cannabisnews.com: Where’s The Compassion?





Where’s The Compassion?
Posted by CN Staff on December 19, 2003 at 08:07:01 PT
By Doug Bandow 
Source: National Review 
On Tuesday the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals barred federal prosecution of those using marijuana under a doctor's care. Smoking pot under such circumstances is "different in kind from drug trafficking," stated the court: "this limited use is clearly distinct from the broader illicit drug market."The U.S. Supreme Court recently let stand a lower court ruling barring Uncle Sam from punishing doctors who prescribe medical marijuana. California's new governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, admits to past drug use. Radio host Rush Limbaugh has sought drug treatment, forcing even prohibitionist conservatives to acknowledge the pervasiveness of drug abuse. The war on drugs is going badly.
Last year 19.5 million Americans used drugs. Some 14.6 million people smoked marijuana; despite the law; assorted police stings, operations, and campaigns; hundreds of thousands of arrests; and overflowing prisons.The U.S. is increasingly alone in prosecuting marijuana users. The Netherlands has long tolerated personal possession and allowed cannibas coffee shops. Pot is now available as a prescription drug at pharmacies. Spain no longer arrests recreational drug users; Portugal has decriminalized marijuana use. So has Luxembourg. Belgium allows the medical use of marijuana and is considering permitting citizens to grow small amounts of pot. Local authorities in France and Germany decide whether or not to arrest cannibis users. Germany even allows hard-drug use in legal "drug-consumption rooms." In Britain police increasingly confiscate marijuana but leave the users alone; new guidelines embody a "presumption against arrest."The Swiss senate has approved legislation legalizing personal use of cannibas. The Australian and New Zealand governments are considering approving the medical use of marijuana.Canada provides marijuana through its health-care program and has proposed decriminalizing pot cultivation and consumption. As in Britain, police in Toronto merely confiscate pot from users.And in the U.S., an Alaskan appellate court has affirmed the constitutional right of citizens to grow and consume marijuana at home. Arizona, Connecticut, Michigan, North Dakota, and other states have relaxed their penalties for drug use and sale.A new Maryland law, signed by conservative Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich, sharply reduces the punishment for people who use marijuana for medicinal purposes. Nine states have fully legalized the medical use of marijuana, a policy supported by three fourths of Americans. Legislation introduced by Reps. Dana Rohrabacher (R., Ca.) and Maurice Hinchey (D., N.Y.) to bar federal raids on medical-marijuana patients and providers received 152 votes, up from the 93 votes which opposed a condemnation of medical-marijuana laws in 1998. The federal government's ability to interfere with state medical-marijuana policies has been limited by the courts.Moreover, the establishment edifice undergirding prohibition is cracking. Conservative Republican Gov. Gary Johnson of New Mexico became the first sitting governor to advocate legalization of drug use. Last year more than 400 past and present judges and law-enforcement officers formed Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. LEAP's head, Jack Cole, who spent 26 years with the New Jersey State Police, observes: "illicit drugs are easier to get, cheaper, and more potent than they were 30 years ago. ... Meanwhile, people are dying in our streets and drug barons grow richer than ever before."Why government tosses pot smokers in jail while tolerating use of alcohol and cigarettes, far more dangerous substances by most measures, has never been obvious. There is good reason for people to abstain from all of them; there is no good reason to imprison them if people do not.The pervasiveness of illicit-drug use was demonstrated by Rush Limbaugh's announcement that he was seeking treatment for an addiction to pain-killing medication. Some of his conservative defenders, like Gary Bauer, argued that an addiction arising from an illness or injury is different than one growing out of recreational-use, but in both cases morally accountable individuals choose to procure — illegally — regulated substances which cause pleasure. The undoubted appeal of drugs does not eliminate responsibility for buying and consuming them in either case.Moreover, those using marijuana as medicine have as good an argument for compassion as does Rush Limbaugh. Although some people view medical marijuana as a means of eventually legalizing recreational pot use, most users turn to marijuana as a last resort.For instance, Angela McClary Raich of Oakland, California smokes marijuana to combat nausea and other consequences of her treatment for brain cancer. "She has tried essentially all other legal alternatives to cannabis, and the alternatives have been ineffective or result in intolerable side effects," says her physician, Dr. Frank Lucido. A nurse suggested that she try pot: "Marijuana is my miracle," Raich explains.Daniel Kane, also of Oakland, suffers from AIDS-wasting syndrome. "Even now, I get this sort of tingling in my body thinking about what we have achieved" by using marijuana, he says.Teddy Hiteman of Henderson, Nevada, suffers from MS. "Medicinal pot has been a godsend," she says. A Republican who voted for George W. Bush, she observes: "I wish we had more conservatives who would understand."Michael Ferrucci of Livermore, California, has lung and testicular cancer. Pot "has been far more beneficial to me than other medications they have recommended to me, including powerful narcotics like morphine, Demoral and codeine."San Francisco's Judith Cushner has endured breast and uterine cancer. Of the Supreme Court ruling, she remarked, "It took seven years to get this far. Cancer moves a lot faster than that."Although opinions are not unanimous, there is substantial medical evidence indicating the medical efficacy of marijuana. The American Medical Association Council on Scientific Affairs has reported that "anecdotal, survey, and clinical data" demonstrate marijuana's medical usefulness. The National Institutes of Health stated that "Marijuana looks promising enough to recommend that there be new controlled studies done." Groups ranging from the American Cancer Society to Kaiser Permanente support access to or research on medical marijuana.Individual doctors agree. In one survey, more than 70 percent of American cancer specialists said they would prescribe marijuana if it were legal; nearly half said they have urged their patients to acquire the drug irrespective of the law. A poll of the British Medical Association yielded similar results.The New England Journal of Medicine has backed access to medical marijuana. In May Lancet Neurology pointed out that marijuana had proved effective against pain in lab tests and could become "the aspirin of the 21st Century." In a recent issue of Brain journal, researchers at London's Institute of Neurology reported: "In addition to symptom management, cannabis may also slow down the neurodegenerative processes that ultimately lead to chronic disability in multiple sclerosis and probably other diseases." Policy analyst Paul Armentano reports that an Oxford University study published in Clinical Rehabilitation found that marijuana aided MS patients in bladder relief, pain relief, and spasticity.Earlier this year the American Nursing Association supported legalizing access to therapeutic marijuana. So did the New York State Association of County Health Officials.This doesn't mean there aren't risks in smoking pot, or that it is the best medicine for everyone under all circumstances. But marijuana should be a legal option in a society that styles itself both compassionate and free.Allowing the medical use of marijuana wouldn't even prevent the government from punishing recreational users, however misbegotten that policy may be. The sick are demonstrably different. Moreover, after interviewing 37 law-enforcement agencies, the General Accounting Office found that the majority "indicated that medical-marijuana laws has had little impact on their law-enforcement activities."When he ran for president, George W. Bush said laws regarding the medical use of marijuana were matters for the states: "I believe each state can choose that decision as they so choose." Although he said he opposed such laws, he criticized the Clinton administration, which sought to undermine such initiatives at every turn.But the Bush administration has taken an entirely different stance. Reports Dean Murphy of the New York Times: "Federal agents have raided farms where medicinal marijuana is grown, closed cooperatives where it is distributed and threatened to punish doctors who discussed it with their patients." Uncle Sam also has prosecuted obviously ill people who have dared use marijuana to ease their nausea or pain. California Attorney General Bill Lockyer complains that "The decision to continue federal raids on medicinal marijuana providers when there is no evidence that the operation is actually engaged in illicit commercial distribution is wasteful, unwise and surprisingly insensitive when it comes to listening to Californians who have made clear their support for medicinal marijuana at the ballot box." Nevertheless, Karen Tandy, recently appointed to head the Drug Enforcement Administration, rejected criticism of federal interference with state laws allowing medical use of marijuana. Why should Washington respect federalism when doing so would restrict its ability to jail the sick?Indeed, the Bush administration appealed the Ninth Circuit ruling barring the DEA from lifting licenses to prescribe controlled substances for doctors who prescribe marijuana in accordance with state law. Ten doctors, six patients, and two groups filed suit, winning at the appellate court level-yielding the decision which was affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court.Interestingly, a larger proportion of Republicans than Democrats supported legalizing the medical use of marijuana when voting in Alaska, California, Colorado, and Nevada. In fact, Rep. Rohrabacher says that "I have no doubt that if there were a secret ballot on this, a lot of Republicans would vote along with [liberal Massachusetts Democrat] Barney Frank." But they are afraid of political retribution.Alas, Democratic presidential contenders Howard Dean, John Edwards, and John Kerry have all proved to be as unsympathetic as Republican politicians. Only long-shot Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D., Ohio) has come out forthrightly against jailing the sick. Neither party has a monopoly on philosophical principle orpolitical courage."Marijuana is still an illegal drug," says Richard Meyer of the DEA. "We will continue doing our job." And that means preventing the sick and dying from using the only medicine that works for many of them.For these drug warriors punishing drug users is far more important than healing the sick. In appealing the Ninth Circuit ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, Solicitor General Theodore B. Olson called the issue one "of exceptional and continuing importance" since the decision "impairs the Executive's authority to enforce the law in an area vital to the public health and safety." Drug Czar John Walters has even threatened Canada with intrusive border searches, delaying traffic south: "It is my job to protect Americans from dangerous threats."But the drug laws are the real dangerous threats to public health and safety. The only way to protect the public is to guarantee the right of the sick to use marijuana and to stop jailing pot smokers who just want to get high. Nothing would be served by imprisoning Rush Limbaugh for his apparent legal transgressions, just as we all are poorer for the millions of people jailed in the government's misbegotten war on drugs over the years. We should treat drug use as a medical, moral, and spiritual issue — not a criminal one.— Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute -- http://www.cato.org/ -- and a former Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan.Complete Title: Where’s The Compassion? - Forget The War on Drugs AlreadySource: National Review (US) Author: Doug BandowPublished: December 19, 2003 Copyright: 2003 National Review Contact: letters nationalreview.com Website: http://www.nationalreview.com/ Related Articles & Web Sites:Raich v. Ashcroft.comhttp://raich-v-ashcroft.com/Raich v. Ashcroft in PDFhttp://freedomtoexhale.com/ruling.pdfFederalism Wins - National Reviewhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18002.shtmlA Landmark Victory - Ann Harrison http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17996.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #21 posted by Virgil on December 20, 2003 at 21:33:35 PT
Very Important read for someone with energy
This article is up at FreeRepublic which is more a home of knuckle-dragging fundamentalist than it is about a true conservative website- http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-backroom/1043460/postsNow it starts off in the comments right away defending it from an instant shoot the messenger attack by saying that the conservative position is against the WOD and this is the conservatives flagship, the National Review, saying so. So, the person that might make a living defending incarcetation/prohibition then shoots the author, Doug Bandlow, for wanting to give lawyers to someone Bush labels as enemy combatants.There are 334 comments for anyone that wants to read them. The important thing about this article, like the Cato Report, is that the WOD goes against anything a true conservative believes. When you see the media saying Bush wants to overturn the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision, it is just like saying he is a liar. He is neither compassionate, nor conservative and that is something I regard as accurate. It was comment19 that gave this link and copied some from it- http://www.nationalreview.com/12feb96/drug.html The article by the National Review does not have a date that is easy to find. It is their coming out party so to speak and cannot be so plain or more important as a source of defending the end of the drug war on conservative grounds. It is titled, "The War on Drugs is Lost" and has 7 seperate pieces by authors like William Buckley and Ethan Nadelmann.Because it is so important, the introduction is copied below.NATIONAL REVIEW has attempted during its tenure as, so to speak, keeper of the conservative tablets to analyze public problems and to recommend intelligent thought. The magazine has acknowledged a variety of positions by right-minded thinkers and analysts who sometimes reach conflicting conclusions about public policy. As recently as on the question of troops to Bosnia, there was dissent within the family from our corporate conclusion that we'd be best off staying home. For many years we have published analyses of the drug problem. An important and frequently cited essay by Professor Michael Gazzaniga (Feb. 5, 1990) brought a scientist's discipline into the picture, shedding light on matters vital to an understanding of the drug question. He wrote, for instance, about different rates of addiction, and about ambient pressures that bear on addiction. Elsewhere, Professor James Q. Wilson, now of UCLA, has written eloquently in defense of the drug war. Milton Friedman from the beginning said it would not work, and would do damage. We have found Dr. Gazzaniga and others who have written on the subject persuasive in arguing that the weight of the evidence is against the current attempt to prohibit drugs. But NATIONAL REVIEW has not, until now, opined formally on the subject. We do so at this point. To put off a declarative judgment would be morally and intellectually weak-kneed. Things being as they are, and people as they are, there is no way to prevent somebody, somewhere, from concluding that ``NATIONAL REVIEW favors drugs.'' We don't; we deplore their use; we urge the stiffest feasible sentences against anyone convicted of selling a drug to a minor. But that said, it is our judgment that the war on drugs has failed, that it is diverting intelligent energy away from how to deal with the problem of addiction, that it is wasting our resources, and that it is encouraging civil, judicial, and penal procedures associated with police states. We all agree on movement toward legalization, even though we may differ on just how far. We are joined in our judgment by Ethan A. Nadelmann, a scholar and researcher; Kurt Schmoke, a mayor and former prosecutor; Joseph D. McNamara, a former police chief; Robert W. Sweet, a federal judge and former prosecutor; Thomas Szasz, a psychiatrist; and Steven B. Duke, a law professor. Each has his own emphases, as one might expect. All agree that the celebrated war has failed, and that it is time to go home, and to mobilize fresh thought on the drug problem in the context of a free society. This symposium is our contribution to such thought. 
--THE EDITORS 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #20 posted by FoM on December 20, 2003 at 09:05:28 PT
You Guys Are Great
I'm just having fun today. Dankhank, I want to say that I have great respect for you and your work. Thank you and Happy Holidays. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #19 posted by Dankhank on December 20, 2003 at 09:02:26 PT:
Lapel Pin
Jose, good idea ...However, the top left corner of this page is a gif, and is truly representative of what this site does ...A lapel pin with the cnwlogo1.gif would be perfect ...
Hemp N Stuff
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #18 posted by jose melendez on December 20, 2003 at 04:21:26 PT
t-shirt, sticker logo?
how's this for a logo. not sure if it will look good on a pin . . .http://65.18.211.65/img/cannabisnews.jpg
More On
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #17 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 21:07:39 PT
No, Ekim
I do not have cable so I watched it on pot-tv- http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17972.shtmlI did e-mail ventura msnbc.com telling complimenting their show and informing them of the transcripts and comments here at Cnews.Jesse is wrapped up in a self-fulfilling prophesy. He has chosen an in your face attitude to bullshiters and will take all the government parrots from officialdom that they can furnish. His content has all but got to take on the drug wars again and with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals the subject of MMJ/CC is an area of ignorance calling for reverse lobotomy.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #16 posted by ekim on December 19, 2003 at 20:12:56 PT
any news on that boat load of hash bust
Virg have you made a cd of jesses show. will it be at blockbuster. can it be seen on here. where do they do his show. Dankhank maybe you could give a cd to Jesse, and while your at it a cnews lapel insigna for his hemp jacket from Geo Zimmerman the huge suit man in Oakland. Jesse please ck out this site it is pulling for you. hope gov Gary Johnson will be at Dennis concert. now lets talk about what the pin could look like and when it is seen it will stand for this site. something like cnews.com and done in a way different font. anyway it is done Jesse will ware it. then it will be on hats and everything else.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #15 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 18:18:43 PT
They are sneaking the news out on Friday again
This is really hard to believe. Yahoo has a story up saying that arch-prohibitionist/conservative Rupert Murdoch has permission from the FCC to acquire Direct TV. It is absolutely nucking futs.- http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031220/ap_on_bi_ge/fcc_satellite_merger_5One thing about Dean is he has come out for breaking up these media monopolies that are putting a big effing on Americans and democracy- http://www.commondreams.org/views03/1219-12.htm
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #14 posted by FoM on December 19, 2003 at 17:48:18 PT
Virgil
It is slow. I am watching The Concert for George. It is a wonderful tribute to a great musician. As I watch this concert and look at how beautifully it was packaged and the spirit of the concert it amazes me that the world doesn't see who these people are that create this music for the world to hear. They all have done drugs and used them as inspiration. How can something that brings out these qualities in musicians be wrong? I don't understand how people can't see.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #13 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 17:40:47 PT
Reruns and no activity to engage
What would have happened if the GW Pharm extracts had come before Christmas and then the Canadian SC says that CP is to be buried. Just how wonderful would that have been?In this country the pill companies now contribute to the budget of the FDA. When they introduce a pill they are still doing research on the side effects and evaluating its real potential. Something really was wrong with not letting GW introduce these extracts at the earliest possible time for MS. We know exactly what these extracts are and with organizations like thc4ms distributing there chocolates to MS patients there was a concentration of knowledge that there would be no harm and from what I can tell no interaction with other medicines. These extracts all but set the value of safety at the one level on a scale of 1 to anything. People were not going to fall over dead or have overdoses or anything that presented a danger. They jumped through all the hoops and then they give them a hold your breath contest. It was a cruel thing to do even if it was on a restricted basis. I see it as corruption. I could be wrong, but I sure would like to hear some reasonable answer to why the MS patients were denied the chance. What gets me is why we did not hear from people with MS or even thc4ms.org. How could a journalist following the story not be interested in what people with MS think when they have kept up with the story all along and have this bullshit thrown in the way.Maybe the MS patients do not get relief. They get pictures of relief- http://www.thc4ms.org/85 hours until the CSC speaks. If they prohibition is right and freedom by their Charter, I am going to start molding battery-lighted tubes with a pitchfork on one end and a torch on the other and profit by tyranny and call for tougher sentences.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #12 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 16:49:47 PT
Ekim
Popeye had spinich and I have government corruption and public stupidity. The media is on a full press of bullshit because their ship is going down. Look at what Slate is feeding the sheep- http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=943349 No wonder we can't get anywhere when we have to shovel all this crap.Someone was talking about MJ making them weaker and someone said it made him stronger. What we need in the reform movement is a character like Popeye that has an intellectual challenge and smokes a bowl and comes up with the brilliant answer, like Andy Griffith Enhanced. The guy should probably be a chef. I can see him catching his buzz and flying through some gourmet meal and ending yet another conflict with his cool attitude and smooth and mellow ways. The movement really does need a character like Popeye with the enhanced adaptation maybe being Potpie.Potpie and ganja gumbo sure would be good. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #11 posted by ekim on December 19, 2003 at 16:21:57 PT
Hey Virg on Comment #7
remember the guys that got the lawmaker from OK all shookup. with the adds on the buses. I hope that they will take out a add on Jesses America. and MPP and Norml and anyother group and maybe someone will give him a Cannabisnews.com TEEshirt to ware on TV.Keep going Virg you are like the bunny -- going and going and going:)
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #10 posted by FoM on December 19, 2003 at 10:54:56 PT
Max Flowers
You gave me an idea. I can't change anything in the web forms I use to post an article but I can do it like this page and only have a few paragraphs at the top of the article and then the link. That might work. Does this page look ok with your monitor setting?http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/independent.htm
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #9 posted by sukoi on December 19, 2003 at 10:48:47 PT
A couple more on Raich v. Ashcroft
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2001818737_stateed19.htmlhttp://www.marinij.com/Stories/0,1413,234~26642~1838525,00.html
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #8 posted by Max Flowers on December 19, 2003 at 10:40:49 PT
FoM
You can just edit the HTML if you need to, it's soooooo easy. All you do is go into View-->Source in the browser controls and it shows you the current text as HTML code, and you go in and pick out the code that is making the link live (or whatever is bothering you code-wise). It's easy to experiment with, because you can edit out parts of the code, then save and look at it and see what effect it had, etc. You also could simply save what he sends you as text, edit out anything that isn't his actual text (i.e. HTML code), save it as pure text, and post it.Hope this helps.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #7 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 10:27:53 PT
About 92 hours until our present arrives
Everyone here should have marijuananews.com on their favorites menu and their reading list. I am just glad to see that good information is finding new outlets and gathering new fans.It appears that the Nightline interview last night was more about putting a lid on what the commissioner had said on the 9/11 events being preventable. Some said he was given a talking too and his appearance was a parade of power hushing independent thought and conclusions- http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=941820MoveOn.org has a contest for the best commercial to run against Bu$h the week of the State of the Union address. Here is a thread at DU on it- http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=941698Now I am not putting it up because I need to clarify a position on the war criminal in residence. I put it up to illustrate the power that a contest for a commercial for MMJ products and services, real and imagined, could have and the form it might take.
View and rate the commercials
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #6 posted by FoM on December 19, 2003 at 09:26:58 PT
Virgil and Everyone
I wanted to mention why I don't do Richard Cowans articles. I appreciate his work but because he does links I can't set an article up to look right so I post the link like you just did Virgil. If Richard would write an article with no internal links I would post it right away! Maybe he's reading CNews and will do that for me! Hint! Hint! Hint!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #5 posted by afterburner on December 19, 2003 at 09:26:12 PT:
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin, Take Note.
Although opinions are not unanimous, there is substantial medical evidence indicating the medical efficacy of marijuana. The American Medical Association Council on Scientific Affairs has reported that "anecdotal, survey, and clinical data" demonstrate marijuana's medical usefulness. The National Institutes of Health stated that "Marijuana looks promising enough to recommend that there be new controlled studies done." Groups ranging from the American Cancer Society to Kaiser Permanente support access to or research on medical marijuana.Individual doctors agree. In one survey, more than 70 percent of American cancer specialists said they would prescribe marijuana if it were legal; nearly half said they have urged their patients to acquire the drug irrespective of the law. A poll of the British Medical Association yielded similar results.The New England Journal of Medicine has backed access to medical marijuana. In May Lancet Neurology pointed out that marijuana had proved effective against pain in lab tests and could become "the aspirin of the 21st Century." In a recent issue of Brain journal, researchers at London's Institute of Neurology reported: "In addition to symptom management, cannabis may also slow down the neurodegenerative processes that ultimately lead to chronic disability in multiple sclerosis and probably other diseases." Policy analyst Paul Armentano reports that an Oxford University study published in Clinical Rehabilitation found that marijuana aided MS patients in bladder relief, pain relief, and spasticity.Earlier this year the American Nursing Association supported legalizing access to therapeutic marijuana. So did the New York State Association of County Health Officials.This doesn't mean there aren't risks in smoking pot, or that it is the best medicine for everyone under all circumstances. But marijuana should be a legal option in a society that styles itself both compassionate and free.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #4 posted by Virgil on December 19, 2003 at 09:19:25 PT
CWU- Comment while unenhanced
Some 14.6 million people smoked marijuana;I have a hard time believing any number that is not twice that. It is much more popular than that.This is exactly what is needed as the year closes. It is a snapshot of the prohibitionist world that seeks to make things worse in misery and money instead of just talking sense.Richard Cowan's piece that is titled " WHAT IS IT ABOUT DEAD THAT YOU DON¹T UNDERSTAND?" is up at Drugwar.com- http://www.drugwar.com/kubbywhatdead.shtmIt just shows that there is a desire for good content on the drug war and the story of cannabis. The Anne Harrison piece that was up a few days ago from CounterPunch.org also found audience at AlterNet.org. Dan Forbes is the person missing from the line-up on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision. His work will probably come from TomPaine.com and make it to AlterNet. I would hope that he would do a snapshot piece like done here. It is an article like this that is worthy of printing and putting in a stocking to make a present of reality in an upside down world painted with fantacy.The creme rises to the top with cannabis being #1 with cause as an example. The ratings for some of these websites has risen significantly this year with TomPaine really rising. Alexa today has AlterNet at 5931, CounterPunch at 5218, and TomPaine at 19,465. I have not followed the NationalReview but the 6 month chart at Alexa makes it like it has been in the top 2000 most of the time since July and is now 1963.The National Review has escaped me, but with factual articles that snapshot reality, I can see why they have a following. That the cream rises to the top is a truism. They have risen and with cause. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #3 posted by cloud7 on December 19, 2003 at 08:52:37 PT
I feel safer now (j/k)
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,106227,00.html"WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy has seized a boat in the Persian Gulf carrying two tons of hashish and four people tied to the Al Qaeda (search) terrorist network, the military said Friday."
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by Dankhank on December 19, 2003 at 08:25:32 PT:
Wow ..........
A succinct summary of recent madness, as well as great info re: Where we are at, today ...This one is worth saving and sending to everyone.Let's do it ... 
Register ...
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by FoM on December 19, 2003 at 08:12:29 PT
Thank You National Review and Cato!
Federalism Wins - National Review:
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18002.shtml
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment