# Drugs



## tech/a (23 August 2005)

I cant believe the stupidity of these people in Indonesia or anywhere for that matter.
They obviously think they are bullet proof and have the I'm smarter than they are attitude.

A mate of mine got back from Bali last Thursday. He's no kid---my age---50.
Over dinner on Saturday Night he mentioned that he had taken a small pouch with him for personal use---without the knowledge of the New wife of 12 mths. They both use for recreational purposes.

Well uncharateristically--(As you can imagine) I lost it! :swear: 

Not only did he put his freedom at risk but without even thinking he put his wife at risk (He put it in HER bag---not thinking--he didnt do it to mitigate his risk). He put his new marriage at risk. His Business and employees. Friends and relatives.

His response---even dumber---"Whats the problem its not like I got caught!"
Wife was just as off hand.


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## chicken (23 August 2005)

tech/a said:
			
		

> I cant believe the stupidity of these people in Indonesia or anywhere for that matter.
> They obviously think they are bullet proof and have the I'm smarter than they are attitude.
> 
> A mate of mine got back from Bali last Thursday. He's no kid---my age---50.
> ...



Tech I do agree with you..would have been good if he had got caught..in all ASIAN destanation you leave your weed at home because getting caught is not an option....because he had it to good here in Australia, and an ASIAN jail is hell on earth..tell him to stay in Australia because the Asians dont muck around as the Australians do..in China its death,and most the other places as well I travell to Singapore just rercently and saw some one caught its utter stupidity.....this morning another Australian got caught in Indonesia...they will learn when the nine arrested in Bali get shot..and it wil be soon...leave your weed or whatever at home if you wish to travel in ASIA...thats if you value your life


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## ghotib (23 August 2005)

Grow up!!  Seems particularly appropriate. Dunno if it's worse or better when your friends make the sorts of mistakes that you try and teach your kids to avoid.

Maybe you could remind them that Skase and Bondie thought they'd never be caught either. Or is that too much of a stretch?

Ghoti


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## Happy (23 August 2005)

As an alternative, don’t use it at all.
Coffee, alcohol, throw in ordinary cigarettes and they are more than enough to kill you, why do anything else?

Recently I saw 30-yeal old woman on TV, former drug user, pleading with everybody not to touch the weed.
She said this is the gateway to harder drugs, and it is not if but she said you will do it sooner or later.
Her habit at some stage was more than $2,000 a day if I remember it right.

Maybe some can afford this type of daily ritual, but her body looked much older too.

That’s my rant, but some will do it for the first time today, so I just wasted some bandwidth


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## Knobby22 (23 August 2005)

I don't blame you for going off Tech/a, I would have done the same thing.
Unbelievable!
Some people just can't quantify risk!


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## mista200 (23 August 2005)

To be honest, it's plain stupid buying drugs in Indonesia. I am a recreational drug user in Australia and find it pathetic that these people cant take a 2 week holiday from drugs when they travel overseas!


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## Smurf1976 (23 August 2005)

Taking illegal drugs of any kind to these countries is in much the same category as breaking the road laws right outside a police station when there's an Officer standing out the front.

Completely  :swear: stupid but with far worse consequences. And yet few would speed past that police officer...

Nobody can say that they didn't know the law because there's been just so much publicity in recent times. And as for punishment, we're talking about quite a bit more than paying a fine and travelling by bus for a while.

We're talking about a decade plus in prison or even death. So why do it?

I can't say that I consider it overly smart to be messing with these drugs in the first place. But to do it in a country where the punishment is known to be severe is just plain crazy.


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## emily (23 August 2005)

After all that has been hapening on the news........ people still dont understand....hear about that model that got caught the other day ?
awfull....


mr garisson: drugs are badd mmmmkaiiii, mmkaiii

emilyz


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## bvbfan (23 August 2005)

Maybe it's time to get TOUGH on drugs (crime in general) here!

I like the 3 strikes and your out policy, and I really mean out!
3 strike should be the death penalty or for you softies life imprisonment!
Get the scum of the streets

I'm sick of these repeat offenders getting soft sentences (in drugs and in general crime), take up some punishment from other parts of the world.
It may not be a deterent but they sure as well won't be doing it in the future, or with great difficulty with some of the sentences given.

And with these people who were caught, they don't deserve to be part of the gene pool!
I mean how stupid are you to go around doing drugs in Asia, maybe some get a weird kick out of it but come on 10years in jail for a few pills or some pot.


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## Julia (23 August 2005)

I will never be surprised at what people will do in pursuit of drug use.

My former husband was a successful doctor, chairman of the NZMA, taught general practice to uni students etc etc but had a well concealed narcotics addiction.  

Ultimately, about a year after I left,  he was deregistered, charged with multiple drug offences including trafficking in heroin after being blackmailed by a junkie patient, and sent to prison.  He lost his marriage, his children, his career, all his money and of course his reputation.

He died alone in his 50's.

Recreational drug use?  Sorry, I just don't buy it
Julia


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## ob1kenobi (24 August 2005)

Tech/A, I agree! I saw the effects of it first hand in PNG some years ago whilst doing 'ambulance' work on a remote mission station for 2 years. In Australia, I have seen friends and relatives prescribed very strong cough mixtures (ie. containing up to 4 different narcotics) by a GP. In at least one case it slowed the patients metabolism down to the point where it nearly caused heart failure. That was under medical supervision!!!! How much harm is done when its not supervised at all???? I can fully understand your response!


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## Milk Man (24 August 2005)

The problem is with marijuana being seen as a soft drug. You can call it a gateway drug to amphetamines and opiates but the fact is that it does far more damage in this country than both combined.

I can safely say this because I was on the brink of drug induced psychosis from habitual pot smoking. Prolonged mariujuana use causes mental illness in one in nine Australians. Don't know if that is one in nine users or the total population, but one in three Aussies are regular smokers anyway. 

If your lucky enough to not get paranoid schizophrenia or obsessive compulsive disorder, etc. then you'll most likely wind up a dead-beat like half the fruit pickers i'm forced to employ. Best case scenario from regular weed smoking is a lack of motivation, apathy, and "brain fog".

If you think i'm a prude; I like doing burnouts, making knives and don't have any qualms about porno's. If you're smoking weed please heed my warning- don't make the same mistake I did.


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## Porper (24 August 2005)

loakglen said:
			
		

> If you think i'm a prude; I like doing burnouts, making knives and don't have any qualms about porno's. If you're smoking weed please heed my warning- don't make the same mistake I did.





Hope you don't come round my way Loakglen, I am the local boy racer hater here in N.Z.  No 1 Hippo driver at the ready !! Not sure that you get them in Aus or not, sure you do.

Anyway half joking aside, I am amazed at how many "pot heads" there are over here, a couple of new friends I met over here amazed me one night while trout fishing by getting out a home made pipe and puffed away half the night.What's wrong with the good old days of going out,having 10 pints of yorkshire bitter, staggering to the fish and chip shop and having a good old fight and end the night by taking yourself or mates to hospital emergency because somebody broke your nose ?

Oh the good old days :screwy:


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## andrew_c2o (24 August 2005)

loakglen  

I had to laugh when I read your post "fruit pickers" cus that sounds like people I know, everything you said is spot on! I've actually sent what you wrote to a few of those people I know.

Well Done!


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## Smurf1976 (24 August 2005)

loakglen said:
			
		

> If your lucky enough to not get paranoid schizophrenia or obsessive compulsive disorder, etc. then you'll most likely wind up a dead-beat like half the fruit pickers i'm forced to employ. Best case scenario from regular weed smoking is a lack of motivation, apathy, and "brain fog".



Add to that list that it also contains most of the nasties in tobacco smoke, and at much higher "unregulated" concentrations. Smoking tobacco isn't too good for the lungs, to the point that it can lead to death eventually, but this stuff dumps a whole lot more tar etc. and leads to big problems down the track.

And yet the popularity of dope is increasing at a time when fewer are smoking tobacco due to the health risks. Go figure...


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## phoenixrising (25 August 2005)

Drugs in Asia, about as smart as opening, say a 100k forex account with 3k margin, play pin the tail on the donkey to select the trade, toss a coin to go long or short, then put the lot on the one trade with no stop loss.

Trouble is they will probably win $50k in a week and think they're the new Buffett.

Cheers.


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## Rockon2 (26 August 2005)

My two cents worth.....
Australia is way too soft on drugs...
Especially the Labor party... ( its ok for a bit of dope, apparently?)

Even on tv for the last say 20 years, dope smoking seen as a joke , a bit of a giggle,......Hmmmmnnn doubt it!! 
Chickens going to come to roost soon.. To The detriment of ALL Australians, poor show people!!.. Lift Your head up and take a bit of pride in yourself !!!

There... I feel better now ...   got that off my chest.


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## madhun (26 August 2005)

Alcohol remains the biggest public health risk of all illicit drug use.


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## madhun (26 August 2005)

phoenixrising said:
			
		

> Drugs in Asia, about as smart as opening, say a 100k forex account with 3k margin, play pin the tail on the donkey to select the trade, toss a coin to go long or short, then put the lot on the one trade with no stop loss.
> 
> Trouble is they will probably win $50k in a week and think they're the new Buffett.
> 
> Cheers.




Anyone want to start a fund, sounds more exciting than lotto.


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## Milk Man (26 August 2005)

madhun said:
			
		

> Alcohol remains the biggest public health risk of all illicit drug use.




That's my current vice. If I may get up on my soapbox again: regular binge drinking (more than a six pack) can give you stomach ulcers, clinical depression and anxiety. Just ask me. That's from a weekly visit to the pub mind you. 

But it tastes so good!  :drink:


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## Smurf1976 (26 August 2005)

madhun said:
			
		

> Alcohol remains the biggest public health risk of all illicit drug use.



A drug yes but last time I checked alcohol wasn't illicit. Are you suggesting it ought to be?


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## brerwallabi (26 August 2005)

This thread started because of the Bali situation - kids in jail, what really irks me is for years you could go to Bali have a good time and get smashed on the poison of your choice and have no worries about a life in an Indonesian jail. Now its all about gaining revenge on Australia for East Timor, anyway I am making my  protest by ceasing to buy any more shirts (I have several) made in Indonesia and any other product that I identify as coming from there. I would certainly never go to Bali now as the behavior of the Indonesians will be to bust as many Aussie kids as possible which is a great pity as I am sure that many people like me will boycott Bali which will ultimately ruin their economy. A small price for the Indonesians as the Balinese are not Muslims so they dont really care. Anybody now contemplating going to Bali is totally insane and anybody stupid enough to go there and go anywhere near any form of drug will deserve what they get- they have been warned surely.


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## Happy (27 August 2005)

Quite cunning, Indonesia might ruin Bali using our anger over our stupidity.


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## mista200 (28 August 2005)

Its a bit unfair to want to ruin Balis economy over this. 
 The answer to the problem of drugs is education. Lets face it as a young person i know how common drugs are in society and know that they aren't going to go away. I dont think its anyones business what i put into my system as long as im not harming anyone else!!! And i certainly don't think its fair at all for people to get arrested for posession. The only answer to the drug problem is harm minimization!


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## Knobby22 (29 August 2005)

Oh come on. I don't want self destructive heroin users, crack users, dope and glue sniffers around. 

The aborigines don't believe in this laissez faire policy with their people, why should we?

Bring back putting people in stocks in the City Square. (First offence)
That would minimise it.


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## Happy (29 August 2005)

As an alternative, give them free holidays in Bali for example.


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## Milk Man (29 August 2005)

Happy said:
			
		

> As an alternative, give them free holidays in Bali for example.




ROTFL


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## MrBurns (3 April 2012)

About time - hope our useless polititians can act on it, doubtful - 

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8445600/time-to-rethink-war-on-drugs-think-tank



> The war on drugs is over and we lost, says a new report by a group made up of federal law enforcement officers, health ministers and premiers.


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## rumpole (3 April 2012)

I hope this report is the start of an honest, evidence based debate on the issue


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## MrBurns (3 April 2012)

rumpole said:


> I hope this report is the start of an honest, evidence based debate on the issue




It should be but I have no faith in anything actually being done.


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## DB008 (3 April 2012)

Portugal, we should be looking at Portugal...

*Drug decriminalization pays off in Portugal as US weighs its options
*
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/27/portugals-drug-policy-pays-eyes-lessons/


> Drugs in Portugal are still illegal. But here’s what Portugal did: It changed the law so that users are sent to counseling and sometimes treatment instead of criminal courts and prison. The switch from drugs as a criminal issue to a public health one was aimed at preventing users from going underground.
> 
> Other European countries treat drugs as a public health problem, too, but Portugal stands out as the only one that has written that approach into law. The result: More people tried drugs, but fewer ended up addicted.
> 
> ...






*Drug Decriminalization Policy Pays Off  
*
http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/drug-decriminalization-policy-pays



> Portugal, whose drug problems were among the worst in Europe, now has the lowest usage rate for marijuana and one of the lowest for cocaine. Drug-related pathologies, including HIV transmission, hepatitis transmission and drug-related deaths, have declined significantly.
> 
> Beyond the data, Portugal's success with decriminalization is illustrated by the absence of political agitation for a return to criminalization. As one might expect for a socially conservative and predominantly Roman Catholic country, the decriminalization proposal sparked intense controversy a decade ago.


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## MrBurns (3 April 2012)

DB008 said:


> Portugal, we should be looking at Portugal...





Our authorities are too stupid to do anything proactive, their limitations extend to having a talkfest, bit of an old chin wag with tea and scones and ordering a report at great cost that says nothing and wont be acted upon.


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## Glen48 (3 April 2012)

And then sit back with a big joint and light up.

About 3/4 of the population in jail's are drug related so we all pay as well as Hilfiger insurance due to break and enters caused by addicts looking for some thing to steal.


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## MrBurns (3 April 2012)

Glen48 said:


> And then sit back with a big joint and light up.
> 
> About 3/4 of the population in jail's are drug related so we all pay as well as Hilfiger insurance due to break and enters caused by addicts looking for some thing to steal.




Exactly, the police could get on with some real work if they didnt have this rubbish to deal with.


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## AbrasiveCamel (3 April 2012)

This report is helpful for Australia but it is still an uphill battle in a conservative country - despite the fact if we team up with NZ we are the world leaders in cannabis consumption.

Portugal's case and letters like this are the key...

http://reformdrugpolicy.com/partner/public-letter/

...the US has controlled our/world drug policy for 40 years. Once we see it start to fall apart, an inevitability in the next decade imo, and countries remove themselves from the three UN treaties and change to harm reduction and health strategies we will *then* probably follow suit.

Don't expect us to be at the forefront of the eventual collapse of this ****ing joke that is the drug war.


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## DB008 (3 April 2012)

Carr joins calls for rethink of drugs laws

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-03/eminent-group-calls-for-end-to-drug-prohibition/3928706



> Senator Carr, whose younger brother died of a heroin overdose, contributed to the report before entering federal politics.
> "I don't believe a legalised drug regime can work, I'm opposed to that," Senator Carr said.
> 
> Today's report, written for the think tank Australia21, claims the war on drugs has failed and Australia should consider legalising some substances.


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## awg (3 April 2012)

DB008 said:


> Carr joins calls for rethink of drugs laws




I agree wholeheartedly with Carr's reservations about sniffer dogs at railway stations.

Godammed if I want my ass sniffed, saw 30+ cops at the railway station the other morning 9.00am, having a great time lolling about in the sun, got my ticket checked 3 times by armed cops recently on a train 

I was almost overcome by an urge to tell them to get their ass on the streets at the right time and go bust some proper crims, (not some hapless dopesmokers on the 9.00am train,)  the wastage was shocking, how does it make any sense at all?


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## Julia (3 April 2012)

Isn't there a sense of irony in all the recent passionate outpourings that alcohol should be way more highly taxed to discourage drinking by the population, yet a few days later we are apparently advocating the legalisation or at least decriminalisation of  "drugs".

None of these academics presenting the idea has proposed which drugs they believe should be made available to anyone who wants to take them.
Opiates maybe?   Where the overwhelming need to increase the dose to achieve the original effect, or just to avoid the misery of withdrawal is one of their main features.

Terrific.  Just what we need.  Come and try whatever you like, kids.   No worries.
You'll probably get hooked but that's OK.  The taxpayer will make sure your drugs are pure and you can get whatever quantities you need.


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## MrBurns (3 April 2012)

Not advocating putting the price up on grog, just more control by other measures.

Not legalise drugs but decriminalise their use by addicts, that way the Govt could supply them under controlled conditions and give counselling at the same time.

Anythings better than what's happening now.


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## Sean K (3 April 2012)

Prohibition has only been going for a hundred or so years. Give it a chance.


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## Julia (3 April 2012)

MrBurns said:


> Anythings better than what's happening now.



That's a generalisation that makes little sense imo.
You do not know that.


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## AbrasiveCamel (3 April 2012)

Julia said:


> None of these academics presenting the idea has proposed which drugs they believe should be made available to anyone who wants to take them.
> Opiates maybe?   Where the overwhelming need to increase the dose to achieve the original effect, or just to avoid the misery of withdrawal is one of their main features.




The Portuguese experiment more than halved the countries heroin using population.



> Terrific.  Just what we need.  Come and try whatever you like, kids.




Decrim/Legalising drugs would create a much tighter control over them - no kids anywhere.



> You'll probably get hooked but that's OK.  The taxpayer will make sure your drugs are pure and you can get whatever quantities you need.




Alcohol and cigarettes are addictive so that isn't really argument. Furthermore cigarette use in a lot of Western countries is declining severely, due to education. Oh... and again in the case of Portugal - hard drug use didn't increase. 

The evidence we have is the opposite of the scenarios you have described.


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## awg (4 April 2012)

Its weird and ironic that the illegal "drug" market, is an expression of pure market economics.

Nick Cowdery (ex-NSW DPP) wants drugs taxed like alcohol and tobacco.

Dont think that would work, but the amount of $$$ in the economy from drug activities is mind-blowing


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## Trembling Hand (4 April 2012)

Julia said:


> Isn't there a sense of irony in all the recent passionate outpourings that alcohol should be way more highly taxed to discourage drinking by the population, yet a few days later we are apparently advocating the legalisation or at least decriminalisation of  "drugs".




Governments should be prohibited from taxing addictive substance/activities. How can they possibly serve people who are vulnerably to addiction when they themselves (Governments) are addicted to the tax revenue from the addiction.


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## orr (20 April 2012)

Is there a more failed project then prohibition; my children are not in anyway safer, drugs (choose any illicit substance) are not less available, It has corrupting influence on all levels of police behaviour, It is enriching a criminal class, by extension it forces up insurance costs. Who pays for enforcement costs, incarceration costs, Judicial structures incapable of any positive benefit...you start with the petty stuff like this and then you can go to a the serious end of the scale, This from MI6
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/defence-and-security-blog/2012/apr/18/cocaine-heroin-opium 

or stick your fingers in your ears and  ' tingle lingle loo'


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## Glen48 (20 April 2012)

":Cooks" in USA  can now make Crystal Meth in a coke bottle as they drive along, as the economy tanks it an only get worse, as the economy tanks the feds are putting off police and closing down courts or loading up other courts .


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## orr (22 April 2012)

Glen48 said:


> ":Cooks" in USA  can now make Crystal Meth in a coke bottle as they drive along, as the economy tanks it an only get worse, as the economy tanks the feds are putting off police and closing down courts or loading up other courts .




  A bit of history on this one mate. The following is from an album 'Last scream of the missing neighbours' by *D.O.A* _with_ Jello Biafra(dead Kennedy's fame) from 1989, the track is _'Full Metal Jackoff'_  some of the pertinent lines ;

"On the Washington D.C Beltway round and round and round I go
In a black van with no windows and a chimney puffing smoke
Same gang that ran smack in Vietnam
And got no reason to fear 

Want to hide something like a crack lab
Just put it in plain sight"


But back then of course, we were only twenty odd years into this most failed of projects. 
Some people are thinking and talking. 
The trouble is getting people to listen and think.  

P.S some remember the big 'Dust Up' at Cronulla orchestrated By the 'Parrot'
For me, it was the 'set to' between the pigs and the punks on the same turf outside, what was then, the  Workers Club, just after a Dead Kennedy's  jig, about twenty years earlier.


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## Tisme (17 January 2017)

I'm rather puzzled at the latest Revolver Upstairs dance where revellers wound up in hospital from a "bad batch" of hallucinogenic drugs?

Since when was there a good batch of hallucinogens? 

Litmus test ... would you feed illicit drugs to your child?


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## SirRumpole (17 January 2017)

Tisme said:


> I'm rather puzzled at the latest Revolver Upstairs dance where revellers wound up in hospital from a "bad batch" of hallucinogenic drugs?
> 
> Since when was there a good batch of hallucinogens?
> 
> Litmus test ... would you feed illicit drugs to your child?





People get drunk and then all rational thought vanishes.


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## orr (17 January 2017)

Tisme said:


> I'm rather puzzled at the latest Revolver Upstairs dance where revellers wound up in hospital from a "bad batch" of hallucinogenic drugs?
> 
> Since when was there a good batch of hallucinogens?
> 
> Litmus test ... would you feed illicit drugs to your child?





I wouldn't mind access on the odd occasion to some that Timothy Leary had given his 'Heads up ' to...

Very very few parents are likely to supply 'illicit' drugs to their children. The more pertinent question to ask is; Are your children likely to be exposed to, have access to and or are likely to use those drugs?
The answers are. Yes, Yes and Probably.

So do you build a structure to deal with that?...In this country we're not doing to good a job on that up until now.
Unless you're one of those enriched by the black market outcomes.


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## Value Collector (18 January 2017)

Tisme said:


> Since when was there a good batch of hallucinogens?




I have had s few good batches of Shrooms in my day.

_*"Litmus test ... would you feed illicit drugs to your child?"*_

No (if I had any), but I wouldn't give them alcohol either, even though I part take


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## luutzu (19 January 2017)

Value Collector said:


> I have had s few good batches of Shrooms in my day.
> 
> _*"Litmus test ... would you feed illicit drugs to your child?"*_
> 
> No (if I had any), but I wouldn't give them alcohol either, even though I part take




Ey he's back.

How was the research trip to Disneyland? Those rides and restaurants are up to quality and entertainment standards?


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## Value Collector (23 January 2017)

luutzu said:


> How was the research trip to Disneyland? Those rides and restaurants are up to quality and entertainment standards?




Lol, Yes it's going well over there, the Parks were full, Moana and Star Wars merchandise was selling Well, Stars wars land construction is progressing well, and the "ship wreaks on the rocks" tasted great (Now my favourite drink, its like a scotch mist which was Walts favourite drink but made with bourbon instead of scotch, and a bit of mint)

When you order it, a ship in a bottle above the Bar actually sinks and thunder and lightning fill the bar.


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## Tisme (23 January 2017)

Value Collector said:


> ts like a scotch mist which was Walts favourite drink



GLENGOOLIE, For the best of times


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## James Robinson (24 January 2017)

They are careless about their life. They are so many types of people around us. I saw some people in train station took drugs in front of their little kids.


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## SirRumpole (24 January 2017)

James Robinson said:


> They are careless about their life. They are so many types of people around us. I saw some people in train station took drugs in front of their little kids.




Ideally children should be taken away from drug addicts, but there is not the money to look after them in State care. So the disease spreads to the children. Very sad.


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## pixel (24 January 2017)

SirRumpole said:


> Ideally children should be taken away from drug addicts, but there is not the money to look after them in State care. So the disease spreads to the children. Very sad.



Would you extend that "ideal" to parents who drink alcohol or have a fag in front of their children? Both are addictive drugs and addicted role models, which parents are by nature, set bad example.

The difference, and the only reason Governments draw the line between a variety of harmful addictions, lies in their ability to raise taxes.


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## SirRumpole (24 January 2017)

pixel said:


> The difference, and the only reason Governments draw the line between a variety of harmful addictions, lies in their ability to raise taxes.




I don't agree with your statement. Ice, cocaine and heroin can kill very fast , are much more addictive and require much more money to satisfy the habit than alcohol and tobacco, which are not good but simply don't rank in the scale of narcotics or amphetamines.

But yes, if alcohol abuse affects a family's ability to look after their children, I would "extend the ideal".


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## Tisme (24 January 2017)

pixel said:


> Would you extend that "ideal" to parents who drink alcohol or have a fag in front of their children? Both are addictive drugs and addicted role models, which parents are by nature, set bad example.
> 
> The difference, and the only reason Governments draw the line between a variety of harmful addictions, lies in their ability to raise taxes.




But that means "jobs, jobs, jobs"


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## SirRumpole (25 January 2017)

Quite a long read, but worthwhile.

How they keep kids off drugs in Iceland.

http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/iceland-teen-substance-abuse/8208214


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## Tink (11 April 2017)

I didn't watch it, but it was on Australian Story.

Breaking Good

_Peter Lyndon-James is a former ice addict and criminal who now runs ‘the nation’s strictest’ drug rehabilitation centre.

At Shalom House in Perth, addicts agree to go ‘cold turkey’ off all drugs including cigarettes, get their heads shaved and go to Christian church services three times a week.

The program, which gets no government funding, is proving successful, turning seemingly intractable criminals and addicts into ‘geeks’ – upstanding, productive members of society._

Step inside Australia’s ‘strictest’ drug rehabilitation centre Shalom House Perth WA.
http://ab.co/2nRIX38
http://bit.ly/2pl4Yso


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## basilio (11 April 2017)

This "legal/illegal" drugs discussion has become very grey. We have the conversation about cigs and alcohol (legal) vs cocaine, heroin, ice (illegal)

So what do we make of the spectacular rise in legal painkiller addiction - just opiates in a pharmaceutical package?  Enslaving and killing 10's of thousands of people in US and making a big start here. Not a simple and easy conversation to have I suggest.

*Inside a Killer Drug Epidemic: A Look at America’s Opioid Crisis*
_The opioid epidemic killed more than 33,000 people in 2015. What follows are stories of a national affliction that has swept the country, from cities on the West Coast to bedroom communities in the Northeast.


JAN. 6, 2017


Continue reading the main story Share This Page 

Opioid addiction is America’s 50-state epidemic. It courses along Interstate highways in the form of cheap smuggled heroin, and flows out of “pill mill” clinics where pain medicine is handed out like candy. It has ripped through New England towns, where people overdose in the aisles of dollar stores, and it has ravaged coal country, where addicts speed-dial the sole doctor in town licensed to prescribe a medication.

Public health officials have called the current opioid epidemic the worst drug crisis in American history, killing more than 33,000 people in 2015. Overdose deaths were nearly equal to the number of deaths from car crashes. In 2015, for the first time, deaths from heroin alone surpassed gun homicides.

And there’s no sign it’s letting up, a team of New York Times reporters found as they examined the epidemic on the ground in states across the country. From New England to “safe injection” areas in the Pacific Northwest, communities are searching for a way out of a problem that can feel inescapable._

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/06/us/opioid-crisis-epidemic.html


----------



## Tink (12 April 2017)

Well I did comment, basilio, about our disgusting conditions in Melbourne, before we had our own terrorist episode.

_Beggars a sign of the times, or a sign of the welfare state?
https://www.aussiestockforums.com/t...s-or-a-sign-of-the-welfare-state.31012/page-5

https://www.aussiestockforums.com/threads/i-dislike-daniel-andrews-intensely.32824/page-3_


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## DB008 (20 April 2017)

*Increased spontaneous MEG signal diversity for psychoactive doses of ketamine,*
*LSD and psilocybin*​What is the level of consciousness of the psychedelic state? Empirically, measures of neural signal diversity such as entropy and Lempel-Ziv (LZ) complexity score higher for wakeful rest than for states with lower conscious level like propofol-induced anesthesia. Here we compute these measures for spontaneous magnetoencephalographic (MEG) signals from humans during altered states of consciousness induced by three psychedelic substances: psilocybin, ketamine and LSD. For all three, we find reliably higher spontaneous signal diversity, even when controlling for spectral changes. This increase is most pronounced for the single-channel LZ complexity measure, and hence for temporal, as opposed to spatial, signal diversity. We also uncover selective correlations between changes in signal diversity and phenomenological reports of the intensity of psychedelic experience. This is the first time that these measures have been applied to the psychedelic state and, crucially, that they have yielded values exceeding those of normal waking consciousness. These findings suggest that the sustained occurrence of psychedelic phenomenology constitutes an elevated level of consciousness - as measured by neural signal diversity.

https://www.nature.com/articles/srep46421​


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## SirRumpole (21 June 2018)

Just one example of what ice can do to a person.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-...-meth-and-his-murder-weapon-was-a-4wd/9887066


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## Humid (21 June 2018)

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/06/20/health/canada-legalizes-marijuana/index.html


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## Tink (16 January 2019)

I do not agree with pill testing, just as I did not agree with injecting rooms.

My view.


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## PZ99 (16 January 2019)

Is it just me or is pill testing a new thing? At first glance it sounds better than the alternative.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/what-is-pill-testing-20190103-p50pg5.html

*How does pill testing work?*

Based on the Canberra’s Groovin’ the Moo festival, the process works like this:


Attendees queue outside a tent in the medical precinct of a festival.
Once inside, they sign a waiver releasing the testers from liability.
They also speak to a peer educator to ensure they understand that the test does not guarantee the safety of the drugs. “We’re quite explicit in telling people that this test doesn't tell you if your drug is safe,” says Dr David Caldicott, an emergency medicine consultant at Calvary Hospital in Canberra and a leader at the Groovin’ the Moo trial. “It just tells you what we’re able to find in your sample.”
Each attendee provides a sample of their drug to a licensed chemist who photographs and weighs it before putting it under an infrared spectrometer where it is mounted on a piece of diamond and shot with laser light. Through the light reflected, the chemist can tell what is in the sample.
The attendee then has a consultation with another peer educator to discuss their options now they know what’s in their drug.


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## Gringotts Bank (16 January 2019)

PZ99 said:


> Is it just me or is pill testing a new thing? At first glance it sounds better than the alternative.
> 
> https://www.smh.com.au/national/what-is-pill-testing-20190103-p50pg5.html
> 
> ...




I think it's a brilliant idea.  Anything that gives you a high is going to involve considerable risk.  People forget that.  If you go skydiving, the high afterwards is massive, but you get warned about some very real risks beforehand.  You know where you stand and you decide whether you want to take the leap.  If you want to dump your life savings into a 1c speccy... same thing.  Some people will do just that after considerable weighing of risks and potential rewards.  It's no different.

Some recreational drugs [probably] don't have long term consequences if they are 1- pure and 2- taken at the appropriate dose and with an understanding of risk, 3- taken infrequently.  Much the same as pharmacy medicines.

I'd like to know the number of kids who after being educated on the risks decide to dump their stash.  That would be a relevant stat.


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## fiftyeight (16 January 2019)

Tink said:


> I do not agree with pill testing, just as I did not agree with injecting rooms.
> 
> My view.




As long as your drug of choice has a strict regulatory control for your safety, who cares about anyone else.


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## DB008 (16 January 2019)

Tink said:


> I do not agree with pill testing, just as I did not agree with injecting rooms.
> 
> My view.




Why not?

When you have drink of alcohol (beer/wine/spirits), you are expecting to drink ethanol alcohol, not methanol alcohol (which you go blind from). Luckily, producers/manufacturers make the right alcohol, you are safe, they are regulated and can be held liable.

Drugs on the other hand is the wild west with fentanyl and opiates almost at national disaster levels in the USA. People have consumed them for years and years and will continue to do so. Having a head in the sand approach is just stupid. IMO - having a stance of 'no' - we will no do drug testing is very dangerous. You are putting more people at risk.

In any case - just buy a test kit yourself. Not too expensive.

https://ez-test.com.au/​
This one here for $8 AUD is probably the best one to get as it covers a broad range of drugs

https://ez-test.com.au/product/ketamine/​
EZ Test for Ketamine (formerly known as EZ Test Mandelin) is a test that reacts to Ketamine. Besides this, it will show different colors for, Ecstasy (MDMA), (meth)amphetamines, 2-AminoIndane (a research chemical), Ritalin and PMA / PMMA.


*What you should know about pill-testing*​
Although novel in Australia, pill-testing has been used as a preventative strategy in the Netherlands since 1992. In 1997 the Austrian government-sanctioned this service. Pill-testing is also prevalent in Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, France, and Spain. Since 1999, not-for-profit organisations in the US and Canada have provided pill-testing, with the same service offered in the UK since 2013. In New Zealand an independent volunteer group KnowYourStuffNZ operates pill testing at festivals, supported by the New Zealand Drug Foundation.

Last year marked the first time professionally administered pill-testing was conducted in Australia during the Groovin’ the Moo festival in Canberra. The mobile laboratory at the festival conducted 83 sample tests. 70 people thought they had purchased ecstasy pills, yet 42 contained MDMA (active ingredient in ecstasy) and for 17 samples the main ingredient were fillers or cutting agents. Along with these fillers, caffeine, antihistamine, toothpaste, dietary supplements and oil were also found in the drug samples. One sample’s main ingredient was N-Ethylpentylone, which is a stimulant that has hospitalized 13 people in New Zealand.​
https://www.insights.uca.org.au/news/what-you-should-know-about-pill-testing​

I just can't believe that our politicians are so against it.

If 1 more person dies when the death could have been prevents by pill testing, it's on the NSW premiers head.


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## Garpal Gumnut (16 January 2019)

Tink said:


> I do not agree with pill testing, just as I did not agree with injecting rooms.
> 
> My view.




I'd agree with you mate. I did many illicit drugs as a teenager living in the USA and I didn't crawl home to Mummy i.e. The State when bad **** happened to my mates. 

Kids nowadays are mollycoddled and pill testing is an extension of this.

Do the crime, do the time.

Do the high, you may die. 

Get real people.

We have more urgent public health issues than protecting the Instagram lip and tit augmented populace from falling in to Hades. 

gg


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## Tink (23 January 2019)

*Police commissioners reject pill testing*

The police commissioners of Australia’s two biggest states have rejected pill testing, with Mick Fuller from NSW saying its advocates “want to legalise drugs by stealth’’ and Victoria’s Graham Ashton saying it would be unlikely to save lives.

In what appeared to be a swipe at Greens MP Cate Faehrmann’s revelations she used ecstasy into her 40s, Mr Fuller said “leaders in our community need to lead by example’’.

“That goes for politicians, police commissioners, sports stars … these individuals who want to legalise drugs by stealth through pill testing need to be seen for what they are,’’ he said.

Ms Faehrmann, a former adviser to Greens leader Richard Di Natale, entered the pill-testing debate this week by becoming the first Australian politician to admit she used ecstasy.

Mr Fuller said: “There is ample evidence that drugs are not safe. Even those with absolute purity. All drugs can kill. This is the message we need out there.”

Mr Ashton said most drug overdoses at music concerts were the results of “poly’’ use: one person taking multiple pills. “Pill testing does not stop this,’’ he said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/na...g/news-story/c018694266dd8cfa1d0c87c55875a6ad


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## DB008 (23 January 2019)

Tink said:


> The police commissioners of Australia’s two biggest states have rejected pill testing, with Mick Fuller from NSW saying its advocates “want to legalise drugs by stealth’’ and Victoria’s Graham Ashton saying it would be unlikely to save lives.




Of course he is going to say that - he has to tow the party line. Look at South Australia - they are tightening laws regarding cannabis - total idiots, while the rest of the world is going the opposite direction South Oz is going back to the stone age.

Like l said in one of my previous posts - if 1 person dies that could have been prevented due to pill testing, these muppets are to blame. People will take drugs regardless of laws - even in countries where  there are death penalties, people do drugs. Some of the best times I've had at festivals (15+ years ago) have been with a group of mates and a few caps of MDMA. Please stop with the hysteria. I should also add that I don't do drugs (older and wiser), but what l did in my youth l had a ball and would do it again. Even though l don't do drugs as l'm older, why should l be telling people not to do drugs - its your life, you do what you want.

Look at drink driving...it has gotten so bad that there are alcohol ignition locks installed in some cases. Does it stop people from drink driving? No. People will continue to drink and drive, and do drugs. Totalitarianism and nanny state 101 doesn't work.

Tink and GG - please read this article - https://www.abc.net.au/news/health/...esting-at-australian-music-festivals/10638732

Having a head in the sand approach does not work...


I don't really post Huff post (credit where credit due) - this article from 2015 needs to be read by the people against hard minimisation. It looks like older generation or people with religious views are against it for some reason...

*Music Festivals And Drugs: How Would Pill Testing Work?*​Emergency physician and drug expert Dr David Caldicott is leading the charge. He wants permission to conduct a pill testing trial at an Australian music festival this season, telling The Huffington Post Australia of his frustrations such a program is not already in place.

"This is not novel or scary or dangerous. The only people portraying it as such are fringe members of the prohibition movement and politicians terrified of engaging with anything on illicit drugs," he said.

"This is so mainstream in Europe now, the European Union has had their peak drug body produce best practice guidelines to do pill testing. Dozens of countries in Europe do this already. As with marriage equality or climate change, we are leading the way in being backwards on this. I'm flabbergasted and my overseas colleagues are scratching their heads."

https://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2015/12/28/music-festival-pill-testing_n_8887002.html​


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## Junior (23 January 2019)

DB008 said:


> People will take drugs regardless of laws - even in countries where  there are death penalties, people do drugs. Some of the best times I've had at festivals (15+ years ago) have been with a group of mates and a few caps of MDMA. Please stop with the hysteria. I should also add that I don't do drugs (older and wiser), but what l did in my youth l had a ball and would do it again. Even though l don't do drugs as l'm older, why should l be telling people not to do drugs - its your life, you do what you want.
> 
> Look at drink driving...it has gotten so bad that there are alcohol ignition locks installed in some cases. Does it stop people from drink driving? No. People will continue to drink and drive, and do drugs. Totalitarianism and nanny state 101 doesn't work.
> 
> ...




Almost everyone I know in my social circles dabbled in drugs (coke, E, speed, MDMA, weed) through their 20s, and many still do from time to time (mid-30s).  It's a lot of fun if you don't overdo it, and for the overwhelming majority of people who engage in it, they have no issues.

As you say, trying to delude yourself that it doesn't happen, or that tougher laws/penalties will stop it from happening is insane.  There are simply mountains of evidence from all around the world proving that this approach is counter-productive and will simply fill prisons and drive it further underground.


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## DB008 (23 January 2019)

DB008 said:


> I don't really post Huff post (credit where credit due) - this article from 2015 needs to be read by the people against *hard minimisation*. It looks like older generation or people with religious views are against it for some reason...​





Typo - *harm* *minimisation* it was meant to be​


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## Tink (28 January 2019)

A music festival near Ballarat has again been marred by drug overdoses and arrests.

About six people were taken to hospital following suspected drug overdoses at the four-night Rainbow Serpent Festival at Lexton.

Two of the people are in critical conditions.

More than 20 people have been arrested for drug related offences at the festival.

Among them, an alleged drug trafficker who is aged only 17.

As the festival draws to a close today, police are vowing to have a highly visible presence on the roads in the region, conducting drug tests.

https://www.3aw.com.au/rainbow-serpent-festival-marred-by-overdoses-and-arrests/

https://www.3aw.com.au/sydney-newspaper-names-and-shames-drug-users-on-front-page/


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## DB008 (28 January 2019)

Tink said:


> A music festival near Ballarat has again been marred by drug overdoses and arrests.
> 
> About six people were taken to hospital following suspected drug overdoses at the four-night Rainbow Serpent Festival at Lexton.




Shame they didn't try to do any preventative measures, ie, drug testing. The government is only interested in trying to fix a problem after the fact. Australia is so far behind.


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## Tink (8 February 2019)

*Biggest ever US drug bust, and it was headed for Australia*

Authorities have seized a record haul of 1.7 tonnes of the drug ice, which was bound for Australia.

It’s not only the largest ever seizure of methylamphetamine bound for Australia, it’s also a record domestic seizure of the drug in the USA.

The consignment has an estimated street value in Australia of $1.29 billion.

Police say it could have resulted in more than 17 million drug deals.

Officers from the Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police yesterday arrested six people in Victoria and NSW.

They were allegedly involved with the US-based organised crime syndicate at the centre of the investigation.

https://www.3aw.com.au/astonishing-...us-drug-bust-and-it-was-headed-for-australia/


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## Knobby22 (9 February 2019)

No way the USA would have caught it without Australian help. Record  domestic seizure for the USA? And we  did the work? What does that suggest?


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## jbocker (9 February 2019)

Tink said:


> The consignment has an estimated street value in Australia of $1.29 billion.



I wonder what it is worth as street value in the US by comparison. Seems like a massive addition to risk to EXPORT from a country of 325+ million to a country of a meagre 25 million.
What tariffs do we pay for that? x drug deaths, x broken lives, x broken families, x hospitalisations, x burglaries/robberies/thefts, x police resources ...the list goes on.


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## Smurf1976 (9 February 2019)

Junior said:


> Almost everyone I know in my social circles dabbled in drugs (coke, E, speed, MDMA, weed) through their 20s, and many still do from time to time (mid-30s).




I was the opposite, only ever knew a couple of people who did that sort of thing and I'm no longer in contact with either.

I wouldn't consider myself conservative as such though, just not into messing with chemicals.

My personal view on this pill testing idea though is much like my views decades ago on questions like gay marriage or voluntary euthanasia for people with terminal illnesses etc. All things considered, the argument for the "yes" case seems to vastly outweigh any negatives.

If people are gay then they are gay. No amount of moral crusading over a very long period of time managed to change that one. Let people be happy. That one shouldn't have taken anywhere near as long as it did.

If someone has terminal cancer and is in pain then they have terminal cancer and are in pain. Medical research might fix it someday but it hasn't yet. Why make someone suffer? It saddens me greatly that we haven't sorted this one yet for humans although we've been doing it for dogs and cats for decades.

If people are going to use drugs then in practice they're going to use drugs. The last few decades of trying to stamp it out have failed so whilst I do think all possible efforts should be made to cut off supply, reality is it's not going to be totally effective so that leaves minimising harm as the next logical step. May as well test the pills then - that's better than not testing them surely.

That said, I do think we need stronger action to protect others from the effects of someone's drug use. Random testing of construction workers and drivers is all well and good but it needs to be extended to people like corporate board members, CEO's, politicians, judges and so on who make decisions impacting others. Instant dismissal if caught under the influence of any mind altering drug whilst at work.


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## Humid (9 February 2019)

Trouble is they test urine so your not necessarily under the influence 

Go skiing in Whistler for 4 weeks get on the Ganga which is perfectly legal
Return to work in Australia get urine tested and your unemployed


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## Tink (18 February 2019)

Tom Elliott has praised Victoria Police for busting an alleged drug den in North Richmond.

But he says Victorians have every right to be a little confused by the state’s attitude towards drugs.

The government-run injecting room is only a few hundred metres away.

Four people were arrested during the sting on the public housing commission flat this week.

Two have since been charged.

Tom Elliott questioned whether those involved would be allowed back into the flat, given they were allegedly using a taxpayer-funded facility to facilitate crime.

The government has told 3AW Drive it had a “zero tolerance” towards illegal activity.

But Tom questioned what made this house different to others.

“I see it (drug dealing) all the time,” he said.

“It is rampant in Richmond.

“I just don’t understand why the police don’t do anything.”

https://www.3aw.com.au/tom-elliott-praises-police-over-drug-bust-but-says-hes-a-little-confused/


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## PZ99 (18 February 2019)

So two druggos got caught in a taxpayer funded rat trap.

Works for me


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## DB008 (19 February 2019)

*Decades before the pill testing debate these little bins **caused an uproar*​They are commonly found in public toilets across the country, but 30 years ago needle bins were part of an intense public debate on drug use, harm reduction, and the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Disposal bins for hypodermic needles were slowly introduced in public places throughout the 1980s and 1990s alongside a broader needle exchange program.

Now the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation (ADLRF) has compared past debates about needle exchange programs to that of pill testing at music festivals.

"Essentially they're the same sort of debate, every harm reduction debate is very similar," ADLRF president Dr Alex Wodak said.​

*Sharp criticism and concern from politicians, police*

In 1987, an Australian Federal Police spokesman told Fairfax that "in the opinion of the AFP, the problems and tragedies in the lives of illegal drug users would not be helped by making hypodermic syringes freely available."

But that year NSW became the first state or territory to allow needle exchange programs to operate legally, and by 1989, 55 subsidised needle exchange programs were operating in New South Wales alone.

Other states began to follow suit, and a program was introduced on Queensland's Gold Coast a year later, attracting criticism from local Liberal MP Bob Quinn.

"There are adverse effects on the safety and health of the local community and tourists," Mr Quinn told state parliament in March 1990.

"People are objecting to taxpayers' money being wasted to supply methadone and syringes to addicts under a questionable program."​
*Programs deemed successful*

Dr Wodak said used needles being found in public areas was "very big deal at the time", and that some health departments worried the phenomenon could "undermine popular support and therefore political support for the needles exchange programs."

But Dr Wodak said by the end of the 1980s "everyone had accepted" the role needle exchange programs played in reducing the spread of HIV.

"Full credit also to our politicians — it's hard to believe now how much cooperation there was between the major parties for sensible, pragmatic decisions," he said.

A 2005 review of the $131 million needle and syringe programs funded between 1991 and 2000 estimated that 25,000 cases of HIV were prevented, saving the health system between $2.4 and $7.7 billion.

More than 3,000 needle exchange programs have been set up across Australia since 1986, with 32 million syringes distributed a year.​
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02...ting-little-bins-sparked-controversy/10790354​


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## fiftyeight (19 February 2019)

Tink said:


> Tom Elliott has praised Victoria Police for busting an alleged drug den in North Richmond.
> 
> But he says Victorians have every right to be a little confused by the state’s attitude towards drugs.
> 
> ...




Victorians have every right to be a little confused by the state’s attitude towards drink driving after wine served at Parliament House events 


http://events.parliament.vic.gov.au/food-wine/


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## Tink (25 October 2019)




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## noirua (8 March 2021)

Among people 50 and up with substance abuse problems, men are more likely to abuse alcohol. Women are more likely to abuse prescription drugs. You're at a higher risk of abusing drugs or alcohol in your later years if you:

Are white
Have a higher income
Live alone
Lost your spouse
Retired unexpectedly or were laid off
Have long-lasting (chronic) pain
Are disabled
Have a history of substance abuse or mental illness
https://www.webmd.com/mental-health...8zXFn4Y9Sa6bseuHnVev1imbCexA6bcodQzU=_leadCTA


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## basilio (8 June 2021)

Huge sting by AFP , FBI and Police units around the  world.

Seems like they managed to  create an ap and it get inside an encrypted communication network  that was then distributed amongst thousands of  bikes, drug runners and various criminal groups. They have been collecting evidence of various crimes for some time.

BIG sting.  Will be interesting to see who gets swept up as collateral damage. Would be no surprise to see some public figures being fingered  here.

Live updates: AFP provides details of Operation Ironside bust tackling organised crime operations​Australia's criminal underworld has been smashed by a police sting that tricked mafia, bikie and global gang heavyweights into delivering their plans straight into the hands of detectives, authorities say.









						AFP prevented mass shooting in Australian suburb, Commissioner Reece Kershaw says
					

Federal police provide details about a sting that tricked mafia, bikie and global gang heavyweights into delivering their plans straight into the hands of detectives.




					www.abc.net.au
				












						'Heavy blow' for criminals as more than 200 underworld figures charged after app sting
					

More than 200 members of Australia's mafia and bikie underworld have been arrested in the nation's biggest-ever crime sting, police say.




					www.abc.net.au


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## bellenuit (8 June 2021)

basilio said:


> Live updates: AFP provides details of Operation Ironside bust tackling organised crime operations




I don't really get this. Another article on this story says: _The plan, which was conceived by Australian law officers and the FBI in 2018, saw officials in the United States take control of a messaging app called ANOM, which authorities said was popular with organised criminals._

Why do they need to disclose this level of detail. I am sure there must be some crims using that app that are oblivious to the fact that it is compromised so keeping quiet about it could still unearth more actual or planned crime.


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## basilio (8 June 2021)

bellenuit said:


> I don't really get this. Another article on this story says: _The plan, which was conceived by Australian law officers and the FBI in 2018, saw officials in the United States take control of a messaging app called ANOM, which authorities said was popular with organised criminals._
> 
> Why do they need to disclose this level of detail. I am sure there must be some crims using that app that are oblivious to the fact that it is compromised so keeping quiet about it could still unearth more actual or planned crime.




Interesting.  I understand that the FBI etc in fact created and controlled the ap in entirety.  I think that there was some legal privacy process which stopped them from simply keeping the ap operational indefinitely.

I'm interested in what is going to happen to the millions of incidental communications.  In particular what will happen to various lawyers, accountants, politicians, big name people who may also have communicated with these people ?

From a legal perspective I wonder about communication between lawyers and clients as privileged information ? Looking forward to these questions being raised.

_He ( Commissioner Kershaw)  said legal authorities prevented the app from being covertly used for a longer timeframe.








						'Heavy blow' for criminals as more than 200 underworld figures charged after app sting
					

More than 200 members of Australia's mafia and bikie underworld have been arrested in the nation's biggest-ever crime sting, police say.




					www.abc.net.au
				



_


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## basilio (8 June 2021)

Further details on how the FBI successfully marketed the ANOM ap through criminal gangs. 

As I suspected there will also be repercussions  at political levels.

_The Trojan Shield investigation has uncovered that Anom devices are used by TCOs to traffic drugs and launder the proceeds of those drug sales," the document reads. "The distributors of these devices also obstruct justice by remotely wiping the content of devices when law enforcement seizes them. _*Additionally, the review of Anom messages has initiated numerous high-level public corruption cases in several countries. *_The most prominent distributors are currently being investigated by the FBI for participating in an enterprise which promotes international drug trafficking, money laundering, and obstruction of justice."_









						Trojan Shield: How the FBI Secretly Ran a Phone Network for Criminals
					

New court records detail how the FBI turned encrypted phone company 'Anom' into a honeypot for organized crime.




					www.vice.com


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## basilio (8 June 2021)

Why crims wanted this phone and paid thousands of dollars for one.


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## basilio (12 June 2021)

Clear summary from an international perspective of the world wide raids using ANOM information.


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## sptrawler (15 June 2021)

Sydney still the cocaine capital, from this story it sounds as though there are plenty using it.








						Sydney and cocaine: an illicit love affair for the ages
					

For years, the city has demonstrated a remarkable appetite for the party drug and the demand continues to grow. What is it with Sydney and coke?




					www.smh.com.au
				



From the article:
Recently released survey data from the National National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre shows the number of NSW residents reporting cocaine use increased from about one in 30 to one in 20 between 2016 and 2019, with men and women in their 20s most likely to have used the drug.

Even as consumption surges in other parts of Australia, it’s Sydney that remains the nation’s cocaine capital. As of October last year, according to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s wastewater analysis, Sydney was consuming 15 doses of cocaine per 1000 people on an average day. This compared to Melbourne’s six doses per 1000 people, Brisbane’s five and Canberra’s 10. Of the 5.7 tonnes of cocaine the ACIC estimates the country consumed in 2019-20, 3 tonnes were consumed in NSW.

Australians pay a premium price for cocaine, forking out a minimum of $300 for a gram – enough for up to 10 lines or doses. This makes the country among the most expensive markets for the drug. The average global price is $127, according to the Global Drug Survey. Americans pay $88, Colombians just less than $10.

At The Banyans “luxury rehabilitation clinic” in south-east Queensland, about two in five people seeking treatment for cocaine addiction come from Sydney.

“The average patient looks like someone that you work with in the office day to day and you may have no idea they have developed a dependency,” says chief executive Ruth Limkin.

The clinic, which has six registered doctors on staff and only takes eight patients at a time, is receiving “more and more inquiries” about cocaine addiction, Limkin says. People usually seek help after a crisis – such as a medical episode, relationship breakdown or run-in with the law – or an intervention from a loved one or workplace.
“We really treat it as a health issue, not that someone’s done something bad,” she says. The program involves a mix of medical and psychological support as well as wellness strategies and activities.

Fees range from $49,000 to $90,000 for a four-week stay followed three to 12 months of ongoing support through telehealth. It is expensive, but those who sign on have generally been spending $10,000 to $20,000 a week on cocaine. The clinic says people who take part in their program show improvement in an average of 74 per cent of their dependency measures


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## Ben Gordon (16 June 2021)

These are the same people we tax payers end up paying to try and get them home etc.

Selfish and stupid they are.


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