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(renamed "Drug War Chronicle" effective issue #300, August 2003) Issue #105, 8/27/99
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition" TABLE OF CONTENTS
or check out The Week Online archives 1. Record 5.9 Million Americans Under Correctional Supervision 5.9 million Americans are currently under some form of criminal justice supervision -- either incarcerated, on probation or parole -- according to a report issued this week (8/22) by the Justice Department. The total represents an increase of more than 163,000 people in the past year. 5.9 million represents 3% of the adult population, or one out of every 34 American adults. According to the report, 21% of those under supervision are women, compared with 18% in 1990, and 35% are African American, up from 34% a decade ago.
2. Poll Finds Overwhelming Majority of Californians Support Needle Exchange -- Support Spans Ethnic, Geographic and Political Lines As legislation providing legal protection to needle exchange programs operating in the state of California headed to the Governor's desk yesterday (8/26), a survey conducted by the Field Institute found that nearly 70% of Californians favor needle exchange, with majorities cutting across ethnic, geographic and political lines. AB 518, sponsored by Assemblywoman Kerry Mazzoni, passed the Senate by a vote of 21-18 on Tuesday, and is now on Gov. Davis' desk, awaiting his signature or veto. According to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation (http://www.sfaf.org), 71% of non-Hispanic whites and 65% of Latinos surveyed said they favor needle exchange programs. While seventy-seven 77% of African-Americans and 65% of Asian Americans/others who responded to the survey said they favor needle exchange programs, the number of respondents for these two ethnic groups was not large enough to make statistically valid conclusions. Support for needle exchange programs was solid across geographic regions of the state, including the more traditionally conservative regions of Orange County, San Diego and Inland Empire where, as a group, 60% of respondents said they favor exchange programs. Support was highest in the Bay Area (83%); followed by Los Angeles (72%), North Coast/Sierra (68%) and Central Valley (65%). The survey results also show support by a strong majority of registered voters in both political parties and among independent voters, as well as those who said they were likely to vote in 2000, including 79% of Democrats and 75% of independents/others. The data also show that fifty-four 54% of Republicans and 69% of "likely voters in 2000" overall said they favor needle exchange programs. Individuals who identified their political ideology as "moderately conservative" supported needle exchange programs by 62%, those who said they were "middle-of-the-road" responded in favor 75% of the time, while those who described themselves as either "moderately liberal" or "strongly liberal" favored needle exchange programs by more than 80%. A surprisingly strong 38% of those who identified themselves as "strongly conservative" also favor exchange programs. Gustavo Suarez, Communications Director for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, told the Week Online, "Given the across-the-board support for needle exchange that this survey shows, if Gov. Davis now vetoes this bill, it will clearly be a sign that this is no longer about California politics." The Field Institute is a non-partisan, non-profit public policy research organization devoted to the study of public opinion and behavior on social and political issues. The survey was completed among a representative sample of 1,010 California adults by telephone either in English or Spanish between August 16-22, 1999. According to statistical theory, 95% of the time the results from the overall sample would have a +/- error range of 3.2%. ACTION ALERT: Gov. Davis' staff has said privately that he is likely to veto AB 518, but at this point Davis has not yet taken a public position on it. DEATH BY INFECTIOUS DISEASE SHOULD NOT BE A PUNISHMENT FOR DRUG USE. A VETO OF AB 518, AS THE WILL KILL MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN BY INCREASING THE SPREAD OF AIDS AND HEPATITIS THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA AND OUR NATION. Please call Gov. Davis NOW and urge him to sign AB 518! The Governor's phone number is (916) 445-2841; press "2" to speak with a staff member. (If you are calling after office hours, you can press "2" to leave a message, including your opinion and your zip code.) The following is a sample phone script, from the San Francisco AIDS Foundation: "I am calling in strong support of AB 518, which would provide clear legal protection to localities that choose to implement needle exchange programs. Science shows that needle exchange decreases the spread of HIV, hepatitis, and other diseases without increasing drug use. The Governor should sign AB 518 into law. Needle exchange saves lives and is a critical public health tool in the fight against AIDS and other diseases." Last week, 21 members of California's Congressional delegation sent a letter to Davis, urging him to support AB 518 (http://www.drcnet.org/wol/104.html#caldelegation). Please call Gov. Davis and help to pass this historic law! The following are some of the national organizations in the US that have adopted positions favoring needle exchange. Visit http://www.projectsero.org/endorse.shtml for a listing with links to the full text of these and other statements.
3. Montana NORML Receives Documents on Anti-Drug Fungus Research The Montana chapter of NORML last Wednesday (8/19) received more than 150 documents from Montana State University at Bozeman related to a US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-funded research project at the school that is developing mycoherbicides, or fungi, to kill marijuana and poppy plants. MSU released the documents after Montana NORML filed suit against the school under the state constitution's right-to-know clause. "The majority of it is standard federal project employee forms, you know, drug-free workplace stuff that is initialed here and there," John Masterson of Montana NORML told The Week Online. But a few of the documents are more intriguing, including faxes mentioning related research projects in Russia and Turkey, and correspondence from the USDA directing the school not to release information concerning "virulence enhancement to bio-herbicides" until the agency had determined its "commercial value and viability." Masterson said that information is "particularly interesting to us, because it points to the existence of further documents. Under the Montana State Constitution, any documents that don't violate intellectual property or personal privacy that are produced within a public entity such as Montana State University are open to the public." The documents Montana NORML received were accompanied by an assurance from MSU's counsel that more would follow, and that a settlement would be proposed. Masterson said he learned of the fungus project when a person who claimed to be a state representative in Florida called Montana NORML to warn them that "unusual research" was being conducted at MSU Bozeman. The caller was worried about a similar plan underway in Florida, and gave Masterson the names of the MSU-Bozeman researchers involved and the specific names of the fungi. A phone call to MSU-Bozeman confirmed the existence of the project. In fact, the fungi had already been tested in a greenhouse in Missoula with the assistance of the Missoula police. Masterson said Montana NORML will pursue their investigation until all appropriate documents related to the project have been released to the public. Montana NORML is posting the documents on their web site at http://www.montananorml.org. You can read about the proposed testing of anti-drug fungi in Florida in the July 23, 1999 edition of The Week Online at http://www.drcnet.org/wol/100.html#mycoherbicides. An excellent article by Jim
Hogshire examining the deployment of mycoherbicides in the drug war appeared
in Covert Action Quarterly. You can read it on the Media Awareness
Project web site at
4. Marijuana Legalization Effort Grows in Pacific Northwest (courtesy NORML Foundation, http://www.norml.org) Aug. 26, 1999, Olympia, WA: Marijuana legalization efforts in Washington received a boost as the Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp (CRRH) received a hefty donation from a former Microsoft software programmer. Bruce McKinney donated $100,000 to CRRH, sponsor of Initiative 229 (Washington Cannabis Tax Act), to help finance the budding campaign. If approved, the initiative would permit farmers to cultivate cannabis and allow for marijuana sales in state liquor stores. Ninety percent of taxes generated from the sale of marijuana would go to the state general fund; eight percent would be used for drug treatment programs; one percent would be used for a drug education program for school children; and one percent would finance a committee to promote industrial hemp. The McKinney donation would be used to pay a professional firm to collect the 180,000 signatures needed by year's end to submit the initiative to the state legislature. If the legislature does not approve the initiative it would be referred to Washington voters in November 2000. "We're urging everyone to come out of the closet and support this effort," said Paul Stanford, CRRH executive director, who is also organizing similar legalization efforts in Oregon. To date, CRRH has gathered 15,250 signatures for the Oregon initiative (73,261 are necessary) and 17,568 for the Washington Initiative. "The northwestern states have always led the way in marijuana law reform efforts," said Allen St. Pierre, NORML Foundation Executive Director. "NORML hopes that the citizens in both Oregon and Washington will choose to legally control marijuana through state regulation, rather than continuing a black market." For more information, please contact Paul Stanford of Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp at (503) 235-4606 or http://www.crrh.org.
5. Update on Guam Rastafarian Freedom of Religion Case Richard Milsom for DRCNet, [email protected] The Office of the Attorney General of the Territory of Guam has declared that it will appeal the decision of the Superior Court of Guam to acquit a Rastafarian of drug charges to the Supreme Court of Guam (see last week's article at http://www.drcnet.org/wol/104.html#makhana). According to a Pacific Daily News report this week, the decision to pursue the appeal was motivated by a belief that the case may have significance that reaches beyond one individual's assertion of his right to the free exercise of religion. Deputy Attorney General Michael Stern told the News that "the case has implications beyond simply the individual defendant in this case" and maintained that the ruling of the Superior Court could limit the government's ability to prosecute drug cases. There may be some agreement between the defendant and the prosecutor with respect to the importance of what is at stake in this case. Ras Iyah Ben Makahna is described in the News report as "looking forward to the appeal as a way to make clear his position on religious freedom." The reemergence of the freedom of religion issue in such cases as Mr. Makahna's in Guam and the return of previously seized peyote to The Peyote Foundation in Arizona last January (http://www.drcnet.org/wol/074.html#peyote), may signal the opening of a necessary national discussion. Ultimately, the contradiction of First Amendment principles by the prosecution of peaceful users of sacred plants (also known as 'entheogens') may prove too blatant for the mainstream media to ignore. QUERY: The author is attempting to gather information concerning individuals or groups who have been prosecuted under current drug laws for their use of entheogens (plants which they consider sacred under their religion), particularly those who have attempted to defend themselves under the 'free exercise' clause of the First Amendment. An unknown number of Americans regard the use of certain plants as sacred and essential to their religious practice, and some of them are in prison for it. All of them live with that fear. If you are able to provide any useful information, please contact Richard Milson at [email protected].
Jane Tseng, [email protected] Dole Promises New Anti-Drug Crusade Just days after questions were raised about GOP front-runner George W. Bush's past drug use, rival candidate Elizabeth Dole promised that if elected president, she would lead a "crusade" against drugs. "With leadership and the use of that bully pulpit, I think we can have a crusade across this country to remove and rid America of illegal drugs that are poisoning our children today," Dole told delegates to the annual National Foundation for Women Legislators convention last week. Dole, who finished third in the August 14 straw poll in Iowa, later denied that her announcement and the media frenzy surrounding Bush were related. Portland, Oregon Police Investigated for Drug Grant Scam The Portland, Oregon Police Bureau is currently under investigation by the federal Office of the Inspector General for its possible misuse of an estimated $165,000 in federal grant money. The money was part of a $300,000 federal Local Law Enforcement Block Grant that had been awarded for Operation North Star, an undercover operation meant to curb street-level drug dealing in Portland. "In this instance, there appears to be more than routine accounting errors," a spokesperson for the Bureau of Justice told The Oregonian. An initial inquiry found that as many as 30 officers had falsified overtime records at the direction of supervisors between June 1997 and March of this year. So far, four sergeants have been demoted, suspended, or dismissed and at least ten officers could face discipline.
7. Special Free Newsletter Offer for DRCNet Members The National Drug Strategy Network (NDSN) is offering a free copy of their bimonthly newsletter, NewsBriefs, to DRCNet members. NewsBriefs is a concise and accurate news digest covering every aspect of the drug issue: research, treatment, prevention, interdiction, law enforcement, violence, AIDS, corrections, politics, the military, international developments, etc. A unique feature in the newsletter is detailed contact information at the end of each story to help readers contact the news makers. NewsBriefs is edited by Eric E. Sterling, president and founder of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation since 1989. Sterling, who worked on drug policy issues from 1979 to 1989 as counsel to the House Subcommittee on Crime, is a leading expert on drug policy. He was featured this year on the Frontline documentary, "Snitch," and in the recent Geraldo special on the drug war. If you are interested in receiving a free copy of NewsBriefs, e-mail [email protected] with your name and address. NDSN will mail you a copy immediately, along with information about how you can receive the newsletter regularly by becoming a member of NDSN. Membership is available on a sliding scale, ranging from free to $90, depending on each individual's financial situation. You will not be billed! Simply fill out the NDSN membership form if you want to continue to receive NewsBriefs. If you don't have e-mail access, contact Chad Thevenot at (202) 312-2015 or write to 1225 Eye St., NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20009 to request your free copy. NewsBriefs' extensive archives, back to 1993, are available on the web at http://www.ndsn.org.
Adam J. Smith, Associate Director, [email protected] A study released last Sunday at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association found that nearly six percent of Internet users suffer from symptoms of addiction. The six-percent figure closely parallels the percentage of alcohol or illicit drug users who find themselves hooked. David Greenfield, the researcher who conducted the study, had no qualms about analogizing "Internet addiction" with drug addiction. Speaking to the Associated Press, Greenfield noted that the problem was likely to worsen as modems and access gets faster. Greenfield likened faster access to a drug being shot directly into the bloodstream as the most problematic modality of ingestion. The report, which asked Web users a series of ten questions, modeled on those asked by Gamblers Anonymous to determine whether a respondent has a gambling problem, raised serious issues common to many addictions. "Marriages are being disrupted, kids are getting into trouble, people are committing illegal acts, people are spending too much money," Greenfield said. Which brings us to a question. If Internet addiction so closely mirrors addictions to drugs, alcohol and gambling, should we not consider banning the Net? Though its use is growing quickly, surely the Internet has not become so embedded in our culture that it cannot be rooted out? And if even one child can be saved from the horrors of Internet addiction, would it not be worth it? E-mail, of course, would have to go, as it is a well-established "gateway" to web use. Certainly, someone who has used e-mail in the past is more than 85 times more likely to move on to the web than someone who has never been exposed to it. E-mail often brings one into direct contact with "links," those little blue lines of text that provide direct access to children and others. Certainly, there would be an outcry from people claiming "medical use" of the web, but their claims are suspect. Sites hosted by the likes of "Dr." Andrew Weil and others of his ilk, proposing to "help" people live "healthier" lives, have not been proven to do so by the Food and Drug Administration. These people should be getting their information from government approved sources. How can we convince our children that the web is evil and addictive while sending a mixed message that for some, the web is actually beneficial? At any rate, it is likely that the hidden agenda of so-called "medical users" is the full legalization of the web. We must not let this happen. People who claim some religious use, those who are disabled and who claim that the worlds opened to them by the web, "researchers" who are too lazy (one can only wonder why) to get themselves to a good old fashioned library, all of them must be stopped. A line must be drawn by the decent people of this nation -- parents and teachers, coaches, the clergy and community leaders -- everyone who truly cares about the future of our children and the nation, that there will be zero tolerance for the World Wide Web. Web use -- despite the most ardent claims of those who would like to rationalize their own addictive lifestyles -- is an activity undertaken primarily for recreational purposes. On the streets, it's called "surfing." The sad results of this addiction can be seen in the bleary, bloodshot eyes, the pale, sallow faces, and the high incidence of emergency room visits for tell-tale maladies like carpal-tunnel syndrome and necks stiff from hours hunching over lifeless, glowing computer screens. The only real reason that people "surf" is to find escape from the harsh realities of life that are so central to our Judeo-Christian value system. There is still time. We can save the weak-willed masses of America from the urges that they are unable to contain in themselves. We will help them with the threat of prison, forced treatment, and long mandatory minimum sentences. We will establish the WEA, the Web Enforcement Agency, who will seek out and prosecute the hosts of home pages, purveyors of dependence that they are, and who will find users before they spread this horrific disease. The web is already taking a heavy toll on our nation. Shocking though it may seem, many Americans can even access the web from their places of employment. These people are putting a heavy drain on our economy and are costing American industry untold billions of dollars per year. And the problem goes far beyond our shores. Many web sites are hosted in other countries, but they will soon find that there is nowhere to hide. Our efforts will be felt throughout the hemisphere. Extradition treaties will be signed, and foreign governments who fail to cooperate will be faced with the loss of Most Favored Nation trading status. Our own CIA, along with other agencies whose existence we can neither confirm nor deny, are already working on killer viruses that will render web pages useless -- paralyzing the operations of those who would pollute our nation with their "gifs" and "html." Yes, it is time to wage a
War on the Web. Our crusade will move forward in the great American
tradition of strict enforcement of the law in the cause of freedom from
vice. We will use every means at our disposal, including military
force, if need be, to rid our nation of this growing scourge. Stand
with me then, my fellow Americans, as we set forth on this most noble mission.
Let us allow nothing to stand in our way. God Bless America.
If you like what you see here and want to get these bulletins by e-mail, please fill out our quick signup form at https://stopthedrugwar.org/WOLSignup.shtml. PERMISSION to reprint or redistribute any or all of the contents of Drug War Chronicle is hereby granted. We ask that any use of these materials include proper credit and, where appropriate, a link to one or more of our web sites. If your publication customarily pays for publication, DRCNet requests checks payable to the organization. If your publication does not pay for materials, you are free to use the materials gratis. In all cases, we request notification for our records, including physical copies where material has appeared in print. Contact: StoptheDrugWar.org: the Drug Reform Coordination Network, P.O. Box 18402, Washington, DC 20036, (202) 293-8340 (voice), (202) 293-8344 (fax), e-mail [email protected]. Thank you. Articles of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of the DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.
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