DMT and Salvia Divinorum Trips; Yes, Both

(Originally published 9/30/06.)

by Peter Eichenberger

First Trip: Dimitri

It was just another day when I walked to my usual joint, Sadlack’s, a dinged faux diner here in Raleigh dating from the Upper Devonian era, a dented aluminum box legendary for the range and diversity of clientele. I was just there for a beer. I stepped up to the patio, a concrete deck provided with shabby wooden picnic tables. As I made my way to the front door, a fella I know called to me.

“Hey Eichenberger, come here.” I knew the guy. He was sort of a mystery. Claimed to work for the communications industry. Ok, sure. He just had a funny way of showing up, looking for me, often with molecular compounds I had never heard of, which was odd. I have an extensive resume with drugs and have taken pride in my knowledge. I moved over to the guy. He held out a glass stem, the type used to smoke, well, whatever one happens to have to smoke.

“Take a hit of this.” I took the piece and examined the whitish powdery substance packed in the end. I knew it wasn’t crack. This guy wasn’t the type and, more, it didn’t look like crack.

I Learned It From Watching You

(Originally published 9/15/06.)

by Elizabeth Keenan

From the 1936 anti-marijuana propaganda-turned-cult-film-classic Reefer Madness to the late eighties “war on drugs” campaign to the Bush Administration’s recent absurd anti-marijuana commercials comparing pot smokers to terrorists (see below), it is no wonder the decriminalization of pot and legalization of medicinal marijuana is still a pipe dream for American smokers.

Real Word on Drugs

The drug discussion raged all week on The Inquirer, but the highlight was clear. Too bad it was posted by "Anonymous," otherwise we might have considered spotting the tell-it-like-is insider a cupcake. And probably one with sprinkles. Here goes (we also let our editorial staff loose on it):

Because of my line of work I know how much a few of the drugs mentioned in this article cost. This is the approximate cost for an office or hospital to buy drugs from a drug supply company. It is not what a patient or their insurance company would pay for the drug.

That said, one shot of Aranesp (300 mcg) costs $1100.00. Patients typically receive this every two weeks to combat the side effects of chemotherapy. Next is Avastin, which currently treats colon cancer and is on its way (through clinical trials) to be prescribed for lung cancer. Avastin is supplied in 100mg vials which cost around $550.00. 400mg vials cost around $2200.00. It's typically given every two weeks as well, but something to keep in mind is that it could take up to 5-100mg vials to dose a patient- every two weeks.

These prices are not so bad for the individual with private insurance, but those elderly people who only have Medicare are in a tough situation. Medicare only covers 80% of any medical cost. The patient or their secondary/supplemental insurance is responsible for the rest. One other thing to keep in mind that these drugs are never given alone, they are either in response to other drugs or used in combination with other drugs. Defiantly something to think about.

Fo' sure.

Drugs, Sports, and the Examined Life

by Bryan Joiner

Pat Tillman’s life was as amazing as his death was tragic. Ricky Williams' life has been ridiculed by the media and is outwardly depressing. But if you think they have nothing in common besides shoulder pads, you're wrong.

A recent Sports Illustrated cover story described how Tillman “took a book everywhere, even on 10-minute errands, [to] read the Communist Manifesto, Mein Kampf, the Bible and the Koran, so he could carve out his own convictions”— rare qualities for a football player and solider.

Cartel Suburbia

If you can't get your product across the border, then forget the border altogether! That's the thinking of a new marijuana cartel that's taken to the suburbs outside Sacramento, Calif. In the last two months, there have been more than 40 busts at houses throughout the aread, battering rams through the front door and all.

With a little ingenuity, an indoor harvest center can be extremely lucrative. On the West coast, the everyday homes seemed to have been working with organized crime based out of San Francisco. These everyday homes run on average between $400,000 to $600,000 a piece. The cartels knock down walls for ventilation and filtration systems. Serious growth.

Gives a new meaning to McMansions, wouldn't you say?

About That Drug Approval

Ooooooh, the Food and Drug Administration in trouble. The FDA ought to be an upstanding example of the federal government looking after Americans' safety, but it seems big drug companies, with thanks to the power granted by massive cash flow, have taken the FDA for a ride. A long ride that endangers the rest of us.

A scathing report recently presented to Congress paints the FDA in broad strokes as dysfunctional and unhealthy. (Pun intended.) Leadership has been sporadic and problems are systemic.

The FDA approves new prescription drugs to market, in effect clueing the rest of us in to what pills are safe to swallow. Apparently, from the report's recommendations (find some after the jump), newly-available drugs are currently unsafe and overmarketed.

Poll: A Prescription Drug Utopia?

Because we're human we search for the fountain of youth. But by now we know it's not Oil of Olay. And it certainly ain't in South Florida. But what if scientists could whip up a magic potion? As it stands, with a note from the doctor Zoloft will up your mood, Cialis will harden your erection, and Requip will put your restless leg syndrome to bed. What more can someone ask for?

Question: As research and development continues, by the year 2020, will drugs solve all our health problems? That is, will we live forever?

Rx: Movers and Shakers

The 10 Best-selling Drugs in America:

1. Lipitor, made by Pfizer, treats high cholesterol
2. Zocor, made by Merck, treats high cholesterol
3. Nexium, made by AstraZeneca, treats heartburn
4. Prevacid, made by Abbott & Takeda, treats heartburn
5. Advair Diskus, made by GlaxoSmithKline, treats asthma
6. Plavix, made by Bristol-Myers Squibb & Sanofi-Aventis, treats heart disease
7. Zoloft, made by Pfizer, treats depression
8. Epogen, made by Amgen, treats anemia
9. Procrit, made by Johnson & Johnson, treats anemia
10. Aranesp, made by Amgen, treats anemia

Click the article for fastest-growing sales and other trends over the last 15 years.

American Imagination in Crack and White

by Mik Awake

The term “crack” refers to the crackling sound heard when the substance is heated, presumably from the sodium bicarbonate that is used in the production of crack.
–Office of National Drug Control Policy

crack…4a: a weakness or flaw caused by decay, age, or deficiency
–Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition

Sometime around the turn of the century, only a few years after cocaine was first introduced to America, originally in potable form, white citizens were more than a little concerned about the effect the drug was having on black people.

On February 8, 1914, the New York Times published an article called “Negro Cocaine ‘Fiends’ New Southern Menace.” Magnifying hearsay to the level of scholarly research, Edward Huntington Williams, M.D., describes in colorful prose how cocaine had turned demure black men into superhuman lunatics. This sentiment would send shock waves through the corridors of the American mind that, arguably, have persisted in varying form through the 1980s crack epidemic and have not subsided to this day.

Kids on Prescription Drugs

Facts:

• From 1985-1999 prescriptions of central nervous system drugs written for children increased 327%
• About 6% of youths younger than 20 are being treated with psychotropic prescription drugs of some kind, including stimulants, antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and anti-psychotics
• A study by the National Mental Health Association estimated that more than 20% of youth aged 9 to 17 have a diagnosable mental illness

Click the article for numbers on Ritalin-related specifics . . .

Chronic Christmas

Here is a short film entitled "A Chronic X-Mas." Looks like the work of NYU film students. Film students who clearly believe that illegal pot kills. Enjoy.

I Am Above the Influence

To view the classic “I learned it from watching you" anti-pot commercial, you can check it out on iFilm. First reader to post link to "This is your brain on drugs . . . " in the comments wins high praise from The Inquirer editors.

Apparently it's not just weekly internet magazines who grab at YouTube for it's immense power. The White House is now posting anti-drug campaign commercials on the sprawling video site. Watch one of the hardly-popular (not quite 4,000 views) spots here.

Is Weed the New Prozac?

by Jonah Lehrer

Fifteen million Americans, or five percent of the population, are currently taking a drug that treats most of their anxiety symptoms. This drug isn’t addictive, can be delivered to your door in certain metropolitan areas, and is cheaper than most of its competitors. Its main side effect? The munchies.

I’m talking about marijuana, a.k.a. Cannabis sativa, and both scientists and pharmaceutical companies are looking to it as a possible cure for what may be our generation’s most pressing psychological affliction.

Drugs: Just the Facts

According to the 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health:

• 19.7 million Americans used illegal drugs in the month prior to the survey. Marijuana accounted for nearly three-quarters of drug use (14.6 million).
• 2.3 million Americans received treatment for substance abuse at a specialty facility. 20.9 more million people needed treatment but did not receive any. Of this group, only 296,000 tried to get treatment.

According to the US Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics:

• In 2004, state and local law enforcements made 1,745,712 arrests for drug crimes. More than 4 out of 5 arrests were for possession. In 1987, drug arrests were 7.4% of total arrests. In 2004, that percentage had risen to 12.5%.
• In 2002, of 265,100 inmates serving time for drug offenses, nearly half were black (47.53%), a quarter Hispanic (23.27%) and a quarter white (24.33%). According to the 2000 census the general population is 12.7% black and 12.6% Hispanic.
• The cost of incarcerating these offenders is approximately $8.6 billion per year.

And last but not least, according to a 1997 study, 1.46 million black men out of the total voting population of 10.4 will million lose their right to vote because of a felony conviction. More to come on this later in the week.

Worthwhile Question

This week the quote comes from comedian Stephen Wright:

If God dropped acid, would he see people?