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http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729755-Cops-murder-man-in-the-street-for-selling-a-cigarette bit_pattern View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Oct 2008 Posts 7,070 Yesterday 18:04 http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...=NYDailyNewsTw Staten Island man dies after NYPD cop puts him in chokehold — SEE THE VIDEO VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: A 400-pound asthmatic Staten Island dad died Thursday after a cop put him in a chokehold and other officers appeared to slam his head against the sidewalk, video of the incident shows. A 400-pound asthmatic Staten Island dad died Thursday after a cop put him in a chokehold and other officers appeared to slam his head against the sidewalk, video of the incident shows. “I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!” Eric Garner, 43, repeatedly screamed after at least five NYPD officers took him down in front of a Tompkinsville beauty supply store when he balked at being handcuffed. Within moments Garner, a married father of six children with two grandchildren, stopped struggling and appeared to be unconscious as police called paramedics to the scene. An angry crowd gathered, some recording with smartphones. “When I kissed my husband this morning, I never thought it would be for the last time,” Garner’s wife, Esaw, told the Daily News. She got no details from police until after she had gone to the hospital to identify his body, she said. “I saw him with his eyes wide open and I said, ‘Babe, don’t leave me, I need you.’ But he was already gone,” she said. A family friend searching for her in the hospital ran into detectives from the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Division. The friend put them on the phone with her, the grieving widow said. She spoke with a Detective Howard, who told her, “I’m sorry for your loss,” she said. He said his office was involved “because there is wrongdoing,” she said. Police officials said Garner had a history of arrests for selling untaxed cigarettes. Cops said they observed him selling his wares Thursday on Bay St. and moved in for an arrest. An NYPD spokesman would only say the man “was being placed in custody, went into cardiac arrest and died” at Richmond University Medical Center. But Esaw Garner and other family members said it was a trumped up claim. “They’re covering their asses, he was breaking up a fight. They harassed and harassed my husband until they killed him,” she said. Garner’s family said he didn’t have any cigarettes on him or in his car at the time of his death. She said she pleaded with police at the hospital to tell her what happened, but they brushed her off. “They wouldn’t tell me anything,” she said. Officials confirmed that NYPD Internal Affairs officers launched an investigation Thursday night. Records show Garner was due in court in October on three Staten Island cases, including charges of pot possession and possession or selling untaxed cigarettes. Esaw Garner said her husband was unable to work because he suffered from a host of ailments, including chronic asthma, diabetes and sleep apnea. Garner’s mother, Gwen Carr, 65, added, “I want justice.” Police said Garner was not armed. The Staten Island resident was sitting in front of Bay Beauty on Bay St. and Victory Blvd. just before 5 p.m. when two plainclothes cops began questioning him about selling untaxed cigarettes, a video obtained by the Daily News shows. “I didn’t do s---!” the 6-foot-4 Garner, wearing a sweaty T-shirt and khaki shorts, told the officers from the 120th Precinct when they approached him. “I was just minding my own business. “Every time you see me you want to mess with me. I’m tired of it. It stops today!” he yelled. 'He’s the nicest guy. I can’t believe what I saw. That’s no way to do an arrest,' said Douglas, 50, about Garner. Douglas would only give his first name. Ramsey Orta, 22, who shot the video, tried to intervene, telling the cops his friend had just broken up a fight between three men and had not been selling cigarettes. But when backup uniformed officers arrived, the cops moved in to cuff Garner, the video shows. “Don’t touch me, please,” he said. When Garner refused orders to put his hands behind his back, one of the plainclothes cops, wearing a green T-shirt with a yellow No. 99 on the back, got behind him and put him in a chokehold, the footage shows. A struggle ensued as three uniformed officers joined in on the arrest, knocking the man to the ground. He screamed, “I can’t breathe!” six times before he went silent and paramedics were called. “They jumped him and they were choking him. He was foaming at the mouth,” Orta told The News. “And that’s it, he was done. The cops were saying, ‘No, he’s OK, he’s OK.” He wasn’t OK.” “They were choking him. He kept saying, ‘I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe! Get off of me, get off of me!’ and I didn’t hear any more talking after that,” said witness Valencia Griffin, 50, of Staten Island. “He died right there.” Another witness, who would only give his first name, Douglas, said he’d known Garner for four years. “He’s a very big man, very intimidating, but he’s just a big teddy bear,” said Douglas, 50. “He’s the nicest guy. I can’t believe what I saw. That’s no way to do an arrest.” At the video’s end, the cop who had choke-held Garner can be seen staring at the camera that was videotaping him. “This had nothing to do with the fight, this had something to do with something else,” the cop said, and walked away. A law enforcement source said the incident was troubling. “A guy is dead in our custody. That is always a potential problem,” the source said. With Patrick McCarron and Bill Hutchinson UPDATE: The Staten Island district attorney is investigating the shocking death of a 400-pound asthmatic dad after a city cop placed him in a chokehold. Eric Garner, 43, died Thursday after a sidewalk takedown by five NYPD officers making an arrest outside a Tompkinsville beauty parlor. “My office is working along with the NYPD to do a complete and thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Garner's death,” said District Attorney Daniel M. Donovan Jr. in a Friday statement. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #2 BlueBull View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Nov 2012 Location Western-Europe Posts 504 Yesterday 22:37 That video is really sickening to see. Poor guy That's awful, doing a good thing and breaking up a fight only to get murdered by the same animals that are supposed to protect you. And they didn't even make an effort to help him after he stopped moving. They just stand there and eventually just put him on a stretcher and haul him off. Without even trying resuscitation. Blegh, they are less even than animals as animals would only murder for survival purposes Update Cop in chokehold death stripped of gun, badge The Staten Island District Attorney will lead a “full and thorough investigation” into the death of Eric Garner, 43, who had a fatal heart attack Thursday after NYPD cops put him in a chokehold and knocked him to the ground, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday. “We have a responsibility to keep every New Yorker safe, and that includes when individuals are in custody of the NYPD,” the mayor said in a statement. “We are harnessing all resources available to the city to ensure a full and thorough investigation of the circumstances of this tragic incident.” The cop being blamed for the chokehold, Police Officer Daniel Pantaleo, was placed on modified duty Saturday, his shield and gun taken. In the late afternoon, cops gathered evidence at his Staten Island home, leaving with a long, narrow box and three bags. Police said they handcuffed the 350-pound Garner in Tompkinsville at about 5 p.m. because he was selling untaxed cigarettes, but witnesses told The Post that Garner was not peddling smokes and had tried to break up a fight between two people who ran off before cops arrived. “They ran up on him and got rough right away. He wasn’t fighting back,” said witness Gordon Benson, 33. “When he was on the ground, they kept holding him by the neck.” Witnesses said about five cops knocked Garner to the ground and piled atop him. “I extend my deepest condolences to the family of Mr. Garner, who died yesterday afternoon while being placed in police custody,” the mayor said in his statement Friday. “The NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau is working closely with the Office of the Richmond County District Attorney, which is leading this investigation.” Now I hope they follow through and put their asses in jail. But it would surprise me hugely if this happened Last edited by BlueBull; Yesterday at 22:55. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #3 drug_mentor View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Moderator Australian Drug Discussion -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Jul 2006 Location Australia Posts 5,955 Yesterday 23:45 This is some seriously weak, evil shit. I am sure these assholes will get off as close to scot free is as humanly possible in this scenario, there will be arguments about how they have a tough job and how hard it is to make a call in the moment etc. What I want to know is when did Police safety become a more important issue than the safety of the public the police have enlisted themselves to protect? There seems to be a serious contradiction there to me. I can't understand, when you have four police officers who are trained to restrain resisting suspects, and one suspect who is resisting, when one dude puts him in a chokehold and he repeatedly claims he cannot breath, how is it in any way unreasonable or difficult for these four officers to release his windpipe and employ some kind of hold that does not involve placing pressure on the mans wind pipe? At worst this is total malice and essentially cold blooder murder, at best it is incompetence of the highest order. Australian Drug Discussion Guidelines -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #4 ro4eva View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Send Email Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Nov 2004 Location Aiding my comrades in mythbusting prohibitionist propaganda - one cliche at a time. Posts 2,764 Blog Entries8 Today 09:02 In case I missed it, Daniel Pantaleo is the douchebag who applied the illegal, banned, prohibited (with the exception of a life and death situation) chokehold to the deceased 43 year-old father of six. A Facebook page of people demanding he be charged is here if interested (although I should add that apparently Facebook is not a good idea if you're trying to remain anonymous) - https://www.facebook.com/groups/666735336737311/ I watched the video of the incident, and another video afterwards in which it looked like the cops and paramedics present were doing their best Broadway acting routine for the cameras, even though the poor guy clearly looked like he was gone. No CPR, no nothing. Oh, and then at the end, Pantaleo satirically waves at the camera - wow! It makes me sick to my stomach that these rotten sacks of shit are wearing uniforms. And for Pantaleo, if he's not charged with anything, I truly hope that justice finds him, one way or another. An unfiltered message needs to be sent to these assholes that the public will not tolerate this crap any longer. Unfortunately, I don't know how to do that without treading on the wrong side of the law. I've tried petitions, donations, letters, official complaints, and even the media. And they continue to get away with murder in many cases. What's left to do (other than breaking the law), I honestly don't know. And I have a feeling others feel the same way. I mean, if that guy who was recording would have tried to peacefully intervene, he would have been promptly hogtied. Fucking b.s. RIP Eric Garner - Another victim of police brutality -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #5 BlueBull View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Nov 2012 Location Western-Europe Posts 504 Today 09:20 I don't live in the US and only visited once, years ago. So I'm not aware of what the situation is like for people actually living there. However I did notice that there seems to be a tremendous increase of incidents of police brutality that reach me. And this is something that I've only really started noticing the last 1-2 years. Is this correct or has this been going on far longer than that? It's just that the increase of incidents that reach me has not just grown, it has exploded and it has done so in a very very short amount of time. This makes me wonder what the catalyst is for such extreme and rapid changes in the way police are behaving themselves? Anyways I really feel for people living over there that have to live with this shit. I really hope something will improve the situation for you guys. And I hope that the few police officers that are really still in it to serve and protect not remain silent on this, and that they will not be judged upon the actions of such beasts. I have tremendous respect for what a police officer is supposed to stand for and I have respect for the ones that try to uphold these standards to the best of their ability, but these creatures are not deserving of the title "human being" let alone "police officer" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #6 toothpastedog View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Send Email Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Dec 2010 Location Fascist Valley, USA Posts 2,139 Blog Entries21 Today 10:47 Police brutality can trace its roots way back to and before the lynch mobs of the 1960s (and earlier, lynch mobs have been a good ole' American past time for a long time, even if they're frowned upon as of late and have been minimized more recently). It's just become more en vogue when it comes to the media so you're seeing more stories about it in the newpaper but seriously, it's been going on at the same rate way way way before it became more common place for it to be reported on. Up until recently actually, it was shunned in media circles.

GMO Dangers & Labeling - Monsanto "Worst Company of 2011" articles.mercola.com/sites/.../monsanto-worst-company-of-2011.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 31 Jan 2012 ... By Dr. Mercola. Monsanto, the world leader in genetically modified (GM) crops and seeds, has been named the worst company of 2011 by ... The Horrific Truth About Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide articles.mercola.com/sites/.../06/.../monsanto-roundup-herbicide.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 9 Jun 2013 ... By Dr. Mercola. In recent weeks, we've learned some very disturbing truths about glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto's ... Power of Monsanto - Natural Health Articles - Mercola.com articles.mercola.com/sites/.../02/.../monsanto-anti-gmo-labeling.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 11 Feb 2014 ... Monsanto is not going to let genetically modified organism (GMO) labeling happen without a fight -- a sure, harsh thing. 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Why GMOs Can Never Be Safe | GMO Dangers articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/.../08/.../genetic-modification.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 6 Aug 2013 ... By Dr. Mercola ... These foods, largely in the form of GM corn and soy (although there are other GM crops, too, like sugar beets, papaya and ... Dr. Huber: Things You Need to Know About GMO and Roundup articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/.../10/.../dr-huber-gmo-foods.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 6 Oct 2013 ... Visit the Mercola Video Library ... Genetically engineered foods, as well as conventional crops that are heavily sprayed with glyphosate (the ... How Genetically Engineered Foods Will Be Eradicated articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/.../gmo-eradication.aspx ‎ Cached Similar 1 Sep 2013 ... By Dr. Mercola. We're in really exciting times with regards to shifting the tide against genetically engineered (GE) foods and genetically ... 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I'm aware that cannabis can cause panic attacks, which may trigger depersonalisation, (feeling that you aren't real) or derealisation, (feeling that the world isn't real) and may cause schizophrenia in people with a genetic predisposition, and it has psychosis (hallucinations, and / or delusional beliefs) as a symptom, but there is also the possibility of catatonic schizophrenia (Google it) or a similar schizophreniform disorder. Then again, it may have been a purely idiosynchratic reaction, but I would like to have known what brand of "spice", how much, and for how long.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/07/14/woman-has-strange-psychotic-reaction-after-using-spice/ By Agata Blaszczak-Boxe Published July 14, 2014 Spice is a synthetic cannaboid that is legal in some U.S. states. It is commonly used as a replacement drug for marijuana. Using synthetic cannabis sometimes called "spice" can pose serious health risks, and in a recent case, the drug even caused one teen to become catatonic, which is a state of severely impaired movement and thinking ability. The 19-year-old woman in Spain experienced "catatonic psychosis" after smoking synthetic cannabis regularly for a year, according to the report of her case. She sought treatment at a clinic in Valencia in May 2012, and after she stopped using the drug and underwent treatment, she fully recovered by June 2013. The woman's case shows that using spice can have more serious health consequences than researchers thought, said study author Dr. Gonzalo Haro, a professor of medicine at the CEU Cardenal Herrera University in Valencia. Spice also has a more powerful effect on cannabinoid receptors in the brain than natural cannabis does, Haro said. Cannabinoid receptors, which can be activated by substances produced in the body as well as drugs such as natural or synthetic cannabis, are involved in a number of physiological processes such as appetite, pain sensation, mood and memory. The patient started smoking spice in April 2011, after she substituted it for hashish, which she had regularly smoked before. She reported that, after using synthetic cannabis, she felt "like a zombie," the researchers said. [Trippy Tales: The History of 8 Hallucinogens] In November 2011, the woman's behavior started to change drastically; she reported feeling that people were looking at her when she was eating and began talking to herself. Her personal hygiene deteriorated, causing her to look disheveled, the researchers said. When she was looking at herself in the mirror, "she felt that she wasn't the girl on the other side," as if she was in a dream, Haro said. In general, she became detached from reality, as she felt that whatever was happening to her was not real, and she was observing the world from the position of a spectator. She also had visual hallucinations, which included seeing "little angels" in the bathroom, the researchers said. The woman's movements were also impaired by the psychosis her arms did not move in coordination with her legs when she walked, Haro said. She stood in a bent-over position, resembling that of a praying mantis, and her neck, head and arms all became rigid. The doctors at the clinic treated her with medications that are used to treat depression, anxiety and Parkinson's disease. However, it was the woman's cessation of spice use that probably played a more important role in her eventual recovery than the medications she took, Haro said. And the recovery process was not easy for the woman, the doctors wrote in their report. Her difficulties with movement coordination partially disappeared after two months of treatment, but the stiff, praying-mantis position persisted for a while after she stopped treatment in September 2012. Previous reports have shown that using spice may result in seizures, heart palpitations and kidney problems, among other health issues. Haro stressed that people should be aware of the serious consequences of using spice. Other experts have also warned about the consequences of using this drug. "These drugs are unregulated," Dr. Joanna Cohen, a pediatric emergency physician at the Children's National Medical Center, told Live Science in a March 2012 interview. "Symptoms can be unpredictable because the drug is mixed with other types of chemicals and substances." The case report was published in the June issue of the journal Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes.

http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/drug-survey-australians-smoking-drinking-less-170714.aspx 17 Jul 2014 Author:Zoya Sheftalovich drug survey results, pills It seems Australia’s pioneering anti-smoking measures are having their desired effect, with fewer Australians smoking, fewer cigarettes being smoked weekly per smoker, and young people taking up smoking later. Use of some illicit drugs, including heroin and ecstasy, has also declined, but meth use is steady. The 2013 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, conducted by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), has found that fewer Australians are smoking daily, with the rate dropping significantly between 2010 and 2013, from 15.1% to 12.8% among people 14 or older. And the good news doesn’t end there – the daily smoking rate has halved since 1991, according to the AIHW. The average number of cigarettes smoked per week has also fallen, with smokers reducing their consumption from 111 cigarettes in 2010 to 96 cigarettes in 2013. Promising trends among young people Not only is smoking on the decline overall, but young people specifically are making healthier choices. In the latest survey, 14 to 24-year-olds reported smoking their first full cigarette at 15.9 years of age, while in 1995 it was 14.2. And 95% of 12-17 year-olds and 77% of 18-24 year-olds have never smoked. Younger people are also continuing to delay drinking. The age at which 14 to 24-year-olds first tried alcohol rose from 14.4 to 15.7 between 1998 and 2013. “Overall, fewer younger people aged 12 to 17 are drinking alcohol, with the proportion abstaining from alcohol rising from 64% to 72% between 2010 and 2013,” AIHW spokesperson Geoff Neideck said. “And more good news is that compared to 2010, fewer people overall drank alcohol in quantities that exceeded the lifetime risk and single occasion risk guidelines in 2013.” But despite that, 26% of people in Australia aged 14 or older reported being a victim of an alcohol-related incident in 2013. That being said, it’s an improvement – in 2010, 29% reported the same. Australian drug use statistics The survey also indicated a decline in the use of ecstasy (from 3.0% to 2.5%), heroin (from 0.2% to 0.1%) and GHB (from 0.1% to less than 0.1%) in 2013, but the misuse of pharmaceuticals has increased from 4.2% in 2010 to 4.7% in 2013. The use of meth/amphetamine has remained steady since 2010, though there has been a shift from powder to ice (or crystal methamphetamine). About the survey The National Drug Strategy Household Survey is conducted every two to three years. The 2013 survey collected data from nearly 24,000 people across Australia from 31 July to 1 December 2013. Read more: http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/drug-survey-australians-smoking-drinking-less-170714.aspx#ixzz37tOd0pPW ----------------------------------------------------------------- "but meth use is steady" - Self reporting in surveys paints a different picture than crime statistics for the number of people arrested, and the record seizures of drugs, recently, and I strongly doubt that they are being stockpiled, but are supporting increased demand. There may have been a modest decline in powdered methamphetamine, but it has been outweighed by a marked increase in crystal meth / "ice". Also, surveys imply accessibility, and meth / ice users may well be elsewhere, or be too paranoid, otherwise unwilling, or incapable of performing such a survey. In support of my argument: Australian 'ice' boom fear from Dramatic rise in crystal meth casualties Ice epidemic prompts inquiry in Victoria Retiring officer talks of ICE / METH epidemic in WA Rising drug use will result in increased dental problems (METH MOUTH!) Qld - Drug scourge hits hard with 12 labs busted since early 2013 Aus - The rise of methamphetamine use in Aboriginal communities AFP bust 5 people in Sydney with 402 lbs of meth in kayaks from China Internet our new source of methamphetamine as bikies vacate turf Dramatic rise in crystal meth casualties fuels fear of Australian 'ice' boom Australia seizes $190m of drugs (meth / ice) stashed in tyres Methamphetamine overtakes heroin in South Australia Crystal meth drug Laboratories in South East Asia double China seizes 2,000,000 gms of meth & heroin; gives Aus 40 gms of meth http://www.legalhighsforum.com.au/search.php?searchid=298226

The above reminds me of a technique called "ideomotor response" that I read about in a book on psychology. Basically, you tie a ring to around 15cm / 6" of fine thread, like cotton, then suspend the ring, motionless, and ask a question, and wait until your subconscious mind responds by making the ring move either in circles, or to and fro thereby providing the answer. Start off with basic questions requiring an affirmative response, such as: "Are you a male?", and: "Do you live in Australia?", etc. to gauge the response. I found it interesting, but ultimately unsatisfactory, because after a while, the results became confusing, even contradictory, as the subconscious can often act like a naughty child, and mine either got tired of playing the game, or didn't want my conscious mind to know its deepest secrets. So, back to dream analysis, then. Some Common Features of Ideomotor-Based Systems "Although the effects of ideomotor action have been understood for at least 150 years, the phenomenon remains surprisingly unknown, even to scientists. To conclude, the following are some of the psychological features that characterize nearly all the systems and schemes that have bases in ideomotor action. Ideomotor action. To reiterate, all systems using the rubbing plate, the dowsing rod, the exploring pendulum, or related technique depend on an almost undetectable motor movement, amplified into a more noticeable event. The impetus arises from one's own subtle and unperceived expectations. Elaborate, grandiose theories are then devised to explain the observed effects. Projection of the operator's actions to an external force. This is one of key properties of ideomotor action. Although the operator's own actions cause the fingers to stick, the rod to move, or the pendulum to rotate in a given direction, the operator attributes the cause onto an external force. Subjectively, that is what it feels like. Lacking a sense of volition, one credits unknown forces, radiations, or other external emanations. The cause of the action is attributed to forces new to science and revolutionary in nature. This is implied in the previous point. Not only is the cause attributed to an external source, but each time the phenomenon is encountered anew, those who have not read their history attribute it to a force previously unknown. Delusions of grandeur. Not only do the proponents insist that the cause is external, but they tend to see themselves as revolutionary saviors of mankind. They claim to have discovered new principles and forces, ones whose ramifications will transform contemporary science, not to mention society as we know it. Delusions of persecution. Those who suffer from delusions of grandeur frequently exhibit delusions of persecution. Self-styled revolutionaries assert that orthodox scientists dismiss discoverers of breakthroughs such as radionic devices and the like merely out of envy, pig-headedness, conformism, or unwillingness to give credit to brave outsiders who are not part of the scientific establishment. To be forearmed Is to be disarmed. Proponents of quack devices and procedures will often argue that they are aware of ideomotor action and the role of expectancies. They often assert that their awareness makes them immune from its effects. Many dowsers now admit unconscious expectations can affect the action of the divining rod. They assert that their awareness prevents ideomotor action and allows expression of the "true dowsing response." Unfortunately, the awareness of ideomotor action does not make one immune from its expression. Self-sealing belief systems. Once the proponent becomes convinced that his favorite system "works," then the psychological forces discussed by James Alcock come into play. These self-serving biases serve to protect the belief system from falsification. Loopholism is one way proponents protect their beliefs in the face of contrary evidence. Saying "It is not the same thing" allows the believer to shield the system. Alcock supplies more examples of this ability to distort, forget, or ignore evidence. The true physician is aware of distortions of one's own judgement, as well as those of pseudoscientific competitors." It also explains similar phenomena, like "OUIJA" board movements.The very comprehensive article is at: http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/ideomotor.html More at: https://www.google.com.au/search?client=opera&hs=jD6&channel=suggest&sclient=psy-ab&q=ideomotor&btnG=Submit ~~~

15 Jul 2014 Source: Courier, The (Dundee, UK) Website: http://www.thecourier.co.uk/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/802 CANNABIS COULD be used to reduce tumour growth in cancer patients, scientists have said. New research reveals the drug's main psychoactive ingredient - tetrahydrocannabinol ( THC ) - could be responsible for its success in shrinking tumours. It is hoped the findings could help develop a synthetic equivalent with anti-cancer properties. However, researchers warned cancer sufferers should not be tempted to self-medicate. Dr Peter McCormick, from the University of East Anglia, said: "Our findings help explain some of the well-known but still poorly understood effects of THC at low and high doses on tumour growth. "There has been a great deal of interest in understanding the molecular mechanisms behind how marijuana and specifically THC influence cancer pathology. "There has also been a drive in the pharmaceutical industry to create synthetic equivalents that might have anti-cancer properties. "Our research uses an isolated chemical compound and using the correct concentration is vital. Cancer patients should not use cannabis to self-medicate but I hope our research will lead to a safe synthetic equivalent. http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v14/n592/a07.html?397

http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/newssummary/news_2-7-2014-18-11-12 * by Francesca Davenport 03 July 2014 New research shows that our brain displays a similar pattern of activity during dreams as it does during a mind-expanding drug trip. Psychedelic drugs such as LSD and magic mushrooms can profoundly alter the way we experience the world but little is known about what physically happens in the brain. New research, published in Human Brain Mapping, has examined the brain effects of the psychedelic chemical in magic mushrooms, called psilocybin, using data from brain scans of volunteers who had been injected with the drug. The study found that under psilocybin, activity in the more primitive brain network linked to emotional thinking became more pronounced, with several different areas in this network - such as the hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex - active at the same time. This pattern of activity is similar to the pattern observed in people who are dreaming. Conversely, volunteers who had taken psilocybin had more disjointed and uncoordinated activity in the brain network that is linked to high-level thinking, including self-consciousness. People often describe taking psilocybin as producing a dream-like state and our findings have, for the first time, provided a physical representation for the experience in the brain– Dr Robin Carhart-Harris Department of Medicine Psychedelic drugs are unique among other psychoactive chemicals in that users often describe ‘expanded consciousness,’ including enhanced associations, vivid imagination and dream-like states. To explore the biological basis for this experience, researchers analysed brain imaging data from 15 volunteers who were given psilocybin intravenously while they lay in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanner. Volunteers were scanned under the influence of psilocybin and when they had been injected with a placebo. “What we have done in this research is begin to identify the biological basis of the reported mind expansion associated with psychedelic drugs,” said Dr Robin Carhart-Harris from the Department of Medicine, Imperial College London. “I was fascinated to see similarities between the pattern of brain activity in a psychedelic state and the pattern of brain activity during dream sleep, especially as both involve the primitive areas of the brain linked to emotions and memory. People often describe taking psilocybin as producing a dream-like state and our findings have, for the first time, provided a physical representation for the experience in the brain.” The new study examined variation in the amplitude of fluctuations in what is called the blood-oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal, which tracks activity levels in the brain. This revealed that activity in important brain networks linked to high-level thinking in humans becomes unsynchronised and disorganised under psilocybin. One particular network that was especially affected plays a central role in the brain, essentially ‘holding it all together’, and is linked to our sense of self. In comparison, activity in the different areas of a more primitive brain network became more synchronised under the drug, indicating they were working in a more co-ordinated, ‘louder’ fashion. The network involves areas of the hippocampus, associated with memory and emotion, and the anterior cingulate cortex which is related to states of arousal. Lead author Dr Enzo Tagliazucchi from Goethe University, Germany said: “A good way to understand how the brain works is to perturb the system in a marked and novel way. Psychedelic drugs do precisely this and so are powerful tools for exploring what happens in the brain when consciousness is profoundly altered. It is the first time we have used these methods to look at brain imaging data and it has given some fascinating insight into how psychedelic drugs expand the mind. It really provides a window through which to study the doors of perception.” Dr. Carhart-Harris added: “Learning about the mechanisms that underlie what happens under the influence of psychedelic drugs can also help to understand their possible uses. We are currently studying the effect of LSD on creative thinking and we will also be looking at the possibility that psilocybin may help alleviate symptoms of depression by allowing patients to change their rigidly pessimistic patterns of thinking. Psychedelics were used for therapeutic purposes in the 1950s and 1960s but now we are finally beginning to understand their action in the brain and how this can inform how to put them to good use.” Brain activity under psilocybin with a decrease (blue) in evolutionary advanced brain regions and an increase (orange) in memory and emotion centres. [onsite*] The data was originally collected at Imperial College London in 2012 by a research group led by Dr Carhart-Harris and Professor David Nutt from the Department of Medicine, Imperial College London. Initial results revealed a variety of changes in the brain associated with drug intake. To explore the data further Dr. Carhart-Harris recruited specialists in the mathematical modelling of brain networks, Professor Dante Chialvo and Dr Enzo Tagliazucchi to investigate how psilocybin alters brain activity to produce its unusual psychological effects. As part of the new study, the researchers applied a measure called entropy. This was originally developed by physicists to quantify lost energy in mechanical systems, such as a steam engine, but entropy can also be used to measure the range or randomness of a system. For the first time, researchers computed the level of entropy for different networks in the brain during the psychedelic state. This revealed a remarkable increase in entropy in the more primitive network, indicating there was an increased number of patterns of activity that were possible under the influence of psilocybin. It seemed the volunteers had a much larger range of potential brain states that were available to them, which may be the biophysical counterpart of ‘mind expansion’ reported by users of psychedelic drugs. Previous research has suggested that there may be an optimal number of dynamic networks active in the brain, neither too many nor too few. This may provide evolutionary advantages in terms of optimising the balance between the stability and flexibility of consciousness. The mind works best at a critical point when there is a balance between order and disorder and the brain maintains this optimal number of networks. However, when the number goes above this point, the mind tips into a more chaotic regime where there are more networks available than normal. Collectively, the present results suggest that psilocybin can manipulate this critical operating point. The research was funded and intellectually supported by the Beckley Foundation. Professor Chialvo is from the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnologicas (CONICET), Argentina and Dr Tagliazucchi is based at Goethe University, Germany. Reference: Tagliazucchi, E. et al. ‘Enhanced repertoire of brain dynamical states during the psychedelic experience’ Human Brain Mapping, 2014. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hbm.22562/abstract.

http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2014/jul/18/us_sentencing_commission_votes_u by Phillip Smith, July 18, 2014, 05:48pm The US Sentencing Commission Friday voted unanimously to make previously agreed upon federal drug sentencing reductions retroactive. That means tens of thousands of federal drug prisoners could see sentence cuts beginning in November 2015. The move comes after the Commission's April decision to amend federal sentencing guidelines by lowering base offense levels in the guidelines' Drug Quantity Table across all drug types, which should lead to lower sentences for most federal drug offenders. Today's vote means that sentencing judges can extend that reduction to people currently serving drug sentences. "This amendment received unanimous support from Commissioners because it is a measured approach," said Judge Patti Saris, chair of the Commission. "It reduces prison costs and populations and responds to statutory and guidelines changes since the drug guidelines were initially developed, while safeguarding public safety." "We did it! We got full retroactivity of the drug guideline amendment," an elated Julie Stewart, president and founder of Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), wrote to supporters. "Because of your help, 46,000 federal drug offenders sentenced before November 1, 2014, will now be eligible to file a motion in federal court asking for a shorter sentence. The average sentence reduction for those who qualify will be two years!" The Sentencing Commission had asked for public input on its pending decision and was swamped with some 65,000 letters. FAMM took credit for much of that. "I am thrilled with this outcome, especially because we did it together," Stewart wrote. "With your help, we generated most of the 65,000 letters the U.S. Sentencing Commission received about this issue. And more than two dozen FAMM supporters were present with me in the hearing room when the Commission voted in favor of full retroactivity. All of us were overjoyed at the result." It is not quite a done deal. Congress has until November 1 to reject the amendment to reduce drug guidelines. If it fails to act by then, federal courts could begin considering petitions for sentence reductions, but no prisoners would be released under the reductions until November 15, 2015. "The delay will help to protect public safety by enabling appropriate consideration of individual petitions by judges, ensuring effective supervision of offenders upon release, and allowing for effective reentry plans," Saris said. Look for a Chronicle feature article on this ground-breaking move early next week.

16 Jul 2014 Source: Townsville Bulletin, The (Australia) Website: http://townsvillebulletin.news.com.au/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3758 Author: Emma Channon Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?237 (Drug Dogs) Palm Island Residents Urge Action on Drugs Epidemic SEND IN SNIFFER DOGS DRUG problems have reached "epidemic" proportions on Palm Island say residents, who have called for permanent sniffer dogs. The community's drug use has reportedly increased since the Alcohol Management Plan was introduced in 2006 because the illegal substances are easier to smuggle in. Mayor Alf Lacey said he supported the call for drug dogs if that was what the community wanted. Member for Townsville John Hathaway said he was also happy to work with the Palm Island community, but that it was an "operational" matter. One former councillor said drugs were an epidemic on the island and had been "tearing families apart". Cr Lacey admitted drugs were more accessible than grog. "I think that's certainly one of the factors, but I wouldn't say the only one," he said. "I would say it's partly to blame in terms of leading people to their substance abuse. "We've got to understand that while taking the right away for people to consume certain types of alcohol, then ... individuals will choose other methods or another lifestyle choice to appease themselves." Ecstasy and cannabis are said to be the two main drugs concerning residents. "I won't shy away from saying it's a problem. It is a problem in this Lacey said. "All we can do as a council is support the community-concerted effort around these issues." He said the drugs were reportedly being brought into the island by "profiteers". Drug squad officer-incharge Detective Senior Sergeant Mick Walker said he supported the idea of drug dogs for Palm Island, but that the decision was out of his hands. Det. Sen- Sgt Walker said it was difficult for officers to target drug users and suppliers when Palm Island residents would not co- operate. "We get stonewalled every time because residents won't engage with us," he said. "If they perceive there's a problem, make a stand and do something about it." Mr Hathaway said there was a dog squad operating in Townsville. "When new police dogs graduate and if there is a demand, police will be able to deploy officers to Palm," he said.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729597-Obama-says-he-ended-the-‘War-on-Drugs-’-Don’t-believe-him neversickanymore View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Senior Moderator Recovery Support Science & Technology -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Jan 2013 Location babysitting the argument in my head Posts 10,330 Today 02:15 Obama says he ended the ‘War on Drugs.’ Don’t believe him By Jonathan Blanks July 18 2014 If the Obama administration is to be believed, America’s infamous “War on Drugs” is over. In its most recent National Drug Control Strategy, released last week, officials promised a more humane and sympathetic approach to drug users and addiction. Out, the report suggests, are “tough on crime” policies. Rather than more police and more prisons, officials talk about public health and education. They promise to use evidence-based practices to combat drug abuse. And they want to use compassionate messaging and successful reentry programs to reduce the stigma drug offenders and addicts face. Unfortunately, the government’s actions don’t jibe with their rhetoric. For decades, the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and its allies have used government resources to marginalize, stigmatize, and demonize drug users. There were the nonsensical ads like “this is your brain on drugs” and inexplicable demonstrations like torching cars and valued possessions. The ONDCP, Partnership for a Drug-Free America, the Ad Council, and Above the Influence portrayed small time dealers as snakes and users as rats. They also showed drug use as a gateway to prostitution and, in the wake of 9/11, explicitly linked casual drug users to supporting terrorism and cop killing. The United States has spent millions stigmatizing drug use, sale and abuse — all before one even begins to calculate the costs to arrest, try, and incarcerate offenders for the past 40 years. This, of course, comes in addition to the stigma that comes with incarceration and criminal records. And the administration is doing little to actually de-stigmatize drug use. Despite their supposed adherence to “evidence-based practices,” officials steadfastly refuse to consider legalization or decriminalization, even though the evidence unambiguously shows drug prohibition has been a disaster. Prohibition-related violence has killed thousands in this country and multiples of that number more in supplier nations like Colombia, Mexico and Afghanistan. In the United States, incarceration rates have become so onerous (over 700 adults per 100,000) that research suggests they’re probably doing harm to society by pulling too many workers out of the economy, breaking up families and making offenders less employable upon release. Although “alternatives to incarceration” are touted throughout the latest strategy, suggestions for fully or even partially separating nonviolent drug use from the criminal realm altogether are absent. Indeed, the marijuana liberalization in Colorado and Washington State are mentioned only as adding “challenges” the ONDCP’s efforts to maintain the perception of the drug’s harm. Though the ONDCP repeatedly states that drug addiction is a disease, police and incarceration remain the primary instruments to treat its myriad manifestations. (After all, you can’t get to drug court without being arrested first.) Unless the government plans to start selling MRAPs to the American Cancer Society, it’s fair to say that disease takes a backseat to the still-aggressive law enforcement tactics as the first weapon against American drug use and sale — even if the rhetoric sounds less harsh than it used to. Supposing the old commercials and posters are relics of the past and the ONDCP has legitimately turned over a new leaf, there are others within the Obama administration that still haven’t received the memo. Seemingly everyone can agree that some drugs are more harmful than others, but the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration was unable or unwilling to say to Congress that marijuana was less harmful than methamphetamine, cocaine, or heroin. Even under a prohibition regime like the United States’s, it is absurd to suggest that an honest, relative assessment of harms and consequences is unknown to the people in charge of setting and executing drug policy. Yet the nation’s top drug enforcement agent can’t say a drug on which is virtually impossible to fatally overdose is less harmful than drugs that kill thousands of Americans each year. Clearly, this is not yet a federal government willing to apply compassion, embrace evidence, and repudiate years of drug misinformation. If this administration is serious about ending the stigma associated with drug addiction and is truly dedicated to education and evidence-based methods to fight drug abuse, it must first address and then reject the rank dishonesty and propaganda that has defined the American drug war for decades. The ONDCP’s language seems to be moving in the right direction, but the government remains unable to be honest with itself, let alone the general public. As people in recovery might suggest, getting past entrenched denial is a requisite first step toward fixing America’s drug war problem. http://www.washingtonpost.com/postev...t-believe-him/ RECOVERY FORUMS ~~~ADDICTION GUIDE~~~ CONTACT ME -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #2 CLICKHEREx View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join DateSep 2012 Posts108Today 12:41 The US privately operated prison system has previously taken suit against the govt. when its rates of incarceration fell too low, so, in the same way that people are unable to legally pursue pharmaceutical companies if they react badly to their medications, because the govt. changed the laws, they should also change the law to eliminate the risk of that possibility occurring again. Also, there are complicated funding arrangements for law enforcement, rewarding high arrest, prosecution, and conviction figures, and the politicians and administrators need to remove them immediately, or there will be no incentive to change. All moneys seized from drug cases should go to drug rehabilitation and treatment, so that police forces realise that they will no longer directly benefit by such actions. Marijuana should be reclassified to a lower level, and legislation taxing, or explicitly prohibiting its trade, or sale should be rescinded, so that banks will feel confident to operate with that industry, in states where recreational, and / or medical marijuana is legal.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-17/man-charged-with-importing-drugs-through-po-boxes-to-face-trial/5605344 By Elizabeth Byrne Thu 17 Jul 2014 A Canberra man facing nearly 40 charges of trying to import illicit drugs through Australia Post will stand trial in the ACT Supreme Court. Emin Yavuz, 25, was arrested last year when a package containing amphetamines was intercepted by the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service in Sydney. He has pleaded not guilty to all 37 charges. Prosecutors allege he ran a sophisticated set-up involving a number of false identities and post office boxes across Canberra. A statement of facts details police allegations that Yavuz had tried to import a large quantity of amphetamines, cocaine and MDMA from countries including the Netherlands and China. Police said a search of his home found 11 post office box keys, several licences under assumed names and notes with consignment details. Police allege they also found up to six mobile phones, including two that had been thrown from a window. The case has been listed in the court for later this month. A trial date has not yet been set. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If people import drug types which dogs are trained to detect, such as cannabis, opiates, amphetamines, cocaine and MDMA, which aren't hermetically sealed and packed so that there are no residual traces from their handling, they greatly increase the probability of detection. Even so, with X ray scans, and random checks, the more importations, the increased probability of detection, and once they have that name and address, they will put it on their suspect alert list, and establish a pattern, as a basis for prosecution.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729476-The-WHO-(World-Health-Organization)-calls-for-decriminalisation neversickanymore View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Senior Moderator Recovery Support Science & Technology -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Jan 2013 Location babysitting the argument in my head Posts 10,321 Today 03:01 The WHO calls for decriminalisation Jul 17th 2014 JAMAICA, Uruguay, Colorado, Washington—more and more places are rebelling against the UN conventions that established the criminalisation of narcotics half a century ago. But the latest organisation to weigh in against the UN’s line is rather surprising. It is a branch of the UN itself. A report just published by the World Health Organisation, an agency of the United Nations, makes a discreet but clear call to decriminalise drugs. And not just cannabis—the report goes as far as recommending the decriminalisation of injecting drugs, which implies the harder sort. The call comes in a new report on how to prevent, diagnose and treat HIV among “key populations”, including drug users. Have a look at page 91 (page 113 of the PDF). Under “Good practice recommendations concerning decriminalization”, the WHO recommends that for people who use or inject drugs: "- Countries should work toward developing policies and laws that decriminalize injection and other use of drugs and, thereby, reduce incarceration.- Countries should work toward developing policies and laws that decriminalize the use of clean needles and syringes (and that permit NSPs [needle and syringe programmes]) and that legalize OST [opioid substitution therapy] for people who are opioid-dependent.- Countries should ban compulsory treatment for people who use and/or inject drugs." This is all rather different from the line taken by the UN’s 1988 convention (see page 3, or page 12 of the PDF), which states that: "Subject to its constitutional principles and the basic concepts of its legal system, each Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to establish as a criminal offence under its domestic law, when committed intentionally, the possession, purchase or cultivation of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances for personal consumption." So there you have it: the UN’s long-standing policy of criminalising drug use should be overturned—according to the UN. Clear enough? http://www.economist.com/blogs/newsb.../illicit-drugs .................................................. .................................................. ................................................. Wow. RECOVERY FORUMS ~~~ADDICTION GUIDE~~~ CONTACT ME -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #2 ro4eva View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Send Email Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Nov 2004 Location Aiding my comrades in mythbusting prohibitionist propaganda - one cliche at a time. Posts 2,750 Blog Entries8 Today 05:43 Taking away a non-violent person's freedom because he or she happens to prefer "taking the edge off" by consuming parts of a plant instead of alcohol is irrational, and motivated by "concerns" having absolutely nothing to do with health. Alcohol is also quite habit forming, which is heightened by the fact that going cold turkey off of it (acute withdrawal) is considered a medical emergency which can end in death (as occurred tragically in the case of Amy Winehouse). There are countless functional recreational consumers of marijuana who are very punctual, skilled, and dedicated to their workforce contribution. They also pay their taxes, abide by every other law in existence, and don't cause trouble or behave belligerently in public - which is more than I can say for the average consumer of alcoholic beverages who can easily go from silent to violent in a matter of minutes, and capable of causing a lot of physical harm to his significant other. It is examples like the one above which are precisely why the "street drug" using minority sees its prejudicial and prohibitionist counterpart of society as leading a life of double-standards. It is examples such as the fact that street drugs are available in prisons across the nation - smuggled in by those who swore to uphold the law - which serve to undermine any remaining sound logic in relation to the war on (the people who choose to use street) drugs. After 43 years of the same never-ending futility of crime and profit disguised as crime and punishment, where private prisons sue their governments if their inmate levels go below a certain percentage in relation to the number of available beds, and in which the prisoners are forced to work unreasonable amounts of hours every day for less than a dollar, or be sent to solitary confinement where they slowly lose their minds, makes it pretty clear why there exists such international organizations such as Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, or why the US is the world's biggest jailor, with about 5% of the world's population, and 25% of the world's prison population respectively (well ahead of Russia and China). The police can continue to grasp at the remaining straws all they want in order to fill their monthly drug-bust quotas, which will do a lot more harm to the victim of such incidents than smoking some marijuana, but will help the arresting officer to receive that eagerly-awaited promotion, and the ability to afford that convertible he always wanted. And meanwhile, his victim, a non-violent marijuana smoker who is otherwise an honest, law-abiding individual, is looking at a shattered life for reasons related more to the fact the he was caught using a street drug, and little else if anything. Capitalism at its worst - blurring the line between it and fascism (at least from the caught marijuana smoker's perspective, and perhaps many others like him). Hopefully this era of unjust oppression against marijuana consumers, and other plants which have been used for thousands of years, will end soon, and the cops can go back to chasing after actual crimes in which the victim did not consent to being victimized, because a detective deserves a promotion for once, even if (s)he doesn't fill up his/her quota as quickly as the average narc nowadays.

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2014/06/24/4027999.htm The depiction of human evolution as a simple linear affair is not only laden with historical baggage, it incorrectly portrays the true complexity of our past, argues Darren Curnoe. Evolutionary fail: linear depictions of human evolution are not only outdated they play into the hands of wannabe scientists. (Source: David Hecker) Search "human evolution" in Google images and what you'll get is an abundance of stereotypical images of an idea deeply embedded in our subconscious, the inevitable line or ladder of human evolution: Step 1, crouching hairy ape resembling a chimpanzee with a bad back; Step 2, ancient ape learns to squat; Step 3, ape corrects bad posture; Step 4, upright ape begins to loose skin colour; Step 5, almost-human creature has picked up a spear, grown a beard and donned a roughly hewn leather skirt; and Step 6, big-brained pale skinned man wearing a tailored leather mini (or Armani suit if you prefer) arrives in crowing glory, carrying a beautifully crafted spear (or brief case or even mobile phone). Now, not only is this a woefully outdated, laconic and highly inaccurate portrayal of our evolutionary history, it's one the plays right into the hands of wannabe scientists like creationists, showing our evolution to be a programmed series of steps leading inevitably to humankind. This ridiculously simple image would also have appealed to the racialist anthropologists who dominated my field during the 19th and, sadly, a good part of the 20th Century — scientists like Samuel Morton, Carlton Coon and many other race supremacists. We might well also ask the obvious question: what happened to the other 50 per cent of humanity, womankind? There's more than a hint of Genesis (2:23) about it: "this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called Woman because she is taken out of Man." But, what I don't really get is why this kind of drivel still pervades the internet well into the 21st Century and even on some pretty reputable sites that claim some kind of authority on evolution. So, what's the truth about how we evolved? How should we be portraying the broad sweep of our evolutionary history? The ultimate twig A giant of 20th Century biology, George Gaylard Simpson, observed in a 1964 article in the journal Science in which he poured cold water over the fledgling field of "exobiology" (what we today call "astrobiology") that: The fossil record shows very clearly that there is no central line leading steadily, in a goal-directed way, from a protozoan to man. Instead there has been continual and extremely intricate branching, and whatever course we follow through the branches there are repeated changes both in the rate and in the direction of evolution. Man is the end of one ultimate twig. Sadly, 50 years after Simpson wrote these words, the public portrayal of human evolution hasn't changed much, if the internet, many people's font of all wisdom, is truly representative. The portrayal of evolution as a ladder, just like the equally misleading term "missing link", harks back to the Great Chain of Being of 17th and 18th Century philosophers who believed it was their divine duty to order and name nature in accordance with God's plan: simple things at the bottom and humans, especially the white man, at the top, closest to God. Carl Linnaeus, the 18th Century father of biological classification, whom we have to thank for the system of scientific names we use today to label all living things, was one such creationist. He classified humans in the Order Primates and today this label still holds, humankind sitting in a biological group with the lemurs, lorises, tarsiers, monkeys and other apes. Being dubbed a Primate is one of the highest honours a church can bestow on a clergyman, particularly a bishop, and Linnaeus' classification reflected his bias that humans were also, like clerical primates, close to God. But, while the label "primate" remains today, religious baggage no longer clouds our ideas about scientific classification. Reading the fossil record Beginning in the first half the 19th Century, anthropologists began to amass thousands of fossils, now spanning a period of seven million years, and this record of our evolution recovered from the Earth's crust shows unequivocally that diversity was the rule. Latest count is more than 30 species or twigs of two-footed ape (or 'hominin') relatives in our evolutionary bush: or many forks in the road to us, most of them dead ends. It's true that most of the fossils we have are broken skulls or teeth, sitting in or out of their respective jaws, but just occasionally nature throws up a more complete skull or even nearly complete skeleton for us to find: take Australopithecus sediba as a recent example. Yet, what's even more fascinating to me, as odd as it may seem, is what we don't know by way of extinct species! The fossil record is continually throwing up surprises for us when we look in places we've not looked before, or sediments spanning previously neglected periods of time. Take the Hobbits from Flores (strictly Homo floresiensis), or my own discovery with Chinese colleague Ji Xueping, the 'Red Deer Cave people': anthropologists would never have predicted either of them to have existed based on what we previously knew. That's the joy of evolutionary science — not to be confused with another biological pastime — just when we think we know it all, along comes another big surprise to forces us out of old habits! We know very little about human evolution for most of the planet, especially for vast areas like Asia, and even for most of the massive African continent. Similarly, there are big gaps in time: until the year 2000, the human fossil record ran out at about four million years ago, but then within a few years of each other, new discoveries in Kenya, Ethiopia and Chad pushed it back another three million years, filling a vast chasm. While the image of the "bush of human evolution" promoted by a bell-bottom wearing Stephen Jay Gould back in the 1970s might not be very glamorous it is the perfect analogy on many levels. Not only does it accurately portray the evolutionary history of a very diverse, and rather short lived group of two-footed apes, it shrinks our collective ego back to a more realistic and moderated place, right where is should be. About the author: Associate Professor Darren Curnoe is an evolutionary biologist at the University of New South Wales. He writes about all aspects of evolution on his blog Walking on Two Feet. In 2008, Curnoe and colleagues discovered the remains of ancient humans dubbed the 'Red Deer Cave people'. This discovery is featured in the documentary Enigma Man: A Stone Age History, which airs tonight on ABC 1 at 8.30 pm.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729475-Meet-QuiQui-the-drug-delivering-drone neversickanymore Today 02:50 Meet QuiQui, the drug-delivering drone By Laurie Segalle June 19, 2014 The company is testing drones that would deliver medicine and anything else you'd normally purchase at the pharmacy. QuiQui's drone technology is still an early prototype, but founder Josh Ziering has ambitions to streamline the process. "You have a headache because you were up late last night and you need an Advil," he envisions. "Open up your phone, and just like your favorite car-sharing application or taxi application, you're going to drop a pin on a place....You'll put in your order, one of our technicians will get your order, and we'll attach it to the drone." Ziering says QuiQui expects to be able to deliver meds to people living in San Francisco's Mission District just eight to 12 minutes after they're been ordered. Users will get a notification when their order arrives. "You'll swipe to drop," Ziering says. "And as soon as you swipe, the drone will receive that information, drop your order with a streamer, and away you go." 28-year old Ziering, a self described "aviation fanatic," says over 600 users in the Mission District have signed up for the service. The company is looking to raise money to get the company off the ground. He's also currently working to partner with pharmacies to offer prescription deliveries as well. It's not the first the world has heard of drone deliveries. Amazon (AMZN, Tech30) made a splash in December when it revealed plans for a drone delivery service called Prime Air that would allow the mega-retailer to drop off items at customers' doorsteps. Ziering isn't phased by Amazon's plans. The entrepreneur says his company can operate faster -- and with more flexibility. "We can do things that they can't because we don't have the accountability to the shareholders and stockholders," he says. But until the Federal Aviation Administration gets on board, both Amazon and QuiQui may face regulatory roadblocks. The FAA is currently working to relax restrictions for commercial drone use, but the current regulations prohibit these type of deliveries. Still, Ziering insists the company is in the clear, for now. As a prototype, QuiQui isn't yet flying the drones commercially, which is why the company is able to get around current regulations. The founder says that by maintaining 500 feet from populated areas and steering clear of airports, they're operating legally. But that could change quickly. QuiQui plans to make its first delivery by the end of July. "Whether we charge for them [and break the law] remains to be seen," Ziering says. "As aviators ourselves, we want to abide by the law, but don't want regulation to stifle innovation." http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/19/tech...&iid=obnetwork .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................. This will eventually be how street dealers work as well.

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2014/07/14/4045518.htm Quantum computers are set to revolutionise the face of online security. They are the ultimate code breakers and makers, writes Tom Stace. The advent of quantum computers will challenge the fabric of online security which we rely on to protect the electronic passwords we use every day (Source: AndreyPopov/iStockphoto) Quantum evolution, Science Online, 20 Sep 2012 Secret codes evoke scenes of cold war agents in trench coats writing shopping lists on top of secrets written in lemon juice, but it is here in the field of cryptography that the quantum revolution began. The counterintuitive world of quantum mechanics has attracted curious minds for over a century. Today, physicists are on the path to building quantum technologies that will be used in the next generation of clocks to keep GPS satellites synchronised; in ultra-high-precision sensors for medical devices and navigation; and to systematically design new medicines and materials down to the atom. But the advent of these technologies will also challenge the fabric of online security which we rely on to protect the electronic passwords we use every day. You might recall that the prime factors of 15 are 5 and 3: 5×3=15. How would you react if I told you that I had a machine that could find the prime factors of extremely large numbers? Perhaps with indifference, or maybe you'd crack your favourite geek joke ("an atom walks into a bar…")? The prudent response would be to visit your bank, in person, and withdraw your savings immediately. You see, factoring is the digital master key to every virtual bank vault on the planet — fast factoring would crack open encrypted online financial transactions. Currently, the security of all online transactions rests on the exponential difficulty of finding prime factors. The computational resources a thief would require to crack modern encryption in a reasonable time vastly outstrips the combined capabilities of all the conventional computers on the planet. However, the nascent quantum revolution will upset this status quo. In 1994, Peter Shor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology invented an algorithm that solves this precise mathematical problem. For now, this is not a threat to online banking: Shor's algorithm can't run on any conventional computer. Rather, it only runs on a quantum computer — one that utilises the peculiar properties of quantum mechanics. Quantum technologies are in their infancy. At present, the largest quantum computers have only about 10 operating quantum bits. They are also exquisitely sensitive to errors: each quantum bit will work reliably for just a few thousand basic manipulations. They are far less advanced than the computer inside your smartphone, which can process its half-a-trillion digital bits at the rate of several billion per second. Bad news for code breakers While quantum computers will eventually make modern encryption redundant, quantum mechanics also paves the way to provably secure communications beyond what we have now. After millennia of code-making and breaking, there remains one encryption scheme that is provably unbreakable, even by quantum computers: the one-time key protocol (see box). Its main ingredient is a list of random numbers secretly shared between the communicating parties, which form the key to encoding and decoding a secret. But the one-time key only defers the problem: how is the key shared in the first place? The parties must either share it in private at some earlier time, or arrange a trusted agent to disseminate the key. This presents problems if they've never met, if the secret is too important to trust to anyone else, or if they've used up their original one-time key. Amazingly, quantum mechanics provides a mechanism to distribute a shared, random key over an untrusted communication channel without prior collusion or trusted agents. Using a protocol known as quantum key distribution, parties exchange carefully prepared photons, the quantum particles of light (for example over optical fibre). As photons are sent, received and then measured, the intrinsic randomness of quantum measurement generates a truly random key shared between the parties, allowing them to communicate securely and indefinitely. In an effort to discover the random key, a would-be-eavesdropper might try to surreptitiously intercept and measure the photons. But quantum mechanics says that the measurement intrinsically changes the photons' state, leaving behind tell-tale evidence of the eavesdropper's interference. Just as a shy singer performs confidently in the shower but becomes fearful in front of a listening audience, the state of a quantum system changes when it is observed. This ensures parties know whether their shared random key is indeed secret, or if it is compromised and cannot be trusted. Quantum key distribution systems are now commercially available. The optic fibre they use is incredibly transparent, but light still gets absorbed within a few dozen kilometres, setting an upper limit on the distances over which these systems can operate. These are useful for a secure link between, say, the White House and the Pentagon, which is both short and highly sensitive. But widespread use of this technology will require household optical-fibre connections and quantum repeaters — miniature quantum computers — spaced at regular intervals, to enable quantum randomness to be securely transmitted over thousands of kilometres. Australian efforts are at the forefront of research into quantum repeaters, with diamond nano-particles and atomic gases representing some of the most promising platforms. In the end, quantum mechanics gives us a way to break modern encryption algorithms, but it also leads to new and provably secure communications, and will enable a variety of other technologies. But perhaps more importantly, as we solve the challenge of engineering the foundations of quantum technology, we will inevitably learn profound things about the quantum world and the nature of our universe. The philosophical questions that arise from the principles used in quantum cryptography are profound, and go to the core of our understanding of reality. How the one-time key protocol works Suppose you want to send the message "password" secretly to a friend, and you both happen to share the secret random key "hmkqiwur". Converting the letters in the message and in the key to numbers (a→0, b→1,…) and then adding the corresponding numbers together gives the cipher text "wmcieklu", which can be sent over an untrusted, insecure channel. Your friend also knows the key, and so can reverse this process, to uniquely reveal the message. Just as two identical house keys can lock and unlock the same door, so the shared random digital key can encrypt, and then uniquely decrypt, a message. As long as the random key is kept secret, and never reused, the one-time key protocol is provably secure: the cipher text cannot be deciphered by any eavesdropper. About the author: Dr Tom Stace is a theoretical physicist in the School of Mathematics and Physics at the University of Queensland. His research within the Australian Research Council's Centre of Excellence in Engineered Quantum Systems (EQuS) focuses on developing the basic building-blocks of future quantum technologies. Find out more about quantum cryptography at a public lecture tonight in Brisbane (a video of the lecture will be available after the event).

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-16/tas-health-minister-michael-ferguson-challenged-to-debate-on-me/5602494 By Sam Ikin Updated Wed 16 Jul 2014, 6:58pm AEST Photo: The Health Minister has been challenged to a debate about medicinal cannabis after rejecting a trial to produce the substance in Tasmania. The president of the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation (ADLRF) has challenged Health Minister Michael Ferguson to a debate about medicinal cannabis on "radio or television". The State Government recently rejected a proposal to trial medicinal cannabis for the treatment of nausea and lack of appetite in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. The trial was proposed by Tasman Health Cannabinoids in conjunction with the University of Tasmania. As the Government was in the process of rejecting the trial, Mr Ferguson said the necessary cannabinoid products were already available. "In Tasmania and around Australia a number of cannabinoids that are derived from cannabis are in fact available through perfectly legal and authorised prescriptions for certain medical illnesses, and I think that's the way it should be," he said. The ADLRF's Dr Alex Wodak said technically that was true, but in practice it was not. I am very happy to meet the Minister privately to discuss this or to debate this issue with him on radio or television. How about it Mr Ferguson? Dr Alex Wodak, president of Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation "Nabiximols (also known as Sativex) is only approved [for use for a short period] for stiffness due to multiple sclerosis," he said. "It is available in theory but not in practice. If available and approved for other indications, the likely cost ($800 per month) will prevent all but the wealthiest using the drug," he said. It's time to take the politics out of this issue, says Dr WodakIn a recent op-ed for a Tasmanian newspaper Mr Ferguson said there were a range of reasons for his decision to reject the trial. "The business representatives did not adequately address concerns surrounding the security, safety and the potential for social harm of the trial, and as such I rejected their push for medicinal cannabis trials in Tasmania," he said. Dr Wodak said the Health Minister's comments were proof that "experts should regulate medicines... not politicians". "The problem with medicinal cannabis is that this is a medical issue being decided by politicians. It's time to take the politics out of the issue," he said. Mr Ferguson pointed out that Tasmania was not alone in its anti-cannabinoids stance. No state in Australia currently allows the production of medicinal cannabis. "Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in Tasmania, and consideration of any use of this substance must be balanced with the continuing misuse of the plant and the requirement to police the black market," Mr Ferguson in the op-ed. Dr Wodak said current policy in all states was completely out of line with how they viewed other illicit drugs that also have a medicinal function. "Australia uses morphine, cocaine, amphetamine and ketamine medically. But the recreational use of these drugs is banned," he said. "Australia could allow the medicinal use of cannabis but continue to prohibit its recreational use." The physician went on to issue a challenge to Mr Ferguson. "Let's have a real debate about medicinal cannabis. I am very happy to meet the Minister privately to discuss this or to debate this issue with him on radio or television. How about it Mr Ferguson?" A spokesman for the Health Minister responded to say Mr Ferguson would not be taking up the offer of a public debate. He said Mr Ferguson would be happy to meet with Dr Wodak privately.

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/aussies-smoking-less-but-taking-more-drugs-20140717-3c2hq.html AAP July 17, 2014 Australian are smoking and drinking less but using more illicit drugs, a national survey shows. About 13 per cent of Australians are smoking daily, compared to 15 per cent three years ago, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) drug and alcohol survey released on Thursday. And smokers have also cut the average number of cigarettes they smoke per week from 111 in 2010 to 96 in 2013. The study also found fewer young people are drinking alcohol, with the proportion abstaining rising from 64 per cent to 72 per cent in the past three years. "Overall, fewer younger people aged 12 to 17 are drinking alcohol," AIHW spokesperson Geoff Neideck said. Twenty-six per cent of Australians aged 14 or older reported being a victim of an alcohol-related incident in 2013, a decline from 29 per cent in 2010. However, the use of crystal methamphetamine, or ice, has more than doubled in the past three years. The misuse of pharmaceuticals also rose, increasing from 4.2 per cent in 2010 to 4.7 per cent in 2013. "While the use of meth/amphetamine remained at a similar level to 2010, there was a major shift in the main form of meth/amphetamine used," Mr Neideck said. "Use of powder dropped significantly while the use of ice (or crystal methamphetamine) more than doubled between 2010 and 2013." There were slight declines in the use of ecstasy and heroin, he said. Quit Victoria policy manager Kylie Lindorff said the smoking data highlighted what could be achieved with a comprehensive approach to tobacco control reform. "This news is cause for celebration but we can't take our eyes off the ball - we still have a way to go to achieve the federal government target of 10 per cent adult smoking prevalence by 2018," she said. "With tax increases already locked in for the next three years, there is no reason we can't see smoking rates drop even further if there is a renewed investment to funding anti-smoking campaigns at the necessary levels and a continued expansion of smokefree areas." The National Drug Strategy Household Survey is conducted every two to three years. The 2013 survey collected data from nearly 24,000 people across Australia. Signs young people are swearing off the booze is a victory against binge drinking, a health group says. The survey also found the age at which young Australians tried their first drink had risen from 14.4 to 15.7 in the past 15 years. The Australian Drug Foundation says prevention strategies are working, but authorities shouldn't be complacent. "We know that the younger a person drinks alcohol the more likely they are to binge drink and have a problem with alcohol later in life," foundation boss John Rogerson said in a statement. But "Australia is still very much in the grip of a dangerous love affair with booze," he added. The survey found fewer Australians drank daily than in 2010, dropping from 7.2 per cent to 6.5 per cent. A smaller percentage also drink at risky levels, the study said.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729443-UK-How-to-measure-illegal-drug-use edgarshade View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Aug 2010 Location UK Posts 2,400 Today 13:57 The Economist Jul 16th 2014, 23:50 by D.K. With reader comments IN MUCH of the western world, teenagers and young adults are turning sober. In England and Wales the proportion of 18- to 24-year-olds trying a drug in an average year has halved, from about one-third in 1996 to just 16% last year. In America, marijuana use among teens has picked up a little, but the use of cocaine has fallen drastically. Across Europe, cannabis use is becoming less common. Given that using illegal drugs is, well, illegal, and drug dealers do not publish accounts, how do we know how much people are really taking? One way is simply to ask them. One of the biggest such exercises is the ESPAD survey, which every few years asks schoolchildren in around 40 European countries about their drug and alcohol use. Such surveys run into an obvious problem: people lie, especially when asked about their dodgier weekend habits. To get around this, Britain’s crime survey asks schoolchildren whether they have tried a fictitious drug called “semeron” (sadly not “yellow bentines”), to find out how truthful they are being in their responses to the rest of the survey. In 2011, just eight out of 6,500 children admitted a raging semeron addiction, which suggests that they are not too prone to exaggeration. That doesn’t solve the opposite problem of people playing down their drug use, however. To get around that, researchers can lean on other sources of information. Street prices, seizures by the police, arrests and the number of people turning up in hospital having overdosed all give an idea as to whether drug use is going up or down. But some innovative ideas are surfacing too. In a growing number of countries, the authorities are experimenting with testing the sewage system for the by-products of illegal drug use. The British Drinking Water Inspectorate recently published findings about the amount of benzoylecgonine—a by-product of cocaine—in British water. In America, a recent study of wastewater in New York state found by-products of cocaine, opioid drugs and hallucinogens. The authors suggested that in future, this sort of tracking could provide real-time information about drug use. For police determined to stop people getting high, that might be a useful tool. Apart from their other problems, drug surveys are fairly useless for looking at local trends, since they are too complex and expensive to do on a small scale. Then again, what all of this evidence tends to show is that cracking down on drug use has relatively little effect on consumption. Perhaps instead of analysing sewage, governments should consider legalising recreational drugs. Among its other benefits, this policy would at least allow them to track what is being taken in a more straightforward way. http://www.economist.com/blogs/econo...st-explains-10

Note that their District of Colombia is equivalent to our Australian Capital Territory:- " The times; they are a changin'. " - Bob Dylan. 16 Jul 2014 Source: Washington Times (DC) Website: http://www.washingtontimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492 Author: Andrea Noble POLICE QUIETLY PREPPING FOR CHANGE IN LAW ON MARIJUANA Decriminalization Starts on Thursday The District is quietly preparing for a law to take effect Thursday that decriminalizes possession of small amounts of marijuana, with the Metropolitan Police Department issuing a special order to officers advising them of new protocols. Under the new law, possession of 1 ounce or less of marijuana will no longer be a criminal offense and instead be punishable by a civil fine of $25. Criminal penalties remain in effect for those caught smoking pot in public or those caught with the drug on federal property. Preparing for the change in local drug laws, the police department has advised officers to review an 8-page special order detailing the new law and to complete an online training program. "As of midnight, Wednesday night, no member can make or approve an arrest for marijuana possession without having first taken this training," said MPD spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump. Responsibilities of prosecutors, who will handle the drug-related charges that remain criminal offenses, will be divided among two agencies. The Office of the Attorney General will prosecute cases in which individuals are charged with smoking marijuana in public, while the U.S. Attorney's Office will handle cases in which an individual is caught with more than 1 ounce of pot or is caught in possession of the drug on federal land, said Bill Miller, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District. The federal government handles law enforcement on large swaths of land in the District, such as Rock Creek Park and the Mall, so federal criminal penalties will remain in effect for those caught in possession of marijuana on such properties. "We rely heavily on diversion programs in our local marijuana prosecutions and will likely do the same with respect to federal offenses," Mr. Miller said. When deciding how to proceed with cases after decriminalization takes effect, Mr. Miller said prosecutors will "assess each case on an individualized basis" and "use our limited investigative and prosecutorial resources to address the most significant threats to public safety." The D.C. Council passed the marijuana decriminalization bill in March, but drug cases have continued to move through the District's criminal justice system in the interim, with the U.S. Attorney's Office continuing its "usual practice," Mr. Miller said. One defense attorney concurred that there has been no letup in the meantime. "They are prosecuting it, as far as I can see, up until the very last minute," said Paul Zukerberg, a lawyer running for District attorney general who has advocated for marijuana law reform and often represents clients facing drug charges. The exact moment that enforcement will change is a bit unclear. Estimating when D.C. legislation becomes law is something of an inexact science. Legislation passed by the council and signed by the mayor has to go through a congressional review period - in this case covering 60 days that both the House and Senate are in session. City officials project the legislation will become law on Thursday, as long as Congress doesn't take any unexpected breaks Wednesday. On Capitol Hill, estimates are more precise. Will Boyington, a spokesman for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said the law becomes official at 12:01 a.m. Thursday. And although officers will begin enforcing new laws at some point this week, the future of the city's drug policy reform remains uncertain. An amendment that would block the city from lessening its drug penalties was last month attached to a House spending bill that includes the D.C. budget. The amendment, offered by Rep. Andy Harris, Maryland Republican, would have to make it into a final draft of the bill once it is reconciled with a Senate version. Observers say the amendment is unlikely to be included, particularly after the White House weighed in on the issue Monday, saying that it "strongly opposes" the provision. Whether the Harris amendment changes D.C. drug laws again down the road, police for now are gearing up to educate residents about the reality of decriminalization. MPD is printing business card-size information sheets to hand out to residents that explain the new drug law. The front of the card begins: "You may have heard that marijuana is now legal in the District of Columbia. That is not true." The backside of the card lists potential health risks of using marijuana. On Thursday, a new MPD website, featuring information about the law, www.mpdc.dc.gov/ marijuana, will also go live. http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v14/n590/a06.html?397

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729400-Want-to-Solve-the-Border-Crisis-Give-Free-Drugs-to-Addicts neversickanymore View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Senior Moderator Recovery Support Science & Technology Join Date Jan 2013 Location babysitting the argument in my head Posts 10,312 Today 04:28 Want to Solve the Border Crisis? Give Free Drugs to Addicts BY MARC JOFFE, July 15, 2014 OP-ED The large flow of Central American children to the US southern border has reignited the immigration debate. While controversy rages over border enforcement issues, both Democrats and Republicans are not considering the conditions in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador that have triggered this unfortunate exodus. The mass migration is associated with high crime and limited economic opportunities in these Central American nations. According to UN data, Honduras has the world’s highest homicide rate at over 90 murders per 100,000 people, while both El Salvador and Guatemala also rank among the top five with murder rates of about 40 per 100,000 each. By comparison, the homicide rate in the US is less than 5 per 100,000. With respect to economic performance, all three of these nations are classified as “lower middle income” by the World Bank – so they are not among the world’s poorest countries. But all three are seeing less per capita income growth than other lower middle income countries and their Latin America peers, as show in the accompanying table. If these three countries could become safer and could provide greater economic opportunities, their residents would have less reason to risk unlawfully immigrating to the U.S. Policy changes both in these countries and in the US could improve the quality of life in these nations and thereby stem the immigration crisis. One obvious possibility is providing more foreign aid to the three nations. This approach would undoubtedly spark a lot of opposition. If authorized, much of the money will likely be siphoned away by local elites or spent ineffectively. Fortunately, more indirect alternatives to outright government to government transfers are available. Much of the crime in Central America is gang related, and gangs obtain the lion’s share of their income from drug trafficking. Successful interdiction efforts elsewhere have led to a greater proportion of U.S.-bound narcotics going through Central America. Drug enforcement efforts don’t eliminate the demand for drugs. Instead, they drive up prices and thereby increase profits for the smugglers who are still operating. As a result, gangs have become quite powerful in Honduras and elsewhere in Central America. By taking the profit out of drug smuggling, we can shrink violent gang activity in Latin America just as the U.S. saw a dramatic drop in violent crime after the end of Prohibition. Decriminalization of cocaine and heroin in the US would dry up gang profits, but is a political non-starter. A more politically palatable alternative would be a treatment program under which registered addicts receive their narcotics for free at drug treatment centers. Because the program would be limited to known users and because they would be required to consume the drugs at the treatment center, this initiative would not create new addicts. As The Economist reported in February, this approach has been successfully implemented in both Switzerland and the Netherlands. Eliminating profits from narcotics smuggling would initially reduce incomes in Central America, but opportunities to legally generate income would increase as security improves – especially if the chaos is replaced by an efficient and effective legal system. Countries in which the rule of law is widely accepted and that have effective market-oriented legal systems often enjoy very rapid growth. This has been the case in East Asian societies like Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea. More recently, the benefits of market-based growth have spread to poorer Latin American countries. A prime example is Peru – which after decades of instability has witnessed very rapid improvements in living standards since 2001. Rapid economic growth followed the vanquishing of the Shining Path guerilla movement and market-oriented reforms implemented under the last four presidents. The relationship between the rule of law, markets and growth has not been lost on Honduras’ leaders. In 2011, the government amended the Honduran constitution to allow the creation of charter cities that could operate under different – and presumably more liberal – legal systems. The inspiration for creating these autonomous zones appears to have come from economist Paul Romer, who advocated the concept of charter cities in a widely-viewed 2009 TED talk. Implementation of the charter city concept in Honduras has been slowed by political opposition and court challenges. Progressives in the US and elsewhere have ridiculed the idea as an abrogation of national sovereignty and a sellout to the foreign corporate interests who would develop the zones. These critics might benefit from reading Karl Marx, who understood capitalism’s unique ability to produce rapid economic development. Last month, the Honduran Supreme Court dismissed the remaining constitutional challenges against the country’s charter cities legislation. The government is now free to select initial zones for development and work with prospective developers. It is promoting charter cities – now known as Zonas de Empleo y Desarrollo Económico (ZEDE) – via the web and other means. The U.S. should encourage Honduras and its Central American neighbors to move forward with market-oriented reforms either in special zones or at the national level. Further, we should find a way to lift the burden of our illegal drug trade from these nation’s shoulders. These measures will hasten the day when parents in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador no longer see the need to send their children on a dangerous and illegal trip to our border. Marc Joffe is the Principal Consultant at Public Sector Credit Solutions. He was previously a senior director at Moody’s Analytics. - See more at: http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Column....a2HU1GQn.dpuf

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-16/ecstasy-and-misuse-of-prescription-pills-on-the-rise-in-the-hun/5600034 16 Jul 2014, 7:25am AEST Photo: A UN drug report shows Australia tops the world in the use of the illicit drug ecstasy. (Getty Images) A specialist at Newcastle's Calvary Mater hospital is seeing a big rise in the use of illicit drugs and misuse of prescription medicines. Staff specialist in addiction medicine Craig Sadler says ecstasy is one of the illicit drugs on the increase in the Hunter. The United Nation's latest World Drug Report found Australia tops the rest of the world in ecstasy use but methamphetamines and cocaine also ranked highly. Doctor Sadler says another concern is the misuse of prescription medicines like opiates that can be highly addictive and sometimes end up on the black market. "With regards to prescribed opiates or over-the-counter opiates from pharmacies, there has been an increase in their prescription and use," he said. "What has happened as a result, in some cases is that people divert their prescribed opiates onto the illicit market and other people then purchase them and drug problems can develop." But he says local GPs are not to blame for the rise in the misuse of prescription opiates. Doctor Sadler says opiates are often used to treat acute pain, but some people who are addicted to them can hoodwink general practitioners into prescribing the drugs . "In general terms the GPs are aware of the problems of opiates and are generally quite cautious about the prescribing of medications. "Sometimes the medications are sought by patients going to multiple different doctors without the patient seeking an appropriate review of their physical problems or other suggestions related to pain management."

D.E.A. are scumbags, and many drug squad cops are corrupt and / or just plain evil, I.M.O., and are known to plant drugs if they can't catch someone with them, then perjure themselves in court.

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/729316-White-House-Says-Marijuana-Policy-Is-States-Rights-Issue FunctionalOlfactio View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Jun 2013 Posts 147 Today 04:15 White House Says Marijuana Policy Is States' Rights Issue WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration believes marijuana policy is a states' rights issue, the White House said Monday in opposing Republican-led legislation that would prevent Washington, D.C., from using local funds to decriminalize marijuana possession. The GOP-sponsored House amendment would prevent D.C. "from using its own local funds to carry out locally-passed marijuana policies, which again undermines the principles of States' rights and of District home rule," the White House said in a statement. The White House said the bill "poses legal challenges to the Metropolitan Police Department's enforcement of all marijuana laws currently in force in the District." Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) called Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) a "tyrant" for meddling in the District's governing process with the amendment, pointing out that Maryland just voted to decriminalize marijuana possession. The amendment is aimed at blocking a recent D.C. law that lowers the penalty for possessing small amounts of marijuana to a fine. It's been less than a year since the Justice Department decided not to sue Washington state and Colorado for legalizing and regulating recreational marijuana. Attorney General Eric Holder told The Huffington Post earlier this year that he was "cautiously optimistic" about legalization in Colorado, which began recreational sales Jan. 1. Washington state sales began this month. Holder didn't weigh in on decriminalization in his own city of D.C., but said it was not a good use of law enforcement resources to give young people a criminal record for drug possession. “It is great to see the White House accepting that a majority of Americans want marijuana law reform and defending the right of D.C. and states to set their own marijuana policy,” Bill Piper, director of national affairs for the Drug Policy Alliance, said about the White House statement on Monday. “The tide has clearly shifted against the failed war on drugs and it’s only a matter of time before federal law is changed." Clarification: Language has been amended to reflect that the bill only affects local funds, and not federal funds as previously indicated in one sentence of this article. Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/0...n_5586188.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #2 weekend addiction View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Send Email Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Mar 2007 Location The country with the world's most prisoners. Posts 3,594 Blog Entries8 Today 09:20 This sets a great precedent!!! If weed laws are a state's right's issue then all drug laws would be. I would want to be in the first state to legalize cocaine sales. Money to be made lol! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #3 neversickanymore View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Add as Contact Senior Moderator Recovery Support Science & Technology -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join Date Jan 2013 Location babysitting the argument in my head Posts 10,307 Today 10:16 ^ which state will fall on coke first? Republicans against states rights and a smaller federal government control.. they are a joke. RECOVERY FORUMS ~~~ADDICTION GUIDE~~~ CONTACT ME -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #4 CLICKHEREx View Profile View Forum Posts Private Message View Blog Entries View Articles Bluelighter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join DateSep 2012 Posts106Today 15:02 Originally Posted by weekend addiction This sets a great precedent!!! If weed laws are a state's right's issue then all drug laws would be. I would want to be in the first state to legalize cocaine sales. Money to be made lol! It would still be illegal to import.

http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/ports-in-a-crime-storm-as-government-knocks-back-police-attempts-to-strip-accused-drug-traffickers-of-security-clearances/story-fnii5s3x-1226988985083 July 15, 2014 POLICE attempts to strip accused drug traffickers of their security clearances to work on Australia’s waterfront and airports are being knocked back by the federal government. At least 14 employees, including stevedores and customs officers, kept their clearances to work in secure areas of Sydney’s ports despite being charged by the Polaris waterfront taskforce. Among those were three stevedores charged between September and November with serious drug offences while working at shipping terminals in Sydney. Authorities in January asked that Dean Rodgers and Robert Bucic be stripped of their Maritime Security Identification Cards after each was charged with drug offences in separate police operations. But the federal government agency responsible for the security clearances, AusCheck, rejected the applications, saying they did not have the capability to suspend the cards or take action against the men. In a separate case police revealed a “significant number” of bikie gang members and known associates of organised crime syndicates work on the wharves. Police are powerless to take action against port workers with criminal links, despite repeated requests to allow criminal intelligence reports to be used when assessing applicants for MSICs. Dean Rodgers / Picture: Facebook Source: Facebook Robbie Bucic. Source: News Limited Rodgers was charged in November with supplying a large commercial quantity of drugs, alleged to be 3000 MDMA pills, while working at a shipping terminal in Sydney’s east, while Bucic was charged with possessing a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug. Both matters will return to court later this year. The MSIC and ASIC cards were introduced over potential terrorism threats and concerns of drug running at ports around the country. AusCheck carries out background checks when considering an applicant’s suitability but does not consider criminal intelligence, including a person’s links to organised crime networks or outlaw motorcycle gangs. “This is an obvious risk to security in the maritime and related sectors such as transport and logistics as there are a number of vulnerabilities in these areas that can be exploited by criminal groups,” Polaris commander Detective Superintendent Nick Bingham said. Polaris is a taskforce involving NSW Police, Australian Federal Police, Customs and the Australian Crime Commission to combat organised crime on Sydney’s waterfront. The taskforce was formed in 2010 and has since made 62 arrests, laid 247 charges and seized more than 150kg of illegal drugs. The Department of the Attorney-General, which oversees AusCheck, yesterday declined to comment on the issue, referring questions to the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office, which did not respond to questions. Originally published as Aussie ports in a crime storm