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Calgary 420 Social
We have doubled the event capacity (double the tickets). Cash bar.
Live Entertainment: "Pale Rider" (Rocked the 1st Alberta Cannabis Cup)
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Coca 2009: Debate in the European Parliament
ENCOD is organizing an afternoon of debate and reflection in the European Parliament in Brussels.
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Drug Policy for the 21st Century
Please join us at this important event. Here is the schedule:
9:00am: Welcome
9:10-9:40am: History & Background of Current U.S. Drug Policy - Dean Susan Pease
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Drugs, Pregnancy, and Parenting: What Experts Have to Say
People working in the field of family law and child-welfare often have cases that involve issues of drug use.
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Boulder's 5th Anti-DrugWar Candlelight Vigil
Please join us on Valentine's Day (February 14th) to honor the fallen in America's longest war -- the War on Some Drugs. It was on February 15, 2000 that the U.S.
In The Trenches
Bush holdovers raid medical marijuana dispensary
Dear friends:
Yesterday â with the leadership of the Department of Justice in flux while Attorney General-designate Eric Holder awaits confirmation by the Senate â Bush administration holdovers raided a medical marijuana dispensary in South Lake Tahoe, California.
President Obama vowed repeatedly during his campaign to stop such raids if elected, and we have every reason to believe he will make good on that promise. However, four top positions at the DEA are still filled by Bush cronies, who are attempting to undercut the president's pledge.
Would you please take one minute to use MPPâs easy online system to e-mail the president and ask him to get his new leadership in place at the DEA quickly, so that these cruel and outdated policies finally end?Â
President Obama has promised that arresting patients and raiding clinics in states where medical marijuana is legal won't be acceptable on his watch. Getting political appointees in place takes time, but yesterday the Bush holdovers showed that we must move swiftly.
Please write the White House today to urge the president to quickly place his new leaders at the DEA.
You can see some of the statements the president has made about medical marijuana (generally in response to questions from MPP) here.
Please send your e-mail right away. (You can also call the White House at 202-456-1111.)
Thank you,
Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.
P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.
In The Trenches
The Sentencing Project: Disenfranchisement News 1/23/09
Maine: NAACP to Hold Annual Voter Registration Drive in Maine Prisons
After negotiating with the Department of Corrections, the NAACP will now be able to hold annual voter registration drives at every prison facility in Maine. In honor of the anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the annual drive this year will run for a week beginning August 6, and span six state-run facilities. Maine and Vermont are the only states that allow inmates to vote. To read more, see CorrectionsOne.com.
Washington: State on Its Way to Easing Voting Process
A felon voting rights bill was introduced this week in Washington State in an effort to restore rights after completion of sentence, the Seattle Times reported. Currently, individuals must pay all court fines and petition the court in order to get their voting rights restored. Supported by the ACLU, HB-1517, was introduced by Jeannie Darneille (D-Tacoma), who has introduced similar legislation over the past nine sessions. She said she is confident the bill will pass this session. A companion bill is being introduced in the Senate by Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-Seattle.)
International: Inmates to Vote in Next Election
The Independent Electoral Commission in Kwazulu-Natal, a province of South Africa, has decided to allow patients in hospitals and prison inmates to vote in this year's elections to ensure those incarcerated can exercise their constitutional right, the Sowetan reported. "We have a special programme for prisoners in correctional facilities. We will begin with voter education and then register them," said commission electoral officer, Mawethu Mosery. "Come election day, we will help them to cast their votes. This programme will also include awaiting trial prisoners," he continued.
Virginia: Disenfranchisement Undermines Democracy, Faith in Prison System
In a Daily Press letter to the editor, a Williamsburg resident has urged her fellow Virginians to contact lawmakers to make the restoration process for individuals with felony offenses less time consuming. " ... In a society that places such an emphasis on 'getting out there and voting,' I'm wondering why we are still restricting the voting rights of some of our Virginia citizens, prohibiting them from participating in the democratic process," Kriston Rhodes wrote. Virginia is one of only two states that permanently disenfranchises all persons with felony convictions. Individuals with nonviolent offenses seeking restoration must wait three years after completing their sentence, while those with violent offenses must wait five years. "Failing to restore voting rights to Virginia citizens not only undermines the importance of participation in a democracy but also demonstrates a lack of faith in our prison system," she continued.
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In The Trenches
Press Release: First Medical Marijuana Raid by DEA under Obama Administration Advocates call on president Obama to quickly change harmful, outdated policy
[Courtesy of Americans for Safe Access]
For Immediate Release: January 22, 2009
Contact: ASA Media Liaison Kris Hermes at 510-681-6361
First Medical Marijuana Raid by DEA under Obama Administration Advocates call on president Obama to quickly change harmful, outdated policy
Oakland, CA -- The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raided a medical marijuana dispensary today in South Lake Tahoe, California, in the first days of the new Obama Administration. Even though President Barack Obama had made repeated promises during his election campaign to end federal raids in medical marijuana states, many high-ranking Bush Administration officials have yet to leave office. For example, still at the helm of the DEA is acting Administrator Michele Leonhart, who has been responsible for numerous federal raids in California, following in the footsteps of her predecessor Karen Tandy. Neither Eric Holder, President Obama's pick for U.S. Attorney General, nor a new DEA Administrator, have taken office yet.
"Whether or not this unconscionable raid on a medical marijuana provider is the fault of federal officials from the previous administration, President Obama has an opportunity to change this harmful and outdated policy," said Caren Woodson, Director of Government Affairs for Americans for Safe Access (ASA). "We are hopeful that these are the last remnants of the Bush regime and that President Obama will quickly develop a more compassionate policy toward our most vulnerable citizens."
Medical marijuana and an unknown amount of cash was seized during the raid today from Holistic Solutions, but no arrests were made. This first DEA raid under the new Obama Administration is another example of more than 100 raids on medical marijuana providers that have occurred in California over the past two years. While the greatest federal enforcement has occurred in California, the DEA has been active in other states as well. Federal agents raided the Washington State offices of a medical marijuana advocacy group that was supplying starter plants to hundreds of authorized patients. In Oregon, a federal grand jury was used by the DEA to obtain the medical records of several patients, an effort that was later rejected by a federal court. The DEA also went as far as to threaten New Mexico officials for planning to implement that states medical marijuana distribution program.
"I would not have the Justice Department prosecuting and raiding medical marijuana users," Senator Obama said in an August 2007 statement. "It's not a good use of our resources," he continued. This statement was followed up by Obama in other public events in the run up to the election. "President Obama must rise to the occasion by quickly correcting this problem and by keeping the promise he made to the voters of this country," said Woodson.
ASA has been working with the new Administration on changing federal law around medical marijuana, which has included providing a comprehensive set of policy recommendations.
Further information:
Comments by Obama on ending medical marijuana raids: http://granitestaters.com/candidates/barack_obama.html
ASA medical marijuana recommendations for incoming president Barack Obama: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/PresidentialRecommendations
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In The Trenches
Video: Feds threaten El Paso for discussing drug legalization
Watch SSDP's Nubia Legarda advocate for drug legalization in El Paso: Click here to watch the video http://www.ssdp.org/elpaso |
Friends,
An SSDP member found herself in the midst of a national news story last week.
The City Council of El Paso, Texas had just unanimously passed a resolution calling for a national discussion of drug legalization. The mayor swiftly vetoed it, calling proponents of the resolution "pot heads." As the council prepared to override the veto, members found threatening letters from state and federal officials in their mailboxes, while Lou Dobbs criticized the resolution nationally on CNN.
Nubia Legarda had a personal stake in ensuring that the City Council didn't back down. Her family lives in the Mexican border town of Ciudad Juárez -- a city where gruesome murders have become commonplace because of the cartel violence created by drug prohibition. That's why Nubia joined Students for Sensible Drug Policy last year, and why she called our national staff for help preparing her remarks to the City Council last week.
Nubia's comments to the council and the local news were spot on. Beto O'Rourke, the lead proponent of the resolution, told me that Nubia's testimony was "among the most effective in showing how destructive and unproductive our current drug policy is."
After watching the online broadcast of her testimony, I didn't think I could be more inspired by Nubia's commitment to this cause. That was until I saw that she donated $10 through SSDP's website that afternoon. Even though she had just spent the day volunteering her time to speak out on this issue, she knew that this struggle takes time, dedication... and money.
I've put together a web page where you can watch Nubia's testimony and news interview, and you can find out how the council ultimately decided to vote. If you're motivated by Nubia's courage and conviction, I invite you to turn that motivation into action by matching Nubia's contribution to SSDP (while including a note to Nubia if you like). http://www.ssdp.org/elpasoÂ
Each and every donation helps ensure that we can be at the right place at the right time, like we were last week in El Paso. So thank you so much for helping us open a national dialogue on one of the most important issues facing our nation. We can't do it without you.
Best,
Micah Daigle, Associate Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy
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CNBCâs Marijuana, Inc: Propaganda, Pot Porn, or Both?
They might as well have displayed a link to ONDCP.gov across the screen for an hour. CNBC's Marijuana, Inc. couldnât have been more sensationalist if John Walters wrote the screenplay and Bill OâReilly did the interviews. Iâm serious, it was that bad.
Of course, itâs impossible to know how the casual observer may interpret a propaganda trainwreck such as this, but for me it crossed the threshold of absurdity to the point of almost becoming useful. If one factual concept emerged unscathed from this, it is that there is simply nothing you can do to stop the marijuana economy. Marijuana, Inc. painted California as a veritable narco-state, thrown into anarchy by liberal values and unscrupulous profiteers. If thereâs a lesson in there other than the fact that our marijuana laws are a disaster, I must have missed it.
The great irony of this is that, whether they like it or not, CNBC is selling their product to the same exact market. Who do they think watches this stuff? Just turn off the sound and youâve got sixty minutes of first-rate pot porno to accompany the musical selection of your choice. They used blatant pot porn to promote it, so they know exactly what theyâre doing.
Something is seriously out of balance when CNBC puts out an obnoxious propaganda program, while simultaneously hosting an online poll that favors decriminalization at 97%. They even felt compelled to put this disclaimer on their comment section:
Marijuana sells in the media for the same exact reason it sells in the street. The only difference is the media still feels the need to cut their marijuana merchandise with some nasty shit. If the mainstream media wants to sell us pot, thatâs fine. But give it to us straight.
Of course, itâs impossible to know how the casual observer may interpret a propaganda trainwreck such as this, but for me it crossed the threshold of absurdity to the point of almost becoming useful. If one factual concept emerged unscathed from this, it is that there is simply nothing you can do to stop the marijuana economy. Marijuana, Inc. painted California as a veritable narco-state, thrown into anarchy by liberal values and unscrupulous profiteers. If thereâs a lesson in there other than the fact that our marijuana laws are a disaster, I must have missed it.
The great irony of this is that, whether they like it or not, CNBC is selling their product to the same exact market. Who do they think watches this stuff? Just turn off the sound and youâve got sixty minutes of first-rate pot porno to accompany the musical selection of your choice. They used blatant pot porn to promote it, so they know exactly what theyâre doing.
Something is seriously out of balance when CNBC puts out an obnoxious propaganda program, while simultaneously hosting an online poll that favors decriminalization at 97%. They even felt compelled to put this disclaimer on their comment section:
**As of this posting, CNBC has only received comments favoring decriminalization of marijuana.
Marijuana sells in the media for the same exact reason it sells in the street. The only difference is the media still feels the need to cut their marijuana merchandise with some nasty shit. If the mainstream media wants to sell us pot, thatâs fine. But give it to us straight.
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