drug abuse

ᔥ Stuff.co.nz

Increasing amounts of people are taking “Bath Salts“…not sure they want to be doing that:

and:

The Beckley Foundation

A while ago I posted a video about drug decriminalisation in Portugal and the success that it was meeting with. Here it is again:

Now research has confirmed the dramatic results in Portugal:

On July 1st, 2001, Portugal decriminalized every imaginable drug, from marijuana, to cocaine, to heroin. Some thought Lisbon would become a drug tourist haven, others predicted usage rates among youths to surge. Eleven years later, it turns out they were both wrong.

Over a decade has passed since Portugal changed its philosophy from labeling drug users as criminals to labeling them as people affected by a disease. This time lapse has allowed statistics to develop and in time, has made Portugal an example to follow.

First, some clarification.

Portugal’s move to decriminalize does not mean people can carry around, use, and sell drugs free from police interference. That would be legalization. Rather, all drugs are “decriminalized,” meaning drug possession, distribution, and use is still illegal. While distribution and trafficking is still a criminal offense, possession and use is moved out of criminal courts and into a special court where each offender’s unique  situation is judged by legal experts, psychologists, and social workers. Treatment and further action is decided in these courts, where addicts and drug use is treated as a public health service rather than referring it to the justice system (like the U.S.),reports Fox News.

The resulting effect: a drastic reduction in addicts, with Portuguese officials and reports highlighting that this number, at 100,000 before the new policy was enacted, has been halved in the following ten years. Portugal’s drug usage rates are now among the lowest of EU member states, according to the same report.

One more outcome: a lot less sick people. Drug related diseases including STDs and overdoses have been reduced even more than usage rates, which experts believe is the result of the government offering treatment with no threat of legal ramifications to addicts.

ᔥ Vice

Interesting video from Vice about making drug dealing a professional business:

Ever wonder how to sell $100,000 worth of drugs in a week? We learned the secrets of a drug dealer in NYC – a man who will deliver any substance you want, 24/7. He told us everything – from where he gets his drugs to how his crew operates. Come with us as we take a rare look into the dangerous life of a NYC drug delivery-man.

Penn Jillette and Michael Goudeau talk about President Barack Obama’s appearance on Jimmy Fallon and his previous drug use.

ᔥ NZ Herald

Millie Elder reckons she is free of meth…rubbish…she hasn’t done nearly enough time allegedly free of the drug to claim she is free of the clutches of methamphetamine:

Paul Holmes’ daughter, Millie Elder, has spoken of her long battle with P, her often-fractious relationship with the broadcaster – and being drug-free for more than two years.

In an exclusive Metro magazine interview, the 23-year-old admits she was “a bit of a shit”, with little respect for her family, as she battled her $1000-a-day addiction.

But she is now drug-free, working at the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, studying by correspondence and talking again with her father after they famously fell out over her lifestyle and police arrests.

“Looking back, I cringe,” Ms Elder told Metro. “I just think I was a bit of a shit, to be honest. I was emotionally dead inside. You don’t have any respect for people when you’re on drugs, you don’t care about anyone else.

“As a parent, you need to understand you’re not dealing with your child; you’re dealing with your child on drugs, who doesn’t give a shit.

“I didn’t care about anyone else but myself.”

She says she would not have won the battle with P without longtime boyfriend Connor Morris. They eventually became clean without professional help by living a hermit-like existence – eating, sleeping and watching TV – in their West Auckland flat.

Chris Christie has come up with a sane, cost effective policy to deal with drug abuse.

From the transcript of his speech:

Let us reclaim the lives of those drug offenders who have not committed a violent crime. By investing time and money in drug treatment – in an in-house, secure facility – rather than putting them in prison. Experience has shown that treating non-violent drug offenders is two-thirds less expensive than housing them in prison. And more importantly – as long as they have not violently victimized society – everyone deserves a second chance, because no life is disposable. I am not satisfied to have this as merely a pilot project; I am calling for a transformation of the way we deal with drug abuse and incarceration in every corner of New Jersey.