Addict's Family Funding Effort to Prevent Suburban Heroin Use The number posted on fliers at drug treatment centers isn't for a typical hotline. The callers -- all current or recovering heroin users -- are encouraged to tell the stories of their addiction. And in recent weeks, a small group of young men and women has done just that, trying to help researchers answer a vexing question: Can you stop heroin addiction before it starts? The research is part of an ongoing project that seeks to reach the new face of heroin addiction -- young white suburban adults -- before they become addicted. It's a group increasingly vulnerable to the allure of the drug yet one never fully explored by previous studies, researchers say. [continues 962 words]
Hearing Cancelled After ACLU Sends Letter Chicago aldermen are balking at a proposal to impose random drug tests on all city employees as the American Civil Liberties Union raises questions about whether it would survive a court challenge. A City Council committee that was scheduled to consider the drug test idea this afternoon cancelled the meeting after the ACLU sent a letter to aldermen. The letter warned that courts have repeatedly stuck down laws that require "suspicionless drug testing of government employees whose possible drug use raises no significant concerns." [continues 676 words]
Acts of political courage are not all that common these days. That's why County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's presence at a June 17 rally in downtown Chicago calling for an "End to the War on Drugs" was a singular event. Showing up might seem to have been a no-brainer. She was given the opportunity to make the case for saving the county money and lives: "The War on Drugs has failed to eradicate drug use, instead it has resulted in the incarceration of millions throughout the nation and annually 100,000 (8,500 at any one time) here in Cook County. [continues 510 words]
The war on drugs ended in May 2009, when President Obama's newly appointed drug czar, Gil Kerlikowske, said he planned to stop calling it that. Or so Kerlikowske claims. "We certainly ended the drug war now almost two years ago," he told Seattle's PBS station last March, "in the first interview that I did." If you watch the exchange on YouTube, you can see he said this with a straight face. In reality, of course, Richard Nixon did not start the war on drugs, and Barack Obama, who in 2004 called it "an utter failure," did not end it. The war on drugs will continue as long as the government insists on getting between people and the intoxicants they want. And while it is heartening to hear a growing chorus of prominent critics decry the enormous collateral damage caused by this policy, few seem prepared to give peace a chance by renouncing the use of force to impose arbitrary pharmacological preferences. [continues 444 words]
I'm writing about the not-so-thoughtful June 11 op-ed by Peter Bensinger: "War on drugs a success." Anonymous surveys that rely upon the self-reporting of drug use are virtually worthless in this age of zero tolerance. As the penalties for drug use and possession rise, the tendency to be truthful with somebody from the government declines. Today, police are making multi-ton drug interceptions. In the 1970s, this was unheard of. Kirk Muse Mesa, Ariz [end]
Personal privacy and civil liberties are essential to the success of a democratic society. Any public policy that erodes those values must be weighed very carefully. Random workplace drug tests, which infringe on privacy, can be condoned only when a strong case can be made that they are necessary for on-the-job and public safety. A proposed ordinance for mandatory random drug testing of all Chicago employees from aldermen on down doesn't meet that test. We can accept the justification for random drug testing of bus or truck drivers and police officers. The dangers to the public are obvious if a driver or officer is under the influence of drugs. A drug test becomes preventive medicine. [continues 264 words]
Jesse Jackson's recent column "on a failed war on drugs" demands a rebuttal based on science and the facts. Rev. Jackson, to his credit, has preached against using drugs, but his conclusion that the drug control effort has been wasted is dead wrong. In fact, in 1978, 25 million Americans used an illegal drug once a month, when our population was 280 million. In 2009, there were 21 million illegal drug users, a decrease of 20 percent. Since when is a 20 percent decrease a failure? [continues 496 words]
Regarding Jesse Jackson's June 6 column ["It's time to end dismally failed 'war on drugs'], don't look to the Obama administration for change. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy immediately rejected the high-profile Global Commission on Drug Policy call for reform and defended the "balanced drug control efforts" of the federal government. These "balanced" efforts have given the land of the free the highest incarceration rate in the world. Prohibition-related violence has caused upward of 35,000 deaths in Mexico over the past four years. Despite criminal penalties, the United States has higher rates of drug use than European Union countries like Portugal that have decriminalized. With national debt soaring, we can no longer afford to throw good money after bad drug policy. Robert Sharpe, Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy [end]
Synthetic drugs being marketed under names such as "White Dove bath salts" and "Mister Nice Guy potpourri" may not have been the cause of death in any cases yet in Grundy County, but they have contributed to the loss of life. "My concern is it may not be the immediate cause of death, but it can be the cause of the incident ending up in death," Grundy County Coroner John Callahan said. Being under the influence of a substance causes delayed reactions and bad decision making. [continues 933 words]
After a mass grave's 218th body was discovered in Mexico on May 15, Americans buzzed over newspapers' latest headlines: The Terminator's sex scandal. Violence in Mexico is as energized as ever and Americans have barely batted an eye. It's their war, not mine. We know of the drug war. We know of the drug cartels, the torture, the political assassinations, the mass graves brimming with murder, and executions posted on YouTube. This is the drug war we know. This is the Mexico we know. [continues 944 words]
After a mass grave's 218th body was discovered in Mexico on May 15, Americans buzzed over newspapers' latest headlines: The Terminator's sex scandal. Violence in Mexico is as energized as ever and Americans have barely batted an eye. It's their war, not mine. We know of the drug war. We know of the drug cartels, the torture, the political assassinations, the mass graves brimming with murder, and executions posted on YouTube. This is the drug war we know. This is the Mexico we know. [continues 939 words]
Mesa, Ariz. -- I'm writing about a recent Journal-Standard article (Police beat: Freeporter charged with drug possession) which ran in the May 16 edition. I am wondering who is the victim? It was less than 15 grams of cocaine, and was probably for his own use. Even if he intended to sell some or all of it, there was still no victim. In a drug transaction there are willing buyers and willing sellers. Both walk away happy unless one or both get arrested. [continues 163 words]
Chicago leads the nation in heroin emergency room admissions and overdose deaths. Not an unexpected result since heroin is a dangerous drug, particularly when prohibited. Drug users have no idea of the potency of the heroin in their pocket on any given day, because the substance is outlawed and, therefore, unregulated. Take the case of Melissa Best, who allegedly shared heroin with in-laws and died. She quickly passed out after injecting heroin and whatever cutting agent, but was it just "good stuff" or was it too much stuff? It's anybody's guess until the toxicologist gets to work, which is always long after the ingestion-dosage decision is made in prohibition darkness. [continues 144 words]
What I most oppose about the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 is that it does not eliminate the racial disparity between crack and powder cocaine. Nor has it been given retroactive effect. My opposition doesn't come by way of condoning the sales of illegal drugs, but speaks to the fundamental fairness in sentencing and punishments. I believe a life sentence without parole for any first-time, non-violent drug offender is too harsh to the extreme. Do the math: 28 grams of cocaine base (crack) equals 500 grams of powder cocaine. Both amounts bring a five-year mandatory sentence. Where is the fairness in that? Tabitha Robinson Rockford [end]
It was a pleasant surprise to see your paper editorialize in favor of the medical marijuana bill. Calling out the cowardice and lack of compassion of the legislators who voted against the bill was commendable. Truth be told, the full legalization and taxation of pot in Illinois would provide the state with a way out of its fiscal morass, while causing no harm. However, we can all rest assured that my new representative, Dwight Kay, won't endorse either plan, at least not until marijuana secures a corporate sponsor. Kevin Kious Collinsville [end]
Journalism? Nowhere does your recent medical marijuana article address on what authority the legislature assumes the expertise to practice medicine and also to usurp the role of the FDA in approving medical interventions. There is no valid study yet that marijuana has medicinal value in its current form. Why is that being ignored? The article reports about a person helped by marijuana, yet how many thousands of people have been helped by untested interventions, including the quackery of the old-time medicine show? Coca-Cola once had cocaine in it. I'm sure there were plenty of testimonials for its medicinal value. The presence of testimonials does not mean the legislature should jump in and make a substance legal. [continues 202 words]
Freeport, Ill. - Legislation making it legal to possess marijuana in Illinois for medical reasons failed to garner enough votes Thursday to be approved by the Illinois House of Representatives. Even so, the bill in question did get enough support to be placed on "postponed consideration," which means it will likely come up for a vote again in the near future. State Rep. Jim Sacia, R-Pecatonica, and local police officials say they have serious reservations about the proposed law, and that the legislation, if enacted, would be unsafe and difficult to enforce. [continues 776 words]
Within the next few weeks, critically ill patients suffering from multiple sclerosis, cancer, AIDS or other serious ailments might at long last receive legislative permission to use medical marijuana. We've long favored such a policy, but for most of the last decade proposals to move forward with it have fallen short in the statehouse. Now, despite a stumble in a test vote, the stars may finally be aligned to ensure passage, with the current measure attracting support from previously opposed House Republican Leader Tom Cross. [continues 360 words]
Yes, it is true that we would learn a lot about the potential for medical marijuana from the kinds of clinical trials required by the Food and Drug Administration, as pointed out in your article of April 28. But it would have been helpful if you had pointed out why these studies haven't been carried out. The federal government, specifically the Drug Enforcement Administration, won't request them. They either are opposed to the idea or are afraid of the political consequences, which is silly since over 70 percent of the American public supports cannabis as medicine. [continues 129 words]
Regarding your April 28 article on Illinois' restrictive medical marijuana bill, it's true that marijuana is readily available in California to anyone with a doctor's recommendation. Locally grown medical marijuana generates tax revenue and, more important, takes marijuana distribution out of the hands of organized crime. Illinois legislators apparently prefer that Mexican drug cartels control marijuana distribution. The number-one product of Mexican drug cartels is marijuana. An estimated 35,000 Mexicans have died in prohibition-related violence over the past few years. As long as cartels control distribution, marijuana consumers will be exposed to methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. Marijuana may be relatively harmless, but marijuana prohibition is deadly. Robert Sharpe, Common Sense for Drug Policy, Washington, D.C. [end]
Inside Illinois
