Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Stopping Their Stimulus................

They first did it on Oct. 6, they did it a second time on Nov. 3 — and, oops, Australia may raise interest rates again in December this year or in February next year. "A further gradual lessening of monetary stimulus is likely to be required over time if the economy evolves broadly as expected," the Reserve Bank of Australia said last week. It expects GDP to expand 1.75% this year, more than three times its forecast in August...Link

Should Pot Be Legal?............

We cannot legalize marijuana because its use has destructive health and social consequences. Marijuana is far more powerful today than it was years ago and it serves as an entry point for the use of other illegal drugs. This is known as the "gateway effect." Despite arguments from the drug culture to the contrary, marijuana is addictive. This addiction has been well described in the scientific literature and it consists of both a physical dependence (tolerance and subsequent withdrawal) and a psychological habituation...Link

Rethinking pot prohibition?.......................

The American Medical Association on Tuesday issued a cautious but historically significant call to change America's marijuana prohibition laws, urging a "review" of the drug's status as a Schedule I drug. At a meeting in Houston, the AMA's House of Delegates adopted a new policy that calls for "marijuana's status as a federal Schedule I controlled substance be reviewed with the goal of facilitating the conduct of clinical research and development of cannabinoid-based medicines, and alternate delivery methods."...Link