Dear Editor The immorality and the cost of the War on Drugs harm us more than the drugs themselves. With 10 years of experience in law enforcement, (Illinois Dept. of Corrections), I have met many convicted drug offenders, "BAD" people labeled as a threat to my family and me. I assure you I'd have no qualms living next door to the vast majority, and I have two small girls, 6 and 7 yrs. Make no mistake, drugs are bad and can ruin a person's life-but we have more people killed in drug-related shootings than in overdoses. [continues 143 words]
Ram Dass has led the life of seeker and traveler, teacher and social activist for 45 years. The quality of his conscious-ness is legendary, not only for the words spoken, but because of the spell that is somehow invoked in his company. Ram Dass is well known for his experimentation with LSD and his anthem book of the late '60s "Be Here Now". But his life works include much more than these. Early on he created the Prison Ashram Project, introducing deep spiritual work in prison. To the taboo surrounding death & dying in this culture, he responded with the Dying Project, introducing dying people to other planes of consciousness. Noticing the need to combine social action with spiritual motive, Ram Dass co-created the Seva Foundation, working with doctors and activists in India, Nepal, Guatemala and here in the US. He's worked with business people in the Social Venture Net-work, and with Creating Our Future, a spiritually questing organization for teenagers, among many other causes. The common theme in all of these projects has been the application of spiritual princi-ples to social realities. [continues 3235 words]
I consider a loving, trusting relationship with my children to be one of the most important aspects of my life. My parents, in their effort to "protect" me, told me half-truths and mistruths. How betrayed I felt when I learned that they had not always been honest with me! This was a feeling I did not want my own children to experience. I soon learned that if I told the truth and tried to prepare my kids for their eventual role as responsible adults, my message to them often conflicted with messages they heard via the media, movie images, commercials or others with different political or social agendas. These conflicting messages reached their ears even though they were home-schooled, and despite the fact we had no commercial television at home. [continues 1746 words]
Is There A Doctor (Or Nurse) In The House? Nursing is caring Twenty years ago I began to learn what real suffering looks and feels like. I watched helplessly while beautiful young men would, in three months time, age 50 years, dying from a disease no one knew anything about at the time. I have watched tobacco-cancer eat the lungs, livers and hearts out of people. They had no idea, when they began using this legal herb, the consequences in store for them. [continues 1327 words]
This November, Oregonians will vote on three crucial clinical issues affecting private medical choices decided between a patient and his/her personal physician. This election deserves your vote. 1. Reproductive rights include abortion, contraception, sterili-zation, morning-after pills, family planning, accurate sex education, and prevention & treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. Democrats are clearly the pro-choice party on reproductive issues. 2. End-of-life care. Citizens must decide: Should we make our own end-of-life medical choices or will we let those choices be seized by the politicians of the religious right? [continues 720 words]
"Many doctors know little about pain control and even fewer prescribe adequate doses of necessary pain relievers..." Drug Policy Reformers come from many different backgrounds but share the idea that the War on Drugs is a huge failure and causes irreparable damage both within and outside of our national borders. The WoD has a serious and potentially deleterious impact on every American because it directly restricts your physician's ability to provide pain and symptom relief. Perhaps your family members have had difficulty obtaining pain relief for chronic illnesses; or someone you know has had problems obtaining relief at the end of life. Millions of Americans have had such problems, it's a possibility for any of us. The potential victims of the U.S. government's WoD include every American who seeks medical care. The Narc and the MD When I received my license to practice medicine from the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners (BME), I was told that I could lose my license if I was "too generous" with controlled drugs. The BME then explained to me how to practice "politically correct" medicine. Naturally, the question arises: who determines what "politically correct" medicine is? The answer: the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a law enforcement bureaucracy in Washington DC. [continues 1876 words]
