Friday, February 29, 2008

Reefer madness across the pond Via Paul Armentano at the NORML blog... This has it all: Sensationalism, scare tactics, irrelevancy, and... just plain... bizarre. Bad journalism, bad science, bad government and more. The BBC is to break one of the last broadcasting taboos by screening footage of a woman injecting drugs. Nicky Taylor, a journalist, is filmed smoking cannabis in cafes in Amsterdam before injecting the main ingredient of the stronger "skunk" variety of the drug in a laboratory. [...] Miss Taylor was then filmed as the effects of the drug took hold. Dr Paul Morrison, one of the scientists in charge of the programme, told The Daily Telegraph: "I can't talk about the experiences of any of our participants without their say-so." The BBC also declined to provide a detailed account of what happened. However, one source who has seen the effects on Miss Taylor said: "The effect was dramatic. It was unpleasant." The BBC is understood to be keen to show the film on the eve of a decision by Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, to recriminalise cannabis by upgrading it from C to B status. Her decision is expected in the spring. That's right. A "journalist" is going to show the dangers of drugs by injecting herself with "the main ingredient of the stronger 'skunk' variety of" cannabis. Yes, that's a very convoluted way of saying THC. This is to give "a strong anti-drugs message that will stop people experimenting rather than glamourising drugs use" -- apparently by convincing people that shooting up cannabis isn't a good idea -- something that, until this moment, hadn't been an idea at all. My prediction: The British Government, fueled in part by stupidity like this, increases the penalties for marijuana. The black market, inspired by this "documentary" responds by developing a more compact, easier to smuggle, pure THC. A year later, the Daily Mail does a sensational report on an alarming new trend -- intravenous skunk use. Update: See also this at the Washington Post -- with comments (thanks Cannabis). 6:03:03 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

War Sorry to be a bit off-topic here, but check out this disturbing footage of the war in Iraq. Link (WMV video) Oops. I was wrong. Turns out this is the war in the United States. Fought against U.S. citizens, and brought to you as entertainment on the TeeVee. My bad. [This trailer distributed by the DEA in their press release.] 11:05:10 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Incarceration Nation This is getting a lot of press right now: The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world and for the first time in the nation's history, more than one in every 100 American adults is confined in a prison or jail, according to a report released on Thursday. The report by the Pew Center on the States said the American penal system held more than 2.3 million adults at the start of the year. Of course, the primary reason, downplayed in most of the press coverage, is the drug war. This is a good time to remind folks graphically of what we're doing: The United States has 5% of the world's population... ... but 25% of the world's prison population. We dramatically lead the entire world in incarceration rates. Spread the word. [Thanks, Scott] 8:32:25 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []