Daily Archives: April 10, 2017

Time for a rebirth of Zimbabwean politics – New Zimbabwe.com

Posted: April 10, 2017 at 3:15 am

THE current crisis arresting the country revolves around the leadership question especially the failure to respond to problems including those of the states making, it is a clear sign of the broken politics of Jongwe and Munhumutapa buildings.

For close to four decades, Zimbabwe has been dominated by mediocrity, false and corrupt personalities, huge egos, hubris, arrogance, individualism, selfishness and crony capitalism.

It is the Peoples Democratic Partys view that the way we do politics must change; only proper leadership can solve the problems we are facing.

Our state is engulfed in a serious socio-economic crisis causing unpalatable suffering to the Zimbabwean people.

The fact of the matter is that Zimbabwe is in the fourth year of a structural economic recession which the authorities do not understand and are incapable of offering sustainable solutions to stem the same.

The economy is continuously shrinking, predatory fiscal policies have created a huge budget deficit, there is weak export performance, corruption and leakages, lack of competitiveness, lack of meaningful FDI, shrinking diaspora remittances and low levels of capital formation, persistent levels of disserving, have contributed to the crisis.

Our independent calculations reflect that actual GDP for 2015 was -1.8%, -3.8% for 2016 and a projection of -4.8 in 2017.

The state has so far issued out toxic treasury bills to finance the budget deficit which is over 42%.Government has also raided RTGS and NOSTRO accounts at the RBZ as a result a crippling cash crisis has hit the economy.

Long bank queues are now the order of the day, the only attempt by government to deal with the matter was through dubious measures pronounced by the RBZ including a low ceiling on maximum withdrawals and the insanity of introducing the bond note.

In the midst of an amalgamated crisis in Zimbabwe, the situation is compounded by sterile leadership with no ability to provide solutions; the balance sheet of failure is there for everyone to see.

The incompetence of ZANUPF is coupled with the legitimacy question which is born out of ZANUPFs record of electoral fraud including in 2013.The people of Zimbabwe do not trust the ZANUPF government at the same time state officials do not feel compelled to account since they do not draw the mandate from the people but from the rigging machinery.

We also note that the ZANUPF government is further crippled by age which is catching up with most senior individuals in the regime.

Mugabe who is still the President at 93 he recently got a wheel chair as a present from his party members who seem to admit that he is too old to walk around his office space.

The rest of his friends are also very old including the ones who are dying to succeed him. A quick look at their ages of a few examples tells the story; Phelekezela Mpoko 77, Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa 75, Simon Khaya Moyo 72, Mahofa Mahofa 76, Sydney Sekeramayi 73, Simbarashe Mbengegwi 72, Patrick Chinamasa 70, David Parirenyatwa 67, Ignatious Chombo 65, Kembo Mohadi 68. Most of these have been in government since 1980, they no longer have anything new to offer. We therefore call for a rebirth of Zimbabwean politics to save the nation from a total collapse. There must be a significant generational change in leadership; even judges are required to retire at the age 70 the same principle must be applied to the executive.

We state in the Agenda for Restoration and Rehabilitation of Electoral Sustainability that there must be a generational coalition in which components from the old movement coalesce with the younger post liberation generations.

Equally important is the fact that the generational equation should be based on the terms and aspirations of the younger generation.

The aim is not to create a modern refined liberation movement but rather a modern democratic entity that will finish the unfinished business of the liberation struggle.

We therefore encourage mobilisation of social movements which as seen in 2016 were driven by young people, networking and collaboration of progressive political and social movements against dictatorship.

There must be national dialogue of stakeholders and the consummation of the social contract, social movements must be involved in resolving the political challenges the country is facing through sustainable policy formulation.

Jacob Mafume is national spokesman of the oppostion PDP party

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Geoffrey Norman: What Next? After The Syrian Strike – Caledonian Record

Posted: at 3:14 am

What Next? After the strike in Syria

The missile attack against Syria was in retaliation for well, just what, exactly? The straight up answer is simple enough. The Syrian government had indulged in gas warfare against its own citizens. The Syrian government has, of course, been killing Syrians for a long time now. The father of the countrys current dictator once leveled an entire city with artillery in a campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood. He then ordered the rubble bulldozed and the bodies entombed in the concrete of the village square.

The number of people killed in the recent gas attack is a fraction of the body count from that action. And the gas killed nowhere nearly so many people as the routine dropping of barrel bombs on civilian targets by the regimes helicopters. The barrels bombs are ordinary 55 gallon fuel drums, filled with explosives and scrap metal. They are anti-personnel weapons in the the truest sense. And no less indiscriminate than gas.

But the world is uniquely appalled by the use of poison gas in war. It was a routine part of the horrors of World War One, which the United States entered one hundred years ago this month. The fighting had been going on for almost three years by then. Stalemate, futility, and butchery characterized the fighting. The goggled eyed, gas masked soldier was its inhuman face.

So when the war ended, at last, the world outlawed the use of poison gas. But what the world could legislate, it was incapable of enforcing. Italy, under the rule of Benito Mussolinis fascists, attempted to re-establish a Roman empire of sorts and went to war in northern Africa. When its Ethiopian campaign stalled, it dropped mustard gas from the air, killing both soldiers and civilians. The world was both appalled and impotent.

As World War Two began, it was widely assumed that the use of gas would be a routine feature of the fighting. The British government expected gas attacks from the air. Citizens of London carried gas masks as they went about their business.

There were no gas attacks on London. Or on soldiers in the field. The Nazis confined their use of gas to the camps where they did the industrialized killing of their political enemies and those they considered their racial inferiors. Especially the Jews.

The Japanese did some tentative work with gas and even with germ warfare. But its use never became what you would call widespread. During the Cold War, both the Soviet Union and the United States accumulated huge stockpiles of gas and trained their troops in its use and in how to defend themselves against it.

And, now, there is the mid-East where the Saddam Hussein attacked his own citizens and his Iranian enemies with gas and where the United States went to war to eliminate the threat posed by his weapons on mass destruction. These included, especially, gas, of which none was found or used, though invading American troops were trained and equipped to deal with the gas attacks anticipated by their commanders.

In 2012, President Barack Obama warned that if the Syrian dictator, Assad, were to use weapons of mass destruction against his enemies, it would constitute the crossing of a red line. This, of course, threatened some sort of retaliation. There were gas attacks but no retaliation. A deal was made, in which the Soviet Union, Assads ally, would get the stockpiled gas out of Syria and see to its destruction.

The recent attacks prove, of course, that this didnt happen.

So President Trump has now made good on President Obamas threat. And the question is what next?

If the American action is strictly about gas warfare and enforcing the ban against it, then perhaps it will be successful. Assad may look at the destruction inflicted by American Tomahawk missiles and decide that further gas attacks are not worth such a heavy price. So he will stick to barrel bombs. The killing will go on. No great geopolitical changes will have come about as a result of the American strikes.

But perhaps these strikes are about more than gas. One would hope so, anyway. Perhaps these strikes are a meant to show our enemies to include Russia and Iran that we are serious and that we will use force when it is called for.

Well, when some vital national interest or, even, our survival is at stake. Those are the reasons for going to war and they had best be clear cut. Going to war to make others fight like gentlemen is as foolish as going to war to make the world safe for democracy.

Which is what we did 100 years ago.

And we know how well that worked out.

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Everything Must Change: Protest – Patheos (blog)

Posted: at 3:14 am

Matthew 21:1-11

Try to imagine what it was like that day.

The weather hadnt started to get oppressively hot in the desert yet; the air was still cool, especially at night. And up there on the Mount of Olives, a long ridge running beside Jerusalem and looking over into the city, there was a breeze that rustled their cloaks and felt a little bit like optimism. I imagine it must have been sunny that day, too. But it wasnt just the weather. As they looked out over the city they could see that it was turned out in all its finery, the white marble and gold trim of the temple shining in the sun. Entering the gates from every side of the city the traffic was constant, so many people arriving to visit family or to worship at the temple during Passover, some of the holiest days of the Jewish year.

Jesus himself had been, for some weeks, making his way toward Jerusalem. Hed been in the countryside preaching and healing people, picking up new followers who heard his message of love and justice and wondered if he would be the one who would finally deliver the Jewish people from Roman oppression.

Now Jesus stood, looking out over Jerusalem, a city he loved. Perhaps he glanced over his shoulder at the crowd whod followed him this far. He knew that this was a defining moment: that they were headed toward a collision, a crash between oppressive powers of religion and government, and his gospel of love and justice. Whatever was ahead, it would require such commitment and clarity, an understanding of faith as something we live out loud. Maybe the people standing with Jesus knew what was ahead; maybe they didnt. But as he stood there looking out over the city, Jesus certainly knew this: we dont really start living until we find out what well die for.

Today is Palm Sunday, and as we stand on the edge of Holy Week we are still thinking about the work of Lent, how God perpetually invites us to change, to rethink the way we live, to step out from our human constructs of life and into a world that God dreams for us.

But change is difficult, and the world is dangerous, and we are scared.

And this is precisely why we call this the work of Lentits hard. Trying to imagine a different way of living, trying to step into that new way. It will take everything we have: our deepest commitment, our truest resolve, our utmost dedication.

Matthews gospel today tells the story of a small crowd waving palms on the edge of Jerusalem, and it presents an invitation to us to change the way in which we understand the expression of our faith. So many of us have learned that a life of faith is the exercise of following an inviolable list of rules, our successful following of which will get us into heaven, and our failure to follow, well, you know.

But I wonder as we set out into this holiest of weeks, whether were being invited to understand our faith less as following rules and more as speaking up, as being mouthpieces for righteousness, insisting on justice and peace and wholeness for all of humanity.

Gods way in this world, after all, runs directly counter to systems of oppression and exploitative power. It seems to me, then, that our view of faith must change. Everything about it must change: from an understanding of faith as compliance to an understanding of faith as protest. Speaking up. Refusing to be silent. Not getting tired. Risking everything.

After all, this week especially, Holy Week, if we didnt know it before, we certainly will by Friday: we dont even begin livinguntil we find out what well die for.

All four gospel accounts: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, tell some version of this story, which takes place, remember, just before the start of Passover. Recall that Passover is a holy time of remembrance for Jews then, even as it is now. Passover lasts for eight days and is the marking of the hardship of oppression in Egypt, the calling of Moses to lead the people to freedom, to a Promised Land flowing with milk and honey, the hurried preparations to be ready to flee, the miraculous parting of the Red Sea, the hardship of forty years wandering the desert, the giving of the 10 Commandments. In the marking of that miraculous history, Passover asks the question: Now that we are free, how shall we live? What does the Lord require of us?

To remember. To remember that the journey from oppression to freedom, from unjust violence to just non-violence, has not been completed. Jews then and now leave the door open, leave an empty seat for Elijah, and tell the story in first personas if they were thereso that one day, finally, with our participation, the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Sounds a bit like discontentpushing back against unjust systemsbeing unwilling to sit silent while oppression continuesinsisting on the way of God in a world that does not recognize itprotest.

Filled with travelers and tourists that day, we should also remember that Jerusalem was under the punishing rule of the Roman Empire, its people oppressed and living with the crippling burden of high taxes and limited agency. The crowds were thick and keeping the peace was the number one priority of Roman governor Pontius Pilate and his troops. He wanted to make sure that the people didnt get too riled up in their Passover celebration. And, he wanted to be sure they remembered who was in charge.

In fact, as part of the festivities of the week and in an effort to show Roman dominance, Pilate had planned a procession into Jerusalem let by Pilate himself. No one in the city could miss it: a huge display with Pilate prancing in on a war horse and legions of Roman soldiers with their gleaming armor marching in concert. They entered through the Western gate, the big main gate that framed a bustling thoroughfare.

People lined the streets waving and cheering, families staked out places on the parade route just so they could watch the army make its way in. It would have been like a celebrity sightingpeople craned to get a glimpse of the powerful regent who ruled the whole area where the city of Jerusalem was located.

The message of Pilate and the Roman Emperor was clear: it may be the Feast of the Passover, but this holiday was only being celebrated at the pleasure of the Roman rulers. And no Jew living in Jerusalem or visiting the city for Passover should dare to think of this as anything other than a nice little religious celebration, generously allowed by the magnanimous and gracious permission of the Roman government.

As Jesus stood on the Mount of Olives looking out over Jerusalem, he could see right out in front of him the road to the city, winding steeply down past groves of olive trees, into the deep Kidron Valley, and then sharply back uphill into Jerusalem through the East side, a smaller gate in the back of the city. And we should know that the crowd gathered to cheer Jesus was miniscule in comparison to the huge group watching Pilates parade on the other side of the city.

Pilate rode in through the main gate; Jesus rode in through a small gate in the back of the city. Pilate was dressed in his finery, riding a huge warhorse; Jesus had no armor with no Roman insignia . . . and his ride was the colt of a donkey. The people at the front gate pledged their loyalty to the Roman government and cheered the military might they saw. The little crowd at the back gate, led by children waving palms, yelled Hosannaroughly translated Lord, help us . . . and followed it with the treasonous Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Everything about Jesus entry was a protest to the big parade going on right across town.

Once we see the true setting of this story of Jesus on a little donkey and people waving palms and shouting, we can see very clearly that everything must change; that our understanding of faith must be always grounded in protest.

You may have learned in Sunday School that everyone in Jerusalem got it that day. Thats what I learned, anyway . . . that for that one glorious moment all the people understood who Jesus was and vowed to follow him, joining their voices and their lives to speak up for Gods way of love in the world.

It wasnt so. Its never been that easy to follow Jesus, even on Palm Sunday.

No, anyone in Jerusalem that day who managed to get through the crowds pressing in around Pilate on the other side of town, just to get to the back gate in time to see Jesus led in the back gate on a little donkey knew . . . they knew for sure that what they were seeing was not a popular endorsement of Gods kingdom coming to be, but a visual demonstration of how much Gods way of life stands in contrast to the way of this world.

And as Jesus made his way toward the temple that day, the folks who fell in behind his parade knew that they were marching in a public protest, a tangible act of opposition to human power and might parading just on the other side of town. They werent insincere in their followingthey knew as they yelled Hosanna! that their cries were radical expressions of opposition and defiance.

Perhaps they did not know as they fell in behind him that they would march all the way through the city that week, out into the Garden of Gethsemane, into the courtyards of the most powerful men in society, and eventually up . . . up that hill to crucifixion and death.

But they did know that this was the parade they would join, this strange little band of defiant marchers who preferred not to sing the praises of the powerful but instead to follow the one who dismantled old structures and called for a new world. They held on so tightly to the conviction that hope for the world is not found in human power, but in the way of justice and love, in the way of Christ.

What better story to begin this week, when we will remember what happens when people of faith and good conscience find the courage to confront the biggest and the most powerful forces that work against love, to protest? To resist the powers of this world that close borders and gas innocents and take away healthcare and send the most vulnerable to detention centers and line the pockets of the excessively wealthy while children in our own country go hungry?

Matthew reports that this little group of faithful protestors sent a loud message in Jerusalem that day. Verse 10 reads: When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, Who is this?

Why?

Because speaking up for what is true and right, even in the face of overwhelming power, has greater impact than we can even begin to imagine. As we set out toward Holy Week, were invited to decide if we will pick up our palms and our protest signs and join this parade, this protest that is our faith. Because if theres anything we need to remember today, its this: we dont even begin livinguntil we find out what well die for.

Amen.

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Everything Must Change: Protest - Patheos (blog)

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Jamaican Government Issues Apology, Reparations for the 1963 Brutal Attack on Rastas – Atlanta Black Star

Posted: at 3:14 am

The Rastafarian Flag; Image by dubdem sound system, CC BY 2.0

On April 4, Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness made a historic apology for the grave injustice of an attack made on Rastafarians between April 11 and 12, 1963 the year after Jamaica gained its independence from Great Britain. Alexander Bustamante was the countrys prime minister then, and he headed the Jamaica Labour Party the same party that Holness leads today. Eight Jamaicans were killed in Coral Gardens (near Montego Bay) on what has come to be called Bad Friday, since it was Easter at the time.

As many as 150 Rastafarians were rounded up, arrested, beaten and abused; their dreadlocks, which have religious significance, were cut. The series of events that led up to the attack were part of an atmosphere of systematic oppression, discrimination and open hostility towards Rastafarians that had begun prior to independence, all of which were documented in the 2011 film Bad Friday.

The actual apology came later that afternoon in parliament; several media outlets shared the full statement.

The prime minister announced that six lots at a historically relevant property at Pinnacle in rural St. Catherine would be declared as a protected heritage site by the Jamaican National Heritage Trust; he also promised assistance for the Coral Gardens Benevolent Society and said a trust fund of no less than J $10 million (just over U.S. $75,000) would be established for the benefit of survivors. The Pinnacle property has been the source of some controversy. It is regarded as the first Rastafari settlement in Jamaica and the former home of Garveyite Leonard Howell, who is widely considered the founder of the Rastafari movement. After Howells death legal battles began over the ownership of the land.

Holness also acknowledged public defender Arlene Harrison Henrys investigation and subsequent report on the matter, which was submitted to Parliament in December 2015. In it she recommended an apology and reparations for the survivors.

There was more praise for the prime ministers statement. One Jamaican referred to a recent unpopular announcement about property taxes:

For Andrew Holness to take the responsibility, and apologize in his tenure to the Rastafarian community is another step towards sharpening our independence. Its the same way children must take responsibility for the ills of their parents, just as they took the harvest of prayers and unmerited blessings so they can alleviate held over bitterness. Well done servant First Minister. History will absolve you for hiking property prices when they find out you were a true statesman. The world is not going to the devil, it is going to God. #thoughtsonimproving

While Peter Phillips, who had just been formally welcomed as the new leader of the opposition in parliament, welcomed the move, one Jamaican cynically referred to Phillips younger days as a practising Rastafarian:

So our PM has done more for Rastafarian in the 18 months he is in power, compared to the leader of the opposition who himself was a Rastafarian. #leadership #coralgardens #goodgovernance

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War on drugs make history sheeters feel the heat | Chandigarh … – Times of India

Posted: at 3:14 am

JALANDHAR: The war against drugs is making cops dust off old files pertaining to habitual offenders, and to their surprise most of the cases against these history sheeters are pertaining to drug trafficking. Making it mandatory for station house officers (SHO) to make entries in their own hand in a particular register at the police station has led to opening of history sheets of 369 drug peddlers in six districts of Jalandhar zone in the last four months.

The campaign to open history sheets on the basis of cases already registered against criminals was started from December 1 and already over 700 history sheets have been opened and over half of them face cases under the NDPS Act.

Sources said that several of these 369 persons with criminal record have serious criminal charges apart from drug peddling. Before this practice of basic policing was enforced in the last week of November last year, there were only 163 persons in all these six districts whose history sheets were opened by the police. It is learnt that all those against whom history sheets have been opened now had five or more cases registered against each of them but were not in the bad character (BC) list due to lapses in basic police practices. The BC list has names of those persons whose history sheets are maintained by the police.

It is learnt that even as maintaining Register No. 12 - in which a police station is supposed to maintain complete record about cases registered against a resident of the area under its jurisdiction even if the cases are registered at other places also - is an old practice but it was not being followed properly at police stations and history sheets of several of the habitual criminals were not being opened.

However, Jalandhar zone IG L K Yadav over four months back issued orders fixing responsibility of SHOs in making entries in their own hand in Register No. 12 about information regarding cases against criminals who happen to be residents of the areas under their jurisdiction. A few SHOs even faced action after they failed to strictly comply with the directions.

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War on Drugs focus of latest Town Hall – Shelby News: Local News – Shelbynews

Posted: at 3:14 am

Like most wars, the war on drugs has many combatants and many casualties.

On Tuesday, law enforcement officials and recovery leaders are scheduled to gatherat the Shelbyville Boys Club, 710 S. Miller Ave.,in a public forum to raise awareness of the issue locally and whats being done about it.

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Ice and Busts: The Lost War on Drugs in Australia – Scoop.co.nz (press release)

Posted: at 3:14 am

It was hard to tell whether Australias Federal Police authorities, along with their Victorian colleagues, were gloating at their latest effort. Thrilled at the unearthing of a stash of methamphetamine, a form of it colloquially known as ice, trumpeted as the biggest seizure in Australian history, there was a sense of achievement. They had gotten one up on the drugs gangs, inflicting a blow to the narcotics trade. Celebrate!

Such celebrations, however, are misplaced. For one, they seemed to follow similar celebrations in February, when $1 billion worth of liquid methamphetamine, concealed in gel push-up bra inserts, were uncovered.

Do these seizures suggest that the police and various enforcement authorities are gaining the upper hand, or perhaps foot dragging before ever enterprising and novel ways of adding to the narcotics market?

A stash of 903 kg of methamphetamines is certainly a remarkable quantity, secreted in boxes of wooden floorboards in an inconspicuous part of east Melbourne. We located 70 boxes of floorboards, chirped AFP assistant commissioner Neil Gaughan. In each of them was concealed between the floorboards two kilograms of methamphetamine.

But this suggests that there might well be much more, a drugs economy that is thriving in a hot house of high demand. Even Justice Minister Michael Keenan has conceded this point, noting that Australia has become one of the most lucrative markets for drug trade in the western world.

Tones of scolding severity duly follow when the phenomenon of drugs consumption is examined, notably among the researchers most interested in those habits of gradual yet mesmerising decay. There is no doubt Australia has a culture, especially among our young people, which does not see the taking of illicit substances or binge drinking as particularly detrimental to the health, claimed Professor Harvey Whiteford of the University of Queensland in 2013.

The police also annotate such findings with their suspicions about the inner drug devil in many an Australian. As Detective Chief Superintendent Mick Smith of the New South Wales Drug Squads Chemical Operation Unit claims with a Presbyterian fury, 1.3 million people in Australia have tried ice. Some of your friends and members of your family would have to have tried ice. The horror, the horror.

Last month, researchers released findings after examining, somewhat unglamorously, wastewater across 51 sites only to find that methylamphetamine was the most consumed illicit drug in the country. It topped the premier league table of items, beating a range of other contenders such as heroin and cocaine.

For such reasons, this is a battle, if not a poorly described war, that is unwinnable against basic human wishes and market demand. Experimentation and temptation is all, and the world of testing is becoming more diverse than ever. Law and medical authorities are desperate to stifle the interest, and are failing. The central problem is the nagging obsession with drugs as a matter of law and order.

Those participating in the market know this better than anybody else. Even Gaughan concedes with detectable admiration that the methods of novelty in this case on the part of the drug traders were considerable. (One has to beef up the opposition to show your own efforts are worthwhile.) You can appreciate the concealment method used in this particular activity is quite complex, quite unique. It wasnt something we had seen previously. The sentiment is often noted.

The battle against drugs was lost in the United States at enormous cost, becoming a continental affair of devastating consequences to security and welfare. Other countries, lagging in efforts to legalise certain drugs and attempts to control the narcotics market, find themselves at the losing end. Warring against desire and instinct eventually unravels. The cartels, and those connected with the prison industrial complex, profit.

It is precisely for such reasons that Portugal decriminalised the use of all drugs, whatever their rank of severity, in 2001. The result? Portugal has 3 drug overdose deaths for every million citizens. The EU average, by way of contrast, is 17.3 per million.

In Australia, a few politicians have decided to shift the emphasis. The Greens leader, Senator Richard Di Natale, himself a former drugs and alcohol doctor, convinced his party in 2016 to abandon absolute opposition to the legalisation of illicit drugs. Its time we recognise this as a health problem not a law and order one. We have to have an open, honest conversation about this and stop pretending were winning this war.

Whether it is the heavy hand of the law, or some clumsy variant of it, the campaign against drugs is simply going the way of those who cash in on it, a vast sprawl of vested interests. In the end, the very existence of the police and the enforcement complex thrives on such spectacles, on the illusion of safety and security. As this happens, sickness prevails as the money runs out the door.

In the meantime, lawyers and members of the public will be treated to the picture of overly enthusiastic ministers and police commissioners keen to get the message across that arrests are taking place and drugs seized with dedicated efficiency. During such a process, the rule of law is bound to take a battering, not least of all the presumption of innocence. Grainy images of various suspected figures are already doing the rounds through the papers.

The ministers traffic in votes and illusions, and finding drugs provides a false incentive for both. What is needed, as The Age editorial surmised in November last year, is a policy in favour of a harm minimisation strategy based on decriminalisation, regulation and education. Paramilitary approaches should be ditched, and resources channelled into health. Portugal, not the United States, should be seen as the model here.

Dr. Binoy Kampmark was a Commonwealth Scholar at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He lectures at RMIT University, Melbourne. Email: bkampmark@gmail.com

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Ice and Busts: The Lost War on Drugs in Australia - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

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Gambling addiction treatment costs likely to rise if casinos are … – Charleston Post Courier

Posted: at 3:13 am

As South Carolina lawmakers continue to float the idea of legalizing casinos to help raise state revenue, they are likely to be confronted with another issue: expanding and funding the state's existing gambling addiction treatment efforts.

All 46 counties in the Palmetto State already have programs available for people looking to break their gambling habits as part of the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services.

But administrators say the department's staffing would likely need to grow in order to conduct screenings and counseling for those seeking help if state lawmakers decide to tap casinos for their tax-generating capability.

I am sure we would need more because of an increased capacity of people coming through the door, said Virginia Ervin, the state's Gambling Services Coordinator.

Last year, the state's gambling addiction treatment efforts helped 315 people pass through counselling services, which is tailored to help people resist the addictive urge to bet away their income or life savings. Those efforts were funded through the state's unclaimed prize money from the state Lottery Commission, which runs public-service television ads promoting its gambling-addiction website and hotline.

The price tag for the program is $50,000 in the upcoming year.

Lee Dutton, the chief of staff for DAODAS, says they havenot yet analyzed how much of an increase they might expect to see if South Carolina approves the slot machines and table games at casinos. He said they would likely need to study how other states, like New Jersey or Mississippi, were impacted after approving casinos in the past.

The state's gambling addiction program has been in operation for more than a decade now, but there is no accurate tracking of how those services have expanded or contracted in recent years. The department also doesn't track the demographics of the people that are calling into the South Carolina Gambling Helpline because the staff are focused on conducting a screening over the phone to determine if the caller should seek further help.

Some of the callers, Ervin said, like to gamble but aren't necessarilyaddicted. They are just concerned they are buying a few too many scratch-off tickets every month.Others, however, have all of the signs of a psychological addiction to the games of chance no different than individuals that are hooked on alcohol or drugs.

Even without casinos currently in the state, Dutton said there are already South Carolinians being confronted with gambling addiction. In the age of online gaming, opportunities to gamble are ubiquitous and just a click away.

Some of the worst stories Ervin has heard include individuals that were prepared for retirement and instead found themselves gambling away their nest egg. She's seen people lose jobs, homes and even marriages over the incessant need to cast a bet.

We do get a lot of family members that call in, Ervin said. "Some have had their spouses lose their money for rent, a house payment, whatever.

Follow Andrew Brown on Twitter @andy_ed_brown.

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NFLers may have violated gambling policy at arm wrestling event – New York Daily News

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New York Daily News
NFLers may have violated gambling policy at arm wrestling event
New York Daily News
The NFL is looking into the possibility that multiple players violated the league's gambling policy by participating in an arm wrestling event in a Las Vegas casino, a league spokesman confirmed. The Pro Football Arm Wrestling Championship's website ...
Las Vegas arm wrestling event may lead to discipline for NFL playersSB Nation
The NFL Is Investigating If Players In An Arm Wrestling Event Violated Its Gambling PolicyUPROXX
Participants in arm wrestling event in Vegas could face NFL finesESPN
Deadspin -CBSSports.com -Sporting News
all 36 news articles »

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Survey results show visitors to Las Vegas are gambling less than ever – Covers.com

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Every year the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) releases a profile of people who visited Las Vegas the previous year. Its always interesting to see how the average person visiting Las Vegas spends their time and money.

This profile is the average of 3,600 randomly selected visitors throughout the year. The information isnt specific to one person or even an exact representation of the nearly 43 million people who visited Las Vegas in 2016.

It takes a special person who is willing to take time out of their Las Vegas vacation to answer a survey. However, the information gathered is good for building a broad picture of the average person visiting Las Vegas.

Translating this into sports betting terms, consider the respondents to be the most square visitors to Las Vegas. The LVCVA recently released the study of visitors in Las Vegas from 2016 and there are quite a few interesting figures for gamblers.

Fewer People Visiting Las Vegas Are Gambling

Fewer people gambled last year as 69% of all visitors said they gambled while in Las Vegas. Thats a decrease from 73% of visitors who gambled in 2015. There could be a lot of reasons for this result but changing preferences of younger visitors is a good place to start.

Nearly one-third of visitors to Las Vegas in 2016 were considered millennials. Thats an increase from 24% in 2015. Word on the street is that millennials dont like to gamble.

This may also be the result of poor gambling experiences. I can attest to this notion. The increase in poor odds and rules, limited complimentary cocktails and machine games holding a higher percentage of money wagered are just a few examples of why some people may gamble less than before. Ive written numerous times about this over the past couple of years. I'm already prepared for an update to this story in a few months.

Visitors in Las Vegas explored more than just the Vegas Strip. Expect this continue and for gamblers looking for a better experience to play more in the downtown Las Vegas casinos. Not only are the limits often lower but the rules and payouts are more player friendly.

More People Are Spending Less Time Gambling

Among those who gambled while in Las Vegas, 71% gambled for two hours or less in 2016. Thats a significant increase from 50% of visitors gambling for the same period in 2015. If the games return less money, that will decrease how long people will spend at the tables or machines on a similar budget.

This is an average of all gamblers. Sports bettors aren't immune to shorter gambling either, however, there may be different reasons. The introduction of in-game wagering, quarters, props and 1 or 5 inning bets give ample opportunities to have wagers resolved quickly. As I mentioned on a recent baseball betting live stream, I like to make 5 inning wagers for baseball in hopes that the casino is theoretically paying for dinner that evening.

People Who Gamble Are Budgeting More Money. Kinda.

Among those who gambled in 2016, the average gambling budget was $619.01. Thats up from $484.70 in 2012, $529.57 in 2013 and $530.11 in 2014. The average visit to Las Vegas is just over two days so on average visitors have a budget of about $300 per day.

The most striking news in gambling budgets are the high and low roller decreases and increases last year, respectively. In 2016, 23% of gamblers said they budgeted $600 or more per visit to Las Vegas. Thats down from 2015 where 30% of gamblers budgeted that much money.

On the other side of the spectrum, low rollers are on the rise! In 2014 and 2015 only 15% of visitors budgeted $99 or less for gambling. That nearly doubled in 2016 when 25% of visitors budgeted less than $100 for their entire visit to Las Vegas.

Gambling in Las Vegas has been changing a lot over the years and it continues to change. In the next few weeks, I'll explore new ways of gambling in Las Vegas that are just hitting casinos. It's an exciting time if you're the kind of person that likes shiny new things. Likewise, it's probably a tough time if you don't like change.

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