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The Vancouver Province,newspaper letters editor ran two letters over the recent Supreme court ruling exonerating a local trafficker due to improper police procedure.The first was the typical world's g
Blog
The $1 Million Drug War Trial That Means Nothing
Why is the U.S. government spending $1 million to bring drug charges against a man who's already going to die behind bars?
And when all is said and done, the only fact of any significance to emerge from this will be that drug prohibition provides income for violent paramilitary armies to buy guns and bombs for their political wars. Even when the desired verdict is handed down, the drug war is nothing other than an exhibit in its own futility.
Colombian rebel leader Ricardo Palmera is already serving a 60-year prison sentence. Convicted in a hostage-taking conspiracy, he has no chance of parole and is likely to die in prison.So what's the point? AP explains it as well as I could:
But U.S. prosecutors are about to begin a monthlong trial, which could cost more than $1 million, seeking to prove that Palmera and his guerrilla allies are drug traffickers. [AP]
For the U.S., however, the outcome matters a great deal. The Bush administration has taken a hard line against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, branding them not just a terrorist group but a violent drug cartel. A courtroom win would reinforce that stance.As Pete Guither points out, the story's headline "US Seeks Symbolic Drug War Victory" couldn't more perfectly describe what's going on here. We are spending $1 million to stamp the "drug trafficker" label on a guy that's already been branded as a terrorist. In the absence of actual tangible progress in the war on drugs, these sorts of symbolic endeavors are the lifeblood without which the morale of the great drug warrior army might wither and disperse.
And when all is said and done, the only fact of any significance to emerge from this will be that drug prohibition provides income for violent paramilitary armies to buy guns and bombs for their political wars. Even when the desired verdict is handed down, the drug war is nothing other than an exhibit in its own futility.
Event
The European Outreach Work Conference
European Outreach Work Conference: Perspectives on outreach work in Europe, Reaching youth at risk - working towards social inclusion
The focus of the conference is early intervention and youth at risk and the aim is to gather practitioners, researchers, policy-planners and outreach workers from all over Europe to exchange the best of practice, research and training/education.
Event
Rethinking Treatment: Recognizing and Responding to the Spectrum of Substance Use
Please join us for this seminal event, which starts Monday evening, March 31 and continues with an all-day program on Tuesday, April 1. The evening program is free of charge. The early bird rate for the all-day program including lunch is $125 if you register before March 17. If you are ready to register for the symposium, go to the online registration form at www.keepingthedooropen.com.
Event
Photographer Alan Pogue to Speak, Sign New Book
CURE invites you to join in the thanking and congratulating of Alan Pogue for his book "Witness for Justice."
Alan Pogue has been CURE's volunteer photographer since its first statewide prison reform convention in Texas in 1975. As CURE has expanded nationally and now internationally, so has the geography of Alan's photography.
In The Trenches
Drug Policy - Public Health or Criminal Justice Issue? - UBC Continuing Studies
[Courtesy of UBC Continuing Studies Series] If you missed this engaging series of free panel discussions facilitated by Stephen Owen, UBC Vice President, External, Legal and Community Relations, webcasts of each session are available below. In communities across Canada, discussions are going on â public and private â about how to deal effectively with the growing problem of illicit drug use. Decisions are being made about how to educate our young people and how to allocate public money. Vancouver has been at the centre of the drug debate since 1995. It has led the way in taking public action, researching the effect of different strategies and considering current community attitudes. At this time of escalating concern about drug and alcohol problems, and drug-related crime, this series looks at a wide spectrum of perspectives and research â often conflicting â to consider what information is useful in guiding us as parents, co-workers and citizens. |
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.In The Trenches
Americans for Safe Access: March 2008 Activist Newsletter
New Employment Bill Would Protect California Patients
California medical marijuana patients may soon have protection from employment discrimination, thanks to legislation sponsored by Americans for Safe Access that was introduced on February 20. The new law has been proposed in response to a January California Supreme Court ruling that said employers may fire qualified patients for no reason other than following the medical treatment recommended by their doctors.
Assemblyman Mark Leno
The employment rights bill leaves intact existing state law prohibiting medical marijuana consumption at the workplace and protects employers from liability by allowing exceptions for jobs where physical safety could be a concern.
"The California Supreme Court decision said that an employer may fire someone solely because they use medical marijuana outside the workplace," said Assemblymember Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), the author of the bill. "AB 2279 is merely an affirmation of the intent of the voters and the legislature that medical marijuana patents need not be unemployed to benefit from their medicine."
Joining Assemblymember Leno as co-authors are Patty Berg (D-Eureka), Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley) and Lori Saldaña (D-San Diego).
The bill is designed to rectify a 5-2 decision by the California Supreme Court in Ross v. RagingWire, a case which was argued by ASA Chief Counsel Joe Elford.
The court upheld a lower court ruling that qualified patients could be fired based on either their status as a patient or a positive test for marijuana. The plaintiff in the case, a 46-year old disabled veteran named Gary Ross, lost his job as a systems engineer in 2001 after testing positive for marijuana. His employer, RagingWire Telecommunications, would not make an exception for medical use, even though Ross did not use cannabis on the job and was treating injuries sustained during his military service.
Gary Ross, speaking to the media
"It's important that we not allow wholesale employment discrimination in California," said Ross. "If the court is going to ignore the need for protection, then it's up to the legislature to ensure that productive workers like me are free from discrimination."
California joins Oregon and Hawaii in introducing legislation to protect medical marijuana patients from employment discrimination.
Since 2005, ASA has received hundreds of reports of employment discrimination from all across California. Employers that have either fired patients from their job, threatened them with termination, or denied them employment because of patient status or because of a positive test for marijuana, include Costco Wholesale, UPS, Foster Farms Dairy, DirecTV, the San Joaquin Courier, Power Auto Group, as well as several construction companies, hospitals, and various trade union employers.
"We welcome and strongly endorse this clarification from the legislature," said ASA spokesperson Kris Hermes. "Despite the ill-conceived ruling by the California Supreme Court, the intent of state legislatures has been to recognize the civil rights of patients and to offer them reasonable protections."
Further information, see ASAââ¬â¢s website at: www.AmericansForSafeaccess.org/Ross.
Sixth Annual Medical Marijuana Week Another Success
For the sixth year in a row, Americans For Safe Access organized a Medical Marijuana Week. And for the sixth time, the event was a huge success, providing opportunities for patients and activists to learn about the issues, take action, and educate others.
Held every year during the week of 2/15 -- to commemorate the passage of Proposition 215, California's medical cannabis law -- Medical Marijuana Week this year had an activity or event for every day of the week from February 11-17.
Monday's focus was on membership, as ASA supporters reached out to friends and family to encourage them to join the nation's largest and fastest growing organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.
On Tuesday, hundreds of activists throughout the country visited their U.S. Senators' district offices to ask their representatives to support access to new sources of cannabis for FDA-approved medical research. The senators were urged to support patients by signing on to the letter Senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry are circulating to enable FDA-approved research.
Wednesday, activists wrote letters to their local newspapers calling on Congress to support access for FDA-approved medical marijuana research. FDA-approved research is key to safe access nationwide. ASA created a Letter to the Editor action site as an easy way to submit LTEs online, using talking points provided by ASA's communications specialists.
For Thursday, patients were asked to plug into ASA's condition-based unions to further promote medical cannabis research and advocate for safe access.
On Friday, ASA released its first National Field Report, which paints a comprehensive picture of the local, state, and national campaigns ASA's chapters and affiliates work on and also highlights the 2007 accomplishments in the field. Patients and activists were asked to start or join a local ASA chapter.
Finally, the weekend was devoted to mobilizing local communities and getting signatures for ASA's Congressional research petition.
All in all, it was another fun, informative, and empowering week of activities for medical marijuana patients and activists across the country.
RESEARCH UPDATE
Osteoporosis May Be Treatable with Cannabinoids
New research out of Israel shows that osteoporosis, a degenerative bone condition afflicting 10 million Americans over age 50, may be treatable with cannabinoids.
Researchers found that the body's natural endocannabinoid system helps control how the body replaces old bone with new growth. In the study, activating CB2 cannabinoid receptors reduced bone loss and stimulated bone formation.
This would seem to confirm early studies that showed faster bone loss in mice that had fewer CB2 receptors.
Study Confirms Cannabis Helps People with HIV/AIDS
Cannabis has been commonly recommended to help people with HIV/AIDS combat nausea and appetite loss, and numerous studies have shown it to be an effective treatment.
A new Columbia University study, the first in nearly 20 years to examine cannabis' efficacy, has shown that not only is smoked cannabis effective, it's substantially more so than Marinol, the synthetic oral drug, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Patients in the trial gained almost 2.5 lbs over four days.
To produce similar weight gain, Marinol had to be given in doses eight times higher than current recommendations.
State Medical Marijuana Laws Do Not Increase Drug Use
A statistical study has found that passing state laws legalizing the medical use of cannabis does not increase the drug's recreational use.
Researchers looked at two "high-risk" groups (ER patients and arrestees) in four states, California, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. Researchers reported that "the introduction of medical cannabis laws was not associated with an increase in cannabis use."
This finding confirms a study of states with medical marijuana laws conducted by the US General Accounting Office (GAO), which found that legalizing medical cannabis has not led to increased recreational use.
Blog
People Don't Inject Marijuana With Hypodermic Needles. They Smoke It.
Via Paul Armentano at the new NORML Blog:
Of course, while this preposterous exercise will teach us nothing about the effects of recreational marijuana use, it does illustrate two important points worth considering:
1. Marijuana is sufficiently mild in its effect that anyone attempting to vividly depict its horrors must resort to the most extreme and unrealistic experiments imaginable. Showing footage of normal marijuana users using marijuana normally would be utterly boring and insignificant. Thus, the choice to approach the subject under such bizarre conditions tells you everything you actually need to know about the integrity of marijuana's critics.
2. Marijuana is so amazingly safe that this journalist can confidently inject its main ingredient straight into her veins. Do you think the BBC or the doctors involved in this mindless charade would have allowed this to proceed if there were any real danger? This whole trainwreck is really just a giant concession that marijuana is medically safe even in atypically massive doses.
Once again, we can count on marijuana reporting in the British press to be injected with everything but the truth.
According to a recent news item making international headlines, a journalist in a forthcoming BBC 'documentary' will "inject" herself with the "main ingredient" of so-called "skunk cannabis" in an effort to warn viewers of the "dramatic" and "unpleasant" effects of marijuana.And so, we're reminded yet again that there is simply no level of absurdity to which the purveyors of anti-marijuana hysteria will not stoop. It shouldn't be at all necessary to explain that no one shoots THC straight into their veins. So when we find this intrepid "journalist" rolling around on the floor soiling herself or whatever, let's just keep in mind that it won't happen again unless this ridiculous stunt somehow catches on. And if that happens, it will be BBC's fault, not marijuana's.
Of course, while this preposterous exercise will teach us nothing about the effects of recreational marijuana use, it does illustrate two important points worth considering:
1. Marijuana is sufficiently mild in its effect that anyone attempting to vividly depict its horrors must resort to the most extreme and unrealistic experiments imaginable. Showing footage of normal marijuana users using marijuana normally would be utterly boring and insignificant. Thus, the choice to approach the subject under such bizarre conditions tells you everything you actually need to know about the integrity of marijuana's critics.
2. Marijuana is so amazingly safe that this journalist can confidently inject its main ingredient straight into her veins. Do you think the BBC or the doctors involved in this mindless charade would have allowed this to proceed if there were any real danger? This whole trainwreck is really just a giant concession that marijuana is medically safe even in atypically massive doses.
Once again, we can count on marijuana reporting in the British press to be injected with everything but the truth.
In The Trenches
4:20 Drug War News Update: 03/03/08
Drug Truth Network Update: 4:20 Drug War NEWS from 90.1 FM in Houston & on the web at www.kpft.org.
We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada.
4:20 Drug War NEWS 03/03/08 to 03/09/08 now online (3:00 ea:) Select online at www.drugtruth.net Mon - Remembering William F. Buckley Jr.
Tue - "Drug War Gets Bloodier" - Dallas Morning News
Wed - Doug McVay with Drug War Facts & Obama quote on drug war
Thu - Poppygate Report with Glenn Greenway
Fri - Martin Terry, Prof of Botany at Sul Ross discusses depletion of peyote crop in S. Texas 1 of 3
Sat - Martin Terry, Prof of Botany at Sul Ross discusses depletion of peyote crop in S. Texas 2 of 3
Sun - Martin Terry, Prof of Botany at Sul Ross discusses depletion of peyote crop in S. Texas 3 of 3
Next - Century of Lies on Tues, Cutural Baggage on Wed (Now With Transcripts):
- Cultural Baggage 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: Catherine Austin Fitts
- Century of Lies 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: Phil Smith of Stop the Drug War
Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net.
Check out our latest videos via www.youtube.com/fdbecker:
Please become part of the solution, visit our website: www.endprohibition.org for links to the best of reform.
"Prohibition is evil." - Reverend Dean Becker, Drug Truth Network Producer
Dean Becker
713-849-6869
www.drugtruth.net
In The Trenches
Just Say Know Weekly News: 3/2/08
Just Say Know
Visit Our Web Site: If youâre using internet explorer web browser use this link, http://jsknow.angelfire.com/home. If youâre using any other web browser use this link, http://jsknow.angelfire.com/index.html
Please pass this message on to ALL your contacts in the USA and ask them to join our mailing list using the form on our website. THANK YOU! We never share email addresses from our mailing list with anyone.
Just Say Know works on your behalf toward drug policy reform, preserving and re-instating your legal rights. Drug policy and enforcement tactics are out of control and removing your rights at an alarming rate. Your financial contributions are greatly appreciated. To make a donation reply to this message with âdonationâ in the subject line and an associate will contact you by return email. Thank you for your consideration. Donât hesitate to contact us by replying to this message; we appreciate your comments, questions and concerns. Together we will make a difference!
The drug war is being used as an excuse to remove your rights, steal your property destroy your ability to earn a living and many other harms to citizens and society. Thereâs a mountain of evidence supporting the need for policy reform that makes citizens, their family, their livelihood and their property more secure. One very good first step will be taking away the ability of criminals to profit from marijuana. How? Just like it was done with alcohol, remove the prohibition and regulate legal adult use. As soon as alcohol prohibition ended, the crime and violence caused by alcohol prohibition ended. The year alcohol prohibition was repealed violent crime fell by sixty percent.
Tell your friends about the "Enough is Enough" petition to stop the reckless overuse of SWAT tactics and save the lives of civilians and police alike. This petition is sponsored by: StoptheDrugWar.org Click here for details.
Feature Story:
YOUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS DENIED BY THE DRUG WAR
In the next few weeks weâll be looking at several Constitutional rights and how the drug war has been used to remove them.
This week we look at: FREEDOM OF RELIGION
Google âmarijuana religionâ and youâll find about 530,000 references; a Yahoo search of the same words referenced 10,500,000 listings. Obviously there are more than a few people that believe marijuana has something to do with their religious beliefs. The first amendment to the constitution says âCongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereofâ¦â yet almost every time anyone has dared claim they use marijuana in their practice of religion as a legal defense in court, their Constitutional right to practice their religion using this well documented religious sacrament has been denied. Our research for this article documented beyond any doubt that marijuana has been used in many religious beliefs dating back as far as recorded history. We expected to find many obscure religions using cannabis but the eye popper was learning that Christianity and its root religion, the Jewish faith of the Old Testament used cannabis extensively as a sacrament. Not surprisingly it wasnât called by any of the names we recognize today since the translators failed to translate the words for cannabis into English words we would recognize. In Exodus, instructions are given for building the Tabernacle (the dwelling place of God on earth and the place where the Jews worshiped God). The original Tabernacle was an elaborate tent. According to the Bible instructions were given by God for incense to be burned in the Tabernacle. The ingredients were myrrh, cinnamon and 'fragrant cane'. The Hebrew words translated to 'fragrant kane' are 'kanneh bosm'. Etymologist Sara Benetowa of the Institute of Anthropological Sciences in Warsaw discovered in 1936, the connection between kaneh bosm in the Old Testament as the original Semitic Hebrew origins of the word cannabis. Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1980 confirmed this information as correct. The "m" is the plural form so "kanneh bos" is the singular. There are many references to cannabis translated using various words throughout the Bible. Kaneh bosm was also one of the ingredients in the anointing oil which is frequently mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. So there you have it, the fathers of Christianity worshiped God in a Tabernacle, which was commanded by God to have incense burning inside it consisting of cannabis. This is documented proof straight from the Bible but our judges have ruled that marijuana has no place in âlegitimateâ religion. It might bare noting here that this country was founded by Christians and evidence of our government accepting Christianity as a legitimate religion can be found engraved on our government buildings and monuments, printed on our money and in our pledge of allegiance. The Bible is often misinterpreted to fit modern puritanical philosophy that is in direct conflict with the true words of the Bible. If you listen to most Christian preachers long enough eventually the subject of smoking will be included in their sermon and theyâll almost invariably say that smoking âdefilesâ your body and the Bible says you shouldnât defile your body because your body is the temple of God if youâve accepted Jesus as your Savior. Here are a few verses from the King James Bible that contradict that directly, provide more information about what God says defiles you and the creation along with some of the God ordained uses of cannabis⦠(An herb with seeds):
Ge:1:1: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Ge:1:11: And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
Ge:1:12: And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
Gn:1:29: And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Ps:104:14: He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth;
Ps:104:15: And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.
Eze:34:29: And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.
Mt:15:10: And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
Mt:15:11: Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
Mt:15:17: Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
Mt:15:18: But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
Mk:7:18: And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;
Mk:7:19: Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?
Mk:7:20: And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
Mk:7:21: For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
Mk:7:22: Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
Mk:7:23: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Mk:7:15: There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.
1Tm:4:1: Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
1Tm:4:2: Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
1Tm:4:3: Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
KJV
We did find one reference to a successful defense on grounds of freedom of religion. February 8, 1996 - San Francisco, CA, USA. "The court's decision to negate the marijuana possession charges against these defendants is a significant ruling," stated NORML Deputy Director Allen St. Pierre. "To the best of NORML's knowledge, this decision is the first time that a marijuana conviction has been overturned on the basis of freedom of religion." You can read the article here: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3515 .
As the use of psychoactive substances is recognized to be an integral, historically legitimate, socially accepted, legally protected choice for advancing individual spiritual development, the minor statutes prohibiting cultivation and use of "sacred plants" are coming into conflict with our fundamental "self-evident" natural right to freedom of worship. How ironic that the religious argument, typically imposed as an irrational moralistic dogma, may be the most effective and conclusive legal strategy for ending prohibition, when considered from a non-secular, human rights perspective. http://www.thc-ministry.net/forum/archive/changing-brains-changing-values-changing-laws-3944.htm
According to THC-Ministry: The Hawai`i Cannabis Ministry:
Cultivation and enjoyment of Cannabis sacrament is a fundamental human right provided by God and protected by the first Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It is our opinion that Cannabis is the original sacrament of Hebrew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Shinto, Buddhist, Rasta and more⦠http://www.thc-ministry.org
Nothing in our research indicated that kanneh bos aka cannabis is considered divine or that it should be worshiped according to Christian or Jewish faith. It is highly documented however as a sacrament in both Christianity and the Jewish faith. Religious freedom is part of the first amendment to the Constitution and has been denied almost absolutely when anyone wanted to use cannabis as part of their religion. Freedom of religion was one of the fundamental rights our founding fathers provided in the Constitution and it has been taken away in the name of the drug war. Over and over the drug war has been used to remove your rights.
Just this week it was announced that the United States now has more people incarcerated than any other country on earth, far ahead of even more populous China. About half the prisoners are prisoners of the drug war. Does this sound like âThe Land of the Freeâ to you? Its time to take action! Contact your elected representatives and tell them to end the drug war. You can look up your representatives by visiting our website and clicking âToolsâ in the site map.
If youâre using internet explorer web browser use this link: http://jsknow.angelfire.com/home
If youâre using any other web browser use this link: http://jsknow.angelfire.com/index.html
This country is still run by the people but if you sit around waiting on someone else, it may be your door that gets kicked in, it may be you that ends up losing life, liberty, freedom, property and more, it may be you that gets shot by the government, it may be your children, money, livelihood or property that get taken away for possessing an herb created and given to you by God according to the Holy Bible. The Bible was considered to be the inspired Word of God by the vast majority of the founding fathers of the United States and was used as a reference for writing many of our laws.
Thanks to the drug war private property is sometimes confiscated with no evidence and no legal recourse. If you think this is a fairytale or only happens by mistake, or is a rare occurrence go here: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/snitch/readings/hidden.html
"Anyone concerned about the failure of our $69 billion-a-year War on Drugs should watch this 12-minute program. You will meet front line, ranking police officers who give us a devastating report on why it cannot work. It is a must-see for any journalist or public official dealing with this issue."-- Walter Cronkite, commenting on a video produced by âLEAPâ Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. We think itâs a must see for every voter in the country too. If you havenât seen it yet take a few minutes and view it now using this link: http://www.leap.cc/cms/index.php?name=Content&pid=28
You can get a wealth of information by visiting our web site and clicking âWeb Linksâ in the site map.
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In The Trenches
One in 99 American adults is in jail
[Courtesy of MPP]Â
Our nation is currently incarcerating a record one in 99 adults, according to a new report by the Pew Center on the States. You can read The New York Times' article on the U.S. governmentâs war on the American people here.
This horrifying statistic was calculated by adding the number of people in federal and state prisons (almost 1,600,000) to the number of people in local jails (723,000). With American adults numbering about 230,000,000, the report concluded that one in 99 adults is currently behind bars.
This is madness. As previous studies have found, our nation imposes harsher sentences for nonviolent drug offenses than for many violent crimes, creating a steady, unconscionable increase in the prison population. Visit www.mpp.org/victims to read stories of nonviolent marijuana prisoners.
The Pew report points to the urgent need to tax and regulate marijuana, as fully 3% of our nationâs 2,323,000 prisoners are incarcerated because of marijuana offenses. Indeed, Pewâs recommendations included diverting nonviolent offenders away from prison.
The report also highlights how the U.S. criminal justice system inordinately penalizes people who are not white. Appallingly, one in 36 Hispanic adults is behind bars, as are one in 15 black adults, not to mention one in nine black men between the ages of 20 and 34. And these numbers donât include people on parole or probation, which means even more than one in nine black men aged 20 to 34 is caught up in the criminal justice system.
Who are our nationâs drug laws helping by locking up so many young black men â or by forcing so many adults into jails and prisons? True drug addicts? Nonviolent drug offenders? Their families?
If you're as outraged by these statistics as I am, please turn your anger into action by helping MPP restore some sense to our nation's laws by ending marijuana prohibition: Become a monthly pledger today.
MPP is the largest organization focused solely on releasing from jail/prison the 3% of inmates who are marijuana offenders. In 1995, we helped to reduce the federal sentencing guidelines for marijuana cultivation, resulting in the release of hundreds of federal prisoners. Every time we pass a medical marijuana law â as we did in Maryland, Vermont, Montana, and Rhode Island, and as we hope to do in Michigan this November â we protect seriously ill marijuana users from jail. Weâre assisting a campaign in Massachusetts to decriminalize marijuana via a ballot initiative in November, which would end the arrest of marijuana users (and therefore 6% of all arrests) in the state. And weâre supporting bills that are currently moving in Vermont and New Hampshire that would eliminate the threat of jail for marijuana possession.
We face a long battle in rolling back the entrenched tradition of using incarceration as the solution to our nationâs woes. Please join MPP for the long haul by signing up for our monthly pledge program today.
Thank you for standing with us in this worthy fight.
Sincerely,
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 $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your monthly pledge will be doubled.
In The Trenches
HaRdCOREhARMREdUCER: Drug War Log February 2008
Drug War Log: 1 â 29 February 2008
ArtCoreFromTheHardCore
UNAIDS Civil Society Task Force, first meeting in New York
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/unaids-civil-society-task-force-first_29.html
Key populations: Man Having Sex With Man, People Who Use Drugs, Sex Workers
Send drug users back on the street with no help
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/send-drug-users-back-on-street-with-no.html
Sweet Kisses
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/sweet-kisses.html
Stijn & Luiz speak @ the N-American INPUD Meeting in New Orleans
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/stijn-luiz-speak-n-american-inpud.html
Ethan Nadelmann "I'm committed to help build the drug user movement"
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/ethan-nadelmann-im-committed-to-help.html
IHRA E-Newsletter February 2008
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/ihra-e-newsletter-february-2008.html
Thai AIDS Treatment Action Group (TTAG) Press Release
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/thai-aids-treatment-action-group-ttag.html
Collega Stimson (IHRA)
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/collega-stimson-ihra.html
HaRdCOREhARMREdUCER
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/hardcoreharmreducer.html
INPUD Newsletter, 21 February 2008
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/inpud-newsletter-21-february-2008.html
10th International Hepatitis C Conference 2008 (Registration now open)
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/10th-international-hepatitis-c.html
Moscow AIDS Conference Blocks Drug Treatment Patients, Groups Charge
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/moscow-aids-conference-blocks-drug.html
INPUD Director Invited by UNAIDS for High-Level Meeting on AIDS
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/inpud-director-invited-for-high-level.html
The Goa Declaration (INPUD Asia and the Pacific Region)
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/goa-declaration-inpud-asia-and-pacific.html
European Commission; Final Report on the EU Civil Society Forum on Drugs (13-14/12/2007)
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/european-commission-final-report-on-eu.html
INPUD Director Stijn Goossens Nominated For United Nations Civil Society Task Force
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/inpud-director-stijn-goossens-nominated.html
Old School INPUD In Vancouver
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/old-school-inpud-in-vancouver.html
Milena & Lucca
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/milena-lucca.html
Napalm Death : SCUM
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/napalm-death-scum.html
Debate Battle: HaRdCOREhARMREdUCER vs Luc Beaucourt
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/debate-battle-hardcoreharmreducer-vs.html
Read Why Professor Luc Beaucourt Gets His Ass Kicked In Public Debate
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/professor-luc-beaucourt-makes-it-easy.html
January 2008: Drug War Log & ArtCoreFromTheHardCore
http://artcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/january-2008-drug-war-log.html
UNAIDS Team, Asia Pacific: To review and revise laws that criminalize drug use
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/02/unaids-team-asia-pacific-to-review-and.html
Don't give us false illusions of hope: injecting drug users
http://hardcoreharmreducer.blogspot.com/2008/01/dont-give-us-false-illusions-of-hope.html
In The Trenches
LEAP on the Hill
LEAP on the Hill -- Stories from the week of February 22, 2008
Almost déjà vu: In September 1978 I put on my police uniform for the first time. The last thing I did was put the six 357 caliber bullets in my revolver. I still vividly* remember putting each one carefully in the cylinder. The responsibility that comes with such power was extraordinary. I am grateful that I never fired a shot in anger. This week I âloadedâ my briefcase for my days on the Hill. I made sure I had all the documents, brochures, business cards, MOC lists, etc. I had to be ready for any eventuality** to move our issue forward.
The stakes***are as important as going on police patrol. Drug prohibition results in the needless death of tens of thousands each year.
ÂHollywood, here I come!: On Monday I was invited to participate in a one hour TV show which dealt with the topic of Justice in America as it relates to our massive numbers of citizens in prison. I was joined by a rep of the Brookings Institute and victimâs rights advocate.**** I helped turn the discussion to the reason so many are behind bars; namely our drug prohibition.
If you have 47 minutes: go to: http://www.presstv.com. Click on âProgramsâ located on the left side of the homepage near the top. Click on "American Dream." Click on 21 February: Human Rights in the US. Or click on: http://www.presstv.com/prg_detail.aspx?SectionID=3510502
Always ready & thinking ahead: Once I leave the train, I switch mental gears, much as I did whenever I put on my police uniform. My tie has to be straight and tight to the neck. In DC âeveryoneâ dresses well because they must be ready if someone shoves a camera in their face. When I am walking in the hall, my briefcase is always in my left hand. Why? Because my right hand must be free to touch the brim of my hat, when I pass a woman I recognize or even a stranger. (call me sexist but women love that). I eat my pizza in the cafeteria with my left hand in case I need to shake a hand. A clear & present danger (also opportunity) is talking to someone & you donât know how important they are. I have learned to control my impulse to speak too much and too candidly.*****All this is part of my learning curve.
In The Trenches
The Sentencing Project -- Disenfranchisement: News/Updates
Tennessee: ACLU Challenges State's Disenfranchising "Poll Tax" Law
Challenging the state's law that disenfranchises formerly incarcerated individuals who have outstanding legal financial obligations, restitution or child support fees, the American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Tennessee filed a federal lawsuit this week. The ACLU charges the 2006 law is a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection clause and is synonymous with a poll tax.
"Reports show that, nationally, over 50 percent of criminal defendants are indigent at the time of sentencing. Therefore, requiring a person with a criminal conviction to pay a fee before restoring their right to vote is nothing more than a modern day poll tax," stated Nancy Abudu, staff counsel with the ACLU Voting Rights Project in a press release. "This law locks citizens out of the democratic process when it comes to issues of great concern to them. The result is that the political power of poor people is further diminished and the collateral consequences of poverty multiply."
The suit was filed on behalf of Terence Johnson, Jim Harris and Alexander Friedman, three citizens who have completed their sentence including parole, and probation. Though Johnson and Harris have custody of their children, they owe child support, according to the ACLU. Friedman was denied restoration of his voting rights in 2006 because the state claimed he owed more than $1,000 in restitution.
"My dream is to have the opportunity to become a fully productive citizen again, regardless of my economic status. And I have the right to participate in the electoral process to bring about change to the issues that concern me most in my community," Johnson was quoted as saying in a press release. "I've served my time, I am a taxpaying citizen and I have custody of my daughter. It is wrong for the state to punish me and other people while we get our lives back on track." For additional coverage, see the Nashville Post.
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Help The Sentencing Project continue to bring you news and updates on disenfranchisement! Make a contribution today.
Contact Information -- E-mail: [email protected], web: http://www.sentencingproject.org
In The Trenches
Drug Truth Update 02/28/08
The Unvarnished Truth About the Drug War From the Drug Truth Network:.
(To downlad these 29:00 files, click on links below. To simply listen, go to www.drugtruth.net and select the arrow below the shows description.)
Cultural Baggage for 02/27/08 Professor Martin Terry of Sul Ross University discusses the legal peyote trade in the US and Mexico and it's use by the Native American Church.
MP3 LINK: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=audio/download/1782/FDBCB_022708.mp3
TRANSCRIPT: (Will be posted late on 02/28/08)
Century of Lies for 02/26/08 LEAP speaker Dean Becker interviews Mark Bennett, incoming head of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association regarding the DA scandal, the jail scandal, the decades long and ineffective waging of the drug war. Pt 2 MP3 Link: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=audio/download/1774/COL_022608.mp3
TRANSCRIPT: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=node/1774#comments
PLEASE NOTE: We now have transcripts, potcasts, searchability, CMS, XML, sorts by guest name and by organization.
Next - Century of Lies on Tues, Cutural Baggage on Wed:
- Cultural Baggage 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: TBD
- Century of Lies 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: TBD
Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net.
We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada.
Programs produced at Pacifica Radio Station KPFT in Houston. www.kpft.org
Check out our latest videos via www.youtube.com/fdbecker: More than 50 Drug Policy Videos online)
Please become part of the solution, visit our website: www.endprohibition.org for links to the best of reform.
"Prohibition is evil." - Reverend Dean Becker, Drug Truth Network Producer
Dean Becker
713-849-6869
www.drugtruth.net
In The Trenches
Marijuana Policy Project: Are you planning to visit New York this spring?
[Courtesy of MPP]Â
Youâre invited to an exciting evening with the Marijuana Policy Project at the Highline Ballroom in Manhattan on May 14.
MPP Medical Marijuana Benefit
Highline Ballroom, 431 West 16th Street, New York City
Wednesday, May 14, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Please consider joining us for a night of comedy and music to celebrate MPPâs recent successes on the path to passing medical marijuana legislation in New York state (and other parts of the country).
The event will feature a performance by folk-rock band Nicole Atkins & The Sea, as well as special appearances by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Michelle Phillips and medical marijuana advocate Montel Williams. Weâll also honor Joel Peacock, a patient advocate from Buffalo who suffers from chronic pain resulting from a 2001 car accident.
Proceeds from the event will be used to change the law to remove criminal penalties for medical marijuana. If the New York bill passes in the next few months, New York would become the 13th medical marijuana state in the country.
Last year, the New York Assembly passed the bill by a 95-52 vote, marking the first time that such a bill has received a vote on the floor of either chamber of the New York Legislature. Plus, more than 1,000 doctors in New York have spoken out in support of medical marijuana, in addition to the Albany, Buffalo, and New York city councils and most medical organizations in the state.
The New York legislation is at the brink of victory â and the prospects for some of MPPâs other bills look good in California, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Please join us and be a part of the tipping point that brings about these momentous changes!
Please donât wait long to buy your tickets, since space is limited.
I look forward to seeing you on May 14 in New York City.
Sincerely,
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 $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your ticket purchase today will be doubled.
Blog
You Know the Drug War's Gone Too Far When It Shows You Its Penis
Allegations of weird and inappropriate behavior by narcotics officers have become so commonplace that one struggles to feign shock or surprise upon learning of them.
Will investigators be contacting other female informants this detective worked with? My understanding is that people who like to show other people their penis tend to do so habitually. For all we know, this cop could have been going around for years targeting women for arrest and then texting them pictures of his penis.
The bottom line is that the entire process of turning arrestees into informants is inherently coercive and morally dubious to begin with. When you have undercover cops making shady deals with drug defendants, it's just a matter of time before someone sees a penis.
A drug informant's allegations that a Marin narcotics agent offered her leniency in exchange for three-way sex - and then sent a photo of his penis to her cell phone - have left a legal mess at the Hall of Justice that could take months to clean up. [Marin Independent Journal]This poor woman agreed to cooperate after being arrested for selling an ounce of marijuana, and the next thing she knows, there's a penis in her phone. Prosecutors subsequently dropped the charges against her, so the penis was ultimately the only punishment she received. Not a bad deal by drug war standards, but it does make you wonderâ¦
Will investigators be contacting other female informants this detective worked with? My understanding is that people who like to show other people their penis tend to do so habitually. For all we know, this cop could have been going around for years targeting women for arrest and then texting them pictures of his penis.
The bottom line is that the entire process of turning arrestees into informants is inherently coercive and morally dubious to begin with. When you have undercover cops making shady deals with drug defendants, it's just a matter of time before someone sees a penis.