Monday, May 30, 2005

Save Rally Australia

City march to Save Rally Australia on Tuesday night...

The Rod Slater Led Consortium has submitted a proposal to the Western Australian government which would keep the West Australian leg of the World Rally Championships kept in Western Australia until at least 2008.

Russell Franklin Motorsport owner, Russell Franklin, has called on Western Australian’s to come out in force on Tuesday Night May 31st 2005 for a march to support the proposal.

The march will leave from the Murray Street Mall near Forrest Place, for Parliament House at 6.15pm, Tuesday 31st of May, [tomorrow night].

Mark McGowan made headlines in Inside Cover, after the last protest march, when demonstrators alleged they spotted him peeking at them from behind a curtain in the Premier's office.

Save Rally Australia is supporting the Consortium's proposal.

They recently organized a petition against the government's sudden axing of the international sporting event in the most isolated city in the world - Perth.

European Grand Prix Nurburgring

With race leader Kimi Raikkonen out in the last lap, Alonso wins the European Grand Prix at Nurburgring, 2005.

He was closely followed by Nick Heidfeld in the Williams, whose team mate, Mark Webber, hit the gravel and was retired in the first lap of the race .

Rubens Barrichello came third for Ferrari with David Coulthard taking fourth place despite a drive through penalty for speeding in the pit lane, followed by Michael Schumacher and Fisichella.

Saturday, May 28, 2005

The Corby case and the mass media masters of illusion

Media focus is driven by those who are set to gain by it, or gain by it not being on an issue which could be incriminating. The media coverage of the Schapelle Corby case has been emotionally indulgent to a point of potentially creating an atmosphere of 'smoke and mirrors.'

Why were the Bali 9 handed over at this point of time instead of being intercepted here when the Australian Federal Police had prior knowledge of their movements?

There are huge inconsistancies in any justice system - our own is far more inconsistant and lacking in human compassion than Indonesia's, with drugs and crimes of abuse and violence drawing a lower penalty in sentencing than monetary crimes, as our system is based on the British common law system.

Drugs were discovered in Corby's bag and legally Indonesia had to take the action they did.

If in fact drugs were planted at Brisbane airport, with a failed interception at Sydney airport- that is an issue for Corby's lawyers to take up with the Australian authorities in a court of law - nothing to do with the hard facts of Corby being caught in an untenable situation once she reached Bali, as the Indonesian authorities have no means by which to delve into, or prove corruption issues in another country - the suggestion is absurd.

If events did occur the way it is alleged by Corby's defence, it is indicative of a very bad situation in Australian airports and corruption in our justice and security services, but Indonesia's justice system was functioning the way it is meant to, prosecuting a person who, seemingly, was bringing drugs into the country.

Security, little freedoms and big compromises

The recent revelations of inefficiencies from the Department of Immigration highlight the need to maintain the integrity of the media in their role as the fourth estate of democracy.
Media ownership legislation plays a major role in the corporate biases that influence editorial decisions.


It therefore becomes essential for the independence and integrity of the media, for strict legislative guidelines to be adhered to. However, during John Howard's term of office, there has been a number of resrictive laws implemented to curtail media freedom and govern the content of what is reported. These measures include the government's appointment of the Head of the ABC Board of Directors, the ASIO amendment Bill 2004, recent state whistleblower legislation bills[2004]and the Attorney General's proposed national defamation reforms.


The implementation of biometric passports in accordance with the U.S. Visa Waiver Program has not only caused a great deal of concern amongst civil liberties organizations but also within the U.S. government itself, with key states insisting on security issues being addressed before allowing the new passport system to be put in place, and some states demanding that tracking chips in the e-passports be banned from use in their jurisdictions due to the technology violating current civil liberties issues as laid out in the U.S. constitution.

The biometric passport program has been adopted by twenty-seven countries, including Australia to facilitate easy entry to the United States and the monitoring of visitors to the U.S. as part of the Bush government's 'campaign against terror.'
With numerous attempts in the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Australia to bring in national identity cards, it is foreseeable that the new biometric passport system will provide a stepping stone to the implementation of a system of constant monitoring of citizens' movements and identities. The move is particularly predictable in lieu of recent public addresses by the U.S. government heirarchy explaining the need for citizens to compromise their constitutional civil liberties as is justified by them as a need to wage war on 'terror.'

Whilst of course this bodes of 'big brother' and Orwellian states that impinge on our everyday freedoms, it would also ensure that there are no cases of mistaken identity, such as the Cornelia Rau incident or the incorrect deportation of Vivian Alvarez.




Monday, May 23, 2005

Monaco Grand Prix

Anyone with the time and endurance to stay up to watch the Monaco Grand Prix will have been treated to some exceptional racing and strategic tactics.

Aussie Ken-doll, Mark Webber, appears to be becoming more adventurous and confident in the Williams and his final overtaking of Alonso on the chicane was just amazing, although on the podium he looked less than amused, possibly by his unlucky start to the race.

After Qual 1, Jordan were at 16 - Monteiro and 17th - Karthikeyan and after Qual 2 the cars moved up to 15th - Monteiro and 16th Karthikeyan . Monteiro finished in 13 place whilst 2004 Jordan driver, Nick Heidfeld now driving for Williams, came second with a personal best, to Kimi Raikkonen who laid down a blistering pace for McLaren & took out his second consecutive GP victory.

The exquisite Monte Carlo scenery provides a surreal backdrop to the Grand Prix racing grime and glitz that impinges on it once a year.

John Howard's social engineering

This is it in a nutshell.

Big Brother passports hack proof

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade passports official Bob Nash, has consistently maintained that the new e-passport system he is trying to have put into place, will be hack proof.

This is a big claim considering the capabilities of some of the recent hackers and virus inventors in the U.S., coincidentally, also, where the motivation to bring in the e-passports stems from.

The
U.S. issued a deadline for their U.S. Visa Waiver Program, with countries who wish to participate having to conform to their choice of system by the due date.

The U.S. are also trialling
iris scanning in Florida.

The 'biometric' passports, which are anticipated to be released on October 26 will include a computer chip which contains an image of the person and Nash claims the same details current passports carry.

He told the senate inquiry that whilst he was aware that consumer groups were concerned about security, their tests had failed twice, to demonstrate that it was possible to illegally intercept the information from the chips.


There are many groups throughout the 27 countries involved in the Waiver Program with the U.S., which are having issues with the violation of privacy involved in the new passports.

The Governator's state, California, has been the most observant of civil liberties issues involved in the adoption of the biometric passports, bringing in legislation to limit the use and sharing of information and has banned tracking chips being contained in the cards.

East Timor Oil Deal up in air

There doesn't appear to be any resolution in the Timor Sea dispute despite the government saying that to them it doesn't appear there will be need for any further negotiations.

The Timorese government don't seem to view things in quite the same light and are suggesting the negotiations are far from concluded in relation to a satisfactory outcome for their country.

Friday, May 20, 2005

Stealing from the poor...

The reductions on the Centrelink entitlements of single parents and disability pensioners are worse than I could expect, even in a Liberal term of office.

The move to cut pensioner education supplement makes a mockery of earlier statements released by Howard and Senator Kay Patterson, in relation to the welfare reforms being made to assist families.

It is an indication of John Howard's true agenda to create an instant workforce of factory fodder out of single parents, who are mostly women, no surprise given the ever diminishing human rights of women under the last ten years of the Howard government.

The blatant reinforcing of socio economic class structures through Howard's US style welfare reforms will not only create a subclass, but worsen poverty to the degree that crime will become every bit as rife as that experienced in the US.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Pope's patriarchy rules out Mary worship

The changes in Catholic dogma are already occurring, with the new papacy.

In order to quell differences between Anglican and Catholic doctrine and ease Christian disdain towards Catholicism's neo-pagan-like foundations of praying to saints, an agreement by an ecumenical committee has been reached, regarding the role of the Virgin Mary in Catholic prayer.

The issue arises out of an unclear distinction in traditional Catholic doctrine between prayer and worship, with Christian and protestant churches identifying prayer generally, as worship, which in those doctrines can only be made to a deity.

Significant countries with a strong Christian-right in politics, will be greatly relieved in the move towards the more conservative patriarchal approach to prayer and worship, bringing the Catholic church more into line with other Christian religions.

However, potentially the move could cause ideological dilemmas for a number of cultures that have spent centuries focussed on reverence to the Mother of Christ, which also gave the church a feminine spiritual identity through which women could understand and relate their faith.

Whilst promoting the decision as in-keeping with Catholic doctrine, it is drawing an obvious distinction between John Paul II's emphasis on devotion to Mary and the new papacy's interests and concerns.

Monday, May 16, 2005

Howard takes $280 a month from studying sole-parents

Pensioner Education Supplement, an education allowance for sole-parents which is $62 per fortnight for full time students, will be axed as of July 2006.

At that time sole parents will also be put on a Newstart Allowance which at a reduction of $77 per fortnight, makes a total reduction in pay for sole parent families, of $140 per fortnight.

Democrats Higher Education Spokesperson Senator Natasha Stott Despoja, addressed the hearing of the Senate Inquiry into Student Income Support about how the budget fails to address essential issues.

'This Budget has produced more obstacles to studying, instead of tackling the current ones,' Senator Stott Despoja said.

The changes will not only create enormous hardship for parents who are tyring to alter their circumstances but limit their chances of employment to unqualified low-waged menial work.

The Democrats said in a release that the hearing had no Government representation. 'I hope this is not a sign of the Government's attitude to the inquiry.'

'The Federal Government, arrogantly anticipating control of both Houses in July, is increasingly thumbing its nose at those giving voice to the disadvantaged and vulnerable,' Senator Stott Despoja said.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Government appeals with letter for Corby

PM sends letter

A letter prepared by DFAT has been given to the defence lawyers representing Schapelle Corby for the judges at the trial, saying that suspected drug trafficking baggage handlers were working on the day Corby travelled through Sydney.

Both PM Howard and Mr Beazley both said they hoped for justice in the case and Mr Beazley went on to say that would mean an acquittal for Corby, but that there is no way that the PM can interfere in an Indonesian court case.

Democrats leader Lyn Allison said the letter was too little too late, which is a fair call given recent revelations on Channel 9's Sunday program by former AFP officer, that investigations into corrupt police and baggage handlers in the airports, were delayed, deterred and halted by his superiors for over a decade.

Saturday, May 14, 2005

Keelty's controversial comments

Mick Keelty, AFP Commissioner, earlier this week made the now highly publicized controversial statement, "There is very little intelligence to suggest that baggage handlers are using innocent people to traffic heroin or other drugs between states."

He has come under widespread criticism for his statements by a number of prominent legal experts and media commentators alike, such as Law Council of Australia President John North, who said Mr Keelty's comments had jeopardized Ms Corby's chances of a fair trial and that he would not be able to make such damaging comments in an Australian case, because he would be in contempt of court.

Drug raids this week implicated several Qantas baggage handlers at Sydney airport in drug trafficking.

Former Federal policeman Ray Cooper told Channel 9's Sunday program that his investigations into airport drug trafficking 10 years ago implicated corrupt Federal and State police.

Rob Tampoe, the head of Corby's defence, knew an investigation was being held into baggage handlers at Sydney airport, but before this week's shock arrests, he said Federal Police had categorically denied any such investigation.

This evidence is now inadmissable and cannot prevent Corby being gaoled for life, or receiving the death sentence.

Weak links start at baggage check-in

Haunting echoes of the past...

While sifting through transcripts of the Channel 9 Sunday program I found this story, Fear of Flying, which has an frighteningly increased relevance to our situation in Australian airports, almost 2 years later.

A former head of security for Heathrow Airport, Norman Shanks, in 2003 worked for a Perth based company QRSciences, that developed baggage screening technology which could identify the chemical fingerprint of concealed explosive devices.

The story examined security levels in Australian airports at the time in relation to air-travel based terrorist activities, however much of what Mr Shanks discussed is particularly poignant at the moment, amidst current rumours and allegations of corruption and drug trafficking within the airports.

"Mr Shanks told told Sunday's John Lyons that he believes Australian airports still have a lot of work to do before the flying public can feel safe.

JOHN LYONS: Why are we so vulnerable ..

NORMAN SHANKS: Largely because there is no mechanism for screening of checked baggage – there is a partial method there but until 100 per cent of baggage is checked there is always that risk,

Norman Shanks believes our weak link starts at baggage check-in.

"We need to complete the 100 per cent checked baggage screening program... I believe it would take somewhere between 18 to 24 months before a successful program can be introduced. We need to look at the carry-on baggage screening process by integrating explosion detection technology into existing x-rays. We need to look at securing the restricted areas by screening staff, background checks of staff if they are not carried out, and a general maintenance of alertness and awareness of the problem which could strike at any moment."

Friday, May 13, 2005

APS officer caught with drugs

The Sydney Morning Herald ran an AAP story today, about an APS officer who has been charged with drug possession after being busted for small amounts of amphetamines and cannabis, whilst travelling by train between Gosford and Tuggerah.

The case is due to be heard on June 14.

It was refreshing to hear Ray Cooper, a former senior AFP officer speak candidly on last week's Channel 9 Sunday program about investigations into officers working at airports suspected of drug smuggling being shut down by senior management.

"ROSS COULTHART: And he says his investigations ten years ago revealed corrupt police were involved with drug traffickers using airports to move drugs around the country.

RAY COOPER: There were some people in there that were protecting these people and I was told to go softly softly.

RAY COOPER: There were lots of allegations regarding various drug trafficking operations. And from time to time Police were linked to those operations. There were narcotics, particularly cannabis, being moved from airport to airport by syndicates, and the baggage handlers were playing a key role in it.

RAY COOPER: I think the leadership of the Federal Police were not capable or strong enough to conduct a thorough and honest and open investigation. They were afraid of their reputation. They wanted the World to believe they were the only police force in the World who didn't have corruption. They were naïve then and I believe that to some extent they are still naïve." Sunday 8/05/05 Transcript Schapelle Corby: A question of innocence

The story by Ross Coulthart, an award winning Australian investigative journalist, would have come as a considerable blow to AFP Media Office, left picking up the pieces of the AFP's public image, following such recent events as the Coronial Inquiry into the death of Gary Lee-Rogers, and criticism over the turning over of the Bali 9 to the Indonesian authorities.

Thursday, May 12, 2005

Senator Kay Patterson, The Amazing

John Howard the new Sheriff of Nottingham and Kay the Amazing...

I am amazed by the actions of Kay Patterson and the level to which the Howard government will stoop to make rich people richer and poor people poorer.

Senator Kay Patterson has defended 2005 budget welfare reforms, which will put single mothers on the dole - cutting the payments they receive by $77 per fortnight, whilst allowing stay-at-home-wives of high-income earners[who were also favoured in the tax reforms] to keep receiving family tax benefits and increase them by $24 per fortnight.

The 84,300 childcare places will not be reserved for the children of working parents which will leave working single parents worse off than they were before the budget, the hours non-working parents can claim for childcare has also been increased from 20 hours per week per child to 24 hours per week per child.

Single parents are not only being forced to work, but from July 2006 onwards will pay 60 cents in the dollar for every dollar they earn above the threshold, whilst it has featured largely in the media that they are not coping with the 40 cents in the dollar they currently pay.

However, if you read the media releases from Senator Patterson's media office the story reads completely differently with huge bonuses being paid, and payments to families being increased - she must be living in a different country[maybe a different planet], because nothing listed in her releases is happening here.

The Council for Single Mothers and their Children described the moves by the Howard government as picking on 'easy targets.'

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Kay Patterson:damage control - nothing to see here...

Kay Patterson has said that there's nothing to be concerned about for sole parents, despite post-2005-budget, they need to find a job that will have 15 hours of fixed shifts, occurring between 10am till 2pm Monday to Friday [which doesn't exist unless you run a tuckshop] or they face having their parenting payment axed.

The good news is, the policy isn't supposed to commence until July 2006, but that is pretty much it, for the good news.

The Courier Mail quoted Senator Kay Patterson as saying,

"It's about saying - particularly with families with only one parent - that to have a parent in the workforce is more important than a parent being on welfare.

"The best welfare is a job."

All this from the same woman who last week said stay at home parents are not as good as role models as working parents.

And the punchline...
"We've got an aging population ... this is not an undue request on people," she said.

Patterson's media officer has been working overtime doing damage control, with thirteen media releases yesterday, only marginally less than the number released for the whole month of April.

Tuesday, May 10, 2005

Budget welfare reforms:smoke and mirrors benefits

This year's budget initiatives to get welfare recipients working are now no secret, but what is still yet to be revealed is the amount of the workload or training expected and why it is better for the government to pay more, for sole parents to earn less.

Mr Costello, who is now clocking up his tenth federal budget, is trying to send a message that families will benefit from this budget - one must assume he is meaning double income families, as there is little means by which sole parent families can benefit by having children in childcare instead of at home with a primary carer.

Mr Costello sid, "families will be getting that $600 payment again when they file their tax returns." The true cost of Howard's vote-buying bulk payment for sole parents, just keeps rising.

Last month Senator Kay Patterson tried to affirm that sole parent families would be better off working for less than their current parenting payment, putting children in before and after school care as they would make better role models than if they were primary care-givers at home.

How can paying childcare workers MORE than the parenting payment, to look after single parents' kids hile forcing them to work, be in the economy's best interests, with sole parents childcare sponsored by JET and childcare assistance?

In addition to that, it doesn't benefit the families who have the remainder of the childcare bill in addition to minimum wage, no holiday or sick leave, little in the way of workers rights, and transport costs to and from work, and their parenting payment reduced according to their gross wage.

This problem has been aired time and again in the media with sole parents attempting to extricate themselves from the 'welfare' cycle and finding it too much of a financial burdon to maintain.

Whilst quantity of available childcare is often cited as the key problem in this issue, lack of quality in childcare has a direct and far greater impact on parent ability to attend work reliably and the delicate emotional balance in a sole parent home.

Here's what Anne Summers, renowned feminist,Walkley Award winning journalist and Chair of Greenpeace International, had to say about the childcare debate on her blog, News from the Front.

Here's a few non-media-spin-doctored facts and figures about sole parents.

With a increasingly violent youth culture, and no easy answers being provided to curb drugs and violence in schools, it is foolhardy for the Howard government to envision this as creating a better family home environment and healthier Australian youth, rather, it is creating dysfunctional generations of subclass of low-waged factory fodder.

In the same breath with which we all criticized the Family First party being elected, we will have to thank our lucky stars. In exchange for electoral preferences, they required the Howard government to submit a family impact study for every change proposed that could affect families, which may be the only thing to save sole parent families from the Howard government push to dissolve women's human rights and intensify socio-economic class structures. How ironic.

East Timor oil dispute continues...

State Member for Stafford and a member of the Kedron Balibo Committee, Terry Sullivan, said key issues in the East Timor oilfield negotiations are still to be addressed.

'The deal that emerged last week at the latest round of maritime boundary negotiations in Dili did not reflect East Timor's legal entitlement under current International Law.'

He said that maritime boundaries under International law would entitle East Timor to almost the entirety of the Greater Sunrise oilfields which he estimated as being worth approximately $50 billion.

Mr Sullivan said East Timor needs the revenue for basic health and education services desperately, and that Timorese children are dying of preventable diseases because they don’t have clinics to dispense life-saving medication in villages.

'The Australian Government has refused to have the dispute heard before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) – the two forums set up to resolve international disputes of this kind, Mr Sullivan said.

Sunday, May 08, 2005

Timor Sea ads make a comeback without PM Howard

More government attacks on free speech?

The Timor Sea Justice Campaign have amended and resubmitted the tv adverts which were barred by the Commercial Advisory Division (CAD) of Free TV Australia last month for being potentially defamatory towards John Howard.

The ads, which have been altered just in time for the Timor Sea negotiations will be played on national tv from Monday evening on channels Seven, Nine and SBS.

Ian Melrose funded the ads and changed them to ensure the 'public right to know' about the Australian Government pre-emptively withdrawing recognition from the maritime boundary jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.

He said he was disappointed to have to modify the ads as he wanted John Howard to accept responsibility for what he alleges is the theft of oil from a poor country.

"The Howard Government has taken $1 million every single day since 1999 from gas and oil fields that under International Law belong to East Timor. This is while East Timorese children are dying from preventable diseases," Mr Melrose said.

Timor Sea Justice Campaign co-ordinator, Tom Clarke, said, 'current International Law supports East Timor's claim for most, if not all, of the Greater Sunrise field, it's simply insulting that the Australian Government continues to bully the poorest nation in Asia into yet another shabby deal.'

Whilst Alexander Downer said Australia was on the brink of an agreement over the maritime boundaries issue the Timorese government indicated there were a number of important issues still left to be discussed.

Belmont Local Government Elections

Independent women...

Ladies were the winners of the night at the local government elections in Belmont.

After some hard campaigning Glenys Godfrey, Janet Powell,Marion Blair and Brenda Martin were all elected to the Belmont Council, along with controversial former councilor, Gerard Dornford.

Despite heavy campaigning former Deputy Mayor, Alan Richardson, lost his seat of 12 years by a narrow margin, possibly as a result of negative campaigning on the part of another candidate who was not elected.

B.R.A.G.G. candidate, Paul Hitt, got in with a clear majority.

Peter Passeri announced at the start of the campaign he would be standing down and the incumbent mayor will be elected by councilors on Monday.

Saturday, May 07, 2005

Debus:backbone of the Attorney General's Office?

NSW Attorney General fights for free speech?!!

This week NSW Attorney General, Bob Debus, rejected one of the terms of Ruddock's proposed unified national defamation proposals - the right of corporations to sue for defamation.

Mr Debus spoke out strongly against the implications on free speech of that aspect of the proposals, saying it was about "the right of McDonald's to sue the bearded protester standing outside a store with a handful of leaflets, the right of the property developer to sue local resident action groups, the right of Shell or Exxon to sue an environmental activist".

Mr Debus has said previously there was sufficient protection for corporations already in the Trade Practices Act and allowing them to sue for defamation would silence individuals and stifle debate and an 'extraordinarily retrograde step.'

'The actual effect of the Ruddock proposal would be to add a ninth jurisdiction to the law of defamation—an additional set of laws to the already-too-complicated system of defamation law in this country,' Mr Debus said.

'The Commonwealth acknowledges in its outline for a national defamation law lacks constitutional power to cover the field,'
'therefore they would demand under the constitution of this country that the States and Territories refer all the existing powers up to the Commonwealth so that the Commonwealth effectively could exercise a defamation jurisdiction.

He also said defamation of the dead was available almost nowhere in 'the common law world'

Philip Ruddock has given the states an ultimatum that they must conform to his recommendations or have defamation law reform placed in the federal government's control.

Monday, May 02, 2005

Victorian government secrets abound

The Melbourne Age has cleaned up today, with scoops on inquiries into the Bracks government allegedly trying to keep public documents out of reach and an exclusive of 5 Vic Police Service officers who have accumulated more than $10 million between them.

In Sly's scoop, three of the five officers have been identified as multi-millionaires[these guys could have a bright future as consultants] and financial profiles over a ten year period show unexplained income and suspicious investments and expenditure.

The five officer's files were amongst fifty supplied to the Office of Police Integrity by the Victorian Ethical Standards Unit.

The officers will attend hearings at the OPI in secret, a luxury not afforded to many officers in WA during the WA Police Royal Commission and as a result the inquiry cannot really offer the public much in the way of scrutiny or accountability.

The Bracks government are also under fire with an investigation by the Ombudsman's Office for attempting to use 'cabinet confidentiality' to deliberately keep a 2003 report by consultant Peter Lewinsky, hidden because it reveals problems in management of costs and cash.

The opposition alleges the documents were never prepared for cabinet and in March, Judge John Bowman ruled the document was not exempt from the Freedom of Information Act and ordered its release.

The government have said they would be happy to assist the Ombusman's investigation and there could be no intent to hide the document on the part of that department, as FoI claims are handled by a completely different section.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Family barbies not safe from syndicates

from one extreme to the other...

This story today in the Sunday Mail warns us to watch our family barbeques for fear that drug gangs could round up innocent citizens to be drug mules!

With a healthy dose of creativity and enthusiasm, The Sunday Mail got this from an AFP media release, somewhat reminiscent of 1940's war propaganda,
"In a chilling insight into the growing threat posed to everyday Australians by crime syndicates, police have warned even the family barbecue may not be safe from gangs looking to recruit drug-runners. "

Barbeques Galore are going to be delighted.

On a more balanced note, Mike Phelan, the AFP's head of International Operations, conversely did say, syndicate members' family circles and family friends could be approached to be drug mules. Syndicates would use people they thought they could trust and currently recruited from a 'wide spectrum of society.'

Mr Phelan said, 'that connection can come from anything, from previous criminal associations, secondary criminal associates, a friend of a friend. The profile is difficult to fit. It's not always young people and it's not always people from a particularly low socio-economic background."

Marijuana:messing with the future

Recently Four Corners, ABC's investigative current affairs program aired Messing with heads about the real and less frequently discussed effects of the not so 'soft' drug, marijuana, on the psyche.

'A whole generation of Australians has grown up believing that smoking pot is a harmless pastime.'


The continual pursuit to develop hydroponic marijuana crops of increased strength, according to clinicians, is said to be responsible for the triggering of psychoses, depression and anxiety disorders.

The impact of this is far greater on young people who use the drug prior to the full development of the brain, which occurs in the early twenties.

From a drug that in previous generations was used in a social atmosphere in weaker doses as a form of experimentation and rebellion, the peer pressure of 'stoner' sub-culture may have subdued Australian youth's discontent with society and quelled activism prevalent at the time of its popularization in the 1960's.

In addition to peer pressure and increasingly self-conscious, socially-inhibited and violent youth culture, young people also have to bear the weight of generations of conditioning and tolerance to the no longer 'soft' drug, with none of the psychological defences of alertness and independent thinking that non-smokers have at their avail.

"
The major problem with treating marijuana dependency is that most users deny they have a problem. "

The mutenogenic and carcinogenic potential of marijuana was confirmed by the Department of Preventative Medicine, University of Southern California, whose research showed that children whose mothers smoked marijuana just before or during pregnancy were ten times more likely to develop non-lymphoblastic leukaemia. No other drugs ( including tobacco, alcohol and painkillers) posed such a risk. The research also found that these children developed leukemia earleir – at 19 months instead of the usual 93 months.”

Long-term users of marijuana are difficult to treat because of their denial of the progressive and subtle negative effects of their dependency.
Excerpts from US Surgeon General report 1982