Restarting Drug War Chronicle (Phil is Back!)

Dear friends,

You may have noticed that the Chronicle was on a bit of a hiatus for much of this year. Phil is back writing now, and we'd like to keep it that way. To make this possible, and to bring his schedule and the Chronicle to a full level, we need to raise at least $800/week in tax-deductible grants or donations to our 501(c)(3) nonprofit, DRCNet Foundation. That's not all Phil should be earning for his work, but for now at least it will enable us to complete the restart of the Chronicle and keep it going.

(We also need to raise $900/month in non-deductible donations to our 501(c)(4) public welfare nonprofit, Drug Reform Coordination Network, to continue to afford the our list management service and web site hosting fees. I'll explain why we cover these costs from the non-deductible type of donation in a subsequent email. If you remember this from the past, it's the same reason as before, with the costs somewhat lower now.)

This week's Chronicle features a book review, a restarted "This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories" installment that looks back over more than a week this time, and a few of Phil's daily roundups of important drug policy stories (still known internally as the "Chronicle AM"). One story with important ramifications is the confiming by Congress of a new DEA administrator, who intends to make the cannabis rescheduling decision a priority, but who hasn't indicated what that means. A story we were sad to note is the passing of our friend, Oaksterdam founder Richard Lee. (Until we meet our $800 weekly goal for this, the daily roundups will probably get published more like three times a week.)

This week's Chronicle also links a feature story about President Trump's declaration of organized criminal groups involved in drug trafficking as terrorist organizations, and the ramifications that blurring the lines in this way may have for policy and international relations. Phil wrote and we published this in February, but the story has entered a new stage this month, as we'll be reporting on this week. Also, while I don't like to say anything good about our current president (and I understand that some of you feel differently), the Chronicle will be faithfully reporting on the president's promising statement late last week regarding cannabis rescheduling.

Thank you if you're willing to help us restart Drug War Chronicle. Also, if you were planning to or considering making a gift later in the year, it would make the extra difference if you were to do so now instead. Of course we are grateful for your support, whenever it is provided and in whatever amount.

Note that our online donation system, along with accepting one-time donations of course (via credit card, PayPal or bank ACH), also has a range of recurring donation options that you can use if you wish to make that commitment. People mainly use these for monthly or annual gifts to our organization. But our donation system can also accommodate gifts scheduled weekly, biweekly, every four weeks, quarterly, and twice a year. (Click here if you'd like info on contributing by mail or making a gift of stock.)

Sincerely,

David Borden, Executive Director
StoptheDrugWar.org
P.O. Box 9853, Washington, DC 20016
https://stopthedrugwar.org