Free Republic

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2, 2008 – Legislation imposing tough penalties for operating undocumented semi-submersible vessels in international waters would help drug-interdiction efforts, the deputy chief of the Coast Guard’s Law Enforcement Office said Sept. 30. Self-propelled semi-submersibles, or SPSSs, are small sea vessels, usually less than 100 feet in length, designed to sink themselves when detected, Coast Guard Cmdr. Cameron Naron explained to bloggers in a teleconference. Drug traffickers are adapting the technology with increasing success to evade law enforcement, he said. “Drug-trafficking organizations continue to adapt these vessels … to our law enforcement successes,” Naron said. “These SPSSs were once...

An escalating turf fight between warring drug cartels in Mexico is spreading into the United States with federal officials warning that deadly shootouts and ambushes along the southwestern border pose a serious threat to both U.S. law enforcement and American citizens, according to a confidential multi-agency government report. The Aug. 29 report predicts a rise in the use of "deadly force" against U.S. police officials, first responders and residents along the border, and further spillage of drug-gang violence deeper into the United States. Written by the Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (AcTIC) and the High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Investigative...

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Suspected drug hitmen attacked a group of sleeping soldiers with grenades in central Mexico, sparking a battle that killed three gunmen, a state attorney general's office said on Wednesday. Around 15 drug gangsters in vehicles surprised the soldiers while they were camped out in the central state of Guanajuato on Tuesday night, shooting at them with automatic weapons. "Two soldiers were injured in the clash in a firefight that lasted several minutes," a spokesman for the Guanajuato state attorney general's office said.

BAHRAIN (July 15, 2008) — Coalition warships operating in the Gulf region have seized 23 tons of narcotics, which could have been used to fund the insurgency in Afghanistan. The British warships involved were frigates HMS Chatham and HMS Montrose, and the destroyer HMS Edinburgh. They were supported by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary helicopter support ship Argus and her embarked Sea King aircraft.Sailors and Royal Marines from the ships discovered hidden drugs in vessels along the so-called "Hash Highway," and often operated in the most unpleasant of conditions. The narcotics they seized included hashish, opiates, cocaine and amphetamines. "The scourge...

A drug developed using nanotechnology and a fungus that contaminated a lab experiment may be broadly effective against a range of cancers, U.S. researchers reported on Sunday. The drug, called lodamin, was improved in one of the last experiments overseen by Dr. Judah Folkman, a cancer researcher who died in January. Folkman pioneered the idea of angiogenesis therapy -- starving tumors by preventing them from growing blood supplies. (snip) "I had never expected such a strong effect on these aggressive tumor models," she said. The researchers believe lodamin may also be useful in other diseases marked by abnormal blood vessel...

World's biggest drug seizure in Afghanistan By David Blair, Diplomatic Editor Last Updated: 12:38AM BST 12/06/2008 Afghanistan's police claim to have made the largest drugs seizure in history after they discovered hashish worth at least £200 million. Afghan counter narcotics officials uncovered 260 tons of hashish hidden in 6-foot-deep trenches in southern Afghanistan About 260 tons of narcotics were found in trenches and bunkers in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan. No previous haul comes close to matching this find, which weighed roughly the same as 30 double-decker buses. The previous record was set by Colombia's security forces when they uncovered...

Guatemala plans to send hundreds of troops, elite presidential guards and anti-drug police to its border with Mexico to stem growing drug violence, the government said on Saturday. "The unit should be ready within about 90 days. We are talking about 500 troops" and members of the presidential guard, Interior Ministry spokesman Ricardo Gatica said. Gatica declined to say how many counternarcotics police would be sent to the border, where drug smuggling into southern Mexico, bound for the United States, goes unchallenged. In southern Mexico, suspected drug gunmen dumped a man's head outside a newspaper in Tabasco state on Saturday...

The state’s top drug prosecutor was fired on Friday, hours after reports were published that he was under investigation for possessing child pornography. Assistant Attorney General James Cameron of Hallowell, who worked as the drug prosecution coordinator for the Attorney General’s Office, had been on paid administrative leave for several months, according to one law enforcement source.

snip... James Colomb spent the bulk of his career working in an oil field, then was injured. The family’s sole source of income now is his disability check. Ann Colomb—“Miss Ann” to those who know her—is a homemaker. It was from this unlikely setting, the United States alleged, that Ann Colomb and three of her four sons ran one of the largest crack cocaine operations in Louisiana. Over the course of a decade, prosecutors said, the Colombs bought $15 million in illicit drugs with a street value of more than $70 million... ...But in the ensuing months, the government’s case...

Mutant monkeys get hooked on a drug called mum 15:35 01 April 2008 NewScientist.com news service Ewen Callaway A gene mutation determines whether or not macaque infants make a fuss when their mothers are missing, say researchers. A similar mutation has been linked to alcoholism and drug abuse in humans. The work could explain why some children are cry babies and some are more independent, says Christina Barr, a neuroscientist at the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in Bethesda, Maryland, US, who led the study. "There are some kids that go with the flow and there are some...

TIJUANA, Mexico - The killers prowled through Loma Bonita in the pre-dawn chill. In silence, they navigated a labyrinth of wood shacks at the crest of a dirt lane in the blighted Tijuana neighborhood, police say. They were looking for Margarito Saldaña, an easygoing 43-year-old district police commander. They found a house full of sleeping people. Neighbors quivered at the crack of AK-47 assault rifles blasting inside Saldaña's tiny home. Rafael García, an unemployed laborer who lives nearby, recalled thinking it was "a fireworks show," then sliding under his bed in fear. In murdering not only Saldaña, but also his...

Drug-resistant tuberculosis cases in parts of the former Soviet Union have reached the highest rates ever recorded globally, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. The rates could soar even higher, spreading the potentially fatal disease elsewhere, a top W.H.O. official said, releasing findings from the largest global survey of the problem. The highest rate was in Baku, Azerbaijan, where 22.3 percent of new tuberculosis cases were resistant to the standard anti-TB drug regimen during the survey period, from 2002 to 2006. That exceeded the previous high of 14.2 percent, in Kazakhstan. Drug-resistant TB is widespread in the Inner Mongolia and...

West Virginia replaces Tennessee as No. 1 in prescription drug useby The Associated Press Wednesday February 6, 2008 CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- A report shows Tennessee has lost the top national ranking of per capita prescription drug use to West Virginia. The report by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee shows West Virginia took the lead, with 17.4 prescriptions per capita in 2006, compared with 16.9 prescriptions per person in Tennessee. The report uses data from drug company Novartis' most recent Pharmacy Benefit Report. Tennessee's rates dropped 6.6 percent from 18.1 prescriptions in 2004. The drug use rates remain well above...

JUNEAU, Alaska, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Alaska is one of 12 U.S. states considering making salvia, a potent natural hallucinogen which is a species of sage, illegal. The hallucinogenic salvia divinorum is not banned by the federal Controlled Substances Act and is only illegal in six states, The Anchorage (Alaska) Daily News reported Saturday. Republican state Sen. Gene Therriault, who said the substance's effects are dangerously powerful and similar to LSD, has been the heading the charge to ban it in Alaska A user said the drug made her and her boyfriend "melt to the wall," the newspaper said. "The...

Violence spikes in Mexico By MARK STEVENSON, Associated Press Writer Fri Jan 18, 7:01 PM ET Rosalba Padilla thought the first shots were nothing but construction in her quiet, upper-class Tijuana neighborhood. It wasn't until she looked out her window and saw a sea of police that she realized the noise was gunfire. Down the street, at the Preschool of Happiness, director Gloria Rico activated the school's alarm, prompting police to rush into the building, their guns drawn. Rico said the children were terrified by the chaos. "Some were crying, one vomited and another wet his pants," she said Friday,...

Drug 'can reverse Alzheimer's symptoms in minutes'Last updated at 13:07pm on 10.01.08 A drug used for arthritis can reverse the symptoms of Alzheimer's "in minutes". It appears to tackle one of the main features of the disease - inflammation in the brain. The drug, called Enbrel, is injected into the spine where it blocks a chemical responsible for damaging the brain and other organs. A pilot study carried out by U.S. researchers found one patient had his symptoms reversed "in minutes". Other patients have shown some improvements in symptoms such as forgetfulness and confusion after weekly injections over six months....

McALLEN, Texas — Three Americans were among 10 suspects arrested in a shootout with Mexican federal troops Monday that left three gunmen dead in the Mexican border city of Rio Bravo.

Today's news and cable political talk shows have been dominated by the Clinton co-chair discussing Obama's possible sale or distribution of drugs. This, I suggest, may have come from a FR post, either mine or someone elses. A couple of weeks ago I put maybe five posts up detailing exactly the strategy and topic questions the co-chair "feared" the Republicans would bring up in Obama wins the nomination. The questions "Did you share drugs with someone else? Did you sell drugs to someone else?", asked at a Town Hall or Press Conference, was the bulk of the strategy. Did we...

TRENTON, New Jersey, November 5, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The state of New Jersey has passed a law denying the conscientious objection right of pharmacists, won in other states through lengthy court battles, to refrain from dispensing abortifacient and contraceptive drugs.   “Discussions of morals and matters of conscience are admirable, but should not come into play when subjective beliefs conflict with objective medical decisions,” said state Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex, a bill sponsor.   The decision comes just days after Pope Benedict XVI gave his support to pharmacists worldwide who reject the culture of death in their profession. “Pharmacists must...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says marijuana is not a drug, a British magazine reported Monday. But his spokesman said the governor was joking. Schwarzenegger told the British edition of GQ magazine that he had not taken drugs, even though the former bodybuilder and Hollywood star has acknowledged using marijuana in the 1970s and was shown smoking a joint in the 1977 documentary "Pumping Iron." "That is not a drug. It's a leaf," Schwarzenegger told GQ. "My drug was pumping iron, trust me." Aaron McLear, Schwarzenegger's press secretary, said the governor made the comments in a lighthearted context, noting his interviewer was...

...U.S. and Mexican negotiators reached the agreement in secrecy. Some in Mexico worried that an aid package would infringe upon its sovereignty, and concerns surfaced in the United States about costs and strategy... The much-anticipated Mexico aid plan, would pay for helicopters, canine units, communications gear and inspection equipment, the State Department said. The program also would include training and technical advice on vetting new police officers, and case-management software to track investigations in a nation where drug kingpins have infiltrated many state and local governments and infighting among drug traffickers has cost more than 4,000 lives in the past...

A police crackdown on cannabis factories run by Vietnamese drug barons has been scrapped after officers were warned their actions might be racist. Officers have identified a burgeoning industry which typically operates out of anonymous rented houses in the suburbs and shires. They had planned to write to property landlords warning them to look out for suspicious tenancy applications. But it is understood at least one force has been found to be in breach of the Race Relations Act after specifically referring to Vietnamese nationals in its letters. The development has infuriated detectives seeking to break the stranglehold of Vietnamese...

Drug addicts in the town of Drammen say they were offered money or free kebabs to vote for the Labour Party in the local election last week. Bent Sandberg was offered NOK 50 (about USD 9) to vote for the Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) in the local election last week. He declined the bribe.

Police in Colombia have captured the man they regard as the country's top drug baron, Diego Montoya. He was arrested in his western home province of Valle del Cauca. Mr Montoya - known in Colombia's underworld as the "boss of bosses" - appears on the US Federal Bureau of Investigation's "10 Most Wanted" list. He is accused of producing tons of cocaine for the US market. Officials say he helped found the Norte del Valle cartel based near the city of Cali. The BBC's Jeremy McDermott in Bogota says Mr Montoya's capture is a huge coup for the government and...

WASHINGTON - Many seniors and the disabled will need to shop around next year to avoid an increase in their monthly premiums for the Medicare drug benefit. Medicare officials announced Monday that the average premium for basic coverage will increase from about $22 this year to $25 next year. About 24 million elderly and disabled people are enrolled in the drug benefit or in more comprehensive health plans that include drug coverage. The federal government subsidizes the cost of the insurance coverage, with the poorest participants getting extra help. Overall, the monthly premium is still much lower than the $41...

An makeshift submarine is lifted out of the water at Bahia Malaga on the Pacific coast, July 24, 2007. During an operation Colombian Navy soldiers arrested four alleged drug traffickers and seized a makeshift submarine which was used for transporting cocaine. Picture taken on July 24, 2007. REUTERS/Colombian Navy (COLOMBIA). EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS.

The Federal Penitentiary Service of the RF (FPS) has banned a TV series “Special-Purpose Prison” that was supposed to be screened yesterday evening. According to the FPS, the series may slander the reputation of the Russian law-enforcement agencies.

Prof Ambrosio said a 500mg pill, washed down with two glasses of water, would create a tennis ball-sized lump in the stomach, making dieters feel full. "We had one extremely important investor come to visit and he wanted to try the pill," he said. "He got very excited because he took one at 11 o'clock in the morning and at six o'clock in the afternoon he still couldn't finish an ice cream." The pill was tested on 20 people for a month last year, and is being tested on a further 90 people at the Policlinico Gemelli hospital in Rome....

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- The man who played the character Bud Bundy on the TV show "Married With Children" was arrested on drug charges over the weekend in Volusia County. David Anthony Faustino, 33, was charged with possession of marijuana and disorderly intoxication after his arrest Saturday morning on New Smyrna Beach. Faustino was arrested after an officer said he saw Faustino arguing inside a car with a woman, according to a police report. The arresting officer said he smelled alcohol on Faustino's breath, and a search uncovered a plastic bag containing 1 gram of marijuana in the Faustino's...

The Internet is a wealth of information for high school and college students looking to do research, it is also the place where they go to buy Salvia divinorum, a readily available, and legal, hallucinogenic drug. Parents around the country are mostly unaware of this member of the mint family, but the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has already flagged it as a "drug of concern." Salvia, also known as S. divinorum, magic mint, Maria Pastora and diviner's sage, is native to areas of the Mazateca region of Oaxaca, Mexico. Because this drug is not listed in the federal Controlled...

I watched the Democrat debate yesterday evening, not so much to learn something new, but because I have the innate curse of enjoying political speeches, even if those speeches grind against the very pit of my soul in both substance and concept. The majority of the debate uncovered no real surprises, but one particular answer to a question about drug testing sticks in my mind. The answer that Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd gave to a question about drug testing welfare recipients strikes hard at the very nature of the rampant disability and aggressive disease that infects the modern Democrat party,...

An animal deworming tablet is being touted as the new drug of choice by clubbers. A leading medical expert has told Sky News it can cause heart and brain problems or lead to fits. Benzyl piperazine was taken by an 18-year-old woman who collapsed in a London nightclub and suffered a seizure. It is considered a legal alternative to other recreational drugs such as Ecstasy - although its unlicensed sale has now been outlawed. Doctors warned over reactions

Friends reunited: drug dealer haunts Obama By Toby Harnden in Washington Last Updated: 2:05am BST 05/04/2007 As two of just a handful of mixed-race pupils at their elite private school in Hawaii, "Barry" and "Ray" were drawn together. They played basketball, went to "black parties" and discussed each other's hopes and frustrations. Thirty years later, "Barry" is Senator Barack Obama, 45. Barack Obama [left] and Keith Kakugawa Happily married, the author of two books and very possibly on track to become America's first black president, he has the world at his feet. His background as the son of a white...

The most toxic recreational drugs, such as GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate) and heroin, have a lethal dose less than 10 times their typical effective dose. The largest cluster of substances has a lethal dose that is 10 to 20 times the effective dose: These include cocaine, MDMA (methylenedioxymethamphetamine, often called "ecstasy") and alcohol. A less toxic group of substances, requiring 20 to 80 times the effective dose to cause death, include Rohypnol (flunitrazepam or "roofies") and mescaline (peyote cactus). The least physiologically toxic substances, those requiring 100 to 1,000 times the effective dose to cause death, include psilocybin mushrooms and marijuana, when...

A prescription drug benefit of the U.S. Medicare program is a "financially irresponsible" addition to a system that was already on course for possible bankruptcy, the U.S. government's top accountant said in an interview on Sunday. "The prescription drug bill is probably the most fiscally irresponsible piece of legislation since the 1960s ... because we promise way more than we can afford to keep," U.S. Comptroller General David Walker said on CBS' "60 Minutes." "The prescription drug bill is probably the most fiscally irresponsible piece of legislation since the 1960s ... because we promise way more than we can afford...

Did you even wonder how the Mexican super labs make meth. Since the USA has restricted sales of ephedra by placing cold tablets behind the counter and making people sign for them, Drug labs in the USA have died out from what they once were. The current problem is that in Mexico "drug companies" are selling ephedra in pure brick form to mexican drug lords so the need for refining the cold tablets for ephedra has past and the end product is much purer.

U.S. District Judge James Cohn has forced a Guatemalan dishwasher to surrender nearly all his life savings to the government because he didn't sign a declaration form before trying to board an airplane. Pedro Zapeta of Stuart had $59,000 in his bag when Customs agents searched it and confiscated the money at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Sept. 18, 2005. Mr. Zapeta, a 39-year-old Mayan whose native language is Quiche, has said that he was unaware of the requirement to disclose amounts greater than $10,000. On Monday, Judge Cohn ruled that the $10,000 was all that Mr. Zapeta could...

MEXICO CITY - Mexico extradited four major drug traffickers to the U.S. on Friday, a sign that the nation's new president will deliver on his promise for more cooperation in fighting cross-border crime. Osiel Cardenas, the purported Gulf cartel leader who is believed to still be running the drug organization from behind bars in Mexico, was extradited along with 13 others wanted in the U.S., all of whose appeals against extradition had run out, the Attorney General's office said in a news release. The United States has long been frustrated by Mexico's reluctance to extradite Mexican drug lords also wanted...

Mexico's war on drugs no match for corruption By Catherine Bremer Wed Jan 17, 1:45 PM ET Mexican journalist Olivier Acuna had been reporting on organized crime for eight years when a group of men ambushed him near his home, held a gun to his head, forced him into a car and sped him away. He says the men put a hood on him, pushed his head to the floor and hissed: "We're going to kill you, son of a bitch, and dump you in a field. How we kill you depends on how you cooperate." They interrogated him about...

It sounds almost too good to be true: a cheap and simple drug that kills almost all cancers by switching off their “immortality”. The drug, dichloroacetate (DCA), has already been used for years to treat rare metabolic disorders and so is known to be relatively safe. It also has no patent, meaning it could be manufactured for a fraction of the cost of newly developed drugs. Evangelos Michelakis of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, and his colleagues tested DCA on human cells cultured outside the body and found that it killed lung, breast and brain cancer cells, but...

...Since the middle of 2006, the frenzied condominium market here and in several other big cities like Las Vegas, Miami and Boston has collapsed. Once roaring sales have slowed to a trickle, sparse inventory has mushroomed into a glut and soaring prices have flattened out and started falling. In many cities, banks have significantly scaled back loans to condominium builders. Some have demanded that developers sell half or more of the units in a building before even beginning construction. In hopes of salvaging something from their costly plans, hundreds of developers like Mr. Franco are looking to the strong market...

Drug resistant TB 'more severe' Patients must complete a full course of drugs to cure TB The problem of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis may be even more severe than previously thought, experts warn. A survey of 79 countries by the World Health Organization published in the Lancet found TB drug resistance in virtually every one. Particularly high levels of resistance were seen in regions of the former Soviet Union and parts of China. About a third of the world's population is infected with the TB bug, with 8.9 million developing TB each year. In 2004, the respiratory disease caused 1.7 million deaths...

Methamphetamine and marijuana aren't the only drugs parents worry about. The problems caused by prescription combinations called "drug cocktails" have finally broken into the national news stream. A recent Page 1 of the New York Times described Stephen, age 15, who takes antidepressants Zoloft and Desyrel, plus anticonvulsant Lamictal to moderate his moods, plus the stimulant Focalin XR to improve concentration. His brother Jacob, age 14, takes Focalin XR for concentration, plus the anticonvulsant Depakote to moderate his moods, plus the antipsychotic Risperdal to reduce anger, plus Catapres to induce sleep. Over the last three years, each boy has been...

Diabetes Drug's Benefits Come at a Price By The Associated Press From Associated Press December 04, 2006 1:10 PM EST A newer drug appeared to delay the progression of the most common form of diabetes a little longer than two older medications but also raised the risk of heart problems, weight gain and fractures, a large study has found. The results, along with the higher cost of the new drug, suggest that metformin, sold as Glucophage and other brands, should remain the first choice for newly diagnosed patients with Type 2 diabetes, several specialists said. Avandia, by GlaxoSmithKline PLC, did...

Chongryon sites searched over drugs The Yomiuri Shimbun Police confront officials of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon) at its Tokyo headquarters in Bunkyo Ward, on Monday morning.Police searched the Tokyo metropolitan headquarters of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon) and six other locations Monday in connection with a case in which a female Korean resident attempted to smuggle intravenous solutions from Japan to North Korea during a visit in May. The woman's husband is an executive of the Korean Association of Science and Technology in Japan, an organization affiliated with Chongryon. The woman,...

A Frederic man accused of stealing a pet alligator to satisfy a debt owed to a downstate drug dealer was arraigned on a host of felony charges on Tuesday. Gary Lee Gugin, 39, was arraigned in Crawford County District Court for committing a larceny while carrying a firearm, entering a home without permission to commit armed robbery, possessing a firearm while ineligible to do so, possessing of a short barreled rifle and possessing a firearm during an armed robbery. He faces up to life in prison or any number of years if convicted. Authorities are also seeking to charge Gugin...

A gene test that predicts which cancer drugs will be most effective for different people is to be trialled in the US. Preliminary results suggest the test, which looks at the unique molecular traits of a tumour, predicts the best drug with 80% accuracy.The first clinical trial is planned in 120 breast cancer patients next year. If the results are good, the test could be applied to all chemotherapy-treated cancers, Nature Medicine reports.The researchers at Duke University, North Carolina, say the test has the potential to revolutionise cancer care by identifying the right drug for each individual patient. Lead researcher...

U.S. immigrants pose TB threatFrom coast to coast, more cases found raising fears of new drug-resistant strain Posted: October 22, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2006 WorldNetDaily.com WASHINGTON – The worst forms of a drug-resistant killer tuberculosis bug, rapidly spreading throughout the world, have been gaining ground in the United States along with record legal and illegal immigration levels, alarming public-health officials over a disease once thought vanquished. Although the number of confirmed drug-resistant TB cases in the U.S. is relatively small – still measured in the dozens – health officials say visitors from other countries are bringing in the...

Britons freed from chains in mullah's 'drug cure' prison By Isambard Wilkinson in Haripur (Filed: 06/10/2006) A Pakistani cleric has been arrested for running a private jail to which he lured dozens of drug addicts from Britain by offering a spiritual cure in return for money. Treatment: Maulana Ilyas Qadri In a raid this week, police found 113 people, aged between 12 and 50, bound in chains and shackled together at a madrassa, or religious school, in a remote village in northern Pakistan. At least seven were British nationals of Pakistani origin. Many prisoners, whose relatives consigned them to the...

MEXICO CITY - Mexico extradited accused drug kingpin Francisco Rafael Arellano Felix to the United States on Saturday, making him the first major Mexican drug lord to be sent north to face trial on drug charges. Mexico's extradition of the man who once ran the Arellano Felix drug clan was a victory for U.S. officials who have been pushing Mexico to send them more drug lords. After serving a 10-year sentence in Mexico, Arellano Felix was loaded into a helicopter to the Mexican border town of Matamoros, then flown across and handed over to Texas officials in Brownsville. He will...