Stania

It was a pretty big weekend. I spoke to my favorite Aunt yesterday. She only uses the one name, otherwise we're a lot alike. She's a real artist and I'm just sort of artistic but we're both the black sheep of our generation in the family and have lived life on our own terms without apology.

I believe she'll be reading this, so big hug Auntie. This is what I've been doing. Hope you like it. XX

granellobakery.com
Get me to the church on time

Today was the day for same sex couples in the Commonwealth when the long awaited right to legally marry was finally granted by law. Cambridge reported hundreds of couples waiting to sign the paperwork but here in lovely downtown Northampton, there were about 50 lined up outside of the clerk's office this morning.

Accompanied by great fanfare, first to sign were two of the plaintiff's from the suit that made it all possible, Heidi Norton and Gina Smith who were there with their young sons. They immediately went to the courthouse to apply for a waiver to the three day wait period and will be married in a private ceremony later this evening.

For any gays or lesbians that are planning to come to the Commonwealth to also apply for licenses you should be aware that Governor Romney has evoked a little used provision barring out of state couples from being married here, however many clerks have indicated they would not refuse a license to anyone who is willing to simply say they plan to move to Massachusetts.

Congratulations for this long overdue victory to all my gay and lesbian readers and friends.

courttv.com
Judge Judy to the rescue

Here's a cheery little item that just arrived in the inbox. It appears that Judge Judy, in a show taped yesterday, invited the parties in a marijuana dispute onto the program.

The result was all that plaintiff Rick Buck could hope for when the Honorable Judge ruled against the defendant, Gordon Westfall who had been paid $425.00 to provide medical marijuana as Rick's caregiver and had not only failed to deliver any of the medicinal herb in five months but had also reneged on his certified caregiving obligation.

We hope this serves as a lesson to all so-called caregivers who would be so callous as to attempt to rip off their patients. We'll be watching for the show's air date.

Another victim of the War on Drugs

This is a sad story to start the week but it's important to look at the myriad ways this war on some drugs and especially in the context of it's attack on teenagers in the name of prevention does more harm than good. All the school drug raids in the world would not have saved 15 year old Jillian Cleary's life.

Julian was from a large and loving family and was according to her father, "a good kid." Of all five children in the family, she was the one they worried about the least. Now she's dead from an apparent methamphetamine overdose because she and her friends were afraid to admit they were experimenting with the drug and thus didn't ask for help when she got sick. She died from aspirating her own vomit.

In my day, she would have tried cannabis and been none the worse for it, but the unintended consequence of the Bush administration's war on our plant has caused meth to be more easily available than weed. As her father points out, all teenagers, no matter how exemplary their conduct, will experiment
with substances even if it's only beer. Meth was probably easier to get than beer for these kids as well.

Honest education and sensible drug policy could have prevented her death. How many more children will die as a result of an unregulated black market for drugs before the electorate demands an end to this failed war?

Zero Tolerance Zone

Mitch Daniels, Republican candidate for governor of Indiana, is an all American success story -- a geeky but popular kid who grew up to become a multimillionaire. I could like him for honestly admitting his 1971 conviction for marijuana possession and I would, except that he uses the experience to call for stiffer penalties for its use and I just don't like hypocrites.

His intelligence is legendary, so ignorance is no excuse for his failure to admit cannabis had no appreciable negative effect on his life or his mental capacity and that the draconian penalties for its use are unwarranted.

Daniels attended Princeton on scholarships. Under the penalties he supports, he would have become a victim of zero tolerance like 19-year-old Adam Gutin who was expelled from a public high school for the same infraction and as a consequence has already lost two years of educational opportunities. And of course, under the ill conceived HEA Act, Adam will also be barred from major sources of scholarship monies for an even lesser "crime" than Mitch committed. After all, Adam simply tested positive for past use whereas Daniels was actually caught using marijuana.

I think it stinks that Mitch would support such an inhumane and ridiculously severe level of punishment for the same youthful experimentation that he indulged in without serious consequence. I certainly wouldn't elect him as a governor but then again, Indiana keeps re-electing that prohibition profiteer Souder.

What's up with the Hoosier State anyway? I've never been there but I can't believe over 3 million voters could be so easily fooled by such self serving politicians.

Responsible cannabis consumers are good citizens and zero tolerance doesn't solve the problem of substance abusers, it only pads the pockets of those who profit by the ill-advised enforcement of prohibition.

Quote of the political season

I love Vonnegut's work and I like this quote so much I'm posting it everywhere.

Kurt Vonnegut at a recent speech at some college.

"I have never smoked anything but Pall Malls since I was 11 years old. On the package for several years now, they promised to kill me, but I'm still alive. I'm 84 years old....The last thing I ever wanted was to be alive when the three most powerful people on the face of the earth were named Bush, Dick, and Colin."

[Thanks to Richard Lake at Media Awareness Project]

ibsys.com
Big news in a small town

A grow-op was busted in Deland Florida this week when police arrived in response to a 911 call about a home invasion. Police called the haul huge, however the reported 45 plants hardly qualify for that designation. Barrie was huge. These folks basically had a garage full of plants.

The two women living in the home endured a terrifying ordeal, being tied up and threatened with knives and guns by the intruders that came of course to steal the cannabis. It's yet another illustration of the harms of our government's war on this plant. If it was legal to grow, it wouldn't worth more than gold and it would not be worth stealing.

Now, I spent several days skydiving in Deland in 1990. It's a quiet and charming town with an airport and a drop zone where I jumped a Twin Otter. It's not unlike my own Northampton. The neighbors were suprised to learn of the grow-op right in their upscale backyards, proving once again that cannabis consumers make good neighbors.

ibsys.com
Big news in a small town

A grow-op was busted in Deland Florida this week when police arrived in response to a 911 call about a home invasion. Police called the haul huge, however the reported 45 plants hardly qualify for that designation. Barrie was huge. These folks basically had a garage full of plants.

The two women living in the home endured a terrifying ordeal, being tied up and threatened with knives and guns by the intruders that came of course to steal the cannabis. It's yet another illustration of the harms of our government's war on this plant. If it was legal to grow, it wouldn't worth more than gold and it would not be worth stealing.

Now, I spent several days skydiving in Deland in 1990. It's a quiet and charming town with an airport and a drop zone where I jumped a Twin Otter. It's not unlike my own Northampton. The neighbors were suprised to learn of the grow-op right in their upscale backyards, proving once again that cannabis consumers make good neighbors.

Marijuana doesn't kill, drug raids do

This is choice. Two men are dead and two deputies are wounded after prohibition enforcers confronted three suspects who were loading marijuana into a SUV. The bust was reportedly triggered by an 8 year old allegedly calling 911. There's no indication why the child called but one suspect was killed at the scene and another died this week.

Meanwhile, the remaining living defendant is being charged with felony murder because his two friends were killed by the police during the course of this felony bust.

Just another illustration of how the war on cannabis does more harm than the consumption of it.

One Night Only

For those of you who live in the Happy Valley, All Souls Church in Greenfield is presenting The Work of the Weavers tonight. According to the program notes:

This very special evening will showcase Work o' the Weavers, a tribute to the pioneering folk quartet of the 40s and 50s founded by Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, Ronnie Gilbert and Fred Hellerman. The new group — James Durst, David Bernz, Martha Sandefer and Mark Murphy — performs a glorious show that is part concert and part narration as it tells the Weavers story through song and story. Juanita Nelson, activist and long time devotee of social justice issues, will introduce the concert. Before, during intermission and after the performance, concertgoers can enjoy refreshments and learn about the work of peace and social justice groups in the Pioneer Valley, who will have tables set up downstairs in the Parish Hall of the church.

I'll be there manning the ACLU information table so stop by and pick up some free stuff.

www.2river.org
Summer in the city

It looks like it's going to be a pleasant summer in the hood this year. I was just sitting down at the computer when I heard the most beautiful guitar playing outside. It turns out my neighbor Steve owns a guitar with a gorgeous tone and plays it really well. We had a nice chat through the window.

Yesterday I ran into my neighbor Nikolai who was planting a garden with plants he started himself. We had a nice chat in the back yard. This afternoon the pinks started blooming in my own little plot and I had a nice chat after work at the bar formerly known as City with Pat Fennesey.

I met him when he worked on our building. This was the first time we really talked. He's taproot Hamp. I'm Noho, I'm surface roots. His family founded this place. His grandmother was rescued from the big flood when she was thirteen years old and his own mom is now eighty. Irish Catholics I think because he's not that old. I didn't ask, but I'd bet fifty cents he was the baby of the family but he's a good man. I wish I had taken his picture...

And speaking of music, the Drunk Stuntmen are spending the summer in town so I'm certain to actually catch a gig at the Elevens on some sultry night soon. I was happy to run into Al Johnson on his kickbutt bike a week or so ago. He tells me I alarmed someone in North Carolina by reporting Bow was leaving the band to become an Christian Evangelist. I swear - that's what I thought I heard him say, but he doesn't remember (as if he would have - it was at the end of the last set.) I was sober but then again my hearing is not what it once was. I think it's a draw.

kamleshayurveda.com
Marijuana is Ayurvedic Medicine

Following the world wide trend of sensible drug policy reform outside of the US, Sri Lanka is latest country to embrace the beneficial aspects of cannabis and intends to legalize it.

Indigenous Medicine Minister Tissa Karaliyadde said he hoped to introduce a bill in parliament to allow practitioners of herbal medicine known as ayurveda to grow at least five plants each.

Further, although cannabis is said to be, "easily available on the clandestine market both for traditional healers and smokers," the Sri Lankan government has already set aside its own land for legal cultivation.

So when are our own political leaders going to wake up to the public's acceptance of this plant?

Souder wants NIH to skew the truth to protect his position

One of America's biggest prohibition profiteers, Mark Souder is at it again. He's asking the National Institutes of Health to spend your tax dollars proving his latest dunderheaded theory that needle exchange and harm reduction programs are more dangerous than allowing addicts to shoot up on the street.

He has no scientific or medical background but does have a clear agenda and requests that agency come up with some research that specifically prove his hypothesis rather than asking for an impartial and scientifically based study.

Of course, as Dr Alex Wodak points out in a rebuttal letter to the agency, seven studies disproving Souder's contentions have already been funded by the taxpayers.

Souder is so desperate to protect the political power he enjoys under the prohibition that he's willing to waste your money and risk the lives of US citizens with bad science to do so. Don't let him get away with it. Visit Drug Policy Alliance, and take action against this folly.

Google rules the bench

CNet reports that search engines are becoming increasingly utilized in evidentiary rulings of the courts. They contributed to Manuel Rodriguez's exoneration in federal court when Judge Frank Maas ruled in his favor based partly on, "looking up jurors' names in Google, had revealed that the assistant district attorney had 'improperly' removed Hispanics."

The decision came too late to benefit Manuel but illustrates a growing trend in the courts to use the internet in their considerations. Many legal pundits and even fellow jurists are not pleased.

In the United States and abroad, judges are turning to search engines such as Google to check facts, to look up information about companies embroiled in litigation, and to challenge statistics presented by attorneys in court. Dozens of judges have penned opinions describing Google as a valuable--and sometimes crucial--source of knowledge.

Although other engines have been cited in case law, google is the cybersearcher of choice. However, not to be outdone, Yahoo has taken number one slot in another arena of public opinion - CNN while Dogpile remains the esoteric choice.

Pot Pilgrimage to Bangladesh

The city of Mahastangarh is 2,375 years old and is said to hosted many saints and other holy persons of the Hindus, Buddha and Muslims -- making it a shrine of sorts of all religions of the region. It has also hosted a ganja-ganza every last Thursday of the Bangla month of Boishakh for the last 100 years that draws both male and female pot aficionados.

Despite an increased police presence in the last few years, thousands are expected to once again congregate for what usually turns out to be a three day festival.

Many come here with specially designed kalki or pot, which is part of the tradition and the smokers will chain themselves to draw others' attention.

Those sit in shades with tridents will draw religious devotees who call them 'Baba'. Devotees will seek blessings of the Baba and in return, give them chickens and other homage.

The locals have put up 5,000 temporary stalls to capitalize on the crowds (some of whom reportedly only come to watch) and in these troubled times we might take note of how cannabis consumption fosters peace.

Religious or racial differences hold no bar for these ganja-lovers who will dance holding each other's hands after stuffing their lungs with marijuana smoke.

Brings new meaning to the phrase peace pipe, doesn't it?

wendyannedesigns.com
Might as well be walking on the sun

I went on a long road trip today and miraculously on the way home, the traffic on the Mass Pike was so light it was fun to drive and the weather had that New England spookiness where it would pour rain in 10 mile intervals and then nothing between, so it went from rain to dry pavement to this leftover atmospheric steaminess where the rain had already passed. I saw an astounding sunset at the place (I think it's exit seven) where the mountains end and Springfield appears in the distance. The sun was so big it looked like it had fallen out of the sky and was landing on the city and the air was so wet that you could look right into the very center of it and the entire 360 degrees of ambient light was of that same value of radiant pink.

It was a brilliant end to a gorgeous day spent with those I love dearly.

ruffwork.com
Truth or Dare?

Officer Michael Horan is having a bad couple of years. According to court documents, "Horan was "receiving a reduced paycheck due to court ordered child support payments, that he carried at least seven loans with the Chelmsford Credit Union, was gambling heavily, and purchased a $35,000 truck" during the two years he was assigned to oversee DARE." Then he got caught stealing.

...Horan is accused of embezzling at least $8,000 in funds that were held at the Police Station on Olde North Road.

...Horan took charitable donations totaling thousands of dollars entrusted to him as the town's Drug Awareness Resistance Officer. He also allegedly took a laptop computer from the Police Department and raffle money from high school sports games.

You have to wonder what lesson the fifth graders in his DARE class are taking from that.

www.shepherdboy.co.uk
Hemp is health food

This press release on the status of nutritional hemp foods just arrived. In February the purveyors of agricultural hemp products won a victory in the US 9th Circuit Court. All eyes have been on the DEA since to see if the agency would appeal the ruling that US citizens be allowed to consume these extraordinarily healthful products.

Well the wait is over, the solicitor general asked the Supremes to extend the now passed May 6th deadline to file and the Court has granted an extension of time to June 5th. If they fail to file with SCOTUS by that time "the Ninth Circuit's landmark decision will stand - protecting sales of nutritious foods made with hemp seed in the U.S."

Hemp food producers are confident they will prevail even if the case goes forward. The trace amounts of THC in the foods wouldn't even register in a drug screen and the benefits of the seeds have been well established.

Hemp seed is one of the most perfect nutritional resources in all of nature. In addition to its excellent flavor profile, the seed meat protein supplies all essential amino acids in an easily digestible form and with a high protein efficiency ratio. But most importantly, hemp seed and oil offer high concentrations of the two essential fatty acids (EFAs) in a perfect ratio of the omega-3/omega-6 acids. EFA's are the "good fats" that doctors recommend as part of a healthy, balanced diet. This superior nutritional profile makes hemp nut (shelled seed) and oil ideal for a wide range of functional food applications and as an effective fatty acid supplement. Not surprisingly, hemp nut and oil are increasingly used in natural food products, such as breads, frozen waffles, cereals, nutrition bars, meatless burgers and salad dressings.

The entire case has been a criminal waste of your tax dollars from the beginning. The DEA has spent hundreds of thousands on this folly that has absolutely nothing to do drug abuse and everything to do with protecting their prohibition profiteering.

Do we really need the DEA to tell us what to eat?

MK's for marijuana

One of these days I'm going to ask Pete Guither from Drug War Rant to marry me. Every time I have a question, he has an immediate answer and this post is no exception. An MK is a member of the Knesset of course.

The Knesset is Israel's legislature. The Knesset took its name and fixed its membership at 120 from the Knesset Hagedolah (Great Assembly), the representative Jewish council convened in Jerusalem by Ezra and Nehemiah in the 5th century B.C.E.

Members of Knesset (MKs) are elected every four years within the framework of parties that compete for the electorate's votes. Each party chooses its own Knesset candidates as it sees fit. A new Knesset begins to function after general elections, which determine its composition.

In the first session, Knesset members declare their allegiance, and the Knesset speaker and deputy speakers are elected. The Knesset usually serves for four years, but may dissolve itself or be dissolved by the prime minister any time during its term. Until a new Knesset is formally constituted following elections, full authority remains with
the outgoing one.

Meanwhile, I'm running too late to post but Pete's back from hiatus so check out his stuff this morning. As always he has great analysis of the week's news.

Flash Bash

Flash is 80 years old today. I always forget her real name. I think it might be something like Arlene but Flash really fits her better. She is one kick ass old lady and I want to be just like her when I get old. I was on my out of Tully O'Reillys when she showed up. I said, "Is it really your birthday?"

"Let me put it this way," she replied in that inimitable Hadley farmer cadence. "I was born on May 10th, 1924." I could hardly leave her in a nearly empty bar after that statement so I ran home to get this photo I took three weeks ago, to give her for a birthday gift and stayed to celebrate her life.

Flash and I have the same work ethic and the same sense of adventure. She's traveled as widely as I have although we went to different places. She told me tonight she took her wheelchair bound husband (when he was alive) to Hawaii, something like seven times. Once she told me about the night they were there and Don Ho brought her on stage. She rocked the house.

Flash is part of my chosen family in this valley. Although we're not blood related, we have the same joie de vive. She's been from Caracas to Alaska to the Panama Canal - I've been from Amsterdam to Sagres to the Manuel Antonio National Beach but we both love Mexico and have been there numerous times. And we both love this crazy valley.

Please send her a celebratory thought for a life a well lived, no matter when you might be reading this.

Flash Bash

Flash is 80 years old today. I always forget her real name. I think it might be something like Arlene but Flash really fits her better. She is one kick ass old lady though and I want to be just like her when I get old. I was on my out of Tully O'Reillys when she showed up. I said, "Is it really your birthday?"

"Let me put it this way," she replied in that inimitable Hadley farmer cadence. "I was born on May 10th, 1924." I could hardly leave her in a nearly empty bar after that statement so I ran home to get this photo I took three weeks ago, to give her for a birthday gift and stayed to celebrate her life.

Flash and I have the same work ethic and the same sense of adventure. She's traveled as widely as I have although we went to different places. She told me tonight she took her wheelchair bound husband (when he was alive) to Hawaii, something like seven times. Once she told me about the night they were there and Don Ho brought her on stage. She rocked the house.

Flash is part of my chosen family in this valley. Although we're not blood related, we have the same joie de vive. She's been from Caracas to Alaska to the Panama Canal - I've been from Amsterdam to Sagres to the Manuel Antonio National Beach but we both love Mexico and have been there numerous times. And we both love this crazy valley.

Please send her a celebratory thought for a life a well lived, no matter when you might be reading this.

Israelis for Cannabis

Here's a late report on the Million Marijuana March event in Israel. There's no attendance figures but some 30 people were arrested for possession. Police claim to have seized large amounts of drugs, "including a chocolate cake filled with Marijuana." At that point the police went from undercover efforts to simply shutting the event down, confiscating the sound system and detaining organizer Boaz Wachtel, for "questioning." He was later arrested. "I am not sure what I'm being arrested for," he said.

MK Roman Bronfman who arrived at the scene attempted to convince police officers to let the event continue. "It is a mistake to end the entire event because of a few smokers", he said.

Bronfman also said he believed the event was disrupted in order to prevent him from talking in favor of the legalization of soft drugs. "The police is attempting to prevent an MK from expressing his opinion in a legitimate manner", he told reporters.

I'm not sure what a MK is but I assume it's some kind of government official. Meanwhile, Israeli reformers vow to continue the fight for legalization of our plant.

Everything Changes

Wow this is spooky. You wake up one day and your old familiar Blogger has upgraded and changed everything. This may take a little while to get used to. It appears all the buttons are still there, just in different places but the navigation feels very strange. There do seem to be a whole lot more features and it appears I can now actually put in some extra pages here once I figure out what all the new instructions mean. Looks like hours of fun.

Meanwhile, I've had some complaints that I haven't been posting anything about my personal life lately. That's mainly because I no longer have one. I have about an hour of free time on any given day and lately I've been using it to clean this joint up. I have to stay ahead of the mess before this place is condemned by the Board of Health.

The weather is improving here in lovely downtown Noho though so I have managed to get outside and walk to the store at least. It's the best time of year to live in New England. I walked clear across town on Saturday and except for the spring flowers shouting with new colors, it was eerily quiet. The streets had empty parking spaces and there were almost no pedestrians around. The birds are mostly back and they kept landing in front of me and looking at me so quizzically I swear they were wondering what was up as well. For myself, I kind of liked the silence.

Yesterday's morning rain morphed into a gorgeous sunny afternoon and I cruised the 'hood meeting the new neighbors. There's always new neighbors on this block. The smell of BBQs drifted over from the condos and made me wish I had a grill myself - although I know I'd never fire it up.

I met Rufus the bunny and although I neglected to get his owner's name, Rufus is very cool. She had him in a harness and leash and they had just come from a day in the park. Remarkably he has violet eyes - unusual for a white rabbit - and didn't mind having his ears scratched by a stranger.

I also met Steve and his friend Aileen who was visiting from out of town. Steve has been here since October, but you never really talk to anyone on the block until it's warm enough to be sitting on the stoop. We finally exchanged names - although I'm likely to forget by the next time I run into him. We get a lot of turnover on this block and frankly all the young folks start to look alike after a while.

By the way, this morning's (not so great) photo is of Shannon and Aric who are getting married this weekend. Look for them at the Red Sox game next week. Shannon will be wearing a Red Sox hat with a wedding veil attached to it.

Nevada court rules in favor of reformers

In response to a petition by Marijuana Policy Project the Nevada Supreme Court ordered state Attorney General Dean Heller to explain why he allowed drug czar John Walters to get away with political campaigning using the taxpayer's money against them.

The Marijuana Policy Project complained to Heller's office in 2002 about Walters' conduct during that election season, saying he traveled to Nevada "with security detail in tow" to challenge a citizen's marijuana initiative and contended he should file a campaign report or be subject to a fine of up to $5,000.

Heller refused to act, caving in to Walters' lawyer who argued that the drug czar is exempt from following the election laws of the United States. Now Heller has until early June to justify his decision to the high court. We await his excuse with interest.

Meanwhile, MPP is fielding another less ambitious initiative in the state. The bill would legalize possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana by adults but also would increase penalties for providing marijuana to minors or for causing a fatal accident while driving under the influence of the substance. Sale of marijuana would be taxed, and revenue would be earmarked for drug and alcohol treatment and education programs.

Sounds like a very sensible approach to me.

rowleycorvette.com
Happy Mother's Day

It's a good time to remember why this holiday was created. Julia Ward Howe (who also wrote the Battle Hymn of the Republic) first articulated it in the original Mother's Day Proclamation issued in 1870 after the close of the Civil War. The words still resonate in these troubled times.

"Arise then, women of this day! ... We women of one country will be too tender to those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with our own, it says "Disarm! Disarm!" The sword of murder is not the balance of justice. Blood does not wipe out dishonor, nor violence indicate possession.'

"In the name of womanhood and humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of peace.

A United Nations of Mothers. Why not?

kissaneonline.com
Death and Taxes

This archive piece fits into our theme of forfeiture run amok. The Kansas state code requires its drug dealers to affix tax stamps to their illegal drugs or face tax penalties. Kyle Smith, spokesman for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation explains how this works.

"....bring the power of the tax code into the drug war and say you have to have these drug tax stamps and if you don't have them you owe taxes," Smith said. "To pay off taxes they can go after property that would be exempt during forfeiture. Forfeiture deals with property that is proceeds of drug or other criminal activity or is used to facilitate that activity, like the car used to deliver the dope. Taxes aren't bound by that. If you owe taxes, they don't care whether that car had anything to do with the activity that created the tax lien. They can go after that car."

He justifies breaching the limits of the forfeiture law and thus leaving the convicted person's family without a home, vehicle and presumably anything else of value they possess, by noting the alleged benefit to the state.

"They possess these drugs with the intent to sell them and they sell them illegally without any (state) revenue coming from it. So the idea of the drug tax stamp is to try and make up for that lost tax that isn't generated because they are illegally selling substances."

Of course, the narco-cops don't really care. Their departments are reaping the benefits and the taxpayer is the one footing the bill at the expense of other essential city services.

Three-quarters of the money goes to the local law enforcement agency while 25 percent goes to the state general fund.

The prohibition profiteers want it both ways -- to tax it and keep it illegal. They ignore the implication of the tax only being collected after an arrest so any funds realized are immediately spent on incarceration costs for the inmate and social services for the now bereft family. The profiteers know it is the collection of reasonable taxes on drugs in a legal and regulated market that would enrich the state coffers -- rather than just enhancing their narco department budgets. They are unlikely to tell you because:

"....the money goes to pay for extra things that the agency couldn't normally afford. "

"It's not supposed to go for things the agency is supposed to have anyway," he said. "They can't pay for their regular personnel with it. It has to go for something to fight crime in general or drug crimes. In the past it has been a really good tool in terms of providing additional assets for agencies to fight drug crimes with."

Like $40,000 SUVs for their undercover agents to use when they're pretending to be drug dealers (and that they probably get to take home). The obvious temptation to make dicey stops and illegal seizures is just too great to allow this conflict of interest to go on.

If our government wants to continue to use forfeiture as a law enforcement tool, then those who make the seizures cannot be the ones to get the money. As it stands now, it's little more than a legalized kickback scheme.

$1,168,380 in United States currency v. Crawford County, Arkansas

Forfeiture is out of control. Here's another illustration of how this legalized conflict of interest encourages cops to breach the citizenry's civil rights by employing racial profiling and conducting fishing expeditions based on the flimsiest of probable cause.

Narcotics investigator Jeff Smith was running a little speed trap when he noticed an altered fender well on a 1996 Chevrolet Tahoe without license plates. [I assume that means without permanent plates.] The above mentioned cash was found in a compartment behind the wheel well after a drug dog indicated drugs were located there.

The dog was wrong -- no drugs were found in the car, however the money was seized based on the fact that three air refreshers were found in the compartment and these $1.79 items are "known to be used by drug couriers." Not to mention half of America of course. No charges were filed against the driver Mr. Ramos but the money is guilty until it proves itself innocent and I guess it had a lousy lawyer because the funds have already been disbursed to the local law enforcement who seized it.

We might also mention the feds were up to their elbows in this stop by the miraculously eagled-eyed Trooper Smith. According to DEA agent William J. Bryant:

"DEA assists a lot of local law enforcement agencies in on-going investigations. This money recovered was part of a large drug organization. It is good to see this money put to good use."

It will be used for rebuilding the prosecutor's office, purchasing land for a new police building along with architect's services and the purchase of new vehicles for local prohibition agents.

The premise that this cop could have noticed an altered wheel well on a moving car is laughable. He clearly acted on a DEA tip and whether the money came from an illegal operation is besides the point. The driver was doing nothing wrong and there was no probable cause for the stop. What happened here amounts to a modern day version of highway robbery.

Technical Difficulties

Well I composed a fabulous new post this afternoon and Blogger just ate it. No time to redo it now. See you tonight folks.

Shooting himself in the foot - he missed

The DRC Net newsletter is the first to arrive this week and as always is worth reading in its entirety. They have a great roundup of Million Marijuana March reports but my favorite item is this story on the DEA agent who managed to shoot himself while he was demonstrating gun safety to a group of teenagers from the Orlando Minority Youth Golf Association.

According to police reports, the agent drew his .40-caliber pistol and removed the magazine, then pulled back the slide and asked someone from the audience to look inside the gun and confirm it wasn't loaded. The pistol was pointed at the floor, and when he released the slide, one bullet fired into the top of his left thigh.

The nexus between golf and the drug war is not clear, one suspects that it has more to do with their ethnicity, however the lesson certainly made an impression.

The kids screamed and started to cry," said Vivian Farmer, who attended the presentation with her 13-year-old nephew. "Everyone was pretty shaken up," Farmer told WKMG. "But the point of gun safety hit home. Unfortunately, the agent had to get shot. But after seeing that, my nephew doesn't want to have anything to do with guns." .

The agent remains unidentified and is reportedly back on the job. One supposes the agency won't be sending him out to speak for a while.

The Final Fantasy - Carnival #85

I've been running three days late all week but the same can't be said for the Thief's Den, who put up the Carnival of the Vanities a day early despite the fact that he was working from his sick bed.

Our politics could not be more different but I love his ultra-clever theme for this week's festivities and as always the posts are an interesting mix of the minds of the young right wingers - and this old leftie. Enjoy.

3dl.net
Testing, Testing 1-2-3

We have spoken about drug testing our schoolchildren many times, including here, here and here. Unfortunately, although it flies in the face of common sense, it's an issue that doesn't go away. Dan Forbes in an uncharacteristically short piece, reports on a recent confab of experts, "Substance Abuse and the American Family", sponsored by our federal Department of Health and Human Services.

None of "the brightest group of individuals ever assembled under one roof to deal with substance abuse" were supporting Bush's proposed 23 million dollar boondoggle to drug test our kids. Quite the opposite.

Duke University's Dr. Cynthia Kuhn said that random drug testing doesn't actually decrease student drug use. Rather, it just reflects "the country's sense of desperation about drugs" and is part of the Bush administration's "punitive and legalistic approach." Said Dr. Ross B. Brower, a Cornell psychiatrist: "Testing to find a lot of low-level marijuana users [yields] pretty useless information."

Wade F. Horn, the HHS assistant secretary in attendance, had no response to the experts' blanket condemnation of the proposal. The prohibitionists never do when they are confronted with the hard facts that drug testing does not work.

Oddly, the most interesting input at the event was delivered by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA)—whose White House funded white paper on marijuana stated that medical marijuana use should be decided by doctors and scientists (as opposed to prohibition profiteers).

As Dan remarks, "Has anyone told Karl Rove about this?"

Propaganja

Here's another view of the Capetown Million Marijuana March last weekend. The Pretoria News saw the numbers and the participants in a different light than organizer Andre du Plessis did but they both see the value in the agricultural and industrial use of the plant.

The emphasis on the narcotic qualities of a herb that for centuries has been a matter-of-fact feature of life in southern Africa, has obscured its economic potential as a source of oil, paper, fabrics, the ingredient for soaps and wax and - mixed with lime - as a cheap, strong brick.

Further the article illustrates the dynamic of prohibition fueled crime attached to a trade with a relentless demand and describes the benefits in great detail.

Du Plessis also found out that, if legalised, cannabis could take its place as a competitive product in the petrochemical, construction, paper, pulp and textile industries. Believing that dagga could significantly contribute to reducing the housing backlog, and generate jobs, he set out to share his findings, to spread, as he puts it, "propaganja". He was not well received.

This item on the march is my favorite and didn't make into the initial press account.

Ten helium balloons filled with hundreds of dagga seeds were released into the air. They were supposed to pop at altitude. But with the help of the wind, they ended up unspectacularly in Parliament's gardens. Du Plessis was not concerned. For him it was a sign that, one way or another, dagga would get government's attention.

I think it's an amazing omen myself and I'll bet there will be at least a few plants discretely tucked into the quiet corners of the government's grounds.

Didn't his mom teach him any manners?

How did this man become president? I mean really, look at this flash video and tell me you wouldn't scold your child for behaving so rudely as this.

ixmedia.com
Hey Doc -- that would be use, not abuse

Where do they get this BS? The AP is reporting that marijuana abuse or dependence is rising among baby boomers and young black and Hispanic people.

Dr. Wilson Compton , mouthpiece of the mainly prohibition pushing National Institute on Drug Abuse attributes the rise in alleged dependence at least partly to increases in the potency of pot over the past decade. I would like to know where he went to medical school.

There is no such thing as marijuana dependence. There are certainly irresponsible consumers that let it interfere with their lives, however the majority of consumers do so responsibly regardless of frequency of use.

Consuming habitually is not the same as addiction. Almost everyone I know consumes coffee habitually, I do it myself. I drink a half of cup of pretty weak brown stuff every morning yet I know people who drink eight cups of real stuff every day. Would you call either of us addicts and which of us would you call an abuser of caffeine?

Not to mention that the only reason they are showing a rise in boomer's consumption is that more of us are coming out of the closet every day. We're tired of being called criminals and we will not accept being labeled as addicts either.

Mother Russia

Not everyone had a peaceful May Day MMM march. City officials in Moscow had refused to issue an permit, citing state law that bans illicit drug propaganda. Unfortunately, the promoters of the march had advertised it so widely that not everyone heard about the cancellation and 20 people were detained by the Moscow police for just for showing up.

Guess this is the Russian version of Ernest Istook's bill to silence dissent on ill-conceived government policy.

bernieashman.com
Mercury Retrograde...

...and there's a full moon staring into my kitchen window. No wonder it's been like this.

Having had the day from absolute hell, I was so happy to find out it was Mercury retrograde. I love a celestial explanation (as opposed to a karmic one) and I was cheered to hear the blessed little planet was about to go direct again. I don't know the astrological implications of these things. All I know is when it's in this stage of retrograde, my life is a disaster.

Apparently it's not only me who is affected by this phenomenon. I've heard stories all week long of equally dismal occurrences as my own. I definitely felt a shift in energy late this afternoon though. I think the planet is starting to swing.

South Africans march in defense of cannabis

Million Marijuana Marchers took to the streets across the globe on May Day this year but the only march on the entire continent of Africa took place in Cape Town. According to main organizer Andre du Plessis, over 600 South Africans demonstrated in support of the legalisation of cannabis and to promote its potential use in low-cost building materials and medicine.

Du Plessis, an information technology engineer, said he had undertaken a
six-year study and found that it could be used in low-cost housing. "My research shows that we can deliver a 82 sq metre house for 15,000 rand ($2,188) which is three times the size of a house which is being currently built using conventional methods.

"These houses can be built with bricks made out of the stalk of the hemp and mixed with lime and sand. The houses will be thermal with great insulation."

"But the most interesting information is that it can help in fighting cancer tumours ... and lead to remission in various parts of the body but most importantly in the brain."

Du Plessis on Saturday stressed that the vast majority of the marchers were professionals -- not druggies and further noted that marchers were instructed not to consume cannabis while participating.

This in fact was a recurring theme in all the marches this year. What used to be a sort of excuse to hang out peaceably and get high in the sunshine once a year has now become a event of greater political import. No one wants the message that we are responsible consumers to get lost in a haze of marijuana smoke.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention the one place where the original spirit of the holiday is allowed to continue in peace was Canada -- where sensible policy reigns and consumers don't live in fear-- the mass marches were wreathed in the stuff and nothing bad happened. It was a celebration, not an alcohol induced riot. Furthermore, I've heard at least one report of a marcher posing with a law enforcement officer while smoking a marijuana cigarette. Leads me to believe a good time was had by all.

If you can't beat them, shut them up

New developments in this story we spoke about here, here and here.

Ernest Istook was so threatened by this advertisement on the Washington Metro transit system last year, that he decided no else should be subjected to such free speech. So, using his position as chairman of the House Transportation and Treasury Appropriations Subcommittee, Istook found a way to punish the Washington metro system and prevent public dialogue from occurring by finagling the passage of legislation denying federal money to any public transit system that accepts ads regarding drug policy reform.

Of course the legislation does nothing to stop Partnership for a Drug Free America and the ONDCP and other pro-prohibition groups from running anti-reform messages in the transit systems. Thus do the prohibitionists wish to coerce you into compliance with their agenda instead of allowing civilized debate.

As Ethan Nadelmann said in a subsequent statement, one hopes the amendment Istook sneakily attached to a spending bill went unnoticed and the other legislators did not realize what they had done.

In response to these backroom manipulations of public policy, Nadelmann's Drug Policy Alliance, Change the Climate (the creator of the ads) and the Marijuana Policy Project with the help of the ACLU, filed suit in federal court.

The Justice Department argues, " [it] has an undeniable interest in ensuring that no federal funds are used, directly or indirectly, to facilitate activity that Congress does not wish to promote." An absurd argument in light of the fact that the ad would not have cost the government a cent--in fact the Metro would have received $91,875 from Change the Climate for renting the space.

Justice further disingenuously argues that the ads promote illegal activity which is also absurd. The real point of the ads are to change the law, not to condone the activity. Joseph White, Executive Director of Change the Climate sums it up best.

"Our Constitution ensures that citizens can get both viewpoints on marijuana issues. Government ads promote expensive and harsh punishment, while our ads suggest new ways of thinking that protect our children and save tax dollars."

Don't let your government use your tax dollars against your rights. Take action now and help defeat this attempt to silence dissent.

cannabisculture.com
Study proves decriminalization of marijuana does not increase use

The May issue of the American Journal of Public Health published the results of the first rigorous inquiry into whether the legal status of our plant affects the frequency of consumption. This study, funded by the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the Dutch Ministry of Health, in comparing use between consumers in Amsterdam where it has been legal to purchase small amounts for personal use since 1976 and San Francisco where recreational cannabis is completely illegal, found there were no differences between the two cities in age at onset of use, age at first regular use, or age at the start of maximum use.

Highlights of the study include:

• The mean age at onset of use was 16.95 years in Amsterdam and 16.43 years in San Francisco.

• The mean age at which respondents began using marijuana more than once per month was 19.11 years in Amsterdam and 18.81 years in San Francisco.

• In both cities, users began their periods of maximum use about two years after they began regular use: 21.46 years in Amsterdam and 21.98 years in San Francisco.

• About 75 percent in both cities had used cannabis less than once per week or not at all in the year before the interview.

• Majorities of experienced users in both cities never used marijuana daily or in large amounts even during their periods of peak use, and use declined after those peak periods.

The study found no evidence to support claims that criminalization reduces use or that decriminalization increases use.

“The results of this study shift the burden of proof now to those who would arrest hundreds of thousands of Americans each year on the grounds that it deters use,” said [co-author] Reinarman.

Not to mention justifying the billions in tax dollars it costs to prosecute this war on responsible cannabis consumers.

Cannabis doesn't cause carelessness, people do

I would not hesitate to employ a cannabis consumer to care for my children solely on the basis of private use, however, just as there are alcoholics that neglect their children, there are cannabis consumers who are not responsible parents.

These people for instance, deserve to be locked up and even under a legalized and regulated system, would be criminally accountable for their actions. They are not your typical cannabis consumers but rather the exception to the rule.

bbc.co.uk
U.S. asparagus growers latest victims of drug war

While you're at Drugwar.com be sure to check out Preston's left hand side bar where he posts current news of interest and import. I was glad to be reminded of this story. I saw it somewhere last week but thought it didn't get enough exposure.

The US government started subsidizing asparagus production in Peru with your tax dollars in the early 90s. The prohibitionists sold this program as an alternative development plan for Peruvian coca farmers. It sounds constructive doesn't it?

Of course they forget to mention that asparagus grows at sea level and coca grows in the mountains. The two crops are absolutely unrelated and the program is destroying the US asparagus industry while having no effect on coca cultivation. Numerous U.S. processing plants have closed and hundreds of farmers have folded.

[I]n Washington, about 17,000 acres have been plowed under since 1991, a 55 percent decline in acreage. In Michigan, 300 farmers in his state lost a total of $25 million because of the Peruvian imports.

During the same period, Peruvian asparagus exports to the United States have grown to 110 million pounds from 4 million pounds.

A centuries old tradition of US farming is being destroyed and only multi-national corporations will survive it. Just another example of how our government subverts the free market principles it claims to support.

The asparagus you had for dinner was probably grown in Peru. The cocaine is still coming into the country. Who has benefited here besides Del Monte, who gets a cheap labor force and those who administer and enforce the prohibition?

Steve Bloom, Bobbie Steele, and
DW Editor Preston Peet

It's a Protest, Not a Pot-Fest- MMM 2004

You can count on Preston Peet at Drugwar.com to have the scoop on all major Manhattan marijuana events and of course yesterday's Million Marijuana March in Battery Park is no exception. His account of the day's events along with the fab photos make you feel like you were there yourself.

He reports that the crowd --down a bit from its heyday-- was a respectable 3,000 strong. More heartening was the lack of police intimidation at the event. With the pre-event press promoting this as a political action, not a smoke-out, (although police lined the parade route in force) undercover cops were not cruising the crowd and uniformed presence was negligible. Not to mention that Preston witnessed a small group of tokers being told to put out their blunt but were not arrested.

Haven't heard of anything like that since 1972, when I talked the West Village cop into giving me my car back after it was already hooked to the tow truck.

Friday's Photoblog

So we're a day late with the photoblog because I've been wanting to post that Hopper picture on the post below for a while now. For one thing there's a really funky reproduction that's been hanging in City for many years and secondly, the painting does bear an uncanny resemblance to City -- now Tully O's.

Today's photo is of Monty, a fairly new regular, at least for the after work crowd. Monty is lucky at Keno, he wins at least once a week but he's not such a great pinball player. I challenged him last week and left him eating my dust. I love playing with him though because he's such a good sport and was just as impressed as I was with that killer round of multi-ball that put me over the top in that game.

Meanwhile it's a gorgeous day in the Valley and I'm off for a little road trip this afternoon. I'll be back after dark with more news.

The place formerly known as City Cafe

As predicted by Q crewperson Syn, the town was buzzing early on for the first NRBQ show. Tully O'Reillys was jamming when I got there at 6:00. It turns out Sonic Youth is also reuniting tonight on the other side of town at Smith's John Greene Hall so it's likely to get really lively later on. There's already been one huge rush of police and ambulance sirens earlier. The sidewalk crowds should start around midnight I figure. I'll be glad to watch that from safely on the stoop.

I know about the Sonic Youth gig because I had a great conversation with James, a very polite 23 year old guy from Pennsylvania who came up for the concert. It was odd to hear him speak as he did about bands that I've known only as local groups playing at the Baystate Hotel. I liked the kids in them, but not so much their music, so I lost track of them when they left town. I was surprised to hear they had become so famous.

I was glad to see Louise Driscoll, the former owner, on the way out. She was looking especially stunning in white tonight with that fabulous new tan. We made a date for some girl time. I'm looking forward to catching up on the gossip and to her upcoming party.

Meanwhile I'm especially excited to have a made a real bet on the Kentucky Derby. Mark the bartender is going to the OTB so I gave him five bucks to win on "Read the Footnotes." I'm splitting my winnings with Karen of course, since she gave me the tip. I'd forgotten it was Derby time and I loved the name of the horse. I hope he comes in as a long shot.

Marijuana Users Not Welcome Here; Neither is Anyone Else

Someone tell the Albuquerque police department that the phrase "public park" means a green space open to the public. According to this week's Drug Policy Alliance newsletter, the local police barred public access to the park for the second year in a row on 4/20 in order to prevent a small group of cannabis consumers from celebrating their holiday there.

Two officers on a hilltop surveyed Roosevelt Park with binoculars as five horse-mounted police patrolled its boundaries. Patrol cars lined the park's east and west borders and a mobile command van was parked nearby. Streets were blocked with orange cones.

The residents rightly questioned the expenditure of manpower and public money on such a trivial matter and neighbors accustomed to enjoying the space complained about the park being kept off-limits.

Cora Kammer who lives across the street from the park sums it up well.

"I'd like to cross the street and have lunch under the trees. If they want to prevent people from smoking pot, they can have a police presence. But this is ridiculous."

Indeed it is, particularly since cannabis consumers are good citizens and -- in contrast to drunken revelers after sports events -- do not riot and cause property damage.

cnn.com
Need a Job?

The Marijuana Policy Project is looking to fill some paid positions including:

E-mail petitioning: MPP is paying petitioners $1.00 or $1.25 for each valid e-mail address that they collect from marijuana policy reform supporters on MPP's official petition sheets.

Looks like a good opportunity to help the cause and maybe make a few bucks.

Celebrate Blogging

Running late again this morning, so we'll be looking at the drug war news later this afternoon, but let me take this moment to thank Trudy W. Schuett of WOLves for hosting this week's Carnival of the Vanities. She's got a fabulous site over there for writers looking to connect and promote their work and prolific soul that she is, posts on 6 blogs and has several books posted on line. Check out her stuff and the other fine bloggers at the Carnival.

Oh, and while we're on the subject of blogs, Detroit News has invited me to stay for another month so we'll still be spreading our LOS logic in the midwest through the end of May on our other blog at their site. I see the next two new bloggers are both Bush supporters. Should be interesting.

Dutch authorities oppose tougher cannabis laws

Following up on our earlier story, local authorities are protesting the plans of Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner and Health Minister Hans Hoogervorst, to reclassify Dutch grown cannabis as a hard drug and to otherwise crack down on the cannabis coffeehouses. The Association of Netherlands Municipalities said the move threatens to undermine 30 years worth of successful drugs control.

Lex Estveld, a policy adviser, said the government was trying to fix a system that was not broken. "The entire Dutch drugs policy of controlling and containing soft drugs has proven reasonably successful in recent decades. If you ask me, we haven't done bad when you compare us to other countries," he said yesterday.

In a joint statement 483 municipalities said the proposed measures would force the marijuana business underground.

"The tone of the letter is too influenced by foreign [opinions] and gives insufficient credit to the successes of local coffee shop policies," said the statement. "Concentrating the trade in soft drugs at coffee shops has the clear benefit of making it transparent and controllable."

Fortunately coffeeshop policy is controlled by local officials, not these meddling federal officials.

Meanwhile in Haarlem, Holland -- the city with the most cannabis friendly regulations in the country, Dutch coffeeshop guru Nol Van Schaik, says his Willie Wortels shops are flooded with customers and that high-THC Dutch cannabis is actually a harm reduction method that helps people get higher by smoking less, and that he and other coffeeshop owners will never accept a system that features testing of cannabis and bans on potent products.

Last word on the subject goes to Nol, who remarks on the influence the US and the United Nations with their absurd conventions is having on the conservative Dutch officials who are promoting this counterproductive scheme.

"They want to end the coffeeshop system which has become the model for cannabis use and distribution worldwide," he says. "But demand for cannabis is more and more, and if they eliminate shops, they will only create a black market dominated by organized crime that will mix the sales of cannabis with sales of hard drugs. Our coffeeshop system is the best system for managing the supply and demand of cannabis."

Amen to that.

cannabisculture.com
Pot Block fire officially confirmed as arson

Updating our earlier story on the burning of Vancouver B.C.'s pot block, it appears our suspicions were correct.

"Police have found conclusive evidence that someone intended to torch the pot block with multiple set infernos," said Marc Emery, President of the BC Marijuana Party and the unofficial leader of Vancouver's pot movement.

The building housing Blunt Brothers Cafe was completely destroyed but Emery's BC Marijuana Party headquarters right next door although damaged was left essentially intact. Clean up proceeds apace and the store will be having a huge sale on all clothing once it's returned from the dry cleaner's to remove the smoky smell. These are likely to become collector's items for having survived the fire.

"We have suffered costs of about $10,000 or more," concluded Emery. "But we have received $520 US in donations through Paypal, thanks to all who donated! The key thing is that nothing about our activism is in any way changed or adversely affected. We have survived!"

Survived indeed and stronger than ever. Nothing like a little adversity to bring people together. We'll be watching to see if they see a spike in membership born of outrage over this dangerous and mean-spirited attempt to silence Emery's group.

usatoday.com
GAO Green-Lights White House Interference in Elections

I'm running really late this morning so with apologies to those who are following both blogs, I going to cross-post this item on Dan Forbes excellent article, to be sure no one misses it.

The law of our country prohibits the use of "official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election." Nonetheless the General Accounting Office of the White House told drug czar John Walters he can campaign at will under ONDCP's congressional mandate of "taking such actions as necessary to oppose any attempt to legalize" drugs. They don't even care if he tells the truth.

The Office of Special Counsel ruled that ballot initiatives don't fall under Hatch Act restrictions on using an official position for electioneering; leaving the drug czar free to spend your tax dollars traveling around the country denouncing initiatives brought forward by the taxpayers. Their reasoning being -- since no person is actually elected, a ballot initiative is not an election, despite the thousands of citizens who show up at the polls to cast a vote.

Our government has already spent 2 billion of your tax dollars on this ad campaign . Money that could be spent on schools instead of lame commercials that don't work. Your elected members of the House have now authorized another 2 billion to cover false propaganda expenses through 2008. It's currently stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Don't think you're safe just because you don't care about drug policy reform. When they're done with us -- they will be coming after you. Contact your senators and tell them not to fund this exercise in anti-democracy. There's only two and you can find them in two clicks here.

Via Lew Rockwell, Dan Forbes examines this subversion of the public's will --paid for by our own money-- in painful detail. Keep reading to the end no matter how much it hurts. It's worth it.

Federal Judge refuses to order drug tests for marijuana defendant

The residual effects of the 9th Circuit's precedent setting decision in Raich v. Ashcroft continue to ripple through the legal system. U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward M. Chen cited the case and noted that under the precedent, "courts must "tread very lightly" on medical marijuana issues."

Convicted of marijuana cultivation, Keith Alden was sentenced in December 2002 to 44 months in federal prison, but he went free April 1 after a panel of three 9th Circuit judges -- citing the Raich ruling -- ordered him freed pending an appeal of his conviction. He's the first person released from prison due to the ruling.

I love this kind of talk from the bench. It almost makes you want to move to California doesn't it?

media.canada.com
A bad trip in NYC

Do these two look like dangerous deviants to you? Or even like someone who would be smoking pot in Central Park?

I don't think so either but that didn't stop Manhattan undercover officers from wrongfully arresting them, beating them up, strip searching them and holding them incommunicado for 24 hours for allegedly consuming cannabis in public. They could never sell this story to Hollywood. No one would believe it could happen in America.

Mr. Dehler, showing photos of his bruised face, said he was given a cursory medical examination by ambulance attendants five hours after his arrest and put into a cell with people smoking crack cocaine.

Ms. Gudz spent the night in a cell with 15 women -- and three mats.

"You don't go to sleep," she said.

Justice was eventually served but how do you compensate these innocent tourists for the injustice they suffered at the hands of our "public protectors?" We often think society has become much too litigious but in this case I hope they file a whopping wrongful arrest suit against the city.

All charges against the couple have been dropped, but the process has left them shaken -- and out $5,000 U.S. in legal fees and travel expenses, an amount equivalent to one-fifth of Mr. Dehler's annual take-home salary.

"I don't drink, I don't smoke, we have an organic garden in the back. We're as clean as they come," said Mr. Dehler. "We met nothing but wonderful people until this incident, and then we thought we were in a bad Hollywood movie."

It gives new meaning to the phrase, "Vacation from Hell."

Judges Against the Drug War

The Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics and the Marijuana Policy Project launched a new website yesterday.

Judges Against the Drug War is a free online database of judicial opinions critical of the government's War on Drugs. These opinions, collected from state and federal jurisdictions since 1970 to the present date, contain first-hand observations of judges presiding over drug cases. The collection is the first of its kind and represents a unique historical record of judicial dissent against national drug policy.

Judges have been forced to impose draconian sentences under mandatory minimums and have witnessed the vindictive use of asset forfeiture for far too many years. Their voices are collectively raised in protest of these inane policies at the site.

This is destined to become an invaluable resource for lawyers, judges and drug policy reform activists everywhere. Please support this fledgling effort.

NRBQ

The Q is in town for a reunion gig. They have been a phenomenon in the Valley for as long as I can remember although I've never seen them live and frankly never really listened to their music. I could not name one of their songs but I did meet the two guys on the left tonight at Tully O'Reilly's (formerly known as City Cafe). I found it charming that they gave me fake names. (I do it myself at times). They called themselves Ed the Idiot Drummer and Jeff.

Their tech Syn, tells me they are in town early for rehearsals and predicts an outrageous weekend for lovely downtown Noho since anyone who has ever played with the band intends to show up in the Happy Valley. They did sell out two shows at the Calvin Theater with no discernible press.

This could become interesting.....

bardu.net
Switzerland: Police officers for decriminalisation

Thanks to Paul von Hartmann for translating this press release.

The Association of Swiss Police Officers (Verband Schweizerischer Polizei Beamter) asked the National Council (Swiss Lower House of Parliament) to support the reform of the narcotics act approved by the Council of States (Upper House of Parliament), that would decriminalize cannabis. The association demanded a "speedy and courageous handling" of the measure and opposed "aggressive publications in the media on addiction and drug issues" intended to persuade the public "that the Swiss drug policy was a failure, that there was a need of more repression even against users."

(Source: http://www.vspb.org)

I love it when law enforcement talks that way.

What Bush doesn't want you to see

I don't understand why people are not more outraged that the 700+ young Americans who died so far are being hauled back into the US in the dark of night like some shameful secret instead of being heralded as returning heros for having given their lives for Bush's vision for Iraqi freedom.

And why do you never see Bush visiting the injured who have been left permanently disabled by his war?

culturefocus.com
Nepal cashes in on cannabis

Nepalese authorities are blaming Maoist insurgents for a resurgence of cannabis cultivation in the country. Although the bulk of the herb is being grown in the mountainous regions where interdiction and eradication is difficult to impossible, the southern provinces also contribute to the crop totals. Further, the wild cannabis that thrives throughout the country is said to be the preferred ingredient used in the production of high grade hash.

Meanwhile, the cultivation of opium poppies is beginning take hold in the rural areas. Although the production is still at low levels in comparison to Afghanistan and Myanmar, authorities are concerned at the pace at which it is increasing.

Long renowned as a hippie haven and home of the legendary Nepalese temple balls, the industry once driven by tourists seeking hash is now underwritten by drug barons and grown for export. Since eradication is too difficult to accomplish in the mountains, the government has focused its efforts on intercepting the shipments in transit.

The Maoists deny they are behind the operations however, it cannot be denied they do nothing to stop it. Interestingly they do actively prohibit drinking.

The Maoists have imposed a ban on use of alcohol in areas under their control. This ban is hugely popular among rural women as it is said to have reduced alcoholism and domestic violence. But such attempts at moral policing do not seem to apply to the cultivation of cannabis.

The UN faults the government for not enacting stringent laws and signing on to their failed international conventions. I say, good for the Nepalese. Clearly they realize that the conventions will not work. Perhaps they will also come to realize the benefit to the country that would come if they legalize the trade.

Big Bust in Saudi Arabia

Five tons (11,464 pounds) of hashish was intercepted en route to a warehouse in the Riyadh region. Eleven people were arrested in what Saudi authorities are calling the kingdom’s largest ever drug bust.

They better find some good lawyers, since under Islamic law (or sharia), convicted drug traffickers can face beheading.

mapinc.org
Pot block burns in B.C.

There was a major fire yesterday at the historic Gastown building in Vancouver, B.C. that housed the offices of Pot-TV. Blunt Brothers Bar and Cabbage and
Kinx – were destroyed while Marc Emery's BC Marijuana Party bookstore along with The Urban Shaman and B.C. Marijuana Party offices sustained heavy heat and water damage.

All told the damage is likely to run up to $25,000. Since no company would underwrite a policy, the building was uninsured, nonetheless Emery vows to reopen. If you can help, donations can be sent to the POT-TV or the BC Marijuana Party at 307 W. Hastings, Vancouver, B.C., V6B 1H6 as well as via PayPal to
marc@cannabisculture.com.

Early reports indicate the fire started in a dumpster behind the bookstore. No one is saying but considering Marc's high profile on the legalization of cannabis and the recent opening of a DEA office in British Columbia, this writer finds the circumstances extremely suspicious.

Updates to follow as they become available.

umm.edu
Long Term Care: Take two aspirin and call me in 25 years

Following up on our earlier story about Richard Paey, the wheel-chair bound MS sufferer who procured pain medication for himself when no doctor would treat him; Jacob Sullum has an excellent piece on his sentencing.

Despite never having sold one pill to anyone, Paey received 25 years in jail under mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines for drug trafficking. It took prosecutors three tries to convict him and it appears they finally won a conviction by misleading the jury (with the help of the foreman) into thinking Paey would receive probation in lieu of incarceration.

A juror later told the St. Petersburg Times he did not really think Paey was guilty of trafficking, since the prosecution made it clear from the outset that he didn't sell any pills. The juror said he voted guilty to avoid being the lone holdout. He suggested that other jurors might have voted differently if the foreman had not assured them Paey would get probation.

Paey being a man of integrity, turned down plea bargains that would have kept him out of prison.

Paey's real crime, it seems, is not drug trafficking but ingratitude. "My husband was so adamant, and so strongly defending this from the very beginning, that it might have annoyed them," says Linda Paey. "They were extremely upset that he would not accept a plea bargain. They felt that anyone who had any common sense would....But he didn't want to say he was guilty of something he didn't do."

It appears to me, the only crime Richard Paey committed was being too honest a man. Hats off to his bravery in following his principles and throwing his fate to a "jury of his peers". It's a shame they didn't show his kind of courage and refuse to convict him on such obviously false charges.

One can only hope the next time that juror -- or any one of us who is called to duty-- is faced with holding up the deliberations by following his principles, he won't worry about embarrassment and will cast his vote for justice instead of expediency.

gardeningcd.com
Farm fresh spread

Latvian farmer Dainis Lagzdins is a man with a plan. Using centuries-old recipe he wants to start marketing cannabis butter, which he calls a "miracle of taste and flavor," to the world.

The butter is made using soaked, roasted and milled cannabis seed, contains no milk proteins, or cholesterol, can be stored for half a year and is also a natural antioxidant. Unfortunately, although the nutritional value of cannabis seeds is well established, the dark green butter has about as much chance of making to US store shelves as Kdrink does under our current prohibitionist regime.

Too bad since Lagzdins does make it sound appealing.

"I love it, especially like my grandma used to make," he said. "Mmm, the taste is heavenly."