Thursday, April 14, 2005

Smoking pot makes you better educated, gives you higher income Of course, the headline to this post isn't really true, but if we were to use the tactics of the Drug Czar, that is what we'd say. Particularly given this news from Canada (you know, the place where they have that Super Pot -- the crack cocaine of marijuana -- that Walters says is destroying our citizens): Ottawa, Ontario: Lifetime cannabis users are likely to be single, well educated, and earning an above average salary, according to a recent survey of 13,900 Canadians conducted by Health Canada and the Canadian Executive Council on Addictions. Approximately 45 percent of the Canadian population over age 15 reported having used cannabis during their lifetime - up from 23 percent in 1989, the survey reported. Lifetime cannabis use increased with education and income. Among those with some post-secondary education, 52 percent reported having used cannabis. By comparison, among those without a high school degree, only 35 percent reported having tried cannabis. In addition, 55 percent of those respondents with a "high income adequacy" said they had used cannabis, as opposed to only 43 percent of those with a "low income adequacy." Among those who reported consuming cannabis, most said that they used it infrequently and did not "experienc[e] serious harm due to their cannabis use." So no, this news doesn't say that smoking pot causes a better education or a higher income, but it does make it pretty hard to support a whole lot of the things that drug warriors claim. Via NORML. Full text available here (pdf). 6:22:14 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Schapelle Corby In another trial, in another part of the world, a female student faces a possible sentence of death by firing squad for a marijuana offense, when it's quite possible that baggage handlers used her luggage (without her knowledge) to do the smuggling. Sickening. [Thanks, Scott] 6:02:34 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Pain doctor gets 25 years for helping people Could have been worse -- prosecutors asked for life -- but this is essentially a life sentence. At TalkLeft. Virginia medical doctor William Hurwitz was sentenced to 25 years in a federal prison today for over-prescribing pain medication. It's time to get federal police out of the business of deciding our medical treatment. States and the medical community should handle this, not national law enforcement. Here's hoping that Raich v. Ashcroft can be a step in that direction. 5:33:51 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Presidential Humor Link NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 14, 2005, as National D.A.R.E. Day. Hasn't anybody told him? I think yesterday was National Flat Earth Day. [Note: some background on the failure of D.A.R.E. is here] 10:07:23 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

And we only have one drug war... In Thailand: Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday launched his government's third war on drugs with the Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) setting a target for Thailand to be free of illegal drug production by the end of this year. ... Ah, those wonderful drug-free goals. Remember them? The U.S. used to have a goal of drug free America by the year 2000 (just in case you haven't been following along, it didn't happen). Of course, prohibition ended up causing more problems (including contributing to a younger initiation in drug use). So now we have a goal of reducing teen drug use by 10%. Back to Thailand. So how did their first two wars go? The first war on drugs in 2003 resulted in the killings of over 2,500 drug suspects. Police claimed traffickers were killing each other to sever any links to themselves. However, local and foreign human rights organisations accused the authorities of a secret campaign of summary execution of suspects, charging that many innocent people were killed on the basis of hearsay. Well, there's 2,500 people who won't be doing any more drugs. I guess the Prime Minister would consider that a successful war. Mr Thaksin, however, refused to admit any failure and launched a second war in October last year. But he released no statistics this time round. Oops. No statistics for Drug War II. Not a good sign. Usually if you win a war, you like to brag about it, not suddenly go quiet and then declare a third war. So let's see how the drug smugglers have reacted to these wars: Despite the increased suppression of the trade, Thailand is still attractive to many drug smugglers due to its higher retail prices ... Yep, Thailand has made itself very attractive for drug smuggling because of its harsh prohibition tactics. Prices have gone up (while demand is inelastic) and now smugglers can make a huge profit for a small amount of drugs. It's the get rich quick opportunity for the bold or violent international criminal -- made possible by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. That's how the black market works. 8:39:16 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

More humor Check out Bob Merkin's post at Vleeptron --- particularly the last half: "Do cannabis withdrawals need drug therapy? Controlled trial from America." CASE STUDY: Cannabis Withdrawal in Adult Caucasian Male PUBLICATION: The Journal of Non-Peer-Reviewed Politicized Irreproducable Junk Science EXPERIMENTAL METHODOLOGY: Subject ran out and couldn't get any for a couple of weeks. CLINICAL OBSERVATIONS: Subject was observed to be grouchy, and vocalized using vocabulary acquired during prior enlisted military service. Subject reported loss of desire to play scratchy old Jimi Hendrix and Traffic vinyl. Noticeable loss of appetite for Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, Necco Skybars and "Dagwood" sandwiches. 7:56:08 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []