There are 50 murders a day in South Africa, the host country of the 2010 football World Cup. And Brazil, host of both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, also suffers from extreme violence. With a view to the high-profile events, the two countries are now attempting to crack down on rampant crime — and are using ruthless tactics to do so.
An orchid, a laptop and a Bible adorn the desk of Pricilla de Oliveira Azevedo. She is wearing the blue uniform of the military police, but there is no weapon visible in her small office. Her territory is the Favela Santa Marta, a hillside slum in the heart of the southern tourist zone of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. From the top of the hill, there is a magnificent view of Sugar Loaf Mountain, the statue of Christ the Redeemer and Copacabana beach. Read the full story
You know things are shifting in America when Fortune magazine, the bible for business journalism, runs a cover story titled “Is pot already legal?”. You also know it when Barack Obama’s Department of Justice publishes a long-expected memo signalling that the federal government will no longer raid medical marijuana dispensaries if they are legal under state law. That happened formally this month. Read the full story
WASHINGTON — People who use marijuana for medical purposes and those who distribute it should not face federal prosecution, provided they act according to state law, the Justice Department said on Monday in a directive with political and legal implications. Read the full story
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Published: Thursday, October 1, 2009
Updated: Thursday, October 1, 2009
Amir Adib/ Arizona Daily Wildcat
Marijuana reform advocates say patients in need of herbal pain medication are closer to relief, as efforts increase in Arizona to turn out support for a proposition in favor of the legalization of medical marijuana.
Two prominent East Bay marijuana advocates got clearance from the state today to try to put a pot-legalization initiative on the November 2010 California ballot.
Richard Lee, executive director of the medical marijuana dispensary known as Oaksterdam, and Jeff Jones, former director of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers’ Cooperative, are the sponsors of a measure that would allow anyone over 21 to possess or grow marijuana for personal use. It would allow each local government to decide whether to tax and regulate marijuana sales. Read the full story
At the time, Mom’s question caught me by surprise: “Have you ever tried marijuana?” she asked, sloshing her coffee around in a mug as we stood together in the kitchen. My mind went blank. Could this be the fabled “drug talk” that parents are supposed to give to their teenage children? If so, why was I getting it at 30?
It turned out my mother was less interested in my drug use than her own. When I told her I’d smoked pot in college, and a bunch of times since, she took the news in stride. The thing was, she and my father were hoping to score some weed. Did I know anybody? Read the full story
BUENOS AIRES (AFP) – Argentina’s Supreme Court on Tuesday decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use, tossing out tough provincial drug laws whose penalties it deemed unconstitutional.
The high court ruling protects “the privacy of adults who are responsible for their own conduct,” according to a court statement.
It said the constitution protected “the private actions of individuals who in no way offend order or public morality, or harm a third party, who answer to God free from a judge’s authority.” Read the full story
To say the Green Bay Packers, a year after finishing 6-10, will win the Super Bowl this year is a bold prediction. However, not even considering the team a true contender to win the big game would simply be foolish.
For those who want to discount the Packers’ preseason success because it’s preseason, let it be noted that it’s still pro football, the objective is still to beat the other team, and there’s still competition for starting positions yet to be determined so players still have something to play for.
And it’s one thing to just win the game, but for the starting units to completely crush the opposition like they have is really making a statement.
Beginning this discussion with the defense, hands down the best offseason pickup of any team was the Packers’ signing of Dom Capers as defensive coordinator. He has completely turned this defense around and has the team excited about continuing their preseason dominance into the regular season.
The defensive scheme last year ran by Bob Sanders was painfully bland and predictable. That, coupled with a few injuries, left the defense seemingly on its heels in most games.
But with Capers running the show, the defense, for lack of a better word, is on its toes attacking, intimidating, and setting the tone when the opposition’s offense steps onto the field.
Charles Woodson will be an All-Pro when everything is said and done. Capers has been using him in a number of blitz packages and Woodson has been incredibly productive off those blitzes.
In the Arizona game alone he came off the edge and sacked Kurt Warner twice, forcing a fumble on both sacks. He also stripped Jerheme Urban of the ball early in the game after a short completion.
Woodson has top-notch football IQ and is a very talented defensive back. He has practically patented this tomahawk chop he does when making a tackle from behind and often times will force a fumble doing so.
Woodson also has great ball skills which he’s demonstrated throughout his career and with the new scheme heavily favoring zone coverage, Woodson will have increased vision to the quarterback. No longer will he have to cover with his back to the ball.
This will benefit Woodson immensely as he is a master of dissecting plays when he’s playing zone or off coverage. His ability to diagnose what the quarterback is trying to do can be attributed to his superior instincts and intense film study.
Woodson and the rest of the Packers defense have transitioned seamlessly to the new scheme. They are playing fast and with excitement. What a difference a unit’s enthusiasm can make on their effectiveness and execution.
Aaron Rodgers and the offense came up short last year in some tight matchups, but for the most part that was only after the defense lost the lead by allowing a score late in those games.
The offense overall ranked fifth in the league, highlighted by a 4,000-yard passer, two 1,000-yard receivers, and a 1,200-yard rusher.
They are looking to improve on that ranking with a healthy Ryan Grant and an experienced Rodgers entering his second year as the starter (oh and Brett Favre is out disrupting a different training camp this year).
Rodgers has been nearly perfect in the preseason, throwing for six touchdowns and no picks while racking up a 147.9 quarterback rating. However, those stats, as impressive as they are, don’t even begin to tell the story of how effective Rodgers will be this season.
Throughout OTA’s, mini camp, training camp, and the preseason games, Rodgers has been accurate and disciplined with his throws and decisions, respectively. He throws quite possibly the best deep ball out of any quarterback in the league, hitting his receivers in stride and where only they can catch the ball.
He is quick to get the ball out of his hands or tuck and run if nobody’s open, and it’s evident from his 34-yard scamper against Arizona that he’s got some wheels.
Without a sliver of a doubt, Rodgers has mastered Mike McCarthy’s offensive system and not only that, but he is the unquestioned leader of the team. Everyone on the team was pushing Rodgers to lead this squad and he has through his play on the field and his voice on and off the field.
Rodgers will lead this team to a division title, his first (but not only) league MVP award, and a Super Bowl victory in this 2009 season.
It may seem like outlandish predictions, but this team is better than it was in 2007. Names like Cullen Jenkins, Johnny Jolly, Jermichael Finley, and James Jones will surface around the league while better-known names like Rodgers, Woodson, and Greg Jennings will become very well-known names.
This team has a very bright future and the future is six days away.
Analysis: The Green Bay Packers New Look Secondary
With three defensive backs injured during the final preseason game, and two injuries at safety entering it, the depth in the secondary has been shaken up. The whole roster got more confusing when two players were placed on I.R. (S Charlie Peprah and CB Pat Lee), and one of the preseason’s stars was released (S Anthony Smith). And one new face was added in a trade.
In his first three seasons, he played exclusively at cornerback, starting 3 games in 2007. He played in 4 games in 2008 before a shoulder injury ended his season.
This preseason, he’s been playing exclusively at safety. Now that he’s in Green Bay, I expected he’d be playing some at cornerback again, but, according to Tom Pelissero, he spent his first practice following safeties coach Darren Perry around. So he’s a safety.
He projected as high as a 3rd round pick in 2006. But according NFL Draft Scout, as a cornerback, the best he can be is a nickel back, so the move to safety might be a good one.
And he had some problems with a bowling pin and some marijuana back in 2008, but was never charged.
S Anthony Smith had a great preseason, there were even rumors he might unseat Bigby, but surprisingly he was released last weekend. CB Pat Lee was a 2nd round pick in 2008 and seemed certain to move up the depth chart in 2009, but a back injury kept him out most of training camp and a knee injury ended his season.
CB Brandon Underwood. They love those guys that can play multiple positions. Although he played safety during his final college season at Cincinnati, the 6th round pick has been playing exclusively at cornerback in the NFL. He’s got some promise; he appears to be able to close on receivers with a good jump and his tall 6′1″ frame. But he also plays with a lot of cushion and has gotten spun around by a double move on more than one occassion. He’s not ready to play right now, but he’s the next healthy cornerback currently on the depth chart.
S Jarrett Bush. The former nickel back has been playing exclusively at safety this preseason. The team roster lists him as a cornerback/safety, but he’d only play cornerback in an emergency.
S Derrick Martin. He’ll be a safety, so he seems like an odd addition because they need cornerback depth. Apparently the Packers just had a “thing” for him, so says GM Ted Thompson.
It can be used to make clothing. The paper made by it would save trees from being cut down. It can even be used to build houses that have better resistance to fire. All these characteristics, and then you find out this mystery product has nutritional value and can be used for fuel. So in the current global economic crisis we are in, why aren’t we using hemp and why is marijuana still illegal? Throughout this post, I have taken the time to insert numerous videos, articles, and websites that list the benefits of hemp. Commonly mistaken as “weed”, “pot”, or marijuana, hemp actually contains very little THC and does not produce the same intoxicating effects as marijuana. Knowledge is power. Do your own research and see what you can find as well, it’s interesting to learn that a plant that can do so little harm has been lumped in the same category that cocaine, heroin, and other hard drugs have been placed.
I’ve also included historical facts and videos that illustrate how marijuana went from a commonly used plant, to a drug that sparks much debate and controversy today.
Google Search’s time line of hemp from 4000BC through 2009AD:
Hemp is the ancient, eco-friendly fiber of the future. For over 5,000 years, hemp has been used for textiles, paper, building materials, fuel, food and personal care products. Hemp can be grown with little or no toxic chemical fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides. Today hemp is grown all over the world. The crop is used to make over 25,000 consumer products. From hemp apparel and accessories to housewares and hempseed oil cosmetics, hemp is an eco-shopper’s dream.
8000BC
Civilization, agriculture and hemp textile industries begin in Europe and Asia.
3727BC
Cannabis called a “superior” herb in the world’s first medical text, Shen Nung’s Pen Ts’ao, in China.
1500BC
Cannabis-using Scythians sweep through Europe and Asia, settle down everywhere, and invent the scythe.
500BC
Gautama Buddah survives by eating hempseed.
450BC
Herodotus records Scythians and Thracians as consuming cannabis and making fine linens of hemp.
300BC
Carthage and Rome struggle for political and commercial power over hemp and spice trade routes in Mediterranean.
100BC
Paper made from hemp and mulberry is invented in China.
100AD
Roman surgeon Dioscorides names the plant cannabis sativa and describes various medicinal uses. Pliny tells of industrial uses and writes a manual on farming hemp.
500AD
First botanical drawing of hemp in Constantinopolitanus
600AD
Germans, Franks, Vikings, etc. all use hemp fibre.
1000AD
The English word ‘hempe’ first listed in a dictionary.
1150AD
Moslems use hemp to start Europe’s first paper mill. Most paper is made from hemp for the next 700 years.
1492AD
Hempen sails, caulking and rigging ignite age of discovery and help Columbus and his ships reach America.
1545
Hemp agriculture crosses the continent overland to Chile.
1564
King Phillip of Spain orders hemp grown throughout his empire, from modern-day Argentina to Oregon.
16th-17th Century
Dutch achieve Golden Age through hemp commerce. Explorers find ‘wilde hempe’ in North America.
1619
Virginia colony makes hemp cultivation mandatory, followed by most other colonies. Europe pays hemp bounties.
1631
Hemp used as money throughout American colonies.
1776
American ‘Declaration of Independence’ drafted on hemp paper.
1791
President Washington sets duties on hemp to encourage domestic industry; Jefferson calls hemp “a necessity”, and urges farmers to grow hemp instead of tobacco.
1801
Certain premiums offered to encourage the cultivation of hemp in Upper and Lower Canada.
1800’s
Australia survives two prolonged famines by eating virtually nothing but hemp seed for protein and hemp leaves for roughage.
1850’s
Petrochemical age begins. Toxic sulfite and chlorine processes make paper from trees, steamships replace sails, tropical fibres introduced.
1930’s
New machines invented to break hemp, process the fibre, and convert pulp or hurds into paper, plastics, etc. – Racist fears of Mexicans, Asians, and African Americans leads to outcry for cannabis to be outlawed.
1935
Compressed agricultural fibreboard invented in Sweden.
1937
Marijuana Tax Act forbids hemp farming in the US. -Dupont files patent for nylon.
1938
Canada prohibits production of hemp under Opium And Narcotics Control Act.
1941
Henry Ford makes car fabricated and fueled by hemp.
1943
Hemp For Victory program urges farmers to grow hemp.
1955
Hemp farming again banned.
1961
The Canadian Narcotics Control Act(CNCA) allowed Cannabis to be grown, at the discretion ofthe Health Minister, for research purposes only.
1992
Australia licences hemp farming.
1993
England eases restriction on hemp farming. News media declare hemp clothes and cannabis leaf logo hottest new fashion.
1994
Under the CNCA, one license was granted to a Canadian company, Hempline Inc., to grow hemp experimentally in Canada under the strict supervision of the authorities.
1996
The Canadian federal government passed Bill C8 stating that mature hemp stalks are exemptfrom the list of controlled substances.
1998
The Canadian government legalizes the commercial growth of industrial hemp.
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Magic Weed – History Of Marijuana
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SHOWTIME aired two short videos that illustrated the history of weed recently. SHOWTIME is home to the show Weeds, which is a comedy about selling marijuana illegally in America.
PART 1
PART 2
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Schaffer Library of Drug Policy
Like the name says, it truely is a library of knowledge regarding drug policy. Even if you think you know a lot about hemp and marijuana history, I still suggest reading this. You’d be surprised at the new information you find in this massive library.
State-by-state laws, historical information, myths, and anything else you need can be found through NORML.
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Stephen Baldwin and Ron Paul debate legalization of marijuana on CNN:
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The Union: The Business Behind Getting High
If you have never heard of, or seen, this video, I recommend watching this before any of the other videos I have posted.
This is just a start to the vault of information I have taken the time to find and save online. If further reading, videos, and information is desired, simply leave feedback and I would be more than happy to continue posting information regarding hemp and marijuana.
The title says it all. I want to talk to you about a little plant we like to call hemp. For those of you who don’t know already, hemp is illegal to grow in the United States. There really is no valid reason for it, all the government can come up with is “It is a marijuana plant, and marijuana is illegal, and is a drug”…. well… funny thing is, marijuana and hemp are two very different things, and you cant smoke hemp or get any sort of high from it. Therefore leading do the question… Why is hemp really illegal?
I’ve done my research, and I have found some staggering information about hemp and it’s insane amount of uses. Read the full story
Should those who break marijuana laws in Georgia be caned or executed depending on the offense? A Georgia lawmaker’s e-mail response suggests these should be the correct punishments.
Georgia Lawmaker Calls For Caning, Executing Marijuana Offenders
[Editor's note: This post is excerpted from this week's forthcoming NORML weekly media advisory. To have NORML's media advisories delivered straight to your in-box, sign up for NORML's free e-zine here.]
State Republican lawmaker Tommy Benton (31st House District) favors “caning” minor marijuana offenders and “executing” those who sell the drug, according to a recent correspondence sent by the representative to a constituent.
In a July 29, 2009 e-mail (which was voluntarily forwarded to the NORML office), Rep. Benton wrote: “Thanks for the email. We will have to agree to disagree on this and whether or not money is wasted (by mandating the state to prosecute minor marijuana offenders). I am opposed to the legalization of marijuana. I think we should go to caning for people caught using and maybe execute dealers. [emphasis NORML’s] That would solve the problem as well. That is what they do in Singapore and they don’t have a drug problem.”
Caning is a form of corporal punishment consisting of up to 24 violent lashes with a long rattan cane that has been soaked in water. The procedure inflicts intense pain and deep, bloody lacerations that can take several months to heal.
Rep. Benton followed up his remarks in a separate e-mail on August 11 (also forwarded to NORML) in which he threatened to turn over the names of citizens who disagreed with his political viewpoints to local law enforcement.
He wrote: “You and your cronies want it (marijuana) legalized so you can get a hit anytime without having to worry about getting arrested. I have forwarded your email to the Lowndes County sheriffs [sic] office so that they can be on the lookout for you. [emphasis NORML’s] Consider this my last correspondence on the the [sic] subject to you or anyone else who shares your similar “conservative views’.”
Benton was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 2005.
Last month, Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske came under fire for his statement, reported in the Fresno Bee, that marijuana “has no medicinal value.”
Just because the FDA does not recognize the medical efficacy of smoked marijuana, it doesn’t mean that such a position is factual. Americans for Safe Access currently has a pending case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which argues against this assertion and uses a mountain of evidence to illustrate marijuana’s medical efficacy.
Even the 1999 White House-commissioned Institute of Medicine report concluded that, “there are some limited circumstances in which we recommend smoking marijuana for medical uses.” Admittedly, smoking marijuana may not be absent of medical consequences, but as the Lancet Neurology reported in 2003 in an article entitled “The therapeutic potential of cannabis,” smoked marijuana “delivers a more rapid ‘hit’ and allows more accurate dose-titration.”
In addition, Dr. Donald Tashkin, one of the world’s leading scientists on pulmonary research, stated that there was “no association” between smoked marijuana and lungcancer “and even a suggestion of some protective effect.” Dr. Tashkin concluded in May 2006 that:
[E]ven those who smoked more than 20,000 joints in their life did not have an increased risk of lung cancer.
Perhaps more to the point is that the medical community has not offered any substantive alternatives. The government touts the Marinol (synthetic THC) pill as the solution for hundreds of thousands of medical marijuana patients that benefit from smoked marijuana in the U.S. Unfortunately, Marinol does not provide an adequate delivery system for people with nausea, takes too long to take effect, is difficult to regulate dosages, and offers inferior efficacy to smoked marijuana for most patients that use it.
Voters in the ski resort town of Breckenridge, Colorado legalized marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia by a nearly three-to-one margin on Tuesday.
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