The War on Drugs

[canthai55]

The Reality of Legalizing Cocaine, Heroin, and Ecstasy

 

[Kwasaki]

It's hard for me to comment on, I am so anti drug, I'm so happy none my kids are into that stuff apart from my oldest son who likes a cannabis smoke sometimes if that's what you call it.

I don't even like him doing that but he will never smoke it when he is in my house with me. 

[covidiot]

why is china so strict on drug use?

is it because the opium addiction epidemic weakened the country? 

 

 

[canthai55]

12 hours ago, covidiot said:

why is china so strict on drug use?

is it because the opium addiction epidemic weakened the country?

It is opioid - not opium

And the vast majority is not from heroin but from doctor prescribed pharmaceuticals.

"In the late 1990s, pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to prescription opioid pain relievers, and healthcare providers began to prescribe them at greater rates."

https://www.drugabuse.gov/drug-topics/opioids/opioid-overdose-crisis

[Smithson]

5 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

It is opioid - not opium

And the vast majority is not from heroin but from doctor prescribed pharmaceuticals.

"In the late 1990s, pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to prescription opioid pain relievers, and healthcare providers began to prescribe them at greater rates."

https://www.drugabuse.gov/drug-topics/opioids/opioid-overdose-crisis

He's not talking about the US.

[canthai55]

1 hour ago, Smithson said:

He's not talking about the US.

"The sales rep told AP she worked for Mundipharma, a Chinese company that is owned by the Sackler family, which also owns Purdue Pharma, the American company whose sales of OxyContin allegedly helped drive the U.S. opioid crisis."

https://apnews.com/article/health-ap-top-news-opioids-international-news-weekend-reads-9766f96258fae13a2bc13e1486011120

[Smithson]

4 hours ago, canthai55 said:

"The sales rep told AP she worked for Mundipharma, a Chinese company that is owned by the Sackler family, which also owns Purdue Pharma, the American company whose sales of OxyContin allegedly helped drive the U.S. opioid crisis."

https://apnews.com/article/health-ap-top-news-opioids-international-news-weekend-reads-9766f96258fae13a2bc13e1486011120

Well, you would have to check with the poster, but my guess is he is referring to the Opium Wars, which a lot of American's probably haven't learnt about. It was China, not the US, that started the War on Drugs.

[covidiot]

8 hours ago, canthai55 said:

And the vast majority is not from heroin but from doctor prescribed pharmaceuticals.

ok, that's another issue.

that's another black mark on the pharmaceutical industry.

 

i'm talking about china's opium crisis way back. my understanding is that opium destabilized the country and when the communist party came in, they decided to get strict about disallowing drugs. 

but some western countries seem to be going in the opposite direction. soon hard drugs will be legalized. 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2021 by covidiot

[canthai55]

"The Opium Wars in the mid-19th century were a critical juncture in modern Chinese history. The first Opium War was fought between China and Great Britain from 1839 to 1842. In the second Opium War, from 1856 to 1860, a weakened China fought both Great Britain and France. China lost both wars"

 

Hardly relevant in todays world

 

And if it IS relevant, blame the British

Edited May 21, 2021 by canthai55

[canthai55]

3 hours ago, Smithson said:

It was China, not the US, that started the War on Drugs.

In June 1971, Nixon officially declared a “War on Drugs,” stating that drug abuse was “public enemy number one.”

During a 1994 interview, President Nixon’s domestic policy chief, John Ehrlichman, provided inside information suggesting that the War on Drugs campaign had ulterior motives, which mainly involved helping Nixon keep his job.

In the interview, conducted by journalist Dan Baum and published in Harper magazine, Ehrlichman explained that the Nixon campaign had two enemies: “the antiwar left and black people.”

https://www.history.com/topics/crime/the-war-on-drugs

Edited May 21, 2021 by canthai55

[canthai55]

3 hours ago, Smithson said:

Well, you would have to check with the poster

Read the link - published 31 Dec 2019

[robblok]

There is a party in the Netherlands that want to legalize XTC. I don't see a problem used the stuff in the past. Many of my friends have too. Banning stuff does not work. Also don't see many addicts in the Netherlands nor the violence problems they have in the US.

 

Its quite hard to get addicted to XTC because if you use it a few times in a row it won't work anymore (works by releasing stored hormones and once they are gone you can take as much as you want you wont get that high anymore believe me i tried). I wonder why people who have no idea about drugs post so much about its dangers when they have no clue themselves.

 

No idea about cocaine or heroin was not really done in my circles. Though in one of the hard working fishing places Volendam plenty of hard working people used it. Partied and after the weekend went back to work. Seems there are plenty of people who can use drugs and not have a problem. 

 

Alcohol is a hard drug and one of the worst why is it the anti drug people never talk about that.

[robblok]

22 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

It's hard for me to comment on, I am so anti drug, I'm so happy none my kids are into that stuff apart from my oldest son who likes a cannabis smoke sometimes if that's what you call it.

I don't even like him doing that but he will never smoke it when he is in my house with me. 

But don't you drink alcohol ? Its an harddrug. If you don't drink then sorry but most people seem to be ok with the hard drug alcohol but not with other drugs even cannabis is less harmful then alcohol. 

 

https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/news/20101101/alcohol-more-harmful-than-crack-or-heroin#1

 

Just like not everyone who drinks alcohol becomes an alcoholic same goes for people who use drugs not all become addicts. Also not everyone has a problem with alcohol while others become really violent it. Same goes for other drugs. 

 

I used a lot of Ecstasy long ago usually one day in a weekend. The next day you could not use it as it just would not give the same buzz. That is how it works. While alcohol you could go on drinking and drinking. I stopped with it as it like alcohol made me feel like <deleted> the day or days after. Cannabis is far less damaging (if you vape it) then any of the other drugs no wonder its considered a soft drug. Compared to alcohol the hard drug.

 

Only problems i got with cannabis is that it damages my food choices plus its not legal here so asking for trouble.  

 

[canthai55]

My point - shared by many - is that drug abuse is a health and social services problem, not a law enforcement problem.

Want the drug gangs, cartels, etc to vanish overnight ?

Portugal is a good case in point ...

"In July 2001, a new law maintained the status of illegality for using or possessing any drug for personal use without authorization. The offense was changed from a criminal one, with prison as a possible punishment, to an administrative one if the amount possessed was no more than a ten-day supply of that substance.[2] This was in line with the de facto Portuguese drug policy before the reform. Drug addicts were then to be aggressively targeted with therapy or community service rather than fines or waivers"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drug_policy_of_Portugal

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, robblok said:

But don't you drink alcohol ?

I do drink beer because I like the taste just like some foods but I only drink beer I like and in moderation, don't like any kind of smoking you would never be able to convince me of doing so.

[robblok]

1 minute ago, Kwasaki said:

I do drink beer because I like the taste just like some foods but I only drink beer I like and in moderation, don't like any kind of smoking you would never be able to convince me of doing so.

Nor do i want to convince you why would i try to convince people to use other drugs there is nothing in it for me. But as it stands then your doing drugs too hard drugs even. Your son who does cannabis does the less harmful stuff. 

 

Drugs can be done in moderation too, its not an all or  nothing thing. I don't really care what kind of drugs people use as long as they don't bother others im ok with it. I am not ok with people who do drugs and drive or who start to annoy other people. 

 

Its just that many people don't realize that alcohol is a  hard drug and does more damage then cannabis. 

 

So you not liking drugs means you don't like other drugs besides alcohol. Beer in your case.

 

Maybe because i have been around drugs and people using them (other then alcohol) i see that they are no different from alcohol and that just like with alcohol most don't get addicted. Just like alcohol not many commit crime to get the funds for them either. 

 

As i said really ok with drugs but quite a few that i havent tried nor do i want too. 

 

[canthai55]

When do you hear of someone smoking pot, doing coke or heroin, driving their car and killing a bunch of people ?

Most people have had their brain washed regarding drugs by the media and the gov't. It is all Horse Hockey.

But it will never stop - sad to say - as it is a BIG business - and all the ancillary support - prison construction, etc

Today, the Drug Policy Alliance, which advocates for an end to the War on Drugs, estimates that the United States spends $51 billion annually on these initiatives.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_drugs

Some perspective -

The United States announced on Tuesday it would provide an additional $90 million over the next three years to help Laos, heavily bombed during the Vietnam War, clear unexploded ordnance

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-laos-obama-uxo-idUSKCN11C0GV

Edited May 21, 2021 by canthai55

[gargamon]

The (American) war on drugs was started so that they could use it to control the blacks. It's all racial. Ever see the movie "Reefer Madness"? That mentality has permeated (brain washed) society so it's now believed by a majority of the population. Current thinking is slowly changing however. Countries like Canada legalizing marijuana and Portugal legalizing everything are at the forefront. Portugal saw a drop in drug use and crime after the change. Even US state Oregon recently legalized many more drugs such as  heroin, meth, LSD, etc.

 

The change is coming. A generation or two may need to die off before it gets here, but it's definitely coming.

[Smithson]

17 hours ago, canthai55 said:

In June 1971, Nixon officially declared a “War on Drugs,” stating that drug abuse was “public enemy number one.”

During a 1994 interview, President Nixon’s domestic policy chief, John Ehrlichman, provided inside information suggesting that the War on Drugs campaign had ulterior motives, which mainly involved helping Nixon keep his job.

In the interview, conducted by journalist Dan Baum and published in Harper magazine, Ehrlichman explained that the Nixon campaign had two enemies: “the antiwar left and black people.”

https://www.history.com/topics/crime/the-war-on-drugs

That's the US version, yes and the Chinese one started about 100 years before the Americans. You may not think it relevant, but this is what the poster was referring to.

[starky]

On 5/21/2021 at 6:24 PM, canthai55 said:

In June 1971, Nixon officially declared a “War on Drugs,” stating that drug abuse was “public enemy number one.”

During a 1994 interview, President Nixon’s domestic policy chief, John Ehrlichman, provided inside information suggesting that the War on Drugs campaign had ulterior motives, which mainly involved helping Nixon keep his job.

In the interview, conducted by journalist Dan Baum and published in Harper magazine, Ehrlichman explained that the Nixon campaign had two enemies: “the antiwar left and black people.”

https://www.history.com/topics/crime/the-war-on-drugs

Much like the war on terror. 

[canthai55]

13 hours ago, starky said:

Much like the war on terror. 

Agree - much the same

Pick a (race, ethnic group, class, color) - turn up the press to promote hate speech, install fear, and you can make yourself a lot of money.

Because at the end of the day this is what it is all about.

And when the people who started this - Nixon and Bush Jr. for just 2, are found to have lied their glutes off - what happens. Nada

On with the Status Quo

Edited May 23, 2021 by canthai55

[covidiot]

This is an interesting perspective from someone who has been reporting on drugs for many years. 

 

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/4/20/15328384/opioid-epidemic-drug-legalization

I used to support legalizing all drugs. Then the opioid epidemic happened.

 

By the time I began as a drug policy reporter in 2010, I was all in on legalizing every drug, from marijuana to heroin and cocaine.

 

It all seemed so obvious to me. Prohibition had failed. 

 

Then I began reporting on the opioid epidemic.

 

In total, more than 560,000 people in the US died to drug overdoses between 1999 and 2015 (the latest year of full data available) — a death toll larger than the entire population of Atlanta. And while many of these deaths are now linked to illicit drugs like heroin and fentanyl, the source of the epidemic — what got people started on a chain to harder drugs — was opioid painkillers, and legal painkillers ...

 

Looking at this crisis, it slowly but surely dawned on me: Maybe full legalization isn’t the right answer to the war on drugs. Maybe the US just can’t handle regulating these potentially deadly substances in a legal environment. Maybe some form of prohibition — albeit a less stringent kind than what we have today — is the way to go.

 

 

[covidiot]

This is a cool music video about drugs from Foo Fighters.  

 

They get high. At first the trip is good, but then they end up in some kind of "hell" that they have to escape from. 

 

 

 

Edited May 24, 2021 by covidiot

[faraday]

All the talk about legalising drugs, I wonder if anyone has considered how the Cartels will react?

 

They have billion $ businesses, & I doubt - very strongly, if they will ever give them up.

 

Some people will cite the 'Portuguese Model' which to a certain extent is working. However, the criminals - ie those not sanctioned by gubmints, still supply the drugs.

 

 

[Leaver]

On 5/24/2021 at 6:15 AM, canthai55 said:

Pick a (race, ethnic group, class, color) - turn up the press to promote hate speech, install fear, and you can make yourself a lot of money.

 

And then you can also sell your citizens a war, and wars also make money.