War on Drugs archive at FraudWasteAbuse

Archive for the 'War on Drugs' Category

Apr

Why Kids Do Drugs

By JSwan 105 Comments

Categories: drugs, marijuana, LSD and War on Drugs

When I was in elementary school, during the “Just Say No” days, I remember hearing about drugs and being utterly confounded by the message. If drugs are so bad, I thought, why the heck (I didn’t say hell - it was a bad word) did so many people risk their lives just to get high? Something didn’t make sense.

In sixth grade, I was confronted with marijuana for the first time when a friend of mine tried it. Still believing the propaganda, I was very concerned and nearly turned him in “for his own good.” After all, he couldn’t be thinking straight… could he? Well, yes, he could. Contrary to my expectations, my friend was perfectly happy, did well in school, and did not start hanging out with the wrong crowd. Something didn’t make sense.

In high school, things started to get heavier. People I knew were not just smoking pot; they were snorting coke, dropping acid, and more. Being the straight kid, I even acted as a trip sitter on a few occasions.

Finally, I saw some of the negative impacts drugs could have. Of course, the reality of the negative impacts were nothing compared to what anti-drug propaganda would have had me expect. Upon smoking pot, eating shrooms, rolling on X, or whatever - none of my friends went crazy, had their life destroyed, or any such nonsense. The vast majority of the time, all they got was a good time.

Things started to make sense. Kids do drugs because they realize that adults have lied to them about it. If they are to discover the truth, they have only one course of action: Do drugs.

Yesterday I heard a story on NPR in which children were asked what they thought about drugs. Each child parroted back, with conviction, all the same false information I believed at their age. They said things like “you’ll die” and “you’ll lose all your friends.”

What will these kids do when they find out it’s not true? Drugs. When it is discovered first-hand that drugs aren’t so bad what, then, will these kids do? More drugs.

Duh.

Don’t get me wrong. I did see a few who “crossed the line” and actually abused drugs. However these kids had a lot of problems, drugs being only one of them. Unfortunately for them, the stigma of drug use would prevent them from seeking help even after they realized they had a problem. Making matters worse, “help” would often put the focus of treatment in the wrong place; they were treated for drug use when the focus should have been more holistic. Even if they got sober, they still tended to be depressed and self-abusive - just without drugs.

So what is the War on Drugs really accomplishing? Or, rather, is it being waged effectively?

Mar

Bummed that LSD isn’t legal? Chew on this (literally!)

By FraudWasteAbuse 21 Comments

Categories: law, crime, drugs, marijuana, LSD, War on Drugs, salvia, acid and nutmeg

Lately I have been reading about an interesting little plant called salvia divinorum. This plant has been cultivated for centuries in Mexico and is somewhat popular in the recreational drug community, it is relatively unknown to society at large. It’s also 100% legal in most US states. So far.

By chewing or smoking the leaves, one can experience effects that may be best described as LSD-like. However, only about 18% of users actually describe it this way. The effects of salvia seem to be much more intense. The effects also seem to be unpleasant to a high number of users. Perhaps the experience was overwhelming to them. At higher doses, the effects may arrive immediately, but usually completely wear off in about an hour. Compare this to LSD where its effects can last up to 10 hours.

After reading about the plant and the myriad of stories written by those who have used it, I think that I may be ready to give it a try. However, my wife isn’t so keen on the idea. Maybe one day she’ll warm up to it. Until then, here’s hoping I’ll get to give it a try before our meddling politicians ban it.

While doing some reading about salvia before I began writing this article, I came across another interesting bit of information. Apparently, nutmeg is a mild to medium hallucinogen. In doses between 5 and 20 grams it can produce visual distortions and a mild euphoria. Doses above 30 grams may result in nutmeg poisoning, which causes thought disorder, a feeling of impending death, and a trip to the hospital. Now before you go raiding your mom’s spice rack, you should be warned that nutmeg isn’t popular as a recreational drug because it tastes terrible and has numerous possible negative side effects. It should also be noted that its effects don’t reach their peak for about 5 hours and can last up to three days. Check out some positive and negative nutmeg experiences here.

Mar

Man shows trippy effects of looking in a mirror while using LSD

By FraudWasteAbuse 46 Comments

Categories: life, humor, politics, video, funny, law, legal, drugs, marijuana, trip, mushrooms, weed, pot, LSD, War on Drugs and acid

I’m somewhat of an armchair drug user. That is, I don’t actually do drugs but I enjoy researching them and reading about their effects. I’ve always been somewhat curious of trying marijuana, but it’s not worth the money and I’m not hip enough to know where to buy any even if I really wanted to.

Growing up, I was brainwashed by authority figures and public service announcement into believing that all illegal drugs, especially marijuana and LSD, are bad and will kill you if you use them. I’ve known for some time that marijuana is a relatively harmless drug, however it was only recently that LSD piqued my interest.

I recently had read a story written by a man who was reminiscing on his teenage years when he used to trip on LSD and magic mushrooms. It was interesting to have the perspective of an actual user who thought of his experience as a positive one. The story compelled me to do some research. It seems that unless one is using it every day and multiple times a day, the effects are temporary. It is also similar to marijuana in that it is not addictive and virtually impossible to overdose on the drug.

As an armchair drug user, this knowledge was exactly what I needed. My faux drug cravings needed to be satisfied by a simulated high. So where else could I turn but YouTube. That’s where I came across the short video below.

It seems the creator of this video clip tried to mimic the experience of what it is like to look in a mirror while tripping on LSD. The visuals and sound distortions do a great job of creating a freaky atmosphere. According to some of the comments, it’s as close as one can get to experiencing and understanding the effects of LSD without doing it yourself. Check it out and enjoy your simulated trip!

Mar

Even the Nazis got a trial

By FraudWasteAbuse 2 Comments

Categories: news, politics, Iraq, War on Terror, law, terrorism, government, Republicans, war, Afghanistan, Bill of Rights, drugs, rights, Bush, civil rights, liberty, constitution, fascism, Nazis, Guantanamo, War on Drugs, Guantanamo Bay, Hitler and Nazi

Even the worst of the Nazis got a trial, even though the trial was a sham. The indictments were created ex post facto and were not based on any nation’s law. Even US Supreme Court Chief Justice Harlan Fiske Stone called the Nuremberg trials a fraud. But I digress.

The top Nazis could get a trial despite plunging Europe into its most destructive war and caused the deaths of tens of millions of people. Yet the detainees in Guantanamo Bay are somehow undeserving of a trial because they’re too barbaric, or happened to be kidnapped and sold to the Americans for a cash reward. Forgive me if I think the Nazis were a bit more dangerous and barbaric than some religious fanatics upset that a foreign military started shooting up their country.

Supporters of detaining alleged terrorists without trial posit that we did the same things with captured Germans and Japanese during World War II. The problem with trying to classify captured terrorists as prisoners of war is that we are not at war. Terrorism is still considered a federal crime, and sending the military to fight the crime of terrorism doesn’t make us any more at war than sending the military to fight drug cartels makes us at war. The government doesn’t consider arrested drug dealers to be POWs, nor does declaring a “War on Drugs ” strip accused drug dealers of their right to a fair trial.