Leniency towards drug-abusing celebrities is sending out the wrong message to children and young people, the United Nations drug control agency said today.It's always cute when drug war supporters read between the lines and catch on that the massive international drug war hasn't stopped the party. Unfortunately, this realization often leads to bizarre proposals like biological warfare or mass-arresting famous people.
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) warned that allowing famous people to get away with drug crimes had a damaging effect on impressionable youngsters and undermines faith in the criminal justice system. [The London Paper]
[Courtesy of MPP]Â
I am excited to announce that yesterday the Michigan government officially certified that MPP's Michigan campaign committee â the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care (MCCC) â collected enough signatures to qualify a medical marijuana initiative for the statewide November ballot. You can read more about this milestone here.
The roughly half a million signatures counted by the state had a whopping 80.2% validity rate, far exceeding what was needed to qualify for the ballot. I hope youâll consider making a donation to MCCC today so that we can run a robust campaign the rest of the year and ensure that the measure passes in November.
The official word that we gathered enough signatures to send the initiative to the voters in November culminates a monumental effort in the state. Thanks to the hard work of MPP and MCCC staffers, local activists, volunteers, and supporters for the past nine months, Michigan is close to becoming the 13th medical marijuana state â and the first in the Midwest.
The initiative will now be transmitted to the Michigan Legislature, which has 40 days either to pass it into law or to send it to voters in November. Because the legislature has considered multiple medical marijuana bills in recent years and none has ever gained traction, Michiganders â who support protecting patients from arrest by a nearly 2 to 1 margin â are all but certain to vote on the issue at the polls later this year.
Most importantly, Michigan patients are now one enormous step closer to being able to use medical marijuana without the fear of arrest and jail. If passed by a majority of voters on Election Day, the initiative will allow Michigan patients to use, possess, and grow their own marijuana for medical purposes with their doctorsâ approval.
The most recent polling shows that 61% of Michigan voters support medical marijuana access, and weâve hired a top-notch consulting firm and a full-time campaign manager to translate that public sentiment into a new law that protects patients. But we need your financial support to succeed, so please make a donation to the campaign today.
Iâm grateful for your support.
Sincerely,
Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.
P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your monthly pledge to MPP will be doubled.
Colombian rebel leader Ricardo Palmera is already serving a 60-year prison sentence. Convicted in a hostage-taking conspiracy, he has no chance of parole and is likely to die in prison.So what's the point? AP explains it as well as I could:
But U.S. prosecutors are about to begin a monthlong trial, which could cost more than $1 million, seeking to prove that Palmera and his guerrilla allies are drug traffickers. [AP]
For the U.S., however, the outcome matters a great deal. The Bush administration has taken a hard line against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, branding them not just a terrorist group but a violent drug cartel. A courtroom win would reinforce that stance.As Pete Guither points out, the story's headline "US Seeks Symbolic Drug War Victory" couldn't more perfectly describe what's going on here. We are spending $1 million to stamp the "drug trafficker" label on a guy that's already been branded as a terrorist. In the absence of actual tangible progress in the war on drugs, these sorts of symbolic endeavors are the lifeblood without which the morale of the great drug warrior army might wither and disperse.
[Courtesy of UBC Continuing Studies Series] If you missed this engaging series of free panel discussions facilitated by Stephen Owen, UBC Vice President, External, Legal and Community Relations, webcasts of each session are available below. In communities across Canada, discussions are going on â public and private â about how to deal effectively with the growing problem of illicit drug use. Decisions are being made about how to educate our young people and how to allocate public money. Vancouver has been at the centre of the drug debate since 1995. It has led the way in taking public action, researching the effect of different strategies and considering current community attitudes. At this time of escalating concern about drug and alcohol problems, and drug-related crime, this series looks at a wide spectrum of perspectives and research â often conflicting â to consider what information is useful in guiding us as parents, co-workers and citizens. |
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