Chronicle AM -- May 23, 2014

There's a slim majority for marijuana legalization in New York, an Oregon legalization initiative gets another big-bucks boost, New Mexico patients fight back against proposed new rules, actor Don Johnson speaks out on drug policy, a global campaign for medical marijuana as a human right is underway, and more. Let's get to it:

Louisiana Legislature Approves Law Making Possession Not Automatic Parole Violation. The state Senate yesterday approved House Bill 681, a tiny step toward the reform of marijuana laws in the Bayou State. Under current law, a misdemeanor marijuana possession is an automatic parole revocation for a parolee; this bill would give judges some discretion to impose administrative sanctions instead. The bill has already passed the House and awaits the governor's signature. Clicking on the title link will allow you to email Gov. Jindal (R) to urge him to sign the bill.

Quinnipiac Poll: 51% of New Yorkers Say Legalize It. Support for marijuana legalization in the Empire State is at 51%, according to a new Quinnipiac University Poll. The poll also had support for medical marijuana at 83% and comes as the state Senate is considering a medical marijuana bill, Senate Bill 4406.

New Approach Oregon Legalization Initiative Gets Another $100,000 Donation. The Drug Policy Alliance has kicked in another $100,000 to get the New Approach Oregon initiative on the November ballot. That's the third $100,000 donation to the group in less than two months, including an earlier $100,000 from DPA's political campaign arm, Drug Policy Action. The initiative needs some 87,000 valid voter signatures to make the ballot, and it's not the only one in play. Medical marijuana entrepreneur Paul Stanford's Oregon Cannabis Tax Act initiative and his Oregon Cannabis Amendment initiative are both also in the signature-gathering phase. The latter needs more signatures -- 116,000 of them -- because it is a constitutional amendment.

Medical Marijuana

New New Mexico Program Rules Provoke Campaign to Start Afresh. Medical marijuana advocates are launching a campaign to force the state Health Department to go back to the drawing board after it released proposed rule changes last Friday that advocates say will make access to medical marijuana more difficult. The Don't Take Away My Medicine campaign is being led by the New Mexico Medical Cannabis Patient's Alliance, the South East New Mexico Medical Cannabis Alliance, and the Drug Policy Alliance. Click on the title link for more details.

Drug Policy

Miami Vice Star Don Johnson Says Legalize It All. Miami Vice star Don Johnson, perhaps now better known as "Dakota Johnson's dad," has come out with a frankly anti-prohibitionist stance on drug policy. The 65-year-old actor who got famous fighting 1980s drug traffickers in the TV show told HuffPostLive on Thursday that America should "legalize every drug and tax it" -- with no exceptions. Does that include hard drug like heroin? "Absolutely," he said. "When we privatize prisons we've turned it into a business," Johnson continued. "And so when you turn it into a business you need clients, and so we arrest a lot of people that don't belong in prison, but they are clients to the privatization of the prison." That's just "stupid," he added. "If you legalize and decriminalize drugs, you take the glamour out of it. You take the gangs out of it, you take the drug dealers out of it and you make a less glamorous thing."

International

Italy to Count Drug Money, Other Illicit Commerce in GDP Calculations. The Italian government statistics agency Istat said Thursday in will include estimated revenues from drug trafficking and the sex trade in figuring the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The Bank of Italy said it estimated the value of the illicit economy -- also including cigarette and alcohol smuggling -- at 10.9% of the GDP, which could make Italy's economic growth look better than the 1.3% estimated earlier this year.

Overview of Drug Trafficking and the Colombian Peace Process. The Global Coalition for Conflict Transformation has published an article on Colombia, the drug trade, and the peace process by Fabio Andres Diaz. He argues that the peace process is unlikely to result in a reduction of drug cultivation. Those interested in the subject should take a look by clicking on the title link.

British Medical Journal Article Discusses Comparative Marijuana Legalization Models, Prospects for Change. A new article in the British Medical Journal looks at how marijuana is being regulated and/or legalized in different countries around the world, including Holland, Uruguay, the United Kingdom, and the United States. "Cannabis Regulation: High Time for Change?" is available without going through a pay wall by clicking on the title link.

Global Campaign Calls for Access to Medical Marijuana as a Basic Human Right. An international consortium of medical cannabis organizations are demanding that humans, regardless of state or allegiance and without qualification, be able to use cannabis therapeutically. In a joint declaration, the organizations from Europe and North America refer to Article 3 of the Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948. The new declaration is the beginning of a worldwide campaign on the use of cannabis for therapeutic purposes. It says: "Every medical doctor has the right to treat his or her patients with cannabinoids and cannabis products according to the rules of good medical care" and "every patient has the right to access cannabis and cannabinoids for medical treatment supervised by a medical doctor, regardless of social status, standard of living or financial means." The initial signatories include medical marijuana and medical groups from the US, Germany, Italy, and Norway. Click on the title link for more information.