cannabisnews.com: Suit Targets Ban on Pro-Pot Ads Suit Targets Ban on Pro-Pot Ads Posted by CN Staff on February 18, 2004 at 22:12:12 PT By Jim McElhatton, Washington Times Source: Washington Times The American Civil Liberties Union yesterday sued the federal government and Metro, seeking to overturn the transit agency's recent ban on advertisements touting the legalization of marijuana. The ad at the center of the dispute is headlined "Marijuana Laws Waste Billions of Taxpayer Dollars to Lock Up Non-Violent Americans." Boston-based Change the Climate Inc. submitted the ad in January to run on Metro buses and be placed in subway stations, but the transit agency rejected the ad campaign earlier this month. The ACLU lawsuit says rejecting the ad violates free-speech laws. "We filed this lawsuit today because we believe that every viewpoint should have a chance to compete in the marketplace of ideas in America, including the viewpoint that current marijuana laws are not working," said Graham Boyd, policy director for the ACLU. Metro officials yesterday said the agency, which is facing a $1.5 billion shortfall in the next six years, risked losing $170 million in federal funding if officials did not reject the ad. Congress passed an appropriations bill in December that bars federally subsidized transit agencies from accepting ads that advocate the legalization or medical use of illicit drugs, including marijuana. The law prohibits giving federal funds to transit agencies "involved directly or indirectly" in any activity that promotes legalizing drugs. "Given our critical dependency on continued federal funding, we have no choice but to follow the law that Congress passed," said Metro spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein. "To do otherwise would be a disservice to our customers and the region's taxpayers." Marijuana ads posted on Metro buses and in subway stations last year prompted U.S. Rep. Ernest Istook, Oklahoma Republican, to propose legislation banning ads that promote legalizing drugs. Last year's campaign by Change the Climate included an ad touting marijuana legalization that showed a young couple embracing with the caption "Enjoy Better Sex!" In a letter to Metro officials last year, Mr. Istook said, "At a time when the nation and the Washington D.C. area, in particular, suffer from chronic substance abuse I find it shocking that provides this ad space." Metro had rejected a similar ad campaign by Change the Climate three years ago, but the agency reversed its position after the ACLU interceded. D.C. Council member Jim Graham, Ward 1 Democrat who serves on the Metro board, said he understands why Metro officials rejected the most recent ad, but he does not agree entirely with the decision. "I think the Metro position is the correct one, but I'd also like to see us take a position that this advertising ban is inappropriate and interferes with our ability to operate a rail system," Mr. Graham said. "We should also make an effort to support the ACLU." Joseph White, executive director for Change the Climate, likened the Metro ban on marijuana-legalization ads to government censorship. "The federal government's response to open debate is censorship," Mr. White said. "Government censorship to quell criticism of its own policies should not be tolerated in the United States." However, Joyce Nalepka, president of D.C.-based Drug-Free Kids, a national advocacy organization, said the ban should be upheld. "My concern is that Washington, D.C., like every other major American city, has a drug problem, and everyone is struggling to find ways to improve the situation," she said. "But these ads encourage using drugs. I would ask D.C. parents and teachers to speak out against this loud and clear," Mrs. Nalepka said. The ad rejected by Metro was sponsored by the ACLU, Change the Climate, the Drug Policy Alliance and the Marijuana Policy Project. Officials from each of the four groups spoke at a press conference yesterday at the National Press Club in the District, where they announced that the lawsuit had been filed. Mr. White said his group has sponsored similar advertisement campaigns in transit agencies in Oakland, San Francisco and Nevada. Attempts by the group to run ads in Boston were thwarted when the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority rejected the ads. The group sued the Boston-based transit authority but lost. Mr. White said the decision remains under appeal.Source: Washington Times (DC)Author: Jim McElhatton, Washington TimesPublished: February 18, 2004Copyright: 2004 News World Communications, Inc. Website: http://www.washtimes.com/Contact: letters washingtontimes.comRelated Articles & Web Sites:MPP: http://www.mpp.org/ACLU: http://www.aclu.org/DPA: http://www.drugpolicy.org/CTC: http://www.changetheclimate.org/Feds Face Lawsuit in Censorship Fight http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18359.shtmlACLU Sues Metrorail, City Over Marijuana Ads http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18356.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #28 posted by FoM on February 20, 2004 at 16:09:21 PT Thanks SoberStoner I will check it out. [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by SoberStoner on February 20, 2004 at 15:43:05 PT Sure thing FoM Was leery of posting it, but since you asked, just go to www.launch.comAll you need is a free Yahoo id to use it. They offer a very cheap subscription plan, but it is by no means neccessary to enjoy the music.SS [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 19:40:01 PT SoberStoner Do you have a link to the music site you mentioned? [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by SoberStoner on February 19, 2004 at 19:29:05 PT Interesting discussion I always hoped this would be the reaction for the Climate ads. The anti's have performed better than anyone could have dreamed. Now that the ACLU is involved, maybe there will be a little more attention given to this atrocity of the drug war. Granted I wish the caption would have been a little better, but that little poster has the potential to cause a lot of trouble in DC. I may have to see if i can buy a copy of it somewhere.And I fully agree on the value of music in our society of strife. I recently found a great web based stream that plays any music you want it too. I have done nothing but listen to awesome music all day for the last 3 or 4 days and I get a little burst of joy every couple minutes when a good song comes on.SS [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by goneposthole on February 19, 2004 at 16:22:06 PT spending spree be it drugs or war or finance, the big whigs in Washington, DC have a trough to feed from made for pigs.Pork rules in Washington. You name the problem or situation, there is plenty of money to throw out the window.Washington can bomb anybody anywhere anytime. Gettin' to be a big problem.spend spend spend [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by cloud7 on February 19, 2004 at 14:13:57 PT Joyce After reading mamawillie's comments about Joyce helping us, I remember this wasnt the first time. In some other article a while back she mentioned cannabisnews.com specifically. Whose side is she really on?! J/K [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by mamawillie on February 19, 2004 at 13:51:18 PT Kaptinnemo, I see it too now... *****In the past, I had been highly critical of Change the Climate's intial ad, showing the "Enjoy better sex!" caption. But now I see that the developers of these ads may have been more shrewd than I had originally given them credit for being******I see this too now... perhaps they pushed the envelope in order for the conservatives to fall right in their trap (along with the groupie Joyce) and to pass legislation that clearly censors free speech.. so that the ACLU could come in and get a ruling from the Supreme Court...Quite brilliant if that is what was originally planned... another chip in the wall of oppression...Do you all realize how exciting this is! The wall is coming down on so many fronts, and people like Joyce are actually speeding up the process!Three cheers for Joyce!!! She's helping our cause! [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by mamawillie on February 19, 2004 at 13:47:55 PT I'm a retired teacher I'm a stay at home mom and former teacher, and I stand LOUD and CLEAR in speaking out AGAINST Joyce Nalepka! (she wasn't really worth my time, as I don't think even the politicals take her seriously anymore...)http://www.teachersagainstprohibition.org (if that doesn't work, try .com) This is a great website and is extremely informative.....I was going to start off by saying, "hey everyone! Joyce came and brought the beer and cigs!!!!"... lol [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 12:18:39 PT afterburner Very interesting. I don't know how we develop common sense but living life just helps us put things in an order that makes sense to each of us. I want to always try to have common sense. I value common sense. [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by afterburner on February 19, 2004 at 12:02:11 PT: Common Sense, Exactly It's the missing link in an over-specialized society. John Ralston Saul, a Canadian politician of uncommon wit, sees common sense as one of several missing forces in modern technological society in his book On Equilibrium. By recovering the lost art of common sense and several other unifying forces, modern society can overcome its fragmented and destructive ways. We of the cannabis community value the integrative insight given to us by our sacred healing herb."Saul argues that when human qualities are worshipped in isolation they become weaknesses, even forces of destruction or self-destruction. In short, they become ideologies. But as he explores the qualities he has identified as being necessary to integrated human behaviour, he shows us that the key is to use these qualities in combination. How can we use these qualities as positive forces in our own lives and in society? How can we use them to reinforce us as humans? " --excerpt from review of On Equilibrium. [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 11:54:36 PT Dankhank I really enjoy the music on World Link TV. It is pleasant and it speaks to me if that makes sense? [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by Dankhank on February 19, 2004 at 11:48:34 PT Earle Yes, Copperhead Road ... should be played at fairly 'high' volume.I too, go to W/Link TV for the music ...It's a bazaar of world music. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 11:43:56 PT Left and Right I really enjoyed the two songs last night on World Link TV and this is why. We have the left and the right at each others throats and it just seems like fighting to me. No one wins that way. The music was pleasant. Not much of anything on tv these days has been pleasant. Americans must seem to the world that we all like to fight. That's not true but that's what it seems like to me. We need more common sense. [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 11:25:10 PT afterburner Last night it was hard to find anything on tv that I wanted to see. I went to World Link TV and they had music on. They had an artist singing Celtics music and he sang Copper Head Road. I think his name was Steve Earle. They then had this group on from Japan I think and the song was delightful and it was about mushrooms. It was so good and nothing offensive at all. We need more programs and music like what I saw last night. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by afterburner on February 19, 2004 at 11:13:53 PT: tags 'Liberal,Conservative,Left&Right' confusing "The interests of ecology and industry come together in space. I am not a left-winger or a right-winger. I am an up-winger." --former California Governor Jerry Brown.Maybe getting 'high' is not a bad metaphor for cannabis use if we describe alcohol intoxication as getting 'low.' The US military which controls US space exploration tries to breed out the wonder of the divine which some astronauts feel on exploring space. We once envisioned God as inhabiting space or the heavens. We once experienced God through the use of magical sacred plants, many of which are now illegal. Spaceship Earth, as R. Buckminster Fuller described this planet, is better shepherded by a fusion of industry and ecology. The dominance of industry over ecology has led to a dying planet. The dominance of ecology over industry would lead to mass starvation and poverty. Only by working together synergistically can these two forces build a prosperous future for all citizens of the planet. Is the miniscule projected support for space exploration by the present US administration a step in the direction of more Spaceship Earth thinking, or an exporting of exploitive industrial tendencies into space? Cannabis will help us make the right choices, if you want it. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by E_Johnson on February 19, 2004 at 10:45:46 PT Remember Berube His poor me huge article on how he tried but failed to show a conservative student the light about race and literature.Then brushing aside the marijuana activists in his class as only having trivial self-serving politics.So slaves who wanted out of slavery had some higher cause than their own basic personal liberty?People who don't want to live in in a steel cage have something in common no matter their race or social standing.His truth makes him too high to see that far I spose. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by VitaminT on February 19, 2004 at 09:47:18 PT reactionaries I think the tags 'Liberal,' 'Conservative,' 'Left' & 'Right' are confusing to people even if they think they understand the terms. Nothing about it is cut and dried.Those in positions of, in this case, intellectual authority are reactionary. A term that liberals like to apply to conservatives as though it was their sole domain. The fact, as I see it, is that 'Liberal' professors are in a position of authority and they are loathe to relinquish any of it, thus they are the reactionaries and are willing to sacrafice very important principles to maintain their grip. Pathetic really!My remarks are predicated on one big 'IF' - If there is a Liberal Bias in academia. I've been a student at several universities for substantial lengths of time and I've studied under professors expressing the entire spectrum of political persuations. But I've never attended a faculty senate session, nor have I been a professor. [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 09:45:53 PT Left and Right EJ I know that both the far left and the far right are hard to understand. I am not an either or type person. I compromise because I think compromise is necessary for the well being of all of society not just the issues that are important to me. I keep my distance from people who are acting as individuals and center what I feel is important to groups of like minded people who are really trying to make a difference. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by E_Johnson on February 19, 2004 at 09:19:08 PT Off Topic but important There's an enormously shameful thing happening in American universities today.Things have gotten so bad with left wing bias in the universities in America that conservative students are seeking political protection.A right winger is calling for guidelines to guarantee intellectual diversity in academia.And left wing professors are arguing against it, saying that what matters is truth, not diversity of thought.The American left is making noises like they are the Catholic Church during the Enlightenment. With a solid God-given monolpoly on the truth.What is going on? This is freaking me out. It used to be the left that wanted freedom to think. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by fearfull on February 19, 2004 at 09:17:26 PT Sam I know, it's just the pure ignorance and the total refusal to even consider any other viewpoint that galls me no end. I am a peacefull person and have never physically harmed another. know that after 30 or so years the fustration starts to build up. To quote some wise people "We gotta get down to it,soldiers are cutting us down, shoulda been done long ago..." [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by 13th step on February 19, 2004 at 08:43:58 PT How about an... ..educational hit squad?I can see it now:Laying in wait, they grab the ignorant, stuff them into a white van, and make them read "The Emperor Wears No Clothes".Then make them watch Ron Mann's 'Grass'.Then take them to a prison, to meet some of these "criminals".Then take them to meet some mmj patients.Ahh, to dream... [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by Sam Adams on February 19, 2004 at 08:12:16 PT fearfull Be careful - that's EXACTLY the kind of response the government wants to you to have. On issues like cannabis, gay marriage, etc., they want you to hate the Joyce Napelka's of the world - just as they want all the Joyces of the world to hate potsmokers.That way, noboby will notice that the government keeps getting bigger every year, sucking down more and more of our productivity & resources.You will be angry at church-lady moralists, instead of the political class that arrests 15,000 Americans a week for a plant. The church-ladies will be angry at Change the Climate for running a sillly advertisement, instead of focussing on the political class, which has foisted policies on us that spend billions a year and result in kids using drugs more here than anywhere else on earth. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by afterburner on February 19, 2004 at 07:55:12 PT: Think what the government is doing! February 18, 2004 The Alliance and Coalition Sue GovernmentCongress Censors Drug Policy ReformersHelp Support Our Lawsuit Against the Government!!!"Congress recently passed a law muzzling our right to speak out for drug policy reform. Now, with your help, we are fighting to win back that right."A full house of local and national media turned out at the National Press Club today to hear that the Drug Policy Alliance, ACLU, Change the Climate, and Marijuana Policy Project are filing a lawsuit against the federal government and the Washington, D.C. transit system. Our lawsuit charges that the D.C. transit system rejected an ad by our coalition because of a new federal law, promoted by Representative Ernest Istook (R-OK), that suppresses free speech. The law prohibits federal funding to any local transit authority that accepts and displays an ad criticizing the government's drug policy. Our forbidden ad, which the D.C. transit system rejected last week, states the facts about the government's severe and wasteful marijuana laws."Already 10,000 of you helped the Alliance's campaign against this government censorship by faxing your Representatives and Senators in Congress. Thank you! Now that we're filing the lawsuit, we need your help again. It's not cheap to beat the federal government in court!!! Please make a donation here. (Contributions to support our litigation efforts, as opposed to lobbying, are tax-deductible.)"Istook's amendment, which was included in the huge FY 2004 omnibus spending bill, directs Congress to deny federal funds to local transit authorities that display advertisements promoting "the legalization or medical use of any substance listed in schedule I...of the Controlled Substances Act" - including marijuana. The same law also hands over $145 million in taxpayer money for pro-'War on Drugs' advertising - especially anti-marijuana campaigns."Think what the government is doing! They're throwing our taxpayer dollars down the drain on ineffective and offensive drug war propaganda while prohibiting our ability to promote alternatives to current government policies. But, with your support, we're not going to let the government get away with this blatant violation of our First Amendment rights. "Support the Drug Policy Alliance and our partners as we take the government to court. Help to protect the Constitution and ensure that Americans hear from all sides on drug policy reform issues!!! Please make a tax-deductible donation here. "Click here to see the banned ad." Ethan NadelmannExecutive DirectorDrug Policy AllianceDrug Policy Alliance A Special Message from Alliance Director, Ethan Nadelmann http://www.drugpolicy.org/donate/special.cfmDrug Policy Alliance Action Center http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/action/index.asp?step=1 [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 07:41:35 PT Relatd News Article from SFC Lawsuit Filed on Drug Ads on Transit Thursday, February 19, 2004Civil liberties and medical marijuana advocates sued Wednesday to overturn a new, little-noticed federal law cutting off funds for any public transit agency that runs ads calling for the legalization or medical use of any illegal drug. The suit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., will be followed by similar challenges in San Francisco and other cities, unless the law is struck down, said Joseph White, executive director of a group called Change the Climate. A congressman's displeasure at the group's marijuana ads in the D.C. transit system gave rise to the law. Snipped:Complete Article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/02/19/MNGNQ53OOV1.DTL [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by fearfull on February 19, 2004 at 07:38:25 PT I don't condone violence But, sometimes I feel like there should be a hit squad of old vietnam vets for pot reform travelling about the country. Joyce could be one of there first targets. (Again, I am not advocating violence of any kind, simply expressing fustration at the ignorance that I see) [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on February 19, 2004 at 07:20:04 PT kaptinemo I agree with you. Maybe it will turn out to be a good thing. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by kaptinemo on February 19, 2004 at 07:17:48 PT: I see I have made a possible error In the past, I had been highly critical of Change the Climate's intial ad, showing the "Enjoy better sex!" caption.But now I see that the developers of these ads may have been more shrewd than I had originally given them credit for being; at least, I can hope that they are.If the intent was to just enrage the tight-arsed antis, the ad certainly accomplished that. If it was solely intended to tweak the noses of the more virulent antis, then I'd say 'mission accomplished'. But if that were all it was intended to do, it would, from the face of it, seem to be doing nothing more than that.But if it were also intended to cause them to make a 'gored ox' move in blindly attacking the First Amendment as Mr. Istook and his narrow-minded and seemingly easily-played friends have done, then it may have been a brilliant opening gambit in a classic 'tactics of mistake' move. They took the bait, and now they have a hook in their jaws.Let's see how far this goes before they get tired of it... [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Prime on February 19, 2004 at 07:16:11 PT Joyce, the Anti-Drug groupie... Does Joyce have a job? or does she just follow around groups like the ACLU and MPP in a old microvan, selling brownies in parking lots, burning books in old steel drums?Free Speech?? There is no free speech when were talking about DRUGS!! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment