"Messed up on drugs"

[SHRED]

For an indicator that the government brainwashing, regarding the "war on drugs" is deep:
Look no further than the person you are talking with when they say stupid shit like, "They fried their brain on drugs" or "Druggie burnout" or any other phrase that makes no mention of the main culprit in our society... alcohol.

My studies conclude that alcohol is truly the #1 cause of nerve and brain cell damage, by far. Very few, if any, "drugs" do this.
http://us.ebooks.com/books/117013.smm

While I don't advocate illegal drug use I am thoroughly disgusted with the brainwashing that has occurred.

[Mr.Green93]

1. been around any meth abusers?

[jukes]

2. i have

and they can be assholes, nodowt. crackheads, too. alcohol is still the most abused & most dangerous drug on the market.

[TX-RAT]

7. alcohol is still the most abused & most dangerous drug on the market.

I agree, probably 60% to 70% of all our domestic calls were alcohol related.

[slackmaster]

10. Arrest stats for the San Diego County Jail...

A couple of years ago the Sheriff reported that 85% of men who were booked into the downtown lockup tested positive for alcohol and almost 70% for amphetamines.

[TX-RAT]

12. Thats scary, and sad.

[TX-RAT]

6. Yup

And every time we served a warrant, we in turn solved a rash of burglary's. Burglary and meth go hand in hand.

[liberalmuse]

3. I know people...

who've been smoking weed for years, and they're smarter, more creative and much more clear-headed than I am. I was completely propogandized by the 'war on drugs'. I was told that the next generation of kids would turn out hideously deformed or would lack a conscience. Hell, the only people I see who fit that description are the Republicans these days. I'd certainly call their hideously hate-twisted faces some kind of self-inflicted deformity.

As a matter of fact, I was having a discussion with my mom about this. She's convinced all drugs are demon seed, and I was trying to tell her that seeing things in black and white only aggravates a problem.

My brother died of a drug overdose, and was a poly-substance abuser. He OD'ed on purpose, since we found a note in his wallet requesting certain burial arrangements.

I understand why he self-medicated. My mom was NUTS when we were growing up. She'd hole herself up in her room all the time with her Bible and a box of Kleenex--probably the most miserable human being I've ever encountered. She'd also claim to see spirits and wake us up in the middle of the night with her loud voice rebuking them. It scared us kids, and I've noticed while visiting my sister that she still sleeps with lights on in the house. Or she'd pit one kid against the other if she was angry at one of us, saying we were 'evil' or use god against us by telling us he told her stuff about us. She also successfully convinced my brother that no counselor could help him, only Jesus, and since he didn't believe that, he was convinced he couldn't be helped. I think fundamentalist religion fries people's brains more than drugs.

Our society is shallow and all around fucked-up. No wonder people want to escape their fundie, ultra-conservative families by any means at their disposal. The 'War on Drugs' like the 'War on Terror' is a stupid, but very harmful sham.

[Warpy]

4. The dirty secret used to be that alcohol was worse than any drug

when they were first made illegal. Even heroin and cocaine were kinder to body systems than alcohol is.

Banning the relatively benign (although highly addictive)drugs has only opened up a market for bathtub drugs that are incredibly harmful, drugs that can be cooked up by anyone with a home lab and knowledge of basic chemistry and substances that can be inhaled for a cheap brain vacation, even as they destroy neurons.

Pot is bulky and hard to transport and sends drug sniffing dogs into paroxysms of delight. It's also the closest thing to a harmless psychoactive drug we know, and there's no earthly reason to keep it illegal (except it might cut into Prozac sales, horrors).

The damaging drugs like freebase cocaine, meth and inhalants would probably be self limiting, their users existing as examples of what not to do, if the more benign alternatives were available. In any case, people in a society that pretends to be free ought to have the freedom to treat their own damn pain, whatever that pain might be.

The drug war is unconstitutional and being fought with unconstitutional means. It's all founded on tax laws and has grown into a monstrosity which has caused resentment of the US government at home and all over the world. It's time to end it.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. The drug war is unconstitutional

The way they want to medicate people by force.... with pharmaceuticals.... could be considered "a war with drugs".

yes... the whole thing is pretty disgusting.

www.guerrillanews.com/crack <---- Interesting expose on the war on drugs.

[Jack_DeLeon]

21. I agree...

notice they had to amend the constitution to make alcohol illegal.

Yet I never noticed any constitutional amendment to make all these other drugs illegal.

End the war on drugs.

[gatlingforme]

8. How 'bout heroin addicts. ??? I think this drug is one of the

worst around, ( I am not discounting alcohol as a very bad addiction) but heroin is on the rise everywhere and is a serious problem. The increase in DO with heroin is prominent. And many of these addicts commit more serious offenses to get another bag. From mugging to robbery, they are making these choices under the influence of this drug. The drug war is a joke and always has been. I think more emphasis must be put on rehab for the first timers... recidivism is high among this crowd. very sad.

[Warpy]

9. Everything you've listed is a consequence of illegality

ODs are from the lack of quality and dose control, the addict never knows what he's getting; the crime is a result of high black market prices; the effect of the drug is to put the user into a dreamlike state, hardly violent. Given quality control and reasonable pricing, most addicts use enough to stay straight enough to work and party during their downtime (pun intended). The UK experiment of delivering the drug to hard core addicts reduced street crime by a whopping 80%. The surprising thing was that 50% of these addicts had tapered completely off the drug in the 10 year experiment.

Illegality also contributes to addictive behavior. Even patients in the hospital exhibit classic drug seeking behavior when they're not in control of dispensing their own pain medicine by pump. When the supply is there and consistent, they relax and use far less.

The percapita rate of hardcore opiate addiction hasn't changed from the turn of the century, when opiates were legal and available over the counter. A study in Boston in the 1980s found that of nearly 11,000 people in hospitals who had received narcotics, there were only four new addictions found. Perhaps we'd be better served if the NIH studied people who don't get addicted for a change.

[gatlingforme]

13. Your points are well taken. But "illegality" is what this is all about

To say ODs are from a lack of quality and dose control, LOL, well yeah, I would call that addiction. (The use of this drug is illegal, as well as selling it) the effect of this drug is to put the person in a euphoric state, that goes with any drug addiction. In any case I think I understand where you are coming from.

How can someone gage the per capita rate of hardcore opiate addiction back in the late 1800's and early 1900's when this drug was legal? , and in the 1980's heroin was not as pure on the streets as it is now.

You bring up some good points and I appreciate it!!! Your post also made me think of other questions about this particular drug as well, thank you.

[slackmaster]

11. Addiction reprograms peoples' brains, and heroin is especially insidious

My personal experience with heroin addicts is that every one of them will steal from you. Maybe big stuff, maybe just small things like CDs but they all steal.

[gatlingforme]

14. Yes, they are compulsive and do not care how their actions

are perceived or what harm their actions cause. Case in point, the humorous crime post I posted, --- that particular person was high on heroin when he committed the crime. I also know that this person has a propencity for violence (his record is extensive.) he is also a heroin addict. (this is all public record) It's a very bad drug that is making a big impact on crime stats around Chicago.

[slackmaster]

15. I have a friend who is serving over 20 years for robbery

I met him in 1999. He'd recently been paroled after serving 3 years of a 4-year sentence for (drum roll) robbery and possession of narcotics (heroin).

He was OK for about a year, then quietly slipped back into the habit. I became aware of it when he screwed up and left a small amount of heroin at my house. Just a little dot of black tar on a piece of aluminum foil, among spots where other dots had been vaporized for inhalation.

About six months later he got caught after robbing an ice cream parlor. :eyes:

<general_ripper>

Childrens' ice cream!

</general_ripper>

Fortunately I had carefully documented all the money he had "borrowed" from me and was able to take a tax writeoff for the full amount as an uncollectable personal debt (not a full recovery but better than a poke in the eye). The experience taught me how to spot junkies. They're pretty sneaky, but if you know the signs sometimes you can pick them out of a crowd. I'm sure some police officers get good at it.

[gatlingforme]

16. That was a smart thing to do (write some of it off) it's unfortunate

that you had to go thru that though. At lease you are wiser to the ways of the addict... but, it's too bad it had to come in the way of a bad experience. I use to be (too) trusting too.

[slackmaster]

17. Was it Gorbachev or Reagan who said "trust but verify"?

Although lending money to someone with a history of drug addiction wasn't wise at least I documented it all (and it was all for lawful purposes). My accountant has taught me a lot, and saved me thousands of dollars over the last few years.

[FeebMaster]

18. Reagan.

I think he was making fun of people who loved him for being pro-gun and for smaller government.

[MrSandman]

19. "There you go again"

Weren't you quoting him last month?

:spank:

[FeebMaster]

20. You know me

I love a good gun grabber and Reagan was one of the best. Guy bans civilian machine gun production and Republicans love him because he was "pro-gun". Go figure.