'A slice through the politics and policies with regard to cannabis from accross the Globe, a sideways swipe at grass stupidity and the hidden agendas with a political slant, cannabis politics with a whiff of the of hypocrisy, cannabis politics of the Christian right,cannabis politics of the far left, read on......

 

'I got a problem with that as a Canadian'
Cnews.canoe.ca
Camille Bains
September 30th 2005

Vancouver (CP)> A private citizen says he's filing charges Friday against pot activist Marc Emery and two of his associates, partly because that will throw a wrench into the United States' plans to extradite the trio to face drug charges in that country. "If he gets charged in Canada that will have major legal consequences for that extradition request," said David McCann, a local philanthropist and businessman. McCann said he has hired prominent lawyer Peter Leask in filing three charges of conspiracy under the Controlled Drugs and Substance Act and the Criminal Code of Canada. Canada has been hypocritical in allowing Emery to sell marijuana seeds and collecting thousands of dollars in taxes while the city of Vancouver gave him a business licence for his pot paraphernalia store, he said, Full Problem....

'criminalise New Zealanders'
Stuff.co.nz
September 28th 2005

A political party that wants cannabis legalised has written to caretaker prime minister Helen Clark urging her not to sign deals with United Future or New Zealand First. The Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party, which got 0.23 per cent of the vote - 4609 votes - on election night, said yesterday that renewing the agreement with United Future or making one with NZ First would "block cannabis law reform". Party leader Michael Appleby listed a range of reasons why this should not happen, including that it was "inhumane" to continue to prosecute and criminalise New Zealanders for cannabis use when more than half the population had tried it. In a letter to Miss Clark, Mr Appleby said decriminalisation would eventually happen and his party was asking the prime minister to "stop this pain now".

 

'A Rethink'
Rxpgnews.com
September 28th 2005

“Cannabis is still seen as a risk-free drug despite mounting evidence that it can lead to serious mental health problems, particularly amongst young teenagers, people with a family history of severe mental illness and in long-term users.” The mental healthy charity Rethink on September 23 gave evidence to the Advisory Council on the Mis-use of Drugs, which is considering the classification of cannabis at the request of the Home Secretary and called for a long-term, properly funded public health campaign highlighting the mental health dangers of using cannabis. It warned the committee that it would be a waste of money to reverse its decision taken 18 months ago to reclassify cannabis from a Class B to Class C drug and would not deter people from using it. Instead, the charity called for the money to be spent on a massive public education campaign to inform users and potential users of the well-founded mental health dangers of using cannabis at a young age and over a long period of time. More Sensible Thinking...

 

'over a ton of Cannabis'
Aawsat.com
Abdullah El Hosny
September 27th 2005

Dammam, Asharq Al-Awsat- The Anti-Narcotics Department at King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh arrested a group of drug traffickers and seized a large container with over a ton of Cannabis, Asharq Al-Awsat has learned. Authorities were alerted about the Cannabis shipment, which had recently arrived from the city of Dammam in the Eastern Province after receiving an anonymous "tip off". The source revealed to the Anti-Narcotics Department that a group of individuals would be arriving at King Khaled International Airport with a very large shipment of Cannabis. The Drug traffickers had planed on storing the drugs in a safe location before distributing the illegal substance all across the Kingdom. Full Shipment.....

 

Cannabis in Canadian drugstores by 2006
LifeSiteNews.com
September 26th 2005

Ottawa > A plan to sell pot through pharmacies in Canada is back, with intended sales starting in early 2006.Canada once again follows on the Netherlands heels, with medicinal marijuana being stocked by some pharmacies for the use of authorized patients. The first drugstores to carry the drug will be in British Columbia, with the remainder of the country following suit by 2008. Health Canada currently authorizes 943 people nation-wide to make use of the drug; 237 access pot through Prairie Plant Systems, while the remainder grow their own. More...

Cannabis rethink 'unworkable'
Independent.co.uk
Sophie Goodchild
September 25th 2005

Drug experts will advise ministers that there should be no reversal of the downgrading of cannabis from a class B to a class C drug following claims that it is linked with mental illness. Members of the Advisory Council on Drugs (ACMD) are understood to have ruled out a change after hearing evidence from cannabis users as well as police and drugs charities. The ACMD met yesterday and on Friday in response to a request from Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, to reassess the dangers of the drug. This followed the recent publication of studies which associated cannabis with "psychotic" symptoms
The drug advisers were also asked to provide guidance on a higher classification for skunk - a more potent form of cannabis - but it is understood that members of the ACMD think this would be unworkable, Full Rethink.........

 

Cannabis classification reviewed
Mirror.co.uk
September 24th 2005

The Government's drugs advisory panel is meeting to discuss whether the downgrading of cannabis should be reversed in the light of research suggesting a link with mental illness. Home Secretary Charles Clarke asked the independent advisers to reassess the dangers of the drug in March, highlighting recent studies associating its use with "psychotic symptoms". He asked for particular guidance on the Dutch government's plans to introduce a higher classification for more potent types of dope, known as skunk. Former home secretary David Blunkett downgraded the drug from Class B to Class C - placing it alongside steroids and some prescription anti-depressants - in January last year, Full Review......

 

'with intent to supply'
Dailymail.co.uk
September 23rd 2005

A grandmother who advocates cooking with cannabis must wait another two months to hear if she must go before the courts again for cultivating the drug. Patricia Tabram, 66, answered bail at Hexham police station, Northumberland, and emerged 90 minutes later after she was re-bailed. The grey-haired pensioner was arrested last week at her home in the quiet village of Humshaugh, near Hexham. Police recovered plants at her home, which they told her needed further analysis. Outside the police station, she said: "Anyone who knows anything about cannabis knows it [the plants] is cannabis, but they said they need proof." In April the grandmother-of-two received a six-month jail sentence, suspended for two years, after she admitted possessing cannabis with intent to supply, Full Harm.....

 

Marijuana: The Myths Are Killing Us
Karen P. Tandy
September 22nd 2005

The scientific and medical communities have determined that smoked marijuana is a health danger, not a cure. There is no medical evidence that smoking marijuana helps patients. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved no medications that are smoked, primarily because smoking is a poor way to deliver medicine. Morphine, for example has proven to be a medically valuable drug, but the FDA does not endorse smoking opium or heroin. Congress enacted laws against marijuana in 1970 based in part on its conclusion that marijuana has no scientifically proven medical value, which the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed more than 30 years later in United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative, et al., 532 U.S. 483 (2001). Marijuana remains in schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act because it has a high potential for abuse, a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision, and no currently accepted medical value. The American Medical Association has rejected pleas to endorse marijuana as medicine, and instead urged that marijuana remain a prohibited schedule 1 drug at least until the results of controlled studies are in. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society stated that studies done to date "have not provided convincing evidence that marijuana benefits people with MS" and does not recommend it as a treatment.
The British Medical Association has taken a similar position, voicing "extreme concern" that downgrading the criminal status of marijuana would "mislead" the public into thinking that the drug is safe to use when, "in fact, it has been linked to greater risk of heart disease, lung cancer, bronchitis, and emphysema, Full Myth............

 

'I would say it would be ridiculous to try'
Guardian.co.uk
Alan Travis
September 21st 2005

 

Senior police officers fear that the government is to use Dutch concerns over high-strength "skunk" to reverse the decision to relax the laws on possession of all types of cannabis.
The government's expert committee on drug abuse will meet at the end of the week to consider a request from the home secretary, Charles Clarke, that it look again at last year's decision to downgrade cannabis from class B to class C in the light of new studies linking long-term use with mental health problems. Mr Clarke has also asked the Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs to look at whether higher-strength, or "skunk", cannabis should separately be regarded as a class B drug. Possession of a class B drug means automatic arrest and charge, while class C drugs can be dealt with by a warning on the street and confiscation.Full Ridicule...

 

Cannabis granny faces jail for 4 pot plants
Timesonline.co.uk
Philippe Naughton
September 20th 2005:


Patricia Tabram, a cannabis-growing grandmother, said today that she expects to be sent to jail after police discovered four marijuana plants in her home. The 66-year-old, who says that she is "medicating" friends who are sick or in pain because conventional medicines do not work, compared herself to Emmeline Pankhurst, the pioneering suffragist, saying she was willing to face her fate.
Mrs Tabram was given a six-month prison term, suspended for two years, in April when she admitted possessing cannabis with intent to supply from her home in East Lea, in Humshaugh, near Hexham, Northumberland..Acting on a tip-off, Northumbria police raided her bungalow last week and found the illegal plants. A spokeswoman said: "As a result of information received, we executed a warrant at an address in the Hexham area on the morning of Friday, September 16. A 66-year-old Hexham woman was arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis and bailed pending further inquiries." Full Farce....

Crushing Defeat For "Moral Right" Nice..
Press Release: NORML
September 19th 2005:

The election result has put cannabis law reform back on the agenda, says Chris Fowlie, President of the National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "A hugely expensive campaign to knock the Greens out of Parliament, run by the Exclusive Brethren, was a flop. The so-called "Moral Right" made stopping cannabis law reform a big issue, and they failed dismally," he said. Mr Fowlie pointed to the "desperate efforts" by the smaller parties, especially NZ First and United Future/Outdoor recreation, to pick up votes by promising to stop any cannabis law changes. "Prohibition does more harm than good, but these small parties are only interested in playing on the fears of parents for political gain, Full Moral Outrage.....

Is your neighbour a pot farmer?
Edmontonjournal
Gordon Kent
September 18th 2005:

 

Police will enlist public to fight grow-ops
Homes to get brochure on spotting pot operations. An Edmonton task force fighting marijuana grow-ops plans to mail brochures to every home in the city explaining how people can recognize indoor cannabis cultivators. "It happens in every neighbourhood in the city," said John Hall, marketing manager for the Edmonton Real Estate Board, on Friday. "It doesn't just happen in run-down neighbourhoods or old neighbourhoods." Real estate agents are part of the Edmonton Stop Marijuana Grow-Ops Coalition along with such organizations as police, Capital Health and utility companies, Hall said."There's a health and safety if a realtor stumbles on a grow-op," he said. "These people are criminals, Full Crime..............

 

'death by hanging'
Thejakartapost.com
September 17th 2005:

Kuala Lumpur > A Malaysian court has sentenced an Indonesian man to death by hanging for trafficking cannabis, local media said Saturday. Mardani Hussin, 29, a laborer from Aceh province, Indonesia, had entered Malaysia without a valid permit in April 2002 and committed the offense six months later, the national Bernama news agency said. "Many of your fellow countrymen came here to earn a proper living," High Court judge Abdull Hamid Embong was quoted as telling him. "I am sure they are ashamed of your act." Mardani was charged with trafficking 927 grams of cannabis in the capital on October 22, 2002. He was riding on a motorcycle when he was stopped by police who searched him and seized a parcel with the drug. Drug-trafficking in Malaysia carries a mandatory death penalty, and the country has executed 229 people for the offense in the past 30 years

 

'described as a "big smile"
Telegram.com
September 16th 2005:

Eugene, Ore.> A bicyclist was arrested on drug possession charges this week after a police officer caught sight of him pedaling away with three uprooted marijuana plants under his arm. Police spotted Dwayne Earl Anthony Etzel, 18, cycling in the early evening Monday with what they described as a "big smile" on his face."I see this guy riding up the street with what looked like a big old bush under his arm," said Eugene Narcotics Detective Scott Vinje. "It didn't click right away that it was marijuana. Then I smelled it." Eztel is in the Lane County Jail on charges of burglary, drug possession, criminal mischief, escape and trespassing. When police tried to stop him, Eztel allegedly threw the marijuana plants at the officer's car and pedaled off. After catching up with him, the officer used pepper spray to get the cyclist under control. Around the time of the arrest, a local man called 911 to report that his medical marijuana plants had been stolen, Nah...

'seizures in Scotland on the rise'
Scotsman.com
Michael Howie
September 15th 2005:

Drug seizures in Scotland rose by 46 per cent between 2000 and 2003, according to Home Office figures released yesterday. Statistics for 2003 show a rise in seizures of 8 per cent over the previous 12 months. Almost four-fifths involved cannabis, while 19 per cent were to do with class A drugs - four per cent down on 2002. A total of 7,100 people were convicted in 2003, up 22 per cent on the year before. The Scottish Executive said the increase in the number of seizures was encouraging. Hugh Henry, the deputy justice minister, said: "The 46 per cent increase in the number of drug seizures between 2000 and 2003 is evidence of the Scottish police, Full Rise............

 

'led into courtroom in leg shackles'
Theglobeandmail.com
Canadian Press
September 14th 2005:

Fredericton > With her infant son sleeping by her side, Lynn Wood does not fit the stereotype of a convicted drug trafficker. Ms. Wood, owner of the now-closed Cannabis Café in Saint John, was led into a Fredericton courtroom in leg shackles on Tuesday as she appeared for an appeal of her one-year conviction for trafficking in marijuana. Following her was her husband, Jim Wood, carrying their one-month old baby, Jimmy, in an infant carrier.The judges gave Ms. Wood a four-month extension on her bail, so she is free at least until January, when the Court of Appeal will hear arguments against her conviction and sentence. Ms. Wood, the mother of four children, Full Tale....

 

'guinniodic cannabinoids' cancer cure?
Israeltoday.co.il
September 13th 2005:

While there is still no real cure for cancer, every day researchers move a step closer to finding that cure. Twenty-five-year old Natalya Kogan, a Ph.D. candidate at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, working under the supervision of Prof. Raphael Meshulam, recently proved that extract from the cannabis plant is able to help heal cancer within the organism. Kogan, who immigrated from the Ukraine 10 years ago, developed a new compound known as guinniodic cannabinoids, which is similar to several anti-cancer medications such as Daunomycin. Whereas Daunomycin produces negative side effects in the heart, Kogan’s tests have proven the new compound to be much less harmful, even reducing the volume of cancer, which it did during animal testing More............

 

'lone special agent cannot be identified'
Los Angeles Times
Joe Robinson
September 12th 2005:

Los Angeles > Famed for having the biggest trees in the world, Sequoia National Park is now number one in another flora department: marijuana growing, with more land carved up by pot growers than any other park.
Parts of Sequoia, including the Kaweah River drainage and areas off Mineral King Road, are no-go zones for visitors and park rangers during the April-to-October growing season, when drug lords cultivate pot on an agribusiness-scale fit for California's Central Valley.
''It's so big that we have to focus our resources on one or two areas at a time, because otherwise it's beyond our scope," says Sequoia's lone special agent assigned to the marijuana war, who, for his own safety, cannot be identified, Full Tale.......

 

 

'improved aerial surveillance'
News.com.aus
Paul Weston
September 11th 2005

Gold coast drug gangs are gutting suburban houses and building massive rural sheds to grow their marijuana as the hide-and-seek battle with police intensifies. Improved aerial surveillance has forced growers to abandon massive outdoor crops and move indoors where they are using sophisticated hydroponic techniques to grow super-strength cannabis. Police say gangs are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on properties and equipment. In some cases, interior walls of homes as well as furniture and fittings are being removed to maximise the growing area under special intense lighting and temperature controls, More Surveillance..........

 

'it's like the weed culture'
News.com.au
September 11th 2005:

Tommy Chong has spent almost three decades wringing laughs from cigar-sized joints and smoke-filled vans but now a nine-month jail term has turned him serious and revitalised his flagging career.Promoting his documentary, a/k/a Tommy Chong, at the Toronto International Film Festival, he hopes the film will expose what he says is the US government's heavy-handed dealing with marijuana offenders in the post-September 11 era. "The United States is under martial law, it's under dictatorship", the 67-year-old father of four said in an interview. The film chronicles the Canadian-born comedian's 2003 arrest and imprisonment for selling drug paraphernalia online to an undercover US drug enforcement agent. The bust was part of a sting operation known as Operation Pipe Dreams, which the film likens to a witch hunt by former US Attorney-General John Ashcroft following claims that drug trafficking financed terrorist activities, More Culture.........

.

'according to policemen'
En.rian.ru/russia
September 10th 2005:

Moscow> September 10th (RIA Novosti) Police in the east of a southern Russian republic, Ingushetia, have discovered a large cannabis plantation, the republic's Interior Ministry said Friday. The ministry said the plantation covered more than a hectare. "According to policemen, more than 8,000 plants were growing in the field. The total weight of the drug after harvesting would have been about three metric tons," a ministry source said. A large amount of ammunition for small arms was also found near the field. An investigation is under way.

'fresh thinking and a new approach'
The Independent
Marie Woolf
September 9th 2005

Tory contender calls for more liberal drug laws. David Cameron, the Tory leadership contender, believes the UN should consider legalising drugs and wants hard-core addicts to be provided with legal "shooting galleries" and state-prescribed heroin.
He also supported calls for ecstasy to be downgraded from the class-A status it shares with cocaine and heroin and said it would be "disappointing" if radical options on the law on cannabis were not looked at. His remarks will shock many Tories MPs who have traditionally taken a hard line on drug possession and use. The leadership contender said he favoured " fresh thinking and a new approach" towards drugs policy and said "we have to let 1,000 flowers bloom and look at all sort of different treatment models" for heroin addicts. Ann Widdecombe, the former Home Office minister who is supporting Kenneth Clarke for the Tory leadership, criticised Mr Cameron's views and said that legalising drugs would only encourage use.should be done. He is saying options should be considered. Below "Leadership contenders' views >

 

AstraZeneca is developing new painkilling drugs which have the same effect in the body as cannabis.
The drugs produce their anaesthetising effects for a long time, and do not lose their effectiveness when taken repeatedly, unlike the common pain reliever morphine. The company gave the news as it updated investors on its early-stage drug development. After a series of setbacks with new drugs, the company said it could be producing two new potential drugs every year, Full Setback.....

 

Cannabis use drops after reclassification
Www.statistics.gov.uk
September 8th 2005:

The use of cannabis among 11- to 15-year-olds has dropped since the Government reclassified the drug in January last year, according to the first comprehensive figures released since the change.
The Department of Health’s annual Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2004 report shows that the number of young people who have taken cannabis in the past year has fallen to 11 per cent, down from 13 per cent for the previous three years. A spokeswoman for drugs education charity DrugScope said the drop may be partly because of publicity caused by reclassifying cannabis as a class C rather than a class B drug. “Drug use has been fairly stable among this age group for a couple of years,” she said. “It is the first drop that we have seen, which is really positive.”
Overall drug use was also down slightly, from 21 per cent in 2003 to 18 per cent in 2004. The number of young people who were regular smokers remained stable at about nine per cent, and the number who had drunk alcohol in the past week fell from 25 per cent to 23 per cent. The researchers received responses from 9,715 young people, from 313 schools across England.

Worldwide protest against War on Drugs
NORML:Press Release:
September 7th 2005

Smokeout America: Worldwide protest this Saturday against the US and it's War on Drugs. Marijuana law reform activists around the world will protest this Saturday 10th September against the US Government's moves to extradite Canadian Marijuana Party leader Marc Emery, and are seeking an assurance from the New Zealand Government that it would not export our local pot growers to languish in American jails. "Emery, a Canadian citizen, was arrested in Canada at the behest of the US Drug Enforcement Administration. He is under threat of extradition and could potentially be sentenced to death or life imprisonment if convicted in an American court," said NORML spokesperson Chris Fowlie, Emery is a high profile advocate for ending the War on Drugs and legalising cannabis. He is the leader of the BC Marijuana Party, and operated a mail order cannabis seed business in Vancouver, using the profits to support marijuana law challenges, medical marijuana patients, rehab programs, political campaigns and anti-drug war educational programs. Full War....

 

'Republicans' ultimate fantasy'
Collegian.com
September 6th 2005:

The passing of Supreme Court Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist over the weekend has left another vacancy to be filled in the nation's highest court. In the wake of Rehnquist's death, President Bush has decided to nominate former U.S. Circuit Judge John Roberts to fill the vacated chief justice seat. The president previously chose Roberts as a replacement for retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Democrats' worst nightmare as well as Republicans' ultimate fantasy is now being played out. Bush now not only has the chance to fill two vacancies within the court, but also to set its direction and leading voice for decades to come.It is imperative that Americans receive a complete picture of the man who could potentially decide on the issues of abortion, gun control, gay marriage and medicinal marijuana in the years to come, Full Fantasy........

 

'160 million marijuana users'
Zenit.org
September 4th 2005:

Stockholm> Sweden: SEPT. 3rd 2005 (Zenit.org).- Around 200 million people have used drugs at some point in the last 12 months. This was one of the findings presented June 29 in the 2005 World Drug Report, issued by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. The UNODC report, which covers data up to 2003, estimates that there are 160 million marijuana users. The number of those using amphetamines and ecstasy, termed as ATS users by the report, is 26 million and 8 million, respectively. The number of opiate users is estimated to be around 16 million. Cocaine users number almost 14 million. Although countries indicating rising levels of drug consumption continue to outnumber those with falling levels of drug use, the proportions have shifted in recent years in a slightly more positive direction. In 2000, 53% of all reporting countries saw rising levels of drug use. This fell to 44% in 2003, Full Use.........

 

'determined by political motives'
Theage.com.au
September 3rd 2005:

A leading Victorian drug health expert has accused the State Government of discriminating against rural areas most in need, claiming drug program funding is being determined by political motives.
"Major programs are funded in politically sensitive electorates > Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, where there are marginal seats," says Rodger Brough, director of South West Healthcare. Areas such as Gippsland, the Western District, Mildura and Horsham were ignored and suffered a dearth of services, said Dr Brough, who is also on the management committee of the Western Region Alcohol and Drug Centre. They say a lack of research also masks the extent of drug abuse, predominantly cannabis and amphetamines, in the regions, and its damaging social impact on communities, Full Motive.....

 

'pot-friendly campus'
Heraldtribune.com
Steve Echeverria jr
September 2nd 2005:

Dude, New College of Florida ranks No. 7 on High Times magazine's list of the nation's most pot-friendly schools in the magazine's October 2005 issue.Defenders say the list is just blowing smoke.
The news comes as a bummer to some students and administrators who say the marijuana magazine's ranking and the accompanying infamy reinforces the stereotype of New College students as spaced-out hippies walking around barefoot.It also clouds the school's academic accomplishments, they say. High Times editor Steve Bloom said the magazine looked favorably on New College's top-quality academic programs, vibrant student life and easy availability of on-campus herb. Full Times........

 

'anti-social behaviour' who's?
Bbc.co.uk
September 1st 2005:

 

Police in West Sussex are continuing their efforts to have a so-called cannabis cafe in Worthing closed down.Three people were arrested and bailed on suspicion of supplying a controlled drug after 40 officers raided the premises in Victoria Road on 11 August. A large amount of what was believed to have been cannabis was seized, but the cafe has since reopened. Ch Insp Jason Taylor said they were working with the local authority on finding ways of shutting it down. "The anti-social behaviour act gives powers to the police to close premises for Class A supply, so Class C is much more difficult," he said."Nevertheless we are working with other partners including the local authority who have a wider array of powers that the police don't have."We're looking at those and we're working together to see what we can do to close the premises."Sussex Police said the raid was carried out following a number of complaints from the public about anti-social behaviour.

 

 

 

 

 

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