Phillip S. Smith, Writer/Editor

The US Supreme Court ruled Thursday that school officials who strip searched a 13-year-old Arizona school girl based on an uncorroborated accusation by a classmate that she had previously possessed

The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in Safford Unified School District #1 v.

CNN has a story on teenage drug smuggling that pretty much murders the notion that drug prohibition is creating a barrier between youth and drugs:

As an American, [Danny] Santos could freely cross the El Paso-Juarez border and not raise suspicion. At age 15, Santos says, he met "a guy" at a party who introduced him to drug kingpins in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

"You start off as a driver," Santos said. "People feel like they can trust you, then you move up to something bigger."

Two weeks later, he got a $4,000 job offer to drive his first load of marijuana across a bridge into El Paso. It was the beginning of a four-year smuggling career.

Of course, a 15-year-old kid can't get a job driving a beer truck, but he can make thousands smuggling drugs for a cartel in Ciudad Juarez. Does this sound right at all?

US. Customs and Border Protection officials in El Paso and San Diego report that in recent months, they've seen a rise in the number of juvenile drug smugglers getting busted at border checkpoints.

So right now, in 2009, the problem of teenagers becoming drug smugglers is escalating. After decades of trying to perfect our drug war strategies, all you have to do is open any newspaper and you'll immediately see some seriously messed-up stuff going on that we didn't even used to have to worry about.

It just gets worse all the time every time you look at it and I couldn't exaggerate how bad it is no matter how hard I try. I shudder to consider how much more hell on earth it may take to finally prove that the drug war is the problem and not the solution.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is seeking a responsible, proven leader committed to drug policy reform and grassroots activism to lead the organization with vision and confidence.

Watch students protest the shooting of Derek Copp

http://ssdp.org/derek

Friend,

What's the most dangerous consequence of using marijuana?

Under our current laws, it can be a bullet in the chest.

Earlier this month, Derek Copp, a Michigan college student, heard a noise at the back door of his apartment. As he went to investigate, his eyes were blinded by a flashlight and a gunshot rang out. The next think he knew, he was in a hospital fighting for his life.

The intruders were police. They had a warrant for drugs, but all they found was "a few tablespoons" of marijuana. Derek had no weapons.

Thankfully, the bullet that tore through Derek's lungs and liver didn't take his life. And every day since that incident, local Students for Sensible Drug Policy members have been standing up for Derek and opposing the polices that made this shooting possible.
 
It's during moments like these that I'm as inspired as I am outraged. I'm outraged for the same reason that you probably are: peaceful people like Derek are constantly being put in the line of fire as our government blindly pursues a mythical "drug free" society. But to see why I'm also inspired, you'll need to check out this two minute video of SSDP members taking a stand for Derek: http://www.ssdp.org/derek

In a world without SSDP, this could have simply been a sad news story about police making a terrible mistake. But because a strong network of student drug policy advocates had already been established in Michigan, the media couldn't ignore the fact that Derek is one of many casualties in the destructive War on Drugs.

Please join us in continuing to spread this message by making a contribution today. The first $500 we raise will go straight to Derek for his medical and legal expenses. Anything beyond that will help SSDP expand our outreach staff so we can continue to build the movement to end the War on Drugs. http://www.ssdp.org/derek

Looking forward to the day when good people no longer need to fear the police,

Micah Daigle
Associate Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy

P.S. When making a donation, you'll have the option to leave Derek a personal note. I'm sure he'll appreciate any supportive words you have to offer.  http://www.ssdp.org/derek

Just Say No to wasteful drug propaganda! http://ssdp.org/justsayno

Dear Friend,

The strangest thing happened to me the other day. I was sitting on a park bench with my girlfriend enjoying some marijuana. While I knew she disapproved, I went ahead and smoked a joint anyway.

Next thing I knew, a flying saucer descended from the sky and we were visited by a space alien! Not wanting to seem ungracious, I offered our new friend a puff of my joint. He declined.

My girlfriend, sick of my pot smoking and enamored by the alien's courage, immediately fell in love with our new little green friend. Before I knew it, she was boarding his flying saucer to fly away together to a far away galaxy where they would live happily ever after, leaving me heartbroken with only my joint to console me…

Does this scenario sound ridiculous to you? Believe it or not, this is an actual an advertisement designed by our government to keep young people from smoking marijuana!

Since 1998 the federal government has spent over $1.5 billion on anti-drug ads targeted at youth that are nothing more than mindless propaganda, mocked by young people as this generation's version of Reefer Madness. Independent studies conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Westat, and Texas State University have all found that these ads actually cause more drug use among teens who view them!

President Obama has pledged to cut wasteful government spending by eliminating programs that are ineffective, and the Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign is an ineffective as government programs get.

While the program will receive $70 million this year, the administration is already developing its spending priorities for 2010. Please join me in sending a letter to Congress, telling them to "Just Say No" to wasteful and counterproductive propaganda: http://www.ssdp.org/justsayno

Thanks to lobbying efforts by SSDP, our friends at the Marijuana Policy Project and Drug Policy Alliance, and you, the ad campaign budget has been cut by 66% since 2002.  With your help, we can eliminate the program altogether next year!

Sincerely,

Kris Krane
Executive Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy

Students for Sensible Drug Policy, a grassroots political advocacy organization with a member network of thousands and a national staff of six, is seeking a highly motivated, well-organized individ

Friends,

The movement to end the War on Drugs is gaining momentum like never before. Every week, Students for Sensible Drug Policy's staff is contacted by dozens of students who are interested in starting chapters on their campuses. Oftentimes, it feels like there are more fish jumping into our boat than we have nets to catch!

But thanks to the generosity of our supporters like you, we're hiring two new staff members to meet the needs of our rapidly expanding chapter network!

Outreach Director - SSDP currently employs two outreach directors, and we are hiring a third. Each outreach director is assigned to a region of the U.S. and is responsible for growing our chapter network and providing assistance to chapters in that area.
http://www.ssdp.org/jobs/outreachdirector

Alumni Director - This is a brand new position with SSDP. The Alumni Director builds and coordinates our alumni network. Only applicants who are current or former members of SSDP's chapters, board, or staff will be considered for this position.
http://www.ssdp.org/jobs/alumnidirector

We also have several internships available all year round. Internships are unpaid, but may be applied toward class credit. http://www.ssdp.org/jobs/intern

I can't tell you how inspired I am that our supporters have enabled us to expand our staff, especially as many nonprofits are struggling because of the economic recession. If you've helped make this unprecedented growth possible, then you've invested in this movement at just the right time. Thank you.

And if you haven't yet made a gift to SSDP this year, but would like to ensure that the growing momentum for drug policy reform is sustained, I invite you to help us create a better future by contributing today. http://www.ssdp.org/donate

Sincerely,
Kris Krane, Executive Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy

P.S. Please forward this announcement to anybody who might be interested in these positions.

Outreach Director: Based in San Francisco, CA or Washington, DC

Application deadline: Friday, April 3

Students for Sensible Drug Policy, a grassroots political advocacy organization with a member network of thousands and a national staff of six, is seeking a highly motivated, well-organized individual to help promote alternatives to the failed War on Drugs. This is a full- time, entry-level position that is ideal for a person with prior student organizing experience.

SSDP currently employs two outreach directors. Due to the growing demand for our advocacy, we are hiring a third outreach director, who will be based in San Francisco, CA or Washington, DC. Interested individuals may apply for the position in either location.

Although our intention is to fill the position starting in April, graduating seniors will be considered. If you cannot start full-time before May or June, we will consider starting the position on a part- time basis prior to graduation.

Duties of the outreach director include:

1) Assisting students who wish to start SSDP chapters: The outreach director receives several chapter startup inquiries each day. He/she promptly responds to each inquiry and guides the student through the process of establishing a chapter on campus. The outreach director is also responsible for the development of trainings and materials that will benefit students working to start new chapters. Information on new chapter progress is tracked using database software.

2) Proactive recruitment: The outreach director proactively recruits new students to start chapters by tabling at schools, concerts, conferences and other events. He/she is sometimes asked to travel for a week or more to a specific state or region with the goal of identifying students interested in drug policy reform.

3) Providing campaign support to established chapters: The outreach director works with the associate director on developing materials and the execution of grassroots campaigns. The associate director takes the lead on creating resources for campaigns, while the outreach director works with new and inexperienced chapters on implementation.

4) Event planning: The outreach director coordinates events that require many different components (e.g. outreach, logistics, materials, etc). These events include international and regional conferences, small fundraising events, campaign rallies, and demonstrations.

The outreach director is trained and supervised by the associate director, and reports directly to the executive director.

Qualifications include a passion for getting young people involved in the political process; exceptional interpersonal skills, particularly when meeting new people; the ability to communicate orally with comfort and conviction, particularly over the phone; succinct, persuasive, inspiring writing, plus a close attention to detail; comfort with working nontraditional hours (occasional nights and weekends), as this is when students are most available; a desire to travel, and the ability to work well away from the office; experience working with and managing volunteers; and a firm belief that students will play a key role in ending the War on Drugs.

Qualities/abilities that are valuable, but not necessary, include a demonstrated dedication to drug policy reform; experience with student organizing & activism; and a working knowledge of Apple products, Microsoft Excel, and Facebook.

To apply, interested applicants should e-mail a one-page cover letter and one- or two-page resume to Executive Director Kris Krane at jobs@ssdp.org. In your cover letter, please indicate (1) how you learned about SSDP’s job opening, (2) why you are interested in working with SSDP, (3) why you think this particular position is a good fit for you, (4) what experience you have in student organizing or drug policy reform work and (5) which of our offices you are interested in working from (San Francisco, CA or Washington, DC) and if your desired location is flexible. Feel free to include any additional information you deem relevant, not to exceed one page.

Salary is $28,000 - $32,000, commensurate with experience. Benefits include health care and the satisfaction that comes along with changing the world for the better.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy is an equal opportunity employer. SSDP has a strong commitment to diversity and, as such, women, people of color, LGBT individuals, and individuals who have been directly affected by the Drug War are encouraged to apply.

If you submit a cover letter and resume, SSDP will respond to you within two weeks with either a request for additional documentation, or notification that your application is being considered.

Please visit http://www.SchoolsNotPrisons.com for more information about our mission and campaigns.

The New Mexico House voted 67-3 Saturday to approve a bill that makes using or possessing methamphetamine in a home where minors are present child abuse.

For Immediate Release: Jan 30, 2009

CALIFORNIA SURVEY SHOWS STUDENT MARIJUANA USE STABLE, PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE HIGH

The newly released biennial Attorney General's Survey of Student Drug Use in California shows that marijuana use among 7th. 9th and 11th graders remained stable during 2007-8, but reports an "alarming rate" of prescription drug abuse.

"The survey confirms that California's medical marijuana law has had no adverse impact on youth marijuana use," comments California NORML coordinator Dale Gieringer. "At the same time, it shows that youth prescription drug use has been seriously underestimated in the past."

Marijuana use been declining to stable ever since passage of California's medical marijuana law in 1996. For a graph, see http://www.canorml.org/prop/studentMJuse.html. According to the latest report, "Since 2003, use in the past six months has remained stable at 7% in 7th grade, 20% in 9th and 31% in 11th grade."

"The most significant but disturbing overall finding of the 12th biennial survey is - because of underassessment of recreational use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs - we have previously underestimated actual levels of youth substance use. New data shows that 37 percent of 9th and 50 percent of 11th graders used either an illicit/illegal drug or a diverted prescription drug to get high at least once in their lifetime. Taking this into consideration, total lifetime use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) use is estimated at 52 percent and 69 percent respectively. Including use of cold/cough medicines to get high, lifetime AOD 9th- grade use rises to 60 percent and 11th- grade use to 74 percent."

http://safestate.org/index.cfm?navId=254

CALIFORNIA STUDENT SURVEY (CSS)

12TH BIENNIAL CALIFORNIA STUDENT SURVEY, 2007-08

Welcome to the 12th biennial California Student Survey (CSS) that was conducted during the 2007-08 school year by the Crime and Violence Prevention Center, California Attorney General's Office. This statewide biennial research continues the important work, which started in 1985, of collecting substance use data from the students themselves. Participating in the 12th CSS were 13,930 students from 115 public middle and high schools. From the reported data, the preliminary findings indicate three major trends of the 2007-08 CSS:

(1) Prescription drug use by California youth is occurring at an alarming rate.
(2) First-time data collected on the use of over-the-counter drugs indicate many teens are taking them to get "high."
(3) Heavy users of illicit substances are still a significant group in California, a trend noted as early as the 1999 CSS.

The most significant but disturbing overall finding of the 12th biennial survey is - because of underassessment of recreational use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs - we have previously underestimated actual levels of youth substance use. New data shows that 37 percent of 9th and 50 percent of 11th graders used either an illicit/illegal drug or a diverted prescription drug to get high at least once in their lifetime. Taking this into consideration, total lifetime use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) use is estimated at 52 percent and 69 percent respectively. Including use of cold/cough medicines to get high, lifetime AOD 9th- grade use rises to 60 percent and 11th- grade use to 74 percent.

The preliminary 2007-08 findings support a couple of conclusions reached in our 2005 CSS report: Prevention efforts may be "bottoming-out" and further reductions in overall prevalence may be more difficult to achieve; also, there should be specific intervention aimed at youth who are at risk of heavy and problematic substance use.

Download: 12th biennial California Student Survey's Report of Highlights
12th biennial California Student Survey's Compendium of Tables
12th biennial CSS - Current Substance Use Among California Secondary Students - PowerPoint Presentation

Excerpt from report at http://safestate.org/documents/CSS_12th_Highlights_Report.pdf

Marijuana

As shown in Figure 3, among 7th grade students there is relatively little difference between lifetime, six- month and 30-day prevalence of marijuana use (9%, 7% and 7%, respectively), reflecting that many 12- and 13-year-olds had tried marijuana only recently. Predictably, lifetime use increases dramatically to 25% in 9th grade and 42% in 11th, while differences between lifetime and current use rates widen. Current rates, in past 30 days, were 15% in 9th and 24% in 11th, about 60% of lifetime use in both grades. Since 2003, use in the past six months has remained stable at 7% in 7th grade, 20% in 9tand 31% in 11th. (Tables 2.2, 2.6-2.9, & 2.13)

--
Dale Gieringer - dale@canorml.org
California NORML, 2215-R Market St. #278, San Francisco CA 94114
-(415) 563- 5858 - www.canorml.org

For Immediate Release: January 29, 2009
Contact: Rod Skager at 831-594-0483 or Tony Newman at 646-335-5384

California Student Survey Finds Drug Use More Prevalent than Previously Thought

3/4th of 11th Grade Students Report Using at Least One Drug

Abstinence-Only Drug Education Failing Students;

Need for Comprehensive Drug Education with Focus on Safety

The 12th biennial California Student Survey (CSS) released this week by the Attorney General's Office's challenges the nation to reassess the nature and frequency of youth drug use. This statewide survey, founded by Professor Rodney Skager in 1985, collected substance use data from 13,930 students from 115 public middle and high schools in the 2007-08 school year.

The report concludes that both state and national surveys, including the National Monitoring the Future Survey, have significantly underestimated true levels of substance use among secondary school students. The primary reason has been failure to provide a measure of total use that includes alcohol. The current (2007-2008) CSS combines for the first time alcohol, illicit drugs, diverted prescription drugs and cold/cough medications (used to get high) into a total percentage of respondents who tried at least one such drug in their lifetime. The result is that 60% or 9th and 74% of 11th grade students reported using one of the substances at least once. It is important to note that the great majority of youth who experiment do not become regular drug users and for a significant number of substances once was apparently sufficient.

Professor Skager points out that, "By taking into account the entire range of drugs, of which alcohol is by far the most commonly used, it is obvious that the social climate among youth tolerates widespread drug experimentation and use, though not necessarily use that causes problems to self or others. We need to take this cultural reality into account in our approach to drug education and other approaches to prevention. In this climate simplistic abstinence messages, as well as accurate, information, are met with skepticism and may result in an oppositional or 'boomerang' effect."

Rodney Skager, Professor Emeritus in the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, is the author of Beyond Zero Tolerance: A Reality-Based Approach to Drug Education and School Discipline published by the Drug Policy Alliance. The educational booklet advocates for educating students through comprehensive, interactive and honest drug education with identification of, and assistance for, students whose lives are disrupted by substance use.

"To prevent adolescents who do experiment from falling into abusive patterns, we need to create fallback strategies that focus on safety," Skager said. "Putting safety first requires that we be careful to provide our young people with credible information and resources. We also need to teach our teenagers how to identify and handle problems with alcohol and other drugs -- if and when they occur-and how to get help and support."

The new Obama Administration has the opportunity to replace failed Bush Administration strategies such as the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign and the Random Student Drug Testing Grants Program. Research shows both programs are not only ineffective, but also counterproductive to promoting healthy behaviors in students. The Obama Administration should replace fear-based approaches with programs that promote honest, open and respectful discussion with teens about their experiences and the realities of drugs and drug use today.

* The 2007-2008 California Student Survey is available online at: http://www.safestate.org/index.cfm?navID=254

* Beyond Zero Tolerance: A Reality-Based Approach to Drug Education and School Discipline is available online at: www.safety1st.org.

The US Supreme Court agreed last Friday to review the case of a 13-year-old honor student who was subjected to a strip search by school officials looking for prescription-strength Ibuprofen.

A year and a half ago, word started spreading from isolated law enforcement sources that candy-flavored methamphetamine was showing up in drug busts.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Northern California chapter has joined with a small number of students and their parents in filing a

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Jacob Sullum pokes numerous holes in the drug czar’s recent claims of dramatic drug war progress. This in particular jumped out at me:

…if Walters wants to take credit for every drop in drug use that occurs on his watch, he'll have to take the blame for the enormous increases in past-month LSD use among high school seniors and  past-month methamphetamine use among sophomores, both of which nearly doubled between 2007 and 2008 (hitting a whopping 1.1 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively).

Be careful out there, kids! Thanks to the total failure of the war on drugs, you are up to your asses in acid and meth, but seriously, do not mix them. It will suck. You’ll get arrested (and probably tasered, too).

See, contrary to the drug czar’s wild accusations, those of us who want to end the drug war have no interest in seeing young people make poor choices. And the fact that America’s high schools are overflowing with acid and speed ought to help illustrate why closing the black market is actually a perfectly rational approach to keeping powerful drugs away from our kids.

Buoyed by this month's election results and jazzed by the prospects for change with a new administration in Washington, some 450 student activists converged on the University of Maryland campus in

Students for Sensible Drug Policy invites you to join hundreds of students, alumni and drug policy reform advocates from around the world in creating our future – a future that includes an informed

It's here. And you won't want to miss it.