cannabisnews.com: US Official Attacks Drug Tactics US Official Attacks Drug Tactics Posted by CN Staff on June 19, 2002 at 08:03:16 PT By Colin Blackstock Source: Guardian Unlimited UK The controversial pilot scheme that relaxes Scotland Yard's attitude towards cannabis possession has been criticised by the head of the US drug enforcement administration for increasing drug usage. Asa Hutchinson, director of the DEA, said that the scheme in Lambeth, south London, had led to a rise in cannabis users and led children to believe it was legal. The pilot programme, which has been running since July last year, means people caught with cannabis are given on the spot warnings, rather than being cautioned, arrested and possibly charged. An interim study carried out during the first six months of the scheme indicated it had been a success and led to it being extended. This is seen as a sign that the commissioner, Sir John Stevens, is keen for it to roll out across the capital. The idea is to allow officers to tackle more serious crimes and target drug dealers, rather than spending time dealing with people caught with small amounts of cannabis. Mr Hutchinson, who is attending a crime conference in London, said: "Clearly, the evidence is that the pilot project in that area where they only issued citations for marijuana use, rather than an arrest, is that it increased usage. "Wherever you are dealing with harmful drugs, that is not the objective that we want to have. "As I travelled the neighbourhood, I asked about the young people and the impact on them and the response that came back was that most of them think it is legal now." A Metropolitan police spokesman last night said: "The pilot scheme continues and its results will be evaluated. We welcome contributions to this debate." Source: Guardian Unlimited, The (UK)Author: Colin BlackstockPublished: Wednesday, June 19, 2002Copyright: 2002 Guardian Newspapers LimitedContact: comment guardian.co.uk Website: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Related Articles:U.S. Drugs Head Slams Soft UK http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13167.shtmlPolice Chiefs Set To Extend Soft Line on Drugs http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13125.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #30 posted by BGreen on June 26, 2002 at 16:46:03 PT Dan B To quote REO Speedwagon, "Keep pushing on."I'm a 39-year-old professional musician. I've been playing for 32 years, attended a prestigious music conservatory, practiced and performed tens of thousands of hours to perfect my craft, and am now fighting an industry that wants cute little 16-year-olds instead of musicians. I have a career of performances and recordings, and I know many people in the industry, so I'm not doing too bad, plus I love going to work. Not many people can say that.Money isn't a replacement for happiness, so if we can't be happy without it, I don't think we'd be able to handle having it. I don't think my wife married me for my future earning potential 20 years ago, but I know she hasn't stayed with me for my money. We have a great relationship based on love and friendship, so I think we're ready to add money to the equation. [ Post Comment ] Comment #29 posted by FoM on June 26, 2002 at 15:35:49 PT Lowered Expectations Hi Dan,If you can't blow off steam here then you can hit the wall with your fist but that would hurt so blowing off steam here is much better especially for your hand.I had high hopes for my life and have not gotten all I had hoped for but all in all I've gotten more then I even thought was possible. What we set as goals sometimes aren't as good as what is in store for us. I hope that makes sense. [ Post Comment ] Comment #28 posted by Dan B on June 26, 2002 at 15:14:21 PT: I didn't realize so many read these earlier ones Sorry for the complaining. About the work--I really am not complaining about having something to do; what I'm angry about is that this is the same university that used to think my work was worth $4000 a month. Maybe that's not even it. Maybe it's just that I'm angry at so many things right now that it's difficult to be happy about anything. So, yes Lehder, I'm taking the $2200, even if it does take until next Spring to get all of it. Believe it or not, Lubbock is one of the least expensive places in the country to live in. I do want to relocate, though, and I hope that soon I can do it with a job lined up. You know, I realize that much of my discontent is self-imposed. I have these expectations that aren't being realized, and maybe that's because I have my expectations set too high. From here on out, I'll try to settle for less. That's usually how people work their way up, anyhow. And I still have a few potential employers who have not responded to my applications/vita/etc. Maybe I'll get the kind of job I'm after anyway if I quit being so darned anal about the whole thing.Thanks for letting me complain a little, everyone. Sorry for the freakout I've had over the past several days.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by FoM on June 26, 2002 at 12:06:35 PT Dan I'm really sorry to read life is complicated for you right now. Have you ever thought of relocating? I don't know what it costs to live where you do but that's what my husband and I did in 73 because it was too expensive to live on the east coast and we moved. It was hard but we never regretted the move. Our friends from back east are still struggling like never before. [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by Lehder on June 26, 2002 at 11:30:42 PT lucky you! And my alma mater now wants to pay me $2200 for two-three months of work....Take it, Dan, and don't worry, be happy. besides, it's *easy * work! that's the kind of job that looks great on your resume, working for a Univ. [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by Dan B on June 26, 2002 at 11:09:40 PT: bgreen sorry, but my shift key has suddenly stopped working, and i don't know why--thus the lower-case letters.anyway, i'd like to tell you that we're doing great, but i'm out of a job and stressed to my limit because of it. i am authoring a correspondence course, which will bring in less over the next two-three months than i used to make in one month, but it's something. that's the major concern for us right now. we have been through the wringer with regard to the baby and all, but i we are dealing with it appropriately, and i think everything on that front will be fine. i must have applied to 35 jobs over the past year and a half, and not one has even asked for an interview. one potential employer sent me a letter stating that 400 people applied for the one teaching job i also applied for. few can compete in such a market.and, the economy is going to hell, and quick. the dow is once again below 9,000, nasdaq is below october 2001 levels, and people are seriously questioning the integrity of our whole economic system. it is, frankly, too easy to despair in a market like this one.sorry if i'm depressing you. things have been rough all over, which is partly why i lashed out at industrial strength like i did--when i do something like that, for the record, my anger usually has nothing to do with the target of my anger, and so i end up making apologies later for comments i should have deleted fromt the outset.but, we're hanging in there, and things will work out. i'm just a little ticked off that i spent 11 years getting a ph.d., and now i have nothing to show for it but a piece of paper and some records showing that I did well in my classes. That translates into nothing on the job market, it appears. And my alma mater now wants to pay me $2200 for two-three months of work, now, which is a real slap in the face. But--hey! My shift key is working again! Maybe things will work out in the end.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by BGreen on June 25, 2002 at 23:57:43 PT I'm impressed The level of civility on this board is astonishing. Simple disagreements are usually the fodder for huge fights, but it just doesn't happen like that here.BTW, DanB, how are you and your wife doing? I'd been wondering about you both. [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by Industrial Strength on June 25, 2002 at 23:42:41 PT water under a bridge... Although I wish you had replied to my second post regarding the whole issue, which was far better prepared :) [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by Dan B on June 25, 2002 at 23:37:02 PT: Not at all, I.S. It is obvious that the amount of smoke has a significant effect, which is why I took issue with you pointing out the obvious to someone who clearly knows. You picked one (admittedly ill-written) statement from my comment and made it into an issue that just was not there to begin with, if you read the whole comment. Not once in the entire comment did I say that cannabis smoke in any volume was a-okay for your lungs.Of course pot would have a greater effect if one smoked 60 per day. But my point was exactly that: Nobody smokes 60 joints in a day (and if there is someone out there who does, it would be interesting to meet him or her) because it doesn't induce addiction--that "gotta have it" syndrome--like tobacco does. That's part of the reason why I mentioned how many cigarettes I smoked--to make that very point. And that was why I said that you should read the entire comment. Regardless, your time and mine would be better spent writing comments that are constructive, so I apologize for the way I handled this whole thing. I overreacted to what was, I think, intended to be a rather innocuous comment about volume of smoke by you, which I took as a challenge to my integrity, as though you were saying that I had no idea what I was saying. Sorry I took it wrong, if in fact I did.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by Industrial Strength on June 23, 2002 at 16:00:03 PT dan b I doubt you will bother reading down here, anyway. What the hell? How is "Dan B, try smoking 60 joints a day and see what it does to your lungs" in any way insolent? Self absorbed punk? Maybe, however, I stand with all my weight behind that comment. Try it. Smoke 60 god damned cigarette sized joints in one day and see what it does to you. So you refuse to admit that the quantity of the smoke inhaled plays perhaps just a small role in the pot vs tobacco dilemma? [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by Dan B on June 21, 2002 at 12:23:31 PT: schmeff You're right. That was uncalled for, I.S. I should have assumed you meant that as a joke and left it at that.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by schmeff on June 21, 2002 at 10:00:20 PT Is it just me....? ...or does everyone seem just a little too thin-skinned lately? [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by Dan B on June 21, 2002 at 03:43:13 PT: Industrial Strength I'd bet it makes you feel great to have your name in the subject line, doesn't it? That is why you keep writing smartass remarks to people you don't know after misinterpreting their comments, right? I was going to write a long diatribe about your insolence, but I have elected instead to keep my comments brief to avoid as much as possible a distraction from the task at hand which (and this obviously escaped your notice) is not to make self-absorbed punks like you feel superior.I advise you re-read my entire comment, conduct a brief review of the literature on tobacco smoke vs. cannabis smoke, and see if you can figure out for yourself why I find your remark about smoking 60 joints offensive, ill-informed, and plain stupid.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by kaptinemo on June 20, 2002 at 05:46:01 PT: Mice in the pockets, again... Mr Hutchinson, who is attending a crime conference in London, said: "Clearly, the evidence is that the pilot project in that area where they only issued citations for marijuana use, rather than an arrest, is that it increased usage. "Wherever you are dealing with harmful drugs, that is not the objective that we want to have.Uh, excuse me, Asa, but you might want to check your vest pocket for mice droppings; how else can you explain the 'we' bit? Are you addressing fellow DEA goons? (I thought that to be a DEA goon you had to be an American citizen.) Or members of a sovereign nation who are implementing their own national policies. Since they obviously are just that, and are not part of the DEA, then where does this pronoun abuse come from?This is just indicative of the entire Bush regime; it assumes a concensus where there is discord...and is astonished when it realizes there is discord. It assumes an automatic guarantee of leadership...when it waited too long, and other nations, fed up with 'business as usual' have gone their own way, and don't need to be led about by the nose courtesy of Uncle's 'leadership', thank you very much. Remember, the US was kicked off the leadership of the UN Narcotics Control Board, a position it has held practically since the UNNCB's inception. Uncle is 'odd man out' on the international scene...and it's getting worse. As had been predicted here - and is being borne out by events - the rest of the world is moving away from the US styled DrugWar, and only those nations dependent upon US foreign aid will be it's promulgators. Just look at Thailand or the Philipines to see the proof of that. The Hutchster was sent to la belle Quebec in much the same way a scarecrow is positioned in a field...and he will be just as effective. Because now, the only 'we' he can talk about is his fellow American DrugWarriors; the rest of the world has taken it's game ball and gone home. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by Industrial Strength on June 19, 2002 at 21:18:30 PT ejohnson I lost 30 pounds fairly quickly after starting smoking cannabis, but that also corresponded to a growth spurt and dumbly taking up cigarette smoking (which, Im proud to say, I quit a few months ago, actually realizing a new years resolution.) But my theroy is that smoking herb effects your metabolism...why else would it make you so hungry? Also, Dan B, smoke 60 joints a day and see what it does to your lungs. Some sports and pot are great, but I find I get somewhat lethargic and un competitive, so anything competitive doesn't really fly with me, but biking high is one of the funnest activities on the planet in my opinion. I also like walking when it feels like your body doesnt exist. [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by Dankhank on June 19, 2002 at 20:11:36 PT: Hey ASA ..... "As I travelled the neighbourhood, I asked about the young people and the impact on them and the response that came back was that most of them think it is legal now." Legal for Whom?For the young people?If they are not of legal age what stretch of anybody's imagination would lead them to believe it was legal for them?????If they are of legal age mind your own business ...Just wonderin' Hemp N Stuff ... [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by BGreen on June 19, 2002 at 16:02:07 PT MDG I lost a bunch of weight in high school by sparking up and then jogging. I lived out in the country, and jogging with my dog at midnight was very peaceful.I had my lung capacity tested a few years ago at a local university during "The Great American Smokeout" activities. I tested at a capacity over TWO TIMES the average for a man my age (33 at the time.) I started smoking regularly at age 13 (I'm not proud of it, but it's the truth.) So, after 20 years of regular (daily) cannabis consumption, my lung capacity wasn't diminished. Granted, I am a trumpet player, so I'm sure that's the reason for the increased capacity, BUT, the cannabis has NEVER interfered with my ability to perform. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by MDG on June 19, 2002 at 15:34:02 PT Lean mean smoking machine! I must admit that jogging is much more enjoyable after smoking. I think it's a given no t'backy smoker would say that. After a nice four-mile jog, swimming is amazing, and the most fun thing to do, sans diving board, is to shoot along the bottom back-and-fort a couple of times, obviously holding my breath. I like to do this over and over. Also, from what I noticed, I liked using a water-bong without any water in it, except a tiny bit at the bottom to catch debris (like one of those water-based lint-catchers for clothes dryers). Plus, it was so cool to watch the column of smoke pour out of the short stem at the top like water coming out of a faucet, filling the jar. Good times...good times. Cannabis and athletics go together like chocolate and peanut butter...it doesn't make sense until you try it and see how good it is. (EJ, you're just way too cool). [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by E_Johnson on June 19, 2002 at 15:17:32 PT How long for the scandalous truth to come out? But here's the thing: with cannabis, I never had the coughing and wheezing that tobacco caused, and I never woke up in the middle of the night with an uncontrollable urge to light up. In fact, I began working out and eating better than I had my entire life.My doctor is completely amazed that I can work out at full intensity and not suffer anything remotely like what tobacco smokers endure.Wheezing? What's that? It's alien to my experience.Eventually this knowledge is going to penetrate the health establishment.I think that marijuana makes my workouts more effective. I worked out before and after I started smoking marijuana regularly and I am in much better shape now. I notice that now if I lose weight, it's fat not muscle. Has anyone else noticed that marijuana makes it easier to lose body fat and retain muscle?It's absolutely scandalous information. It makes it sound as if marijuana is actually.... GOOD FOR PEOPLE.Oh my. How could that be?Whatever shall we do about that? [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by Dan B on June 19, 2002 at 13:30:14 PT: A Story of Tobacco and Cannabis Once, when I was in the Army, I smoked three packs of tobacco cigarettes a day. Why would anyone smoke three packs a day, you might ask? Well, the habit began when I noticed that my fellow soldiers who smoked received "smoking breaks," while the rest of us who did not . . . well, didn't. Also, it didn't help that every time we ended a march, someone in charge would yell, "Smoke 'em if you got 'em" (The Army is not too keen on proper grammer). But mostly, and stupidly, I smoked because I wanted to fit in with friends who also smoked.Anyway, all that tobacco smoke wreaked havoc on my lungs, and my ability to run took a nosedive--not because my muscles would give out, but because my lungs would. I remember waking up in themiddle of the night coughing and wheezing, and guess what I would do to "fix" the problem? You guessed it: I'd have another cigarette.Fortunately, I quit after just two years. Eleven years later I would begin smoking cannabis on a fairly regular basis. This, too, lasted about two years (I decided it wasn't worth the money for awhile, and right about that time my connections started moving out of town). But here's the thing: with cannabis, I never had the coughing and wheezing that tobacco caused, and I never woke up in the middle of the night with an uncontrollable urge to light up. In fact, I began working out and eating better than I had my entire life. I was in control of my cannabis smoking; it was not (as alcoholics like to say) controlling me. Well, last night I did something stupid. I was out having a few beers with my friends, and I decided to have a few cigarettes as well. The tobacco kind. It felt alright last night, and I really didn't think much of it until about 8:00 this morning when I had a sudden, uncontrollable coughing spell followed by a brief-but-memorable puking session. The alcohol didn't cause this reaction; it was the tobacco. It seems that my body was giving me a little reminder of what it had endured thirteen years before--something to insure that I would not be indulging in that type of smoking again.Long story short (I know . . . what's the point if I've already told the long version?): I have now completed a study of n=1 on the effects of cannabis vs. tobacco, and I have to say that tobacco wins . . . as the most destructive and vile habit I have ever engaged in. Long Live Cannabis!Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by cltrldmg on June 19, 2002 at 11:15:23 PT Sandino Despite promising to liberalise cannabis laws, the UK isn't much better. http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4434822,00.htmlWhat is it with Anglo-saxons and privacy?"On Wednesday (July 26 2000), the U.K. became the first western country to pass a law that legalizes government eavesdropping on the Internet.From Oct. 5, 2000, forward, the day the new British cyber-snooping legislation becomes effective, you can safely assume that any e-mail sent to or from Britain will be about as private as an open letter. Mainly as a formality, the bill must now be signed by the Queen to receive its official passage into law with what is known as the Royal Assent.Of course, five Anglo-Saxon countries, led by the U.S. and the U.K., and also including Canada, Australia and New Zealand, have been spying electronically on their citizens (illegally) for years - see "ECHELON: New World Order's Fifth Column Among Us - a Mutation of the British Empire?," Feb. 22, 2000). But this was the first time that cyber-snooping has been legalized by an act of parliament." [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by E_Johnson on June 19, 2002 at 11:03:48 PT Be careful using Goethe on freedom That's a nice quote from Goethe but I believe that Goethe was arguing against the Enlightenment, against the ideas of freedom and democracy. One could interpret his sentence as saying people who believe that they are espousing freedom are just espousing another form of slavery because there is no freedom and there's no use at all looking for it...He believed so much in the rightness of the status quo that he agreed to spy on major Enlightenment figures for the royal authorities.That was disclosed a few years back when some papers were opened up from the East German archives just in time for his anniversary celebration. It caused quite a stir when people learned Goethe had acted as a political informant for the state. [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by Sandino on June 19, 2002 at 10:19:37 PT: We're in the Beginning Stages of a Police State: "None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free."...Johann Wolfgang Von GoethePlease make a visit to http://www.hermes-press.com/police_state.htmI found this link at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/yippiesS.A. Homes [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by E_Johnson on June 19, 2002 at 09:43:26 PT Here's the letter calling Asa a murderer Dear editors,I am from the Los Angeles Cannabis Resource Center, which was shut down by Asa Hutchinson's Drug Enforcement Agency in October 2001. This nonprofit medical marijuana cooperative is located in the heart of the HIV positive region of LA, and at the time of its forced closure, enjoyed a sterling reputation with the local AIDS treatment community for supplying clean quality controlled marijuana to sick people who need it to avoid vomiting up their huge number of required HIV medications.Since Hutchinson had our club closed, about two dozen of our patients have died, and many others are losing weight and seeing their T cell counts drop precipitously, because they cannot fully comply with their medication regimens without using marijuana. Street prices for marijuana are extraordinarily high in LA -- well beyond the budget of the average AIDS cocktail patient living on a fixed government income. This all adds up to a desperate situation for some very frightened people.Here is a picture of one man who is suffering this cruel fate as I write you: http://www.vasilisa.com/LACRC/photos.htmlMr. Hutchinson was warned many times that denying medical marijuana can and will kill innocent people, so I think that right now, it is entirely justified for people from Los Angeles to call this man a murderer, and a cold-blooded one at that.Please do not let Asa Hutchinson spread his murderous and barbaric ways in your country. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by John Tyler on June 19, 2002 at 09:32:55 PT Harmful? "Wherever you are dealing with harmful drugs, etc., etc...." That's the point, cannabis users and a growing number of others don't think cannabis is "harmful", at least not as harmful as the usual tobacco and alcohol. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by E_Johnson on June 19, 2002 at 09:30:25 PT Lips flapping, people dying, how stirring! Watch Asa's lips flap all around the world.Watch people die in Los Angeles at the same time!Here are some people being murdered by Asa Hutchinson as he speaks:http://www.vasilisa.com/LACRC/photos.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by masscrusader on June 19, 2002 at 08:37:25 PT On another note A man is trying to set a record for a hot air balloon ride. Coincidence? I don't think so [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 19, 2002 at 08:31:31 PT Hutchinson led children to believe it was legal.When all else fails they resort to lying or exggrating the truth. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by xxdr_zombiexx on June 19, 2002 at 08:12:01 PT Doh! :P linked properly below....Have I mentioned I dont do HTML ?TYPOS ENDURE http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread13167.shtml [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by xxdr_zombiexx on June 19, 2002 at 08:10:40 PT How Full? Hutchinson is so full of methane he needs the global media for an exhaust fan.reply to similar story: cannabisnews">http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread13167.shtml">cannabisnews story [ Post Comment ] Post Comment