Drug War Chronicle, Issue #517 -- 1/4/08
Phillip S. Smith, Editor, psmith@drcnet.org
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517

A Publication of Stop the Drug War (DRCNet)
David Borden, Executive Director, borden@drcnet.org
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition"

Please donate to support Drug War Chronicle and drug law reform
in 2008!
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drcnets_amazing_progress_in_2007

Students: Intern at DRCNet to help stop the drug war now!
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drcnet_internships_to_stop_the_drug_war

Table of Contents:

1. FEATURE: WHAT WE WILL BE WATCHING AT DRUG WAR CHRONICLE IN
2008
It's a new year, but there are lots of ongoing issues for the
Chronicle to cover. Here's a look at what we think we'll be
writing about in 2008.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/2008_what_we_will_be_watching_in_drug_po...

2. EDITORIAL: THE DRUG WAR HAS MANY CONSTANTS, BUT IS NO
CONSTANT
Some of the drug war's issues are bitter constants. But when the
time is ripe, the changes we are working for will come to be.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/the_drug_war_has_many_constants_but_is_n...

3. APPEAL: DRCNET MADE AMAZING PROGRESS IN 2007 AND WE NEED YOUR
HELP FOR 2008
An outline of DRCNet's plans and recent accomplishments and an
appeal for your support to make it all happen.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drcnets_amazing_progress_in_2007

4. STUDENTS: INTERN AT DRCNET AND HELP STOP THE DRUG WAR!
Apply for an internship at DRCNet for this fall (or spring), and
you could spend the semester fighting the good fight!
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drcnet_internships_to_stop_the_drug_war

5. WEEKLY: BLOGGING @ THE SPEAKEASY
"Traffickers Are Hiring Flat-chested Women to Smuggle Drugs in
Their Bras, "Texas Cop Says 'Put Addicts in Jail Where They
Belong,'" "New Deputy Drug Czar: 'We Have One Year Left,'" "FOX
News Bars Drug Policy Discussion From the Republican Debates by
Excluding Ron Paul," "You Can't Protect the Children's Futures
by Putting Them in Jail for Marijuana."
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/blogging_at_the_speakeasy

6. LAW ENFORCEMENT: THIS WEEK'S CORRUPT COP STORIES
A crooked Florida cop seeks a sentence cut, and two more jail
guards get in trouble.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/police_drug_corruption

7. PAIN MEDICINE: EMERGENCY ROOM DOCTORS MORE LIKELY TO
PRESCRIBE OPIOIDS TO WHITES THAN MINORITIES
If you're in pain at a hospital emergency room, you're more
likely to get the medication you need if you're white, a new
study has found.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/hospital_ER_emergency_room_doctors_presc...

8. MARIJUANA: DESPITE LAW ALLOWING TICKETING FOR POT POSSESSION,
MOST TEXAS COUNTIES STILL ARREST
The Texas legislature last year gave local law enforcement the
option of ticketing misdemeanor marijuana offenders instead of
arresting them, but only Travis County has gone for it.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/texas_marijuana_arrest_ticket_austin_dal...

9. HARM REDUCTION: DC QUICK TO MOVE AFTER CONGRESS LIFTS NEEDLE
EXCHANGE FUNDING BAN
Less than two weeks after Congress finally removed a decade-old
ban on the District of Columbia using its own money to fund
needle exchanges, District officials announced they would spend
$650,000 to expand existing program and start new ones.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/District_of_Columbia_funds_needle_exchan...

10. EUROPE: BRITISH POLICE CHIEF STIRS CONTROVERSY WITH CLAIMS
THAT DRUGS WILL BE LEGAL IN TEN YEARS, ECSTASY IS SAFER THAN
ASPIRIN
North Wales Chief Constable Richard Brunstrom is at it again.
The veteran critic of drug prohibition has stirred up a hornet's
nest with his latest comments, including one that ecstasy is
"safer than aspirin."
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/british_cop_say_drugs_will_be_legal_and_...

11. DEATH PENALTY: IRAN, VIETNAM RING IN NEW YEAR WITH MORE
EXECUTIONS, DEATH SENTENCES
Iran rang in the new year by hanging three drug offenders, and
Vietnam sentenced eight more to die.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/death_penalty_drugs_iran_vietnam

12. WEEKLY: THIS WEEK IN HISTORY
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of
years past.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drug_war_history

13. FEEDBACK: DO YOU READ DRUG WAR CHRONICLE?
Do you read Drug War Chronicle? If so, we need your feedback to
evaluate our work and make the case for Drug War Chronicle to
funders. We need donations too.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/do_you_read_drug_war_chronicle

14. WEBMASTERS: HELP THE MOVEMENT BY RUNNING DRCNET SYNDICATION
FEEDS ON YOUR WEB SITE!
Support the cause by featuring automatically-updating Drug War
Chronicle and other DRCNet content links on your web site!
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drug_policy_content_syndication_feeds_no...

15. RESOURCE: DRCNET WEB SITE OFFERS WIDE ARRAY OF RSS FEEDS FOR
YOUR READER
A new way for you to receive DRCNet articles -- Drug War
Chronicle and more -- is now available.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drug_policy_RSS_feeds_now_available

16. RESOURCE: REFORMER'S CALENDAR ACCESSIBLE THROUGH DRCNET WEB
SITE
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to
the events coming up the soonest, and more.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/drug_reform_calendar

(Not subscribed? Visit http://stopthedrugwar.org to sign up
today!)

================

1. Feature: What We Will Be Watching at Drug War Chronicle in
2008
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/517/2008_what_we_will_be_watching_in_drug_po...

Phillip S. Smith, Writer Editor,
http://stopthedrugwar.org/user/psmith

Last week Drug War Chronicle wrapped up the year with a summary
of the top ten drug war stories of 2007
(http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/516/2007_top_ten_major_stories_in_the_drug_w...).
Now it's a new year, and a time to look ahead. When it comes to
drug policy reform, there is not that much new on the horizon,
but there is a whole lot of unfinished business and lots of
longstanding issues to be resolved. Much of what we will be
covering will be about these all-too-familiar issues, but not
all of it. While, like other media, much of our coverage is
driven by what comes in over the newswire, we will also be
undertaking some special reporting. And, of course, this being
an election year means there will be lots of politics to cover
as well. Here are 10 major issues/events/countries we will be
paying special attention to in 2008:

THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN

The national elections will be a major story all year long.
Democrats appear poised to take back the White House and
strengthen their majorities in the House and Senate. But what
would that mean for drug policy reform and how much of a role --
if any -- will it play in the primary and general election
campaigns? We will be watching and reporting on drug policy in
the national election campaign throughout the year -- whether it
is Democratic primary contenders lining up on medical marijuana
or Republicans trying to out-tough each other on meth; whether
it's Mike Huckabee talking about redemption or Hilary Clinton
talking about why crack sentencing retroactivity isn't a good
thing; whether it's Ron Paul saying "legalize it" or John
Edwards declining to. Will the Republicans attempt to attack the
Democrats as "soft on drugs"? Will the Democrats scuttle away
from drug reform if they do? Stay tuned. What about House and
Senate races? We'll be watching those, too.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

It won't be just candidates running in November. Michigan is
poised to become the first medical marijuana state in the
Midwest, and a signature-gathering campaign for an Arizona
medical marijuana initiative effort is about to get underway. We
will be reporting on these campaigns during 2008, as well
whatever (if any) medical marijuana-related initiatives
activists in Oregon decide to put on the ballot and, on the
other side of the issue, the effort to gut the Oregon Medical
Marijuana Act in a possible initiative organized by self-styled
Oregon crime fighters. Meanwhile, a marijuana decriminalization
initiative will be on the ballot in Massachusetts, and we'll be
reporting on that and any other initiatives that pop up as well.

DRUG REFORM IN CONGRESS

With the Democrats in control of Congress for a second year,
will drug policy reform fare any better than it did during the
first year? There was some movement last year, but not much, and
the Democrats barely have a majority in this election year. We
will be tracking the progress (or not) of congressional issues
such as the Hinchey-Rohrabacher medical marijuana amendment, the
bills to reduce the crack-powder cocaine sentencing disparity,
and funding for foreign anti-drug adventures, among others. But,
as we saw this year, Democratic control on Capitol Hill also
means hearings, a key prerequisite to action. We will also be
keeping an eye on who is pushing for hearings, and who isn't,
and on which issues.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA

The one drug policy reform effort that seems to have developed
real traction is medical marijuana. Last year, bills were
introduced in some 20 states, but only made it all the way
through the process in New Mexico and Rhode Island, where an
existing medical marijuana law was made permanent. We expect
renewed efforts to win passage of medical marijuana bills in
most of the states that saw action last year, as well as some
others that didn't. This year, we should pick up at least a
couple more states and perhaps as many as a half-dozen. We'll be
following the statehouse action on all these bills.

CALIFORNIA: THE SPECIAL CASE

California is a world apart. It has the broadest medical
marijuana law, it has hundreds of dispensaries, it has DEA raids
and federal prosecutions, it has local jurisdictions grappling
with medical marijuana issues, and it has one-tenth of the whole
country's population. Is California the wave of the future? Is
it sliding into de facto personal legalization as a result of
the medical marijuana law, and if so, is that a bad thing? Is it
move over, Amsterdam; move over, Vancouver; here comes the San
Fernando Valley? The situation in the Golden State is complex
and rapidly evolving in directions no one can easily predict.
Certainly, events there will make the news here this year.

WHO PROFITS FROM PROHIBITION?

Drug prohibition has palpably failed on its own terms. Despite
decades of drug war and hundreds of billions of dollars, a
substantial portion of the population continues to use drugs and
will do so into the foreseeable future. Drug prohibition has
also brought all sorts of unintended consequences, from funding
political violence to street-corner shootouts among competing
dealers to stuffing our prisons way past full and on and on. Yet
prohibition not only remains, but remains nearly unchallenged.
Why? Clearly, there are lots of people deeply concerned about
drug use, but just as clearly, there have emerged institutional
interests, both public and private, that benefit from the drug
policy status quo. In what will be a continuing series
throughout the year, we will be looking at those interests, how
they benefit, and how they influence policy. Among them: The
drug testing industry, the drug treatment industry, the drug dog
industry, law enforcement, and prison designers, builders, and
contractors. Do you have suggestions for others? Send me an
email.

DRUG POLICY AND THE UNDERTREATMENT OF PAIN

For several years now, the Chronicle has episodically covered
the plight of pain patients and doctors, as well as the broader
issues surrounding the treatment of pain in a drug prohibition
regime. This year, we will be digging deeper into the issue, not
only here in the US, but also abroad, particularly in the poorer
countries of the third world, where the use of opioid pain
relievers is at dramatically lower levels than in the wealthy
developed nations. We'll be looking at the role of the global
drug prohibition regime and opiophobia, as well as examining
other factors, such as poverty or the structural effects of
global drug regulation, that could also factor in to
perpetuating this state of affairs. What about those proposals
to divert Afghan poppy crops to the legitimate medicinal market?
Could they help? Look for Chronicle reports on these issues this
year.

AFGHANISTAN: WAR AND POPPIES

And speaking of Afghanistan, this is a story that is not going
away this year, or anytime in the foreseeable future. Last year
was the bloodiest since the US invasion six years ago as more US
and NATO troops were killed than ever, along with thousands of
Taliban insurgents and Afghan civilians. It was also the largest
poppy crop ever, with Afghanistan now having a virtual
choke-hold on the global opium market. The top US general there
this week predicted this year's poppy crop will be even larger.
The US government is tying itself in knots trying to figure out
how to respond, and meanwhile, the Taliban, corrupt Afghan
government functionaries, and drug traders are all growing fat
off the profits. Drugs, counterinsurgency, counterterrorism, and
nation-building are all at play in Afghanistan, and there is a
lot at stake. Stay tuned.

MEXICO: DRUG WAR TO THE SOUTH

Drug prohibition-related violence in Mexico has been spinning
out of control, with the death toll mounting year after year.
Last year, incoming President Felipe Calderon called out the
Mexican army, and now, 2,500 deaths, thousands of arrests, and
hundreds of seizures later, the drug trade appears unaffected.
Still, Washington is happy with Calderon's aggressive approach
and appears set to approve a $1.4 billion, multi-year anti-drug
aid package known pejoratively as Plan Mexico. Meanwhile, drug
use levels are rising in Mexico, drug crop production continues
unabated, and that Colombian cocaine keeps on coming through on
its way to the insatiable markets north of the Rio Grande. Just
a few weeks from now, Drug War Chronicle will do an extended
tour of Mexico, most likely starting on the border in the Rio
Grande Valley, then down to Mexico City, on to the
drug-producing states of Guerrero and Sinaloa, and up the
Pacific Coast, ending up on the border in Tijuana. Look for
blogging and in-depth reports during that trip, as well as more
coverage throughout the year.

THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE: DRUG POLICY ON THE AGENDA

Drug policy will be on the agenda at both the United Nations and
the European Union this year. The UN will meet in a General
Assembly Special Session in Vienna to discuss the success of the
previous 10-year anti-drug strategy and work on the next, while
the EU will be attempting to come up with a second five-year
plan as part of its 2005-2012 EU Drug Strategy. The first
five-year plan ends this year. Also, long-term drug strategies
will be on the plates of policymakers in Britain and Canada. We
will be watching and reporting on all of this.

================

later
bliss -- C O C O A Powered... (at california dot com)

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It is by the beans of cocoa that the thoughts acquire speed,
the thighs acquire girth, the girth become a warning.
It is by theobromine alone I set my mind in motion."
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