Pubdate: Fri, 19 Dec 2008 Source: DrugSense Weekly (DSW) Website: http://www.drugsense.org NOTE: DrugSense Weekly will mark the festive season by taking next week off, but we will return with a new edition Jan. 2. The DrugSense staff wishes holiday happiness to all our readers as well as the generous volunteers and contributors who make this work possible. HOT OFF THE 'NET - ------------------ MORE 10TH-GRADERS ARE SMOKING MARIJUANA THAN CIGARETTES By Aaron Houston, AlterNet A new survey reveals 13% of 10th-graders reported smoking marijuana in the past 30 days, while just 12.3 smoked cigarettes. http://drugsense.org/url/thHLC7GO - ------------------ COULD OBAMA'S PRO-MARIJUANA COMMERCE SECRETARY SPELL A GOLDEN ERA FOR POT REFORM? By Scott Thill, AlterNet. Posted December 18, 2008. Bill Richardson believes we need to "rethink and decriminalize" our cannabis laws. Now that he's in office, he has the chance to achieve it. http://drugsense.org/url/YJouW4au - ------------------ CALIFORNIA COPS TO DEA - HELP US UNDERMINE STATE LAW By Jacob Sullum Perusing material submitted by the DEA in response to a query from House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, marijuana reform activist Dale Gieringer catches the California Police Chiefs Association actively subverting state law. http://www.reason.com/blog/show/130638.html - ------------------ GOVERNOR PATERSON'S HOLIDAY RESCUE MISSION By Anthony Papa Just about this time last year I wrote to Governor Elliot Spitzer asking him to go on a personal rescue mission and grant clemency to a large number of Rockefeller Drug Law offenders who have fully rehabilitated themselves and already served enormous amounts of time behind bars under the draconian provisions of mandatory-minimum sentencing. http://drugsense.org/url/ltUsxOzK - ------------------ FEDERAL DRUG THREAT ASSESSMENT FINDS PROHIBITION GREATEST DRUG-RELATED MENACE Well, not in so many words. But anyone reading between the lines of the National Drug Intelligence Center's National Drug Threat Assessment 2009 could easily come to that conclusion. http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/565/national_drug_threat_assessment_2009 - ------------------ WHY HARM REDUCTION MAKES SENSE By Stanton Peele These Three Things I Know are True http://drugsense.org/url/4rvHwykL - ------------------ DRUG TRUTH NETWORK Cultural Baggage Radio Show - 12/17/08 - Neill Franklin Neill Franklin, working Baltimore cop with more than 32 years experience and a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=node/2177 Century of Lies - 12/16/08 - Vikki Hankins Vikki Hankins who served 18 years behind bars for crack cocaine + Neal Peirce of the Washington Post http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=node/2176 - ------------------ CALLS FOR DRUG LAW REFORM TOP OBAMA TRANSITION WEBSITE AT CHANGE.GOV By Amy Long President-elect Barack Obama offered Americans a unique opportunity to directly relay their concerns to the incoming administration when his change.gov website unveiled its "Open for Questions" tool late last week. The result of that tool's first round of voting may have surprised Obama and his staff: two of the top ten questions - -including the highest ranking question - concerned marijuana policy and questions that challenged the drug war in general took 16 of the top 50 spots. http://blog.aclu.org/author/along/ - ------------------ WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK - ------------------ SUPPORT DRUGSENSE AND THE MEDIA AWARENESS PROJECT With only a two weeks left in 2008, please make your year-end donation to DrugSense RIGHT NOW! Tax rules may well change with the new Congress, so don't forget that your contribution to DrugSense is tax deductible today. http://drugsense.org/donate/ - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake