1. THREE EXAMPLES
Texts in English
by Job Joris Arnold
Table of content
Web based advertising
Media kit for Hanglos (www.hanglos.net),
leading international forum for kite surfers,
819 words, February 2010 page 2
News
Press dispatch for Hash marihuana and hemp museum (www.hashmuseum.com),
‘EX-PRIME MINISTER TO RECEIVE CANNABIS CULTURE PRIZE 2009’,
393 words, November 2009 page 4
Background article
Background to cover story for Italian weekly magazine Left (www.libero.it),
‘THE DUTCH MODEL - An unfinished experiment’,
2121 words, September 2010
(also available in Italian) page 5
2. 2010 Advertiser’s
Media Kit & Pricelist
2009 Advertiser’s
Media Kit & Pricelist
IT Knowledge Base Sales Contact:
advertising@petri.co.il
Hanglos Rulez!
Since it’s launch in 2002, Hanglos has rapidly grown into the #1 most comprehensive and frequently
referenced kitesurf community online today. Hanglos is a network of websites in different languages.
Each website caters to a different kitesurfer community. All websites share our state-of-the-art
server park and our unique web code, allowing easy exchange of information between the separate
website communities.
Hanglos is the fastest source for kitesurf news on the web, closely monitored by more than a few of
our competitors eager to add our latest news additions to their own website.
When you choose Hanglos for your advertising campaign, we’ll be glad to help you post your news.
Thanks to our multilingual team we can easily adapt your news items for every Hanglos website.
We operate the following sites:
- www.hanglos.nl (Dutch)
- www.hanglos.fr (French)
- www.hanglos.net (English)
Hanglos will give you easy access to a huge international kitesurfer audience:
- 60,000 unique monthly visitors.
- 1.3 million monthly page views.
- Top Google rankings for thousands of kitesurf related keywords.
- More than 100,000 indexed pages in Google.
- Reaching kitesurfers in over 165 different countries.
- Bustling community of more than 15,000 active members.
Our Audience
Kitesurfing is the fastest growing water sport on our planet. Industry leaders place the participation
rate growth between 35% and 50% and sales growth at well over 10% per year. Most kitesurfers are
male but the proportion of women in the sport is growing fast. Kitesurfing is becoming safer every
day, allowing increasingly younger as well as more and more older people to start practicing too!
Where the average kiter was between 25 and 35 years old in 2003, the age range stands at 12 – 50
years today.
Advertise now!
You can choose to run your ad on the entire network. Using one or more specific Hanglos websites is
also possible. You can show different banners in a single campaign and define the weight between
these banners. Our Banner Management Software is capable of almost any advertising challenge.
Rectangle: 336 x 280 pixels
Leaderboard XL: 964 x 119 pixels
3. Hanglos Advertising Placements
Half banner:
234 x 60 pixels
Half banner:
234 x 60 pixels
Half banner:
234 x 60 pixels
Kite or Board Banner
This banner dominates the appearance of every single page on every Hanglos website. A unique way
to show your products to your target group. In order to maximize the value of your campaign, you
can use different kites, boards and color schemes. We will use your favorite product photo in its
design, instantly giving you enormous branding power.
Leaderboard XL
Maximize your brand recognition with the most visible placement on Hanglos. The Leaderboard XL
banner is 964 x 119 pixels, our largest graphic size and the highest exposure ad unit available. This
banner is used on all pages.
Rectangle
The Rectangle is positioned ‘in’ the page and therefore feels as if it is part of the content. This format
is very useful to transfer a lot of information to your potential client. The Rectangle is shown on the
front page, the news pages and the gallery overview page.
Full Banner
The lowest priced banner on Hanglos. The Full Banner is positioned just above the reaction editor at
the bottom of each forum item or news item. Hanglos visitors typing their messages or scrolling
down to read the latest additions can’t miss it.
Pricelist
Contact information
Sales contacts
Worldwide: Rob@hanglos.net
France & Walloon Belgium: Fabrice@hanglos.fr
The Netherlands and Flanders: Rob@hanglos.nl
Account information
Payments attn Hanglos
Rabobank 38.44.96.407 Haarlem, The Netherlands
IBAN: NL22 RABO 0384 4964 07
BIC: RABONL2U
4.
5. THE DUTCH MODEL
An unfinished experiment
Job Joris Arnold en Nicole Maalsté
Ask Dutch people to explain the national policy on cannabis and chances are you will get a different
answer every time. It isn’t easy to grasp the finer technical details of a system that has developed
over four decades, but was never meant to last for more than a few years. Contrary to popular belief,
possession of drugs is not legal in the Netherlands - not even for personal consumption. Still,
selective use of law enforcement has allowed for a unique model to grow and prosper since the early
seventies; the world famous ‘coffeeshops’ where cannabis products are openly sold and used. Recent
developments seem to indicate tiredness with the coffeeshop system at least at the official level.
Cities are closing down coffeeshops, at times by the dozen. Reason for some to believe, the Dutch
approach has failed and the Dutch coffeeshops will soon be a thing of the past. But do they
remember the past of the thing?
AN ITALIAN INVENTION?
A number of factors contributed to the rise of its culture. After World War II, cannabis was
introduced in the Netherlands by jazz-musicians from the United States who played in Amsterdam
and Rotterdam clubs. The substance became popular amongst inner circles of artists, writers and
musicians. Simultaneously, Italian (!) espresso bars mushroomed in the city, catering to the coffee
preferences of the American soldiers that would flock the country’s capital in those days. As the
Dutch were in the habit of rolling their own cigarettes, rather than buying prefab ones, soon skinning
up ‘joints’ with a mixture of tobacco and hashish, the most common way of consuming cannabis in
Holland up until today, became fashionable among the avant-garde.
In 1953, possession, production and sale of cannabis was criminalized. At that time the consumption
of cannabis was still very rare and the substance was unknown to the general public. In the 1960s
more and more young people became interested in cannabis as the younger generation started to
revolt against the bourgeois establishment culture and its rules. Soon, smoking cannabis became a
way of showing authorities one didn’t agree with their rules. This protest grew stronger once the
youngsters found out smoking cannabis didn’t make them go insane, as government representatives
would routinely have it. By 1968, Amsterdam became known amongst American and European
hippies as a ‘magical centre’, where pot was openly smoked at summer long camp outs on Dam
Square in the city’s center. Scientists and journalists started to get involved in the discussion. The
police weren’t capable of arresting all these youngsters smoking cannabis. Public opinion began to
shift. Was it really that bad to smoke marihuana that people had to be arrested for it? And were the
health risks related to cannabis use truly all that serious to justify its prohibition?
ACCEPTABLE RISKS
Several governmental commissions studied the situation and concluded that the health risks of
consuming cannabis were ‘acceptable’. They considered large-scale prosecution of cannabis offences
contrary to public interest, stigmatizing many young people and socially isolating them. Cannabis
6. consumers should no longer be treated as a criminal, they advised. Moreover, they were concerned
about the rising popularity of hard drugs like heroin, cocaine and amphetamines. The use of those
drugs, about which incidentally little was known at the time, they considered to carry an
‘unacceptable’ health risk. At illegal market these drugs were sold by the same dealers that offer
cannabis.
The Dutch Administration decided to statutory decriminalize cannabis by a revision of the Opium Act,
expecting the move to help separate the markets of soft (cannabis) and hard drugs. With soft drug
consumers no longer getting in touch with other drugs when buying cannabis, the government
hoped it would avoid their being tempted to try them. These were the concerns when the renowned
‘tolerance’ policy on cannabis took effect in 1976.
FROM HOUSEDEALER TO COFFEESHOPOWNER
Its use was no longer an offence and possession up to 30 grams became a petty offence or
misdemeanor. Possession of more than 30 grams in the meanwhile, remained a criminal offence.
Until that time just like in other countries cannabis was sold by illegal dealers. With the change in law
‘house dealers’ in youth centers could formally be tolerated. Coffeeshops didn’t exist yet. In the
years some housedealers started to sell from their homes. In the 80s many of the former
housedealers got fed up with people ringing at their houses for drugs at any time of the day and the
night. That’s why they started little shops with opening and closing hours, which they called
coffeeshops. Economist Adriaan Jansen, who wrote the book ‘ Coffeeshops in Amsterdam’ explains
that in contrast with cafés where alcohol was served, running a coffeeshop (in Dutch: koffiehuis)
didn’t require a license. Normally ‘koffieshops’ would serve coffee, tea, soft drinks and food. By using
the English word ‘ coffeeshop’ the public would know this wasn’t a normal ‘koffiehuis’. In the
beginning the sale of soft drugs didn’t take place over the counter, but was usually done by a ‘dealer’
who mingled with the public.
BACKDOOR PROBLEM
During the 80s the number of coffeeshops increased to around 1500 by the end of the decade. When
the government decided to tolerate the retail sale, they did not foresee the coffeeshop
phenomenon, which the authorities never intended to exist. By introducing national guidelines they
hoped to bring back the number of coffeeshops. In 1991 the so-called AHOJ-G criteria [See:
FRAME2]- which were adopted from local examples – were introduced nationally. Local governments
started to develop their own local coffeeshop policies and added new rules. Today it’s only possible
to run a coffeeshop with a license of the local government. Anno 2010 around 700 licensed
coffeeshops exist in the Netherlands. 75% of the local governments (municipalità) do not tolerate
coffeeshops in their community. In the shops cannabis is sold with the permission of local
government, but it’s still illegal for the owner to buy his products from a cultivator.
Thus at the front door, the coffeeshop owner has to behave like any other tax-paying entrepreneur,
while he is involved in illegal activities at his backdoor when buying the products he is selling in the
coffeeshop. This so-called ‘backdoor problem’ is not without consequence for the once so free wind
that blew through Hollands institutions and politics. Special police forces have made history of the
days when turning a blind eye (without pay off!) was like second nature to any self-respecting Dutch
copper. Teaming up with city officials, electricity companies, social housing corporations and
7. specialized plantation removal services, they search and destroy the many indoor grow ops. They’ll
act on information from helicopter squads that have mapped out substantial parts if not all of the
urban landscape with infra red cameras. Or on an anonymous tip they’ll get through a special police
phone line, that that runs news papers ads calling upon the public to tell on their neighbors. In
Rotterdam, every ´mission accomplished´ is sealed with a big sign reading ´We rolled up another
one´, pun intended.
FUNCTIONS OF COFFEESHOPS
Meanwhile, today´s polls consistently show the Dutch consider coffeeshops beneficial to their
society. First of all, they separate the markets for cannabis and other drugs. By enabling normal
access to cannabis, it is held that young people are less likely to get involved with substances like
heroin or cocaine, which are deemed to carry a higher risk to public health. Prove of this supposed
advantage is meager however, as no monitoring or proper scientific evaluation of the Dutch
experience was ever carried out. All that can be said, is that low-threshold access to cannabis has not
caused higher consumption rates than are found in surrounding Western European countries.
Meanwhile, today´s polls consistently show the Dutch consider coffeeshops beneficial to their
society. They have reason to believe the model has proven successful and take pride in their national
approach. Separation of the markets for cannabis and other drugs is a reality unlike anywhere else in
the world. By enabling normal access to cannabis, it is held that young people are less likely to get
involved with substances like heroin or cocaine, which are deemed to carry a higher risk to public
health.
In spite of this enthousiasm, prove of this supposed advantage is meager, as no monitoring or proper
scientific evaluation of the Dutch experience was ever carried out. Whether the minimum age
requirement for coffeeshop clientele (18 years) is keeping the under aged away from cannabis use is
hard to tell when reliable data are not available. But hey, having no access to coffeeshops never
stopped kids from getting drugs anywhere else in the world, so why would it stop them in Holland?
What can be held with regards to this matter, is that low-threshold access to cannabis has not caused
higher consumption rates than are found in surrounding Western European countries. (Nor higher
scores for other drugs, with the possible exception of xtc, which maintains a relation of its own with
Holland and its tolerant past.)
The more there are coffeeshops, the less there is nuisance of illegal suppliers. Better still, the
regulation of the trade allows for controls to be installed [See: FRAME2]. Since the supplier is no
anonymous street dealer, but a shop keeper instead, he has an interest to make sure his product is of
good quality and see his costumers return. Consumers are easy to reach with flyers on the counter,
containing educational information on risks and preventive measures.
Lastly, coffeeshops have a social function. They are in effect a meeting point for neighbors, a safety
net for the less socially privileged persons and a place where the large variety of cultures in Dutch
society meet and interact with each other.
8. NEVER MEANT TO LAST
<picture Dries van Agt>
One of the reasons why the Dutch model seems to be reaching the end of its life span, may well be
that it was never meant to last this long. The Dutch tolerance policy was intended as a temporary
solution, to bridge the gap between the then current prohibitive legislation and full legalization.
Something that in the minds of the policy makers of the seventies, would surely be a matter of years.
Remarkably, the Christian Democrats played a crucial role in this push for decriminalization of
cannabis.
In 1976, proponent of this political party par excellence Justice Secretary Mr. Van Agt stood at its
cradle. He personally dragged through parliament a change in the Dutch penal code, which
distinguished soft from hard drugs. This act paved the way for cannabis decriminalization and the
Dutch coffeeshop system. It also enabled more emphasis on, and resources for, the fight against the
large scale hard drug trade.
As Prime Minister, Van Agt stood at the head of the cabinet that issued new guidelines to further
regulate the small scale trade of cannabis in 1980. These guidelines enabled the tolerance policy for
commercialized sales through the Dutch coffee shop system.
Speaking at the Cannabis Tribunal, an annual conference in The Hague, Van Agt who had won the
Cannabis Culture Prize for his contribution to Dutch drugs policy, recalls in May 2010: ´At that time
everyone understood, as it had been clearly stated in Parliament and far beyond, that this was of
course a beginning that should see a follow up. And just about everyone understood what that
follow-up should’ve looked like. Today we are still waiting for that follow-up, and I’m very sorry to
see that the direction things are taking is completely in the opposite direction.’
Sociologist Nicole Maalsté (1966) is senior researcher at the Tilburg University. She is studying the
Dutch cannabis culture for more than 20 years and author of the book Polderwiet, based on
interviews with illegal marijuana growers.
Dutch drugs policy expert Job Joris Arnold (1967) works as consultant and journalist, specialized in
drugs related issues.
[FRAME1] TAX REVENUES
The Dutch State has a history of making money on drugs sales. From the end of the 1800s
(l’ottocento) up until the 1930s, the State made millions of guilders from the production and export
of opium and cocaine in the Dutch Indies as well as in Amsterdam. Today, totalling around 2 billion
euros in turnover per year, the nation’s 700 coffeeshops pay between 400 and 450 million euros
annually in taxes. The Dutch Treasury could see at least another half a billion extra coming in, should
production of cannabis be regulated, controlled and -of course- taxed.
[FRAME2] AHOJ-G criteria
A no overt Advertising
H no Hard drugs
O no nuisance or disturbance (O, for overlast)
J no underage visitors (J, for jongeren)
G no large quantities sold (G, for grote hoeveelheden)
