Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 09:45:45 -0700

Subject:New Zealand: Greens Want Dope On Table Up TOC

Newshawk: Chris Fowlie http://www.norml.org.nz
Pubdate: Tue, 18 Jun 2002
Source: New Zealand Herald (New Zealand)
Copyright: 2002 New Zealand Herald
Contact: letters@herald.co.nz
Website: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/300
Author: John Armstrong, Political Editor

GREENS WANT DOPE ON TABLE

The high-polling Greens want the legalisation of cannabis for personal use
to be on the negotiating table during any post-election coalition talks
with Labour.

However, Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons said her party would not be
making marijuana law reform a bottom-line for entering a coalition.

"There is only one bottom-line - no release of GE outside the laboratory,"
she said.

"On other matters we hope to make progress by negotiation. I can't predict
the outcome."

Her comments follow an offer from the Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party not
to stand against her in highly marginal Coromandel if the Greens make
legalisation of marijuana a "fundamental issue" to be dealt with in
coalition talks with Labour.

Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party leader Michael Appleby, who talked to Ms
Fitzsimons last week, said he was not making any threats because his party
did not see the Greens as enemies. But standing remained an option.

Ms Fitzsimons took that as a threat.

"We did not make any kind of deal. I don't do deals of that kind," she
said. "I don't think it would make any difference to the electorate vote in
Coromandel. Everyone knows it is a two-horse race between me and the
National candidate."

Mr Appleby's party did not stand a candidate in Coromandel in 1999, but got
268 party votes in that seat. In some seats where it did stand, its
candidates received several hundred votes. Ms Fitzsimons' majority is 250.

So far, the Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party has 11 potential candidates
for the July 27 election.

After the last election, Labour flagged the possibility of decriminalising
cannabis. However, ministers got cold feet and shunted the issue into a
select committee inquiry.
__________________________________________________________________________
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

 
 


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Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 09:48:33 -0700

Subject:Tommy Thompson at Drug Policy Reform event Up TOC

 From Ben Masel <bmasel@tds.net>

Health and Human services Secretary Tommy Thompson stopped briefly to
visit the Drug policy Reform rally outside the US Conference of Mayors 
Saturday.

We discussed Candidate George W Bush's statements that he considered
Medical Marijuana a "States Rights" issue, and the Ibogaine treatment
for assiction, for which Thompson has legal authority to issue research 
permits.

Photo: (large file) 
http://madison.indymedia.org/local/webcast/uploads/metafiles/p6150008.jpg
(smaller) http://images.indymedia.org/imc/madison/thompsonmaseltiny.jpg
- -- 
________________________________________
ben
I am not currently Licensed to Practice in this State.
________________________________________

 
 


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Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 10:13:18 -0700

Subject:Australia: Marijuana Prices Fall, Consumption Increases Up TOC

Marijuana Prices Fall, Consumption Rises
Tue Jun 18, 9:27 AM ET

PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - Better, more efficient
growing techniques are slashing marijuana prices in
Australia and pushing up consumption.


Prices of the weed have fallen in real terms by almost
40 per cent over the past 10 years, according to a
survey by the Economic Research Centre at the
University of Western Australia.

Marijuana remains illegal here, but smoking or
possessing small amounts has been decriminalized in
most Australian states.

"Even though marijuana is an illegal substance in
Australia it seems that the application of modern
production techniques, particularly hydroponic
techniques, has led to a substantial increase in
supply," said Professor Ken Clements who led the
research.

"This, in turn, has led to the sharp fall in price we
have recorded," he told Reuters on Tuesday.

According to the research, an ounce of marijuana leaf
in Sydney in 1990 would have cost A$438 (US$244). In
1999, the date of the research, the price had fallen
to A$275.

Perth had the cheapest marijuana in 1999 with an ounce
costing A$250, but was one of the few places to record
an increase. An ounce costs A$210 in 1990.

The falling price of marijuana sparked a 15 per cent
rise in consumption, the survey found.

"Australians are widely recognized as big beer
drinkers but what we've found is that they are also
among the biggest marijuana consumers in the world,"
Clements said.



 
 


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Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 19:56:38 -0700

Subject:Canada: Bottomless pit Up TOC

Newshawk: Join CMAP (http://www.mapinc.org/cmap/lists.htm)
Source: Chilliwack Progress (CN BC)
Website: http://www.theprogress.com/
Feedback: http://www.theprogress.com/contactus.shtml
Address: 45860 Spadina Ave., Chilliwack, BC, Canada V2P 6H9
Contact: editor@theprogress.com
Copyright: 2002 The Chilliwack Progress
Fax: (604) 792-4436
Date: 06/17/2002

                           Bottomless pit

The city's move to join local RCMP in its fight to quash marijuana grow
operations is a positive one. However, handing over an additional $160,000
annually by adding two full-time members to the front lines, is not a wise
investment.

Who can blame Mayor Clint Hames and council? They were hit over the head
with a hard sell laced with frightening facts. The RCMP sold the plan with
wide-eyed exaggerations best left to the USDEA and the FBI, like, "Drive-by
shootings" are coming here unless we act immediately. But who's buying it?
While most want these green entrepreneurs out of our neighbourhoods, off our
power grid, out of our city, and into jail along with other insidious drug
dealers, pouring more tax dollars into the plan is ill-advised.

Much has been written on how expensive and useless the 'War on Drugs' has
been in North America for the past 20 years. This has been proven with study
after study. We are more concerned with how our city is policed and where
the millions of dollars spent on policing in Chilliwack are allocated.
(Nearly 25 per cent - more than $9 million - of the city's budget goes to
the RCMP).

In a community with a variety of policing needs and decreasing resources,
what should our priorities be?

Is it traffic enforcement? Is it neighbourhood security? Is it the expensive
task of ridding the community of grow operations?

Ask residents whether they want to see more emphasis on eliminating 'soft'
drug producers and less on crime in general. The majority will tell you to
spend more on stopping thieves from breaking into houses and automobiles.
These crimes may be 'small' in law enforcement eyes, but those who have been
targeted will tell you it is a violation of the worst kind.

It's personal. It's painful. And we need immediate action to stop it from
happening time and time again.

These days, auto break-ins are so numerous that the RCMP has a policy of not
even sending out an officer to the call. A file is created over the phone.
Police don't have the time or manpower to investigate.

Until the courts get online with strict and enforcable penalties against pot
growers, we suggest the RCMP is wasting its time, and our money, and should
concentrate new efforts on community policing, adding members to the streets
where thieves and vandals currently rule.

Yes, the city should join the fight against grow operations. But its battle
is better fought with municipal laws with teeth as ammunition, not in
throwing more money into the bottomless pit otherwise known as the 'War on
Drugs.'

 
 


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Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 19:57:20 -0700

Subject:Canada: Landmark pot study points out futility of current laws Up TOC

Newshawk: Join CMAP (http://www.mapinc.org/cmap/lists.htm)
Source: Abbotsford News (CN BC)
Website: http://www.abbynews.com/
Address: 34375 Cyril St., Abbotsford, B.C., V2S 2H5
Contact: editor@abbynews.com
Copyright: 2002 Hacker Press Ltd.
Fax: 604-853-9808
Date: 06/15/2002

   Editorial: Landmark pot study points out futility of current laws

Here we grow again.

A UCFV study on marijuana grow operations in B.C. has found that - surprise!
- - there are a staggering number of such plantations in Lotusland, more than
previously thought.

The study found that the number of grow-ops coming to the attention of
police is increasing by 36 per cent each year, the average size of grow-ops
busted by cops is increasing by 40 per cent per year and the average dollar
value of the grow-ops discovered is between $100,000 and $130,000.

The study - which was undertaken by the college's criminology and criminal
justice department in partnership with the International Centre for Criminal
Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy and which received funding support
from the RCMP - also found that "the high volume of marijuana cultivation in
B.C. is hindering police capacity to respond to complaints."

UCFV professor Yves Dandurand noted that, in spite of the fact that more
money is being spent on combatting grow-ops, more and more pot is available
in B.C. each year.

"It is," Dandurand said, "perhaps time to try a different response."
Indeed it is, and pouring more money into a futile effort to eradicate the
evil weed is not the response needed. Nor is it time, as Solicitor-General
Rich Coleman suggested Thursday, to introduce minimum sentencing for those
convicted of growing marijuana.

And we hardly need the actions of the Chilliwack RCMP, which announced this
week an enforcement clampdown on marijuana, a campaign that includes
spending another $160,000 on two more cops to help ferret out the green.

This comprehensive study, which reviewed all cases of alleged marijuana
cultivation in a four-year period between 1997 and 2000, comes a month after
the release of a Senate committee report that lends ammunition to the
argument for the decriminalization, if not outright legalization, of pot.

In short, the Senate committee found that there is no evidence to suggest
that marijuana is a gateway drug, that there is no evidence that marijuana
is a mind-altering, addictive drug and that smoking pot does not lead users
to commit crime.

The Chilliwack RCMP justify the hard line by noting that organized crime is
behind marijuana grow operations.

As a toker might say, "Well, duh!" Of course it is - precisely because of
pot's illegality! Just as organized crime was behind speakeasies during
prohibition. And just as organized crime is behind everything else society
deems illegal.

Take away its criminality and you take away sky-high prices and you take
away today's version of Al Capone. Can it be any clearer?

 
 


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Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 08:13:17 -0700

Subject:Australia: Cheap, Efficient: New Dope On Dope Sales Up TOC

Newshawk: News from Australia via email see
http://www.mapinc.org/lists/index.htm#form
Pubdate: Tue, 18 Jun 2002
Source: Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)
Copyright: 2002 The Sydney Morning Herald
Contact: letters@smh.fairfax.com.au
Website: http://www.smh.com.au/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/441
Author: Andrew Stevenson

CHEAP, EFFICIENT: NEW DOPE ON DOPE SALES

Globalisation might have done you out of a job but the marijuana
market has been transformed, like the Australian economy, by the drive
to ever-greater efficiencies.

Prices have fallen markedly in the past decade, according to research
published by the Economic Research Centre at the University of Western
Australia.

In real terms, marijuana is 40 per cent cheaper, with the price of an
ounce of heads falling more than $100 in the past decade. The saving
for smokers is estimated at $1billion a year.

"Our best guess is that it [the price drop] is the result of
productivity enhancements in growing marijuana through hydroponic
techniques," said Professor Ken Clements, who produced his analysis
from figures compiled by the Australian Bureau of Criminal
Intelligence.

"When you see a drug bust it used to be out in the bush with trip
wires and shotguns but now it's houses that have their windows blanked
out and they're growing marijuana indoors with lights on 24 hours a
day."

Sydney is the most expensive Australian city in which to buy
marijuana, at $500 an ounce, double the price in Perth.

Decriminalisation of small-scale possession and cultivation in some
states and the ACT - or police being less assiduous in busting users -
may have also affected the price, Professor Clements said.

Whether growers or dealers have worn the price squeeze is hazy, but
the impact is clear: marijuana users are smoking more and drinking
less.

"We estimate consumption has risen by 15 per cent due to the price
fall," Professor Clements said.

"Interestingly, the extra money spent on marijuana has got to come
from somewhere and it comes from substitute products such as alcohol."
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake

 
 


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

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Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 08:18:07 -0700

Subject:U.S. Drugs Head Slams Soft UK Up TOC

Newshawk: The War on Drugs IS Terrorism
Pubdate: Tue, 18 Jun 2002
Source: Reuters (Wire)
Copyright: 2002 Reuters Limited
By Sinead O'Hanlon
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?207 (Cannabis - United Kingdom)
Note: More articles about Britain's "softly softly" approach can be found
using Power Search, http://www.mapinc.org/find , and putting Paddick in the
Body section.

U.S. DRUGS HEAD SLAMS SOFT UK

LONDON (Reuters) - The U.S. drugs chief has slammed Britain's controversial
"softly softly" approach to cannabis, saying a high-profile pilot programme
has only increased usage in drug-plagued areas.

Asa Hutchinson, director of the powerful U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration, told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday that a flagship
south London pilot programme -- where police stopped arresting people for
cannabis possession -- had seen a jump in cannabis users and led children to
believe it was legal.

"Clearly, the evidence is that the pilot project in that area where they
only issued citations for marijuana use, rather than an arrest, is that it
increased usage," he said.

"Wherever you are dealing with harmful drugs, that is not the objective that
we want to have."

Hutchinson, in Europe to discuss international drug strategies and attend a
high-level crime conference in London, said police were dealing with the
cannabis problem from the standpoint of prioritising thin resources.

"But that is sending a very mixed message to young people. As I travelled
the neighbourhood, I asked about the young people and the impact on them and
the response that came back was that most of them think it is legal now.

"I have great concerns about the debate that may lead to a reduction of
enforcement activities on cannabis. If we are to effectively confront drugs
problems in our society, we cannot accept the myth that marijuana represents
no harm -- it does."

SOFTLY SOFTLY

The "softly softly" approach to cannabis in south London was pioneered by
Metropolitan police commander Brian Paddick -- dubbed "Commander Crackpot"
by the media -- who was later transferred out of the area pending an
investigation that he allowed cannabis to be smoked in his home.

The programme has provoked widespread debate in Britain, which has one of
the highest levels of drugs use in Europe -- particularly among the young
with a third of teens admitting to regular use of marijuana.

A recent government survey in the U.S. showed about 18 percent of those aged
18-24 had used illegal drugs, falling to nine percent of those aged 12-17.

Critics blame the tolerant British approach for increasing numbers of young
children smoking the drug and for bringing them into contact with dealers.

But last month, a parliamentary committee report urged the government to
face reality and relax rules governing use of the drug enjoyed by around
five million people across the country.

Home Secretary David Blunkett has said he wants to downgrade cannabis to the
lowest risk Class C drug category, making possession of small amounts a
non-arrestable offence.

A two-year independent inquiry concluded in 2000 that police wasted too much
time trying to clamp down on soft drugs -- but meanwhile Britain tops the
European Union in drug-related deaths, mostly from heroin.

WAR ON TERROR

Hutchinson said the DEA's work had changed significantly since the attacks
of September 11, with more importance placed on the gathering and sharing of
intelligence internationally.

"There is a clear connection between drugs and terrorism. As long as you
have drug trafficking, there will always be a funding pool for terrorist
activity," he said.

The U.S.-led war on terrorism in Afghanistan and the replacement of the
Taliban by a new government had reduced the amount of heroin coming out of
the region by up to 30 percent this year but it would be an ongoing battle.

Hutchinson denied that the war on drugs could never be won, saying it was
"being won every day" and that drugs usage had dropped 50 percent in the
U.S. over the last 20 years.

"We have to demonstrate that we have had success and that we will continue
to have it...not give in to those who advocate giving up our anti-drug
efforts."
__________________________________________________________________________
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

 
 


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

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Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 09:01:04 -0700

Subject:NV: Marijuana Initiative Submitted Up TOC

Newshawk: Stop the Drug War
Pubdate: Wed, 19 Jun 2002
Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal (NV)
Copyright: 2002 Las Vegas Review-Journal
Contact: letters@lvrj.com
Website: http://www.lvrj.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/233
Webpage: http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2002/Jun-19-Wed-2002/news/19005917.html
Author: Sean Whaley, Review-Journal Capital Bureau

MARIJUANA INITIATIVE SUBMITTED

CARSON CITY -- A group seeking to place a question on the November ballot
that would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana turned in
more than 107,000 signatures gathered from all 17 counties Tuesday.

Nevadans for Responsible Law Enforcement need valid signatures from 61,336
registered voters, with minimum numbers required in 13 of 17 counties, for
the petition to be approved by Secretary of State Dean Heller.

The petitions will now go through a signature verification process to
determine if the group was successful.

The measure, which would also allow patients to obtain medical marijuana at
low cost, would have to be approved by voters twice, this year and in 2004,
for it to take effect.

"Most Nevadans believe that people should not be arrested for possessing
small amounts of marijuana," said campaign spokesman Billy Rogers. "We're
confident that we've collected enough signatures to qualify this initiative
for the November ballot."

The initiative would allow adults to possess three ounces or less of
marijuana. It bans smoking marijuana in public places, including parks, and
maintains penalties for underage possession or sale to minors.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth

 
 


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

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Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 21:33:18 -0700

Subject:CO: Medical Marijuana Case Takes Interesting Twist Up TOC

Newshawk: The GCW
Pubdate: Sat, 15 Jun 2002
Source: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2002, Denver Publishing Co.
Contact: letters@rockymountainnews.com
Website: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/371
Author: Bill Scanlon, News Staff Writer

MEDICAL MARIJUANA CASE TAKES INTERESTING TWIST

Charges have been dismissed against a man caught with 22 marijuana plants,
and that's a big victory for medical marijuana proponents, his lawyer says.

Not so, says the Denver District Attorney's Office, which this month asked
that drug charges be dismissed against James Scruggs because the evidence
was likely insufficient to win a conviction.

Police responded to Scruggs' home in November on a domestic violence call.
They didn't find sufficient evidence of domestic violence but did find the
marijuana.

Scruggs has Crohn's disease, which causes intestinal bleeding and severe
pain. He had a doctor's recommendation to use marijuana under the state's
year-old medical marijuana statute, said his lawyer, Warren Edson, but
Scruggs lacked a state-issued authorization card.

The dismissal of charges "is an interesting comment from the Denver DA's
office," Edson said. "People who originally read the statute think you're
only allowed 2 ounces or six plants. But they don't read to the part that
says you can have more if necessary. It's a clear recognition that some
people need more -- significantly more."

The dismissal of charges doesn't mean that 22 plants is OK for someone with
a medical marijuana card, DA's spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough said.

The DA's case hinged on proving there were 22 plants, she said.

Deputy DA Adrienne Greene asked that charges be dismissed because
photographs didn't clearly indicate the number of plants.

"Our interpretation of the statute is such that if we could have proven
there were 22 plants, we probably could have proven the charges," Kimbrough
said.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens

 
 


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End of Restore-Digest V2002 #112
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