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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
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Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
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Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
March 11, 2009
/ 15 Adar 5769
End pot raids, begin new sanity
By
Clarence Page
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
When Charles Lynch asked local officials for permission to sell an herbal medicine in the central California town of Morro Bay, they granted it to him even though the medicine was marijuana.
That's because marijuana recommended by a doctor has been legal in California since 1996. A dozen other states have passed similar laws. Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and New Hampshire are among about ten states that have been debating similar measures.
So Charlie applied for a business license, joined the Chamber of Commerce, talked to lawyers and even called the Drug Enforcement Administration before opening his medical marijuana dispensary with a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Unfortunately for Charlie, none of this prevented him from being arrested in March 2007 when federal authorities raided his home and small business.
That's because the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Gonzalez v. Raich in 2005 that in the issue of medical marijuana federal law trumps the states.
"Today's decision," crowed Bush's drug czar, John Walters, at the time, "marks the end of medical marijuana as a political issue."
Well, not quite. President Obama's Attorney General Eric Holder has announced that the Justice Department will stop raiding marijuana dispensaries in California and other states that allow medical marijuana.
But that doesn't help Charlie, whose sentencing is set for March 23. Lynch, who tried to conduct his business as openly and legally as possible under the laws enacted by Californians, is one of the more poignant examples of nonviolent offenders arrested and jailed by federal raiders.
Putting the brakes on medical marijuana raids is only one small step of the many that still need to be taken toward a sensible drug policy after years of backpedaling by President Bush.
Obama apparently likes to multi-task. Faced with a long list of thorny issues, he's decided to take them on all at once while his honeymoon lasts. While he's at it, he needs to modernize federal policy on the medicinal use of marijuana. Stopping the raids in state's where it's legal is good for starters. He also needs to lift what has amounted to a ban on scientific research and push to change federal law that currently equates marijuana with heroin.
That's right. Since 1971, marijuana has been classified as a "Schedule I" narcotic, meaning it has no medical value. That's the same category as heroin. And as if that's not goofy enough, that would suggest marijuana is more dangerous than crack cocaine, a Schedule II drug that no one in the sane world describes as more dangerous than pot.
Yet that's the kind of thinking that gave a green light for the DEA to terrorize growers, providers, caregivers and patients with hundreds of commando-style raids. At least 90 major raids have been conducted by DEA agents in California, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates legalization of medicinal marijuana.
The Bush administration justified the federal crackdown against the medicinal use of marijuana as a way to stop some people from abusing the drug as if some people didn't abuse every type of drug, legal or otherwise. In fact, the same rationale was used to justify alcohol prohibition a century ago. That didn't work out so well either.
Walters, like the drug czars before him, argued that the law must rely on scientific research, "not popular opinion." Yet 10 years after a study commissioned by President Bill Clinton's administration found medical value in smoked marijuana, the Bush experts say that's not enough.
Days before Obama's inauguration, the DEA denied an application by Professor Lyle Craker, who has been fighting in and out of court for eight years to obtain a license to conduct further DEA-approved research. Yet his study is the sort that must be done to provide the sort of data that the Bush administration said was lacking.
President Obama recently reversed much of what has been called the Bush administration's "war against science." He needs to turn around the war against medicinal marijuana research, too.
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