All Purpose News and Politics Thread Part IV: The Center Cannot Hold

[Jim Kelly]

The irony is that carfentanil is so popular with the drug traffickers because of its greater potency and therefore can be packaged in very small doses, which prove more difficult to detect. So the war on drugs has led to a highly toxic drug getting on the streets.

[InformationGeek]

While Trump has been mostly tweeting about the Hurricane and the recent shooting, he decided during the middle of all of this chaos... to talk about Debra Messing.

I have not forgotten that when it was announced that I was going to do The Apprentice, and when it then became a big hit, helping NBC’s failed lineup greatly, @DebraMessing came up to me at an Upfront & profusely thanked me, even calling me “Sir.” How times have changed!

I guess since the news cycle hasn't been completely about him, he decided to scream for attention.

[Tami]

The irony is that carfentanil is so popular with the drug traffickers because of its greater potency and therefore can be packaged in very small doses, which prove more difficult to detect. So the war on drugs has led to a highly toxic drug getting on the streets.

No, not the War on Drugs. The War on Drugs could handle stopping the flow of it into the US IF it was better funded and better managed. The blame goes squarely on Legislators and others on Government who prefer to channel money and resources into caging families and deporting sick children, instead of where it needs to go, in stopping these drugs at the ports of entry and even at the source.

[PwrdOn]

No, not the War on Drugs. The War on Drugs could handle stopping the flow of it into the US IF it was better funded and better managed. The blame goes squarely on Legislators and others on Government who prefer to channel money and resources into caging families and deporting sick children, instead of where it needs to go, in stopping these drugs at the ports of entry and even at the source.

The fundamental problem of the War on Drugs is this assumption that it's somehow caused by insidious foreign cartels trying to push drugs onto innocent Americans, when it is in fact the insatiable demand of American consumers that is creating the problem. The more you try and shut down the supply, the more it drives up the price which makes trafficking even more lucrative which leads the gangs to find ever more creative ways to get them into the country. But unless anti-drug education somehow starts miraculously working, there really isn't any solution to fixing the drug culture that we have.

[Malvolio]

While Trump has been mostly tweeting about the Hurricane and the recent shooting, he decided during the middle of all of this chaos... to talk about Debra Messing.



I guess since the news cycle hasn't been completely about him, he decided to scream for attention.

Debra Messing, if she's read this tweet, is probably wondering, "Where is this coming from?" My theory is that Trumps sleeps so infrequently, that when he does sleep, he probably has very bizarre dreams, and most recently, he probably had one featuring Debra Messing.

[Tami]

Debra Messing, if she's read this tweet, is probably wondering, "Where is this coming from?" My theory is that Trumps sleeps so infrequently, that when he does sleep, he probably has very bizarre dreams, and most recently, he probably had one featuring Debra Messing.

I can't imagine any women not being creeped out by the idea that Trump is dreaming about them. Very disturbing.

[worstblogever]

While Trump has been mostly tweeting about the Hurricane and the recent shooting, he decided during the middle of all of this chaos... to talk about Debra Messing.



I guess since the news cycle hasn't been completely about him, he decided to scream for attention.

If there's one way to console the families of mass shooting victims, it's to start feuding with the stars of Will & Grace.

By that I mean it's a way. A really sad, stupid one, that someone would have to lack any sense of empathy to do at such a time.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

The fundamental problem of the War on Drugs is this assumption that it's somehow caused by insidious foreign cartels trying to push drugs onto innocent Americans, when it is in fact the insatiable demand of American consumers that is creating the problem. The more you try and shut down the supply, the more it drives up the price which makes trafficking even more lucrative which leads the gangs to find ever more creative ways to get them into the country. But unless anti-drug education somehow starts miraculously working, there really isn't any solution to fixing the drug culture that we have.

Exactly that. Until you eliminate the demand, you’ll never eliminate the supply, and the so-called “War on Drugs” will never be won.

[Jim Kelly]

The fundamental problem of the War on Drugs is this assumption that it's somehow caused by insidious foreign cartels trying to push drugs onto innocent Americans, when it is in fact the insatiable demand of American consumers that is creating the problem. The more you try and shut down the supply, the more it drives up the price which makes trafficking even more lucrative which leads the gangs to find ever more creative ways to get them into the country. But unless anti-drug education somehow starts miraculously working, there really isn't any solution to fixing the drug culture that we have.

I live in Vancouver, Canada, where the existing drug overdose crisis went into high gear with the arrival of carfentanil in 2016. This is such a lethal poison that it presents a serious risk to anyone that comes in contact with it. Vancouver has been providing harm reduction services for well over a decade, with safe injection sites for users. While education is all very well and good, it doesn't prevent the deaths that are happening today. Many believe that the drugs should be legalized or decriminalized and that safe sites for users are the best option, so overdoses can be prevented by health care professionals. If you want to educate drug users, fine, but you first have to heal the body before you can heal the mind. And the sad fact is that some people will be addicted for life, they can't get off the drug no matter how hard they try. We turn this into a moral problem when we should look at it as a medical problem. Better that some live with their dependency, under managed care, than die in an alley alone as if they were human garbage.

[Tami]

I live in Vancouver, Canada, where the existing drug overdose crisis went into high gear with the arrival of carfentanil in 2016. This is such a lethal poison that it presents a serious risk to anyone that comes in contact with it. Vancouver has been providing harm reduction services for well over a decade, with safe injection sites for users. While education is all very well and good, it doesn't prevent the deaths that are happening today. Many believe that the drugs should be legalized or decriminalized and that safe sites for users are the best option, so overdoses can be prevented by health care professionals. If you want to educate drug users, fine, but you first have to heal the body before you can heal the mind. And the sad fact is that some people will be addicted for life, they can't get off the drug no matter how hard they try. We turn this into a moral problem when we should look at it as a medical problem. Better that some live with their dependency, under managed care, than die in an alley alone as if they were human garbage.

I'm in favor of everything and anything that can, in anyway,. save lives. There is no reason why everything can't be tried. If something works better than others, then let that take the lead, but this should be approached from all sides.

Better to try everything, than to do nothing.

[Jim Kelly]

After studying what countries in Europe were doing about their drug problem, in the early 2000s, Vancouver adopted what is called the Four Pillars drug strategy--with support from municipal parties on both sides of the political spectrum, the police, and health organizations. The Four Pillars are 1) harm reduction, 2) prevention, 3) treatment and 4) enforcement.

[jetengine]

The War on Drugs was never about stopping drugs but about hurting minorities.

[InformationGeek]

He's getting worse and worse.

Trump: "I'm not sure that I've ever heard of a Category 5."

This is the fourth Category 5 hurricane to strike the United States during his presidency. Irma, Maria, Michael, Dorian.

[4saken1]

The War on Drugs was never about stopping drugs but about hurting minorities.

Yep! The idea is that African Americans vote overwhelmingly for Democrats, so let's keep them in prison so that they can't vote.

[PwrdOn]

I live in Vancouver, Canada, where the existing drug overdose crisis went into high gear with the arrival of carfentanil in 2016. This is such a lethal poison that it presents a serious risk to anyone that comes in contact with it. Vancouver has been providing harm reduction services for well over a decade, with safe injection sites for users. While education is all very well and good, it doesn't prevent the deaths that are happening today. Many believe that the drugs should be legalized or decriminalized and that safe sites for users are the best option, so overdoses can be prevented by health care professionals. If you want to educate drug users, fine, but you first have to heal the body before you can heal the mind. And the sad fact is that some people will be addicted for life, they can't get off the drug no matter how hard they try. We turn this into a moral problem when we should look at it as a medical problem. Better that some live with their dependency, under managed care, than die in an alley alone as if they were human garbage.

The real issue is how we can prevent people from becoming drug addicts in the first place. Alleviating socioeconomic anxiety is one part of that equation, but in most countries, people are far worse off than the typical American or Canadian yet rarely resort to drug use to drown their sorrows. Legalization may help alleviate some of the crime and societal decay associated with drug use, but I don't really see it saving many lives. After all, nearly 500,000 people die in the US every year from cigarette smoking and all the addiction treatment methods in the world don't seem to be making a dent into that number.