Re `Governments Caught Coming And Going On Marijuana Issues', Calgary Herald Oct.9. Hypocritical critics of medical marijuana cannot name one valid reason to outlaw cannabis. Marijuana prohibition is based on the most absurd fables, fictions and falsehoods ever used to enact a law. Furthermore, every piece of propaganda used to justify marijuana prohibition has been completely debunked by science, medicine and sociology. The `gateway' theory was thoroughly debunked by the recent Institute of Medicine (IOM) report with this resounding rebuttal: [continues 310 words]
Cannabis has no lethal dose and its pharmacological effects have never caused a single death in more than 5,000 years of recorded history. The (unseen) driving force against medical (or unrestricted adult) legalization of cannabis is the fact that cannabis can't be patented. This precludes the need for big business to be involved and that fact makes cannabis commercially unattractive, pharmaceutically speaking. It seems that if it can't be profitized successfully the government can't justify legalization even for the sick and dying. [continues 68 words]
A drug addict, seriously ill with HIV, was kicked and punched to death by a large group of anti-drugs vigilantes, it was alleged at a manslaughter trial today. Some of the attackers used hammers and batons in the attack, a prosecutor told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Mr George Birmingham SC told the court that drug addict Mr Josie Dwyer was killed after a group of people sought out drug dealers after an anti-drugs meeting in Dolphin's Barn in the city. A new jury was sworn in to hear the case this morning, after an earlier trial was abandoned because two jury members were unable to continue with the trail. [continues 304 words]
If we really want to find answers to this problem, we must first take marijuana out of the controlled drugs and substance act. I've been dealing with this issue for a long time now, because I am a medical user for my illness, multiple sclerosis. I have seen the problems we all have to deal with because of our laws. It seems to me that if we legalized and taught responsibility we would be much better off. We should be spending our money on real crimes and real help for those who need it. All our laws are doing is glamourizing drug dealers into something more than what they are. Let's stop the money from flowing their way. Medical marijuana will not go away, but hopefully those who control it will. Lynn Harichy London, Ont. [end]
Re `Governments Caught Coming And Going On Marijuana Issues', Calgary Herald Oct.9. I take exception with the conclusion which this article reached, that the government should legitimize marijuana use for therapeutic purposes, while keeping it illegal in all other circumstances. Perhaps you are not aware of the fact that 51% of Canadians want marijuana decriminalized versus 46% who do not (Angus - Reid Poll). The same poll shows that in British Columbia , where I live , 2 out of 3 voters want this law gone . On this side of the Rocky Mountains we are getting very impatient with a law that the majority of our provincial voters do not want, that allows the federal Liberals to arrest our citizens and turn them into criminals . [continues 70 words]
Robberies, Thefts Also Plague Huge Party A Ryerson University student yesterday became the first known fatality from a drug overdose at a Toronto "rave party," a detective said last night. In addition to the overdose, Toronto Police said, several people were robbed and numerous cars broken into near the former Cooper Canada shoe plant on Alliance Ave., in the Jane St.-Weston Rd. area, where the party began around midnight Saturday. The unnamed 21-year-old collapsed around 3:30 a.m., after taking an unknown drug in the renovated building's "filthy" underground parking garage, police said. [continues 417 words]
On most days, John Precup breaks the law. The Mansfield resident smokes marijuana, he said, to dull the nausea caused by multiple sclerosis. His doctor recommends the practice, but can't write a prescription for an illegal drug. "I either do that or waste away,'' said Precup, 35. Precup is not alone in self-medicating with marijuana. And he said the public needs to be educated and informed about its importance. He and others will rally at 5 p.m. today at the Federal Building, 200 N. High St., to bring attention to the issue. [continues 323 words]
Adam Smith, associate director of Drug Reform Coordination Network, was the keynote speaker on an eight-member panel discussing drug policy reform Sunday night. The event, "A New Paradigm for an Old Predicament" was sponsored by the University of Wisconsin Students for a Sensible Drug Policy. Adam Smith, a national drug policy expert, began by quoting New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, who proclaimed the drug war was a "failure." He continued by listing many of the problems with the current drug war. [continues 491 words]
SCHOOL children are getting tips on smoking marijuana from a taxpayer-funded pamphlet. A leaflet advising school-age cannabis users to avoid bongs and take only small puffs from joints has been released to about 400 young people. The Staying Safe - Cannabis pamphlet, written by Thornbury Darebin Secondary College students, is part of an experimental drug education program funded by the Federal Government. The Year 10 students have also made a video showing a pupil smoking a bong, which was played to the school's Year 9 students yesterday. [continues 316 words]
PORTLAND, Maine - For the last five years, the debate over the medicinal use of marijuana has rocked the country from coast to coast. Who should be entitled to the drug's reputed benefits or whether marijuana even has any therapeutic value are questions that have pitted state legislatures against governors and produced competing verdicts in the nation's courts. This year, Maine is the only state where the medicinal use of marijuana will be decided by voters in a statewide referendum. And while the issue has generated dueling campaigns in other states, Maine's lack of public debate on the controversial issue has left many election watchers perplexed. [continues 1036 words]
Cities Allowed To Carry Out Their Ordinances SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Gray Davis signed a bill that allows San Francisco, Berkeley and other cities to continue administering needle-exchange programs for intravenous drug users. The needle exchange bill signed Saturday requires cities and counties to use emergency powers to authorize needle-exchange programs, and exempts cities and employees from criminal prosecution for distributing syringes. Current state law, with a few exceptions, prohibits the furnishing, possession or use of hypodermic needles or syringes without doctor's prescription. [continues 157 words]
In many senses, the debate over the United States' ineffective, expensive and destructive drug war is already on. The problem is that someone forgot to tell the politicians and the drug war bureaucrats. That the debate is on can be seen in a review of developments from just the past week: * Last Saturday, 5,000 people marched on State Street in downtown Madison to protest against archaic laws that have condemned thousands of Wisconsinites to jail and prison for the "crime'' of possessing and using marijuana -- a substance that scientific analysis will tell you is significantly less dangerous than alcohol. [continues 589 words]
