction  expert,  said the new anti-drug ads
were  well  executed,  but  some  viewers  could  interpret  the  ads'
depiction  of  a dangerous black market of drug dealers as support for
the argument that marijuana should be legalized.

"I  will  say,  unfortunately,  a  lot  of  young  adults  and college
students  will  say 'you are right, this does support a crime network;
if  the  drug  was  legal,  you  wouldn't  have  that,'"  Pinsky said.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 16 Sep 2002
Source: ABC News (US Web)
Copyright: 2002 ABC News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2105
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/campaign.htm (ONDCP Media Campaign)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1746/a06.html

===

(7) TESTS LOOK FOR DRUGS' RESIDUE IN TOMS RIVER, SOUTHERN SCHOOLS

The  Toms  River  Regional  and  Southern  Regional  school  districts
quietly  began  testing  for  drug  residue  on commonly used surfaces
such  as  locker  doors and bathroom stalls in January with field kits
long used by law enforcement agencies.

Under a federally funded pilot program that examines the
effectiveness  of  the  kit  in a school setting, the two Ocean County
districts  last  semester  tested  dozens  of surfaces in public areas
where  administrators  suspected  that  students  may have used drugs,
school officials said.

While  results  have  not  been  released, an official for the company
that  produces  the  testing  kits  said drug residue was found in all
participating schools.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 16 Sep 2002
Source: Asbury Park Press (NJ)
Webpage: http://www.app.com/app2001/story/0,21133,617969,00.html
Copyright: 2002 Asbury Park Press
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/26
Author: Rick Hepp

===

(8) 13 TEENS TREATED FOR RITALIN INGESTION

Thirteen  Antelope  Valley  High  School  students  were  treated at a
hospital  Wednesday after taking illicitly obtained Ritalin, and about
150  of  the  prescription-only  pills  were  confiscated  on  campus,
authorities said.

Three became seriously ill from an overdose, officials said. The others
showed  symptoms  of  grogginess or incoherence. All had been released
from Antelope Valley Hospital by evening.

"They are all OK," Principal Mark Bryant said.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 12 Sep 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Webpage: http://www.latimes.com/editions/valley/la-me-ritalin12sep12.story
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Wendy Thermos, Times Staff Writer

===

(9) HOTEL DRUG SWEEP SURPRISES DRUG TREATMENT EXPERTS

Evelyn  Boyd-Young,  a  registered  nurse  who heads a substance abuse
program  in  a  Greenwich,  Conn.,  hospital,  is used to dealing with
drug  issues.  But  she said she'd never been suspected of potentially
dealing  drugs  -  until  Friday  night, when she said a loud knock on
her hotel room door awoke her.

It  wasn't  room  service.  It  was  two uniformed cops and a big dog.

 [snip]

"It  was  a  scary  thing  to  wake up to," Boyd-Young recalled. "They
asked  if  they  could come in, and I didn't know what to do. They had
a big dog in front of me."

She  said  the officers told her they routinely patrol the hallways of
local  hotels,  with  the  hotel's permission, and their drug-sniffing
canine had shown an interest when they passed by her room.

The  cooperative  practice  is  common  in  suburban hotels, which are
sometimes  used  for  illicit  youth  parties  or  as  venues for drug
deals.  Charges  of  possession of controlled substance with intent to
deliver  resulting  from  such  sweeps  are  a  frequent  sight in the
Rolling  Meadows  courthouse,  which  serves  Cook  County's Northwest
suburbs.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 15 Sep 2002
Source: Daily Herald (IL)
Copyright: 2002 The Daily Herald Company
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/107
Author: Dave Orrick, Daily Herald Legal Affairs Writer
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1743/a12.html

=======================================================================

Law Enforcement & Prisons
- -------------------------

COMMENT: (10-13)

 It  was  a  rather  slow  week  in  law enforcement and prison news -
 mostly  the  usual  corruption  and overkill associated with drug law
 enforcement.  An  internal  investigation of a former deputy chief in
 the Los Angeles Police Department showed that the former
 high-ranking  cop  was  indeed  involved in a money laundering scheme
 with  his  drug-dealing  son.  The  LAPD  doesn't have the ability to
 punish  the  former  deputy  chief  at  this point. Incidentally, the
 deputy  chief  oversaw  the  internal investigation into the Ramparts
 corruption  scandal  for  the  department, even though the FBI warned
 that  he  himself  was  corrupt.  In  New York, a high-ranking police
 official  was  fired  from  the  force,  even  though he was recently
 acquitted on corruption charges.

 In  Colorado,  the  militarization  of  the local drug war continues.
 Police  are using an armored personnel carrier to bust meth labs. And
 in  St.  Louis,  a  police  officer was reported to have accidentally
 shot  a  drug suspect during a traffic stop before chasing him for 25
 miles. No drugs or weapons were found on the suspect.

===

(10) LAPD PROBE ALLEGES EX-DEPUTY CHIEF LAUNDERED DRUG MONEY

LOS  ANGELES  -(AP)- A confidential police department report has found
that  a  retired  deputy  chief for several years helped launder money
from  his  son's  sprawling cocaine ring, a newspaper reported Friday.

The  Los  Angeles  Times  reported  that  the  police department probe
found  that  Deputy  Chief  Maurice  Moore,  who  retired earlier this
year,  allegedly  retrieved,  delivered, stored and laundered hundreds
of  thousands  of dollars in illicit profits. Moore allegedly acted on
behalf  of  his  son,  who ran the drug operation from federal prison,
according to the LAPD's internal investigation.

 [snip]

The  FBI  in  December  1999  sent  a  letter to then-Chief Bernard C.
Parks  telling  him  about their agents' suspicions that Maurice Moore
was involved in a major drug ring.

Chief Parks received the report in the midst of the Rampart
corruption  scandal,  which  was sparked by a rogue police officer who
told  of  unjustified  shootings, beatings, evidence planting and drug
dealing by other officers.

Despite  the  FBI's  concerns, Parks allowed the deputy to help direct
the department's official inquiry into the Rampart scandal.

 [snip]

 Pubdate: Fri, 13 Sep 2002 Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA)
 Webpage:http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20020913-0617-ca-officerinvestigated.html
 Copyright: 2002 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. 
 Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/386 
 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/corrupt.htm (Corruption - United States)

===

(11) CAPTAIN IS FIRED AFTER VERDICT IN POLICE TRIAL

One  of  the  highest-ranking  New  York  City  police  officials ever
indicted in a drug corruption case was fired yesterday, the
authorities said last night.

The  official,  Dennis  M. Sindone, 40, was a deputy inspector when he
was  arrested  in  May  2001  on a drug-related corruption charge, and
was  demoted  to captain. He was acquitted by a federal jury in March,
but still faced the possibility of departmental charges.

Police  Commissioner  Raymond  W. Kelly dismissed Mr. Sindone based on
findings  from  a departmental judge, said Deputy Commissioner Michael
P. O'Looney, the department's chief spokesman.

Mr.  Sindone  was  accused  of  conspiring with a fellow officer and a
drug  dealer  to  steal  $60,000  from a drug supplier in 1996. He was
charged  with  one  count  of  violating  the civil rights of the drug
supplier whose money was stolen.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 13 Sep 2002
Source: New York Times (NY)
Section: New York Region
Copyright: 2002 The New York Times Company
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Tina Kelley
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/corrupt.htm (Corruption - United States)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1717/a06.html

===

(12) RIG PUTS METH LABS IN THE TANK

Methamphetamine  manufacturers,  beware.  You  may  find yourselves in
front of a whole new weapon in the war on drugs.

The  North  Metro  Drug Task Force is making use of a retrofitted 1981
Peacekeeper  armored  personnel  carrier  to  help protect officers as
they raid meth labs.

The  Federal  Heights  Police  Department  acquired  the  bulletproof
vehicle  about  two  years  ago as part of a military-surplus program.
But  the  carrier,  which  had  been used by the Air Force, required a
significant  amount  of  work  and  has  been  in operation for only a
year, said Deputy Police Chief Mitch Lovett.

The  task  force  has  borrowed  the  vehicle  for at least three drug
raids  since  January,  said  Lt.  Lori  Moriarty,  who considers it a
valuable resource.

"It's pretty much solid steel," she said. "It's perfect for
fortified  buildings  or  if  you want to get up very close but you're
afraid of shots coming through cars."

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 14 Sep 2002
Source: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2002, Denver Publishing Co.
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/371
Author: Sarah Huntley
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1735/a06.html

===

(13) KINLOCH POLICE OFFICER SAYS HE ACCIDENTALLY SHOT MOTORIST

A  Kinloch  police officer said he accidentally shot a motorist during
a  traffic  stop  early Saturday then chased the man for 25 miles into
Maryland Heights.

The  officer,  Walter Wilson, the former police chief in Kinloch, said
he  stopped  the  man  about 3:40 a.m. at Martin Luther King Boulevard
and Suburban Avenue in Kinloch.

He  suspected  the  motorist,  a  24-year-old  man from Bridgeton, was
involved with a drug transaction, Wilson said.

Wilson  says  he reached through the car window to grab the man's keys
in  the  ignition,  and his drawn gun accidentally fired. The shot hit
the man in the shoulder.

The  motorist  sped away, knocking Wilson to the ground. Wilson jumped
into his patrol car and gave chase.

Officers  from  several departments joined the chase, which ended at a
cul-de-sac  on  Galaxy  Place  in  Maryland  Heights. Wilson and other
police  officers  blocked  the  suspect  with their cars. Wilson fired
several  more  shots  at  the  motorist, St. Louis County police said.

Police  did  not  find  any  drugs  on  the  suspect, Wilson said. The
suspect was unarmed.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 15 Sep 2002
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO)
Copyright: 2002 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/418
Author: Heather Ratcliffe
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1749/a02.html

=======================================================================

Cannabis & Hemp-
- ---------------------------

COMMENT: (14-18)

 Amid  the  flurry  of  DEA  busts  and  upcoming  medicinal  cannabis
 protests,  a  more  positive  event  took place on Saturday as Boston
 Commons  was  flooded  by  35,000  happy hempsters attending the 13th
 annual  Freedom  Rally.  Meanwhile,  the  arrests  and  prosecutions
 continued  in  California. Robert Schmidt, owner of "Genesis 1:29", a
 Petaluma compassion club, was arrested and charged with
 manufacturing,  possession  with intent to distribute, and assaulting
 a  federal  agent when his farm and club were raided, and 3500 plants
 were seized.

 The  members of the city council of Santa Cruz,joined WAMM volunteers
 in  distributing  cannabis from the courtyard of city hall on Tuesday
 in  protest of the DEA raids on the medicinal collective. Here now is
 another  thoughtful  article  examining the incredible impact of last
 week's  raid on WAMM, Valerie and Mike Corral, and those that they've
 worked so hard to help.

 And  finally,  two  different  U.S.  interpretations  of the Canadian
 Senate  Special  Committee on Illegal Drugs report, which recommended
 the  immediate  legalization  of  cannabis  in Canada. First, a frank
 examination  of  current  DEA  busts in light of the Senate report by
 Steve  Brown. Second, a Globe and Mail article quoting U.S. Drug Czar
 John  P.  Walters  criticizing  the  report  and  its recommendations
 during a speech in Detroit, Michigan.

 With  the  mid-term  election  around  the  corner  in  the U.S., and
 important  court  battles  upcoming in Canada, the next few weeks may
 determine  the  next few years of North American Drug Policy. You can
 play  your  part  in  determining the outcome: write a letter, make a
 phone  call,  or  send  an  email to your local press and politicians
 addressing  these  important  issues.  Your  voice matters; our voice
 matters - we will be heard.

===

(14) THOUSANDS GATHER FOR MARIJUANA RALLY

About  35,000  marijuana  legalization  advocates,  area students, and
politicians  converged  on Boston Common yesterday for the 13th annual
Freedom Rally.

The  six-hour  gathering, which some have dubbed ''Hempday,'' featured
speakers,  live  band  performances,  appearances  by  Green Party and
Libertarian  gubernatorial  candidates,  and  more  than  25  vendors
selling anything and everything pot-related.

 [snip]

Fifty-two  people  were  arrested,  most on drug-related charges, said
Officer  John  Boyle, a Boston police spokesman. Boyle said no serious
disturbances were reported during the event.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 15 Sep 2002
Source: Boston Globe (MA)
Copyright: 2002 Globe Newspaper Company
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/52
Author: Jessica Van Sack
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1728.a08.html

===

(15) MARIJUANA CLUB OWNER CHARGED IN FEDERAL COURT

The  owner  of  a Petaluma marijuana club was arraigned Friday on drug
charges that carry a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Robert  Schmidt,  52,  was  arrested  Thursday  by  federal agents who
raided  a  ranch  near  Sebastopol where he had been growing marijuana
since March.

 [snip]

The  maximum  penalty  for the drug charges is life in prison and a $4
million  fine;  the assault charge carries a maximum sentence of three
years  plus  a  $250,000  fine,  Assistant U.S. Attorney Mathew Jacobs
said in a statement Friday.

He  said  U.S.  Drug  Enforcement  Administration  agents seized 3,454
marijuana  plants  from  the  Martin  Lane  ranch  west of Sebastopol.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 14 Sep 2002
Source: Press Democrat, The (CA)
Copyright: 2002 The Press Democrat
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/348
Author: Jeremy Hay
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1726.a05.html

===

(16) ODD TWISTS LEAVE COUPLE IN CENTER OF POT DEBATE

Mike  Corral  is  a  soft-spoken  man  with a love for all things that
grow.  His  wife,  Valerie,  with  a  shock  of  auburn hair, exudes a
spiritual presence and has a bright smile.

Except  for  a  few  of  life's  twists and turns, the couple say they
would be living a quiet, private life in the mountains.

"I  love  being in the garden," Mike Corral said, standing in a barren
patch  of  dirt  on  the  property where they live north of Davenport.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 16 Sep 2002
Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel (CA)
Copyright: 2002 Santa Cruz Sentinel
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/394
Author: Brian Seals
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1736.a08.html

===

(17) THE WHOLE OMELET

You  probably  don't  have  to  smoke  dope to understand our nation's
drug policies, but it might help. As of late, our
narco-stormtroopers,  the  Drug  Enforcement  Agency,  raided  a legal
medical  marijuana  health  co-op  in  Santa  Cruz,  arresting its two
directors,  once  again  finding  it  easier  to  kick AIDS and cancer
patients than honest-to-goodness criminals.

The  list  of  those  the  federal government has targeted for arrest,
persecution,  intimidation  and  property  seizure  for  what is legal
medical  marijuana  operations  under state law continues to grow, and
government  officials  for  the  most  part,  go  along  in  silence,
allowing  the  rights  of  the  citizens of California to be trampled.

 [snip]

Source: Desert Post Weekly, The (Cathedral City, CA)
Copyright: 2002 The Desert Post Weekly
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2248
Author: Steve Brown
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project ( www.mpp.org )
Cited: Drug Enforcement Administration ( www.dea.gov )
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?218 (Canadian Senate Committee)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1734.a03.html

===

(18) CANADA'S POT POLICY UNDER FIRE FROM U.S.

Canada's  marijuana  policy  is  flawed  by  a lack of information and
outright  lies,  according to the highest-ranking drug official in the
United States.

John  Walters,  director of U.S. national drug-control policy, sharply
criticized  Ottawa  yesterday for allowing ill people to smoke pot and
for considering relaxed antimarijuana laws.

Mr.  Walters  said  at  a Detroit news conference that Canada has done
insufficient  research,  so  it  cannot  justify  liberalizing  its
cannabis policy.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 13 Sep 2002
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2002, The Globe and Mail Company
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168
Author: Graeme Smith
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1722.a01.html

=======================================================================

International News
- ---------------------------

COMMENT: (19-23)

 The  European  Union  proclaimed that it would "help" Afghans to stop
 producing  opium, as a way to limit drug abuse within the EU. To that
 end,  Danish Justice Minister Lene Espersen stressed cooperation with
 other  EU  dignitaries. No specifics were given on what could be done
 in  Afghanistan.  In  Afghanistan,  meanwhile,  after  months of news
 concerning  Afghan  opium,  we  hear  some  news  about  the nation's
 marijuana  production.  Reports  are  that  cannabis  growing is well
 underway.  Farmers  declare  they  will ignore government dictates to
 kill the bumper crop, which is said to cover the northern part of the
 country.

 A  small  drama is unfolding in the Netherlands, involving a Canadian
 citizen,  due process, and the prosecution-uber-alles mind-set of the
 US.  A Canadian accused of conspiracy to smuggle cannabis from Canada
 to  the  U.S.  was  snagged  by US agents, while preparing to board a
 flight  from  Holland  back  to  Canada  last week. His case had been
 winding through Canadian courts for some time; apparently the lust of
 U.S.  prohibitionists  to  jail  the  man  overrides  Canadian  law.

 In Western Australia, unelected bureaucrats have decided that drivers
 must  be  randomly  tested  for "drugs" (meaning, cannabis). Ignoring
 earlier  Australian research showing cannabis users to be less likely
 to  be at fault in fatal accidents than drug free drivers, police are
 lobbying for the added testing powers.

 And finally this week from the UK, heroin trafficking charges against
 a  13-year-old girl from West Yorkshire were dropped. The girl had 11
 kilos of heroin when arrested at Manchester airport last April, after
 arriving from Pakistan.

===

(19) EU PLEDGES TO HELP AFGHANS STOP PRODUCING HEROIN

COPENHAGEN  (Reuters)  -  The European Union said on Saturday it would
help  Afghans  stop  producing  heroin  as a way to earn a living in a
drive  to  fight  drug  trafficking  and  drug  abuse  inside  the EU.

 [snip]

"Afghanistan  is  an  area  of priority," said Danish Justice Minister
Lene  Espersen,  whose  country  holds  the  EU's rotating presidency.
"What  we  have to do is cooperate with (EU) foreign ministers on what
we  can  offer  the  Afghan  people  instead  of  producing  heroin."

 [snip]

Espersen  did  not  specify  what kind of aid the 15-nation bloc would
offer to Afghanistan.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 14 Sep 2002
Source: Reuters (Wire)
Copyright: 2002 Reuters Limited
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1728/a07.html

===

(20) FARMERS RETURN TO GROWING CANNABIS

KABUL  (NNI):  Cannabis farmers in Afghanistan who stopped growing the
drug  crop  under  the  Taliban  rule  have  started  once  again. The
Taliban  outlawed  growing  of the plants, which grow naturally in the
area on a commercial basis.

But  fields  of  cannabis plants some well over 6ft-high, line part of
the  main  road  leading west from Mazar-e-Sharif, the biggest city in
northern Afghanistan.

With  the  main  harvest expected in one to two months, growers in the
roadside  village  of  Khana  Abad  said  they would ignore government
warnings to tear up their crops.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 14 Sep 2002
Source: Frontier Post, The (Pakistan)
Copyright: 2002 The Frontier Publications (Pvt)
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/575
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1725/a10.html

===

(21) CANADIAN IN DUTCH JAIL WANTS TRIAL AT HOME

 [snip]

Roberts was charged in 1999 with conspiring to smuggle B.C.
marijuana  to  the United States. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and
the RCMP worked together on the operation.

While  Roberts,  54,  faces  charges  in  both countries, his case has
dragged through Canada's court system for three years.

But  a  week ago, Roberts flew to Europe. During his flight home, U.S.
authorities  pulled  him  off  a  plane  in  the  Netherlands  to face
extradition to the U.S.

Jaroen  Henekamp,  with  the  prosecutors  office  in the Netherlands,
said his only way out could be Canadian intervention.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 16 Sep 2002
Source: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Canada Web)
Copyright: 2002 CBC
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1412
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1736/a10.html

===

(22) RANDOM TESTS URGED TO CATCH MOTORISTS USING DRUGS

RANDOM  drug  testing  of drivers could be introduced under a proposal
before the State Government.

The  West  Australian understands that the Government's drink and drug
driving  task  force has made a submission that legislation be drafted
to  help  catch  the rising number of people driving while affected by
drugs.

The  WA  Police  Service  is  also  believed  to have made preliminary
inquiries  about  obtaining  portable  roadside saliva testing kits to
run a pilot program to test for drugs.

 [snip]

Roadside  saliva  tests, which can involve a swab which takes up to 90
seconds,  can  only  be  used as a preliminary test and a blood sample
would be required for a conviction.

 [snip]

Research  by  a  team of Queensland doctors has highlighted the danger
of cannabis use in young drivers.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Tue, 17 Sep 2002
Source: West Australian (Australia)
Copyright: 2002 West Australian Newspapers Limited
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/495
Author: Trevor Robb
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n1849/a09.html
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1743/a07.html

===

(23) SMUGGLING CASE AGAINST DRUG MULE, 13, DROPPED

Girl Caught With Heroin 'More Sinned Against Than Sinning'

The  case  against a 13-year-old girl thought to be Britain's youngest
drugs  mule  collapsed yesterday when a court heard that she was "more
sinned against than sinning".

The  teenager  from  Bradford, West Yorkshire, who cannot be named for
legal  reasons,  was  arrested  at  Manchester  airport in April after
stepping  off  a  flight  from  Pakistan with 11kg of heroin - with an
estimated  street  value  of UKP900,000 -concealed in six cushions and
a black leather jacket in her luggage.

She  was  due  to  be  tried  at Manchester crown court on a charge of
drug  smuggling,  but  the  prosecution said it would be inappropriate
to  continue  the  proceedings  against her and offered no evidence. A
formal verdict of not guilty was recorded.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Tue, 17 Sep 2002
Source: Guardian, The (UK)
Copyright: 2002 Guardian Newspapers Limited
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/175
Author: Helen Carter
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1744/a04.html

***********************************************************************

HOT OFF THE 'NET
- -------------------------------

RISE UP FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA!

Come to Sacramento - Monday, September 23

Demand Bush Pardon Bryan Epis & End War on all MMJ Patients

All  medical marijuana patients, supporters, organizers, and activists
in California are needed for what is shaping up to be a major medical 
marijuana mobilization to Sacramento on the 23rd!

http://www.safeaccessnow.org/

===

THEY LIVE AMONG US 

Cartoon by Mark Fiore

http://www.markfiore.com/animation/protect.html

===

TELLING THE TRUTH ABOUT MEDICAL MARIJUANA RAIDS

A DrugSense Focus Alert.

http://www.mapinc.org/alert/0252.html

===

EDITORIAL: STRIKING AT THE HEART OF DEMOCRACY

David Borden, Executive Director, borden@drcnet.org
Drug Reform Coordination Network

This  morning  I  heard  the sad news that DC's new medical marijuana 
initiative  would  not  make  the  ballot  after  all.  The effort to 
merely  have  our  votes  on  this  issue  in  DC  recognized as votes
has been a long and tortured one, a "Homer's Odyssey" as 
organizers  at  the  Marijuana  Policy  Project  (MPP),  sponsors  of 
this year's initiative campaign, have described it. 

Continues: http://drcnet.org/wol/255.html#strikingattheheart

===

MEDICAL MARIJUANA ADVOCATES WANT POT FROM OTTAWA

TORONTO  -  A  group  of  seven  people  who  smoke  pot  for medical 
reasons have gone to court to force Ottawa to provide them 
with marijuana to treat their illnesses.

They say their constitutional rights have been violated 
because,  while  they  and  about  300  other  Canadians  can legally 
smoke  pot  to  relieve  nausea  and  pain,  they  can't  purchase it 
legally.

Continues: http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2002/09/19/medical_pot020919
Video: http://www.cbc.ca/clips/ram-newsworld/wilson_myrden020919.ram

===

CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW

Show  featuring  Canadian  Senator  Pierre  Claude  Nolin  and  Eugene
Oscapella,  along  with  an  interview  with Valerie Corral of WAMM is
now online.

http://www.cultural-baggage.com/kpft.htm

***********************************************************************

LETTER OF THE WEEK
- ------------------------------------

Drug War Hurts

By Thomas J. O'Connell

Editor  --  Your  trenchant  analysis  of  school  testing scores sees
through  hype  and  confusion  to  point out what it really comes down
to: poverty.

It's  not  difficult  to see the important role played by our drug war
in  the  transfer  of  wealth  from  the  lowest rungs of the economic
ladder  to  the  very highest. Increased policing, prison construction
and  a  greatly  expanded  prison  population  have all siphoned money
away  from  education  and  health care while at the same time serving
to keep the targeted populations mired in poverty.

Tom O'Connell,
San Mateo

Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)
Date: 09/16/2002
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/388

***********************************************************************

FEATURE ARTICLE
- -------------------------------

TRANSCRIPT OF CALL TO AN ORLANDO POLICE DISPATCHER

 Editor's  note:  In place of a more traditional feature article, this
 week  we  run  an  actual document from the drug war that illustrates
 some  of  the  reality behind the rhetoric.The following conversation
 between  an  Orlando  Police  Department operator and a client at the
 Center  for  Drug-Free  Living  was taped on Sept. 9 taped by Orlando
 police.  It  was  published  last  week  by  the  Orlando  Sentinel.

Orlando Police Department Operator: You're being recorded.

 Caller: Yes, I'd like to make a report please.

OPD Operator: OK, what happened.

 Caller: I am located at the Center for Drug-Free Living, and I would
 like a police officer to come out, please.

OPD Operator: What address are you at, ma'am?

 Caller: (gives address)

OPD Operator: OK, can you tell me what happened?

 Caller: This is basically a treatment center for women with children.

OPD Operator: Yeah.

 Caller: And one of the women here was caught buying crack cocaine
 tonight.  And  a lot of the women are upset because she's been caught
 about five times. And we want something done because our children are
 here,  and  they  just  keep  letting  it  slip under the counter and
 carpet.

OPD Operator: Your name?

 Caller: I'm anonymous.

OPD  Operator:  Well,  we're  going  to  have  to  meet  with someone.

 Caller: OK. Can I put all the girls? Because we're all here; we're
 all here wanting to talk to someone.

OPD  Operator:  Who was she caught buying the drugs by? Who caught her
buying the drugs?

 Caller: The staff.

OPD Operator: Pardon me?

 Caller: Staff. They said, you know, because it's basically Noelle
 Bush.  And  she keeps getting out of it. Because every . . . she does
 this all the time and she gets out of it because she's the governor's
 daughter.  But  we're  sick  of  it  here 'cause we have to do what's
 right,  but  she  gets  treated  like  some  kind  of  princess.  And
 everybody's tired of it, you know. We're just trying to get our lives
 together, and this girl's bringing drugs on property.

OPD Operator: OK. And the staff caught her?

 Caller: Yes.

OPD Operator: They caught her today?

 Caller: Yes. This is just about 30 minutes ago.

OPD Operator: And she's still there though.

 Caller: Yes. And she is on probation, I guess. And all kinds of
 stuff. I don't know what all that is. But . . . And procedure is that
 they  would call the police, but they're not doing it here because of
 who she is.

OPD  Operator:  OK.  So the staff is refusing to do anything about it.

 Caller: Because of who she is.

OPD  Operator:  OK.  OK.  OK,  if you don't want to leave me your name
that's  fine.  But  somebody needs to meet with the officers when they
get there.

 Caller: OK, we'll be out front. Do you know how long . . .

OPD Operator: OK. All of you will be out front?

 Caller: Yeah. There's 24 of us.

OPD  Operator:  OK.  Hopefully, it will be within the next maybe 15 or
20  minutes.  It  may  be  longer  depending  on how many officers are
available now.

 Caller: OK.

OPD Operator: All right.

***********************************************************************

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
- ------------------------------------

"Obviously  the  passion  for power is one of the most moving passions
that  exists  in  man.  All  democracies  are based on the proposition
that  power  is  very dangerous, and that it's extremely important not
to  let  any  one  man  or any one small group have too much power for
too  long  a  time.  What  are  the British and American Constitutions
except devices for limiting power?"

- -Aldous Huxley, interview from 1958

***********************************************************************

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offers  our  members.  Watch  this  feature  to  learn more about what
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CREDITS:

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Stephen  Young  (maxharm@maximizingharm.com),  Cannabis/Hemp  content
selection  and  analysis  by  Philippe  Lucas  (phil@drugsense.org),
International content selection and analysis by Doug Snead
(doug@drugsense.org), Layout by Matt Elrod (webmaster@drugsense.org)

We  wish  to thank all our contributors, editors, NewsHawks and letter
writing  activists.  Please help us help reform. Become a NewsHawk See
http://www.mapinc.org/hawk.htm  for  info  on  contributing clippings.

===

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distributed  without  profit  to  those  who  have  expressed  a prior
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===

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------------------------------
Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 12:37:13 -0700
Subject: NV: Pot Provokes Paranoia Up TOC

Pubdate: Thu, 19 Sep 2002
Source: Reno News & Review (NV)
Webpage: http://www.newsreview.com/issues/reno/2002-09-19/guest.asp
Contact: renoletters@newsreview.com
Copyright: 2002, Chico Community Publishing, Inc.
Website: http://www.newsreview.com/issues/reno/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2524
Author: J. R. Reynolds
Cited: Nevadans for Responsible Law Enforcement ( www.nrle.org )
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project ( www.mpp.org )
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?162 (Nevadans for Responsible Law
Enforcement)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?163 (Question 9 (NV))
Note: J.R. Reynolds lives in Reno.

POT PROVOKES PARANOIA

One thing is for sure, Question 9, the marijuana initiative, is contentious.

If I had any doubts about how black and white this issue was before my
public debate with District Attorney Dick Gammick, they were quickly
dispelled by the time we'd finished a two-hour show on KBDB-AM, which was
broadcast live about a week ago.

I swear, there were moments I felt as though I might be an alien trying
vainly to communicate with earthlings. There is so much fear-mongering and
misinformation thrown around by the "anti" forces that I get the feeling we
are still living in the Stone Age. In this "age of reason," I find it hard
to understand how any intelligent person would continue to believe that
marijuana is anything but medicinal.

We frequently hear government propagandists like Donna Shalala say that the
"latest research" proves that marijuana "isn't harmless" like everyone has
been saying. This would lead one to believe that it is indeed harmful to
anyone who would partake of the "evil weed." As I tried in vain to point out
to Mr. Gammick, there is no such thing as "harmless." Children die from
swallowing a harmless toy or gumball or whatever. These are tragic
occurrences, but are they preventable? Only if you put the kid in a bubble
and keep him in there for life perhaps.

Drinking pure water is surely harmless, and yet, a few people die every year
from drinking too much water. (The body's electrolytic balance is upset, and
the heart stops beating.) In this context, compared to other substances,
marijuana is clearly not dangerous, but does not mean that it is absolutely
"harmless".

The unasked question: is being arrested "harmless?" Actually, it can be
quite "dangerous." What is the latest research on that?

In a perfect world, "we the people" might write legislation without all the
legal verbiage that would simply say: "The people revoke, repeal and rescind
all laws, statutes and regulations regarding the prohibition of marijuana
and associated paraphernalia, order released all previous non-violent
offenders convicted under these laws, and apologize for our stupidity."

We have the opportunity here in Nevada to send a message to the rest of the
country, that we are taking a big step toward restoring individual liberty
and personal responsibility. Vote your conscience in November. But most
importantly, vote!

I highly (pardon the pun) recommend a book by Dr. Mitchell Earlywine,
associate professor of psychology, University of Southern California, who
wrote Understanding Marijuana. If you'd like to cut through the witch-hunt
rhetoric and learn something about this very useful plant, do some research
on your own. Do not rely on baseless information tossed about by the
establishment. Make up your own mind on facts you have gathered through your
own research. You'll be a better (and more informed) person for it.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Doc-Hawk


CRRH is working to regulate and tax the sale of cannabis to adults like 
alcohol, allow doctors to recommend cannabis through pharmacies and restore 
the unregulated production of industrial hemp.

*Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp*
mail:     CRRH ; P.O. Box 86741 ; Portland, OR 97286 USA
email:   crrh@crrh.org
phone:  (503) 235-4606
fax:       (503) 235-0120
web:     http://www.crrh.org/

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End of Restore-Digest V2002 #198
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