The Effect of an Ad That Overstates the Dangers of Cannabis Is to Discredit All Public Health Advice A new UKP 2.2m ad campaign about cannabis targets 11- to 18-year-olds. Before you decide that's a waste of money, imagine how much more it would have cost before the collapse of ad revenues. I think the government should take advantage of this to advertise the dangers of all drugs. Indeed, so what if ecstasy is only about as dangerous as horse riding? Why not have an ad about how dangerous horse riding is? [continues 560 words]
IF LEON Lott really did treat Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps the same way he would treat anyone else, then his priorities and sense of proportionality are seriously out of whack. But I'm getting ahead of myself. This isn't the sort of thing I normally write about, but the media hype and frenzied response that has accompanied our sheriff's strange, ephemeral attempt to reconstruct a misdemeanor drug crime raises several important issues -- and non sequiturs -- that simply cry out for perspective. [continues 794 words]
A policy aimed at halting the dispensing of narcotic pain medication in Sampson Regional Medical Center's emergency room is a good one that needed implementation. And while we are sure it will cause hospital personnel untold criticism, it is a move that will help people far more than it will ever hurt them. On Feb. 1, Sampson Regional implemented a policy that halts the refilling of narcotic pain and sedative medications to those classified as having chronic pain. According to hospital staff, the new policy requires that doctors and nurses only dispense non-narcotic pain meds to the ERs chronic pain patients, those, defined by the policy as have more than two visits to the emergency department in a month or six visits in a year. [continues 323 words]
It remains one of my last memories of Richmond before I embarked on my career in journalism. A shootout in a quiet park early in 2007, a block from my parents' house, that produced so much gunfire that, at the time, the police said they had never seen so many bullets exchanged in a single clash. As it turns out, that shootout was gang-related, much like the recent daily violence oozing out of the Lower Mainland. A few months later, working at our sister paper in Quesnel, I used the incident as a backdrop for a column on my views about drugs. [continues 603 words]
A recovering drug addict sits in a sunbathed office at a rehabilitation centre in Cornwall as a drug called Suboxone tricks his brain's opiate receptors into thinking he's high. But he's not. He's tranquil. And he's 39-year-old Jeff Thomas. It has been a nine-month dose of reality for Jeff since checking into the St. Denis Centre on Second Street, the site of his sixth attempt at recovery in an Ontario rehab centre. Jeff's drug of choice was OxyContin, a prescription pain medication known as "hillbilly heroin." [continues 1098 words]
When he's working, Epping Police Officer Bradley Jardis is just like any other cop. He's patrolling the streets to catch people with drugs because that's what he's supposed to do. But when he's off the clock, this 28-year-old officer is speaking publicly about why he believes existing drug policies have failed and why it's time for lawmakers to legalize drugs. It's an unusual position to take for a police officer charged with enforcing laws, but Jardis insists that prohibiting drugs leaves the dealers in control, creating a dangerous black market that breeds crime and gives kids easy access. [continues 1352 words]
Last week, the Daily ran an Associated Press article about a 72-year old milkman who delivered marijuana on his daily rounds ("From the Wires," Feb. 9). His "customers" were mostly elderly patients suffering from body pains. The story was short - apparently nothing more than a funny clip of international news. What the news item failed to mention is that cannabis is one of the most researched plants on the planet. In over 17,000 clinical studies and published papers documenting its medical effects, researchers have found that pot helps people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, dystonia, cancer, HIV/AIDS, osteoporosis, sleep apnea, hypertension and on and on. [continues 326 words]
I've been a common pot smoker for more than 50 years -- most of my life. It's caused me some trouble a time or two, but only because it's illegal. It shouldn't be. During these past 50 years, I have met and known many people who share that opinion. A few behaved badly and drew attention to themselves. These rare exceptions give the rest of us a tarnished name in many circles. I've met pot smokers who are some of the finest people anyone could ever wish to know, from wealthy humanitarians to people who have next to nothing but are happy to share it. Every one of them lives by the Golden Rule. [continues 105 words]
