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Former Brazil Fire Chief Accused of Killing Drug Users in Alleged Retaliation to Son's Killing

Drug prohibition feeds negative stereotypes of those who use drugs, making them targets for many kinds of abuse. A former fire chief in Brazil, Jorge Luiz Thais Martins, is suspected of killing at least eight drug users in the neighborhood where his son was shot dead in a robbery attempt. "Police are investigating the possibility the crimes were committed as vengeance," said Giovani Santos, a spokesman for the public safety department. He said Martins is being investigated in part because a drug user who survived a recent attempted killing identified Martins as the shooter.
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In The Trenches

President Obama to Answer Top Questions Posed by Public on YouTube Today, Top 100 Most Popular Questions ALL Related to Marijuana Law and Drug Policy Reform (Press Release)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JANUARY 27, 2011

President Obama to Answer Top Questions Posed by Public on YouTube Today

Top 100 Most Popular Questions ALL Related to Marijuana Law and

Drug Policy Reform

Drug Policy Reform Groups: Obama Needs to Listen to Public’s Concerns and Address Issue

CONTACT: Morgan Fox, MPP communications manager …………………. 202-905-2031 or [email protected]

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Drug Policy Alliance, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, the Marijuana Policy Project, NORML and Students for Sensible Drug Policy have issued the following joint statement:

“Following his 2011 State of the Union address, President Obama asked the public to submit questions for an exclusive YouTube interview that will take place at 2:30PM on Thursday January 27. The “Ask Obama” forum promises to take questions from the American people on the issues they find most important in terms of national policy.

“The people have spoken, and the message is loud and clear: the top 100 most popular questions (193,000 were submitted) are on marijuana reform and the harms of drug prohibition, with the first-place question coming from a former police officer who has first-hand experience with the failure of these policies. The questions dominating the forum deal with marijuana legalization, prohibition-related violence, and the fiscal and human consequences of mass incarceration. The American people want to know why our country is continuing the failed, catastrophic policy of drug prohibition.

“Several of the most popular questions also address why our elected leaders have virtually ignored these important issues. This is not the first time marijuana legalization and drug reform have dominated the response to Obama’s call for questions. There were similar results in both 2009 and 2010 when people asked Obama about ending prohibition and using science instead of politics to guide our drug policies. In 2009, Obama’s response was to laugh off the question about taxing and controlling marijuana. In 2010, Obama ignored the questions, despite the questions dominating in quantity and quality. 

“We are encouraged by the grassroots response bubbling up around this issue and urge President Obama to address this issue seriously and thoroughly.”

With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

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In The Trenches

Cut Drug War Spending (Action Alert)

We Are the Drug Policy Alliance.

Tell President Obama to stop wasting money on the failed war on drugs.

Take Action!

Email the President

Dear Friends,

In his State of the Union address a few days ago, President Obama said it is time for the federal government to tighten its belt and stop wasting so much money. One of the biggest – and most destructive – wastes of money is the war on drugs. President Obama is working on a new federal budget – urge him to stop wasting money on the failed war on drugs.

In these times of deficits and budget cuts, let’s send a clear message: no more money for marijuana arrests. No more money for laughably stupid anti-marijuana ads. No more money for random drug testing. No more money for SWAT raids on people's homes for suspected drug law violations. No more money for long prison sentences for low-level, nonviolent drug offenses. No more money for the drug war. Period.

Tell the President that our tax dollars should be spent more wisely.

With your help we can eliminate or cut drug war waste and dismantle the war on drugs. Please take a minute to write the White House and tell President Obama to stop wasting your tax dollars on failed drug policies.

Sincerely,

Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

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Medical Marijuana Attorney Rob Corry Calls Colorado's Dept. of Revenue Draft Regs "Death by 1,000 Cuts"

When asked to synopsize his problems with the regs as written Corry said, "It's hard to pick out the more significant ones, because there are so many. But I think probably my greatest concern is the cameras." "This is an intrusive, Orwellian proposal. Every single patient who comes into a center and purchases any amount of medicine has to place his or her registry card on an overhead projector, and that person's name, address, Social Security number, the amount of the purchase and where they live will all be recorded," he added.
In The Trenches

Pro-Legalization Cop Gets 1st Place in YouTube's "Ask Obama" Contest (Press Release)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 27, 2010

CONTACT: Tom Angell (202) 557-4979 or [email protected]

In YouTube's "Ask Obama" Contest, Drug-Legalizing Cop Comes in First Place
Obama Previously Laughed Off Marijuana Questions, But Can He Ignore a Cop?

WASHINGTON, DC --  A video question about legalizing drugs from a former deputy sheriff has come in first place in YouTube's "Your Interview with the President" competition, where users submitted and voted on questions to be posed to President Barack Obama.

Obama is scheduled to answer the top-voted questions today, Thursday, Jan. 27, at 2:30 PM EST in an interview that will be streamed live online at http://www.youtube.com/askobama

The first-place question from MacKenzie Allen, the retired deputy sheriff and a currently a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/copssaylegalizedrugs#p/u/6/Zbz9lnVbrwc

“As a proud American with a career in law enforcement behind me, I find it frustrating that many elected officials pay little or no attention to the serious harms caused by our failed drug policies," said MacKenzie Allen, a retired deputy sheriff who served in Los Angeles, CA and King County (Seattle), WA.  "That's why I took advantage of what is likely my only opportunity to pose a question to our president, via the Internet. I’ve watched for decades as we throw good money after bad and, more importantly, life after life, at a 'War on Drugs' that is waged with counterproductive tactics and an overall flawed strategy. For the sake of those law enforcers who are still bravely on the front lines of the 'Drug War,' I hope our politicians will heed the call to finally discuss a new approach to drug control."

The Obama White House has previously asked citizens to submit and vote on questions via the web several times, with marijuana and drug policy issues rising to the top virtually every time. During a town hall meeting following one such round of voting in 2009, President Obama laughed off a marijuana legalization question, saying, "I don't know what this says about the online audience."

LEAP executive director Neill Franklin, a former Baltimore narcotics cop, responnds, "The fact that these questions keep getting the most votes says that Americans are tired of our elected officials ignoring this important issue. Some of my best friends have been killed in line of fire while enforcing these senseless laws. It's not a laughing matter, and the president shouldn't treat it as such."

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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How Afghan Poppy Eradication Efforts Are Helping the World's Largest Heroin Dealers

It has long been known inside Afghanistan that heroin dealers in high positions benefit from the United States and Afghan governments' counternarcotics policies. Now the American public can get a glimpse. US embassy cables published recently by WikiLeaks expose the insider opinion that Afghan officials are using poppy eradication teams to weed out the competitors of major traffickers with whom they are linked.
Latest News

Obama Barraged by Marijuana Questions for Upcoming YouTube Town Hall

Of the top 100 most popular questions as rated by YouTube users, 99 are about the drug war or marijuana. Of the next one hundred, 99 are again about drug policy. The marijuana questions don't stop there, but Huffington Post stopped counting deep into the 200s, as the president is unlikely to answer all of them. A White House spokesman told Huffington Post that the president will answer whatever questions YouTube puts before him.
Latest News

US Missionary Possibly Killed by Drug Prohibition Gang in Mexico Over Truck

An American missionary couple who were allegedly attacked by drug prohibition gunmen in a dangerous part of Mexico may have been targeted for their expensive pickup truck, because drug gangs covet the vehicles, police said. Sam Davis told investigators that that he and his wife were driving near the city of San Fernando, about 70 miles south of the Mexican border city of Reynosa, when gunmen in a pickup truck tried to stop them. When the Davises sped up, the gunmen fired, shooting Nancy Davis in the head.
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Latest News

Drug Prohibition's Cocaine Traffickers Have Proven Both Vicious and Resilient

Since the beginning of the drug prohibition war, the drug trade has ballooned, spreading violence and corruption across large parts of the globe. Despite billions spent on combating them drug traffickers have for decades outwitted the authorities, keeping consumers in North America and Europe supplied at a price and purity that remains remarkably consistent despite law enforcement officials around the world frequently heralding the dismantling of trafficking networks.
Latest News

The Drug Prohibition Related War on Cold Medicine Isn't Working (Opinion)

Jim Hightower, the best-selling author of "Swim Against the Current: Even a Dead Fish Can Go With the Flow," opines on the drug prohibitionists' war against pseudoephedrine. He says restricting its sale has created a very lucrative black market for the pills, luring thousands of new peddlers, hustlers and opportunists into the illicit meth underworld.
Chronicle

Did You Know? Drug Testing Research Results, on DrugWarFacts.org

DrugWarFacts.org is an in-depth compilation of key facts, stats and quotes on the full range of drug policy issues, excerpted from expert publications. The Chronicle is running a series of info items from DrugWarFacts.org, and we encourage you to check it out.
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Medical Marijuana in Washington, DC: Mayor Gray Could Tweak Medical Marijuana Program

Mayor Vince Gray is reviewing the policies that will govern the District's medical marijuana program and is being pushed to make changes that could help improve the program's reception on Capitol Hill. At-large Councilman David Catania informed Gray that if the mayor doesn't act, the city's Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will be able to send out solicitations for marijuana dispensary applications on February 14. Gray said, "Hopefully by [Feb. 14] we'll be operative, but we'll see how it works out."
Latest News

"Ask Obama" Top 100 Questions About Drug War, Pot

NORML took the time to review the Top 100 questions on the "Ask Obama" site and condense each one into a few words so President Obama could get an idea what is important to the country. When Obama did this in 2010 he heard loud and clear about marijuana law reform. Americans asked about re-scheduling cannabis to allow medical marijuana to flourish, decriminalizing marijuana to end thousands of arrests, legalizing pot to raise tax revenue, ending prohibition to cripple Mexican drug traffickers, regulating cannabis to keep it out of kids’ hands, reforming drug laws to re-prioritize police resources, embracing industrial hemp as a truly green energy source, and using science, not politics, to dictate our drug policy. And President Obama flat-out ignored the citizenry, despite those questions dominating in both quantity and popularity. When Obama did this in 2009 he got the same response from the public. That time he didn’t ignore his fellow Americans; he just laughed at them.
Chronicle
Chronicle
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Mexico Drug War Update

We present two weeks worth of Mexican drug war mayhem, and we review the death toll year by year since Calderon sent in the troops in 2007. The total has passed 35,000.
Latest News

Mexican Mayor Accuses Police Over Bodyguard's Death

The mayor of Ciudad Juárez has accused federal police of killing one of his bodyguards in an incident that underlines the growing tension between the different authorities in Mexico's drug prohibition war capital. "My bodyguard, accompanied by another, identified himself, raised his hands and was shot in the head," Héctor Murguía Lardizábal told reporters. "That's a murder." The mayor said that when he went to the federal police base in a nearby hotel to demand an explanation, he received a volley of insults an had a gun pointed at him.
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