Hard News: Heads Up
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that key factors in curbing drug harm were social, “even spiritual”.
Oh fuck me! drugs have an effect on the mind. No need to get all mystical on it.
And in case none of them have noticed, violence behaviour is more often
facilitated by alcohol.
Rendering recorded crime statistic's virtually meaningless unless we start reporting states of mind. -
TracyMac, in reply to
Unwarranted personal attack + completely missing the point equals two out of two so far for you, mate.
Maybe time to chill the hell out?
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Sacha, in reply to
alcohol
a drug
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Rich Lock, in reply to
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Footnote: With respect to how many joints as opposed to how much THC/CBD it is worth making clear a distinction between acute, chronic and combined effects. That is to say how much in mg may have different effects to how often in frequency.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
Oh fuck me! drugs have an effect on the mind. No need to get all mystical on it.
Not really mystical. The guy's a scientist. But emotional environment matters, put it that way.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
And in case none of them have noticed, violence behaviour is more often
facilitated by alcohol.
Rendering recorded crime statistic’s virtually meaningless unless we start reporting states of mind.I did explain that in the post. Can you chill a bit?
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One point probably worth making in relation to the CBD:THC ratios is that it is my understanding that low-CBD/high-THC strains are far easier to grow than the stuff that has a high CBD content. So by far the most common black-market stuff is low-CBD/high-THC - more likely to make you anxious and paranoid, rather than chilled and euphoric.
Like I mentioned in the other thread a while ago, I'd be far more likely to search out, and pay a premium for, decent stuff (i.e. high CBD) in the same way that I'll drink a nice Pinot Noir over a bottle of Thunderbird now that I can afford it. But as it is, it's just not worth the hassle.
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One point probably worth making in relation to the CBD:THC ratios is that it is my understanding that low-CBD/high-THC strains are far easier to grow than the stuff that has a high CBD content.
Perhaps outdoors, in those climes. but don’t let that put you off Rich; Weed, throw it under some LEDs, water when the soil’s dry, and Bob’s your uncle.
As touched on in your wikipedia links most types that people are smoking are combinations of Sativa and Indica strains in varying ratios. Sativa is the high THC component, Indica is high CBD etc. While Indica generally have a shorter flowering period, Sativa and predominantly Sativa strains will get bigger, have a quicker vegetative period and produce a greater albeit less dense yield.
Which I guess is why 8 foot Sativa not 2 ½ foot indica.
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mark taslov, in reply to
You know how pot seemed a bit gentler and lighter back in the day, and how modern hydro pot sometimes makes your heart race? That appears to be the relative absence of CBD. If you have an untainted source of old-school outdoor pot grown by hippies in the Coromandel, hang onto that.
When I was home last, having grown indica a while. I fully noticed the pronounced Sativa hit from the bushweed. And from experience, in provincial Te Ika-a-Māui, most of what we were getting served were mainly Sativa heavy strains. Living in the cities of course you come into contact with more refined varieties far more readily.
But over time even those more traditional lighter Sativa strains are still presenting an unbalanced equation, so I’d heartily recommend keeping a vigilant eye out for indica (couch lock) stuff for good measure.
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mark taslov, in reply to
And I hope that didn’t come across as too condescending Rich; ), I belatedly clicked on your second link and was relieved to find it listed some of the positives of Sativa amongst almost everything else I mentioned, then I kicked myself, in the shins.
As a non-habitual musician, Sativas are great for jamming and whatnot while Indicas are a killer, but they’re great for sitting down and listening to some albums etc. The complementary nature is quite fascinating though it took me years of fighting the buzz before I finally stumbled upon what the heck was happening – of course via the internet.
This reminds me of a notoriously wasted band I used to watch back in the days before there was knowledge. Preferring to play whilst high but not being discerning, the gigs were hit and miss affairs, and this was especially noticeable in the breaks between tunes – you either got the high-powered energy fest or a performance in slow motion.
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Not at all, Mark. I'm letting some of my own preferences and predjudices colour my comments. My experience is inextricably linked with group or social activities rather than sticking some music on and melting into the couch for hours at a time by yourself. Hanging out with people who are tending towards anxious paranoid behaviour can easily harsh the mellow of a good night out.
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I hear ya...
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I'd understood that the lack of some CBD analogue was also part of what made the synthetic cannabinoid drugs so prone to cause freakouts in users relative to real pot.
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I got into smoking dope back in October 1977. I was 19. I quickly progressed to eating a gram of Moroccan hash / day. Perma-stone. By February ‘78 it was obvious even to me my ’new’ lifestyle was a four-lane highway to Nowhere. Emphasising this, two my mates at the time (who had been doing this for much longer) required psychiatric care. Another had been accepted into medical school, but decided doing heroin in Central Park in NYC was a better option.
I smoked my last joint in April ’78. I wouldn’t recommend drugs of any kind to anyone. I’ve given up alcohol, too. They are all brain wanking….and I find a properly functioning brain (or as close as I’m able to manage it) is much more fun than the drug-degraded version.
Not saying no one else should do drugs. Just that for me it was obviously a waste of time, money and – ultimately – potential.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
I’d understood that the lack of some CBD analogue was also part of what made the synthetic cannabinoid drugs so prone to cause freakouts in users relative to real pot.
Yeah, that makes sense.
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Katita, in reply to
+1
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andin, in reply to
I did explain that in the post. Can you chill a bit?
Well their overpaid obtuseness makes me angry and I had had a drink.
But emotional environment matters, put it that way.
Environments we are systematically destroying or perverting by an adherence to a one "one size fits all" mentality.
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So I got drafted on to the closing panel at the symposium yesterday, which was nice.
I asked Kevin Sabet, given that he had said he agreed that we need to curb the harms of of criminalisation, how we could do that without undertaking some form of decriminalisation.
He sort of agreed, and I asked him whether I could therefore describe him as a “decriminalisation advocate”. He said yes, but only with “a footnote” about what he meant by that.
I was unsuccessful, sadly, in actually getting him to explain what that footnote might be. The words “lip service” came to mind.
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andin, in reply to
I'd had a bottle of wine, and I apologise to Lucy. And I'm in the middle of dealing with a local long time cat killer( so called respectable member of the alternative community, kind of) hiding behind a facade of concern for native bird life. No excuse I know :-(
Thanks Gareth Morgan!
If you want to hear a verbal apology Lucy
I'll make it here Wednesday 7-9pm
Never lived on a commune but have meet more than enough hippies in my time to know they regarded being stoned as some rite of passage. How they could sit around and try to act normally seemed a complete waste of time and pot.
Then again meet some really responsible mothers who stopped all stimulants while they were pregnant and raising children, even while living on communes. The dads, well that's another story. -
Hebe,
Mr Hebe here, forgot my logon, man. Anyway if the buggered stoners self-selected via an ad in the paper how come they remembered to follow through and respond? Kinda cancels itself out in the credibility stakes, huh?
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There is an interesting story brewing on the illegal side of the fence, I know this is off topic but somewhat this area will be increasingly relevant to discussions about legality and regulation.
In October 2013 the FBI took offline the original Silkroad online marketplace, and charged Ross William Ulbricht (allegedly known as Dread Pirate Roberts on Silkroad)with conspiracy drug charges and for conspiracy to commit murder (after he allegedly attemptted to contract a murder-for-hire from an undercover agent). Marketplaces, like the Silkroad use the TOR network and Bitcoin to facilitate anonymous online trade in drugs and other illegal items. They are like the Hydra in that every time one goes down, two pop up in their place. This story it is turning into a sorry saga that it quite fascinating to watch unfold.
In the last couple of days the Sheep marketplace has abruptly shut down after allegedly the owners of the site colluded with a number of prominent vendors to drain all the money sitting in their users’ accounts; then simply flick the off and switch walk away rich. First the Sheep admins cited technical problems with their Bitcoin software, and disabling withdraws, and posting a notice saying that after a phoney timer runs out you can have one withdraw of a minimum of 1 Btc (Currently around $1000NZD) once a day, thus luring in more money into the trap. At the same time a number of vendors based in the Czech Republic made a vast array of cut price listings, all with the condition that the sales would be out of the site’s escrow system, meaning that that the vendors would get the money immediately. Later a story emerged about it all starting with hacker gaining access through a hole in the notoriously insecure code and taking $5million USD, although in the world of anonymous online chat rooms, it can be hard to separate facts from PR or fantasy. It has been estimated that the Sheep admins have made off with around $44 million USD, and there have been some large sums shifted on the Blockchain (this is the public register of Bitcoin transactions).
Sheep makes me think of being fleeced, or of wolves in clothing, a new site looks the same Pandora (I wont link it) seems to imply that there will be trouble in store for those who use it. These sites are very popular, and there must be enormous temptation to simply take the money once it looks like enough to live very comfortably for a very long time if you can get away with it. This is hot on the heels of another site closing about a month ago, Project Black Flag, a site that attempted to replicate look and feel of the recently busted Silkroad, right down to being lead by Metta Dread Pirate Roberts, the marketplace opened and closed again in the space of a few weeks.
A couple of the remaining market place sites are ambitious to remain small and in the background or are attempting to appeal with particular take on liberal philosophy or technical approach to the problems of security, and I can see that these sites are only going to get more sophisticated, not only in terms of how they solve their technical problems but also in how they present themselves, as popular criminals they have a potential to become folk heroes, although it remains to be seen if the online trade in drugs reduces the violence of the trade, as the user on the forums often claim, what with the now six conspiracy to commit murder charges that Ulbricht is facing, and now the repeated calls on the forums for the heads of Sheep admins and high profile vendors.
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sorry about the rant I hope this is informative.
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