Wednesday, December 2, 1998:
Corrections budget turns toward crime prevention (The Oregonian admits the biennial budget for Oregon corrections submitted by Governor John "Prisons" Kitzhaber is up almost 21 percent from the last biennium, but it characteristically refuses to print the actual figure. Kitzhaber wants to save money by nullifying the prisoner-work law passed by voters, but he won't rock the boat by ignoring the older and more ridiculous laws that oblige the state to spend more than $26 billion to lock up all the illegal-drug users in Oregon.)
Sonny Bono (Three letters to the editor of The Los Angeles Times comment on allegations by the widow of the late Congressman and pop singer that his death may have been attributable to his abuse of prescription painkillers.)
The Main Thing (An emotional staff editorial in The Fort Worth Star-Telegram recommends that parents ignore calls for drug policy reform. Kids are dying of heroin, so we have to ratchet up the drug war even more - as if that's worked in the past.)
Drug War (Another staff editorial in The Forth Worth Star-Telegram says the attempt to mount a coordinated police effort against drug traffic across Northeast Tarrant County, Texas, is crumbling. It still exists, but only a handful of communities are participating. The problem isn't money - it's people.)
Alcohol And Ignorance (A letter to the editor of The Times Journal, in Cobleskill, New York, notes the Partnership for a Drug-Free America and the White House drug czar's office focus their advertising dollars on marijuana, which never killed anyone. Meanwhile, they ignore the harm to young people attributable to ignorance about alcohol. For example, Michigan State University student Bradley McCue recently died on his 21st birthday from acute alcohol poisoning, after drinking 24 shots of liquor in less than two hours.)
Groups Seek Results of Marijuana Vote (According to The Washington Post, The District of Columbia chapter of the League of Women Voters and eight other local organizations filed friend-of-the-court briefs this week in support of the ACLU's lawsuit asking a federal judge to release and uphold the results of DC's Nov. 3 referendum on the medical use of marijuana.)
So Much For 'The Will Of The People' (An op-ed in The San Diego Union Tribune by former Congressman Lionel Van Deerlin recounts the recent electoral victories for medical marijuana patients, taking note of the fear shared by many conservatives that marijuana usage is a first step on the path to perdition. Yet what became of the earlier concern among conservatives to get government off the backs of the people?)
Makeshift Methamphetamine Labs Spreading In N. Texas (A ludicrous piece of drug-warrior fear-mongering in The Dallas Morning News says crank cooks in northern Texas are whipping up batches of methamphetamine using a method once employed by Adolf Hitler's Nazis - but it's hard to imagine "nomadic" hordes of uniformed SS troopers hitting "large discount stores" to stock up on cold remedies containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, automobile starter fluid, drain cleaner, denatured alcohol, and other over-the-counter products. North Central Texas Narcotics Task Force Investigator Dan Coltrain is quoted saying the drug is so addictive that "Once it's got you, it's got you. I've never worked with anyone who's gotten off. They always go back to it.")
Rockers Play For Pot On 'Hempilation II' (An upbeat review by UPI notes "Hempilation," a 1995 music compilation, raised more than $90,000 for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Now comes "Hempilation 2 - freetheweed," released just after the recent election. It's more varied then the first album, and includes country, hip-hop and reggae along with rock.)
Germany Is Not Punishing Hashish Users (A translation of an article from Svenska Dagbladet, in Sweden, notes the new German government, formed by a coalition of the Social Democrats and the Green Party, is implementing new harm-reduction policies, in agreement that the hardline policies of the previous Kohl government have failed.)
DrugSense Weekly, No. 76 (The weekly summary of drug policy news leads with a feature article by Mike Gray, author of "Drug Crazy" - Medical marijuana initiatives shift the front of the drug war. The Weekly News in Review includes such Drug War Policy articles as - On the web - a virtual breeze comes to Washington; The San Francisco Examiner editorial, Pro Bono; Rep. Bono gets burned for honesty; Drug policy is sound, despite what Molly Ivins may think. Law Enforcement & Prison articles include - Prison shootings unjustified; Prison tour doesn't sway lawmakers; Feds sought bigger drug deal to ensure a stiffer prison term; and Double standard on drug sentences. International News articles include - Black passengers targeted in Pearson searches?; Mexico seizes three hotels from drug cartel; Australia - Uphill struggle on trail of record heroin bust; 55 percent of smuggled cocaine world wide being transported by express services; Swiss voters block bid to legalize narcotics; Dutch to extend free heroin hand-outs to addicts; Drugs - cacophony in the European Union. Hot Off The 'Net publicizes a CD recording, From the mouths of drug war prisoners; New Republic ads by Common Sense for Drug Policy. The Quote of the Week features Tacitus. Plus Special Notices, including an interview with Jane Marcus, "NewsHawk of the Month," and thanks to DrugSense DrugNews Screeners Don Beck and Kevin Fansler.)
Bytes: 75,700 Last updated: 12/23/98
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