A recent article in Time made important points about the difference between the coca plant and its legal uses, vs. the international cocaine trade and efforts to fight it in Bolivia. Unfortunately, the article stopped there and didn't ask the next logical -- and desperately needed -- question.

Kenneth Rau is the first person in the US to face prison time for possessing salvia divinorum. Prosecutors have offered him five years in prison if he cops a plea. Otherwise, he faces up to 20.

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A tough week for jail and prison guards, and some Virginia deputies could find themselves in trouble.

The people who managed to overturn Mendocino County's groundbreaking Measure G, which barred prosecution of anyone growing fewer than 25 plants, are feeling emboldened. Now, they have hatched a new scheme to further tighten the screws.

Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader unveils a strong drug policy platform and suggests the government should target corporate criminals instead of drug offenders.

Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr uses the raid on the home of the mayor of Berwyn Heights, Maryland, to issue a broader critique of drug law enforcement.

"Dying to Get High," by sociologists Wendy Chapkis and Richard Webb, is a groundbreaking work that provides an in-depth portrait of one of the country's most well-known medical marijuana collectives.

Britain's prohibition establishment suffered a high-ranking defection when a former Tony Blair drug policy coordinator went over to the other side in an online comment that has excited considerable British media attention.

French police are cracking down on drugged drivers, and they unveiled a new tool in their kits this week: saliva testing.

For all the mouthing off by government officials about methamphetamine abuse, it took an NGO to take the obvious step of getting everybody who's working on the problem together to talk about it.

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

"The War on Drugs in 100 Seconds," "Another Top Drug War Official Calls for Legalization," "Stephen Colbert's Latest Outrageous Attack on Medical Marijuana," "Bob Barr Condemns Violent, Dog-Murdering Drug Raid," "Mexican Cartels Have Begun Kidnapping Americans," "Mayor Calvo Says Botched Drug Raids Are Commonplace," "TV Networks Refuse to Allow Discussion of Marijuana Laws," "The Real Reason SWAT Teams Kill Dogs and People," "Cartoon: Dogs as SWAT Team Target Practice."

The Marijuana Policy Project is hiring a Membership Coordinator and a Membership Assistant to work out of the organization's Washington, DC office.

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