Free Republic

The European Union will ban new sales of fossil fuel cars from 2035, after MEPs approved a new law Tuesday, as Brussels also draws up plans to slash carbon emissions from trucks and buses. European Union member states have already approved the legislation on cars and vans and they will now formally nod it into law, but much debate lies ahead on proposed measures against larger freight and passenger vehicles. Supporters of the car bill -- passed in the European Parliament in Strasbourg -- argue it gives European automakers a clear timeframe to switch production to electric vehicles and will...

ADDIS ABABA - Even as hundreds of thousands of cheering Ethiopians and visitors came together happily to celebrate Bob Marley here Sunday, an undercurrent of mistrust and uncertainty swelled through the crowd. Many of the late reggae legend’s fans pose enormous problems for Ethiopia’s overwhelmingly devout orthodox Christian majority who regard the teachings and precepts of Rastafarians to be suspect at best and blasphemous at worst. Most cannot fathom how or why Rastafarians believe their former emperor Haile Selassie is god, consider Ethiopia the Biblical promised land or smoke marijuana, illegal in this country, as a sacrament. And beneath a...

Creeping closer to anarchy published: Thursday | March 9, 2006 THE SEEMINGLY random slaughter of our people, including children in the full bloom of youth; the violent attacks on citizens from all walks of life across the length and breadth of Jamaica, and the apparent inability of the security forces to halt or even retard the rate of killings are raising public anxiety and the feeling that the society is moving closer to anarchy.In response to the various brutal attacks, we have collectively expressed anger and outrage, condemnation and denunciation, but until and unless the justice system is seen...

Ganja and crime published: Sunday | November 27, 2005 The scientific debate in Jamaica about the dangers of marijuana use is often obfuscated by a subtle cultural bias based in part on a support of Rastafarians who claim that the herb is a sacramental part of their religious practice, but also by years of its use in folk medicine. Now comes Dr. Winston De La Haye, director of the detoxification unit at the University Hospital of the West Indies and president of the Psychiatry Association of Jamaica, who believes that the use of ganja may well be a major...

IN 2004, law enforcement officials arrested 771,605 people for marijuana violations, according to federal statistics. Bruce Mirken of the Marijuana Policy Project was so alarmed he sent out a press release noting that there were more arrests for marijuana charges than all violent crimes combined. The number of arrests for possession alone was 684,319. Said Mirken of the 771,605 statistic: "This is, in fact, an all-time record. This number of arrests is the equivalent of arresting every man, woman and child in San Francisco." Some 40 percent of Americans say they have used marijuana or hashish in their lifetime, and...

A chemical found in cannabis can act like an antidepressant, researchers have found. A team from Canada's University of Sasketchewan suggest the compound causes nerve cells to regenerate. The Journal of Clinical Investigation study showed rats given a cannabinoid were less anxious and less depressed. But UK experts warned other conflicting research had linked cannabis, and other cannabinoids, to an increased risk of depression and anxiety. They suggested this could be because different cannabinoids acting at different levels have contradictory effects. Cannabinoids have been shown to relieve the symptoms of multiple sclerosis and pain relief in humans. They are naturally...

Marijuana Compound Spurs Brain Cell Growth In rat study, synthetic cannabinoid also boosted rodents' mood THURSDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- When it comes to the controversy surrounding medical marijuana, an international team of researchers is busy stirring the pot by releasing findings that suggest the drug helps promote brain cell growth while treating mood disorders. According to the study in rats, a super-potent synthetic version of the cannabinoid compound found in marijuana can reduce depression and anxiety when taken over an extended period of time. This mood boost seems to be the result of the drug's ability to promote...

Reggae star Bob Marley’s widow plans to exhume his remains in Jamaica and rebury them in his “spiritual resting place,” Ethiopia. The reburial is set for February when month long celebrations of the 60th anniversary of Marley’s birth are planned in Ethiopia. Both the Ethiopian church and government officials have expressed support for the project, Rita Marley said in Addis Ababa today. “We are working on bringing his remains to Ethiopia,” said Rita, a former backing singer for Marley’s band, The Wailers. “It is part of Bob’s own mission.” Marley died of cancer in 1981. Rita Marley said her husband...

EVEN THE very heavens saluted Bob Marley on his 59th birthday. Bunny Wailer had just finished praying for his fellow original Wailer, saying that "Bob is a special individual created by the Most High", the birthday cake had been cut and Rastaman Vibration was rocking easy from the sound system at 10:07 p.m. Then an arm went up and a finger pointed to the sky above 56 Hope Road, St. Andrew in the direction of Papine. More arms and fingers quickly followed and there was a gathering chorus of roars, much like a wave building to a peak as it...