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.
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.
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.
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.
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."
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.
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?
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 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.
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.
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."
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.
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.
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.
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."
"The advantages of river and wind transport were obvious in ages when transport otherwise meant the pace of men and beasts of burden."
Insight Guides: Waterways of Europe, APA Publications, 1989
1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 23.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
Friday's Photoblog
The place formerly known as City Cafe
Marijuana Users Not Welcome Here; Neither is Anyone Else
Need a Job?
Dutch authorities oppose tougher cannabis laws
Pot Block fire officially confirmed as arson
GAO Green-Lights White House Interference in Elections
Federal Judge refuses to order drug tests for marijuana defendant
A bad trip in NYC
Judges Against the Drug War
NRBQ
Switzerland: Police officers for decriminalisation
What Bush doesn't want you to see
Nepal cashes in on cannabis
Pot block burns in B.C.
Long Term Care: Take two aspirin and call me in 25 years
Farm fresh spread
