By Jim Burns, CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer Source: CNSNews.com A new report by the United Nations International Narcotics Control Board says drug traffickers and criminal elements have begun "exploiting the Internet" as a vehicle for trading illegal drugs. The report found that chat rooms are being used to discuss recipes for making drugs and the World Wide Web has become a vehicle for drug money laundering. Board member Herbert Okun told reporters at U.N. headquarters in New York that the panel was not about to call for censorship. But he added that the universality of the Web and the existing drug control treaties demanded some kind of international and national response to the problem. The board, in its recommendations, called on governments, the information technology industry, advocacy groups and health professionals to help regulate the Web in a sensible way. Keith Stroup, executive director of The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, disagreed with Okun's statement. "While they say they are not calling for censorship, I'd like to know what else they are calling for if they are saying that the Internet provides aid and support and comfort to drug dealers. If they think countries need to take some response to that, the only response they could possibly take, I presume is to censor the content on the Internet," Stroup said in an interview with CNSNews.com. "We need a healthy public debate over alternatives to current (drug) prohibition. Right now, the only policy that our government and the United Nations think is a legitimate policy to discuss is criminal prohibition. We need a legally, regulated market where we would do away with the black market and crime and corruption associated with it," said Stroup. The Drug Enforcement Administration spokesperson Rogene Waite said the agency has been aware of the Internet problem for several years, and is fighting to stop the illegal trafficking of controlled substances and pharmaceuticals. DEA is also aware that chat rooms are being used as a forum for drug dealing, Waite said. "We've been aware of it. We had a conference several years ago on methamphetamines and one of the things we talked about during that conference was the books and recipes that are on the Internet," said Waite. The U.N. International Narcotics Control Board rejected arguments that marijuana should be legalized. "Adding another drug to the same category as alcohol and tobacco would be a historical mistake," the board said in its report. However, it urged further research "into the possible therapeutic properties and medicinal uses of cannabis or cannabis extracts," emphasizing that any decision must be based on scientific and medical evidence." Stroup finds nothing new in the U.N.'s stance. "These folks are professional bureaucrats who are trained drug warriors. They have a very strong ideological point of view. It's important for people to recognize that this is a very strong pro-prohibition voice in the United Nations. These are people who are paid large salaries to go around and try to maintain the status quo," said Stroup. Only eight U.S. states have approved marijuana for medical use, and a half-dozen nations are considering similar exemptions to anti-drug laws. Source: CNSNews.com Author: Jim Burns, CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer Published: February 27, 2002 Copyright: 1998-2002 Cybercast News Service Contact: shogenson@cnsnews.com Website: http://www.cnsnews.com/
Isn't it amazing that several states and countries have "medical marijuana" laws when it is listed as a Schedule One Controlled Substance which defines "highly addictive with no medical purpose." The drug that truly fits that description is the one you can buy at your corner store-tobacco, which, along with liquor, wine and beer, was conveniently left out of the Food and Drug Act of 1906. It was the U.S. Government under the falsehoods printed in William Randolph Hearst's garbage publications that is responsible for taking their propanganda worldwide in the interests of oil, wood and paper, petrochemical, and many other Corporate America interests. Personally, I'm sick of the lies and from the poisons which could be taken out of our atmosphere by relegalizing all aspects of the plant. We've lost over 65 years of development and research of cannabis/hemp. I'm also sick of the fact that we are the ones paying for this crap.