cannabisnews.com: Is U.S. Fighting The Wrong Drug War?





Is U.S. Fighting The Wrong Drug War?
Posted by CN Staff on July 11, 2005 at 10:29:29 PT
By Cory Reiss, Washington Bureau
Source: Wilmington Star 
Washington, D.C. -- North Carolina authorities busted 317 methamphetamine labs last year, but Attorney General Roy Cooper doesn’t just credit hardworking cops.He blames a booming meth industry. In 1999, only six labs were seized in the Tar Heel State, according to statistics from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, making North Carolina the fastest growing meth spot on the East Coast.
“It’s being manufactured in the house next door, in the apartment down the hall or even a hotel room in a hotel where you might be staying,” Mr. Cooper said last week in an interview.Mr. Cooper said he was trying to dislodge legislation from the state House, which the N.C. Senate has passed, that would regulate common cold medicines containing the key meth ingredient pseudoephedrine. The legislation hit resistance from some retailers with an alternative bill.North Carolina is among 42 states that have passed or are trying to pass such a law, according to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. States are weaving a patchwork of laws and prompting questions about the federal response.To date, the federal answer to meth has been muddled, and it exposes a dispute over how best to fight the war on drugs.While states say they need more help, President Bush’s administration is trying to cut several programs that local officials say are key to reinforcing their front lines, especially against methamphetamine.Critics say the White House remains focused on the traditional targets of marijuana and to a lesser extent cocaine while attempting to reorient federal dollars limited by the war on terrorism toward high-level drug rings.Congress appears inclined to restore many of Mr. Bush’s cuts out of concern for local agencies combating a drug made by small-time “cooks” virtually anywhere, but usually in rural areas. The ingredients are highly toxic and highly flammable, often resulting in serious explosions.A report by the National Association of Counties last week said nearly 60 percent of counties consider meth to be their biggest drug problem. Meth is a highly addictive stimulant that has effects similar to cocaine but lasts longer and is cheaper.Critics say Congress has been slow to clamp down on common cold medicines, which include meth ingredients ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Congress is wrestling with legislation, but it is unclear how quick, strong or comprehensive that effort will be.“It is a scourge that is coming quickly, and we have to take steps now to fight it,” Mr. Cooper said.Common ColdState and federal lawmakers warn that states have been forced to move ahead of Capitol Hill and are creating a patchwork of different laws that leave neighboring states vulnerable to traveling labs. The strictest laws, in states such as Oklahoma, regulate more medications and control monthly sales to each person. Other laws only limit the amounts that can be purchased at any one time.“In the political world, you deal with the art of the possible,” said James McDonough, director of the Florida Office of Drug Control, whose state passed a law this year that regulates a few medicines and limits amounts per transaction, “so we came up with what we thought was a pragmatic law with the backing of all players.”Congress is considering a slew of bills that would regulate cold medicines nationwide and address related problems.House members say legislation could reach the floor as early as this month.Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and James Talent, R-Mo., are pushing legislation that would limit purchases of cold medicine containing pseudoephedrine per person each month. Logs would be kept and identification checked. But retailers have fought such measures in many states.“This is a major tool in the battle against meth,” said Scott Gerber, spokesman for Ms. Feinstein.Rungs of The LadderAccording to the Drug Enforcement Administration, 7,438 meth labs were dismantled in 1999 nationwide and 17,033 last year.Busts in California have dropped in that period, from 2,579 to 753, but they have surged from Missouri to North Carolina.The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy stresses the need to control ingredients for meth, and it agrees the drug poses new problems.But the administration proposed eliminating a $805 million grant program in the Department of Justice, cutting the Safe and Drug Free Schools Program in the Department of Education by 53 percent, making a 60 percent cut for grants to address meth hot spots and slashing by more than half the multi-county and multi-agency grants under the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program, or HIDTA, from $228 million to $100 million.Critics say those programs are important in their fight against meth.Marc Wheat, a top aide to Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., chairman of the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy, and Human Resources, said Congress has been forced to protect existing programs instead of “trying to advance the ball on fixing some things we think are problematic.”“We’ve been troubled by it,” he said.Moreover, the administration proposed moving HIDTA out of the Office of National Drug Control Policy into the Department of Justice. Observers say that is an effort to gain control over an office that was created by executive order yet has the distinction of containing programs created and controlled by Congress, including HITDA, which is the office’s largest.The White House says anti-drug spending throughout the federal government would rise 2 percent under the president’s budget proposal, and it is working to block international sources of methamphetamine that account for an estimated 80 percent of U.S. consumption.“I do not think we have neglected or diminished any one of those rungs of the ladder,” said David Murray, an administration policy analyst.Administration officials also say programs are targeted for big cuts or elimination because they haven’t proven effective and the budget is tight. The justice grants, drug free schools program and HIDTA have become mostly “revenue sharing” projects with states, said a spokesman for the drug policy office.The House has restored many of the proposed cuts in 2006 spending bills and refused to move the HIDTA program, but the Senate has not settled these questions.This debate reveals a struggle over the course of the drug war just as Congress is considering reauthorization of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, a process that sets direction and goals for coming years.For example, the drug policy office complains it has been unable to focus HIDTA on organized crime and drug rings, which explains its plan to move the program to a unit in the Justice Department dealing with organized crime.Outdated Vision?Some critics say the administration would sacrifice funding for local law enforcement – which they call especially critical with rising meth use – to break up high-level rings while saving for the war on terrorism.“That seems to be the goal,” said Abbey Levenshus, spokeswoman for Rep. Rick Larsen, a Washington Democrat who is co-chairman of the Congressional Meth Caucus. “It’s been a struggle. People are afraid of terrorists, but right now, they’re more afraid of the meth house that’s down the street.”Some local officials and lawmakers say the White House is clinging to an outdated view of the drug problem. Joe Dunn, a lobbyist with the National Association of Counties, said the administration is missing a crisis.“Their main focus has been on marijuana,” he said, “and from what our people are telling us, it’s methamphetamine that is the problem.” Note: States battle meth, get little fed help.Source: Wilmington Star (NC)Author: Cory Reiss, Washington BureauPublished: July 11, 2005Copyright: 2005 Wilmington Star-NewsWebsite: http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/Contact: chuck.riesz starnewsonline.com Related Articles:Marijuana Use Not Nation's Biggest Drug Problemhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20946.shtmlOfficials Across U.S. Describe Drug Woeshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20932.shtmlTargeting Marijuana Saps Anti-Drug Efforthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20766.shtml 
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Comment #51 posted by jose melendez on July 14, 2005 at 06:12:36 PT
one down hundreds to go
EARLY ONE OF MANY: ONDCP DRUG WARRIOR GETS 14 MONTHS FOR FRAUDhttp://www.adweek.com/aw/national/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000978201Early Gets 14 Months for Role in ONDCP Case
July 13, 2005
By Kathleen Sampeyphoto by Allan Tannenbaum
Thomas Early leaves court in February after a jury found him guilty.
NEW YORK Former Ogilvy & Mather executive Thomas Early today was sentenced in U.S. District Court here to 14 months imprisonment (to be followed by an additional two years probation) for his role in a scheme to overbill the government's $1 billion Office of National Drug Control Policy account to cover a $3 million revenue shortfall on the business.Early, the WPP Group shop's former financial director, and co-defendant Shona Seifert, a former executive group director at the agency, in February were found guilty of all 10 counts against them: one for conspiring to defraud the government and the rest for filing false claims.Early will voluntarily surrender to begin serving his sentence on Sept. 21. He will be held at a minimum security facility in Pennsylvania.Early must also pay a $10,000 fine and a $1,000 special assessment fee.Early, 49, took a deep breath but remained stoic during the final minutes of the process as silence stilled the courtroom, which was filled to capacity with about 70 relatives, friends and onlookers.As people spilled out of the courtroom and lingered in the corridor, Early quietly replied, "Thank you, no," to a request for comment on his sentence. He then turned to accept condolence hugs from supporters.He and Seifert each faced up to five years in prison.Seifert's sentencing is scheduled for tomorrow.During testimony at the trial, both Seifert and Early insisted they did not ask Ogilvy employees to doctor timesheets to fraudulently increase the number of hours billed to the ONDCP. Early did concede that some timesheets appeared to contain inaccuracies.Prior to sentencing by Judge Richard Berman on Wednesday, Early read a statement in which he accepted some responsibility, but insisted he did not order agency employees to falsify timesheets or bill for hours not worked. "Looking back, I can see where all the problems started," he said, referring to the complexity of government contracts and a "culture of carelessness" at Ogilvy regarding timesheet completion.All those factors should have alerted him, as the agency's finance director, to potential problems, Early said. "I truly regret putting myself and my family at risk," he continued, adding that he felt "true sorrow and fear" about the events surrounding the ONDCP case. "I was raised to be a good and decent person."Seifert for two years had been president of Omnicom Group's TBWA\Chiat\Day in New York. She took a three-month leave from the agency starting on Jan. 1 to prepare for the trial. Seifert and TBWA\C\D severed ties . . .(snip)
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Comment #50 posted by afterburner on July 13, 2005 at 21:31:41 PT
runderwo 
For those interested in the fine points of the heat illness continuum from heat exhaustion to heat stroke, causes, cures, and prevention, check the following links. Personally, I have experienced a strong case of heat exhaustion once with fainting and/or loss of consciousness. The second time could be described as a mild heat stroke: I have been told that I lost consciousness and went into seizures. Fortunately, medical assistance was nearby. In both cases, extreme heat and dehydration were factors. Note that headache is one symptom.Dehydration and Heat Stroke - First Aid for Minor Emergencies
Presents the causes, symptoms, and prevention, from the University of Maryland Medicine.
http://www.umm.edu/non_trauma/dehyrat.htm eMedicine - Heat Exhaustion and Heatstroke : Article by Amy ...Synonyms and related keywords: heat stroke, heat apoplexy, heat hyperpyrexia, malignant hyperpyrexia, thermic fever, hyperthermia, dehydration, ...
http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic236.htm Heat Cramps, Heat Exhaustion, and Heat StrokeHeat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke: what they are, how to avoid them, and what to do about them. 
http://www.drreddy.com/heat.html
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Comment #49 posted by ekim on July 13, 2005 at 17:42:42 PT
way to go Gary
Thank you for all you are doing .
i can not top your grand efforts but we will have Howard on Cable Access and meeting people here in Kalamazoo.I see that Willie will be in Chicago for Farm Aid on Sept. 18 the first Farm Aid was in 1985 in central Illinois city of Champaign it had 80,000 fans and raised $9 million. I wish Paul Peterson could be in charge of the barbecue.
http://www.compassionatemi.org
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Comment #48 posted by warhater on July 13, 2005 at 16:44:50 PT:
Some info on Meth
When I was a kid in the 1970's I lived in a rural county in PA that was called "the speed capital of the country" at the time. I have occasionally heard commentators call meth a new drug. It isn't so. I occasionally would snort some back then. It doesn't really get you stoned when snorted, it just produces a wakeful exhilaration. It increases tolerance to alcohol, so it is a favorite of people who like to stay up all night and drink(Bikers). Meth produces a nasty hangover called "the crash". Occasional use seems harmless, but I know many people who got sucked in. They would do meth every day to avoid the crash of the previous day's dose. People who take it this way rarely sleep. They tend to be extremely confrontational. We called this aggressiveness "speed balls" or “meth muscles”. I knew a few people who injected it. They tell me injected it produces an incredible rush followed by all of the effects experienced when it is snorted. Some of these people had abscesses on their skin from where they missed a vein. The stuff had an ammonia reek to it like cat urine, and it burnt the throat and the nostrils. I could never understand how anyone could bring themselves to inject it. I know a bit about the pharmacology of methamphetamine. It is an analog of the hormone adrenaline (also called epinephrine). The ephedrine that meth is made from is also an adrenaline analog. These drugs tend to decrease swelling of nasal, sinus and lung tissues. Epinephrine is given to stop dangerous allergic reactions. Both epinephrine and ephedrine produce a less intense exhilaration. Methamphetamine is more active than either of them, and so produces a stronger effect. Adrenaline is the fight or flight hormone, which explains why meth users are often aggressive. Riptide, who posted earlier, had a creative idea:“Maybe they can add something that binds to the pseudoephedrine or makes it harder to isolate.”The problem is, if you bind the ephedrine such that a street chemist can’t extract it, the body won’t be able to extract it either. The cold medicine would be worthless.john wayne posted about Desoxyn, which is methamphetamine. Ritalin is similar to meth. I would strongly advise parents to exhaust all other available options before putting their kids on this stuff.FoM asks:How can they (amphetamines) be available now and it seems it's the same drugs I took a million years ago and had been made illegal?At some point in the 1970’s doctors decided amphetamines should no longer be used as diet aid, but they are still willing to give it to kids with ADD. The Fastin you were taking was probably caffeine and ephedrine.
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Comment #47 posted by Gary Storck on July 13, 2005 at 16:23:27 PT
ekim..are you kidding? .way ahead of you
Howard was on the radio here in Madison today. And, there are a number of events planned, including the one refeenced below. We've been planning this since April! How about your town?
Howard Wooldridge of LEAP to speak in Madison July 21
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Comment #46 posted by Richard Zuckerman on July 13, 2005 at 11:03:19 PT:
HITLER WAS METHAMPHETAMINE ADDICT!!
About six months ago, a History Channel segment described Adolph Hitler's methamphetamine addiction. He also had gastrointestinal problems, which caused him to FART! Soooooooooooo! Looks like Howard Stern isn't the only fartman around!!!
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Comment #45 posted by runderwo on July 13, 2005 at 10:55:20 PT
afterburner
You're thinking about heat exhaustion, not heat stroke. Heat stroke is heat exhaustion plus a fever. If you are having actual heat stroke and you are not headed for the hospital immediately, you are in serious trouble. The fever that comes with heat stroke is very difficult to control without medical intervention.
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Comment #44 posted by afterburner on July 13, 2005 at 10:11:43 PT
knowhemp
Consider that just water or just juice lacks electrolytes. That's why sports drinks contain electrolytes in addition to liquid and sweet carbos, important if you're going to be physically active. Also caffeine and alcohol are diuretics (drying the system), not a good mix with sun and heat if used in large quantities. I found several servings of Jamaican fruit to be refreshing after heat stroke. California fruit salad was a refreshing breakfast in the heat of Las Vegas.
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Comment #43 posted by knowhemp on July 12, 2005 at 23:27:42 PT
thanks
pretty much what i figured..by the way - never brown and always green i can assure you, so the problem is most likely the california sun and me not paying attention to my body. I have heard that herb makes more blood rush to the brain and this, coupled with the sun and sports could be causing my blood vessels to swell.thanks again-kh
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Comment #42 posted by runderwo on July 12, 2005 at 18:56:38 PT
narconon
I just visited that site and noticed it's run by Narconon. This is *not* Narcotics Anonymous or Marijuana Anonymous. It is a front for a Scientology recruitment scheme. Narconon was publicly busted for their worse-than-useless tactics some time back.
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Comment #41 posted by VitaminT on July 12, 2005 at 18:03:36 PT
"We'll be back" Arnold
ACLU and Drug Policy Alliance Threaten to Sue Schwarzenegger
Drug Policy Alliance
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Comment #40 posted by BGreen on July 12, 2005 at 17:38:33 PT
P.S.
The "vitamin burn-up" is as big of a lie as it sounds.Have you EVER heard a doctor like Dr. Russo mention this?Of course not because it's nonsense.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #39 posted by runderwo on July 12, 2005 at 17:36:36 PT
knowhemp
The only thing I've heard of along those lines is a reduction in salivation ("dry-mouth") as well as excess usage of vitamin B12, but I don't know if anyone has actually studied the latter and whether it can be mitigated with supplementary dosage.I take a multivitamin every day and am sure to have fruit juice on hand whenever I know I'm going to be having a day in "canna-bliss". Definitely make sure that you have a good quality product because crappy weed drains me pretty quickly, and not only gives me dry mouth but dry itchy eyes too. Beyond that, listen to what your body is telling you. It may well be that you are trying to do too much in the heat without enough cooling or liquid intake.
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Comment #38 posted by BGreen on July 12, 2005 at 17:25:41 PT
Vaporize it, knowhemp
Please don't give any credence to the site you quoted because they spout nothing except verifiable LIES.Vaporization will remove ANY carcinogens (none of which are naturally occurring in cannabis) and give you pure cannabis extract.The other thing to take into account is the strain of cannabis you're using.The crappy bricked commercial cannabis always gave me a headache but quality cannabis never does.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #37 posted by ekim on July 12, 2005 at 17:09:32 PT
please if you are on Howards Map give him a hand
http://www.immly.org/
Director of communications Gary Storck, have you talked to Howard Wooldridge from LEAP.cc as he will be in Madison on July 16. See the Route Map
http://leap.cc/howard/howard.html
Madison, WI - July 16Milwaukee - July 20...then back to Madison to rest and speak till July 27Chicago – July 31Gary, IN – Aug. 2Benton Harbor/St. Joseph, MI – August 5Kalamazoo, MI – August 7 & 8Lansing, MI – August 11, speaking thru 18
http://www.leap.cc/howard
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Comment #36 posted by knowhemp on July 12, 2005 at 17:08:08 PT
afterthought
i should note that i naturally don't believe a damn thing that marijuanaaddiction.com has to say. Cancer and what not-pshhh. But the herb does seem to give me headaches on hot days or early on in the day.
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Comment #35 posted by knowhemp on July 12, 2005 at 16:53:58 PT
from marijuanaddiction.com
qoute -
There are over 400 chemicals found in marijuana smoke and 60 of them have been proven to cause cancer.  Marijuana contains the neurotoxin THC, which is a poison that affects the brain and nerves. When someone smokes pot, two things happen to them: 1) There is an almost immediate burn-up of vitamins and minerals in the body. 2) Nerves in the body go numb.is this part about the vitamin burn up true? that would explain the extreme headaches i get if i
A:smoke in the morning on a hot day and then
B: play basketball
does anyone have a good way to prevent this sort of heatstroke-like condition? i drink plenty of water and eat before i smoke, but it doesn't always work out. ibuprofen helps, but i don't really need the stomach damage. perhaps i should take vitamins. and keep an icepack ready on a hot day. i've resorted to not smoking as of late.i'm sorry to hear about Steve - all the more reason to continue the fight.
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Comment #34 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 16:28:27 PT
Steve McWilliams
Yes another heartache but he is free now.
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Comment #33 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 16:25:43 PT
EJ Yes We Are In Limbo
I'm glad we have a place to sit in Limbo together. I got a notice from Amazon that even though I just ordered Willie's new song it should be here tomorrow. I know I will play it many times. Right now I'm dowloading another song that I loved from Live 8 by R.E.M. It's called Everybody Hurts. It's such a beautiful song.
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Comment #32 posted by E_Johnson on July 12, 2005 at 16:18:57 PT
Steve McWilliams
And about Steve McWilliams -- another soldier gone. That's sad. Our community experiences another heartache. Too bad he couldn't listen to Willie's new album today.
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Comment #31 posted by E_Johnson on July 12, 2005 at 16:12:21 PT
FoM and McWilliams
FoM: Yes I like that song too. It remind me of hanging out on this board.Sitting here in limbo, waiting for the dice to rollSitting here in limbo, got some time to search my soulWell they're putting up resistanceBut I know that my faith will lead me on
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Comment #30 posted by goneposthole on July 12, 2005 at 16:02:34 PT
drug war reprise
"outdated view of the drug problem"It was outdated when Richard Nixon declared a war on drugs way back when in 1972.Drugs were really never a problem, just a pigment of somebody's imagination. The meme carries on.Itchy Coo Park and all that nonchalant jazz.
I got high
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Comment #29 posted by runderwo on July 12, 2005 at 15:00:53 PT
HEA
One of my best friends' fiancee was unable to obtain financial aid because the FAFSA system screwed up and registered her as a previous drug offender, when she swears up and down that there is no way she would have answered that question in the affirmative (nor does she have anything to do with illegal drugs). She and her father had to go through a bit of red tape to get it corrected, as I recall.
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Comment #28 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 14:43:12 PT
News Article About Steve McWilliams
 Marijuana Activist Sentenced To Prison: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16101.shtml
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Comment #27 posted by ekim on July 12, 2005 at 14:43:00 PT
anyone heard about the RISE act -getting a vote
sorry to hear about Steve McWilliams --thinking about the Mother.Dear Congressman Ehlers,As a constituent of yours, I'm writing to encourage you to take the lead in 
repealing a law which denies financial aid to students with drug 
convictions. Tomorrow the House will consider legislation scaling back the 
Drug Provision of the Higher Education Act, but I would like you to take a 
stand for full repeal of this misguided law.The Drug Provision was passed as a rider amendment without any debate 
during the last re-authorization of the Higher Education Act in 1998. Since 
the law was enacted, more than 160,000 students have been ineligible for 
aid as a result of their answer to the question about drug convictions on 
the FAFSA.Once again, I strongly urge you to support full repeal of the HEA Drug 
Provision section 484(r) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, or Title 20, 
section 1091(r) of the US Code.Sincerely yours,
http://www.leap.cc/events
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Comment #26 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 14:21:40 PT
Very Sad News
Steve McWilliams has died.
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Comment #25 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 13:37:34 PT
EJ Me Too!
It's great! I really like the song about Limbo but I like the whole album. Right now since the news is slow I'm trying to learn more about videos. I'm watching Bon Jovi play It's My Life. I'm slowly downloading all of the videos from Live 8 that I want to keep. Slowly but surely I'm figuring it out.
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Comment #24 posted by E_Johnson on July 12, 2005 at 13:33:55 PT
Willie's new album
I'm playing it right now. It's amazing. Texas reggae, that's kind of what it sounds like. I love it.
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Comment #23 posted by AOLBites on July 12, 2005 at 12:52:45 PT
stats
heres some meth stats
http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/methSmoked/methSmoked.htmand some cannabis reports that are always reported, but never deconstructed by the media..[this one they won't give out to the press, thats for us to do every time they spout this line:Study shows treatment admissions for marijuana use nearly tripled over a ten-year period from 1992 to 2002 see: http://www.marijuanaaddiction.com/treatment_admissions.html ]June 24, 2005
Differences in Marijuana Admissions Based on Source of Referral: 2002
http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/MJreferrals/MJreferrals.htm# The proportion of criminal justice referred admissions increased from 48 percent of all marijuana admissions in 1992 to 58 percent of marijuana admissions in 2002# Non-criminal justice referred marijuana admissions were more likely to report daily use of marijuana and secondary substances, including alcohol, cocaine, opiates, stimulants, and other drugs, than criminal justice referred marijuana admissions------------------------------------another one we've had fun deconstructing is this:------------------------------------http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/MJageSMI/MJageSMI.htm
Age at First Use of Marijuana and Past Year Serious Mental Illness  * Among persons aged 18 or older, those who first used marijuana before age 12 were twice as likely to have serious mental illness in the past year as those who first used marijuana at age 18 or older  * In 2002 and 2003, among persons aged 18 or older who reported lifetime marijuana use, 55 percent reported first using marijuana before the age of 18  * Males aged 18 or older were more than twice as likely as females to report that they first used marijuana before age 12-----------this is what they say:-----------NSDUH also asks questions to assess serious mental illness (SMI) during the 12 months prior to the survey. Individuals are classified as having SMI if at some time during the past 12 months they had a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder that met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) criteria for a disorder5 and resulted in a functional impairment that substantially interfered with or limited one or more major life activities. NSDUH measures SMI using the K-6 distress questions.6,7-------------and this is what they do; from
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NHSDA/2k3NSDUH/appb.htm------------To score the six items on the K6 scales, they were first coded from 0 to 4 and summed to yield a number between 0 and 24. This involved transforming response categories for the six questions (DSNERV1, DSHOPE, DSFIDG, DSNOCHR, DSEFFORT, and DSDOWN) given below so that "all of the time" was coded 4, "most of the time" was coded 3, "some of the time" 2, "a little of the time" 1, and "none of the time" 0, with "don't know" and "refuse" also coded 0. Summing across the transformed responses resulted in a score with a range from 0 to 24. Respondents with a total score of 13 or greater were classified as having a past year SMI. This cutpoint was chosen to equalize false positives and false negatives.The questions comprising the K6 scale are given as follows:DSNERV1  Most people have periods when they are not at their best emotionally. Think of one month in the past 12 months when you were the most depressed, anxious, or emotionally stressed. If there was no month like this, think of a typical month.  During that month, how often did you feel nervous?    1. All of the time    2. Most of the time    3. Some of the time    4. A little of the time    5. None of the time  DK/REF  Response categories are the same for the following questions:DSHOPE  During that same month when you were at your worst emotionally . . . 
how often did you feel hopeless?DSFIDG  During that same month when you were at your worst emotionally . . . 
how often did you feel restless or fidgety?DSNOCHR  During that same month when you were at your worst emotionally . . . 
how often did you feel so sad or depressed that nothing could cheer you up?DSEFFORT  During that same month when you were at your worst emotionally . . . 
how often did you feel that everything was an effort?DSDOWN  During that same month when you were at your worst emotionally . . . 
how often did you feel down on yourself, no good, or worthless? 
--------------------and that is how the government determines "SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS" geez.-------and how they figure cannabis dependence is interesting too - it would be interesting to see exactly what those questions are..http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NHSDA/2k3NSDUH/appb.htm#foot2
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Comment #22 posted by jose melendez on July 12, 2005 at 09:26:07 PT
Getting a clue: Corruption Dumbs Down Truth
The harder they come, the harder they fall, one and all: the oppressors are trying
To get me down, trying to drive me
Under the ground, and they think
That they have got their battle won
I say: "forgive 'em Lord
They no not what they’ve done"And as sure as the sun will shine
I’m gonna get my share of what’s mine
And thenAnd I keep on fighting for
The things I want, though I know
That when you’re dead, man you're gone
But I’d rather be a free man in my grave
Oh, than living like a puppet or a slaveAnd as sure as the sun will shine
I’m gonna get my share of what’s minehttp://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/hardertheycome/thebiggertheycomethehardertheyfall.htm - - -(now former) Administrator Asa Hutchinson Debates Gary Johnson November 15, 2001http://tinyurl.com/9zbt9LET'S DON'T PUNT ON THE THIRD DOWN
Asa Hutchinson
Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administrationhttp://www.commonwealthclub.org/archive/02/02-02hutchinson-qa.html Transcript: Debate Between Two Republicans Over Legalizing Marijuanahttp://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n1679/a02.html Statement of
Asa Hutchinson
Administrator
Drug Enforcement Administration
Before the
House Government Reform Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy,
and Human Resourceshttp://www.usdoj.gov/dea/pubs/cngrtest/ct091902.htmlDarkness on the Face of the Earthhttp://www.reason.com/hitandrun/2003/01/26-week/index.shtmlIf you can truthfully sayThat you've been true just one dayWell that makes one in a rowOne in a row, one in a rowAnd if you can look into my eyesOne time without telling liesWell that makes one in a rowOne in a row, one in a rowhttp://lyrics.duble.com/lyrics/T/trisha-yearwood-lyrics/trisha-yearwood-one-in-a-row-lyrics.htm
Demand the plant - buy the album: support Willie Nelson Biodiesel
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Comment #21 posted by FoM on July 12, 2005 at 09:06:13 PT
Just a Note
I haven't found any news to post so far. This is a hard time of year for news. I'll keep looking though!
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Comment #20 posted by Hope on July 12, 2005 at 06:52:42 PT
comment 18
"ASA HUTCHINSON: Well, it still is a problem because even though you have leadership at the top that wants to have a change of direction, you still have some institutional problems. And so what we're doing and what the Mexican government is doing is starting to create some vetted units, which the officers have been polygraphed, they've been drug tested. And so there's a reduced chance of corruption. We're assisting in the training. In fact, our unit at Quantico is doing some training of those agents."Suits like A. Hutchinson don't have a clue as to the down and dirty...potentially bloody, poverty ridden reality of the Mexican government and police officers' lives. Either he's as naive as a two year old or he thinks the people he's speaking to are.
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Comment #19 posted by john wayne on July 11, 2005 at 23:07:08 PT
I didn't write comment #10
I simply cut and pasted it from a psychiatry website. If you'd like to learn more about the "scourge" that is methamphetamine, simply browse here:http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=desoxyn+methamphetamine&btnG=Search
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Comment #18 posted by jose melendez on July 11, 2005 at 22:07:00 PT
over borders - crossing lines
 With experience as Homeland Security undersecretary, administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration and as a congressman, Hutchinson said he knows "where the money is in Washington" and can help Arkansas handle issues such as education and illegal drugs.http://www.bentoncourier.com/articles/2005/07/08/news/99inews.txtMARGARET WARNER: Then in terms of cooperation with Mexico, as you said, President Fox and President Bush avowed greater cooperation. I think you're already sharing information -- but the concern has been in the past that Mexican law enforcement was corrupt, was involved with the traffickers. How confident are you that that's not still a problem even as you embark on this greater cooperation?ASA HUTCHINSON: Well, it still is a problem because even though you have leadership at the top that wants to have a change of direction, you still have some institutional problems. And so what we're doing and what the Mexican government is doing is starting to create some vetted units, which the officers have been polygraphed, they've been drug tested. And so there's a reduced chance of corruption. We're assisting in the training. In fact, our unit at Quantico is doing some training of those agents. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/july-dec01/hutchinson_8-27.htmlThe Gulf Cartel allegedly controls illegal shipping here, as well as in the cities of Reynosa and Matamoros, which border South Texas. But a rival group -- Joaquín ''El Chapo'' Guzmán's Sinaloa Cartel and its allies -- is vying for access to Laredo, the busiest land port on the U.S. southern border.Drug gangs have fought for this turf for years. Only the names change, said retired DEA official James Kuykendall.Distrust of police and public officials runs deep. Local cops aren't eager to take the fight to the cartels, saying that's the federal government's responsibility. And officials say some police officers, like some taxi drivers and laborers, act as gang lookouts.http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/12097287.htmthe U.S. State Department acknowledges that not much has changed. "Despite its intense law enforcement efforts, Mexico is the leading transit country for cocaine and a major producer of heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana destined for U.S. markets," said the 2005 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. Further, it acknowledged: "As a result of the huge traffic in drugs, Mexican criminal organizations dominate operations, controlling most of the thirteen primary drug distribution centers in the U.S. The violence of warring Mexican cartels has spilled over the border from Mexico to U.S. sites on the other side."http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1072/a08.html?91631Today we are fighting a global war on terror, and here at Quantico you're training and retraining for a critical mission, and that's to defend our homeland. (Applause.) You're fighting the terrorists who wish to harm us; you're breaking up their cells; you're disrupting their financing. You are stopping them before they can strike our country and kill our citizens. Your work is difficult; it is dangerous. I want you to know how much your country appreciates you, and so do I. (Applause.)I thank the FBI folks who have welcomed me here. I also want to thank the DEA agents who are with us here today. By working to keep drug money from financing terror, you're playing an important part in this world -- in this war. . . . To protect the American people, we continue to take extraordinary measures to defend the homeland. We created a new Department of Homeland Security. We're posting Homeland Security personnel at foreign ports and strengthening airport and seaport security. We're instituting better visa screening for those entering the United States. We're working to prevent potential terrorists from coming across our borders and violating our immigration laws. We're protecting our nation's critical infrastructure -- our bridges and tunnels, our transportation systems, our nuclear power plants and water treatment facilities, and the cyber networks that keep our government and our economy running.We've provided more than $14 billion over the last four years to train and equip local first responders. In all, we've more than tripled funding for homeland security since 2001. We're working tirelessly to protect the American people and to prevent new terrorists attacks. In an age of new dangers, we're doing everything in our power to do our jobs. And I want to thank you for your hard work. (Applause.)http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=50159History teaches us that we can be confident in the future because the darkness of tyranny is no match for the shining power of freedom.http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050707/flth012.html?.v=17http://southflorida.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2005/07/04/daily2.htmlhttp://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050629/flw008.html?.v=16http://southflorida.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2005/06/27/daily33.htmlhttp://southflorida.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2005/07/04/daily34.htmlhttp://msnbc.msn.com/id/8486558/http://www.gnn.tv/articles/1500/The_Vice_Lords_of_the_Replacement_Economieshttp://globalpolitician.com/articleshow.asp?ID=435&cid=10&sid=47
Murder for Money
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Comment #17 posted by b4daylight on July 11, 2005 at 21:26:06 PT
Well
Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 10:50:15 PTIn Arizona they just sneak the chemical over the border. A small amount of the chemical makes alot. The bottom line is that it is cheap to make period. As for Comment #10 posted by john wayne on July 11, 2005 at 15:03:34 PTUmm adults take those too. 
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Comment #16 posted by jose melendez on July 11, 2005 at 20:45:08 PT
clearly pro-war propaganda is two faced
PotUS:In the face of such adversaries there is only one course of action: We will continue to take the fight to the enemy, and we will fight until this enemy is defeated. (Applause.)The terrorists want to attack our country and harm our citizens. They believe that the world's democracies are weak, and that by killing innocent civilians they can break our will. They're mistaken. America will not retreat in the face of terrorists and murderers. (Applause.) And neither will the free world.http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=50159 - - -Finished: Done presiding over demonstrably corrupt DEA drug war and Homeland Security extension of drug war, Asa aspires to run . . . Arkansas:http://www.bentoncourier.com/articles/2005/07/08/news/99inews.txt
PBS Knew - But will they tell?
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Comment #15 posted by runderwo on July 11, 2005 at 20:35:21 PT
it's so transparent
When reported drug use rates go down, prohibs celebrate and say "look, we're winning the war". When reported drug use rates go up, prohibs say "clearly we have an epidemic on our hands, give us more money so we can win the war soon". They don't even try to show how their efforts are actually reducing harm. They don't need to, because the average person who isn't an anti-drugwar activist has been deluged with their propaganda for so long that they don't question it.
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Comment #14 posted by jose melendez on July 11, 2005 at 16:12:38 PT
monitoring the future and past
These drug "warriors" are obviously corrupted, stupid, or crazy. They know for a fact from their Monitoring the Future surveys that heroin use skyrocketed among children in the years following crackdowns on marijuana users. They KNOW youth boozing abuses were rampant during Alcohol Prohibition, and that overall consumption of opiate medications skyrocketed during that violent period in history. Indeed, such patterns of addiction to prescribed intoxicants continue to afflict us to this very day, from OxyContin to Tylenol3.My own mother was turned into an itchy faced, drooling and babbling idiot because social mores suggest lithium is an appropriate solution to her mental stresses, just not pot. My close and often annoyingly drunk friend is prescribed Paxil, and now shakes when she does not have enough. ENOUGH ALREADY!The lying 'just say no' crowd have overwhelming evidence that the timeline of drug popularity demonstrates cannabis and more harmful but profitable substances demonstrate economic realities in the market known as cross price elasticities, and that the often toxic alternatives to the items in commerce deemed contraband are more popular not least because they are small, powerful and easier to conceal. Witness the trends toward moonshine instead of beer last century, or meth versus marijuana today.Yet with the exception of those that have bravely eschewed popular but flawed if common sense and joined groups like http://LEAP.cc , those sworn to uphold and defend our laws are so arrogantly and intellectually dishonest when discussing these issues that they might as well be closing their eyes, covering their ears and shouting so as not to be caught hearing or witnessing the truth.God might forgive them, whatever that means, or for whatever that is worth. But there can be no question that today's meth cooks are only different from yesterday's bathtub gin makers in that the violence and other side effects to society or the individual user are harsher and more pronounced, especially on children.We must fight back articulately and with projection, channeling both in the courts of law and public opinion. Because liars and hypocrites are like cockroaches and rats, shine the light and they may scurry, but stop dropping crumbs and they breed less and seek their sustenance in other ways. Once, it was popular to entertain the public with public executions disguised as morality, burning, stoning or flogging their fellow citizens for such crimes as healing on the Sabbath, witchcraft or daring to suggest that the sun did not revolve about the earth.We can today make history by offering amnesty to such traitors, and offering fines and imprisonment those who continue to practice such economic protectionism in the name of the common good.We can today shout ENOUGH, and demand the plant that will heal nations, and us all. War is for profit, and costs each and every one of us beyond reason.Rev. Jose Juan Melendez, Jr.Marijuana Mission "First Cannabis Church" [(c) 2005 by Rev. Jose Juan Melendez Jr.]DeLand, FL 888 247-8183
supply, demand and other interesting laws
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Comment #13 posted by john wayne on July 11, 2005 at 15:37:27 PT
patents on amphetamines ran out
so they weren't as profitable as newly released substitutes. This cycle of accepted wonder-drug->expired patent->suddenly bad drug has happened countless times in the pharmaceutical biz. If anyone cares, that's the main reason MJ is still illegal. Not patentable. Therefor obscene profits cannot be made from it by centrally controlled companies. The whole "morality" debate is a sideshow distraction from the real profit issues.
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 15:28:03 PT
A Question
I don't follow drug issues closely but since we have been talking about Meth I have a few questions. Back in the 70s I was able to get what everyone called good diet pills. They decided to make them harder to get from your doctor and then all a person could get was this very boring drug called Fastin. That is when I gave up on using any diet pill. They took all the fun out with Fastin. As I read what John Wayne posted basically that is what we all took as children because no one cared and they weren't illegal. Even my mom took them. Everyone was speeding around all the time. How can they be available now and it seems it's the same drugs I took a million years ago and had been made illegal?
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Comment #11 posted by riptide on July 11, 2005 at 15:09:18 PT:
More laws?
Hmmmm.....let's see. OH! I know. Maybe they can add something that binds to the pesudoephedrine or makes it harder to isolate. If the manufacturers are really thinking they will use something damaging like more acetaminophen and alcohol. Then the common person will be exposed to more dangerous chemicals that may cause irreparable damage to their liver or other organs. But seriously there is no easy answer to this and i just cant believe that a whole new slew of laws is going to have any real lasting positive effect on this issue.
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Comment #10 posted by john wayne on July 11, 2005 at 15:03:34 PT
meth is a children's medicine
"Methamphetamine ( Desoxyn ) an amphetamine used to treat narcolepsy and attention-deficit-disorder in children. In some cases but rare this drug is used to treat depression. This drug is from a family of drugs known as central nervous system stimulants."http://www.psyweb.com/Drughtm/desoxyn.html
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 13:59:52 PT
Sam
I'd like to know what you asked too. There hasn't been any Meth out in my neck of the woods so I have nothing to compare to. 
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Comment #8 posted by Sam Adams on July 11, 2005 at 13:56:35 PT
Meth use
I would like to know the current rate of meth use and the rate of meth use before it was banned. Has anyone ever checked? I hope it's a lot lower now, with all the horrible environmental damage & burn injuries from the underground labs. I hope it was worth it.
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 13:46:11 PT
global_warming 
That's ok. 
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Comment #6 posted by global_warming on July 11, 2005 at 13:26:04 PT
Sorry, about that last post
"Our society teaches us skinny is good and heavy is not."
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Comment #5 posted by global_warming on July 11, 2005 at 13:16:25 PT
People don't like being overweight
Why is that?
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 13:05:00 PT
Taylor
I think you are right. Policing ingredients is like putting a band aid on a major cut it won't work. You said: Meth should be approached with harm reduction techiques and intensive treatment. It is a tough issue, but I know that if we regulated amphatemines, those meth labs would not be popping up.If amphetamines were made available like they were when I was into diet pills very few people would mess with Meth. People don't like being overweight. Our society teaches us skinny is good and heavy is not. We have created a market for stimulant appetite suppressors just for that reason.
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Comment #3 posted by Taylor121 on July 11, 2005 at 12:13:03 PT
Cold Medication
Making it harder to get cold medication to try to hurt meth production is a joke. The supply will meet the demand, if we can learn anything about prohibition we can learn that.Meth should be approached with harm reduction techiques and intensive treatment. It is a tough issue, but I know that if we regulated amphatemines, those meth labs would not be popping up.
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Comment #2 posted by PainWithNoInsurance on July 11, 2005 at 12:02:58 PT
Meth
I am wondering, since many states are making it harder to get cold medication, will meth manufacturers find a different source for pseudoephedrine? I have heard it can be synthetically made. If so god help us.
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 11, 2005 at 10:50:15 PT
About Meth
I know some people think Meth is ok but I don't. I have seen first hand what Meth can do to a person and I hope and pray it never gets in our area. So far it hasn't or so I've been told. All I can think about is children being in a home where someone is making Meth and it makes me very upset. Cannabis causes no harm but Meth that's a whole different ball game to me.
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