A Warning - Do Not Put Unknown Substances in Your Bodu

"There's a killer on the road' The Doors, Riders on the Storm
In theory, I have little problem with drug use. It's your mind and your body. Use some sense and I don't judge. I drink coffee and some alcohol and smoke tobacco. All are powerful drugs and, logically I have no right to judge a weed smoker and the last thing opiate addicts need is judgment.
But, I feel compelled to issue a warning. There are killers on the road. The World today is very sophisticated, chemically. Many, synthetic versions of out old drug favorites abound and they all are to be avoided like the plague. Synthetic THC, synthetic opiates and synthetic hallucinogens, along with odd variations on speed are overly powerful. The human body and mind will only stand so much
Drug dealers are not usually of the highest moral character. Even in the  late 60s, they were cutting acid with all kinds of weird stuff, Now, there are more kinds of weird stuff around. Why they do this is an interesting question, since they were making unreal profits from the real thing. That seems the way it always goes. Sell decent prduct that is relatively safe, then start mixing in highly toxic materials. Why kill off your customers? Well, there are those who say that the whole thing is a plot to cripple the Nation. I know, it sounds like something you would hear on Alex Jones or an old X Files episode, but, well. who knows? There is much in this Country that makes little sense unless someone very powerful is pulling the strings. But, again, who knows?
Whatever the case, do not, ever, put anything in your body if you are not 100%  completely sure what it is.  That means that unless you buy it at a drug, liquor, or grocery store, stay away. I guess if you make it or grow it yourself, that would work, but then you are in for a  world of legal problems. So, if you want to get a buzz, stick to wine or beer. Take the power and money away from the 'killer on the road.'

America and Dugs - Why We Dp It?

I promised that I would try an explanation of why folks use drugs, not medicially, but to alter their minds. Well here goes.

First, the urge to alter the mind is common to all people for as far back in history as we can go. Kids have this same urge. Just watch them spin around until they're so dizzy they fall laughing to the ground, then lay there smiling. Animals, from birds, to coyotes, to elephants and reindeer have all been observed seeking out and consuming mind altering plants.

The mind uses the brain as a tool to interact with the world. The brain is bombarded by a vast number of sensory impressions each second and if it allowed the mind to be conscious of all of them, we would be overwhelmed, frozen as we tried to deal with it all. So, the brain evolved a mechanism to decide what is neede for survival and send all the rest, the vast majority, to the subconscious. This is needed so we can survive.

But, our minds know they are being shortchanged. The limiting mechanism is not perfect and little, odd things leak through here and there and the mind wants to know more. Well, there are substances that temporarily over ride that limiting mechanism. In the old fashioned pin ball machines, you could bang them around, but, hit them too hard, and a sign came uo saying'Tilt, Game Over.' Then you hit reset and started again. Well, apply the right push, chemical or otherwise, and that little device in your brain says'tilt', stops the game and then resets the mechanism.

During this process, the mind is free to see, for a bit, what it is missing, and that is helpful as we move along our spiritual and intellectual paths, That's why we seek mind alteration. There are many ways to do this. A lot of us use chemicals because they are quick, dramatic and they always work. However, trust me, the less chemicals you use, the better.

America and Drugs

It is hard to write about alcohol. So much has been said of it and it is so ingrained in our culture. Actually, it is engrained in most cultures and throughout history it has been the drug of choice most everywhere. Why?

Well, its easy to make, it, mostly has a pleasant taste, and it is nicely relaxing. Most folks reading this have at least some exposure to alcohol, so I won't waste time discussing its effects or its drawbacks.

Drink too much and you become clumsy and stupid. Drink too much, too often and you develop probems that may kill you. Some folks get violent when they drink, some get wildly happy, some downright morose. The drug seems to release parts of ourselves we keep in check most of the time when we overdo it.

But, that's the thing. The drug is damaging when overdone, but reasonably benign when consumed moderately, which is how most consume it. It relaxes the body and eases the mind.

The way it is consumed is important. Most folks drink it somewhat slowly. Very few take a fifth of liquor and drain it right down. Some do amd if you are one of those, quit or you won't be here long. By drinking it at a reasonable pace, you can keep tabs on how it is affecting you and stop before you turn into a raving monster.

Be careful with alcohol. Use it reasonably and you'll be fine. Get carried away and you won't.

America and Drugs - Marijuana

All these years later, I am still not sure how I feel about cannabis. First, let me say that it should be cheap and easy to get for medical reasons. If a doctor legitimately sees a use for it, then the patient should be able to go to a pharmacy and get his supply at a fair cost. Total legalization? Well, that's a little different.

One thing for sure, giving or selling the drug to anyone under the age of 21 should be illegal and firmly punished. The human brain is not finished growing until the early 20s and the use of mind altering drugs should not be allowed until then.

I used to smoke a lot, a whole lot, of weed. I haven't smoked in about 25 years. Why? That gets into the nature of the drug. It is usually called a mild hallucinogenic and that is sort of true. I have, in more recent years, heard it called a hypnotic, and there is also some truth in that. The thing is, different strains of weed have different effects and each person reacts a little different to marijuana than others do. On top of that, it seldom effects someone the same way all the time. In truth, we really don't understand just how it works. We do know that just as the body produces endorphins, its own opiate, and DMT, its own psychedelic, it produces endocanabbinols. They seem to be involved in regulating sleep, hunger, and body temperature, but, we simply don't understand the exact mechanisms.

On a practical level, the drug is not as harmless as some would have you think. Smoked, here and there, it probably is okay, although it is hard to define what 'here and there' means. But on a regular basis, it does effect short term memory, it makes you lazy, and, the ability to focus is impaired. You can still focus, but on 1 thing at a time and it is very difficult to shift focus. This is the problem I have with total legalization. That inability to shift focus makes driving a really bad idea, yet, just as with alcohol, a person high on weed will think they can drive. Trust me, they can't, not well.

At this time, we cannot test for marijuana usage as we can alcohol. Blood must be drawn and lab work done, and we have no way of setting the level at which the driver is impaired. Until we understand that better, we need to think twice about complete legalization.

Still, at the same time, I find it barbaric to put people in jail for smoking marijuana. I really have no good ideas on how we should deal with this issue. I will say this. Most folks I knew, went through periods when they smoked a lot, then they quit. Why? Simple. once you stop making a big deal out of it, you learn that the drug is really pretty darn boring. Sitting around buzzed, staring into space or at the tube, munching on snacks, and smiling, gets old fairly fast. Maybe the best idea is to just not make a big deal out of it. Fine people for possession if they don't have a prescription. Stop the importation of the stuff and ignore domestic growth. Just wait out the fascination and let folks get bored with it.

America and Drugs - Inhalants

Today, I want to talk about a class of drugs you hear very little about, yet their use is widespread and they do an incredible amount of harm. I am talking about inhalants

Inhalants are just what they sound like, drugs that you  breath in. You inhale the fumes. As far as I know, they are all hydrocarbons and include various glues, many cleaning products, gasoline, transmission fluid and even no-stick pan sprays.

The high is a sort of drunken stupor mixed with dream-like hallucinations. Once, many years ago, just to see what the fuss was, I sniffed glue. After a few breaths, I fell back on the bed, closed my eyes and was attacked by a cartoonish green train made of something that looked like jello. Sounds funny, but it definitely was not A few minutes later, I got up staggered around, nauseous, with a splitting headache, and disposed of the glue. Remember, that was after a very brief exposure. Yet, I knew a lot of kids who spent a lot of time huffing the rotten stuff, and doing such idiotic things as trying to summon the Devil. I guess, in a way, they did.

I have known people who huffed gas, transmission fluid and carbon tetrachloride. The effects are always about the same; it does not seem to matter what is used as long as it is a hydrocarbon. That is the problem and why this subject is seldom brought up. All of these products are vital to the functioning of our society and cannot be banned or legislated against. Heck, they are all common products found in about every household. And kids have ready access to them.

It is hard to find exact statistics on the use of inhalants but they are widespread. Kids are drawn to them because they are easy to obtain and cheap. They cannot buy liquor, well, in theory they cannot, and they generally cannot put enough cash together to buy weed, so, they dig around the house and find cheap highs.

These drugs are extremely toxic. The body is badly damaged by their use and if it becomes chronic, the damage can be permanent. Especially damaged are the liver, kidneys, lungs and brain. Physical damage aside, their use puts you in a temporary state of psychosis and has led to very violent behavior. Yet, society ignores this problem, probably because there is no easy solution. I certainly have no suggestions, but sweeping it under the rug is definitely not a viable option.

I suppose the best and only solution is to have one of those often dreaded talks with your kids. Be blunt. Tell them the facts and hope that you have raised them to make sane decisions. If you catch them using inhalants, get them into some kind of treatment immediately. As far as adult usage, well I am afraid that any adult using inhalants is in a world of trouble and is not likely to be around for long. To say we have a war on drugs is ridiculous when we ignore such damaging substances.

America and Drugs, Some Facts and Thoughts

For more than 40 years, going back to Nixon, America has been fighting a so called War on Drugs, and losing. We have spent an amazing amount of money on law enforcement and treatment centers and we have a bigger problem that ever. One would think that one of our leaders would say, "Hey, we need a new approach," but, alas, no. Instead, they wring their hands and bemoan the problem and promise action and then continue doing the same things. Such madness must stop.

I am going to write a series on drugs and try to tell you folks the truth about them. You see, much of what we have been taught about these chemicals is nonsense. I am not anti-drug, but I am against ridiculously harmful drugs and I am against the mis-use of any drug. I have a bit, well okay, a lot of experience with these various substances, some personal and some from dealing with the problems of my friends and families.

First. let's be honest. We all, with only a very few exceptions, use drugs. Just today, I have consumed nicotine, caffeine, naproxen, pseudoephedrine, and soon will have a little alcohol, and trust me, many, many folks will have similar patterns of consumption and we would not be considered to be drug users by most people because we do not consume illegal drugs. Yet, if I upped my consumption of those chemicals by just a little bit, I could catch a fairly good buzz. We all use drugs, we just have to use them wisely and we cannot do that until we learn about them.

Over the next few posts, I will cover, depressants, stimulants, inhalants, delirients, tranquilizers, opiates, and hallucinogens. I will also touch on drugs used by psychiatrists and give special attention to two drugs that are hard to classify, alcohol and marijuana.

I hope you will read this series because it is important that we develop a realistic approach to drug use. These chemicals should not be irrationally feared nor should they be taken haphazardly and, of course, many of them should never be touched. One thing for sure, what we are doing is not working.