Chile Joins Fear-Based Drug Education Model
November 3rd, 2008 by Perry
In response to a study that showed a growing perception among its teenagers that marijauna is harmless, the Chile is nationalizing a plan to “open up reflection on marijuana and its effects, above all with respect to the fact that it’s addictive, just like other drugs,” said the campaign’s director.
Personally, I don’t know if I’ve seen conclusive proof that that’s true or habit forming, (eh maybe,) but not addictive, and right there’s the definitive difference.
The campaign’s director cited the fact that “70 percent of the people in treatment for problematic use of drugs began their drug use with marijuana,” as indisputable proof of it being a gateway drug. One may argue the fact that it’s only considered a gateway to illegal drug usage, because it is itself, considered illegal. However, if you wanted to make coffee, wine, beer, liquor or ciggarettes illegal, then they might be considered “gateways” also. Perhaps.
But who can argue with a great slogan like the one the Chilean anti-drug people came up with…
Be intelligent again. Don’t smoke marijuana.
Brilliant.
Gamers Driven to Weed, Speed and Caffeine?
October 30th, 2008 by Perry
A look at the darker side of gaming reveals the growing competitive “sport” may be undergoing a rise in narcotics use.
Alex Walker, the Australian World Cyber Games Tournament Director, admitted in an interview with Gameplayer that some cyber athletes like to smoke marijuana or even take amphetamines to boost their reflexes before competition.
Really? You don’t say?
Once considered a laughable cottage industry for high school dropouts and middle-aged adults living at home; competitive gaming is becoming a lucrative endeavor, with athletes able to earn as much as $100,000 to $500,000 per tournament.
Bet that makes paramedics, teachers and firefighters want to cry. Videogamers out-earning their entire yearly salary in one tournament…
The article goes on to point out media coverage by networks like MTV, USA and Directv creates an environment that has to be aware of the ills of drug abuse. One way they’ve tried to solve the problem is to create a gaming pill called FpsBrain.
I honestly couldn’t make this up. I wonder what marketing genius is going to get rich off gullible cyber athletes that buy this stuff…
Props to the Democrats
October 8th, 2008 by AlexEven if Clinton’s telling a half-truth, Edwards is only telling the truth on this one subject and Kerry got swift-boated, at least the Democrats generally own up to getting high. Interestingly enough, now we’ve got a candidate who’s admitted to doing both marijuana and cocaine.
In 8 years we’ll have someone who’s snorted K, smoked some coco-puffs and chased the dragon. Ah, democratic political evolution at its finest!
Drug Cartels Are Not Friendly
September 26th, 2008 by Alex
Shortly after being elected, President Felipe Calderon executed a surprising crackdown on drug production and drug cartels in Mexico. First, he started with his home state, by bringing in 10,000 army troops, setting up checkpoints and taking weapons from corrupt policemen. Then, he started spreading the crackdown across all of Mexico.
This was great news, crystal meth and cocaine production dipped across the board, prices went up. Unfortunately, there was one group of people not so stoked about this - the Mexican drug cartels.
Their response? Increasingly gruesome violence aimed not only at adversaries but also at innocent people. Here are some stats:
- Drug related murders, by Sept. 3rd, hit 3,004 this year, compared with 2,673 in all of 2007
- A fraction of suspects are being convicted - only 12% of all federal investigations result in a conviction
- Drug addiction in Mexico has risen, as it’s harder to get drugs out of the country, and instead sell them to their own people
Now, the people are marching against the government for all the violence that these drug cartels are causing. Even worse, all the arresting and shuffling of those cartels is making them splinter into more pieces, with more fighting between them. It’s a lose-lose situation, with ruthless murderers right in the middle.
The Good Drugs Guide
December 18th, 2006 by Tim
The Good Drugs Guide is a UK-based non-profit website dedicated to informing visitors about all major forms of “recreational” drugs. This includes amphetamines, cannabis, cocaine, heroin and more.
The GDG is not as extensive as the better known Erowid Vault, however it is more straightforward. It gives you a solid understanding of the drug of interest. I guess if one was looking strictly for the basics, this site is a good place to start.
Apart from its offered information, it also includes a blog which hasn’t been updated since August 2, 2006 and a radio show that hasn’t been updated since late 2005. So, don’t go there looking for up-to-the-minute information.
To give you an idea: click here for The Good Drugs Guide page for cannabis and click here for Erowid’s cannabis page. See the difference?
Bottom line: If you want to study up on any drugs, save yourself a trip and go directly to Erowid. They’re the king.
Drugs, Russia and the Internet
November 16th, 2006 by Alex
This is a quick one, but Russian Spy is reporting the internet is increasingly being used as a tool by criminal groups in Russia to push drugs. The number reported by the Director of the Russian Federal Drug Control Service is around 700 websites.
You can only get away with something like that in Russia. Considering AllofMP3.com is still operating with impunity, I doubt it will be easy to make progress against these websites. Still, it’s the job of the Russian authorities to try and battle the never-ending stream. Hopefully, there will be updates on this story as ringleaders are found and ousted.
[via Russian Spy]
