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[Courtesy ACLU of Florida] The Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC) is organizing a two-part mobilization in Tallahassee in support of restoring the right to vote to hundreds of thousands of people with past felony convictions in Florida who have completed their sentences. Your presence in Tallahassee is critical to furthering our continuing progress toward comprehensive clemency reform and our goal of removing the voting ban from Florida’s Constitution. On February 28, we seek to mobilize 40-75 citizens to Tallahassee for the February 28th Board of Executive Clemency meeting. On April 1, FRRC plans to mobilize 500-1000 individuals for a rally and related events. We Need a Commitment from You & Your Organization! The success of this effort depends on commitments from you and your organization. We ask that you and your organization let us know how many people you or your organization can mobilize for either or both of the events on February 28 and April 1. We especially need your help mobilizing individuals for the April 1 rally. Everyone who supports ending Florida’s civil rights ban is welcome and encouraged to attend. We extend a special invitation to those who are directly impacted by Florida’s civil rights ban. If you, or someone you know, have been affected by Florida’s voting ban, come to Tallahassee and make your voices heard! Make the decision today to support this historic event and let us know how many people you can bring to the event. For additional information please call La Rhonda Odom at 786-363-2718. The time is always right to do what is right. ~Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. La Rhonda Odom Racial Justice Project Associate ACLU of Florida 4500 Biscayne Blvd. Suite 340 Miami, FL 33137 (786) 363-2718 (phone) (786) 363-1020 (fax)

[Courtesy of Americans for Safe Access] For Immediate Release: January 24, 2008 Contact: ASA Chief Counsel Joe Elford (415) 573-7842 or ASA Media Liaison Kris Hermes (510) 681-6361 CA Supreme Court Denies Medical Marijuana Patients' Right to Work Advocates to call on state legislature to prevent discrimination Sacramento, CA -- The California Supreme Court ruled against medical marijuana patient Gary Ross today in his fight against employment discrimination. In a 5-2 decision, the Supreme Court claimed that Ross could not rely on the Fair Housing and Employment Act or the state's medical marijuana law to prevent discrimination at the workplace. The Court did indicate in its decision that the state legislature had not adequately clarified employment rights of medical marijuana patients. "Obviously, we are very disappointed by today's decision," said Joe Elford, Chief Counsel of Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the medical marijuana advocacy organization that argued the case. "However, we remain hopeful that the legislature will come to the aid of patients by preventing the sort of discrimination that is likely to occur from such a decision." The dissenting opinion, written by Justice Joyce L. Kennard, stated that the ruling "has seriously compromised the Compassionate Use Act, denying to those who must work for a living its promised benefits." Despite a clearly worded amicus "friend of the court" brief filed in support of Ross in July 2006 by all of the original co-authors of SB 420 (state legislation that helped to define the rights of medical marijuana patients), the Supreme Court failed to believe that it was the intent of the entire legislature. Advocates assert that they will seek a different response from the state legislature in the form of a bill introduced in the next few weeks. Gary Ross, a 45-year old disabled veteran and a medical marijuana patient living in Carmichael, California, is at the forefront of a landmark employment case, with significant ramifications for patients in California and across the country. Ross was fired in September 2001 for failing an employer-mandated drug test while working as a systems engineer for RagingWire Telecommunications, Inc. "All I am asking is to be a productive member of society," said plaintiff Gary Ross. "I was not fired for poor work performance, but for an antiquated policy on medical marijuana,” continued Ross. “This practice allows employers to undermine state law and the protections provided for patients.” Ross's physician recommended cannabis for chronic back pain that resulted from injuries sustained during his military service. But Ross's employer, RagingWire Telecommunications, refused to make an exception to its policy of terminating anyone testing positive for marijuana. Ross filed suit after he was fired in 2001, arguing that RagingWire illegally discriminated against him because of his condition. However, a Sacramento Superior Court, and then the Third Appellate District Court both rejected his argument. In October 2005, ASA appealed to the California Supreme Court on behalf of Ross. Strong public support has been shown for Ross and the plight of California patients to seek and maintain employment. Since it began recording instances of employment discrimination in 2005, ASA has received hundreds of such reports from across California. Companies that have either fired patients from their job, threatened them with termination, or denied them employment because of patient status or a positive test for marijuana, include Costco Wholesale, UPS, Foster Farms Dairy, DirecTV, the San Joaquin Courier, Power Auto Group, as well as several construction companies, hospitals, and various trade union employers. Further information: Today's California Supreme Court decision: http://www.safeaccessnow.org/downloads/Ross_Ruling.pdf Photo of Gary Ross: http://safeaccessnow.org/img/original/Ross_pic3.jpg Legislative-based amicus brief: http://www.safeaccessnow.org/downloads/ross_legislative.pdf Review legal briefs and more about the Ross v. RagingWire case here: http://www.safeaccessnow.org/Ross

[Courtesy Prison Art Gallery] You can read the latest issue of Art for Justice now! View and purchase new art arrivals created by imprisoned artists from across America, shipped anywhere in the world. You can also purchase any of our beautiful extra large 48 PRISON ART PRINTS, now on SALE for ONLY $10 each Check out the new edition of Art for Justice (Feb. 2008), the official prison art catalog of the Prison Art Gallery in downtown Washington, DC (three blocks from the White House) at http://prisonsfoundation.org/febafj.pdf. Also in this issue you can find out how you can become an official art mentor to struggling prison artists by enrolling in our FREE workshop taught by prison officials and ex-prisoner artists. Visit http://prisonsfoundation.org/febafj.pdf for more details. If you have any questions, please call 202-393-1511. When in Washington, DC, please visit the Prison Art Gallery. Located downtown at 1600 K Street (three blocks from the White House), the Prison Art Gallery is served by two Metro stations (Farragut North on the Red Line, and Farragut West on the Orange and Blue Lines). Note that the entrance is on 16th Street, at the corner of K Street. Open Mon to Fri, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Saturday and Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 PM (also open evenings by appointment - groups welcome - admission is always free) To shop online, please visit http://prisonsfoundation.org/catalog.html or click the image to the left. Thank you.

[Courtesy of DrugSense] One of the U.S. government's most persistently dishonest appointed officials - John Walters, the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) - has been caught in yet another outright lie to the North American media. His office's first major press release of 2008 made a disturbing announcement. According to Drug Czar Walters, there is a "dangerous new drug threat coming from Canada." The drug? - so called "Extreme Ecstasy." In a news release distributed in the U.S. and Canada, Walters warned that the use of ecstasy is being fueled by Canadian producers smuggling the illegal designer drug -- which is increasingly laced with crystal meth -- into the U.S. "Historic progress against ecstasy availability and use is in jeopardy of being rolled back by Canadian criminal organizations," Walters said in the release. Scott Burns, the primary spokesperson for Walters' ONDCP office, echoed the alarming cry with "They are remarketing and packaging it and trying to glamorize it." Certainly gives the guise of being important information for Americans - especially parents of teenagers, right? Unfortunately, it seems that John Walters and the ONDCP created "extreme ecstasy" out of their own imaginations. The U.S. Drug Czar has been caught lying - again. And this time, the direct rebuttal of his lies comes from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Less than two weeks after the January 4th ONDCP press release, the head of the RCMP's national drug branch sternly rebuked the ONDCP claims. Supt. Paul Nadeau said he doesn't know why Walters would make such fictional statements without checking facts with Canadian officials. He added that he himself has never heard of "extreme Ecstasy.... it would appear that it's a term that somebody came up with in a boardroom in Washington, D.C." Please write a letter to newspapers that carry coverage of the false claims. Let your local and state or provincial media know that the United States Drug Czar is a very unreliable and frankly dishonest source of accurate information.

PLEASE NOTE: We now have transcripts, potcasts, searchability, CMS, XML, sorts by guest name and by organization. (To downlad files, click on links below, to simply listen go to www.drugtruth.net and select the arrow below the shows description.) Cultural Baggage for 01/23/08 Mike Gray, author of Drug Crazy and Chairman of Common Sense for Drug Policy discusses his forthcoming video: "Clergy Against the War on Drugs" + Charles Thomas of Interfaith Drug Policy Initiative & Poppygate, Official Government Truth. MP3 LINK: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=audio/download/1737/FDBCB_012308.mp3 TRANSCRIPT: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=node/1737#comments Century of Lies for 01/22/08 "Black America: The Debate Within" panel discussion from New Orleans drug conference featuring Rev. Edwin Sanders, Naomi Long, Prof. James Peterson and Prof. Glenn Loury. MP3 Link: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=audio/download/1736/COL_012208.mp3 TRANSCRIPT: http://www.drugtruth.net/cms/?q=node/1736#comments Next - Century of Lies on Tues, Cutural Baggage on Wed: - Cultural Baggage 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: Guests TBD - Century of Lies 12:30 PM ET, 11:30 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: Guests TBD Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net. We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada. Programs produced at Pacifica Radio Station KPFT in Houston. www.kpft.org Check out our latest videos via www.youtube.com/fdbecker: More than 50 Drug Policy Videos online) Please become part of the solution, visit our website: www.endprohibition.org for links to the best of reform. "Prohibition is evil." - Reverend Dean Becker, Drug Truth Network Producer Dean Becker 713-849-6869 www.drugtruth.net

[Courtesy of Drug Policy Alliance] For Immediate Release: January 23, 2008 For More Info: Tony Newman (646) 335-5384 or Ethan Nadelmann (646) 335-2240 Governor Spitzer Proposes Tax Stamp on Illegal Drugs Statement from Ethan Nadelmann, Executive Director of the Drug Policy Alliance “I have my doubts regarding Gov. Eliot Spitzer's proposed bill to require all marijuana and other controlled substances in the state to have a tax stamp. “On the one hand, it seems perfectly reasonable to require people and businesses to pay taxes on the revenue earned from selling products of any sort, whether they are legal or illegal. Indeed, in the dozen states where marijuana has been legalized for medical purposes, many of those who sell marijuana to patients are willing and even eager to pay taxes on their revenue. “On the other hand, these tax stamp bills and laws smack of the gratuitous piling on of punitive sanctions that permeates the overall drug war. The United States already locks up people who violate the drug laws more readily, more frequently and for longer periods of time than in almost any other country – at a national cost of tens of billions of dollars per year. We also subject drug law violators to civil and criminal asset forfeiture and deprive them of all sorts of rights and privileges after they have served their sentences - - to an extent far greater than in almost any other country. More than half a million people come out of prison each year but face daunting prospects getting a fresh start, in part because they are obliged to pay fines – like this tax stamp – that end up causing far more harm than good. “The Governor could accomplish far greater tax savings for New York taxpayers if he would move forward on his campaign commitments regarding reform of the Rockefeller drug laws. The modest reforms of 2004 and 2005 already have saved the state tens of millions of dollars – but far greater savings could be attained, with no risk to public safety, if he were to support the drug law reforms passed by the Assembly in recent years. “And, quite frankly, New Yorkers would most benefit from a serious proposal to tax, control and regulate marijuana more or less like alcohol is today. Even though New York decriminalized marijuana possession in the 1970s, it still arrests people for that offense more frequently than most states that never decriminalized it. New Yorkers spend many tens of millions of dollars per year for this foolish excess, when instead the state could earn even greater amounts from taxing this ever popular consumer product. Overall consumption would likely rise only modestly given the widespread and easy availability of marijuana today notwithstanding its illegality. Virtually all New Yorkers – both those who like marijuana and those who have no interest in it – would benefit.”