Dr John Jiggens is a writer and journalist who has published several books including The Incredible Exploding Man, Marijuana Australiana, The Sydney Connection and, with Jack Herer, the Australian version of The Emperor Wears No Clothes. Along with Matt Mawson, Anne Jones and Damien Ledwich, he edited The Best of The Cane Toad Times.
As a journalist, he has contributed feature articles to The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Rolling Stone, Penthouse, Simply Living and many other magazines. He edited The Cane Toad Times,The Westender and Brisbane Theatre Magazine.
His Ph.D was ‘Marijuana Australiana: Cannabis Use, Popular Culture and the Americanisation of Drugs Policy in Australia 1938 – 1988‘. The two volumes which derive from his doctoral dissertation are The Sydney Connection and Marijuana Australiana.
If you would like to contact Dr. John Jiggens with a question or to order a book, you can send him an email.
Dear Dr Jiggens, myself and Dr Robert Austin are researching ASIS’s connection into the Chilean coup. In regards to your book “The Incredible Exploding Man” do you mind if we contact you about your findings on ASIO?
Kind regards
Graham
Yes you can contact me tho i don’t know much about ASIS and the Chilean Coup.
I am better informed on the Hilton.
cheers
jj
Dear Dr Jiggens,
I am advocating the UK establish a Royal Chartered Commonwealth Cannabis Centre of Excellence to provide evidence on which government institutions can base cannabis policy and to provide economic opportunity.
I will shortly be presenting a proposal to the Home Office via my local MP Dominic Raab in the Justice Ministry. The legalisation of cannabis is to be debated in the House of Commons on October 12th 2015.
I’m interested in your research into Sir Joseph Banks.
But first… have I managed to contact you?
Yours Faithfully
Matt Heenan
Surrey, UK
Hi,
Thanks for your many contributions,
Meant to reach out a few times, most recently during the elections after working with Greg Chipp a lot here in Melbourne.
On reading your thesis a while ago at least twice and looking at the outcome of Lanai Carters endeavors including her lawyers work around the Australian constitution specific to c 109, looking at Canadians suing their own government and winning per their own rights article 7 in their constitution (the right to liberty, justice and the right to not be fucked with) , and returning last week from Amsterdam and Berlin, I still reflect on the Sackville Royal commission you referenced in your thesis.
Specific reference to Australia misinterpreting and incorrectly enforcing the single use act being incorrectly interpreted for personal use and trafficking when it was really about trafficking and NOT personal use. Of course SA shot down the Sackville recommendations and instead began nationally the lowering of the benchmark of what trafficking is, and especially here in Victoria introducing 7 hidden new laws on contributing to trafficking making everything from books, emails, websites punishable by up to 10 years in prison and increasing the distances around school and changing the laws from being sold to kids near a school to anyone within ½ km all in a bill against Cannabis when the word Cannabis was never in the bill in Feb 2016 ( http://bit.ly/DPSA-2015-16 ) in the Victoria DPSA Bill 2016
And I guess worse, since the 2015 showing 91-94% of Australians support medical Cannabis (http://bit.ly/Cannabis-Survey) began the process of changing the definition of what Cannabis is form a plant to a suite of products none with THC above 3%.
Now of course the legal state licenses of hemp growers have been told (per the ODC) to cull their hemp if it is above 1% and less than 2%, as that is now be classified as Cannabis also. Then I see you reference QLD recently, but I did not see reference where they have redefined Cannabis also to include synthetic opioids like fentanyl that killed the singer Prince recently. This not because Subsys/fentynal is Cannabis but per the bill they want to, “Treat anything that acts like Cannabis to be called Cannabis”.
So Mr Jiggens, based on all of this and with Amsterdam considering suing their own government as are Germany, do you see any fruitful direction for a constitutional challenge here eg. based on c 109, Sackville etc. Otherwise having the richest PM in history and 2nd richest parliamentarian, (only 2nd to Palmer) and married to a chairman of a biotech pharmaceutical company we otherwise have a tough struggle.
Thanks in advance
Kind Regards
Loren Paul Wiener
Melbourne Australia
this week in weed tv (twiw.tv)
fb: http://www.bit.ly/twiw-tv
Australia editor, the law report USA
Twitter @mr_internet
loren@loren.net.au
Thank you for this lovely letter and sorry I have taken so long to reply. Yes, synthetic cannabinoids are now cannabis in Qld too, and Clinical Guidance: for the use of medicinal cannabis products in Queensland allows Dronabinol—synthetic THC (Marinol®) Nabilone—synthetic analogue of THC. These were available before. No mention of fentynal. My fb page John Jiggens has the latest developments up if you want to read that.
Dr John Jiggens also presented at a Medical Cannabis Moretorium in 2015. I was pleased to be asked to speak on the day representing a new social movement that has blossomed into a progressive social establishment funded by industry partners here and overseas. Women For Hemp has a vision for the future of a promising new industry in Australia and can be found on Facebook.
Are you still with Queensland University?
Peter
Question, did you write a book recently titled Game of Mates? If so where can it be purchased. Thank you.
No. I wrote a review of a book called ‘Game of Mates” which is by Cameron Murray and Paul Fritjers(?).
My review can be found on IndependentAustralia
Hello Dr. Jiggins. I am freelance journalist who has returned after some time in Alaska and am now recovering from a back injury.
I am interested in working as a journalist covering the changing mores around the cannabis industry and the changes coming with the possible legalisation. There is quite a bit more to than that but I have come across your work and you seem like a man I would like to talk to and I am interested in asking you a few questions (can be off the record) and ordering some of your books.
Thanks a lot and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sorry to take so long to reply, Lawrence. I have neglected my site. Write to thesydneyconnection@live.com.au
Hello
I am trying to contact you to buy the Incredible Exploding Man. Your email doesn’t seem to work 1 what’s the best way to reach you?
Amy
Dr Jiggens
My previous comment appears not to have been submitted – I am looking for a copy of your book called The Incredible Exploding Man. The email I sent seems to have been returned to me – what is the best way to place an order?
Thanks
Amy
The Incredible Exploding MN is out of print. If you want to read why I believe it was NSW Special Branch who put the bomb in the bin there are two articles on the independentsustralia site called Who bombed the Hilton parr’s 1 and 2, which explain why it had to be Special BrNch.
Sorry to take so long Amy. The Incredible Exploding Man sold out almost thirty years ago. My two most recent articles on the Hilton are at Independent Australia website.
https://independentaustralia.net/life/life-display/who-bombed-the-hilton-part-1-the-bomb-and-the-bin-,11191
Dr JJ, we spoke a few years back. I want to buy ‘The Sydney Connection” & The Killer Cop & Incredible Exploding Man. If you provide details inc postage costs I’ll transfer funds. Regards Wayne Grogan.
Also interested in money laundering through early 70’s via rising property values around Byron Bay area.
Wayne, Haven’t I sent these books to you? My memory is I did! I have been absent from my page for too long!
I would like to purchase The Incredible Exploding Man, Marijuana Australiana and The Sydney Connection. I would like the paperback but would also like a word file so I can read on Kindle which makes it easy for me but I guess PB version in all that is available. Thanks fine – can I have a price and pay via card online?
Dear Dr Jiggans, I just read your article “The Killer Kop” written in 2010. In the article you make many quite definite statements that Fred Krahe did this and that or killed whomever. Unfortunately you don’t explain why you are stating those things.
Where can I go to find some proof or even some evidence pointing to your written beliefs?
Disclosure… Frederick Krahe was my Dad’s first cousin.
Regards,
Steve
Steven, There is a lot of literature on Fred Krahe. I first read about him in the book The Prince and the Premier by David Hickie. My books on him are The Killer Cop and the murder of Donald Mackay and The Man Who Knew Too Much and in those I suggest he organised the murder of Donald Mackay while working for the Nugan Hand Bank. You can order those books on my web page. Evan Whitton is the source of the claim that he also was responsible for the murders of Don Ferguson and Juanita Nielsen, altho the latter claim was previously made by Tony Reeves. Evan Whitton made that claim in a magazine called Justinian. If you were to google Evan Whitton, John Jiggens, Justinian, Ted Shackley, Juanita Nielsen, Don Ferguson, you would almost certainly get the article. When Evan died we did a tribute to him on our news show. I interviewed Quentin Dempster about Evan, who I venerated as one of the most significant journalists of the generation before me, and Mia, our EP, found an interview on the radio with Evan where he spoke about these matters. Tony Reeves claimed that Krahe organised the murder of Juanita Nielsen in an interview with me but I can’t remember what book of his it was in. He also repeated the claim about Don Ferguson in that interview and added details I couldn’t check. Both Evan and Tony are dead now. I remember Tony telling me Krahe’s sisters were upset by Tony’s claims and threatened to sue him, but I don’t think they ever did. I remember Tony was unconcerned about their threats and treated it as somewhat of a joke. The interview was thirteen years ago so it is difficult to recall details. I have met another member of your family and it is awkward. People love their family and don’t want to feel bad about them. Freddie could be charming. I have met people who told me Roger Rogerson could be very likable too. They have immunity from the justice system and they develop a sense of impunity. Because they are the law, they think they are above the law. I don’t understand them.
Legend has it that Krahe murdered Supt. Don Ferguson in his CIB office.
I read elsewhere that Ferguson’s body was found with the office locked from the inside, also he had problems with depression.
Doesn’t excuse the fact that Krahe very possibly was a crook.
I interviewed Tony Reeves ( Mr Sin, Mr Big, etc) and his story was that Ferguson was shot in the toilet of the old CIB building by Krahe and that it wasn’t suicide. He had his reasons, one of which was lack of gun powder residue on the corpse and there were others but It was 14 years ago and I can’t remember. It wasn’t an important subject for me and I haven’t researched it so I didn’t really ask any more questions. Evan Whitton (Can of Worms, The Hillbilly dictator, etc) also claimed Krahe killed Ferguson. I never looked into Ferguson’s death, but out of respect for Tony Reeves and Evan Whitton, I do sometimes include Ferguson as a victim of Krahe but it is not something I investigated and I rely on Reeves and Whitton as my authority.
Whitton and Reeves’ story was that Ferguson was murdered because he refused to get into drug corruption because drugs were ‘the dirty quid’. Ferguson, Krahe and Kelly were the police who ran the rackets in NSW in the 1960s when the corruption was based on SP booking, prostitution and the abortion racket. These were regarded as ‘the clean quid’ whereas drugs were ‘the dirty quid’.
Look at enjoyably up something with a segment win. drjiggens.com
http://bit.ly/2NLAbGc
Hi John
I have just had a squiz at Imre Salusinszky’s new release “The Hilton Bombing-Evan Pederick and the Ananda Marga” You and your book “The Incredible Exploding Man” get a mention pp287-89.
Do you have anything to say to him?
Cheers
Phil
I may one day, if I get round to it Phil, tho I do get a good laugh to think that finally, after three decades, Evan has found someone else who believes him! I guess there is one born every century! Lovely to hear from you. Hope all is well tho we are both old now! Lots of love!
Dear John,
I am enjoying reading your thesis. I have a particular interest in the illicit drug trade in Qld, 1935-1950. Aside from your very good work, is there aby source material which you could point me towards?
I can’t remember what is in my thesis, but I have rewritten The Reefer Madness Campaign of 1938 twice. The most complete version of ‘The reefer madness campaign of 1938’ on Queensland is in the book “Sir Joseph Banks and the Question of Hemp”. It is the last chapter. Apart from that, I recommend you search Trove and it’s digitised newspapers, available on the national library of Australia website. In terms of state archives, try and locate the correspondence files of the Government Botanist, which will be in the Dept of Agriculture archive files.
There is material in the archives. You might find it easier to go to Trove. I don’t think there is another book.
You probably know this, but in case you don’t, go to the national archives of Australia and search for documents on cannabis, hemp, or Indian hemp in this time. There is a bit there.
Hi im trying to get into contact with dr jiggens
I’m a videographer and A professional tap dancer. Was in tap dogs for like 10 years if you know the show. But at the moment a friend who is more a director has approached me with this idea to create a doco focusing more on the people that are being silenced in Australia. So we’ve only just sent out emails to a few Australians who have been silenced in the past. I’m waiting to hear back from Ron shamir and richard Boyle silence for exposing tax corruption on the australian citizens , dr gary fettke for voicing his opinions on a low carb diet, dr barri phartarfod silenced for speaking up about her patients, Bryce Cartwright for his views on vaccines, Isabel Lucas on her views of vaccines, and you. There are many others we can find. This is only the beginning. But if people who speak up and get silenced, how can there voice be heard? Australia needs to see that what’s happening in other countries is happening here in their own country. As I said I’m waiting for a response as this is the beginning stages. We still have time to fight.
Pete evans from my kitchen rules who was silenced and ridiculed for his views on vaccines has confirmed to be apart of this.
Here are some links to my work:
https://richiemiller09.wixsite.com/mysite-1 (Site isn’t published yet bus has all my content I’ve filmed and edited)
Also I have created a homeless documentary voicing 15 homeless people from state to state in the US. From New York to Chicago to Nashville to St. Louis to Denver to la, san Fransisco, San Diego. Also showing the corruption surrounding the funds that go to supplies for housing and food production and homeless compared to military and government.
That is in post production now so will be finished soon and will gladly link you.
If you are keen we can organise something. Just let me know and we can go from there. Would love to get your voice out there along with others who they are trying to silence!
Thanks
Richie
Sure, Richie. Thanks for the offer!
Hi Dr Jiggens,
I’m putting together an expert roundup on “20 Experts Share Top 3 health uses of Medical Marijuana”. And I request you to contribute.
The question is, What are the 3 top health benefits of MMJ you have experienced in patients/people so far?
I value your precious time, so a lengthy response isn’t necessary; 100 words answer is fine.
I’ll definitely include a link to your site and twitter profile in the post.
Thanks,
Kelly Jenkins.
Kelly, I am a PhD not a medical doctor. Thanks, tho!
Dear John,
I have read with great interest ‘Sir Joseph Banks and the Question of Hemp”. I am currently writing a documentary on the subject of Australian Cannabis Sativa, and am intrigued as to why the NSW experiment failed to fulfill Britain’s need for hemp. As you write on page 78 of your book: “In 1801, King wrote to Banks about European hemp which promised ‘a very abundant return on the lowlands about the Hawkesbury and Nepean rivers’ and ‘might also be manufactured and sent from hence
in cordage.’ Why were further efforts discarded in pursuit of hemp in Australia and particular in NSW? And, in general, what happened to Australian hemp after 1801?
I look forward to your reply.
Thanks,
Ricardo
I would have to write a second book to cover this. Firstly, isn’t the King quote 1804 not 1801. I can’t check as I am in a library. Anyway it takes a couple of years for a letter to be sent to Britain and get a reply back to Australia – Tyranny of distance etc. King resigns as governor in 1806 and he is a hemp growing enthusiast. Bligh (another Banks choice and naval man) takes over in 1806 but is deposed in 1808 in the Rum Rebellion. Instead of another naval man, the Brits send out a military man Lachlan Macquarrie, who has his own regiment to deal with the Rum Corps. Hemp continues to be grown at Emu Plains etc and Alexander(?) Bell argues for a hemp industry in Australia in the 1820s but MacArthur and merino sheep prevail. Interest again in the 1840s but the gold rush puts an end to that. More interest in the 1890s, but drought intervenes. The Brits stay interested in NZ and start a NZ hemp industry which closes down in 1972.
Dear John,
Thanks for your reply.
If you ever did decide to write a second book about Hemp in Australia, I would so much look forward to reading it! And I’m quite sure many other people would think the same, as your first book is out of print and hard to get.
I had a second look at your book, and it does quote you as writing that King did in fact write to Banks in 1801, still I can see the that it does take a long time for correspondence to travel from the Australian colonies to Britain and back. Tyranny of distance indeed.
The rest of your explanation is also very illuminating and will give me cause for plenty of further research.
I hope I can quote your letter of reply as I advance in the elaboration of my documentary and would love to stay in touch.
I look forward to your reply.
Ricardo
Thanks for fact-checking me! Sure, stay in touch.
Hi Dr John
I am trying to get a copy of the joke
Can u tell me how I go about acquiring a copy ?
I can’t find where to buy one anywhere
I would like to buy that and numerous other books of yours
Can you tell me the best way to go about this
Thanks Belinda
The Nimbin Hemp Embassy, 51 Cullen St Nimbin NSW 2480 have copies
Solutions
moderator
Dear Dr Jiggins
I am currently writing my third book about my life and times as a journalist, trader and traveler, much of which relates to the meat industry, including the nefarious ways of the latter. On 21 November 2010, you wrote an article titled ‘Chasing Nugan Hand’. I would appreciate it if I could quote from this article.
Sincerely, John Burgess
Author
Life, Luck and Liaisons and of What’s the Story?
Sure! You have my permission.
John,
Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed reading ‘The Joke’. Brilliantly researched and written with such clarity and conviction, it deserves wide-spread readership.
A lovely gesture for you to give me a copy at the official launch of ‘Operation Jungle’, I will value it.
My sincerest regards
John Shobbrook
Hi John, found an interesting nugget in your thesis and want to cite it, your email addy is bouncing!
Anyway Australian Weed/Seed/Greed renaming itself is a strategy use by a horror comics publisher at the same time, and also during WWII (for austerity reasons). Love to hear your thoughts on this!
certainly permission to cite OK
I don’t know where they got the idea from but there were a few comic enthusiasts ((Ian?) Moll and McRoach) who worked on Weed/Seed etc so they may have known of that example. JJ McRoach’s real name was something like Peter Olzewski but I haven’t heard from him in 25 years.
Hey Dr J.,
Shame if I can’t get closer to the Weed people; Gredown still exists but has no particular contact with its former publishing, so best guess is either one had heard of the other or it was just a really obvious strategy. Something in the air?
Anyway, finding the WA Government Gazette for 2 September 1977 restricts The Australasian Weed, a bunch of horror comics, and … Marvel Comics’ Kiss (Marvel Super Special #1 1977).
To quote Major Clipton from The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957); “Madness! MADNESS!!!”
Hi john i attended a rally at the state parliament in i think 94 to legalise..was it you who lit the doobie and got arrested and the pic made the front page of the courier snail.? im looking for a copy of the pic as i was the guy with the hemp leaf flag dangled on the commissioners head..as the smoke was blown in his face as he looked away..i had a copy of the newspaper but lost it..be wonderful to find the pic..
Several of us got arrested’ It could be me or Tony Kneipp you are talking about.
Why not look at the relevant Courier Mail. It would have been round Oct 21 1994 or Oct 21 1995.
G’day John, I’m doing a bit of digging into the establishment of the AFP ,Operation Seville and The Colin Winchester murder. Was operation Seville all about infiltrating the crime networks established during the Nugan Hand era?
Don’t know how to answer: organised crime was an Ocker Nostra that included a coalition of Italian cannabis growers, corrupt Qld and NSW and the CIA. The Woodward RC pointed the finger at the Italian marijuana growers, so it was their network that were targeted. TNT, Bela Csidei and co worked with the Italians when their operation was moved up to Mareeba, but the corrupt police and the CIA were not pursued.
Can’t say for sure. Originally it was the Commonwealth-NSW Joint police Task Force who investigated Nugan Hand and the friends of Murray Riley. They got Riley’s private phone book and investigated the phone numbers and the people and discovered the Sydney Connection. The AFP were set up after the Narcotics Bureau was abolished by the Williams Royal Commission. Williams abolished the Narcotic Bureau to protect the Qld Rat Pack. The Narcotics Bureau had discovered about the Rat Pack involvement in drugs. John Shobbrook wrote a book called Operation Jungle about this. My book The Joke is about this too.
Hi John
I am trying g to get a contact for Leonard Ryzman who was a contributor to the Cane Toad series.
For context, my father was a UFO researcher and a book was borne, co-authored by Leonard. I have some of the original material and looking for a good home. Leonard being the obvious choice given it was ketters essential to my Dad in the early stages of the investigation.
The Book was called Alien Honeycomb.
My Dad is Paul Hebron
If you know how I can get in contact, I would be grateful for an assist.
Can’t help unfortunately. There were 2 CTT collectives and I don’t recognise the name, so it is probably the second collective.
The best contact for them is Toadshow in Brisbane.