NORML.ORG US: Anti-Drug Ads a Waste, Auditors Say Here's a real shocker: The Anti-Pot ONDCP Ads are a huge waste of money, according to the Government Accountability Office, which commissioned Westat, an independent evaluator, to evaluate the ads. Westat found the ads had no "significant favorable effects" in deterring children from trying marijuana or in getting them to stop. Rather, it found that more 12- to 13-year-olds were trying the drug after seeing the ads, the GAO said. The Head of the ONDCP, ... Read More

From the NORML News: Mainz, Germany: The endocannabinoid system provides "on demand" protection against experimentally induced seizures and neuronal cell death, according to preclinical data published this month in the journal Neuron. Investigators at the Johannes Guttenberg University in Mainz and the Max Planck Institute in Munich reported that endocannabinoids, acting upon the brain's CB1 (cannabinoid) receptors, directly target hippocampal glutamatergic neurons to mediate against experimentally induced seizures and cell death in mice. "CB1 expression on hippocampal glutamatergic circuits accounts for this protection and ... Read More

MUMBAI (Reuters) - A restaurant in India's financial hub has agreed to change its name from "Hitler's Cross" following strong protests by the country's tiny Jewish community and pressure from Israel. "Hitler's Cross," which opened a week ago using posters of the Fuehrer and Nazi swastikas for publicity, initially refused to change its name, but relented Thursday and covered its signboards with white cloth. The restaurant's name and its marketing gimmick had infuriated India's Jewish population, which had said it would fight any attempts ... Read More

Sacramento -- California lawmakers narrowly passed a bill Monday that would allow California's farmers to tap into the $270 million hemp industry by providing the raw materials used to create hemp products. The bill, AB1147, is a bipartisan effort by Assemblyman Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, and Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, R-Irvine ( Orange County ), that would allow California's farmers to produce hemp oil, seed and fiber -- the raw materials that are used in hemp products. Read More

This comes from the NORML Newsfeed via the Ny Times: Maastricht, a medieval town on the Meuse River in the hilly south of the Netherlands, has long cherished its rare position, a short distance from Belgium and Germany, which gives its people a casual ease with foreign languages, food and visitors. But as the southernmost point of the nation with the most lenient soft-drug laws in Europe, Maastricht has also turned into a hub for foreign smokers and dealers. It is estimated ... Read More

LONDON (Reuters) - Turner Broadcasting is scouring more than 1,500 classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons, including old favorites "Tom and Jerry," "The Flinstones" and "Scooby-Doo," to edit out scenes that glamorize smoking. I just want to say that this is what happens when censorship gets out of control. Come the hell on. Read More

I received a letter from Students for Sensible Drug Policy inviting me to their conference from November 17-19, 2006 in Washington DC. I really want to go to this. I'll keep you posted on my progress. And I'll copy the letter here in case anyone's interested in going. If you're in my area and would like to possibly arrange a group trip, contact me. Hello James, It is with excitement and much anticipation that I announce Students for Sensible Drug Policy's 8th annual conference: ... Read More