Drug War Chronicle #599 - August 28, 2009

The drug policy wheel is turning, and the US and its hard-line repressive drug policies are becoming increasingly isolated in the hemisphere as in the past week alone 150 million Latin Americans came under one form of decriminalization or another.

Canadian cannabis entrepreneur and legalization advocate Marc Emery is just weeks away from a US federal prison term. But if US and Canadian authorities think they can shut him and his supporters up, they are in for a surprise.

Here's the latest on the prohibition-related carnage wracking Mexico.

We have a Deep South trio of dirty cops this week.

The Obama administration said it wouldn't raid medical marijuana providers who act in accordance with state law, but a bust last week raises a few questions.

In the latest ugly twist in the Will Foster saga, the medical marijuana patient has been extradited back to Oklahoma so the Sooner State can extract a few more pounds of flesh -- and a few more years in prison for growing a plant.

Who has the lowest marijuana possession fine in the nation? Denver is poised to take that honor.

The cops need to get a warrant before asking power companies to record electricity usage, an Alberta court says.

Here's the latest twist on Dutch efforts to deal with "drug tourism." Maybe Belgium, France, and Germany should just change their laws instead.

Some legal highs in Britain soon won't be so legal.

Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.

Every two years drug policy reformers from across the United States and around the world come to the International Drug Policy Reform Conference to listen, learn, network and strategize together for change. This year the conference is in Albuquerque, in November, and StoptheDrugWar.org is a partner.

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