Maptalk-Digest Tuesday, December 19 2000 Volume 00 : Number 266
Colombia: Index for the Inquirer's KILLING PABLO Series
From: Richard Lake <>
Go Cliff!
From: Allan Erickson <>
Australia: PUB LTE: Sex - It's A Joint Venture
From: "Ken Russell" <>
The price of punishment
From: "kim hanna" <>
CN: Drug Firms Risk Health, Report Finds
From: Allan Erickson <>
US FL: 'The Big Deal: Florida's Drug Story'' Premieres Friday, December 22
From: Allan Erickson <>
[] !!! U.S. Censors French TV Program?
From: Peter Webster <>
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subj: Colombia: Index for the Inquirer's KILLING PABLO Series
From: Richard Lake <>
Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2000 08:05:07 -0500
NOTE: Readers may wish to view the entire series gathered into two large
webpages here
http://homepages.go.com/~marthag1/KillingPablo.htm
MAP's index for the series: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n000/a251.html
Bookmark: Reports about Colombia: http://www.mapinc.org/area/Colombia
------------------------------
Subj: Go Cliff!
From: Allan Erickson <>
Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2000 10:38:40 +0000
Woohoo!
Cliff Schaffer is "profiled" (not the driving while whatever "profiled")
in the following article just posted on the MAP DrugNews:
US TX: Column: New Perspective On Prohibition
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1891/a07.html?397
This Opinion is by Thom Marshall, who I'm sure had received a fair
amount of email from us all in the last couple of weeks concerning his
columns and opinions on the drug war:
US TX: Column: Will Compassion Be Part Of Future?
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1888/a08.html?41051
US TX: Column: Drug War Is Much Like Prohibition
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1870/a10.html?41051
US TX: LTE: No Answer In Simple Solutions
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1859/a08.html?41051
(this a response from a prohibitionist)
US TX: Column: Drug War Reform: A Crumbling Wall
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1850/a07.html?41051
US TX: Column: Cup Or Two Helps Him Face The Grind
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1840/a08.html?41051
US TX: Column: Two Viewpoints On Legalizing Drugs
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1834/a06.html?41051
and those are just columns from this month!
A search gave me 48 hits for Thom Marshall in 2000.
9 articles/opeds in 1999.
1 in 1998, and that was on Sandee Burbank and MAMA:
US TX: Column: Common Sense And Drug Woes
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98/n1058/a01.html?41064
I guess its an indication to me that altho' our LTE's may not get
published (I have written a few in reply to Thom's opinions) there are
writers/editors/journalists who listen. Particularly when we speak well
as advocates for our position.
Go Cliff! And thanks...
allan
------------------------------
Subj: Australia: PUB LTE: Sex - It's A Joint Venture
From: "Ken Russell" <>
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 08:57:43 +1100
Pubdate: Tue, 19 Dec 2000
Source: Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)
Author: Michael Dawson
SEX - IT'S A JOINT VENTURE
After years of bad press, at last there is a good news story about cannabis.
Saturday's Herald (December 16) reported that THC, the active ingredient in
cannabis, "alters the delicate system by which sperm and eggs interact".
According to researchers "two or three cones every couple of days could
affect sperm counts". As well, it appears that THC reduces the ability of
the sperm to penetrate the egg. These new findings should be pleasing news
to a whole host of lobby groups and unite unlikely bedfellows such as the
"anti-morning after pill" campaigner Senator Brian Harradine and "green
activist" Senator Bob Brown.
Just imagine, a cone or two "before the event" would not only make the
morning after pill redundant but would also significantly reduce the amount
of used condoms that end up in landfills or down the toilet.
Dr Michael Dawson,
Senior Lecturer Department of Chemistry,
Materials and Forensic Science University of Technology,
Sydney, Broadway,
December 17.
------------------------------
Subj: The price of punishment
From: "kim hanna" <>
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 01:26:30
A report from our local PBS station on the prison problem,
will go for the week, with new reports. Check out
http://www.wbur.org through the week for new reports.
Links to other prison info and audio reports.
http://www.wbur.org/prison/architecture.shtml
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com
------------------------------
Subj: CN: Drug Firms Risk Health, Report Finds
From: Allan Erickson <>
Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2000 21:29:19 +0000
Newshawk: allan
Pubdate: Mon, 18 Dec 2000
Source: The Halifax Herald Limited
http://www.herald.ns.ca/cgi-bin/home/loadmain?2000/12/18+173.raw
Drug firms risk health, report finds
Skewed research boosts profits, hurts patients
By The Canadian Press
Vancouver - The pharmaceutical industry misuses medical research to the
point that people may develop lifelong dependence on drugs with little
real benefit, says a new university report.
It claims industry manipulation of research results can place patients
at risk of dangerous side-effects.
The report from the Centre for Health Services and Policy Research, a
non-profit health research group at the University of British Columbia,
says drug companies artificially create demand for prescription drugs by
raising public fear of a disease.
"Under the guise of creating more informed consumers, the drug companies
get patients to ask their physicians, 'How come you haven't given me
this drug?' " said Kim McGrail, a health researcher who helped edit and
compile the report.
For example, industry promotion of cholesterol screening and
bone-density testing often leads to patients being put on a course of
drug therapy that is often not backed up by research evidence.
McGrail said 80 per cent of new drugs are merely "me-too" drugs -
perhaps a new antibiotic or ulcer medication that does the same job as
the old one.
"These aren't innovations, but come with an increase in price and an
increase in the company's stock value."
The report says the drug industry now dominates Canada's clinical
research, skewing results to improve corporate profits rather than
patient health.
And it accuses Health Canada of failing to protect the public from drug
firms.
Since 1991, the amount of independent pharmaceutical research done at
universities has dropped from 80 per cent to 40 per cent. Some 60 per
cent of researchers now work under contract to the drug companies.
The report includes a paper by Dr. Michele Brill-Edwards, who quit her
Health Canada job in 1996 to speak out about problems with drug
approvals.
Brill-Edwards, who said one million Canadians are taking a potentially
unsafe drug for angina and high blood pressure, claims Ottawa
increasingly evaluates drug risks from the perspective of the
manufacturer.
They do so by wanting conclusive proof of harm before taking a drug off
the market, she said.
The report also cites the case of Dr. Nancy Olivieri, who was demoted by
Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children after publishing findings that a
drug she was testing could cause liver damage.
It urges researchers to resist the temptations of drug industry
financing that comprises their scientific integrity.
And it calls for a watchdog on the watchdog - a health auditor-general
to oversee Health Canada's drug approval system.
The report was also compiled by Dr. Morris Barer, one of 13 newly
appointed heads to the Canadian Institute of Health Research, a federal
agency.
It draws on discussion papers from six health researchers and former
government regulators.
A spokesman for Rx&D, an association of Canada's research-based
pharmaceutical companies, said he could not respond to the report by
press time.
But Health Canada spokeswoman Roslyn Tremblay said the government does
not approve any drug without being "100 per cent satisfied as to its
safety, effectiveness and high quality, and that's non-negotiable."
Tremblay said every drug comes with a certain amount of risk and "all
contraindications aren't known until it hits a wider market."
She also said the department has access to "all drug trial protocols and
results including negative ones."
Dr. Robert Peterson, director general of Health Canada's therapeutic
products program, said a recent $10-million infusion into the drug
review process will improve the system.
But the standards and quality of reviews have always been high, and
safety hasn't been compromised, Peterson said.
McGrail countered that Health Canada doesn't have the expertise or time
to review research properly and that the pharmaceutical industry now
controls most research from start to finish.
------------------------------
Subj: US FL: 'The Big Deal: Florida's Drug Story'' Premieres Friday, December 22
From: Allan Erickson <>
Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2000 21:54:45 +0000
For the folks in Florida-
'The Big Deal: Florida's Drug Story'' Premieres Friday, December 22
Business Editors/Government Writers
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 18, 2000--
Powerful Program, Produced by Sunshine Network's Public Affairs
Division, Examines the State's Continuing War on Drugs With Startling
Images and Statistics
Premieres Statewide Friday, December 22, at 4:30 p.m. (ET)
Sunshine Network's award-winning public affairs division has produced a
riveting television documentary examining the state of Florida's
continuing battle against drugs.
THE BIG DEAL: FLORIDA'S DRUG STORY premieres statewide on Sunshine
Network in over 5.3 million homes on Friday, December 22, at 4:30 p.m
(ET). Encore presentations are scheduled for Jan. 3, 8 a.m.; Jan. 12,
4:30 p.m.; Jan. 18, 8 a.m.; Jan. 26, 4:30 p.m.; and Jan. 30, 4:30 p.m.
Focusing on efforts at the state and local level in treatment,
prevention and law enforcement, the program offers viewers a powerful
educational overview on an issue that can change families and alter
lives. It also examines the new state administration's annual Drug
Summit, which began in 1999 and has resulted in much-needed additional
funding for anti-drug programs.
During several months of shooting, Sunshine Network Producer Rebecca
Roberts and her crew went behind-the-scenes and undercover with Florida
law enforcement officials for an up-close examination of Florida's drug
culture. Viewers will see undercover investigators at one of the state's
popular rave clubs, where the drug XTC has
become a major problem among young people.
Sunshine Network also went along with U.S. Customs officials as they
searched an incoming Haitian vessel, detailing the in-depth procedures
that accompany most ship inspections, including canine detection.
The program examines how treatment is taking a higher priority in the
state's overall drug control program and the latest trends in drug use
prevention. A young addict describes with moving emotion her road to
recovery and how available treatment probably saved her life.
THE BIG DEAL: FLORIDA'S DRUG STORY is a eye-opening look into one of
Florida's most pressing issues and an examination of the state's
multi-level efforts to incorporate new forms of education and prevention
into it's drug control strategy.
The special is being produced by Sunshine Network's award-winning public
affairs division in Tallahassee. Reaching more homes than any other
Florida-based media outlet, Sunshine Network has provided daily public
affairs programming to Florida viewers for more than a decade.
Sunshine Network is Florida's largest and leading regional sports and
public affairs network and, with no national sports network affiliation,
is the state's only sports network devoting its entire schedule to local
programming. With over 5.2 million homes and more than 17
teams/properties under contract, Sunshine Network is the
Florida sports fans' first and only source for comprehensive coverage of
sports in the Sunshine State. For further information on Sunshine
Network, visit the network's website at www.sunshinenetwork.com
Preview Copies Available Upon Request
CONTACT: Sunshine Network, Tallahassee
Rebecca Roberts, 850/224-6070
or
Sunshine Network, Orlando, Fla.
Amy Pempel, 407/245-2511
------------------------------
Subj: [] !!! U.S. Censors French TV Program?
From: Peter Webster <>
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 17:36:13 +0000
On Thursday, December 14, the Fench TV channel FR2 aired its weekly
flagship documentary program, Envoy=E9 Sp=E9cial. The TV Guide, "T=E9l=E9 Ca
ble
Satellite" billed the 4-part program thus:
Dec 14, France 2, 20:50
Envoy=E9 special
Pr=E9sent=E9 par Paul Nahon
La guerre des roses. ... [description omitted]
L'Am=E9rique en =E9tat de guerre : 90% des unit=E9s de police des villes moy
ennes
am=E9ricaines se sont dot=E9es de SWAT Teams, unit=E9s sp=E9ciales paramilit
aires.
Arm=E9s jusqu'aux dents, casqu=E9s et en tenue de combat, ces commandos font
face dans la plupart des cas =E0 la toute petite d=E9linquance. Exemple =E0
Champaign, dans l'Illinois.
Le cheval et le prisonnier. [description omitted]
Tchernobyl : [description omitted]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thus part 2 of the program was an examination of SWAT police teams in the
U.S.: [translation]: "90% of police departments in medium-sized U.S. cities
have SWAT Teams, or special paramilitary units. Armed to the teeth,
helmeted, and trained in combat, these commandos are called into action in
most cases of even minor delinquence. Example, in Champaign, Illinois."
The [approx] 20 minute segment was the most damning examination of U.S.
police excesses imaginable, yet it was surely not exaggerated, and this FR2
program is not usually known to exaggerate for mere effect or ratings. The
program brought to mind the worst fears about nascent totalitarianism, with
the exception that from what films I've seen on the Gestapo, at the least
they had some discipline and style, albeit very macarbre. The "police"
shown in this segment were by contrast more like screaming barbarians on a
rape and pillage mission. I've seen many episodes of COPS but this put
those episodes to shame. To put it as mildly as I can, the show was
extremely unflattering about U.S. policing methods and the state of justice
and 'population control' in the U.S. I had not ever seen a program that
left me angrier or more frightened about rising fanaticism and police state
horrors, and I don't even live in the U.S.
Having missed my chance to videotape the segment, I looked in the TV Guide
and sure enough, it was to be re-broadcast on Saturday night at 22:00 on
the French satellite channel, TV5. With VHS machine warmed-up and ready, I
tuned in, only to find that the segment had been cut, and not even
mentioned except for the one slip: at the beginning of what was then
segment 2, the announcer did say "segment 3" but in fact this part (Le
cheval et le prisonnier) was now segment 2 of the program. No mention that
a part had been cut, and the TV Guide had plainly indicated that all four
parts were to be broadcast.
I can quite imagine that U.S. personnel in Paris saw the program on
Thursday and with a call from the Ambassador, possibly, the "unflattering"
segment was cut from the re-broadcast. I am going to try to obtain a tape
of the program from FR2, but if anyone on this list can do so, or has
already taped it, please get in touch as we need the program on tape for
certain ongoing proceedings.
Peter Webster
DrugNews
The Psychedelic Library
Peter Webster
Review Editor:
International Journal of Drug Policy http://www.elsevier.nl/
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_________ Zero Tolerance =97 a symptom of Zero Thinking
------------------------------
End of Maptalk-Digest V00 #266
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