Just as the administration's Iraqi mission has been damaged by the scandal of prisoner abuse and other failures, the policy in Afghanistan has been undercut by the rebirth of the Afghani poppy, the main ingredient in heroin. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage admitted during a hearing last month that last year was the ''biggest year ever -- for poppy cultivation and growth in Afghanistan. So you would be wrong if you don't hold us responsible.'' The future looks even worse: A U.N. report says that two out of every three Afghan farmers plan to increase their poppy crop in 2004. [continues 548 words]
I find it disturbing when law enforcement moves from enforcing the law to commanding the law. ("Law Enforcement Enters The Fray Over Rolling Back Drug Sentencing," Watertown Daily Times, June 7. The Rockefeller drug laws have New York taxpayers paying more for prisons than for education. It has put mothers in prison for life on conspiracy charges. Conspiracy charges mean no drugs were found in their possession. It has made the legislators lazy in St. Lawrence, Jefferson, Franklin, and Lewis counties. They depend on prison population to secure census related funding. Look at what the Law Enforcement Coalition Against drug Decriminalization is made up of. All are supported by New York Taxpayers. [continues 149 words]
Money From County Will Also Be Used For New Officers Sheriff Rod Shoap received $590,468 Tuesday from Lee County to hire additional officers and help open the second floor of the jail. Lee County commissioners approved the money transfer from the county general fund. The money is in addition to the sheriff's 2004 $93 million budget and his 2005 budget request for $107 million. Shoap said Tuesday that the additional money will go to hire 42 new corrections officers to staff the second floor of the Core Facility jail on Ortiz Avenue. [continues 382 words]
The murder rate among Indo-Canadians is fuelled by Vancouver's booming drug trade, Sikh leaders told a forum on crime yesterday. "Vancouver is the Colombia of North America," said Randip Sarai of Sikh Alliance Against Youth Violence. "People don't even care about getting arrested. They just laugh." He said the violence is not a cultural problem because it is not seen in other major Indo-Canadian communities in Canada. Sarai was among about 30 people who met with police, MLAs, Solicitor-General Geoff Plant and Attorney-General Rich Coleman. They were in Surrey yesterday to discuss ways to stem Indo-Canadian violence. [continues 223 words]
82 Candidates In Total Running In Manitoba Ridings SOME so-called fringe parties are fielding more candidates than ever this election, giving Manitobans who are fed up with mainstream politics more choice at the polls. Yesterday, Elections Canada released a final list of all 82 nominated candidates in Manitoba. The Communist Party, the Christian Heritage Party and the Marijuana Party are running people in roughly half the province's 14 ridings, making them the biggest alternative choices. The Green Party, which has long struggled for mainstream acceptance, could elect one or two MPs in British Columbia this June 28, elevating it for the first time above fringe status. For the first time, The Greens are running candidates in every Manitoba riding. [continues 456 words]
Lt. Gov. Steve Pence addressed Hardin County residents at the Elizabethtown-Hardin County Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Elizabethtown Thursday. Pence said Kentucky is taking a new approach to combating illegal drug use. "We've got to get away from the mentality that we will incarcerate our way out of the drug problem," Pence said. Pence said not only that Kentucky could not afford to keep people behind bars, but also that treatment and rehabilitation provide a better solution to the problem. [continues 437 words]
LAKELAND -- For 10 years, methamphetamine-related shootings and overdoses have plagued Polk County. Many of the problems originate in makeshift labs inside homes or in the backs of cars. But law enforcement officials say since the ban of ephedra earlier this year, cooking the crank has become harder for makers of the drug and may be one of the reasons fewer meth labs have been busted this year. In 2003, 14 labs were found in Polk County, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency. So far this year, detectives have found two. [continues 319 words]
MADISONVILLE, Ky. - When allegations of drug use by miners arise at the scene of an accident, investigators do not order drug tests to check, a state official said yesterday. "We just don't have the authority to do that," Tony Oppegard, general counsel for the Kentucky Department of Mines and Minerals, said at a public hearing. The forum was held by the Kentucky Mining Board to gather information about the best way to curtail drug and alcohol substance abuse by miners. [continues 338 words]
The Marijuana Party of Canada has all but blown town. And that includes Kelowna candidate Huguette Plourde, who was parachuted in from Montreal only to be parachuted right out again Plourde is heading back to Montreal along with her boyfriend, Blair Longley, candidate for North OkanaganShuswap and national party president. The other Okanagan candidate, Jack Peach in OkanaganCoquihalla, was not available for comment Thursday, but Longley said Peach is so busy with other things "he told us he didn't want to campaign or talk to the media." At issue is the split between the national party and the B.C. party, which has decided to support the NDP [continues 327 words]
There is possibly $2 billion in tax revenue to be had from the legalization of marijuana, but not all federal candidates think that's reason enough to decriminalize it. Candidates at an all-candidates forum at the Kelowna Drop-In Centre Wednesday were quizzed on their view of legalizing marijuana, given the Fraser Institute's report that the industry could net $2 billion in taxes annually for Canada. MP Werner Schmidt, of the Conservative Party, said there may be taxation revenue from pot sales, but the country would end up paying more for services to combat the negative effects of the drug. [continues 211 words]
Recommendations To Legislature Expected MADISONVILLE - Even when allegations of drug use by miners at the scene of an accident arise, investigators do not order drug tests to check, a state official said yesterday. "We just don't have the authority to do that," said Tony Oppegard, general counsel for the Kentucky Department of Mines & Minerals. Oppegard was speaking at a public hearing held in Madisonville by the Kentucky Mining Board to gather information about the best way to curtail drug and alcohol substance abuse by miners. [continues 353 words]
