Stepped-Up Patrols Credited for Decline Even as rampant drug-related killings continue in Mexico, intensified U.S. efforts to prevent the violence from spilling across the border are succeeding, according to federal data and law enforcement officials. Murders in key U.S. border cities dropped in the first half of 2009, new FBI crime data show, and some law enforcement officials say that trend is continuing. Although 1,000 people were slain in the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez in the first six months of 2009, according to the U.S. State Department, neighboring El Paso had four murders. That's two fewer than the six-month total in 2008, FBI data show. [continues 361 words]
Marijuana Is Basically Harmless -- The Monumentally Stupid Drug War Is Not The War on Marijuana Is Insane; Our Officials Keep Sacrificing Tax Dollars, Lives, Civil Liberties, and Their Own Credibility in This Misguided and Losing Effort. You might remember Robert McNamara's stunning mea culpa, delivered a quarter century after his Vietnam War policies sent some 50,000 Americans (and even more horrendous numbers of Vietnamese) to their deaths in that disastrous war. In his 1995 memoir, the man who had been a cold, calculating secretary of defense for both Kennedy and Johnson belatedly confessed that he and other top officials had long known that the war was an unwinnable, ideologically driven mistake. "We were wrong," he wrote, almost tearfully begging in print for public forgiveness. "We were terribly wrong." [continues 2759 words]
Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson has favored legalization of marijuana since he held office before Bill Richardson. Johnson, a Republican, was an advocate for drug policy reform and decriminalization of marijuana while he served as governor from 1994 to 2002. Johnson and former U.S. Marshall Matthew Fogg will speak in the Lobo Room of the SUB at 7 p.m. today. Possibly related: The event is sponsored by the New Mexico branch of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and the UNM chapter of Students for a Sensible Drug Policy. [continues 547 words]
Pot Advocates Produce Book A hero to potheads across the nation, local marijuana advocate Mason Tvert continues his smokin' streak with Amazon.com best-selling book "Marijuana is Safer." His first book aims to convince supporters and opponents alike that marijuana is a safer recreational alternative to other substances like alcohol. "Marijuana is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?" is co-written by fellow pot experts Paul Armentano, deputy director of The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and Steve Fox, director of state campaigns for the Marijuana Policy Project. [continues 724 words]
It Will Take Conservatives and Women to Help Turn Tide Against Pot Prohibition BOULDER, Colo. -- As a Republican mother committed to legalizing marijuana, political life can be lonely. But while many in my party whisper about the Drug War's insanity, we should shout it from the rooftop: the time to legalize is now. Calling for a new approach doesn't make me a pothead. In fact, while I freely admit to having previously smoked marijuana -- as do more than 95 million other Americans, including our last three presidents -- I choose not to be an active marijuana user today. [continues 519 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I have never used illegal drugs. [continues 576 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 582 words]
It's Cost Countless Lives And Done Nothing To Reduce Drug Use Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico driven by America's insatiable appetite for narcotics. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual song and dance after being outed smoking weed, the usual ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 525 words]
I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public-relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 586 words]
Drugs At The Border Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 582 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for illegal drugs plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 464 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 587 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 589 words]
I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed, and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 583 words]
Maybe we should legalize drugs. I come neither eagerly nor easily to that maybe. Rather, I come by way of spiraling drug violence in Mexico that recently forced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to acknowledge the role America's insatiable appetite for narcotics plays in the carnage. I come by way of watching Olympian Michael Phelps do the usual public relations song and dance after being outed smoking weed and knowing the whole thing was a ritualized farce. Most of all, I come by way of personal antipathy: I don't like and have never used illegal drugs. [continues 580 words]
The Student Government Association (SGA) will soon have the opportunity to investigate new initiatives as it swears in Ngozi Mbawuike as its next president in early April. If events continue as they have since we left for spring break, the SGA will continue the consideration of a motion that seeks to have the University of Massachusetts endowment become divested from companies that provide war material for the Israel Defense Forces. As students, this brings us to the point where we need to consider another timely divestment initiative. It is imperative that we urgently divest from the purchase of illegal drugs. [continues 759 words]
If you haven't heard of the potent psychedelic plant Salvia divinorum, don't bother looking for it: It's on the verge of being declared illegal in Ohio. The Ohio House yesterday voted 90-4 to pass legislation making the plant from the mint family a controlled substance. Ohio will become the sixth state to make it illegal. The bill now goes to Gov. Ted Strickland for his signature. The Ohio Board of Pharmacy is directed by the bill to develop chemical standards for the amount of the drug in the bloodstream that would trigger a driving-under-the-influence charge. [continues 207 words]
Two weeks before the Bay State votes on controversial ballot Question 2, which would decriminalize possession of small amounts of pot, the regional Drug Enforcement Agency office is honoring the memory of an agent slain by Mexican drug lords, by encouraging people to stay away from all drugs. "We're reaching out to people about living drug-free," said acting Special Agent in Charge Kevin Lane. Yesterday, Gov. Deval Patrick proclaimed next week Red Ribbon Week in Massachusetts. The Red Ribbon is worn by DEA agents during the last week of October each year in memory of fallen DEA agent Enrique Camarena. [continues 278 words]
The New Mexico Health Department has approved its first applications from patients whose doctors prescribed medicinal marijuana under the state's new law. Under the new statute, approved applicants are entitled to a designated dosage of marijuana. But there's a hitch. It's up to the patients to figure out how and where to get the marijuana. This is because the state has not carried out the second phase of the law, due Oct. 1, which is distribution and production of cannibis. [continues 1034 words]
'It Is Our Responsibility To Fix It. Let's Get It Done' Napolitano Calls For New Emphasis In Fight Vs. Meth Gov. Janet Napolitano is calling for a crackdown on the cross-border methamphetamine traffic and an expansion of addiction treatment to combat the illegal drug's growing threat to public health and safety. "We run the risk of losing entire generations of Arizonans to meth if we don't have this as a No. 1 public priority," Napolitano said. "This is our No. 1 drug problem. It is a public health problem. It is a crime problem. It is a public safety problem. It is our problem, and if it's our problem, then it is our responsibility to fix it. Let's get it done." [continues 612 words]
