cannabisnews.com: Sarnia Losing Drug War 





Sarnia Losing Drug War 
Posted by FoM on January 05, 2002 at 08:27:24 PT
By Cathy Dobson of The Observer 
Source: Sarnia Observer 
Charlie Perkins, the newly-elected president of an international anti-drug organization called Drug Watch, says the local war on drugs has hit hard times. "The drug problem among youth locally is getting worse," Perkins told The Observer. "Ecstasy is replacing marijuana as the drug of choice and I find that very frightening."Ecstasy, known as the peace and love drug of the rave party culture, comes in various forms and colours and is called everything from Cadillac to Lollipop.
Teenagers aren't using drugs so much at school as outside of school and at parties, Perkins said."I don't have any hard facts and I don't want to inflate the figures, but parents are no longer involving themselves in providing information. The anti-drug movement is slowly dying."City police praised Perkins for his ongoing effort to educate children about drug use. And officers agree that just as many local teenagers are using drugs while the effort to teach them about the impacts is taking a beating."A lot of kids do take ecstacy. It's the big word around here," said Const. Terry Simm who heads Sarnia's youth bureau. "There's also tons of grass and hash oil around."The good news is that, unlike Chatham, London and Port Huron, Sarnia does not have crack houses. However, many other drugs are readily available.Local schools are calling the police "constantly" with kids involved in drug possession, Simm said. "We're swamped."Officers spend so much time tracking down dealers and enforcing the law, little time is left to go into the schools to educate, said Sgt. Dave McMahan of the city's morality unit."Our officers still go to the schools when it's possible but no one from our office has been for some time," he said. "We focus our energy on the dealers."No single area or school in Sarnia is more plagued with drugs, McMahan added. It doesn't matter which high school you go to. "When you talk about drugs, they're available anytime, anywhere."Perkins said the Just Say No anti-drug program taught in elementary schools is valuable but he is concerned teachers have less and less time to get the message across because of the demands of the new curriculum.With less parental input and less anti-drug education in the schools, efforts to teach local youth about the dangers of drug use are more limited than they were in the 1980s and 1990s, he said.Twenty years ago, Perkins and his late wife Louise founded a program called Lambton Families in Action. The group worked primarily with young people and went into local schools to discuss illegal drug use.Today Perkins remains chairman of the board with Lambton Families in Action but membership has dwindled to eight local volunteers.On a broader scale, he fights the drug culture with his involvement on Drug Watch International, a group of individuals and organizations from 21 different countries. He was recently elected president of the 400-member group and just returned from Washington where he met with the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy."Unlike Chretien, Bush is determined to get this problem under control," Perkins said. "Bill Clinton just stripped the anti-drug arm of the government and Bush wants to undo what Clinton did."He is currently on a three-week tour in the United States, meeting numerous Drug Watch delegates and returning to Washington D.C.Drug Watch includes a group of physicians, lawyers, law enforcement officials and treatment specialists who advise the government on drug policy. Perkins will be meeting with Asa Hutchinson, head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.He believes that the anti-drug movement suffers from a lack of media attention and a lack of commitment from the Canadian government."I've talked to our local MP (Roger Gallaway) about it and it was a waste of time," Perkins said. "The government wants to decriminalize drugs."In April of 2001, the federal government introduced regulations on the medicinal uses for marijuana and made it possible for terminally ill patients, people with AIDS, multiple sclerosis, spinal-cord injuries, epilepsy and other serious conditions to use the drug if it eases their symptoms.The government also awarded a contract to Prairie Plant Systems Inc. of Saskatoon to provide a reliable source of affordable marijuana for medical and research purposes. At the time, there were 210 individuals across Canada who received special exemptions from prosecution to smoke marijuana to ease their pain.But government officials stressed that the regulations pertain to marijuana only and don't open the door for the decriminalization of other illegal drugs.Note: Crusader claims education efforts are falling short.Source: Sarnia Observer (Ontario)Author: Cathy DobsonPublished: January 5, 2002Copyright: 2002 The Sarnia Observer Contact: editorial observer-sarnia.com Website: http://www.observer-sarnia.com/ Related Articles & Web Sites:Drug Watch Internationalhttp://www.drugwatch.org/FTE's Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmSex, Drugs, and Techno Musichttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11672.shtmlFor the Ill, The Pot's in The Post http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11635.shtml
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Comment #11 posted by unks on January 09, 2002 at 09:15:04 PT
Crack Houses....
Yea, I'm sure Sarnia's a picture perfect southwestern ontario town. London is the same, I'm sure Sarnia's bound to have crack houses, believing that they don't is wrong. Accusing other towns is cause for idiocy, it's not the town you live in, it's the people that live there... 
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Comment #10 posted by lookinside on January 06, 2002 at 14:33:26 PT:
lethal dosage...
a one ton bale of cannabis dropped from 50 feet can be lethal if dropped with accuracy...as far as i know, this is the only way to die from exposure to cannabis...
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Comment #9 posted by bruce42 on January 06, 2002 at 13:38:29 PT
oops
my website link has a stray parenthesis.it should be justhttp://showcase.netins.net/web/mdportal/cannabis
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Comment #8 posted by bruce42 on January 06, 2002 at 13:34:33 PT
discredit
As is obvious to the readers of Cannabisnews, the sarnia.com site is mostly misinformation and outright lies. From sarnia.com (January 2002):
"Smoked Marijuana: is Mutogenic, Fetotoxic and Carcinogenic"Research indicates:
Marijuana smoke does contain known carcinogenic compunds. The important info to keep in mind is that most if not all combusted plant materials contain toxic chemicals. Breathing smoke is bad for you. Period. Vaporizers, however, are one form of risk reduction device that prove effective in delivering cannabinoids without the side effects of combustion. In a recent article by McPartland and Russo:
Vaporizer technology may im prove the bioavailability of limonene and other compounds, which volatilize around the same temperature as THC (see
Figures 1-3). Vaporizers are smoking apparatithat heat cannabis to 185°C (365°F), which vaporizes THC but is below the ignition point of combustible plant material. Vapoized cannabis emits a thin gray vapor, whereas combusted cannabis produces a thick smoke. Thus, vaporizers deliver a better cannabinoid-to-tar ratio than cigarettes or water pipes (Gieringer 1996). In a recent study, traces of THC were vaporized at temperatures as low as 140°C (284°F)
and the majority of THC vaporized by 185°C (365°F); benzene and other carcinogenic vapors did not appear until 200°C (392°F), and cannabis combustion occurred around 230°C (446°F) (Gieringer 2001).(you can download the report from my website http://showcase.netins.net/web/mdportal/cannabis/)Fetotoxic? I have been unable to find any information regarding such a thing. Since the website does NOT list ANY respectable medical research sources as a basis for such claims, it can be safely IGNORED as incredulous babble.To further address the "Mutogenic, Fetotoxic and Carcinogenic" issue, here are some snippets from the US NTP report, "Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of 1-Trans-Delta9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (CAS No. 1972-08-3) in F344 Rats and B6C3F1 Mice" (Gavage Studies)
THC was not mutagenic in Salmonella typhimurium strains TA97, TA98, TA100, or TA1535 with or without rat and hamster liver S9 fractions. In cultured Chinese hamster ovary cells, THC induced sister chromatid exchanges at the highest dose tested in the presence of S9; at this dose level, cell cycle delay indicative of toxicity was observed. THC did not induce chromosomal aberrations in cultured Chinese hamster ovary cells with or without S9 metabolic activation enzymes. In vivo, no increase in the frequency of micronucleated erythrocytes was observed in the peripheral blood of male or female mice administered THC by gavage for 13 weeks. ... Under the conditions of these 2-year gavage studies, there was no evidence of carcinogenic activity of 1-trans-delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol in male or female F344/N rats administered 12.5, 25, or 50 mg/kg. There was equivocal evidence of carcinogenic activity of THC in male and female B6C3F1 mice based on the increased incidences of thyroid gland follicular cell adenomas in 125 mg/kg groups.
http://ntp-server.niehs.nih.gov/htdocs/Results_Status/Resstatt/10275-V.Html
http://www.cannabis.com/research/govthcix.shtmlFrom sarnia.com (January 2002):
"...can Impair the Immune System, break down the Male Genetic Code and Injure or Destroy the Eggs in the Ovaries - can cause Bipolar Psychosis, can trigger Schizophrenia, can Slowdown the Brain's Energy and can be a co-factor in producing full blown AIDS in HIV patients."Research Indicates:
The question of immune suppresion is an important one, especially when concerned with HIV infected indivduals. The problem with any current studies is poor methodology that leads to inconclusive results and/or the study of only THC. More research must be done!As for the following:
"...break down the Male Genetic Code and Injure or Destroy the Eggs in the Ovaries - can cause Bipolar Psychosis, can trigger Schizophrenia, can Slowdown the Brain's Energy and can be a co-factor in producing full blown AIDS in HIV patients."As the site does not list any sources, these allegations cannot be addressed and should be ignored.From sarnia.com (January 2002):
MEDICAL EXCUSE MARIJUANA is all about GETTING STONED not treating an illnessHARM REDUCTION - Part of the PROBLEM  NOT part of the SOLUTION.Research Indicates:
Marijauana has been shown to have at least some medical benefit. And harm reduction a problem? Maybe if your problem is mounting research that indicates medical viablility of smoked marijuana and threatens your funding.Peronally, I am amazed that anyone could actually read the sarnia.com website and take it or it's creator seriously.Read the IOM report. Its good stuff.Once again I have to apologize for the long-arse post and any grammatical or speling errors. I'll shut up now.
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Comment #7 posted by Jose Melendez on January 06, 2002 at 10:21:58 PT:
do your research, Cathy Dobson!
What I want to know is how could the author of this article have missed reading the obvious misinformation and blatant lies on the Lambton Families in Action website?here is the contact relevant contact info:Editorial General Mailbox: editorial observer-sarnia.com 
Editorial Fax Number: (519) 332-2951
Jose Melendez
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Comment #6 posted by legalizeit on January 06, 2002 at 08:36:22 PT
Depraved Kevorkian reference!
>"If marijuana is medicine, Dr. Kevorkian wrote the prescription!" - Don Feder, columnist, Boston herald 4/2/01I found this very amusing. He is insinuating that MJ can be used for euthanasia?! What is the lethal dose for MJ? I heard there either isn't one or it's so high you would have to smoke 5,000 joints in one day!Then again, on a Reefer Madness webpage, the truth is as scarce as sensible politicians.
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Comment #5 posted by CongressmanSuet on January 05, 2002 at 20:54:59 PT
My, My....
  
   Jose, I just read the Sarnia.com drug page. I never knew that a reason to keep industrial hemp illegal is because it can be "cut" into street marijuana. Some of the stuff that passes for "drug information" at this site is incredible! I dont know, this might win my all-time award for complete idiocy in internet reporting. I think these people need to be given citizenship here, they surely dont want to be Canadian.
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Comment #4 posted by CongressmanSuet on January 05, 2002 at 20:41:53 PT
 Its funny....
   I spent 5 days in Sarnia[3 in Port Huron] last April, and if these people think they have a "drug problem", well, they dont know what a REAL drug problem is. I found Sarnia to be charming, clean, there werent many clubs, not a whole lotta kids on the street, there were 2 cop cars that sat in almost the same spot every night in the downtown area, and they almost never moved. After 11pm, the town is quite dead. I think this guy has his town confused with Downtown Detroit....
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Comment #3 posted by Jose Melendez on January 05, 2002 at 17:51:18 PT:
discredit this
Someone here please help me refute each of these bits of libel, I'm laughing too hard to type!from:
http://www.sarnia.com/groups/antidrug/Smoked Marijuana: is Mutogenic, Fetotoxic and Carcinogenic - can Impair the Immune System, break down the Male Genetic Code and Injure or Destroy the Eggs in the Ovaries - can cause Bipolar Psychosis, can trigger Schizophrenia, can Slowdown the Brain's Energy and can be a co-factor in producing full blown AIDS in HIV patients.
Arrest Prohibition - Drug War is TREASON
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Comment #2 posted by CorvallisEric on January 05, 2002 at 13:26:04 PT
Perkins' website
"The drug problem among youth locally is getting worse," Perkins told The Observer.
"Ecstasy is replacing marijuana as the drug of choice and I find that very frightening."
Could that be because the local youth are reading Perkins' own "Lambton Families In Action" website? I ran into it several years ago and still think it's one of the best collections of Reefer Madness. It's main title is "Marijuana: Advances In Research." The majority of its hundred or so articles is about marijuana and hemp. Also, lots about the evil of clean needles for addicts. One brief item about ecstasy.
http://www.sarnia.com/groups/antidrug/
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Comment #1 posted by legalizeit on January 05, 2002 at 09:05:45 PT
Deputy Perkins! (of Sheriff Lobo fame)
This idget would play that part well!>"The anti-drug movement is slowly dying."Too slowly, if you ask me. Time to put a .38 hollow-point through its miserable, hate-filled head.>"Bill Clinton just stripped the anti-drug arm of the government and Bush wants to undo what Clinton did."Oh yeah? Then why were more pot users arrested under Klinton than anytime before? And Klinton had McDorkus giving payola to radio and TV to spread the gospel, sending troops to Colombia, and all the rest. Bush is only taking a more fascist stance on it by appointing the most extreme drugpigs that he can find. Republi/crats are all pretty much the same...>He is currently on a three-week tour in the United States, meeting numerous Drug Watch delegates and returning to Washington D.C.Who's funding this hateful bastard?>He believes that the anti-drug movement suffers from a lack of media attention and a lack of commitment from the Canadian government.Maybe that's because the government is waking up to the lies that started in DEAland and have been circulating for the last 70+ years.>"I've talked to our local MP (Roger Gallaway) about it and it was a waste of time," Perkins said. "The government wants to decriminalize drugs."So SHUT THE HELL UP and take your anti drug hype to a country that really cares. I know a few Taliban folks who'd be glad to take you in and put a bullet through your head when you start talking about the horrors of opium production. One less babbling fool to have to listen to!
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