Caught an article on the Daily Beast regarding LSD research. Apparently some say the drug helps with cluster headache relief. It will be interesting if it is proven that it can help with severe headaches, perhaps the research will lead to other breakthroughs, according to the article it may help with anxiety as well.
On a personal note, my mother suffered at length with terrible headaches that would cause vomiting, etc., and I used to suffer from migraines in the early '90's. It's interesting that after I got out of the crazy pentecostal/evangelical churches that the headaches stopped...check out the article, they have a gallery of pics that showcases famous people that have tripped in the past...Marge Simpson being one of them.
Peace-
Showing posts with label drugs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drugs. Show all posts
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
COMMON SENSE BEGINGING TO REAR ITS HEAD REGARDING INTERNATIONAL DRUG POLICY?
As most of you know, I am for the legalization of marijuana. The following is from the HuffPo, it is in regards to the UN's drug report that praises Portugal's switch from incarceration of addicts to treatment. It makes sense, then we can have room for real criminals like Chris Flanagin, (chris@thurmanbishop.com Thurman and Bishop, Arkansas Community Foundation.)
Make no mistake: I am for the complete outlawing of hard drugs such as Cocaine, Meth, Heroin, Alcohol. (I know we already tried that, so I can hang that one up. However, Alcohol is the TRUE gateway drug.) Marijuana is a "soft" drug, with little or no collateral consequence, unlike Alcohol, which kills upward of 100,000 Americans yearly, and that statistic does not include deaths by vehicles. So onward Searchers, it is time for the legalization of marijuana, and a sea change in our Hemp production policy...Peace, I think I'll go smoke! From HuffPo:
UN Backs Drug Decriminalization In World Drug Report
In an about face, the United Nations on Wednesday lavishly praised drug decriminalization in its annual report on the state of global drug policy. In previous years, the UN drug czar had expressed skepticism about Portugal's decriminalization, which removed criminal penalties in 2001 for personal drug possession and emphasized treatment over incarceration. The UN had suggested the policy was in violation of international drug treaties and would encourage "drug tourism."
But in its 2009 World Drug Report, the UN had little but kind words for Portugal's radical (by U.S. standards) approach. "These conditions keep drugs out of the hands of those who would avoid them under a system of full prohibition, while encouraging treatment, rather than incarceration, for users. Among those who would not welcome a summons from a police officer are tourists, and, as a result, Portugal's policy has reportedly not led to an increase in drug tourism," reads the report. "It also appears that a number of drug-related problems have decreased."
In its upbeat appraisal of Portugal's policy, the UN finds itself in agreement with Salon's Glenn Greenwald.
The report, released at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., also puts to rest concerns that decriminalization doesn't comply with international treaties, which prevent countries from legalizing drugs.
U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske is scheduled to appear at the announcement of the report. (He has said "decriminalization" is not "in my vocabulary.")
"The International Narcotics Control Board was initially apprehensive when Portugal changed its law in 2001 (see their annual report for that year), but after a mission to Portugal in 2004, it "noted that the acquisition, possession and abuse of drugs had remained prohibited," and said "the practice of exempting small quantities of drugs from criminal prosecution is consistent with the international drug control treaties," reads a footnote to the report.
The UN report also dives head first into the debate over full drug legalization. Last year's World Drug Report ignored the issue entirely, save for a reference to Chinese opium policy in the 19th Century.
This year's report begins with a lengthy rebuttal of arguments in favor of legalization. "Why unleash a drug epidemic in the developing world for the sake of libertarian arguments made by a pro-drug lobby that has the luxury of access to drug treatment?" argues the report.
But the UN also makes a significant concession to backers of legalization, who have long argued that it is prohibition policies that lead to violence and the growth of shadowy, underground networks.
"In the Preface to the report," reads the press release accompanying the report, "[UN Office of Drugs and Crime Executive Director Antonio Maria] Costa explores the debate over repealing drug controls. He acknowledges that controls have generated an illicit black market of macro-economic proportions that uses violence and corruption."
Jack Cole, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and a retired undercover narcotics detective, objected to the report's classification of current policy as "control."
"The world's 'drug czar,' Antonio Maria Costa, would have you believe that the legalization movement is calling for the abolition of drug control," he said. "Quite the contrary, we are demanding that governments replace the failed policy of prohibition with a system that actually regulates and controls drugs, including their purity and prices, as well as who produces them and who they can be sold to. You can't have effective control under prohibition, as we should have learned from our failed experiment with alcohol in the U.S. between 1920 and 1933."
Again, it is time for the legalization of marijuana, but I do want you to pay close attention to the ridiculous statement by the U.S. "drug czar" :"decriminalization is not in my vocabulary." Maybe our "drug czar" needs to be shitcanned so he can go back to fifth-grade vocab class.
Peace!
Make no mistake: I am for the complete outlawing of hard drugs such as Cocaine, Meth, Heroin, Alcohol. (I know we already tried that, so I can hang that one up. However, Alcohol is the TRUE gateway drug.) Marijuana is a "soft" drug, with little or no collateral consequence, unlike Alcohol, which kills upward of 100,000 Americans yearly, and that statistic does not include deaths by vehicles. So onward Searchers, it is time for the legalization of marijuana, and a sea change in our Hemp production policy...Peace, I think I'll go smoke! From HuffPo:
UN Backs Drug Decriminalization In World Drug Report
In an about face, the United Nations on Wednesday lavishly praised drug decriminalization in its annual report on the state of global drug policy. In previous years, the UN drug czar had expressed skepticism about Portugal's decriminalization, which removed criminal penalties in 2001 for personal drug possession and emphasized treatment over incarceration. The UN had suggested the policy was in violation of international drug treaties and would encourage "drug tourism."
But in its 2009 World Drug Report, the UN had little but kind words for Portugal's radical (by U.S. standards) approach. "These conditions keep drugs out of the hands of those who would avoid them under a system of full prohibition, while encouraging treatment, rather than incarceration, for users. Among those who would not welcome a summons from a police officer are tourists, and, as a result, Portugal's policy has reportedly not led to an increase in drug tourism," reads the report. "It also appears that a number of drug-related problems have decreased."
In its upbeat appraisal of Portugal's policy, the UN finds itself in agreement with Salon's Glenn Greenwald.
The report, released at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., also puts to rest concerns that decriminalization doesn't comply with international treaties, which prevent countries from legalizing drugs.
U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske is scheduled to appear at the announcement of the report. (He has said "decriminalization" is not "in my vocabulary.")
"The International Narcotics Control Board was initially apprehensive when Portugal changed its law in 2001 (see their annual report for that year), but after a mission to Portugal in 2004, it "noted that the acquisition, possession and abuse of drugs had remained prohibited," and said "the practice of exempting small quantities of drugs from criminal prosecution is consistent with the international drug control treaties," reads a footnote to the report.
The UN report also dives head first into the debate over full drug legalization. Last year's World Drug Report ignored the issue entirely, save for a reference to Chinese opium policy in the 19th Century.
This year's report begins with a lengthy rebuttal of arguments in favor of legalization. "Why unleash a drug epidemic in the developing world for the sake of libertarian arguments made by a pro-drug lobby that has the luxury of access to drug treatment?" argues the report.
But the UN also makes a significant concession to backers of legalization, who have long argued that it is prohibition policies that lead to violence and the growth of shadowy, underground networks.
"In the Preface to the report," reads the press release accompanying the report, "[UN Office of Drugs and Crime Executive Director Antonio Maria] Costa explores the debate over repealing drug controls. He acknowledges that controls have generated an illicit black market of macro-economic proportions that uses violence and corruption."
Jack Cole, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and a retired undercover narcotics detective, objected to the report's classification of current policy as "control."
"The world's 'drug czar,' Antonio Maria Costa, would have you believe that the legalization movement is calling for the abolition of drug control," he said. "Quite the contrary, we are demanding that governments replace the failed policy of prohibition with a system that actually regulates and controls drugs, including their purity and prices, as well as who produces them and who they can be sold to. You can't have effective control under prohibition, as we should have learned from our failed experiment with alcohol in the U.S. between 1920 and 1933."
Again, it is time for the legalization of marijuana, but I do want you to pay close attention to the ridiculous statement by the U.S. "drug czar" :"decriminalization is not in my vocabulary." Maybe our "drug czar" needs to be shitcanned so he can go back to fifth-grade vocab class.
Peace!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
SAMANTHA OROBATOR SENTENCED TO LIFE IN LAOTIAN PRISON
Such is the reality of the judicial system in a country such as Laos.
Samantha Orobator will not be facing a firing squad after all. There is work being done to bring here back to her home country, the United Kingdom. I wish her and her family well, even if she was a "mule" as some say, the underlying issues regarding drug use is more important than any sovereign nation's law, the United States included. Here is the write up, thanks to dailymail.co.uk.
A pregnant British woman has been convicted of heroin smuggling in Laos and sentenced to life in prison.
Samantha Orobator, 20, could now return to the UK within a week under a prisoner transfer agreement.
She avoided a mandatory death sentence by becoming pregnant during the ten months she spent in jail after being caught with 1.5lb of heroin at an airport in the capital, Vientiane.
Execution of pregnant prisoners is banned in Laos. Mystery surrounds how she was able to conceive. She was in a mixed-sex jail, but men and women are held separately.
A state-run newspaper in Laos claimed she impregnated herself by secretly obtaining sperm from another prisoner.
Orobator, from South London, is understood to be nearly 28 weeks pregnant after which she is not supposed to fly.
Her lawyers have advised her not to appeal against her sentence so she can fly to Britain as soon as possible.
Moves to bring her back will begin today.
Read the rest at the link above...Peace Searchers...
Samantha Orobator will not be facing a firing squad after all. There is work being done to bring here back to her home country, the United Kingdom. I wish her and her family well, even if she was a "mule" as some say, the underlying issues regarding drug use is more important than any sovereign nation's law, the United States included. Here is the write up, thanks to dailymail.co.uk.
A pregnant British woman has been convicted of heroin smuggling in Laos and sentenced to life in prison.
Samantha Orobator, 20, could now return to the UK within a week under a prisoner transfer agreement.
She avoided a mandatory death sentence by becoming pregnant during the ten months she spent in jail after being caught with 1.5lb of heroin at an airport in the capital, Vientiane.
Execution of pregnant prisoners is banned in Laos. Mystery surrounds how she was able to conceive. She was in a mixed-sex jail, but men and women are held separately.
A state-run newspaper in Laos claimed she impregnated herself by secretly obtaining sperm from another prisoner.
Orobator, from South London, is understood to be nearly 28 weeks pregnant after which she is not supposed to fly.
Her lawyers have advised her not to appeal against her sentence so she can fly to Britain as soon as possible.
Moves to bring her back will begin today.
Read the rest at the link above...Peace Searchers...
TRIAL TO BEGIN IN LAOS OF PREGNANT BRITON FACING FIRING SQUAD
When I wrote about Samantha Orobator previously, I promised I would keep abreast of the situation. This is an absolutely nightmarish situation for the young lady as well as her family. I don't care about the law of any sovereign nation; most drug issues are social issues, not criminal. From CNN:
LONDON, England (CNN) -- A pregnant British woman held on drug-smuggling charges in Laos will go on trial Wednesday, the British Foreign Office said, citing the government of the south-east Asian country.
Samantha Orobator, 20, was jailed last August at the airport in the Lao capital Vientiane and charged with carrying about half a kilogram of heroin. She is more than five months pregnant, and legal aid charity Reprieve -- which has worked on her case -- is urging that her case be resolved and she be allowed to return to England before she enters the third trimester of pregnancy on June 6.
Britain and Laos signed a prisoner transfer agreement last month, the British Foreign Office said but refused to disclose its details.
Orobator became pregnant in prison under circumstances which remain unclear.
She told her mother she was not raped in prison and that the father was not a Lao prison official, Jane Orobator said May 19 after visiting her daughter. Watch Jane Orobator describe learning about her daughter's arrest »
A newspaper run by the Lao government reported Tuesday that Orobator said she impregnated herself with the sperm of another prisoner being held in the same jail.
A Reprieve spokeswoman said the charity did not know if the newspaper report was true.
"We haven't seen her to confirm this, but are keen that this issue -- which is irrelevant to the case -- does not delay or affect the trial," Katherine O'Shea told CNN via e-mail. "Our first priority is the health of mother and baby, which means swift trial and return to the UK."
The British Foreign Office refused to comment on the newspaper report, saying it would not be able to talk about the case until the trial ends. Watch what's known about Samantha Orobator »
A spokeswoman said the British government did not know how long the trial would last. She declined to be named, in line with policy.
LONDON, England (CNN) -- A pregnant British woman held on drug-smuggling charges in Laos will go on trial Wednesday, the British Foreign Office said, citing the government of the south-east Asian country.
Samantha Orobator, 20, was jailed last August at the airport in the Lao capital Vientiane and charged with carrying about half a kilogram of heroin. She is more than five months pregnant, and legal aid charity Reprieve -- which has worked on her case -- is urging that her case be resolved and she be allowed to return to England before she enters the third trimester of pregnancy on June 6.
Britain and Laos signed a prisoner transfer agreement last month, the British Foreign Office said but refused to disclose its details.
Orobator became pregnant in prison under circumstances which remain unclear.
She told her mother she was not raped in prison and that the father was not a Lao prison official, Jane Orobator said May 19 after visiting her daughter. Watch Jane Orobator describe learning about her daughter's arrest »
A newspaper run by the Lao government reported Tuesday that Orobator said she impregnated herself with the sperm of another prisoner being held in the same jail.
A Reprieve spokeswoman said the charity did not know if the newspaper report was true.
"We haven't seen her to confirm this, but are keen that this issue -- which is irrelevant to the case -- does not delay or affect the trial," Katherine O'Shea told CNN via e-mail. "Our first priority is the health of mother and baby, which means swift trial and return to the UK."
The British Foreign Office refused to comment on the newspaper report, saying it would not be able to talk about the case until the trial ends. Watch what's known about Samantha Orobator »
A spokeswoman said the British government did not know how long the trial would last. She declined to be named, in line with policy.
Monday, September 29, 2008
BAILOUT BILL
I'm not in favor the the bailout proposal. In fact, this is nothing more than giving a Heroin addict a shot while he is going through withdrawal. It may quell the withdrawal symptoms, but it aint gonna fix the underlying problem.
Here is the problem: Unrestricted and unregulated Capitalism and the greed it nurtures and encourages.
Let's throw away the rig.
It is time for a systemic change in the United States.
Peace
Here is the problem: Unrestricted and unregulated Capitalism and the greed it nurtures and encourages.
Let's throw away the rig.
It is time for a systemic change in the United States.
Peace
Friday, September 19, 2008
MORE INCARCERATION? MORE FAMILIES DESTROYED?
I'm following a story in Oregon. -UPDATE- I can't get the link to work, the story is from Oregonlive.com- Basically, Oregonians are going to the polls to decide a number of things, not the least of which will be the question of whether to "tighten up" sentences for non-violent offenders. (I love these ambivalent terms like "tighten up." It's allowed to sound innocuous when the reality of it is terrible and destructive. Kind of like "mandatory minimums." The shit doesn't work.) Non-Violent offenders. Drug addicts and the like. So, I'm hoping Oregon will get it right. From what I've seen in my few years of paying attention they probably won't.
People don't get it. Drug addiction is social problem, not a criminal one. Putting addicts in prison and destroying families further does nothing except feed the hideous beast that is the Prison Industrial Complex. For sure these cops and prosecutors don't get it, and they have very little incentive for helping in a positive way. Their jobs depend largely on addicts and convictions of addicts. Treatment would put a massive dent in revenue. That is the truth.
We have a nation of self-righteous sanctimonious christians, cops, judges and lawbreakers; I mean lawmakers, that have no sympathy or empathy for their fellow man. This is the result of a society built on capital and greed.
So, I push and focus my education on change in the United States. I'll follow that story and let ya know what's up, Searchers.
It is time for a systemic change in America. Peace-
Mike
People don't get it. Drug addiction is social problem, not a criminal one. Putting addicts in prison and destroying families further does nothing except feed the hideous beast that is the Prison Industrial Complex. For sure these cops and prosecutors don't get it, and they have very little incentive for helping in a positive way. Their jobs depend largely on addicts and convictions of addicts. Treatment would put a massive dent in revenue. That is the truth.
We have a nation of self-righteous sanctimonious christians, cops, judges and lawbreakers; I mean lawmakers, that have no sympathy or empathy for their fellow man. This is the result of a society built on capital and greed.
So, I push and focus my education on change in the United States. I'll follow that story and let ya know what's up, Searchers.
It is time for a systemic change in America. Peace-
Mike
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