cannabisnews.com: Author Criticizes Marijuana Policy










  Author Criticizes Marijuana Policy

Posted by CN Staff on October 10, 2005 at 06:09:09 PT
By Julia Osellame, Princetonian Contributor 
Source: Daily Princetonian 

New Jersey -- Ricardo Cortes, author of a controversial children's book about marijuana, led a discussion at Terrace Club Friday night on the importance of balanced drug education, in an event hosted by Students for a Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP).The book, "It's Just a Plant," has attracted widespread attention over its blunt portrayal of marijuana use. The New York Post called is a "pothead parent's dream come true" and Entertainment Weekly labeled it "outrage of the week." It was even denounced on the floor of the House of Representatives, when Indiana Republican Mark Souder said it taught children "how to smoke pot."
Though Cortes claims not to advocate the use of marijuana by children, he argues that pot is an appropriate experience for responsible adults and that the drug war is a failure. "We believe there is a way to safely educate children about drugs by satisfying their curiosity but without piquing their curiosity to try them," he wrote on his website, www.itsjustaplant.com.  The 48-page book begins when the main character, Jackie, "smelled something funny in the air" and found her parents smoking a marijuana joint. The next morning, Jackie and her mother discuss the use of the illegal drug over a bike ride, and meet various users and cultivators.  Although the book is not strictly realistic, Cortes said he hopes families will have similarly open discussion about marijuana, whether or not the parents have tried pot.  While doing research for his book, Cortes said he was shocked by how many parents were afraid to talk to their kids about drug abuse. Open discussion about drug use won't necessarily encourage kids to engage in it, he argued.  Both Cortes and the SSDP, which was founded last spring by Reona Kumagai '06, advocate a "more sensible" education policy with well-informed parents as influential role models. Cortes believes that parents can use "It's Just a Plant" to jumpstart discussion about drugs and deter illegal usage by offering factual information.  In contrast, the government's prosecution of marijuana users has been a flop, Cortes and SSDP members said. Rather then reducing the number of addicted children, they argued, the war on drugs breaks up families and prevents legitimate medical uses of marijuana.  Kumagai said the SSDP does not condone or condemn drug use. The club was started to promote sensible drug policies that are neither racist nor overly harsh. "I think people shouldn't get arrested for doing drugs," Kumagai said. "The punishment for the crime shouldn't punish people more than the addiction would. Drug abuse is bad, but drug use isn't necessarily a bad thing."  After writing the book, Cortes said he could not find a publisher, and decided to publish it on his own. Of the three thousand copies he printed, only one hundred have not been sold. He said he reordered more for next year, with changes to the illustrations and some of the text. Source: Daily Princetonian (NJ Edu)Author: Julia Osellame, Princetonian ContributorPublished: Monday, October 10, 2005Copyright: 2005 Daily Princetonian Publishing Company, Inc.Contact: mgao princeton.eduWebsite: http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:SSDPhttp://www.ssdp.org/It's Just a Planthttp://www.itsjustaplant.com/ All We Need is a Mascot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20361.shtmlIt's Just a Book - Village Voice http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20301.shtml

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Comment #68 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 21:12:52 PT
Hope
Have you seen any of the series? It was so complex and in the 5 hours of actual air time it covered so much ground. I don't know how they did the series without having the government breathing down their neck but they did it. Maybe they were afraid to bring attention to it because more people would have watched it. I don't know. I am looking forward to the DVD. It's a keeper.
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Comment #67 posted by Hope on October 12, 2005 at 21:06:22 PT
Weeds
In thinking about this series...I've thought it would be a cool thing if a computer screen on the set had a certain shade of green to it and was, in fact, our own CNews.
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Comment #66 posted by Hope on October 12, 2005 at 21:04:03 PT
zip
The secret's safe with me. *smile*
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Comment #65 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 18:59:11 PT
Hope
I am getting ready to watch Weeds. This final episode was so good I am watching it again.PS: Don't tell anyone because I don't say when someone registers and I don't know if he will post but he was in the series. Now keep it secret! LOL!
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Comment #64 posted by Hope on October 12, 2005 at 18:52:42 PT
Weeds
There is something in that name that is not about cannabis. 
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Comment #63 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 17:06:43 PT
Web Page For Weeds in Canada
http://www.showcase.ca/weeds/
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Comment #62 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 15:38:46 PT
New Cast Member for Next Season's Weeds
But Wiggins is still building up his comedic resume. He will be a new cast member on "Weeds" airing on Showtime Network next season.http://www.kykernel.com/media/paper305/news/2005/10/12/Features/last-Comic.Standing.Alumnus.Hopes.To.Crack.Up.Uk-1017508.shtmlhttp://www.lasthippie.com/bio.htm
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Comment #61 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 15:31:23 PT
Toronto Sun: TV Goes To Pot with 'Weeds'
By BILL HARRIS - Toronto Sun
  October 12, 2005Little Boxes: http://www.sho.com/site/weeds/music.do 
The theme song from Weeds will burrow into your head. You will not be able to stop this. The tune, called Little Boxes and performed by the late folk singer Malvina Reynolds, eventually will start to drive you crazy. You'll find yourself humming it for no good reason. And it doesn't matter if you like it or hate it. It's indiscriminate. The only thing that will give you any relief is weed. Uh, rather, Weeds. Don't get the wrong idea. Weeds (Showcase, 10 p.m.) stars Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin, a recent widow and mother of two boys who has become a pot dealer in the fictional and affluent California suburb of Agrestic (an anagram for 'cigarets'). Nancy's husband dropped dead while jogging with his youngest son, and Nancy was left with some unanticipated financial pressures. She keeps the big house and the maid -- hey, even if it's make-believe it's still California -- and finds a ravenous marijuana clientele among her town's elite. One of Nancy's steady customers is councilman Doug Wilson, played by Saturday Night Live alumnus Kevin Nealon. Weeds also stars Elizabeth Perkins as Celia Hodes, Agrestic's most suspicious citizen -- often with good reason, as it turns out. The pilot episode tonight, a somewhat low-energy effort titled You Can't Miss The Bear, is in full setup mode for more interesting developments down the road. But even as a wide array of characters is introduced, it becomes obvious quickly that the show's moral tug-of-war centres on how the viewer feels about Nancy Botwin. Is she a tough chick just doing what she has to do? Or is she merely lazy as she preys upon the weaknesses of others? On the occasions when Nancy tries to be an authority figure, others can see how shaky the ground is beneath her feet. This is in evidence after she sells some pot to Doug's teenaged son Josh (Justin Chatwin), who is a dealer himself, on the condition that Josh does not sell to kids. "You're a hypocrite," Josh yells when, inevitably, Nancy catches him selling pot to pre-teens. "Keep kids off drugs," cries the pot-dealing mom. "But hey, if it gets you through the night, good for you, Nance." We must admit, we're sick of seeing TV and movie depictions of teenagers who always are more savvy than their parents, merely because of their youth and adeptness at wise-crackery. But even if most of Agrestic's young people don't know exactly what Nancy is up to, they do sense she is not like other adults. Case in point: Celia's daughter Quinn, who happens to be dating Nancy's eldest son Silas, boldly asks Nancy: "Can we have sex in your house?" For someone who supposedly has just started selling pot, Nancy is decidedly cool -- not James Dean cool, but more of a notably not-nervous cool -- through most of the opening episode. When she breaks down, overwhelmed, toward the end of the show, it rings a little hollow. If Nancy really is a bubbling cauldron of emotion just beneath the surface, how could she previously have been so nonchalant while selling pot to adults on the sidelines at a kids' soccer game? Weeds gets better, and more active, in later episodes. The debut just isn't all that riveting. Unlike that damn theme song -- there it is in my head again ... Copyright © 2005, Canoe Inc. http://jam.canoe.ca/Television/2005/10/12/1258513.html
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Comment #60 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 08:19:19 PT
Canadian Press: High Hopes for Widow's Weeds
Mary Louise Parker stars as a dope-selling, recently widowed mother.By Rob Salem,  CP
   October 12, 2005 
TORONTO -- Mary Louise Parker is surprised she got off this easy. "I actually was kind of expecting more of a reaction," allows the marijuana-selling mom of Weeds, a budding new Showtime single-camera sitcom that debuts in Canada tonight on Showcase. Parker portrays Nancy Botwin, a recently widowed mother of two struggling to survive in the staidly suburban (and fictional) enclave of Agrestic, Calif. And it is a struggle -- financially, in particular -- to which end she comes up with her controversial supplemental enterprise, covertly peddling pot to her neighbours and friends. Talk about your desperate housewife. Not that Nancy's a pot-head herself -- nor does she need to be, with such enthusiastic regular customers as Kevin Nealon's perpetually glazed idiot accountant. In fact, not once in the first five episodes do we even see her character smoke. Not grass, anyway. "She doesn't," Parker confirms. "Not that she hasn't, or won't . . . I think she got into it by way of someone giving her a joint at (her husband's) funeral or something. "But that's not really what she's doing at the moment. She's really just kind of scrambling to make a living. I think it's more about her just being a mom. I don't think it's about her own habit at all." The question is, will conservative Middle America see it that way? Apparently, yes -- much to Parker's surprise. "Anything in the culture today that has to do with drugs, people are likely to pounce on," she suggests. "Which is why I'm kind of shocked they haven't (done) more so on this. Unless it just hasn't shown up on their radar." "Or maybe lots of people are having a problem with it, and I'm just not aware of it, being occupied with my own life more than anything else." She's had a lot to occupy herself with of late. The 41-year-old actor comes to the controversial cable comedy from a prestigious stage and big-screen career, with a Tony win in 2001 for her performance in Proof, and book-end nominations for her 1990 Broadway debut, Prelude to a Kiss, and her 2005 lead performance in Reckless. On film, she has won considerable critical acclaim in Longtime Companion, Fried Green Tomatoes, Grand Canyon and Boys on the Side. On television, she was one of the stand-out stars of the HBO adaptation of Angels in America, and had a juicy recurring role on The West Wing. And then she got pregnant, with her son, William Atticus, the issue of her seven-year relationship with fellow actor Billy Crudup, with whom she had co-starred in an ill-fated stage revival of Bus Stop in 1996. The relationship did not survive the pregnancy -- the couple split during Parker's seventh month. The West Wing gig suffered a similar fate. "I would have continued doing that show, but when I got pregnant, at a certain point, I couldn't, like, stand behind a desk anymore, or hold a file. So I had to leave. "I was really happy on The West Wing. It was one of the best experiences I've had. I would go back any time -- in fact, I am coming back to do a few episodes this season. The schedule for Weeds has only 10 episodes in its initial season -- a second batch for next year has not yet been officially ordered. IF YOU WATCH What: Weeds, a sitcom about a marijuana-dealing mother of two When: Tonight, 10 p.m. Where: Showcase http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/Today/Entertainment/2005/10/12/1258584-sun.html
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Comment #59 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 20:37:48 PT
Soundtrack from Weeds
http://www.sho.com/site/weeds/music.do
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Comment #58 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 20:20:00 PT
unkat27 
Weeds was really good. Last night the finale was great. It should be out on DVD soon. I hope it comes back for a second season.
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Comment #57 posted by unkat27 on October 11, 2005 at 20:02:43 PT
Weeds sounds interesting
Here's what the tv.com site has to say about Weeds.http://www.tv.com/weeds/show/28829/summary.htmlI don't have k-bull now, but it sounds interesting.
Idiot Box Reviews
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Comment #56 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 20:02:09 PT
runderwo
I know you are right.
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Comment #55 posted by runderwo on October 11, 2005 at 19:59:56 PT
yeah
But a user knows when they are getting "too high". You can read it in overdose accounts. There is a point where the person realizes they have taken too much, but then they are too far gone to make a proper decision about who to call or whether calling anyone is a good idea or not. Or they know the potential consequences of getting third party assistance (hospital bills, arrest, etc) and decide to try to ride it out. If the user had Narcan readily available and they got that "oh sh*t" feeling, it would be a no brainer to administer it just in case they were going over the edge. Then it is assured that in the worst case, they just wasted a bag of dope.Luckily some people who overdose are saved by medical intervention so they get to write those stories. My brother (who himself was into that stuff way back) last year saved a first time user who had overdosed on heroin by repeatedly administering CPR to the kid while on the way to the hospital. Luckily they made it. Having an opiate blocker on hand as a harm reduction measure would certainly remove the drama from such situations (and the danger of a drive to the hospital, etc). Kind of like having SSRIs on hand to administer in case of a MDMA overdose. But for some reason people see such measures as encouraging use of those substances. To me, it just makes the dangers even more clear, that you could be dead or permafried if you mess up and the safety net is not available.
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Comment #54 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 15:40:49 PT
runderwo
Nothing though will help if a person is alone and passes out. You're right that's what happened to him.
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Comment #53 posted by runderwo on October 11, 2005 at 15:31:53 PT
FoM
I read your reply. I am in favor of Narcan being supplied along with clean needles so these needless deaths don't occur. It sounds like he was not using for a while and went back to it. That is a pretty common overdose scenario. But a completely preventable one if a dose of Narcan is at hand. Just like the college student who goes overboard. I still maintain that the risks of opiate use can be completely mitigated through harm reduction programs and through safe practices. People need to be made aware of the risk of dependence to prevent them from trying it, they need to be made aware of the safe practices in case they do it anyway, and the rest of us need to be shown that harm reduction costs less to society than prohibition so they will have access to clean needles, Narcan and methadone as a safety net.On the other hand cocaine is a very bad idea due to the risk of stroke with every use and the cumulative heart damage. I don't think trying to maintain cocaine addicts is a good idea because there is simply no evidence that a cocaine addict can continue to function normally, like maintained opiate addicts can. I think there is too much emotional see-sawing for a cokehead to cope. So maintainance, as opposed to flat-out treatment, would be a poor investment in this case.
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Comment #52 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 14:08:45 PT
MikeC 
Andy was great. He really spoke what I feel about the war.
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Comment #51 posted by MikeC on October 11, 2005 at 14:01:43 PT
FoM...comment 36
Yes, it was wonderful! Also...when Andy first appeared on the show I didn't like him at all but he came around.Great show that Weeds!
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Comment #50 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 09:14:05 PT
runruff 
I'm really glad the surgery went well. I know you have hard times ahead and it bothers me. 
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Comment #49 posted by runruff on October 11, 2005 at 09:09:33 PT:
Yea! Down right sin!
Thank you for your well wishes. Yes the surgury went very well. My surgen Dr. Wang of Ashland Or. is one of best
in the world. I'd say an artist even. What a contast, huh.
One wh gives sight, Dr. Wang. And them that take it away,the DEA.Namaste 
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Comment #48 posted by FoM on October 11, 2005 at 08:42:43 PT
runruff
I hope the surgery was successful. I don't know where this will go on Weeds but it shows the futility of the war on Cannabis. People like Cannabis and it hasn't ever killed anyone. It's a down right sin that we still are fighting a war on this gentle plant after all these years.
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Comment #47 posted by runruff on October 11, 2005 at 08:36:42 PT:
The scourge. The DEA.
If the monster Frankenstein ever came face to face with 
the DEA, Frankenstien would die of fright. OK so I'm a plaguerest. So sue me. Hearst was also an unscrupulous 
Journalist.If "Weeds" treats this DEA agent true to form he will
help Nancy or at least provide her with protection. If we fall for the propaganda we might think that stopping the flow of drugs is the real objective of these officers. 
That bull is for public consumption only. The real objective of the DEA is perpetuation of their own budgets and careers. My bet is he will care less if she is selling pot and we will find out that he is involved in much larger scale drug dealing himself. Note his life style. We tax payers support that. While he has innocent blood on his hands.Note: I had eye surgery a few days ago. I can't use cannabis for pain the feds are testing me so I'm using vicodin. This makes me very dull. I prpobably misspelled 
alot here and I can't read the small print of my dictionary
but I felt like posting so please bare with my distackes.
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Comment #46 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 22:17:29 PT
Cutting Edge
I really am shocked that the series was allowed at all. I hope it will come back for another season. There haven't been complaints about the show that I have read. Maybe it will win some award. It very well could.
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Comment #45 posted by Dankhank on October 10, 2005 at 22:11:19 PT
Andy
The writers used Andy to stick Iraq down Bush's throat.They used CPA/Kevin to slam Laura re: alledged pot selling in college.Next season we get to see what they think of the DEA.This show is cutting edge ...
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Comment #44 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:44:38 PT
The Future
If they renew Weeds they sure laid out a way for the series to evolve. Like Saving Grace.
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Comment #43 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:42:36 PT
Dankhank
After Andy stopped bucking Nancy he started to get nicer but this show was his best performance.
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Comment #42 posted by Dankhank on October 10, 2005 at 20:37:03 PT
andy
I was the same way.He bugged me, too, initially.He has the wisdom of a stoner.Can I say that with a straight face?
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Comment #41 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:24:19 PT
Dankhank
It sure was amazing. It's like Andy didn't miss one thing that needed to be said.PS: I didn't like Andy at first but I really like him now.
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Comment #40 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:22:08 PT
Showtime's Weeds Message Board
I was just on the message board and everyone loved the finale. Everyone is asking them to please bring it back for another season.
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Comment #39 posted by Dankhank on October 10, 2005 at 20:19:29 PT
yessssssssssss
What an amazing rant he laid at the government door...this show is the best .......go WEEDS
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Comment #38 posted by Hope on October 10, 2005 at 20:12:33 PT
smile
Good. Something new in entertainment is neat. Surprising is good. Much preferred to "disappointing" and "same ole same ole".
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Comment #37 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:09:43 PT
Hope
So much happened in this last show. It was really something. The whole series has been great. I call it great because it's hard to shock me but this show has constantly shocked me and made me laugh.
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Comment #36 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:07:40 PT
Dankhank and MikeC
Wasn't it good the way Andy went off on the war! 
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Comment #35 posted by Hope on October 10, 2005 at 20:05:14 PT
dang
dang dang
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Comment #34 posted by Hope on October 10, 2005 at 20:04:32 PT
Oh no....
no...no
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Comment #33 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 20:00:13 PT
Hope
You got it. She put on a shirt and walked into the bathroom and she turned on the light and the shirt had DEA on it!
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Comment #32 posted by Hope on October 10, 2005 at 19:46:36 PT
Oh my gosh...
I can almost guess it...the widow slept with someone and he's a ...no no no no.
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Comment #31 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 19:44:11 PT
It Was Great!
It was fantastic. They got so much in this finale. I'm still shocked by the last scene! They have to return with more. 
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Comment #30 posted by Hope on October 10, 2005 at 19:43:25 PT
laughing...
It must have been good.
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Comment #29 posted by Dankhank on October 10, 2005 at 19:33:02 PT
Holy smoke!!
in bed with the DEA ... ain't that a scary thing...Nancy's on the move ...a weed soap ain't that the coolest thing ...?They busted the Laura Bush story re: selling pot in college.A poke in a pig .....
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Comment #28 posted by MikeC on October 10, 2005 at 19:31:22 PT
FoM
Wow is an understatement!!!I hope this show returns for another season...I thinks it's outstanding.
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Comment #27 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 19:29:30 PT
WoW Weeds!
I won't say anything about the finale because I know some haven't seen it yet but it was great.
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Comment #26 posted by mayan on October 10, 2005 at 18:26:38 PT
Just Say "Know"
Just say "Know". Kids know they've been lied to about cannabis and assume the government is lying about every other drug. That is very dangerous to children. It "sends the wrong message."THE WAY OUT... Former NY Aux. Fire and Policeman Uncovers Transit Authority Tapes Showing 'Heavy Smoke Condition' Below WTC On 9/11:
http://www.arcticbeacon.citymaker.com/articles/article/1518131/34911.htmNails in the Coffin of Trade Seven: Close-ups from WTC-7 Collapse Footage Show Unmistakable Signature of Demolition Charges:
http://st12.startlogic.com/~xenonpup/Flashes/squibs_along_southwest_corner.htmSilverstein, Giuliani, WTC 7 and 20-20 Hindsight:
http://www.libertyforum.org/showflat.php?Number=293499967THE CONTROLLED COLLAPSE OF WTC 7:
http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/wtc7.htmlPNAC Executive Director and Neo-Con/Nazi Propagandist Called 'Real Terrorist' Behind 9/11:
http://www.arcticbeacon.citymaker.com/articles/article/1518131/35042.htm
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Comment #25 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 18:00:07 PT
Nicholas
I agree.
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Comment #24 posted by Nick Thimmesch on October 10, 2005 at 17:50:09 PT
Walters has led the ONDCP...
...to its foolish and unwarranted emphasis on marijuana as I've said here many times because of his own experience (or lack of) culturally with it while a college student in Michigan (likely some woman he had the hots for smoked pot but wouldn't give him the time of day). There is no logic in ONDCP having prioritized marijuana as Public Enemy Number One when it came to anti-drug campaigns. Under Walters' Watch, meth, heroin and coke deaths & abuse have skyrocketed. And we all know the sum total of marijuana overdoses during this same time: zero.
No: this is personal from Walters.
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Comment #23 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 15:49:33 PT
runderwo 
I only know a few things but this is what I know. I had a relative die from Heroin. They said that he didn't die for many hours after he shot up and he didn't have much in his system. He battled heroin addiction from when he was a Navy Seal in Vietnam. He was in his mid fortys when he died. They didn't find his body for 3 days.We know a man who is a little younger then me and my husband and he did cocaine. He had a heart attack in his early fortys but he did live but it really damaged his heart. 
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Comment #22 posted by runderwo on October 10, 2005 at 15:16:44 PT
coke/h
Cocaine is bad news because it can damage the heart so insidiously. A lot of people who thought cocaine wasn't such a bad thing back in the late 70's early 80's are regretting it now when they keel over in their 40s and 50s. Fortunately, most people seem to know now that cocaine is a really bad idea. It still doesn't stop many from using it, but at least those that do are accepting known risks rather than unknown ones.I have to question the danger of heroin to someone who is already used to it like the article mentions about those boomers who could never quit. It is very difficult for someone who already has developed a tolerance to overdose on pure heroin. More likely these overdoses are people who are mixing heroin with other hard drugs like cocaine and alcohol, people who are using heroin that has been cut with poison, or people who have not used heroin in some time and took too much in proportion to their tolerance.I am afraid focusing attention to chronic heroin users in this manner will attract effort away from deterring casual heroin use which tends to be far more dangerous for the above reasons, and also meth labs which are the real public safety issue of the moment since they involve people who have not made a choice to be involved. Long-time junkies may need help to kick the habit but I wouldn't put them at the top of the laundry list, no matter how pathetic they appear. The teenager or young adult that doesn't know how easy a first-time overdose can occur is who I am worried about.
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Comment #21 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 14:28:17 PT
Nicholas
Thanks. That's a good article. I believe if I did an illegal hard drug or drank any alcohol it would probably kill me. I have noticed that a couple rock musicians over the last few years have died from a heart attack from using cocaine. Then the party is really over. I missed the cocaine generation I think. It just wasn't around anywhere I lived. 
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Comment #20 posted by Nick Thimmesch on October 10, 2005 at 14:15:30 PT
Notice not one mention...
...of marijuana overdoses:Boomers' Overdose Deaths Up Markedly
By Daniel Costello
LA Times Staff WriterOctober 10, 2005Californians age 40 and older are dying of drug overdoses at double the rate recorded in 1990, a little-noticed trend that upends the notion of hard-core drug use as primarily a young person's peril.Indeed, overdoses among baby boomers are driving an overall increase in drug deaths so dramatic that soon they may surpass automobile accidents as the state's leading cause of nonnatural deaths.In 2003, the latest year for which the state has figures, a record 3,691 drug users died, up 73% since 1990. The total surpassed deaths from firearms, homicides and AIDS.Remarkably, the rate of deadly overdoses among younger users over that period has slightly declined, while the rate among those 40 and older has jumped from 8.6 to 17.3 per hundred thousand people.The change has caught many prevention programs, which tend to be geared toward young people, off guard. Several drug abuse prevention officials and other experts said there was virtually no strategy in place to address the risk of overdose among older users."We have seen a massive, long-term trend toward more middle-age drug abuse that is leading to an unprecedented number of deaths," said Michael Males, a sociology researcher at UC Santa Cruz. But "no one is doing anything about it. It has gotten almost no attention at the state, federal or local level."Because the problem has been recognized only recently, it is difficult to say what is behind the generational split.Some experts suggest, however, that California is merely reflecting a national trend in which Americans increasingly are using illicit drugs long past the days of youthful resilience. According to the U.S. Substance and Mental Health Services Administration, more than a third of drug users today are older than 35, compared with 12% in 1979."Baby boomers are the first generation that is facing a drug and overdose epidemic in their middle age," said John Newmeyer, epidemiologist and drug researcher at the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinics in San Francisco. "They started using drugs recreationally or regularly over 20 years ago, and they aren't really slowing down."To a degree, it seems overdoses are following the same generation through time. In California, the age at which someone was most likely to die from a drug overdose in 1970 was 22; by 1985, it was 32; and today it is 43, according to calculations by Males, based on state health data.Many of those who die are hard-core drug users who never quit, even when they reached middle age. As such, they are likely to be in poor health, enhancing their overdose risk. "Using year after year can have a clear and deleterious physical effect. [Drugs] take a toll as people continue to use," said Dr. Karl Sporer, a San Francisco emergency room physician and drug treatment expert. With age, even occasional users grow more susceptible to medical complications such as strokes, heart attacks and respiratory distress.By far the greatest number of overdose deaths is among users of opiates, such as heroin, which in excessive doses can shut down the lungs. Doctors say that because older users tend to have slower metabolisms, the opiates may remain in their systems longer, increasing the risk of cumulative overdose.Cocaine is the next most lethal drug. It can lead to heart attacks, especially among long-term users, whose habits can cause their hearts to become weakened or enlarged. Drugs such as methamphetamine and barbiturates account for a smaller number of overdose deaths. Treatment experts said people most at risk are older users who try to stop, then return to using drugs at their previous dosages. The drugs may kill them because the users have lost tolerance or the drugs are more potent. Many street drugs have gotten purer in recent years, experts said, which adds to their potential lethality.It is unclear from the data available what role prescription drugs play. The state's drug overdose data do not include a small number of cases in which medications led to an overdose even though they were taken as directed.Some researchers believe that rising incarceration rates around the state could be leading to more overdoses, because many released prisoners return to drugs after long periods of abstinence.Adding to the problem: Older drug users often use alone. Younger people, research shows, tend to use in groups. One of the major risk factors for a fatal overdose is not having anyone to call paramedics when someone first shows signs of overdosing.Drug treatment officials and the families of addicts know the personal tragedies behind the statistics."From what I see, there is no doubt that people are doing drugs later in life and, like for anyone, that can be dangerous," said Dr. Michael Stone, medical director of Cornerstone of Southern California, a drug treatment facility based in Tustin.He estimated that about 10 former patients have died from overdoses this year alone.Paul Tanner of San Rafael lost his 48-year-old daughter Toni Marie Tanner to an overdose in 2003.The elder Tanner said his daughter had been addicted to drugs on and off her entire life but had been sober for two years.She was caring for her mother, who was sick with cancer, when she relapsed — for the first time, he believes — on a mix of heroin and cocaine. She died later that day."I think her mother's illness got to her and she couldn't take it anymore," he said. The question now is what, if anything, can be done to combat the problem. For decades, the bulk of federal prevention money, which makes up the majority of state prevention budgets, has been aimed at deterring young nonusers from trying drugs.Kathy Jett, director of the state's Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs, said the agency wasn't aware until recently that drug overdoses were rising so quickly — let alone so dramatically among older users. She asked an internal task force assessing the department's overall drug abuse prevention strategy to come up with new approaches.But Jett said budget constraints may limit what the agency can do.Researching and reacting to trends like rising overdose death rates is "not something that we're typically equipped to do," she said. "We have very limited resources." Males, of UC Santa Cruz, said overdose trends call for a major realignment of the state's drug policy."We're going to have to adapt our treatment and prevention model to older users," he said. "We must stop obsessing solely on younger people doing drugs and focus resources on aging addicts." 
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-overdose10oct10,1,691100.story?coll=la-h
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Comment #19 posted by potpal on October 10, 2005 at 14:15:16 PT
This popped out...
...blunt portrayal of marijuana use...Pun intended?
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Comment #18 posted by CorvallisEric on October 10, 2005 at 13:40:54 PT
Entertainment Weekly "outrage of the week"
Haven't seen it, hope it was prominent. Should help him sell-out the next printing. Too bad C-Span isn't a mass-audience hit; Mark Souder's fulminations could also provide a big boost. Trite but true: say what you want, just spell my website correctly.
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Comment #17 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 13:27:58 PT
Something I've Wondered
If Steve was getting Morphine enough to addict him will they go after the Doctor that supplied him with the drug? Do they do that in Canada like they do here?
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 13:14:43 PT
kaptinemo
I know that stats have been high. I don't know why. It makes me happy though. It could be because of Steve Tuck. I wish we knew where he is and how he is doing. I keep checking Richard Cowan's site but nothing posted so far today. I sure hope he's in a hospital.
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Comment #15 posted by kaptinemo on October 10, 2005 at 13:05:32 PT:
OT: Have you seen the stats lately?
http://cannabisnews.com/stats/FoM, is this correct? Just 20K short of 200K on October 6th? I believe that's the highest ever received so far. I'm stunned... And it *has* to be because of Steve Tuck's godawful dilemma; it's definitely getting attention from *somebody*...
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 11:36:54 PT
My Favorite Songs From Weeds
Little BoxesDavidWith Arms OutstretchedGanja BabyI Can't MoveWacky TabackyIf I Ever Leave This World Alive
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Comment #13 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 10:32:23 PT
Weeds Coming To Canada
Weeds, already a critically acclaimed hit on the U.S. Showtime network, finally lights up Canadian cable, premiering Wednesday (October 12) at 10 p.m. on Showcase. Weeds is a smoky dramedy and an alternative to the suburban gothic of Desperate Housewives. Mary-Louise Parker (The West Wing, Angels in America) stars as suburban soccer mom Nancy Botwin, who becomes the neighbourhood pot dealer after the untimely death of her husband leaves her in financial-crisis mode. In no time, the whole subdivision is craving the contents of her baggies, including local councillor Doug Wilson, played by SNL alumnus Kevin Nealon. As the business grows, as it were, Nancy must keep it all out of sight from the likes of the PTA and even her closest friend Celia, played by Elizabeth Perkins. http://www.straight.com/content.cfm?id=13289
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 10:26:02 PT
The Pot Is Metaphorical, the Hair Revelatory 
An article on Weeds from The New York Times.http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/09/arts/television/09mart.html
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 10:10:05 PT
Press Release From The Marijuana Policy Project
http://www.mpp.org/releases/nr20051010.html
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Comment #5 posted by Richard Zuckerman on October 10, 2005 at 09:14:36 PT:

IMPROVING THE CURRICULUM OF SCHOOLS
I have written many letters to different Boards of Education, PTA, and legislators, asking to improve the curriculum of schools in order for the students to learn the dark side of government. Not too long after my most recent letter writing campaign, a Bill was introduced in Congress which would have required Civics teachers to attend federally sponsored classes which would have required them to teach gun control [and probably about the "evil weed"]. The Metuchen Police Department even appeared at the Metuchen Education building and ordered me NEVER TO ENTER THE SCHOOL OR EDUCATION GROUNDS EVER AGAIN OR I WOULD BE ARRESTED, even though I had not threatened anybody or visited there often and I am not a child molestor, at the behest of the Mrs. Sinatra, The Superintendent of Schools, for Metuchen, New Jersey, www.metuchen.com. I have carefully considered filing a lawsuit against them to allow me to visit the Metuchen Board of Education PUBLIC COMMENTS session, but www.aclu-nj.org will not assist me [even though I am a member of ACLU for N.J.] and I am bogged down with other problems, one of which is a motion for direct certification pending in the New Jersey Supreme Court, personally hand-delivered on Friday, September 30, 2005, Docket number 58604, Sandy Sanford, N.J. Supreme Court Case Manager, (telephone number)(609) 984-3079, asking New Jersey's Highest Court TO ESTABLISH A CAUSE OF ACTION FOR RETALIATORY PROSECUTION WHEN A POLICE OFFICER VIOLATES THE NEW JERSEY CONSTITUTION [Federal courts have already estabished such a cause of action under the U.S. Constitution! Why not the States, especially in New Jersey and New York, whose Courts claim their respective State Constitutional freedom of speech is MORE PROTECTIVE than the U.S. Constitution???!!!]. I implore every Parent and Student to PLEASE visit, carefully scroll thru, and contact, www.johntaylorgatto.com about government schooling?Whenever you see Congress trying to impose their MORALITY upon us, think of the crimes committed by the UNconvicted felons of the C.I.A. and F.B.I.? See, e.g.: www.expertwitnessradio.org; www.takingaim.info; www.copvcia.com. By the way, people, according to the recent Petrocollapse Conference, www.petrocollapse.org, we may undergo a serious fossil fuel shortage within the next six months, requiring alternative sources of energy to be used. The Cannabis plant has been reported to be a viable alternative source of fuel for our automobile. See, e.g.: www.HempCar.org; www.JackHerer.com [click on "The Emperor Wears No Clothes" and read his book on-line?]; www.sumeria.net/politics/shadv3.html. Unfortunately, no PEAK OIL ADVISORY has been issued by "our" lawmakers or the major media, and we might be in SERIOUS trouble, soon! One of the postings on www.copvcia.com, from the other day, reports that more fossil fuel is being diverted to China and Europe and we may "be watching the caravan passing by."Richard Paul Zuckerman, Box 159, Metuchen, N.J., 08840-0159, richardzuckerman2002 yahoo.com.
B.A. in Political Science, Kean College of New Jersey [Kean University], Union, New Jersey, 1987;
Diploma in Paralegal, New York University, 2004;
Member of: www.aclu-nj.org [but NOT their open-border immigration policy!!!]; www.jpfo.org; www.nra.org; www.norml.org; www.cannabisculture.com; www.hightimes.com; www.greenparty.org; www.njlp.org. Subscriber to: The Free Press (Kerrville, Texas); Law Enforcement News (John Jay College of Criminal Justice).
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 08:53:59 PT

Just a Suggestion
If you have enjoyed Weeds they have a thread that you can post on so that maybe it will be renewed. I love Weeds.I'm listening to the songs from Weeds right now. Some of the songs are really good.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on October 10, 2005 at 08:36:14 PT

Weeds Season Finale Tonight
http://www.sho.com/site/weeds/home.dohttp://www.sho.com/site/weeds/music.do
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Comment #2 posted by unkat27 on October 10, 2005 at 08:06:39 PT

Ignorance is Not bliss
 "The New York Post called it a "pothead parent's dream come true" and Entertainment Weekly labeled it "outrage of the week."Gad, what a bunch of Reaganites! I'll lay odds that these morons didn't even bother reading the book. Obviously, there aren't any really intelligent and objective people left in the mainstream media. They've all had their lives destroyed by the DEA.
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Comment #1 posted by OverwhelmSam on October 10, 2005 at 07:19:45 PT

Fanatical Drug Policy
Do politicians and law enforcement care more about cracking the whip on Society's back, or do the care more about the children? Extremely fanatical drug policy is depressing our teenagers and causing them to turn to marijuana for relief. Legalize and regulate marijuana for adult use, and teen use subsides. 
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