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Vancouver, B.C. -- The door-kicking has stopped, as have the asset forfeitures and harassment. Chris Bennett hasn't been arrested in weeks, nor have any of his friends. Yet, the 40-year-old Bennett isn't inclined to say the battle is won. He's seen the police relax before. He's seen pot achieve a tenuous level of respectability when a more liberal-minded mayor or police chief takes over. And he's seen the subsequent backlash. "Every time we talk to the press, something happens," he said, sitting in the store he manages, The Marijuana Party Headquarters. The store is three blocks from one of Vancouver's toniest shopping districts. While Bennett talks, he selects a h…

Toronto - The federal government is moving quickly to quell uncertainty over Canada's drug laws by appealing an Ontario Court ruling that threw out a marijuana charge on a technicality. "We were aware of the uncertainty the decision created so we thought we'd move as quickly as possible," federal Justice Department spokesman Jim Leising said Friday. Leising said the appeal was "expedited" following the decision Thursday by Justice Douglas Phillips to side with the teen's lawyer, Brian McAllister, who argued that the law that makes possession of marijuana a criminal offence is effectively invalid in Ontario. Notwithstanding the ruling, the Controlled Drugs and Subst…

REGULAR use of cannabis by children as young as 14 is increasing, prompting a push to highlight the negative effects of the drug. The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) yesterday warned of the dangers to young users as the NSW government launched a statewide ad campaign to combat the problem. NDARC information manager Paul Dillon said the number of young people using the drug was growing and many wrongly perceived it as harmless. He also warned more young people were using bongs, or water pipes, instead of joints to smoke cannabis. Using bongs forced more smoke into their lungs, possibly increasing the risk of cancer. Young people were largely una…

Darwin's first drug house has been named _ flat 28, Tomaris Ct in Smith St, Darwin. Drug squad officer-in-charge Les Martin attached the green notice declaring the unit to be a drug house to the door of the housing commission unit yesterday. Margot Laughton, 54, who occupies the unit, had been served the required three notices after police raided the unit on September 21, November 13 and December 5, seizing 453.5g of cannabis. An application was made to the courts on December 17 to have the unit declared a drug house. Ms Laughton had until close of business on New Year's Eve to appeal. She did not. Ms Laughton, who has lived in the flat for seven years, was…

NEW laws allowing offenders to have their criminal records wiped after five years of good behaviour will be investigated by the State Government. Allow them to get on with their lives having paid their debt to societyThe move comes after peak welfare body Offenders Aid & Rehabilitation Services of South Australia called for "spent convictions" legislation to give minor offenders a "second chance". Attorney-General Michael Atkinson has asked his department to examine how similar legislation operates in other states and overseas. Mr Atkinson said the department was expected to report its findings and recommendations by June. Under the legislation OARS SA is push…

Jerusalem -- A driver speeding past two dozen cyclists from the pro-marijuana Green Leaf Party shouts, "Hey, you giving out free samples?" A bus driver gives a wave and a honk. The cyclists, wearing T-shirts emblazoned with a marijuana leaf, pedaled through the city to draw attention to one of their many tenets, ditching cars for bicycles. It was part election campaign, part environmental activism and part lark. A month before parliamentary elections, Green Leaf is among several fringe parties competing for the protest vote from Israelis unwilling to choose hardliners but frustrated by dovish parties after more than two years of fighting with the Palestinians. They…

In Pakistan, cannabis use has reached alarming proportions among young people, particularly in the urban population. In large cities such as Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, smoking a "joint" for relaxation is considered "fashionable and the in thing." Parents from the upper social classes, if not encouraging its use, do not care if their children smoke hash off and on, during weekends or at parties. About 80 to 90 per cent adolescents and young college students in most of the elite schools have tried hash. Although most young people use cannabis in adolescence without apparent harm, clinical research studies over the last decade clearly indicate that a number of vulnera…

New Orleans -- A lawyer for one of two U.S. pilots who dropped a bomb killing four Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan last April says the U.S. air force had pressured the pilots to take amphetamines that may have impaired their judgment during the mission. Majs. Harry Schmidt and William Umbach face a possible court-martial for dropping the laser- guided bomb near Kandahar on April 18. A U.S. air force investigation determined the pilots ``demonstrated poor airmanship" and ignored standard procedure by not making sure there were no allied troops in the area. But Umbach's lawyer, David Beck, said he will prove at a Jan. 13 hearing on whether to court-martial the pilots …

Windsor, Ont. — An Ontario Court judge threw out a marijuana charge against a 16-year-old boy Thursday in a decision lawyers say could soon spell the end of Canada's prohibition on possessing small amounts of pot. Justice Douglas Phillips dropped the charge after lawyer Brian McAllister argued in court that there is effectively no law in Canada prohibiting the possession of 30 grams of marijuana or less. McAllister warned that even though the ruling could be precedent-setting, anyone possessing small amounts of marijuana could still be charged. "I doubt police will stop charging people for the moment," said McAllister. McAllister had brought forward an applicatio…

Police Commissioner Paul White is planning to target drug use in the Territory on a similar level to drink driving. Mr White said yesterday he wanted Territorians to develop the same intolerance to dope as they have for drink driving. Mr White told the Northern Territory News that he believed the Territory had a real and dangerous fascination with drugs. ``I think it's a concern for the Territory _ I said it from the day that I arrived and you hear all the excuses in the world as to why we shouldn't be putting the focus on illict drugs but the reality is the Northern Territory drug usage rate is higher than anywhere else in Australia,'' he said. The 2001 Nation…

I was wondering what your opinions were regarding playing World Cup matches in Zimbabwe. There are a couple of different questions.... Should the ICC and/or the ACB do as the politicians ask and officially pull out of matches scheduled to be played in Zimbabwe? Do the various governments asking the cricket boards to boycott matches scheduled in Zimbabwe have a right to ask for a boycott when collectively or induvidually, they have not politically or economically sanctioned Zimbabwe? Should the various governments politically or economically sanction Zimbabwe? If the goverments did sanction Zimbabwe should the various cricket boards boycott matches scheduled in Z…

Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution We are in the midst of a major national debate on the legalization of marijuana. The outcome of this debate is likely to have profound implications for our society. To make an informed choice on this issue, we need accurate information about these implications. There has never been a greater need for unbiased scientific data on the physical and psychological effects of marijuana use. Unfortunately, there has been more heat than light shed on this issue in the mainstream media. Perhaps with this in mind, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has just issued a major research report on the effects of marijuana. The report may be s…

Benton - Prosecutors around the country are being urged to take a stand against attempts to legalize or decriminalize controlled substances - in particular, marijuana. “Those who support drug legalization are well funded and highly adept at manipulating the media,” reads a Nov. 1 letter to prosecutors from the president of the National District Attorneys Association, Dan M. Alsobrooks. “And they do not mind deceiving the American public as well.” The letter warns of “incremental victories” by those in favor of legalizing drugs and notes the “key role” local prosecutors play in anti-drug efforts. Included with the letter was an open letter also dated Nov. 1 from Sco…