Drugalyser legality questioned

THE effectiveness and legality of the Drugalyser - launched in the Western Cape last week - has been called into question by a local attorney and the Automobile Association.

Marius de Kock, a local attorney, said the idea that it is within the power of the police to do the testing of drugs "within the law is ludicrous".

"That MEC (Patrick) McKenzie can spend this much money without first talking to the Director of Public Prosecutions is laughable. The police have been coercing people into taking this test. It is an invasion of privacy. The fact is that they know that the test is not admissible, but expressly choose not to tell the public. If the public knew that they could refuse," De Kock said.

A drug driving report put together by the company manufacturing the device showed that a high number of Cape Town motorists pulled over at roadblocks tested positive for drugs. The tests were carried out at roadblocks between April and November.

But Automobile Association (AA) spokesperson Gary Ronald said there was no in-depth research proving that drug driving was a problem like drunk driving.

"It's because it's an illegal activity. With alcohol, we've got a good idea because of data collected over years. To properly test for drugs you need a full toxicology and this could be thousands of rands. And there's also the question of how much drugs are in your system (at the time of the screening). There might be residual, but you're not spaced out. It won't stand in court, but that might come with time," Ronald said.

He said the AA supported the idea, however.

Trimega Diagnostics managing director Avi Lasarow said the Drugalyser was very accurate and the technology was in use in nine countries.

In its drug driving report, Trimega Diagnositics said it was clear from its review of existing legislation "that urgent amendments were required to address roadside testing for drugs (as well as) alcohol".

- Cape Times

Christmas parties and drunken driving

Christmas parties and drunken drivingDrinking and driving in South Africa is a scourge. With Christmas parties commencing in earnest to celebrate the end of the year, the incidents of drunk drivers on the roads is likely to increase. Many drunk drivers do get home safely. Unfortunately too many are involved in accidents, often serious enough to result in deaths or injuries to themselves and others. The deaths of innocent road users have to be deplored.

Let us look at road fatalities in South Africa. The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) reported in its Road Traffic Report of March 2008 that in the one year from April 2007 to March 2008, 14,627 people were killed in motor vehicle accidents in South Africa.

That is an average of 1,220 individuals being killed on our roads each month or 40 every day.

On November 24 2008, reports indicated that 30 civilians were killed in war-torn Iraq, fewer than the average deaths on South African roads. In February 2008, the civilian death toll in Iraq totalled 947, considerably less than the average monthly road death toll in South Africa.

The RTMC has estimated that the average cost per crash is R1.146-million. Motor vehicle accidents in South Africa cost the country — the individuals involved, the government authorities (police, medical workers, emergency services and judicial officials), insurance companies and employers — a whopping R13.27-billion each year.

Not all road accidents are related to consumption of alcohol. However, a significant number of accidents are. Research by the Medical Research Council (MRC) in 2004 indicated that 53.62% of road users (drivers, passengers, pedestrians and cyclists) killed in accidents had a blood alcohol level that exceeded the legal blood alcohol limit. Of the drivers tested in the MRC research 50.88% were over the legal limit.

There is ample evidence that drinking and driving kills, so why is there little action to rid our roads of drunken drivers? Drinking and driving is socially acceptable in South Africa. The media is replete with reports of court cases each day involving prominent South Africans who have been arrested and convicted for driving while under the influence of alcohol: judges, doctors, lawyers, sports personalities, politicians, TV talk show hosts, priests, school teachers, and the list goes on. In such a society very little is likely to be done about drinking and driving. Of course, there are the usual advertisements by the Department of Transport and Arrive Alive each year just before a major public holiday urging people to drive safely and not to drink and drive. The most laughable adverts are those by alcohol manufacturers urging drivers not to drink and drive. This seems to make little difference to road users.

The problem lies with enforcement of the law and stiffer penalties. One often hears of a drunk driver being let off with a fine of a few thousand rand after having been found guilty of drunk driving and culpable homicide – the reckless or negligent taking of another person’s life. A person in similar drunken circumstances who discharges a firearm, killing another, is likely to face a prison sentence. Police officers, prosecutors and judges look upon drunk drivers with sympathy – they remember the days when they perhaps drove whilst under the influence of alcohol. They consider the drunk driver being prosecuted as being foolish for getting caught.

The penalties in the UK for driving or attempting to drive under the influence of alcohol is a fine of up to £5,000 (about R75,000) and/ or imprisonment of up to six months and a mandatory suspension of the driving licence for a period of 12 months. For a second offence the penalty is a prison sentence of up to 12 months and a mandatory suspension of the driving licence for three years. If the driver causes an accident whilst under the influence of alcohol, a prison sentence is likely to be imposed. If the accident results in death, the driver is likely to spend at least 10 years in prison and the driver’s licence will be suspended for a minimum of two years. For driving under the influence of alcohol without an accident, on average courts in the UK impose fines of £3,000 (R45,000) and a three months prison sentence and a suspension of the driver’s licence for 12 months.

Britain’s Chief Medical Officer has called on the government to cut the legal alcohol limit for drivers between the ages of 17 and 20 to zero to reduce the number of youngsters dying in car accidents each week. A similar call has been made regarding newly qualified drivers.

In the UK the government has presented a proposal that will see the legal blood alcohol limit for drivers reduced from 80 milligrams (0.08) to 50 milligrams (0.05) per 100 millilitres of blood. The UK limit is higher than other European Union countries except Ireland (0.08) and Malta (0.09). Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia have a legal alcohol limit of 0.0, while Poland, Estonia and Sweden have a limit of 0.02 and Estonia has a limit of 0.04. All the other EU member states have a limit of 0.05, although many have a lower limit for public transport drivers, commercial drivers and new drivers.

A combination of reduction of blood alcohol limit, enforcement of the law and publicity helps to reduce road deaths. In Switzerland the blood alcohol limit was reduced from 0.8 to 0.5 in January 2005 and random breath testing was introduced. Road deaths decreased 20% and research showed that this was attributable to a reduction of 25% in alcohol related deaths in 2005.

A concerted effort has to be made in South Africa to reduce drunk driving and alcohol related deaths on our roads. Employers hosting Christmas parties should ensure their employees have alternative transport available afterwards to take them home safely. Even hosts of private parties should take a more responsible attitude to drunk driving by refusing to allow a guest to drive home while drunk. But that requires the host to remain sober, which is most unlikely.

The responsibility to reduce deaths on our roads lies with everyone, most importantly with those drivers who drink and then risk killing others.

- M&G Thought Leader

Report Urges Regulated Market to Replace Cannabis Prohibition

More and more studies and reports insist that cannabis prohibition does more harm to cannabis users than the drug itself

A report on cannabis prepared for next year's UN drug policy review will suggest that a "regulated market" would cause less harm than the current international prohibition. The report, which is likely to reopen the debate about cannabis laws, suggests that controls such as taxation, minimum age requirements and labeling could be explored. The Global Cannabis Commission report, which was launched Thursday at a conference in the House of Lords, has reached conclusions which its authors suggest "challenge the received wisdom concerning cannabis". It was carried out for the Beckley foundation, a UN-accredited NGO, for the 2009 UN strategic drug policy review.

There are, according to the report, now more than 160 million users of the drug worldwide. "Although cannabis can have a negative impact on health, including mental health, in terms of relative harms it is considerably less harmful than alcohol or tobacco," according to the report. "Historically, there have only been two deaths worldwide attributed to cannabis, whereas alcohol and tobacco together are responsible for an estimated 150,000 deaths per annum in the UK alone."

The report, compiled by a group of scientists, academics and drug policy experts, suggests that much of the harm associated with cannabis use is "the result of prohibition itself, particularly the social harms arising from arrest and imprisonment." Policies that control cannabis, whether draconian or liberal, appear to have little impact on the prevalence of consumption, it concluded.

"In an alternative system of regulated availability, market controls such as taxation, minimum age requirements, labeling and potency limits are available to minimize the harms associated with cannabis use," said the report. It claimed that only through a regulated market could young people be protected from the increasingly potent forms of cannabis, such as skunk. It is intended that the report will form a blueprint for nations seeking to develop a "more rational and effective approach to the control of cannabis". The authors suggest there is evidence that "the current system of cannabis regulation is not working, and ... there needs to be a serious rethink if we are to minimize the harms caused by cannabis use."

Last night, the report was welcomed by drug law reform organizations. "The Beckley foundation are to be congratulated for the clarity of their call for cannabis supply to be brought within government control," said Danny Kushlick of Transform. "We look forward to the same analysis being applied to heroin and cocaine."

The report is being launched at a two-day conference, which will be attended by leading figures in the drugs policy world. The conclusions are unlikely to be embraced by the government or the Conservative party, both of which are opposed to relaxing restrictions on cannabis use.

- Article from Guardian, Thursday October 2nd

Find more information at www.BeckleyFoundation.org

The Beckley Foundation Global Cannabis Commission

The United Nations Strategic Drug Policy Review

In 1998, the international community agreed a 10-year programme of activity for the control of illegal drug use and markets. These agreements were made at a United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) held in New York in June of that year, and a commitment was made to review progress in 2008. Clearly, the international community will not be able to report unequivocal success in anti-drug programmes at this review (to be held in 2009), as drugs are purer, cheaper, and more widely available than ever before.

The laws themselves are often enforced in an arbitrary fashion, leading to discrimination against oppressed minorities. Nowhere is this more evident than with cannabis, used by a conservatively estimated 160 million people worldwide. There is increasing disagreement between governments on the appropriate policies to adopt. It is therefore essential that the process of review in 2009 be as transparent as possible, and that experts from the field have the maximum opportunity to engage with the government officials and politicians who will ultimately decide on future directions.

The History of Cannabis Use and Prohibition

Cannabis came under the control of the international narcotics treaties as an afterthought, in an era when use of the drug was confined to relatively small groups in a scattering of cultures. In the last half-century, the situation has been transformed. Smoking or other use of cannabis has become a part of youth culture in country after country. To serve this demand, huge international and national illicit markets have arisen. Strenuous efforts to enforce prohibition by policing and by quasi-military operations against illicit growing and sale have largely failed in their principal objective.

Meanwhile, the efforts in themselves create substantial anguish and social harms. In the United States, about three-quarters of a million citizens are arrested every year for cannabis possession, and arrest figures are also high elsewhere.

While rigorous enforcement of the conventions without consideration of alternative paths continues in many countries, elsewhere penalties and enforcement have diminished de-facto or in law. Substantive change is hindered however by a rigid international system of regulation, which is often out of touch with the realities.

The Global Cannabis Commission

The Cannabis Commission is an international group of academics and experts in drug policy analysis, commissioned by the Beckley Foundation to produce a Report on cannabis policy in a global perspective. The Report will be finished by September 2008, in time to be taken into account in the global debate on drug policies in connection with the 2009 UNGASS evaluation. It will provide a comprehensive overview of the evidence that a policymaker at the national or international level will need to know in considering how to move beyond the present stalemate on cannabis policy.

This report will include:

- an opening chapter giving an overview of the global history of cannabis in recent decades, touching on patterns and trends in use and the cultural politics of cannabis, and laying out the plan for the rest of the book;

- an up-to-date review of what is known about the health consequences of cannabis use. This includes harms to physical and mental health, and performance effects, such as on driving. The extent of danger of cannabis is considered in a public health perspective, in a comparative frame with harms from other drugs - tobacco, alcohol, opiates, etc;

- the evidence on the effects of the current system of prohibition and control, including the size and organization of the illicit cannabis market, the costs and effectiveness of efforts to eliminate the market through police and criminal justice systems, and the effects of criminalization on users and their families;

- a review of policy initiatives at national and sub-national levels of reform within the international prohibition system intended to mitigate adverse effects. These include initiatives to decriminalize cannabis possession, to reduce penalties for use or possession, to divert to treatment or other handling, and to license and tolerate use, such as with the Dutch coffee shop system;

- an assessment of the effects of reforms within the system. The available evidence is summarized on the effects of different reforms on amount and patterns of use and harm, and on secondary adverse consequences of arrest and other enforcement;

- a review of the potential means for altering the present international convention status of cannabis, to allow controlled availability for adult use in national or sub-national regulatory regimes. While there are a variety of possible paths available for an individual country or a group of nations, primary attention is given to those most likely to be feasible in terms of norms of international law and of political realities. The chapter includes consideration of concrete provisions in a possible new Convention on cannabis, on the model of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control;

- a final chapter drawing conclusions and making recommendations on possible paths forward, towards more effective and just policies on cannabis, at both national and international levels.

To help maximise the impact and awareness of the report, we are proposing to convene a group of International Notables who will endorse the Conclusions and Recommendations, thereby adding gravitas to the Commissioners' findings.

The Cannabis Commission Report is to be published as a book by the Oxford University Press, to ensure that its impact is as widespread as possible. Besides this book, the principal findings of the Report will be collated in a separate document, together with the Conclusions and Recommendations , which will provide an accessible summary from which policymakers may inform themselves.

We believe that this Report with its Conclusions and Recommendations , could serve as a blueprint for the development of future evidence-based drug policies. We therefore hope that its analysis and its findings will reach as large an audience as possible, and that, in due course, a more beneficent cannabis policy may be developed.

This project has been convened by Amanda Neidpath,
Director of the Beckley Foundation

Beckley Foundation Seminar 2008

The Global Cannabis Commission Report Launch & Assessing International Drug Control- Preparations for UNGASS 2008

House of Lords, Westminster Palace, London 2nd & 3rd October, 2008

This seminar will see the launch of the Beckley Foundation's Global Cannabis Commission Report on the first day, and a high-level review of preparations for the UNGASS Review of Global Drug Policy in 2009 on the second. We have confirmed the attendance of a select group of experts, academics and policymakers from around the world, including representatives from the UN, EU and WHO. With such a high-powered array of participants, chairs and speakers, we look forward to a well-informed and productive debate of the current drug policy dilemmas facing policymakers.

The Cannabis Commission Report has been authored by a group of the world's leading drug policy analysts. The seminar's first day will see these authors present their findings to the public, followed by further presentations on, and a wider discussion of the cannabis issue. The second day involves presentations on some of the high-level policy reports that will help inform policymakers in the build up to and during the UNGASS review. This will be followed by a debate on the position Europe should be taking in this UNGASS review.

Attendance at the seminar is by invitation only. If you would like to attend, please contact the Beckley Foundation.

Principles Underlying the Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme

That the current global drug control mechanism, (as enshrined in the three United Nations Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988), is not achieving the core objective of significantly reducing the scale of the market for controlled substances, such as heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and cannabis.

That the negative side-effects of the implementation of this system may themselves be creating significant social problems.

That reducing the harm faced by the many individuals who use drugs, including the risk of infections, such as Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS, is not a sufficiently high priority in international policies and programmes.

That there is a growing body of evidence regarding which policies and activities are (and are not) effective in reducing drug use and associated health and social problems, and that this evidence is not sufficiently taken into account in current policy discussions, which continue to be dominated by ideological considerations.

That the current dilemmas in international drug policy can only be resolved through an honest review of progress so far, a better understanding of the complex factors that create widespread drug use, and a commitment to pursue policies that are effective.

That analysis of future policy options is unlikely to produce a clear 'correct' policy - what may be appropriate in one setting or culture may be less so in another. In addition, there are likely to be trade-offs between policy objectives (i.e. to reduce overall drug use or to reduce drug-related crime) that may be viewed differently in different countries.

That future policy should be grounded on a scientifically based scale of harm for all social drugs. This should involve a continuous review of scientific and sociological evidence of the biological harm, toxicity, mortality and dependency; the relation to violent behaviour; the relation to crime; the costs to the health services; the general impact on others; and the total economic impact of the use of each individual drug on society.

- Cannabis Culture

Heroin gets cheaper, and is NOT SAFER

More heroin is being shipped, driven or flown into South Africa, and a senior organised crime researcher has warned that plummeting street prices and an "oversupply" of the potentially lethal narcotic mean more South Africans can now afford a dangerous drug habit.

While tik is favoured among addicts in the Western Cape, a mix of heroin and dagga nicknamed "ungah" is becoming increasingly popular.

"Experts fear that the noxious mix (ungah) may soon overtake the methamphetamine or 'tik' market in South Africa. At less than $4 (about R35.30) a fix, consumers have little problem (feeding) their addiction," said senior Institute for Security Studies (ISS) researcher Annette Hübschle.

'Experts fear the noxious mix may overtake the tik market'

Hübschle, who works with the ISS's Organised Crime and Money Laundering Programme, recently produced a report titled Chasing The Dragon: The Rising Demand For Heroin In Southern Africa.

In her report, Hübschle said that heroin was fast becoming the "drug of choice" for youth and adults in many southern African countries.

She said there had traditionally always been a demand for heroin in South Africa, but that had, in the past decade, spread to other southern African countries including Tanzania and Zanzibar.

While some of the heroin arriving in South Africa was then "transhipped" to the US and Europe, Hübschle said, those markets were "largely saturated" and thus drug cartels have turned their attention to emerging markets in developing countries.

Andreas Plüddemann, a senior scientist with the Medical Research Council's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Unit, said there had been a "notable" increase in heroin use in Mpumalanga.

Plüddemann said another trend has been the sale and increasing use of a cheap form of heroin known as "sugars" in Durban.

According to figures supplied by the South African Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use, 3 058 patients were admitted to 29 rehabilitation centres across the Western Cape during the second half of 2007.

Nearly 13 percent of these patients reported that heroin was their primary substance of abuse. The average age range of those who described heroin as their favoured drug was 23 to 27. In all 21 percent of Western Cape heroin users were female.

- Cape Times

Cops bust selling confiscated drugs

Three policemen have been arrested in Sunnyside with drugs with a street value of almost a million during a crime intelligence operation.

The policemen, who are all constables, are alleged to be part of a drug syndicate which operates out of OR Tambo International Airport.

Sources close to the investigation have told the Pretoria News that the syndicate is allegedly involved in the theft of narcotics seized during anti-crime operations at the airport.

It is believed that once confiscated, the drugs are then sold to a drug cartel which is involved in the sale of massive amounts of illegal narcotics in Pretoria.

The policemen, who live in Soshanguve, Hammanskraal and Thembisa, were arrested while allegedly selling stolen drugs to undercover operatives from the national crime intelligence's covert collection directorate and the national organised crime unit.

Crime intelligence spokesperson, Senior Superintendent Tummi Golding, confirmed the arrests.

She said intelligence agents were conducting routine operations when they received information about the three policemen who were travelling to Sunnyside with a consignment of narcotics.

"Police officers began following up on the information and spotted the men on the highway. They followed them to Sunnyside, contacting the organised crime unit for support. When they reached Sunnyside, they set up a sting operation and arrested the men when they tried to sell the drugs to undercover operatives," she said.

Golding said a search of the suspects' car, which is believed to have been stolen earlier in the month, led to the discovery of drugs with a street value of R800 000.

"Among the stolen goods was 20kg ephedrine, which is used in the manufacturing of potentially lethal drugs such as speed and Tik.

"Police also seized dozens of boxes of razors and antibiotics which had been seized during earlier raids at the airport .

"The boxes had been used to smuggle drugs into South Africa," she said.

Golding confirmed that the policemen were believed to be involved in the theft and sale of drugs to a narcotics syndicates operating in Pretoria. She said the investigation was looking into allegations that the policemen stole narcotics from the SAPS airport offices after they were seized during anti-crime operations.

Golding said when police raided the suspects' homes they seized even more boxes of razors and antibiotics.

"They were the same boxes which were used to smuggle narcotics into South Africa."

The men are due to appear in court soon on charges of dealing in narcotics and theft.

- Pretoria News

Booze-free pay day may cut crime

ALCOHOL-free public spaces and businesses not selling alcohol on pay day were suggested as means of reducing crime at a conference yesterday in Midrand.

Researchers, business groups, and the Human Rights Commission came together at the Action for a Safe South Africa conference, facilitated by the Institute for Democracy in South Africa (Idasa), to analyse reasons why crime had risen despite higher government spending, and to suggest how community groups and individuals could work together to fight back.

In line with the aims of the conference, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research researcher Barbara Holtmann envisaged a future South Africa where communities were safer, where public transport was improved, where children could play safely and where women did not have to feel that night time was a curfew.

To reach this ideal, Holtmann suggested the idea of a booze-free pay day. She said that this, combined with retailers providing substantial discounts on things like basic foods or school shoes around pay day, could help re-channel the approximately R41billion a year that is spent on alcohol and alcohol marketing.

According to Holtmann, about R16 of every R100 that changed hands in South Africa is spent on alcohol.

Research also showed that about 47percent of murder victims tested positive for alcohol at the time of death, as did 66 percent of trauma victims, while 50 percent of rape victims were found to be either drunk or high at the time of the incident.

Questioning the perception that gun ownership could lead to personal safety, she said that about 66 firearms a day were lost or stolen from their owners. Police believed that each lost or stolen firearm was then used to commit at least eight crimes.

Holtmann also questioned the increased use of security companies in neighbourhoods, saying that these may have the e ffect of moving opportuni stic crime to other areas. In other cases, she said, their presence could lead to criminals changing their tactics. For example, when they robbed properties, criminals may be more likely to be armed.

SA Human Rights Commission chairman Jody Kollapen recognised another side effect of crime.

He said people were isolating themselves to the point where even humanitarian instincts, like stopping to help someone in distress, were moderated by a fear of crime.

“That’s not the kind of people we want to be.”

Kollapen said that even though government spending on crime had risen to R68bn at present, up 1500 percent from 1990, “we are no safer”.

South Africa’s dysfunctional past had to be taken into account when seeking solutions to present problems, he said, but it should also be remembered that this country has a history of overcoming formidable obstacles.

A Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation representative, David Bruce, said poverty was one of the main contributing factors of crime.

Releasing a study on the causes of crime, commissioned by the Department of Safety and Security, Bruce said a lack of parenting skills was flagged as a contributing factor to crime.

Another factor contributing to a rise in serious offences was that many South Africans believed crime and violence were normal characteristics of society.

Business Against Crime chairman Siphiwe Nzimande said business was working towards helping make crime “very costly” for perpetrators.

He said businesses could assist police in their investigations by installing CCTV cameras, and also making sure that the images provided were clear and gave a full picture of the criminals in action.

On the subject of stolen vehicles, he said that most cars stolen in South Africa were not exported to neighbouring countries, but were reregistered in South Africa or sold as parts.

He hoped a new polymer microdot car identification system, which insurers were showing interest in, would reduce car theft and the market for stolen parts.

The convention will be open to the public at Vodaworld on Thursday. Desmond Dube, who initiated the Million Man March Against Crime in June, is the master of ceremonies. — Sapa

SAFER than alcohol!

What does 'Enjoying Heineken Responsibly' really mean?

We think it is important to inform and educate our consumers about all aspects of our products and brands. This website is full of practical information about enjoying Heineken responsibly. We hope you’ll find our advice, answers and guidelines useful. But before you read on, remember:

• alcohol is only for adults over the legal drinking age
• limit yourself to one, maximum two drinks a day if you’re a woman and two to three drinks a day if you’re a man
• never drink before or when driving or when operating machinery
• never drink if you’re pregnant
• never mix alcohol with medicine

Putting a couple of-age drinking men together, with some clubs sticks and weapons would be fine by the producers of Heineken

Exclusive: breathalyser tests expose

After a record number of drunk driving arrests during the last long weekend in KwaZulu-Natal, The Independent on Saturday decided to conduct tests on three commercial breathalysers and the official "Drager" unit.

The test results revealed that it took five Black Label beers to get one of our test subjects over the legal limit while the other had still not reached the legal limit after having six Castle Lites.

In light of these tests a Durban district surgeon is concerned that drivers who are incapable of driving are still able to beat the breathalyser at roadblocks.

During the last long weekend 192 drivers were arrested for drinking and driving in KwaZulu-Natal.

A total of 19 taxi drivers with taxi loads of commuters were among those arrested for drunken driving.

Durban Metro Police spokesperson Senior Superintendent Thozamile Tyala said some drivers were more than five times over the limit of 0.05g (0.24 mg/l).

Tyala said it was even more frightening that taxi drivers who were supposed to adhere to the legal limit of 0.02g (0.11 mg/l) had also been well over the limit.

"Similarly, we had some taxi drivers who we caught driving with a full load of passengers. This is indeed sad as these commuters' lives are being put into the hands of these irresponsible drivers."

Durban District Surgeon Dr Mike van Schalkwyk said it was "frightening" that some people were able to consume large amounts of alcohol and still be under the legal limit.

"It is indeed strange but true that some motorists are able to drink a six pack of beers without testing illegal. It is a shocking reality."

- The Independent

Cut cannabis use by selling it at the post office: expert

CANNABIS would be sold legally in post offices in packets that warn against its effects under a proposal outlined by the head of a Sydney drug and alcohol clinic.

The director of the alcohol and drug service at St Vincent's Hospital, Alex Wodak, said Australia needed to learn from the tobacco industry and the US Prohibition era in coming to terms with his belief that cannabis use would replace cigarette consumption over the next decade. "The general principal is that it's not sustainable that we continue to give criminals and corrupt police a monopoly to sell a drug that is soon going to be consumed by more people than tobacco," he said.

"I don't want to see that [industry] fall into the hands of tobacco companies or rapacious businessmen.

"I'd like to see it fall into the hands of the failed business people Australia seems so good at producing or the Australia Post that seems so successful in driving away customers."

He made the proposal for taxed and legalised cannabis at the Mardi Grass festival in Nimbin on Sunday, but said he would be happy to express his opinion to the Federal Government. A spokesman for the Minister for Health, Nicola Roxon, said the proposal would not be considered.

Experts in the fields of drug and law enforcement yesterday opposed the suggestion, saying there was insufficient evidence that legalisation would not increase harmful use or lead to other law enforcement issues.

"It's really going beyond the evidence to say regulatory control would effectively reduce adverse effects," said a deputy director of the National Drug Research Institute, Simon Lenton. "We don't know what the effects would be."

Dr Wodak believed his idea could reduce cannabis consumption, based on comparisons between consumption in Amsterdam and San Francisco. He said regulated availability would also reduce people's exposure to other illicit drugs when buying the product. His model would make cannabis advertising illegal, ban political donations from the cannabis industry, and demand proof of age on purchase.

He chose Australia Post for distribution as it could be regulated and had branches across the country. "What I'm talking about is not pro-cannabis … it's about reducing cannabis harm." - Sydney Morning Herald

Drunk pedestrians a walking danger to themselves

Pedestrians remain the most vulnerable road users but are often their own worst enemies, drunkenly wandering near roads or trying to take a shortcut across highways amid high-speed traffic.

In the past fortnight, two pedestrians were killed on the N1 and N2 when they risked crossing the dangerous, busy highways at night.

The Department of Community Safety says 27 pedestrians have been killed on the province's roads since the beginning of the year. Of those, 13 were killed on the N1 and N2.

Department spokesperson Makhaya Manie said pedestrian deaths were an increasing problem. The department had embarked on numerous campaigns at schools and among communities alongside the highways and the R300, but was struggling to get the message across. Pedestrians who crossed highways instead of taking a longer, safer way round over bridges were particularly resistant.

During the last festive season, 375 pedestrians were killed

He said they would shortly embark on a winter campaign to highlight the issue of pedestrian visibility on the roads.

Cape Town Traffic Services spokesperson Merle Lourens said they were investigating the possibility of building two pedestrian bridges across the R300.

Countrywide, there are 700 000 road accidents each year, and 13 000 fatalities. These accidents and fatalities cost the economy R43-billion and pedestrians are the third largest group of accident victims.

During the last festive season, 375 pedestrians were killed, the largest single grouping among the overall death toll of 1 223. Over the Easter weekend, 65 pedestrians were killed countrywide.

A Department of Transport spokesperson said pedestrians remained the most vulnerable road users and the number of fatalities involving pedestrians was unacceptably high. Alcohol played a major role in the problem.

'Motorists are urged to be on the lookout for pedestrians at night and when visibility is poor'

The dangers of drinking and walking were tragically evident because the high intake of alcohol could seriously slow reactions.

"By far the greater percentage of pedestrians injured or killed on our roads are found to have high levels of alcohol in their bloodstreams at the time of the accident," said the spokesperson.

The focus of enforcement measures was multi-pronged, with more officers deployed at holiday spots, townships and villages. "Motorists are urged to be on the lookout for pedestrians at night and when visibility is poor, especially during holiday seasons, because pedestrians under the influence of alcohol are a walking danger.

"Pedestrians often under-estimate the speed and over-estimate the distance of an approaching vehicle when crossing the road. This is made worse by the consumption of alcohol."

Arrive Alive has road safety tips for pedestrians and motorists:

Always cross at intersections or at pedestrian bridges and crossings where drivers expect to find pedestrians.

Walk directly across the street. Do not walk diagonally. The shorter the distance crossed the less time you are at risk of danger.

Try not to walk on the road because this puts you at risk.

If you do have to walk on the roadside, always walk on the right-hand side, facing oncoming traffic.

Cross only when it is safe to do so, and look in both directions and listen to oncoming traffic while crossing.

Wear bright-coloured clothing at night to increase your visibility to motorists.

Avoid crossing the freeway because vehicles travel at very high speeds. It is illegal for pedestrians to be on the freeway.

At a pedestrian traffic light wait until the little green man appears. Then look right, left and right again before crossing. Look out for impatient motorists.

Motorists should look out for unsteady or staggering pedestrians who might be drunk.

- Cape Argus

Alarming situation of alcohol, drug abuse

Pre-scoolers in rural areas are being treated for binge drinking along with a growing number of primary school children and teenagers, yet community leaders say the majority of "potential alcoholics" are not getting help.

They also fear the "very alarming" situation is getting worse.

In some cases seven-year-olds have had to be weaned off alcohol.

On Tuesday Brenda Pienaar, CEO of the SA National Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence in George, said "more and more children are drinking from a younger age".

Pienaar said while no official statistics were available yet, the number of children and teenagers seeking treatment in the George area since last year had increased from about 20 to 35 per month.

But, she said, for every child that came in for treatment, 17 others were drinking but not seeking help. This meant every month nearly 600 children were left untreated.

"These younger children get drunk on weekends. We've treated a seven-year-old but the majority are 10- and 11-year-olds.

These children are binge drinkers. Statistics show that 40 percent of those who start drinking before (the age of) 15 will become addicted to alcohol."

Social workers from the council had also heard pre-school children describe how they apparently smoked and drank with their parents.

Pienaar said poverty coupled with family disintegration often resulted in substance abuse.

"Alcohol is a major problem among adults and has spread to their children. Crystal methamphetamine (tik) is also a problem among the children."

She said alcohol and drug use resulted in less control over one's actions and could lead to violence and promiscuous behaviour.

Zackary Johnston, a member of the Theewaterskloof Emerging Farmers Association in Caledon, said he believed "a couple of hundred" children were drinking.

"There are definitely some pre-schoolers and those younger than 10 who are drinking. The parents don't seem to worry about the age of their children; they just give them alcohol and turn them into potential alcoholics. The children are also using tik and it seems the situation can't be controlled. The children are beyond their parents' control."

Johnston had tried to get parents involved in a community project which focused on protecting their children but he said he had no support from them.

He said last week's murder of 11-year-old Roseline Majola on a Joubertina farm allegedly by five girls and a boy aged between nine and 15 years, who police said had been drinking at the time, showed "the underlying problem of alcohol abuse".

Majola was stoned to death after an alleged argument about a bottle of wine. Her aunt was quoted in local tabloids as saying the family knew Majola often drank with friends.

Glynis Rhodes, of Women on Farms, said drinking among children from farming communities was a known problem.

"Just today (Wednesday) I heard of a 14-year-old who's a binge drinker. I think this is a cry for help. In the case of seven-year-olds, what bothers me is how that child accesses alcohol. Either the parents allow the child to drink, are too intoxicated to notice, or alcohol is too freely available," she said. - Cape Times

Police & Drug Crimes

Successful operation? Two joints? Qualified discharging a gun?

NO.

Clearly making South Africa SAFER from harmful drugs...
Check out this time line of traffic at South Africa's largest airport.

Only a small quantity of cannabis and 3g of hashish was found at the clubs.

Mentoor on Monday told e.tv that the raids were conducted according to "standard procedure".

The small amount of dagga/cannabis that was found in the 3 pubs last week, was allegedly planted by cops.

Stellenbosch: Yesterday the owner of Bohemia restaurant gave footage to Kaapse Son where according to staff it can clearly be seen how cops plant something under the bar. The people that were at Bohemia the night of the raid, say they suspect two guys that were hanging around the pub before the raid were cops. The video shows clearly how two large built guys stand around and lurk and bend slightly as the cops break through the doors.

One of the men then takes something from his pants pocket and messes with something under the bar. After that the two men stand up and simply stroll straight out of the pub - while chaos breaks out in the pub. Shortly after that a uniformed cop walks straight for the spot at the bar and picks something up that looks like dagga, and inspects it from all angels. Roussouw Botha, co-owner of Bohemia, says the CCTV in the pub was installed in the pub because of Police recommendations.

He says the latest video footage is now going to be used in the investigation against the police. In the mean time owners of the Bohemia restaurant, Springbok Pub and Mystic Boer have already laid criminal and civil charges against the police. Yesterday members of the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) gathered all the CCTV footage and evidence.

Many students involved have already laid charges against the police. The ICD said yesterday that many statements had been lodged at local police station by people who say they were incorrectly handled by police in last week's raid.

Botha says: "We have already decided to work with the police, because we are also not in favour of people who sell drugs or use them on our premises." "I have already chided many people in my pub who wanted to do that here" ...

Yummy Stories - Cops Plant Drugs - In Die Son

Booze, unborn babies - a true horror story

South African wines are recognised as among the finest in the world, South African Breweries (SAB) is the second largest beer company in the world and local drinks are sold internationally.

But, while business is booming, the South African drinking culture unfortunately also has a number of black spots.

For one, it is generally accepted that alcohol is a leading cause of the carnage that occurs on the country's roads. Liquor also plays a part in domestic violence and neglect.

However, the biggest alcohol-induced problem in South Africa is foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).

FAS is prevalent among children of mothers who consume alcohol during their pregnancies.

FASfacts, a Western Cape-based NGO committed to FAS education, says the issue is not the volume of alcohol so much as the fact that alcohol is consumed, which can cause a baby to be born with foetal alcohol syndrome.

Babies with FAS can be mentally challenged, stunted in growth or have major organ defects; alternatively they can be relatively normal children but display hyperactive behaviour patterns and poor concentration.

According to Professor Denis Viljoen, head of the Foundation for Alcohol Related Research in Cape Town, foetal alcohol syndrome is as great a threat to the health of the SA population as HIV/Aids.

Latest research in the Western and Northern Cape, as well as certain parts of Gauteng, has shown that between 4,5 percent and 12,2 percent of schoolgoing children have FAS.

"The incidence of FAS in first world countries ranges between 0,1 percent and 0,3 percent, which underscores the extent of the problem in South Africa. We have the highest extent of reported incidence of FAS in the world.

"The World Health Organisation recently identified birth defects as the most important cause of death, disease and future disability in developing countries.

"In South Africa, FAS is by far the most common birth defect. The incidence of FAS is higher than all other birth defects combined."

Dr Martin Fisher, a sociologist and consultant to FASfacts, says many social problems in South Africa can be related to FAS.

"Persons unlucky enough to be born with FAS in many cases have little impulse control. In many instances, the part of the brain responsible for reflection on personal behaviour and consequences of actions can be adversely affected by FAS," says Fisher.

"Without an impulse-checking function, these people are susceptible to random acts of violence, drug-taking and sexual abandon."

FASfacts is one of the major organisations responsible for preventing the occurrence of FAS, something it tackles through education programmes with adults and teenagers in the Western Cape.

"Fortunately, we have succeeded in highlighting the problem among various institutions which support us financially, making education programmes possible," says Francois Grobbelaar, CEO of FASfacts.

"The Western Cape government, the SA Wine Industry Trust, the Cape Winelands District Municipality and the KWV are some of our donors.

"All realise the devastating effects of FAS in their respective communities. Since 2004, FASfacts has reached 145 000 people in our education programmes. But the high figures of FAS prevalence show we still have a long way to go."

Rural areas

But why is FAS so common in these mainly rural Western and Northern Cape communities?

Santi Basson, an independent rural development consultant who is involved in various rural upliftment projects, says poverty and desperation are the main reasons.

"There are historical reasons, such as the notorious dopstelsel (dop system), which created a culture of alcohol use among rural communities," says Basson.

"But today, poverty and desperation lead to a lack of self-esteem. And in many of these impoverished communities, drinking is the only thing to do.

"During my research, I found pregnant women drinking out of ignorance about the effects of alcohol on the unborn child," she says.

"They assumed the alcohol content of beer to be negligible and believed it improved lactation. One cannot therefore come to any other conclusion than a desperate need for more education on FAS and its full spectrum of effects. The really sad thing about this social and health crisis called FAS is that it is 100 percent preventable," says Viljoen.

Grobbelaar says organisations such as FASfacts are facing a massive task by attempting to turn a surging tide.

"It is only by bringing the extent of this ticking time bomb to the attention of the broader society that awareness of FAS will reach the desired level where we will receive support from the entire country to address this crisis properly.

"FAS isn't restricted to a few rural villages. The social impact affects everyone," he says

With the international awareness of FAS in South Africa, the local liquor industry remains tainted.

Together with national government, which receives more than R3-billion a year from the industry through taxes and duties, the industry has to act on eradicating a monster it played a role - albeit unwittingly - in creating.

Joubert is an independent media consultant in the SA wine industry and a wine writer.

- Pretoria News

Manto: Promoting a healthy lifestyle not hypocritical

She said she believed that the proposed health-warning labels on alcohol products would reduce alcohol abuse and dependence.

Within the next year alcoholic beverages would carry health messages "highlighting the negative effects of alcohol consumption".

Asked if she would consider an outright ban on alcohol to eliminate alcohol abuse instead of simply increasing prices, she said such a ban was against the Constitution.

"You have the right to kill yourself if you want to," she said...

A reduction in alcohol consumption, she said, would also lead to a reduction in violence and road accidents.

- M&G

Debunking the Hemp Conspiracy Theory

The evidence for a "hemp conspiracy" just doesn't stand up. It is far more likely that cannabis was outlawed because of racism and cultural warfare.

How cannabis was prohibited

Twentieth-century cannabis prohibition first reared its head in countries where white minorities ruled black majorities: South Africa, where it's known as dagga, banned it in 1911,

and Jamaica, then a British colony, outlawed ganja in 1913. They were followed by Canada, Britain and New Zealand, which added cannabis to their lists of illegal narcotics in the 1920s. Canada's pot law was enacted in 1923, several years before there were any reports of people actually smoking it there. It was largely the brainchild of Emily F. Murphy, a feminist but racist judge who wrote anti-Asian, anti-cannabis rants under the pseudonym "Janey Canuck."

... AlterNet

TB patients in isolation order dagga by phone

The management of Port Elizabeth's Jose Pearson Tuberculosis (TB) Hospital has taken steps to crack down on dagga smoking by patients with drug-resistant strains of TB.

Provincial health department spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said on Wednesday that some patients with extensively or multidrug-resistant TB being held in isolation have been using their cellphones to order the drug. Suppliers would then toss packets to them over the hospital fence. The hospital management has already met police on the issue, and a meeting with patients will follow. "We will be telling the patients that if they continue taking the substance, it will be extremely dangerous for their health," Kupelo said. He said smoking is a cause of TB, and the department discourages the habit. "We also want to appeal to those who supply them with this kind of thing [dagga] to stop it," he said.

Patients have also been obtaining liquor and dangerous weapons the same way. "They don't want to stay at the hospital. I think this is an attempt to assist them to find their way out," he said. He said security at Jose Pearson has been stepped up following the escape of a number of patients last year. One patient absconded last week, using a knife to threaten security staff, but was brought back after the department obtained a court order. -- Sapa

Source: MG

How does cannabis compare to other drugs?

*Source of graph data: http://www.ndsn.org/AUGUST94/NICOTINE.html

Scientists want new drug rankings

The drug classification system in the UK is not "fit for purpose" and should be scrapped, scientists have said.

They have drawn up an alternative system which they argue more accurately reflects the harm that drugs do.

The new ranking system places alcohol and tobacco in the upper half of the league table, ahead of cannabis and several Class A drugs such as ecstasy.

The study, published in The Lancet, has been welcomed by a team reviewing drug research for the government.

The Academy of Medical Sciences group plans to put its recommendations to ministers in the autumn.

I would say that on balance, many 'illegal' drugs are less harmful than the two 'legal' drugs available Chris, Shropshire

Suggested rating of drugs according to harm done

A new commission is also due to undertake a three-year review of general government drug policy.

The new system has been developed by a team led by Professor David Nutt, from the University of Bristol, and Professor Colin Blakemore, chief executive of the Medical Research Council.

It assesses drugs on the harm they do to the individual, to society and whether or not they induce dependence.

A panel of experts were asked to rate 20 different drugs on nine individual categories, which were combined to produce an overall estimate of harm.

In order to provide familiar benchmarks, five legal drugs, including tobacco and alcohol were included in the assessment. Alcohol was rated the fifth most dangerous substance, and tobacco ninth.

Heroin was rated as the most dangerous drug, followed by cocaine and barbiturates. Ecstasy, however, rated only 18th, while cannabis was 11th.

Arbitrary ranking

CURRENT DRUG CLASSIFICATION Class A Cocaine/crack Heroin Ecstasy LSD Magic mushrooms Crystal meth (pending) Class A/B Amphetamines Class C Cannabis Ketamine Drugs key facts Crystal meth to be Class A

The researchers said the current ABC system was too arbitrary, and failed to give specific information about the relative risks of each drug.

It also gave too much importance to unusual reactions, which would only affect a tiny number of users.

Professor Nutt said people were not deterred by scare messages, which simply served to undermine trust in warnings about the danger of drugs.

He said: "The current system is not fit for purpose. Let's treat people as adults. We should have a much more considered debate how we deal with dangerous drugs."

He highlighted the fact that one person a week in the UK dies from alcohol poisoning, while less than 10 deaths a year are linked to ecstasy use.

Professor Blakemore said it was clear that current drugs' policies were not working.

"We face a huge problem. Illegal substances have never been more easily available, or more widely abused."

He said the beauty of the new system, unlike the current version, was that it could easily be updated to reflect new research.

Professor Leslie Iversen, a member of the Academy of Medical Sciences group considering drug policy, said the new system was a "landmark paper".

He said: "It is a real step towards evidence-based classification of drugs."

Professor Iversen said the fact that 500,000 young people routinely took ecstasy every weekend proved that current drug policy was in need of reform.

Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker said: "We have no intention of reviewing the drug classification system.

"Our priority is harm reduction and to achieve this we focus on enforcement, education and treatment."

He said there had been "unparalleled investment" of £7.5 billion since 1998, which had contributed to a 21% reduction in overall drug misuse in the last nine years and a fall of 20% in drug related crime since 2004.

But he added: "The government is not complacent and will continue to work with all of our partners to build on this progress."

MOST HARMFUL DRUGS

BBC

Are you an alcoholic?

You only have to worry that you are becoming an alcoholic if you find yourself drinking hard liquor on your own at nine in the morning, right? Apparently not. David Bayever, a Wits pharmacist and Acting Chair of the Central Drug Authority says that if you drink at as little as two litres of alcohol a weekend you are at risk of becoming an alcoholic.

But surely drinking two litres of beer and two litres of vodka are completely different things?

"Obviously, there are many variables including age and alcohol tolerance," says Bayever "but you have to start somewhere".

So how much is too much?

According to Bayever, two litres is a rough estimate. So while there is no guarantee that drinking two litres of beer a weekend will make you an alcoholic (there can’t be any argument about the vodka), it will certainly put you at risk of becoming one.

While it is common knowledge that gender, to a certain degree, affects your alcohol tolerance — larger males generally being able to drink more — it is not widely known that your age can affect the likelihood of you becoming an addict.

It is estimated that it can take between five and 15 years for an adult to become an addict. Teenagers on the other hand can become addicts in the short period of five to 15 weeks, says Bayever.

Paul Adriaanse of Alcohol and Drug Concerns suggests that you can’t really give a blanket figure of two litres because there are many criteria and you need to look at what the alcohol consumption is doing "physically and psychologically and what effect it is having on the environment".

He says that while drinking two litres a weekend may very well mean that you have a problem, everyone has different tolerance levels and these levels increase with increased consumption.

High-risk binge drinking

"You need to start worrying if you are staying home from work or if there is a change in your temperament, if you have reduced inhibitions or impaired judgment and if you are suffering from 'alcoholic blackouts'," he says.

The Medical Research Council regards 'binge drinking' as 'high-risk' drinking behaviour. However, it also suggests that 'low-risk' drinking can in fact be healthy for certain groups. It defines 'low-risk' drinking as four units per day for males and two units per day for females, for not more than five days of a week.

If one unit is a 340ml can of beer, then four units is 1360ml. The difference therefore, in the case of men, between what is regarded as healthy and what is regarded as damaging is just under two cans of beer.

Alcohol is the primary drug of abuse in South Africa, with approximately 7.5 percent of the population engaging in weekend 'binge drinking' and Red Cross Children’s hospital has estimated that the total cost to the economy annually — including the cost of inability to work and child abuse — is around R20–billion.

To put this into perspective, at least 400,000 RDP houses could be built each year with the money that alcohol abuse costs the country. If you are drinking two litres of beer each weekend (assuming that that is all that you are drinking) you are probably spending about R3120 on beer each year. Could your money be better spent? - Health iAfrica

The Cancer Drug

Medical -- Ahh, cancer. One learns so much from being diagnosed with a death-sentence disease. Of course, 95% of it is stuff you would rather not know, but that other 5% is downright interesting. For example, "America's Next Top Model" is much more fun to watch when you've lost 15 pounds without trying. During chemotherapy, vanilla smells good, but vanilla wafers taste disgusting. And eyelashes really do have a purpose; without them, my eyes are a dust magnet.

But the most compelling fact I learned was about my friends. Not just what you would expect: how they cooked for my family and picked up my kids and took me to doctors and pretended not to notice how bad I looked and, most important, that I could not -- cannot -- survive without them.

No, what really shocked me was how many of my old, dear, married, parenting, job-holding friends smoke pot. I am not kidding. People I never expected dropped by to deliver joints and buds and private stash. The DEA could have set a security cam over my front door and made some serious dents in the cannabis trade. The poets and musicians were not a surprise, but lawyers? CEOs? Republicans? Across the ideological spectrum, a lot of my buddies are stoners. Who knew?

OK, I admit it, in college I smoked dope with the rest of them. I mean, everybody was doing it -- an excuse I do not allow my children -- and at parties I didn't want to be uncool. Plus, I felt my only other option was alcohol, and the sweet drinks I liked were too fattening. But that was a long time ago, and since then I have learned to drink bourbon straight, get high on life and appreciate the advantages of not doing anything you wouldn't want your kids to do.

I thought all my friends felt the same. Boy, was I wrong. When I surfaced from my chemo haze enough to care about anyone else, I was curious. Why do so many 40- and 50-somethings still get high? I asked my suppliers. Pain was the No. 1 answer. Not just the psychic angst of being mothers and fathers to teenagers, but real physical pain. We're all beginning to fall apart, and for those who imbibe, a couple of tokes really take the edge off the sciatica, rotator cuff injuries, irritable bowel syndrome and migraines.

The second biggest reason was anxiety. Perhaps we can blame politics for middle-age pot use: the war, the environment, the loss of our civil liberties, little things like that.

Obviously some of us use drugs to ease the lives of quiet desperation we never thought we would have back when we were getting stoned the first time. Our drug use now is really the same as in college. Then I got high to relax, to gain confidence, to forget I was an overweight, mediocre college student terrified of the future. Now we get stoned to relax, forget our disappointing careers and mask our terror of not just our own future but the future for our kids as well. Is it so different from my dad coming home from work and having a couple of martinis? Or my mother and those little prescribed pills she took when she felt "nervous"? At least -- we can rationalize -- cannabis is all natural.

I spoke to my oncologist about the pros and cons of cannabis use for cancer patients. He said he was part of a study 25 years ago on the effects of pot on nausea, joint pain and fatigue caused by chemotherapy. It worked then, he said; it really helped some people. But now they have great new drugs, such as Emend, dexamethasone and Ativan, that keep the nausea and other pain at bay. He said the people who use pot now do it because they like it. Or maybe they use it because they would rather support a farm in Humboldt County than a huge pharmaceutical conglomerate.

After chemo No. 1, I was violently ill. Anti-nausea drugs notwithstanding, I was hugging the porcelain throne. My body did not want to be poisoned; I guess it liked cancer better. I was willing to try anything, so I lit up. It helped. A lot. I collapsed on the couch, I zoned out watching "Project Runway," I was able to take deep breaths without puking.

My 15-year-old daughter was shocked. The look on her face was proof that her elementary school D.A.R.E. program had really done its job. A friend -- not a supplier or a user -- explained to her it was just to make me feel better and that if it worked, wouldn't that be great? My daughter reluctantly agreed, but I knew she didn't mean it. I had come full circle in my life -- the next time I had a toke, I stood in my bathroom with the fan on, blowing smoke out the window, but instead of my parents, I was scared my kids would find out I was smoking dope again.

The biggest pain of cancer is the gnawing, scratching, bleeding dread that they didn't find it all, that you didn't go to the doctor soon enough, that it is growing out of control at this very moment. My doctor recommended meditation. Yeah, right, I thought, more time sitting quietly trying not to think about dying. I had carpool for that. Meanwhile, I lost all taste for alcohol. Even half a glass of wimpy white wine could make me toss my cookies, so I turned to my friend Mary Jane occasionally, only when nothing else would do.

In the middle of one post-chemo night, my husband was out of town and I was sick and I got up and tried to get the little pipe lit and take one hit so I could maybe sleep. My son heard me struggling and he came into my bedroom. He lit the match for me and showed me where to put my finger on the "carburetor," the hole on the side of the pipe, to make it draw. I was too grateful to ask him how he knew all this. He stayed with me until I felt better. It was mother-son bonding in a new way.

Just another reason to say: Thank you, cancer.

By Diana Wagman Source: Los Angeles Times

Diana Wagman, a professor at Cal State Long Beach, is the author of the novels "Skin Deep," "Spontaneous" and "Bump."

Note: Cancer opens one's eyes to the many facets of cannabis.

'Cannabis' brain tumour drug hope

An ingredient in marijuana may be useful for treating brain cancers, say Spanish researchers from Madrid.

Chemicals called cannabinoids could starve tumours to death by halting the growth of blood vessels that feed it, the Complutense University team hope.

By studying mice, the team has shown for the first time how these chemicals block vessel growth.

Their study, published in Cancer Research, also shows the treatment appears to work in humans.

This research provides an important new lead compound for anti-cancer drugs Dr Richard Sullivan, Cancer Research UK

Glioblastoma multiforme is the most common brain cancer and is notoriously difficult to treat.

It can evade destruction by radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery.

Dr Manuel Guzmán and colleagues set out to determine whether they could prevent the cancer from growing by destroying its blood supply.

Previous research has shown cannabinoids block the growth of blood vessels in mice, but little is known about how these chemicals do this and whether they might do the same in human tumours.

Starving tumours

The researchers first gave mice cancer resembling the human form of brain cancer they wanted to study.

They then treated the mice with cannabinoid and examined the genes of the mice.

The activity of genes associated with blood vessel growth in tumours through the production of a substance called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was reduced.

Cannabinoids appeared to stifle VEGF production by increasing the activity of a substance that controls cell death, called ceramide.

Lead researcher Dr Guzmán said: "As far as we know, this is the first report showing that ceramide depresses VEGF pathway by interfering with VEGF production."

Their next challenge was to see if cannabinoids had the same effect in humans.

They took samples from two patients with glioblastoma multiforme who had not responded to surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment.

Treatment for humans

Samples were taken before and after the patients were treated with cannabinoid solution infused directly into the tumour.

In both patients, VEGF levels in the tumour were reduced following treatment with cannabinoids.

Although they only looked at two patients, the researchers hope their findings could lead to new treatments.

"The present findings provide a novel pharmacological target for cannabinoid-based therapies," said Dr Guzmán.

Dr Richard Sullivan, Head of Clinical Programmes at Cancer Research UK, said: "This research provides an important new lead compound for anti-cancer drugs targeting cancer's blood supply.

"Although this work is at an early stage of development, other research has already demonstrated that VEGF is an important drug target for a range of cancers.

"The key now will be to show further activity in pre-clinical cancer models, find out in which combinations cannabinoids show greatest activity and formulate a product that can be tested in man.

"It is important to note that cannabinoids would need to generate very strong data in the future as there are already a number of VEGF inhibitors in clinical development," he said. - BBC

• Medical NEWS Today
• New Scientist

• SETHGROUP

In "Cannabis extract makes brain tumors shrink, halts growth of blood vessels," Medical News Today gives other details about the tests done on human patients.

[The researchers] selected two patients who had glioblastoma multiforme and had not responded to chemotherapy, radiotherapy or surgery. The scientists took samples from them before and after treating them with a cannabinoids solution -- this was administered directly into the tumor.

Amazingly, both patients experienced reduced VEGF levels in the tumor as a result of treatment with cannabinoids.

The researchers said that the results were encouraging. In order to be sure about their findings they need to carry out a larger study, they said.

Here you can see the effect of the treatment on the two patients with brain cancers. VEGFR-2 activation is shown in green and its expression in red. Cell nuclei are stained in blue. Relative values of activated-VEGFR-2 pixels are displayed in parentheses and total-VEGFR-2 pixels in square brackets are given for the two patients per cell nucleus. (Credit: Cancer Research).

For more information, you also can read this news release from the American Association for Cancer Research, "Cannabis ingredient inhibits VEGF pathway required for brain tumor blood vessels."

The research work has been published by the Cancer Research journal under the title "Cannabinoids Inhibit the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Pathway in Gliomas." Here are two links to the abstract and to the full paper (PDF format, 7 pages, 732 KB). The above illustration comes from this paper.

Sources: Shaoni Bhattacharya, New Scientist, August 15, 2004; Medical News Today, August 15, 2004; American Association for Cancer Research news release, via EurekAlert!, August 15, 2004; Cancer Research, Vol. 64, Num. 16, Pages 5617-5623, August 15, 2004

Migraine May Be Related To Underproduction Of Cannabinoids

Perugia, Italy: Patients with a history of migraine headaches may be suffering from a clinical deficiency of the endocannabinoid system, according to clinical trial data published in the European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

Investigators at Italy’s University of Perugia, Department of Public Health, reported that patients with chronic migraines possessed "significantly lower" levels of the endogenous cannabinoids anandamide and 2-arachidonylglycerol (2-AG) in their platelets compared to age-matched controls.

"These data support the potential involvement of a dysfunctioning of the endocannabinoid and serotonergic systems in the pathology of chronic migraine and medication-overuse headaches," researchers’ concluded.

A previous paper published in the journal Neuroendocrinology Letters similarly suggested that migraine, fibromyalgia, and other treatment-resistant conditions may be associated with dysfunctions in the endocannabinoid system. This system is believed to play a primary role in regulating humans' mood, appetite, skeletal development, motor coordination, digestion, and reproduction.

Full text of the study, "Endocannabinoids in platelets of chronic migraine patients and medication-overuse headache patients: relation with serotonin levels," appears in the November issue of the European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

Benefits of Cannabis in Migraine, and other Treatment-Resistant Conditions - Russo EB

South Africa: Death Toll on Country's Roads

Figures provided by Arrive Alive on Wednesday indicated that those fatalities included 460 pedestrians, 379 passengers and 303 drivers. The provincial breakdown shows that Gauteng province tops with 231 fatalities; 170 in KwaZulu-Natal; 145 in the Eastern Cape; 145 in Mpumalanga; 134 in the Western Cape; 125 in Limpopo; 97 in North West and 23 in the Northern Cape.

According to Arrive Alive spokesperson Ntau Letebele, most accidents were alcohol related. "Some motorists drink first thing in the morning, or drink apart from meals and we have warned road users about this hazardous pattern of drinking," he said...


"It has been estimated that the per capita consumption of alcohol in South Africa is between 10.3 and 12.4 litres, with the higher level reflecting the amount including homebrewed alcohol," Mr Letebele said. He said the Department of Transport's Arrive Alive was more concerned with safety of road users, especially pedestrians and motorists. Traffic authorities will be out in full force to deal with any eventuality, especially drinking and driving which carries a fine of R120,000 or six year jail sentence.

BUA NEWS

Driving

Here’s an interesting video aired on British television that’s been gaining popularity online.

It’s not the most scientifically sound piece of research on the planet, but it does illustrate the point that maybe driving while stoned isn’t as dangerous as everyone makes it out to be. The consensus is that a healthy dose of paranoia after smoking generates increased concentration in the driver.

On the flip side, driving while drunk makes you more liable to take risks.

Arrive Alive