Afflicted with chronic pain mismanagement Many drugs can alleviate suffering, but doctors and patients often don't fully utilize them, mostly because of addiction fears. America is deeply conflicted about controlling chronic pain. We grossly under-treat it. Management of chronic pain, which afflicts more than 50 million people, and the pain of dying patients is arguably the most egregiously neglected field of medicine. As a society, we have become obsessed with the war on drugs - and the fear of addiction to opioids (narcotic drugs containing opium or one of its derivatives). Pain patients who were functioning well on morphine-like drugs such as oxycodone (OxyContin) now are fearful of them. Or they just plain can't get them. [continues 969 words]
In light of the recent events at Stratford High School and its fiasco of a drug search, perhaps Goose Creek should be renamed Goose Step. Rich Costello [end]
As the parent of four high school students, it is important to me that our schools are safe and drug free, and I appreciate the involvement of our local police agencies in making that possible. However, any objective review of the behavior of the Goose Creek Police during their drug sweep at Stratford High School would find their behavior to be inappropriate and unprofessional. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The real damage comes in the weak justifications being made by some police and school authorities. The vast majority of our teenagers are law abiding. Young people will not develop a respect for law by seeing law enforcement officials acting badly. They need to hear our leaders honestly articulate what is right and what is wrong, even when it is the adults who are wrong. The easy and honest explanation is that the police used bad judgment and we are going to make some changes so that this does not happen again. We expect at least that from our kids. Jeff Simon Sullivan's Island [end]
Britain's most senior coroner has issued a stark warning that many young people are dying because of prolonged use of cannabis. Hamish Turner, president of the Coroners' Society, believes the drug is behind many deaths that have been recorded as accidents or suicides. During the past year, he claims, up to one in 10 of the 100 deaths he has dealt with have a significant link to the drug. Mr Turner's grim analysis came days after MPs voted for plans to reclassify cannabis as a Class C drug. [continues 215 words]
Hit the links next Wednesday at Putt 4 Peel's glow-in-the-dark mini-golf tournament to have fun and help keep Mississauga children off drugs. The 14th annual event takes place at Oakville's Putting Edge. Entry fee for the 18-hole tournament is $100 for a team of four. A corporate sponsorship, that includes a team entry and status as an official sponsor, is $400. For information, call 905-629-2136. Money raised from the tournament, which begins at 6 p.m., will go to Peel Partners For A Drug-Free Community who, in turn, will use the money for drug education programs. [continues 123 words]
MADD Fears For Drivers Over Lax Marijuana Laws Decriminalizing marijuana will only contribute to the carnage on our roads. That was the resounding message made at the launch of the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) 2003 annual Red Ribbon campaign earlier this week. This year's theme is: "Tie one on for safety." MADD has been lobbying to stop passage of federal Bill C38 that would make toking legal. Wednesday morning at the ribbon launch, MADD executive director Andrew Murie announced, "I'm 99 per cent convinced the bill won't come out of committee this week. [continues 601 words]
I was amazed to see the Nov. 6 attack on Stratford High School by police. There were guns drawn, guns pointed and students roughed up. All this on national news shows. If I had a son or daughter in that school, it would have been their last day. We've all come to expect a lack of common sense from school officials, but that principal has acted like an idiot of some magnitude. The police are to blame as well. What a lesson for kids. 970 Groomstown Road Cross [end]
EDMONTON (CP) - The concept of random drug testing of employees in some industries could be running into opposition from organized labour and the Alberta Human Rights Commission. Cabinet and caucus will review a report this month from a committee developing options for dealing with impairment from alcohol and drugs on job sites. Les Steel, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour, said the government shouldn't even be considering allowing companies to conduct random tests. ''We think it's just an infringement on people's rights,'' Steel said. [continues 147 words]
GREER, S.C., Nov. 10 -- President Bush was holding one of his Oprah-style roundtables with regular, red-blooded workers to talk about jobs, when Stephen Thies of Spartanburg Stainless Products showed he's a man who knows his audience. Thies, president of the company from nearby Spartanburg, delivered his scripted pablum about metal stampings and assemblies, then blurted out: "We also make beer kegs -- we're the only American beer keg manufacturer in North America." This drew applause from the audience, which was stocked with stout employees who turn stacks of chassis, rear quarter panels and assorted other parts into BMWs. [continues 289 words]
Lagos The Federal Government have been advised to set up policies and programmes to control drug abuse as it is currently doing for HIV/AIDS scourge in the country. A communique issued at the end of a three-day workshop on the link between drug abuse and HIV/AIDS organised by the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC) indicated that the problem of drug abuse has been in existence in Nigeria since the 1960s even before it gained international prominence. [continues 188 words]
WITHOUT knowing all the facts it is difficult to comment on court reports published in the media. Take for example; "Cannabis: man fined" (Gazette October 31). The reported said the defendant pleaded guilty to "possession" of 135mgs of cannabis with an alleged UKP 5 street value. (Five pounds for 135mg? That makes it UKP 37/gram, UKP 1000/oz - unlikely! It's worth more like UKP 0.69, giving UKP 5/gram.) Notwithstanding that, let me say up front, I do not condone this crime. The defendant is clearly a danger to society. And, his antisocial behaviour will most certainly had an derogatory effect on his neighbours quality of life! [continues 100 words]
Branch Office Among Strategies Discussed Members of the city's Anti-Crime Commission Implementation Team are asking for help from the community to turn Greenville around and get the "thugs" off the streets. On Wednesday, the group met at City Hall to discuss establishing a permanent federal prosecutor's office in Greenville through the U.S. Attorney's Office. After in-depth discussions, commission members agreed that the possibility of establishing a permanent office may not be feasible at the present time. Therefore, the panel recommended: [continues 441 words]
Think back to when you were in high school. Imagine wandering the halls between classes one day when all of a sudden, fourteen police officers burst through the doors with guns drawn, screaming at you to get on the floor with your hands behind your head. For the students of Stratford High School in Goose Creek, South Carolina, this is exactly the scene that played itself out last Wednesday as law enforcement officers conducted a drug raid ("Police, school district defend drug raid," Nov. 7, CNN.com). This type of behavior is patently unacceptable and indicative of a broader problem in society today -- over-the-top, abusive measures being used to combat drug use. [continues 639 words]
