Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 3:58 pm | By: Amanda
Thank you for contacting me with your views on marijuana. I appreciate your comments, and I welcome this opportunity to update you on the status of this legislation.
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), marijuana remains the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States. While marijuana use is generally unhealthy and has negative social repercussions, it also serves as a gateway drug to more dangerous substance abuse. For these reasons, I remain concerned by the prevalence of drug abuse in our culture and the harmful consequences that are the result of this behavior.
As a career law enforcement officer, I saw firsthand the devastating effects that illicit drug use can have on both individuals and communities. While a member of the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office, I initiated the Drug Abuse Resistance Effort (DARE) program to make children aware of the dangers posed by drug use. I made fighting drugs a top priority within the department and I will continue to do so in the United States Congress.
As you know, Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts introduced legislation regarding marijuana use, H.R. 2835, on June 6, 2009. This legislation would limit the penalties for possessing small amounts of marijuana. Specifically, it would prohibit federal penalties for the possession of marijuana for personal use or for any not-for-profit transfer of marijuana. Possession of more than 100 grams of marijuana, or the transfer of more than 1 gram, would remain illegal. Shortly after its introduction, H.R. 2835 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee and House Energy and Commerce Committee. While I am not a member of either committee, be assured I will keep your views in mind should this legislation come before the House for consideration.
Thanks again for taking the time to share your views with me. If you would like to learn more about my positions on issues important to you or receive regular updates on developments in Congress, please visit my Online Office at www.ellsworth.house.gov and sign up for my e-Newsletter.
Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 3:56 pm | By: Amanda
Thank you for contacting me about the Act to Remove Federal Penalties for the Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults. As you know, this bill would prohibit any imposition of penalties for the possession of marijuana for personal use or for the not-for-profit transfer between adults of marijuana for personal use and deems personal possession as 100 grams or less of the substance.
This bill would effectively legalize marijuana at the federal level. We all know the painful consequences of drug abuse on our society. For that reason alone I will not support such a measure and I will vote against it should it reach the House floor.
I do take your views into consideration as I decide how to vote in the House. Please feel free to express those views; even if we may occasionally disagree, it is important to me to know your thoughts. Do be aware that because of mail security measures for Congress, your letters can be delayed for up to two weeks. If you wish to offer an immediate comment or suggestion, you can e-mail my office at by going directly to my website at www.fallin.house.gov. While you are there, feel free to sign up for my regular e-newsletter.
Thursday, November 19th, 2009 at 11:29 am | By: Radical Russ
(PhillyNORML: Chris Goldstein & Derek Rosenzweig) Philadelphia could save more than $3,000,000 annually by not taking pot smokers in for mugshots.
Minor marijuana possession arrests in Philadelphia are handled with mandatory custody; this is a different process than every other county in Pennsylvania costing the city millions of dollars. A disproportionate number of citizens (84%) arrested for marijuana possession in the city are black.
Research by PhillyNORML this year has uncovered these two disturbing trends that present serious challenges to the city. But in a sign of a pragmatic shift in attitudes, city officials have held an ongoing dialogue with reform advocates to proactively address these concerns.
In March of 2009 the Philadelphia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws performed their annual observation of the Pennsylvania Uniform Crime Report data for the marijuana arrest numbers. At the same time, the city was beginning to face a heartbreaking economic plight that pitted police jobs against a lack of Public Safety Budget funds.
Data indicates that 4,716 adults were arrested in 2008 on the singular criminal misdemeanor charge of marijuana possession less than 30 grams. In Philadelphia such arrests are required to be custodial. For even a single cannabis joint this means an offender must be handcuffed, transported to a holding cell, photographed and perhaps make bail before release. In every other county in Pennsylvania there is no mandate for the custodial arrest of citizens found with small amounts of marijuana. Instead, summary violations are issued along with a date to appear in court.
PhillyNORML is a sterling example of how ordinary cannabis consumers can band together under the NORML banner and affect real change at the local level. Reformers at the national level don’t have the on-the-ground knowledge of local politics like everyday citizens living in cities like Philadelphia. Local reformers can better cultivate personal relationships with mayors, city councils, and all their staff, as well as integrate with groups as disparate as unions and libertarian groups, parents and police, and churches and universities.
If you’re sitting around wondering when they are going to legalize pot, you’re part of the problem. YOU have to legalize pot. You and your like-minded pot smokers, cannabis consumers, medical marijuana patients, and lovers of liberty, peaceably assembled to exercise your free speech and to petition your government for a redress of grievances… there’s nothing more American than being NORML.
Monday, November 9th, 2009 at 7:47 pm | By: Radical Russ
(World Politics Review) For roughly four decades, a clear foreign policy rule set has existed between the United States and Latin America, centering largely on the question of counternarcotics. Starting with Richard Nixon’s “war on drugs,” an explicit quid pro quo came into existence: U.S. foreign aid (both civilian and military) in exchange for aggressive Latin American efforts to curb both the production and trafficking of illegal narcotics (primarily marijuana and cocaine).
By virtually all accounts, that logistics-focused strategy has proven to be a massive failure. America’s focus on interdiction and prohibition has not stemmed domestic drug abuse. Instead, all indications are that preventative education — on a generational scale — has proven far more effective, meaning that demand reduction has trumped supply curtailment as a means of reducing overall prevalence.
Meanwhile, across Latin America, there’s been widespread movement toward decriminalization. Why? Because the benefits of remaining on America’s “good side” on this hot-button issue have been overwhelmed by the negative externalities of overcrowded prisons, rampant drug-related violence, police corruption, and growing organized criminal networks.
The author points to four main reasons why countries like Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Uruguay are decriminalizing personal drug possession:
The rise of a Latin American middle class feeling economic independence from United States aid;
The increase in foreign aid to Latin America from Asia and Latinos sending money back home from the US;
The increase of Latin American trade to China and the European Union that decreases American economic influence; and
The rise of drug cartels, terrorism, and violence that led Latin American countries to directly confront the issue.
Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 1:25 pm | By: Radical Russ
AMSTERDAM, Nov 5 (Reuters) – The Dutch are among the lowest users of marijuana or cannabis in Europe despite the Netherlands’ well-known tolerance of the drug, according to a regional study published on Thursday. Among adults in the Netherlands, 5.4 percent used cannabis, compared with the European average of 6.8 percent, according to an annual report by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, using latest available figures.
A higher percentage of adults in Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic and France took cannabis last year, the EU agency said, with the highest being Italy at 14.6 percent. Usage in Italy used to be among the lowest at below 10 percent a decade ago.
The policy on soft drugs in the Netherlands, one of the most liberal in Europe, allows for the sale of marijuana at “coffee shops”, which the Dutch have allowed to operate for decades, and possession of less than 5 grams (0.18 oz).
The full report is available here. Some interesting stats of note:
While 41% or 102 million Americans have tried cannabis in their lifetime, only 22% or 74 million Europeans have. Interestingly, there are about the same number of Europeans as Americans who will use cannabis this year (about 22 million) and this month (12 million), but of course that represents a lower percentage of population since America has 304 million and Europe has 491 million.
While cannabis represents 49.8% of all drug law arrests in America, it represents between 55% and 85% of all drug offenses in the majority of European countries.
While 25% of American 15-16-year-olds have tried cannabis in the past year, only 15% of European 15-16-year-olds have. The same percentage of 15-16-year-olds in the Netherlands used cannabis in the past year as in the USA, 25%.
The greatest decrease among European countries in the prevalence of cannabis use among young adults aged 15-34 has occurred in the United Kingdom since 2003, where past year use has dropped by a third. Incidentally, 2003 was the year the UK downgraded cannabis to a Class C offense, essentially decriminalizing it.
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 7:09 pm | By: Radical Russ
(Summit Daily) BRECKENRIDGE — Breckenridge residents voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana and paraphernalia Tuesday under town law. In early returns, some 72 percent of voters approved the measure.
The vote means that, effective Jan. 1, people 21 and up in Breckenridge will be able to legally possess one ounce or less of the drug.
Possession remains illegal under state law, but Breckenridge Police Chief Rick Holman said his department will “still have the ability to exercise discretion.”
The decriminalization won’t change laws prohibiting smoking in public, use by minors or driving under the influence.
Monday, November 2nd, 2009 at 3:22 pm | By: Radical Russ
Voters in Breckenridge, Colorado are deciding whether to decriminalize personal possession of up to one ounce of marijuana by adults. The editorial board of the local Summit Daily News has already come out in favor of this Measure 2F:
(Summit Daily News) …Breckenridge residents this Election Day will decide whether possessing less than an ounce of the intoxicating weed should be decriminalized.
…While police blotters and courts are filled with an extraordinary amount of problems directly related to alcohol abuse, it’s rare to ever find pot at the bottom of things like domestic abuse, bar fights, car crashes and the like.
…What the Breckenridge code change would do is one thing: decriminalize less than an ounce for adults. It will not make it more available to minors, won’t make it legal to smoke it on the street, won’t get you out of trouble if you’re stoned behind the wheel. What it says is that if you, as an adult, choose to possess small amounts of marijuana for personal use, you won’t be busted for it. It’s still a much more stringent law than those that apply to alcohol — a substance you can own as much as you want of and consume in public.One last item remains, though: As the recent pot busts at Arapahoe Basin show, consumption of marijuana can have a greater potential “footprint” than, say, drinking a beer. No one wants to have to walk with their children through a parking lot full of cars emitting clouds of pot smoke, and we’re behind the Summit County Sheriff for cracking down on these folks. Eventually, it seems these small possession busts will be a thing of the past state-wide, which makes us conclude some kind of “nuisance pot smoke” ordinance needs to take their place — roughly analogous to public intoxication statutes. Sure, smoke your weed, but don’t blow it in our faces.
Ah yes, decriminalize the marijuana possession, but make the public use of marijuana an arrestable offense. If it’s in your baggie, it’s OK, but if it’s in your pipe, it is not. If I may paraphrase the late Johnny Cochran, “If the joint’s not lit, you must acquit!”
According to the cops, 49 out of fifty medical marijuana patients are faking it.
So I’m going to focus on this new position paper from the CPCA, where the cops tell you how terrible a predicament we are in because of medical marijuana in California. However, unlike the Kalifornia Kops, I will provide hyperlinks and citations to unbiased, double-blind, peer-reviewed scientific research and the government’s own statistics.
It has become clear, despite the claims of use by critically ill people that only about 2% of those using crude Marijuana for medicine are critically ill. The vast majority of those using crude Marijuana as medicine are young and are using the substance to be under the influence of THC and have no critical medical condition.
2%, why that sounds like a statistic! Or is it just a wild-ass guess? Since they don’t provide citations, I have to assume they are referring to Dale Gieringer’s and Dr. Tod Mikuriya’s work documenting the conditions suffered by 2,480 California patients surveyed, which showed:
4.6% = Nausea / Appetite Loss (AIDS, hepatitis, cancer chemotherapy, etc.)
We can debate how “critical” of a medical condition things like migraine headaches and carpal tunnel syndrome are, but to assert that 49 out of fifty Californians using medical marijuana are only doing so just to be “under the influence” is ludicrous.
The use of Marijuana for medicinal purposes parallels the use of experimentation with opiates for that purpose. Therefore, examining the development of the use of opiates makes a worthwhile comparison.
Well, aside from the fact that an overdose of opiates can kill you and marijuana can’t, opiates are highly addictive and marijuana isn’t, opiates are injected and marijuana isn’t, you can get a prescription for opiates but not for marijuana, and the development of each as medicine takes place in two different centuries, then yes, heroin and pot are exactly alike.
Monday, September 21st, 2009 at 8:55 pm | By: Radical Russ
Show 004: Three special episodes live from NORML National Conference!
NORML’s new talk radio program, NORML SHOW LIVE, will be streaming for three days at the 2009 NORML National Conference, “Yes We Cannabis”, live from the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Francisco. These special three-hour episodes will be available at live.norml.org at the following special times and archived for download later just fifteen minutes after broadcast:
Thursday, September 24
11:00am – 2:00pm Pacific Time
Friday, September 25
11:00am – 2:00pm Pacific Time
Saturday, September 26
3:00pm – 6:00pm Pacific Time
The show will be hosted by “Radical” Russ Belville, but with very limited commercial interruption and the occasional narration. After the shows broadcast remotely in the difficult wireless environment of Portland’s Kelley Point Park and the noisy backstage of the Boston Freedom Rally, Russ is excited to present an indoor event that will take its audio directly from the conference PA system.
Monday, September 21st, 2009 at 7:49 am | By: Chris Goldstein
Boston: 30,000 smoke pot, celebrate decrim
9/20/2009 -Â Chris Goldstein
An estimated 30,000 people were crowded onto the Boston Common at the peak moment of the 20th annual Boston Freedom Rally on September 19th 2009.
That moment was 4:20PM ET.
The thousands celebrated freely under a landmark victory for cannabis prohibition reform. In 2008 Massachusetts decriminalized marijuana possession of less than 1/4 ounce by adults with a Ballot Initiative, Proposition 2.That means you can only get a NON-criminal ticket with a $100 fine for a pot violation. The decrim effort was won because of the hard work of the very same folks who organize the rally:Â MASSCANN/NORML.
A Parks Services officer (who strangely had a thick eastern European accent) agreed that 30,000 seemed a likely estimate of the peak attendance.
A police officer, who did not wish to be named, said the department does not officially release crowd estimates for any event. But Boston Police confirmed that there were 3 arrests for distribution and over 100 citations issued for marijuana possession.
Keith Saunders, MASSCANN’s president, told me that over 50,000 people had probably walked through the grounds over the course of the day and encountered the message of marijuana legalization.
Overall, the police were civil although I saw numerous random searches and heard stories of many more. At past events there have been more than 150 arrests for pot possession… but not on Saturday. Without fear of arrest the crowd was polite and almost everyone I saw was openly enjoying marijuana.
An impressive line-up of bands and speakers appeared on two stages. Styles P, a big time reform supporter showed up and did a surprise set thanks to High Times Magazine. Because of some juggling to accommodate the last minute act, the countdown to 4:20 got squeezed. A sea of people were gathering before the main stage and filling in the large hill.
Steve Bloom of CelebStoner corralled the final 60 seconds holding a clock up on stage and pointing as the hands came together. Looking out from the stage you could see huge clouds of smoke rise up from the crowd. There were dozens of spontaneous circles formed in a surreal organic collage of people. They cheered from across the rolling hills as giant 6-foot long joints were passed around.
Everyone smoked. There really was a quite visible haze over the entire crowd at 4:20. The sweet and fragrant odors of a wide variety of plant strains and hash drifted by, offering this interesting quilt of cannabis.
The crowd was extremely well behaved. There cannot be a finer exhibition of the positive effects of human cannabis smoking than large crowds of people doing it together. Without alcohol available at the event there were no fights, pushing or shoving. But with free cannabis consumption there was dancing, conversation and a genuinely happy atmosphere.
Personally, this was the most wonderful day for prohibition reform I have witnessed. The event itself; all of the people I met for the first time and friends to spend time with made this trip heartening, empowering and just plain fun! The locals really did treat me very well too.
Our country deserves this freedom that Massachusetts already enjoys.
I have seen Victory for Cannabis in Boston. It is sweet and green. It needs to be nationwide.
The first two pics were from my cellphone, this last one is from Derek at PhillyNORML. I’ll have some more blogging about the bands, speakers, backstage and social events from the Boston Freedom Rally tomorrow. Then its off to San Francisco for the NORML conference as I continue my Green September.
Missippi Hippy: black beauties - got 'em by the pharm sealed 1000 in the 80s
Adam: Kieth Stroup told me that he has new book coming out, it will cover the time periods after High in America was published.
Adam: I recommend that you all read High in America: The True Story Behind NORML and the Politics of Marijuana.
Read it FREE online HERE
http://tinyurl.com/cxzc3h
slash5city: ah the mid 80's spof ..the summers of 3d weed.... head down to the smoking area at school buy a 2$ pin joint or two from the one dealer then [...]
Missippi Hippy: drug war grunts we be.
Adam: @Rev, Thats right, They split over this exact priority issue. I have read a lot about the history of NORML and the marijuana legalization fight.
Missippi Hippy: yep... they lobby
Missippi Hippy: I'ma people, you'r a people, she's a people, he's a people, wouldn't you like to be a people too!
Adam: We can't forget that MPP has a man in the hall's of Congress every day, that POV is priceless for our side and without the NORML chapters in small town [...]
RevRayGreen: Adam many MPP execs. were once in NORML....
Missippi Hippy: a grassroots movement of the people.
Adam: The way I see it MPP focuses on legislation where as NORML is about the people and keeping them motivated and strong for the long fight to come.
Adam: MPP is no more perfect than NORML is, I'm thankful for all the ORG's fighting for reform.
Missippi Hippy: yep, I agree. The prohibo's are tearing each other apart... can't get their duckies in a row.
Adam: We must be careful not to divide into THEM and US! Each ORG will have it's own priorities but we all fight on the same side in the fight.
Missippi Hippy: Now dat's wut Ima talkin' 'bout!
Missippi Hippy: ...responsible use...adults... no longer subject to penalty
Missippi Hippy: Norml's mission Statement
NORML's mission is to move public opinion sufficiently to achieve the repeal of marijuana prohibition so that the responsible use of cannabis by adults is no longer subject [...]
Missippi Hippy: ...reduce or eliminate... f- reduce!
Missippi Hippy: This is MPP mission statement.
1. Increase public support for non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies.
2. Identify and activate supporters of non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies.
3. Change state laws to reduce or [...]
Missippi Hippy: In MN, MPP counted Gov Pawlenty's veto of the Med MJ bill as a loss.
The bill was so weak, that I counted the veto as a win, i.e. I ain't [...]
RevRayGreen: I'll leave it to RR to explain the differences btw both MPP/NORML..
American Medical Association Calls For Scientific Review Of Marijuana's Prohibitive Status; Dutch Marijuana Use Lower Than European Average, Study Says […]
"Truth In Trials Act" Reintroduced In Congress; Maine: Voters Approve Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Measure; Colorado: Breckenridge Voters Overwhelmingly Decide To End Pot Penalties. […]
Some of the nation’s top athletes discuss why today's pros are turning to cannabis — and away from alcohol and painkillers — off the field, and question why pro sports leagues are continuing to sanction those who do. Moderator: Steve Bloom, Author, Pot Culture; editor, celebstoner.com * Toby Grear, MMA fighter * Sean Neumann, Documentary Filmm […]
Cannabis Law Reform's Missing Link: Law Enforcement Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper; LEAP and NORML Advisory Board; Author of Breaking Rank Putting the Mexican Cartels Out of Business Mexican drug cartels now employ over 100,000 soldiers and are responsible for nearly ten thousand deaths per year. Their largest source of income is marijuana. […]
Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D-IN) on Marijuana Law Reform
Boston: 30,000 smoke pot, celebrate decrim
Steve Bloom of 
I'ma people, you'r a people, she's a people, he's a people, wouldn't you like to be a people too! 
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