Open Thread

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31 Responses to Open Thread

  1. darkcycle says:

    Noticed nothing unusual, Pete.
    Here’s a chuckle. http://www.cato.org/blog/profiting-opium-production-afghanistan?utm_content=bufferc9709&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
    Uh, yeah. What the heck. Like I needed the CATO Institute to tell me that. Maybe I should tell them what they missed: the current policy of the U.S. backed government is to ignore the Opium crops in government controlled areas, and to eradicate those crops in areas controlled by the Taliban. This means, as the government increases it’s control of the frontiers, the Opium harvest gets larger. In case it has to be explicitly spelled out: SUCCESS ON THE POLITICAL FRONT WILL INEVITABLY MEAN AN EVER GROWING HEROIN SUPPLY. Here’s the never ending drug war. It’s a driver of the shadow State, and the source of the problem. But, as Hillary said “There’s too much money in it.” to end it.

    • Duncan20903 says:

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      Considering the very tight elasticity of demand for serious drugs of addiction what difference does it make? C’mon over to my house and put 10 kilos of heroin on my dining room table. I might sell it, but I’m not going to shoot up or even chase the dragon. Wouldn’t less expensive heroin have a tendency to reduce addiction related property crime?

      I think the people here have a certain appreciation of the Whac-A-Mole tendency of the enforcement of drugs laws. Let’s try to keep that in mind.

      • darkcycle says:

        In terms of cannabis, you’re right, not much difference. Heroin is a different story. Demand might not be elastic, but supply-side tactics work to an extent with heroin (yes, you can grow poppies, but you need a hell of a lot of them and then you need to be able to process the raw Opium into H.), so there is still unmet demand. Remember in the seventies, when heroin became nearly unavailable in the U.S.? I do. There was no “real”heroin to be had. The junkies on the West Coast were actually injecting morphine or other analogs. In some cases they were injecting inert substances.
        There are huge numbers of opioid addicts currently getting their fixes from the pill mills and Dr. Feelgoods. Of course, they are now to be the new focus of the drug warriors who have seen the writing on the wall as regards cannabis….hmmm. Looks like there may be considerable elasticity in demand. All they have to do is exactly what they’re PLANNING to do, and bingo, you corner smack dealer will be getting a much bigger piece of the action.

  2. jean valjean says:

    A tech bro rants:

    “I am writing today, to voice my concern and outrage over the increasing homeless and drug problem that the city is faced with. I’ve been living in SF for over three years, and without a doubt it is the worst it has ever been. Every day, on my way to, and from work, I see people sprawled across the sidewalk, tent cities, human feces, and the faces of addiction. The city is becoming a shanty town … Worst of all, it is unsafe.”

    No mention of the real cause of this waste of human life, prohibition.

    http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/feb/17/san-francisco-tech-open-letter-i-dont-want-to-see-homeless-riff-raff

  3. claygooding says:

    Now the prohibs are pulling their hair out over extractions,,the “new” way to use marijuana is even more deadly.
    Of course there are no deaths but it sounds good.

    Enters Marinol at 100% synthetic THC and the adverse effects listed do not come close to what they say dabs do,,they prolly think it is over 100%,,not realizing of course that non-toxic is non-toxic no matter the concentration.

    Concentrating a toxic substance may increase it’s toxicity but multiplying zero still comes up zero..

  4. Daniel Williams says:

    Hillary’s basement?

  5. Duncan20903 says:

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    Here’s some evidence supporting my assertion that we need to provide busy work to keep our lawmakers out of mischief:

    Kentucky Bill Would Require Wife’s Permission Before Getting Viagra

    Democratic Kentucky state representative Mary Lou Marzian has introduced a bill that would require men who want a prescription for Viagra or other erectile dysfunction drugs to get written permission from their spouse, swear on a Bible that they will use the drug only for relations within marriage and visit a doctor twice before they can get the prescription.
    /snip/

    Sheeeeee-eeee-it, first health insurance quits paying for it, now mommy has to give permission. It hasn’t been a very good last couple of months for our Country’s dirty old men.

    (no, she’s not serious)

    • Justin Auldphart says:

      Kudos to that woman state rep…calling these medievalist morons out to defend their stances

    • claygooding says:

      Someone told me you had to bring a note from your wife so they could make sure he wasn’t named Bill,Bob or Kevin.

  6. Servetus says:

    One of the consequences of prohibition is lack of product quality control and oversight in black market drugs. In the case of MDMA, researchers have found contaminants used to cut MDMA in samples of hair from volunteers:

    18-Feb-2016–The researchers focused on the hair samples provided by 48 participants who reported ecstasy use. While half of the samples tested positive for MDMA, half tested positive for “bath salts” and/or other novel psychoactive substances. The most commonly detected “bath salts” were butylone and methylone — common adulterants in ecstasy/Molly.

    “Among those who reported no use of “bath salts” or unknown powders or pills, four out of ten tested positive for “bath salts” and/or other novel drugs,” said Dr. Palamar. “One sample also tested positive for alpha-PVP — the strong stimulant known as “Flakka” that has made headlines in the last year.

    Contaminations are due strictly to product illegality. The hypocritical, harm-enhancement approach to drug enforcement precludes or hinders the use of chemical test kits that could determine contamination or relative impurities associated with the popular party drug.

    AAAS Press Release: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-02/nyu-nrh021816.php

  7. Frank W. says:

    Anyone hear of the “70% marijuana tax” Yahoo mentioned? I chomped the bait, but didn’t comprehend. Super-sour confusion.

  8. Tony Aroma says:

    LEO’s worst nightmare is starting to come true. Without marijuana prohibition, there’s nothing much for drug warriors to do these days.

    Eastside Narcotics Task Force disbanding | Marijuana legalization, lack of funding posed problems

    “When the state law changed, it made us pause and take a look at our mission,” Mylett said. “When I arrived in Bellevue (in April 2015), the police chiefs were already discussing how marijuana laws were changing the whole drug trade landscape.”

    Marijuana had been a large focus of their investigations prior to its legalization.

    • jean valjean says:

      The usual lazy “journalism”…..just print what the police tell them and use that pathetic picture of knuckle dusters and a few dollars worth of drugs…. meanwhile they missed the main story, namely the massive police corruption encapsulated by the following two paragraphs:

      “The dozen or so officers on the task force were funded through federal grants and taxpayers dollars. While those grants once brought in $360,000, the task force only received $122,000 this last year.
      Initially, the task force made up for the gap in funding through the assests [sic] they seized from criminals. That largely dried up after marijuana became legal, Mylett said.”

      (The word “criminals” should of course be in quotes as there is no requirement for a conviction in order to seize assets.)

  9. thelbert says:

    ever notice that your representatives don’t seem to represent you? this helps to explain why: http://tinyurl.com/jcv94dt

    • jean valjean says:

      The Deep State has just gone onto my reading list.
      “Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, the Robespierre of the Republican revolution, employed chaos, polarization, and scapegoating as the means of carrying out a divide-and-rule strategy.”
      Ably assisted by his triangulation buddy and pseudo-republican Bill Clinton….. needless to say the main victims of their scapegoating were drug consumers. (I wont hold my breath waiting to hear Hillary apologize).

    • Frank W. says:

      That was too good to read here. Got my paranoia G-spot moist!

  10. Moolahmolly says:

    Apparently, in her 16 years in office, Polk’s never heard that a refusal to comment sounds highly suspicious. Come on, Sheila, why not just say yes or no?

    http://tinyurl.com/Hypocritepolk

    • Duncan20903 says:

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      Well maybe she drank herself into a blackout and found 3 roaches on her coffee table when she finally regained consciousness. She might honestly not know whether she did or didn’t.

  11. Duncan20903 says:

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    Oh my word, I really am starting to take a shine to Mr. Trump. While most politicians beat up straw men Mr. Trump pummeled the Pope. OK OK it’s just a gimmick to get on my good side. Well it worked. al Qaeda is going to blow the Vatican? Is there a shortage of altar boys?

    “If and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, which as everyone knows is ISIS’s ultimate trophy,” he said in a statement on his website, “I can promise you that the Pope would have only wished and prayed that Donald Trump would have been President because this would not have happened.” “When al Qaeda blows Vatican City you’re going to be wishing that Donald Trump was there.”

    Myself admits that his referring to himself in the 3rd person is kind of disturbing.

    • Servetus says:

      Freudian slip. Guys like Trump always self destruct.

      • Duncan20903 says:

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        Gosh, I thought you’d be ecstatic, you being the only person in existence who hates the catholic church more than myself. C’mon old man, anyone that beats up the pope can’t be all bad.

        There’s no doubt in my mind that Mr. Trump is going to get the Republican nomination. Not so much because the Republican rank & file like him but because the elite Republican politicians have lost touch with them. For the right odds I’m willing to bet that Mr. Trump is going to be the last Republican POTUS because the Party is getting ready to implode.

      • Servetus says:

        I’m not sure about imploding, but Robert Reich recently declared the GOP dead after splitting into six warring factions. Imploding might involve putrefaction, extending the process a bit. I expect some bloating, followed by a sudden collapse, amid the release of foul smelling gases.

        Trump v. Pope is Donald’s callout to Benito Mussolini, whom I don’t admire. Many dictators like to bash the Vatican, or any other competing power. It’s a tradition. For instance, after Mussolini underwrote the salaries and expenses for Vatican City, declaring it a sovereign state, he made a speech bragging that Rome had just saved the Catholic religion, as it had in the 4th century. Otherwise, Duce said, Catholicism would simply be one of hundreds of different religious sects in the same region that faded and were lost to history. Duce was big on bringing back the glory of ancient Rome.

        The ill-tempered Pope Pius XI was furious, but powerless to protest. The Church was now bought and paid for by Benito for the fascists, an economic relationship that exists in a transmuted form today, one that’s nearly always deemed conservative.

  12. darkcycle says:

    Meanwhile, in New Jersey, they have their sights on pregnant women. Wouldn’t want those women at most risk to seek expensive prenatal care, or drug treatment at public cost. So why not make using drugs while pregnant a crime? (whether you knew you were pregnant doesn’t matter)
    Way to go DEMOCRATS
    http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2016/02/18/new-jersey-democrats-harshen-drug-use-penalties-pregnant-people/

    • DdC says:

      Why Do Democrats Defend Nixon’s Drug War?
      http://endingcannabisprohibition.yuku.com/topic/1760

      Pro Life? Not even anti abortionists
      Wall street’s Spontaneous Abortionists

    • jean valjean says:

      Fetal alcohol syndrome? No problem here in NJ. Lagana at least is funded by the alcohol industry and Big Pharma…

      • DdC says:

        Are there such things as Superhypocrites? Someone not only saying the opposite of what they do. But life-forms so low they actually do harm while preaching against something that does good, naturally for the sake of the kids. Mothers have been using Ganja for thousands of years. Pesticides cause abortions and hemp is organic. Yet who fights against Hemp, Calvina the babykiller. So much two faced forked tongue gossip and they’re paid by taxes, not fixing the infrastructure. Sometimes you can’t fix stupid. Sometimes the truth emerges and stupid is run out. Spewing fear and paranoia, leading to pisstasting profits is immoral and immoral things should not be paid by taxes. While legal tobacco and alcohol actually do harm to the fetus, they are legal and not part of the bill,

        Marijuana during pregnancy
        The 30-day test showed that children of ganja-using mothers were superior to children of non-ganja mothers in two ways: the children had better organization and modulation of sleeping and waking, and they were less prone to stress-related anxiety.

        Ganja Mothers, Ganja Babies
        ☛ Pregnancy and Pot
        ☛ Pot while breast-feeding
        ☛ Ganja mothers, ganja babies
        ☛ Breathe, Push, Puff?� Pot Use and Pregnancy
        ☛ A Surprising Solution to Severe Morning Sickness
        ☛ Women & Weed
        ☛ Women & Pot: A Personal Essay
        ☛ Moms, kids and drugs by
        ☛ The PMS/Pot Proclamation b
        ☛ Marijuana and the Goddess by
        ☛ Prenatal Marijuana Exposure and Neonatal Outcomes in Jamaica:
        ☛ Dr. Melanie Dreher, reefer researcher
        ☛ Cannabis Prevents Brain Damage

        Tennessee Governor Signs Bill Criminalizing Pregnant Women Who Use Drugs

        Alabama declares holy war on pregnant women

        Thalidomide v Cannabis Apr 8 02
        Thalidomide: New Results
        In January, a thalidomide developer, Celgene, of Warren, New Jersey, announced that the data from its trial in 99 people with AIDS wasting showed a statistically significant weight gain. The company seems to have “jumped the gun,” as one person close to the trial put it. No data were yet available from the trial to justify Celgene’s press release.

        Pro Life? Not even anti abortionists
        Wall street’s Spontaneous Abortionists
        Pesticide Exposure in Farm Families Linked to Spontaneous Abortion
        The timing and types of pesticide exposures are critical determinants of reproductive outcomes, according to a recently published study by Canadian researchers. The study examined pesticide exposures based on recall by farm families and reported histories of spontaneous abortions among women living on the farms. The study found strong evidence that a woman’s exposure to pesticides in the three months prior to conception or in the month of conception significantly increased her risk of spontaneous abortion.

        Hemp can also be grown without the pesticides that are necessary for cultivation of other textiles and paper products, such as cotton which requires large amounts of pesticides and today is the most polluting of all agricultural industries. Cotton production, in fact, accounts for half the pesticide use in the US, and that product is one of the major products for which hemp could be substituted.

        Cannabis Less Risky Than Alcohol/Tobacco, Says Report

        Hemp Flag To Be Flown At Capitol On July 4

        “This is a completely and utterly disgraceful way to commemorate the birth of our country,” says Calvina Fay, Executive Director of Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. and Save Our Society From Drugs. “There are millions of families in America that battle the scourge of addiction every day and many of them have lost loved ones to drugs,” continued Fay.

        “This insensitive gesture makes a mockery of our nation’s prevention, treatment and law enforcement efforts. July 4th is a day that should be spent celebrating the privilege of living in America, not promoting or normalizing drug use to our citizenry,” concluded Fay.

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