Friday, January 4, 2008

Open Thread Via Siobhan Reynolds of the Pain Relief Network: Pain group rallies to doctor's defense The New Mexico-based Pain Relief Network says it plans to file a civil lawsuit in Wichita federal court alleging the Controlled Substances Act as applied to doctors and patients is unconstitutional. "The Wire" is entering its fifth and final season on HBO, and it continues to get critical raves. There have been quite a number of articles about it recently, including this one by Gal Beckerman, and this one in Time, and on and on. Just Google "the wire" and you'll get lots. Everytime "The Wire" gets mentioned, it's another reminder to people that we have this troubled and troubling institution of drug prohibition. And that's good. I watched a number of episodes in the first season and thought it was excellent. But I don't seek it out -- not because I don't like the show, but perhaps because I deal with the real drug war every day right here. So when it comes to entertainment, I prefer Stardust. This Chicago Sun-Times editorial delivered just the right kick of sarcasm in the title: Lawmakers Manage to Outlaw Licking an Obscure Plant Those creatively efficient politicians down in the Illinois Legislature might be stumped on really important issues like funding the CTA or betting our future on casinos. But they are clear about saving us from ourselves -- even if we don't need it. Case in point: the salvia ban. [...] Legislators must have been on something to zero in on this obscure organic substance, sometimes called "magic mint" or "Sally D" by salvia afficionados. The last time we checked, Illinois was not besieged by a salvia epidemic. We don't see the urgency in criminalizing a substance with no clear track record of causing people to act in a dangerous manner or hurt other people. We don't condone drug use. However, considering how overcrowded our prisons are with dangerous criminals, trolling around for more nonviolent drug offenders to punish is counterintuitive. 9:51:07 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Plan Mexico in trouble? A fascinating post at Grits for Breakfast: Bush and Calderon on outs; 'Merida Initiative' may not pass Congressional muster Given that internal forces in both countries are already very upset that the negotiation was done in secret, if Bush and Calderon are at odds, then Plan Mexico is on shaky ground indeed. However, I can't help thinking that the lure of fluid and corruptible taxpayer drug war dollars (both the spending and receiving) is so strong, that they'll find a way to overcome their differences. 12:35:01 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []