Access, an organisation that is standing behind the protest is hoping to mobilise people to join an international day of action set up for 11th of February.

From Insider:

With calls to fight the controversial SOPA and PIPA bills in the US — which Google, Wikipedia and other technology giants moved to campaign against – proving a success, similar calls are being made to rally against the Anti-Counterfeiting Trademark Agreement (ACTA) in Europe, by joining a day of protest.

But it could be a wrong assumption as the new research into effects of time of day on creative thinking suggests.

From Miller-McCune:

A pair of Michigan psychologists, Mareike Wieth of Albion College and Rose Zacks of Michigan State University, report their findings in the journal Thinking and Reasoning. They assigned 428 students to fill out a standard “morningness-eveningness questionnaire,” which features 19 questions including “Approximately what time would you get up if you were entirely free to plan your day?” and “How much do you depend upon an alarm clock?”

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Maximum allowed amount of plants is limited but there is a possibility of applying for permit to grow more.

From 420 Times

"In order to combat the increasing illegal sales of cannabis in Switzerland, four of the seven French-speaking Swiss cantons (similar to states in the U.S.) will be allowing individuals to grow four cannabis plants at their home, starting in January 2012."

The policy seems to have paid off and other countries are now looking to Portugal as a model for dealing with their own problems.

From The Washington Post:

These days, Casal Ventoso is an ordinary blue-collar community - mothers push baby strollers, men smoke outside cafes, buses chug up and down the cobbled main street.

Ten years ago, the Lisbon neighborhood was a hellhole, a "drug supermarket" where some 5,000 users lined up every day to buy heroin and sneaked into a hillside honeycomb of derelict housing to shoot up. In dark, stinking corners, addicts - some with maggots squirming under track marks - staggered between the occasional corpse, scavenging used, bloody needles.

At that time, Portugal, like the junkies of Casal Ventoso, had hit rock bottom: An estimated 100,000 people - an astonishing 1 percent of the population - were addicted to illegal drugs. So, like anyone with little to lose, the Portuguese took a risky leap: They decriminalized the use of all drugs in a groundbreaking law in 2000.

Now the corporates are leaping in as consumers wake up to the fact that they've been drinking black spew forever.

Even the UK Barista Championships are not immune from the rise of big business -- the likes of Krispy Kreme and Marks & Spencers are fielding competitors in a contest once dominated by independents.

But with corporate hellholes likes Costa offering Flat Whites, how can we avoid sucking Satan's steam nozzle?

The answer is surprisingly close to home.

The first thing to realise is that we are not talking about espresso.

Espresso machines are industrial pieces of equipment that cost around £5000 and weigh approximately 90 kilograms.

Designed to pump out hundreds of espresso shots consistently on a daily basis, they emphatically do not belong in a kitchen -- no matter what 'home baristas' on the net might tell you.

Sure, people do make espresso at home -- I call them 'idiots'.

These idiots fall into three main categories: those spending mummy and daddy's money, those that married well, and professional baristas with no life.

But for the rest of us, there are simple and inexpensive ways to ensure a good cup every time.

Ever Bean in Love?

It goes without saying that the quality of the coffee you use is critical.

Espresso coffee is usually made from a blend of beans, but we want to be using a so-called 'single origin' coffee.

For beginners, a good start would be something like a Kenya AA or Brazilian Bourbon.

The more adventurous might want to look at Ethiopian Yirgacheffe -- this can taste of citrus, bergamot, and even peaches but is wildly variable for reasons I won't bore you with here.

If you have a local roastery, buy whole beans (not ground) direct from them and interrogate them about what their best varieties are.

Otherwise you could try a local coffeeshop if they sell beans to the public, but make sure that its single variety and not a blend -- but more importantly, ensure that it's freshly roasted.

Failing all that, buy mail order from someone like Monmouth Coffee or Square Mile.

But do not even think about buying pre-packaged ground coffee -- coffee loses its taste within 20 minutes of grinding.

You'd better off scraping the burnt bits from your morning toast and brewing up with that.

So now we have whole beans, we need some bump and grind.

The Daily Grind

It may seem a trivial point but the quality of your grinder is just as important as the beans.

Badly ground coffee will taste disgusting -- so a good quality grinder is essential to bring out the best from the bean.

If you already have a grinder with a spinning blade then throw it out -- these types generally smash the coffee into large and small chunks.

We need a something that will grind the beans into consistently-sized particles -- a burr grinder is the answer.

Luckily a number of espresso machine manufacturers like Rancilio make burr grinders for home use.

But do be warned -- they are far from cheap.

Failing that, even an old-fashioned hand-cranked grinder that bolts to a table is preferable to the bladed monstrosities.

Filtration for the Nation

You can use a cafétiere (aka French press) to make good coffee at home but there's often sediment in the bottom of the cup.

Serious aficionados also think that the coffee oils get in the way of a clean taste.

There is a long-winded method for making a cleaner cup of French press coffee but it's far too laborious for the likes of you and me.

But by using a filter paper cone, we can ensure a cup free of sediment and coffee oils.

To accomplish this, you will need to invest in a ceramic coffee filter cone and a pack of filter paper cones.

Simply place the ceramic cone over the cup and line it with filter paper.

Add the freshly ground coffee (about 15g per 250ml of water) and fill to the top with water just off the boil.

Let it all drip through -- if it's a large cup then you might need to top it up.

Once it's all gone through, remove the cone and enjoy your well-deserved coffee.

How easy was that?

Cheers!

There is a drug that fuels all this creativity. I don't mean the stuff you chop out into lines. I'm talking about rocket fuel, black gold, the devil's cup, or rather coffee if you really insist. Which is why the East has given birth to a curious form of coffee-based competition called Ultimate Barista Fighting.

UBF began as a reaction to mainstream barista competitions and have rapidly evolved into nothing short of a new spectator sport. UBF was created by Scott Griffiths of stalwart roasters Monmouth Coffee Co, along with James Hoffman and Anette Moldvaer of scene upstarts Square Mile Coffee.

While the inspiration for UBF came from the world of wrestling, there is little connection with anything approaching athleticism. Competitors and spectators cram into industrial units after hours bearing food and alcohol to share.

Hopeful baristas arrive in old Naval uniforms and Mexican wrestling masks in the hope of currying favour with the audience -- after all, it is they who will be voting to decide the winner's of tonight's rounds.

The contenders face off head to head to pour the best cup and footage of the two cups is projected on a large screen. It's the cheering of the crowd that decides who is victorious.

Whilst a contest of coffee making may not sound very exciting, UBF events are riotous standing room only affairs. As London will be hosting the more staid UK barista championship in 2010, UBF may well react by introducing a new variant on this new sport. The enigmatic working title is 'Caffeine Samurai'.

For more information on upcoming events, visit the Ultimate Barista Fighting blog.

Regarded by critics of the plan as another exercise in cash squeezing from unsuspected individuals new law will slap heavy fines for activities usually associated with being on sea front.

However there is a lot of logic to some of the new regulations as they are designed to crack down on polluting the beaches by the visiting masses. Each year over 3 million tourists descend over Spain's tackiest town producing a sizeable amount of rubbish.
For that reasons heavy machines are used to clean the sand every morning and city fathers are concerned with the safety of young people sleeping if off on the beach after eventful night out.
There are other environmental issues cited by city council: urinating in the sea, fishing in local waters and littering the area with advertising leaflets. Most definitely traditional "hogueras" or bonfires popular at summer parties are off the menu unless you are ready for €1100 penalty.

New code of acceptable behaviour was announced last month and as it was given initial approval by city authorities will be implemented from next year.
Locals including club owners relying heavily on tourist trade are not amused.
Steve and Helen Hezzle, British owners of beachfront bar, said: "People come on holiday to relax.
"Kids love to build sandcastles, play ball and swim. Families will just not bother and this will have a knock-on effect on everyone in Benidorm. This will not help the tourist trade"

"Heroin-assisted treatment is very safe when done properly," said Dr Martin Schechter of the North American Opiate Medication Initiative (NAOMI).

"Our results show it to be very effective."

"This is a group, frankly, that society has written off as being beyond help."

Addicts selected for the study had often made several unsuccessful attempts to get clean.

The study entailed them receiving doses of prescription heroin at a clinic.

One addict with an intense desire to quit heroin spent all his time chasing his next hit.

"It's not something that I would wish on anybody," said Vincent.

Once his habit was stabilised, he managed to find part-time work at the city's port.

"I was actually able to live a normal life," he said.

The number of days spent by participants looking for illicit heroin was halved -- as was the amount of money they spent on drugs.

88% of those treated with heroin remained with the treatment programme for at least a year.

"Many people believe that we need a different approach," said Mayor Sam Sullivan.

"I think that once the citizens realize how much crime is going down, how much the load on our health services is going down, how much cheaper it is for everyone, that there's going to be a demand for this kind of programme."

But one retired policeman was sceptical about the approach.

"Giving drugs as a method of treatment is a bunch of nonsense," says Al Arsenault, a 27-year veteran of the Vancouver police.

"These guys just don't get it."

"Drug addicts need the cure, not the poison."

"What they're doing is they want to legalize drugs, when there's not enough treatment centers available."

"That's totally backwards."

"You don't start there, substituting one drug for another to keep them chemically addled in the corner."

But the people behind the study remain steadfast in their belief that HAT is the right approach.

"Based on the evidence, we could apply and we will apply to have heroin licensed," said Dr Schechter.

"The picture is not encouraging when it comes to cocaine," said Martin Barnes, chief executive of DrugScope.

"Prices have fallen and in some parts of the country, cocaine dealers are offering a heavily cut 'economy' version of the drug at £30 a gram as well as a less adulterated 'luxury' version for £50 a gram."

"It is a drug which has severe health risks."

Police analysis of samples reveals that cocaine's purity has plunged over the last few years.

"Five years ago, most of the street cocaine we seized had a purity of around 50%," said Rob Wainwright, international director of the Serious Organised Crime Agency.

"But we're now finding a lot that is of far lower quality -- some barely 10% pure."

"The danger is that drug dealers are cutting cocaine with other, often quite dangerous, chemicals to make it go further."

One major issue is that it is impossible for users to determine the purity of the drug by sight.

"The cocaine is a white powder and the drugs it's being mixed with are also white powder," said Dean Ames, lead drug scientist at the Forensic Science Service.

"It's impossible for someone buying a wrap of cocaine on the street to tell, just from looking at it, what it's been cut with."

The Home Office minister responsible for drug policy was bullish about the success of current law enforcement efforts.

"Along with education and treatment, enforcement has its role to play," said Vernon Coaker.

"Class A drug seizures have increased by almost a third."

"In 2005 enforcement agencies stopped 3.8 tons of cocaine, two tons of heroin, close to three million doses of ecstasy and over a million doses of LSD from harming people."

"This project is different in so far as we are trying to make these young people feel good about themselves by donating money to charity."

"In many cases, teenagers who use drugs come from troubled backgrounds and suffer from low self-esteem."

"When they give money to charity, it creates a feel-good factor."

"It helps to give them confidence and a purpose in life."

Participants in the pilot were given nominal amounts of money for seeking treatment -- €1 for every urine test passed and €10 a week for attending counselling sessions.

Successful participants were then able to select charities of their choice to receive donations from the programme.

In total, €3,115 was raised by nine teenagers for a range of charities including the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC), The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation, and the Temple Street Children’s University hospital in Dublin.

As well as the money raised, participants benefited from an increase in their own self worth.

“The clients who committed themselves to the programme seemed to get a lot out of it," said Smyth.

"We used a number of psychological measures to look at changes in their wellbeing during the pilot and we found improvement in all domains, especially in their self-esteem."

"We also found reductions in drug use and successful detox completion."

“I think the teenagers obtained a deep satisfaction from the knowledge that their efforts in addressing their own addictions were going to have benefits for others."

"As far as I am concerned, this project also challenges the stereotype that all drug users are self-centred and don’t care about anyone else."

Sarah, a 16-year-old recovering heroin addict, raised €636 for the ISPCC.

“When I signed up, I decided to send any money that I made to the ISPCC because they are helping young children and that means a lot to me,” she said.

“The ISPCC wrote to me to say thanks for the money."

"It was the first time that I had ever given money away to a good cause."

"It was also the first time that anyone had ever written a letter to thank me for anything, and that meant a lot to me.”

Previous attempts to raid the cafe involved the use of a tractor to partially demolish a wall.

Mike Allday, 43, was arrested on suspicion of selling the Class C drug -- four others have been arrested on related charges.

Allday had previously worked as a security guard on the premises when it was known as the Quantum Leaf cannabis cafe.

"The raids have been a great success and we have arrested five people suspected of being involved in the supply of drugs in the local area," said Inspector Jason Wilson of Sussex Police.

"This crackdown is ongoing and we will continue to focus our efforts on those who think they can get away with committing drug-related crime."

"Our message to those offenders is simple – we will find out who you are and we will arrest you."

In spite of repeated attempts to shut down the cafe, previous attempts to raid the cafe have only yielded tiny amounts of cannabis.

But despite their lamentable record, the police were still bullish about their tactics.

"We will continue to do all we can to disrupt the trade of drugs," said Chief Inspector James Asser, district commander for Adur.

"There is major demand from England, Belgium, Germany, France, the Scandinavian countries and at the moment the Baltic countries," said Max Daniel, the police commissioner in charge of the Dutch agency responsible for cannabis-related crime.

Investigations by the Dutch police suggest that around 500 tonnes of cannabis were exported from the Netherlands each year.

"We know that at least 80 percent of production is for export," said Sergeant Daniel.

"In the Netherlands there are 400,000 users of the drug and of hashish."

"If it was only them, the problem would be entirely manageable."

Daniel pointed out that cannabis was no longer a cottage industry -- it has become a growth area for organised crime.

The Dutch government recently set up a task force involving the police, justice ministry officials, energy companies and housing corporations to look at organised crime's role in cannabis cultivation.

Police sources claim that banks are lending to growers, and laboratories tied to universities are working on increasing production.

"We still have the image of the small producer who grows a few plants in his attic to pay for his holidays in Benidorm," he said.

"[But] hemp has a role in almost every major murder, guns and drugs case."

O'Neal junior was arrested last year on charges related to possession of heroin and crystal meth while driving under the influence.

The lawyer acting for O'Neal senior denies that his client has any involvement in drug abuse.

"The drugs in the house were Redmond's," said Mark Werksman, a lawyer with a track record of defending celebrity clients including Nick Nolte and David Hasselhoff.

"They weren't Ryan's."

"He doesn't use drugs."

"It's a dangerous assumption for deputies to have arrested Ryan just because he was in proximity to the drugs."

Werksman explained that O'Neal senior had been dealing with the problems created by his son's addiction.

"This is really painful for him," Werksman said.

"Dealing with Redmond's addiction has been the bane of his existence."

"Ryan is very upset about this, as you can expect."

Father and son were released on $10,000 bail and face a court hearing in early November.

O'Neal senior's lawyer is confident that he can beat the charges.

"I have full confidence that Ryan will be vindicated," said Werksman.

But the Los Angeles Country's District Attorney take a different position altogether.

"We would not have filed the charges if we did not think the evidence supported them," said a spokesperson.