Allen Man's Death Tied To Trend Of Medication Abuse ALLEN - When Jordan Hall didn't feel high enough, he found a way to get another pill. Xanax. Valium. Or OxyContin. He craved them all. In the past few months, Jordan prowled emergency rooms in Allen, Plano and then McKinney, begging for prescriptions. He stole money out of his doting mother's bank account. And then on July 3, he met a dealer down the street from his house and paid $80 for OxyContin pills, a strong narcotic pain reliever. The next day, his mother, Susie, shook her son to wake him up so they could watch July Fourth fireworks together. His body lay stiff on the living room sofa, his head propped up like he was watching television. At age 20, he was dead. [continues 1405 words]
Re: "Guns at the Ready - Colombia's FARC a threat still worth fighting," Monday Editorials. Colombia's civil war is 38 years old; we don't need to be involved. Corporations that sell helicopters and drill for oil benefit from Plan Colombia at the price of human sacrifice. According to Colombians, 12 percent of the acreage that we sprayed was coca and 88 percent food crops. The American Medical Association, at its 2004 convention, said the spraying is causing widespread illnesses, destroying pastures, destroying food crops, poisoning livestock, displacing thousands of small farmers and killing birds, mammals, aquatic life and natural plants. Our government's 2006 survey showed Colombia had 144,000 acres of coca being cultivated - more than when Plan Colombia began. When will we declare our independence from big government's scandalous waste of our precious lives and resources? Colleen Minter McCool, Stephenville [end]
Re: "Guns at the Ready - Colombia's FARC a threat still worth fighting," Monday Editorials, and "Marijuana plants discovered close to Dallas DEA offices," Friday Metro. Those of us who have followed the drug war take note of The Dallas Morning News' recent new fervor for a war that, like Iraq, has created much opposition due to the folly of its policies. The editorial laments the Colombian FARC, yet it is U.S. drug war policies that grew the narco factions and keeps them well financed and strong today. Those policies empowered the narcos to take down South American countries one by one. [continues 73 words]
Violence And Picture Postcards Do Not Mix. Which is why we should pity the poor tourism officials in Sinaloa, a northwestern state in Mexico. They have to tout the virtues of the area, which are probably plentiful. But they also have to contend with the negatives, which -- sadly -- are also plentiful. Sinaloa is home to one of the most powerful drug cartels in Mexico. The cartel was behind the recent 20-ton cocaine shipment seized by the U.S. Coast Guard off the Pacific Coast of Panama, officials told the Associated Press. And it is responsible for about 600 drug-related slayings a year, according to news reports. [continues 189 words]
Zetas Bring Fear of Violence to Our Back Yard It's a rare moment when American journalism goes into retreat. Reporters have been on the front lines of every U.S. conflict from World War II to Iraq. The presses have continued to roll despite earthquakes and hurricanes, riots and domestic political turmoil such as Watergate. That's because the dangers and threats always paled in comparison to the goal of keeping the public informed. But today, journalists are under direct threat and in retreat at America's doorstep because drug traffickers do not like the uncomfortable attention U.S. reporters are giving to their bloody enterprise. [continues 257 words]
Clovis, N.M. Program Cited As Example The Clovis, N.M. school district is a trendsetter in regard to student health. And, hopefully, more school districts in New Mexico will follow Clovis' lead. The Lovington, N.M., school board is considering implementing a random drug-testing program for students choosing to participate in extracurricular activities such as athletics, choir and band. Lovington is basing its proposal, in part, on a similar drug-testing program in Clovis, which was approved in 2001. [continues 205 words]
Colombia's FARC A Threat Still Worth Fighting Shortly before the 9/11 attacks, America's biggest declared threat was not the one posed by al-Qaeda but rather by Latin America's oldest guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. The war on terrorism has distracted this nation from the war on drugs, which continues to absorb billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars in Colombia. Considering the ongoing carnage in Iraq and Afghanistan, it almost seems quaint to return our attention to that ragtag gang of Marxist leftovers roaming Colombia's countryside. [continues 294 words]
Re: July 10 commentary "In the nation's drug wars, sanity goes up in smoke." Kathleen Parker argues for legalizing and taxing marijuana for $7.7 billion in savings plus $6.2 billion in new revenues annually. She's got it all wrong. The drug war is not insane; it's a superb success, for it enhances international and domestic federal control, encourages drug-dealing and therefore greater consumption and lines the pockets of our drug warriors. It's just like the war on terrorism, another vastly successful war. Our war on terrorism creates far more terrorists than we can handle, thus staying the course by promoting fear and continuing to fight and spend. Our metaphorical wars create more drug users and more terrorists. Now, maybe it's time for a war on love and peace, which could create more for everyone. How about a war on money? Austin [end]
A quick look at the list of those who have donated to presidential hopeful Congressman Ron Paul shows a diverse mix of people, including several engineers and investment firms and some who support the legalization of marijuana. Most all of the donors, listed at www.opensecrets.org, are private individuals backing the campaign of the Lake Jackson Republican, said Kent Snyder, Paul's campaign manager. Paul has been a successful fund raiser, getting many donations via the Internet from private individuals, Snyder said. [continues 431 words]
Marijuana, cocaine and heroin users are different, and the means of production is vastly different. The connections that can be made are those of import and economy. Rather than supporting these countries with economic aid, we should allow them to help themselves without strict controls. Stop the war on drugs and allow these counties to develop their own form of open markets. Eric Nielsen, Dallas [end]
Re: "At the End of the Line - There are hidden costs of recreational drug use," July 8 Editorials. Let me tell you why you can step away from the sink and put down the blood-washing soap: Your editorial points out negative externalities of prohibition. By choosing prohibition, we have chosen everything the editorial wants people to feel bad about. Do you really think the Taliban can supply heroin better than Pfizer? Do Colombian guerrilla armies sell us laptops or organic milk? Do we have Oak Cliff gangs enforcing alcohol and tobacco turf and selling beer to kids? [continues 97 words]
Drugs did not spawn Mexico's organized crime networks. Just as alcohol prohibition gave rise to Al Capone, drug prohibition created the violent drug-trafficking organizations blamed for murders in Mexico. With alcohol prohibition repealed in the U.S., liquor bootleggers no longer kill each other in drive-by shootings. Mexico's recent upsurge in violence began after an anti-drug crackdown created a power vacuum among competing cartels. From a political perspective, Mexican President Felipe Calderon stands to benefit from the violence. [continues 119 words]
Embassy, Groups Decry Mexico Drug Traffickers' Attempt To Stifle Media MEXICO CITY - Journalism advocacy groups and the U.S. Embassy on Friday denounced a purported threat by drug traffickers to kill an American reporter on U.S. soil in coming days for coverage of cartel violence along the Texas-Mexico border. The threat, which was relayed to reporters by trusted U.S. sources, did not mention any journalist specifically. But it was said to focus on those who regularly cover an ongoing cartel turf war in Nuevo Laredo, across the border from Laredo, Texas. The purported threat was to be carried out in Laredo, according to the sources. [continues 465 words]
Was Kathleen Parker's column today an attempt to justify the legalization of marijuana or an attempt to remove some of the sting of publicity felt by the Gores following their son's arrest? She deftly spun the news of the younger Mr. Gore's pot possession - quickly dismissing the additional charges of possessing prescription drugs and speeding - as simply the actions of a lad who chose to imbibe in a recreational activity that, while illegal, should, in her view, be legalized. Therefore the authorities, and no doubt his parents and the general public, should not make a fuss. [continues 61 words]
Re: "Inconvenient truths about marijuana laws," by Kathleen Parker, Tuesday Viewpoints. Bravo to Ms. Parker for cutting through the mean-spirited frenzy surrounding Al Gore III's arrest and showing the true hypocrisy in our ineffective, arbitrary war on marijuana users. This summer marks the 70th anniversary of the first national ban, the Marijuana Tax Act. Thanks to such laws, we have turned at least 15 million Americans - mostly responsible, law-abiding citizens - into criminals. Small wonder that a law passed amid the hysteria of Reefer Madness. Racist tales of jazz musicians gone mad with rage under the influence of drugs should continue to thrive under a cloud of misinformation and state-sponsored fear mongering. Dan Bernath, Marijuana Policy Project, Washington [end]
Re: "We can't ignore spread, availability of 'cheese,' " by Sen. John Cornyn, Tuesday Letters. Sen. John Cornyn is right to want to stop the spread of dangerous drugs, but this problem can be addressed by agencies in the public and private domains. Perhaps, as a U.S. senator, Mr. Cornyn should devote his time to pressing issues that can be resolved only by Congress and the executive branch. The failed immigration bill, a lack of consensus regarding Iraq, no apparent alternative energy strategy and a crisis in health care are the responsibility of leadership in Washington to resolve. As horrendous a plague as is heroin use, its impact is not near that of other problems. Could it be Mr. Cornyn is looking for a noncontroversial issue to distract his constituents from Washington's inability to solve big problems? David Armstrong, Poetry [end]
Re: At the End of the Line - Hidden costs to recreational drug use," Sunday Editorials. In your support for drug prohibition, you present a false conclusion based on correct facts. Our alternatives are not between selling drugs in a store or not selling them at all; the choice is between selling drugs in a store or selling them in the alley behind the store. Bob Ramsey, Irving [end]
The misery and violence behind recreational drugs are no different than what we experienced during our short war on alcohol. Thankfully, we came to our senses quickly and nipped it in the bud. As your editorial alludes, it is the enormous profits for marijuana, coca and the opium poppy that create the misery, violence and bloodshed, not their use. Russ Jones, New Braunfels [end]
Al Capone didn't build his criminal empire because people drank alcohol. His gang of thugs and murderers made money because alcohol was an illegal drug in the 1920s. The modern, violent, international drug gangs don't make fortunes because people snort cocaine. They make fortunes because cocaine and a few other drugs are illegal. The drug gangs would be out of business overnight if they had to compete with legitimate businesses selling pharmaceutically pure, regulated, taxed products. Suzanne Wills, Drug Policy Forum of Texas, Dallas [end]
Re: "At the End of the Line - There are hidden costs of recreational drug use," Sunday Editorials. The problem isn't the drugs but the war on specific drugs; your list reflects your bias and little else. Marijuana is at the top of the illegal list and has never killed anyone, is non-addictive and has legitimate medical applications. Practically every person in this country buys, sells or uses some kind of drug, legal or otherwise. We self-medicate for a variety of reasons - some for health and others just for recreation. But using drugs for any purpose carries risks. Just listen to the side effects listed by prescription commercials. If you really want to cripple street gangs and drug cartels, take away their main source of income. Stop putting people in prison for buying or selling drugs. Criminal organizations are funded solely by the war on drugs, not the drugs themselves. Gene Johnson, Dallas [end]
Inside Texas
