Dear World
Our war on drugs has failed.
Are we really on the front foot when it comes to ending all drugs in circulation?
Are we blaming the drug cartels and all those involved in drug trafficking?
Have we considered where the demand is coming from?
Without the constant demand, there would be no suppliers – fact.
We – Yes the masses give them business.
Let’s wake up and face it – we make the demand and then they supply.
We want our drugs at the weekend or for our high- pressured job or for recreational use and that means we ADD to the horror and devastation that the drug world creates along the way, before it reaches our doorstep.
Our drug suppliers are in mega business and not even a worldwide pandemic with lockdown restrictions stopped them trafficking across the globe.
Our drug suppliers are on the front foot and we now have so much drugs in circulation, our law enforcements cannot keep up.
If any reader is interested in up to date DRUG NEWS – scroll down and go to the comments section.
Simple Living Global will continue to post DRUG NEWS from across the world to keep this much needed article alive.
Dear World
Just in case you don’t know we have World Drug Day – International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. It is every year on 26th June and was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1987 and serves as a reminder of the goals agreed to by Member States of creating an international society free of drug abuse.
Health is the ongoing theme of this World Drug Campaign.
So what does this mean to you and me – the average on the street?
What is a world awareness day like this going to do?
Is campaigning for anything working?
Is fighting for Change making any difference?
Does one day change anything really?
Do we think it has any effect on us?
Do we care about what goes on in our world?
Are we only interested if it disturbs our private life?
Are we really bothered about people who use drugs?
Do we know the facts about what is going on?
Have we heard of the UNODC?
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a big website with lots of information and their job is to raise awareness about the global drug problem.
It also raises awareness about human trafficking and fraudulent medicine.
So what is going on in our world today?
Are we truly up to date?
Why is drug abuse increasing?
Why are illicit drugs now a major challenge?
Why are illegal drugs on the rise especially with our youth?
Why are young people more susceptible to drugs?
Why are UNODC saying drug use is twice as high with young people?
How accurate are the figures we get to see?
What about all those who never declare they do drugs?
What about the so-called black market – the undercover world of drugs?
Are we the general public who make up society saying anything?
How can ANY drug be legal?
What are Legal Highs?
Are we aware how dangerous drugs are?
Do we know how many prisoners have committed a crime because of drugs?
Do we want to know the effect that drugs have on our human body?
Do we know about the long-term effects?
Do we want to hear how much money is spent trying to deal with our drug related crimes?
Does a prison sentence stop those dealing with drugs?
Have we checked how the police are coping with drug related crimes?
Have we bothered to find out how our health systems are coping with drug abuse?
Do we know the simple fact that ALL drugs alter our natural state of being?
Did You Know?
The ‘War on Drugs’ was declared by President Nixon in 1971.
The ‘War on Drugs’ focused on prohibiting drug use, possession, production and trafficking.
The Lancet state that the ‘War on Drugs’, have fostered lethal drug overdoses, high incarceration rates, and the spread of HIV, Hepatitis C, and Tuberculosis among drug users and prison populations.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons say 46 percent of all federal prisoners are behind bars for drug offences.
Globally, about 21 percent of all prisoners were incarcerated for drug-related crimes in 2014.
World leaders now agree that the ‘War on Drugs’ has failed.
183,000 drug related deaths were reported (2012).
162 – 324 million people have used an illicit drug (2012).
16 – 39 million people are deemed to have a ‘problem’ with drugs.
Current World Heroin consumption is 340 tons.
Cocaine – 671 tons were seized globally (2012).
Amphetamine type stimulants – 144 tons were seized globally (2012).
Cannabis – 5,350 tons were seized globally (2012).
The value of cocaine in West Africa that passes through each year actually exceeds the value of annual foreign direct investment flows into the region.
Legal Highs are psychoactive drugs that contain various chemical ingredients.
As of 26 May 2016 Legal Highs are now illegal in the UK.
Legal Highs were sold in head shops.
Possession of a psychoactive substance is only an offence inside prison.
Supply, production, possession with intent to supply and importation or exportation of a psychoactive substance now brings a prison sentence of up to 7 years (UK).
The UK has the highest number of Legal High users among young people in Europe.
Can we agree it is 2016, so these figures are probably a lot higher now?
If world leaders are saying that the war on drugs has failed – could it be because War is not the answer?
Could it be possible our approach needs to Change?
Did we know almost every country in the world is affected by drug abuse and illicit trafficking?
Hello – are we getting this world, this is huge and it sure is not going away.
How did we as the advanced intelligent species on this earth get to this state?
What about those who think it is OK to produce and supply drugs?
What about Trafficking in Fraudulent Medicine?
Big business now with the Internet and gaps in legal and regulatory frameworks.
UNODC say “the prospect of the comparatively low risk of detection and prosecution in relation to the potential income make the production and trafficking of fraudulent medicines an attractive commodity to criminal groups who conduct their activities with little regard to the physical and financial detriment, if not the exploitation of others.”
So this business is a licence to make money at low risk.
- Have we lost our moral compass?
- Do we think it is ok to make money above human life?
- What if this was one of our own family members?
- Do we think it is a problem that will go away one day?
So all the above confirms we do not know the root cause of why we have a global drug problem that is escalating out of control.
Why have we stopped asking Questions?
Illicit trafficking is not just drugs but also about people.
Have we heard of Human Trafficking?
You can call it Modern Day Slavery because that is exactly what it is.
What is Human Trafficking? See World Day Against Trafficking in Persons – 30th July.
https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-human-trafficking-day
Our article on Modern Slavery was posted on 25 July 2016.
Could there be a simple answer?
A wise man of our current times says –
“Our worldwide drug problem begins at home and at school.
We are not CONNECTING to and with our young. Therefore, and at some point, the void seeks to be filled as the vacancy can no longer be sustained.
Certain laws, counselling and rehabilitation are great solutions but the answer will be found in CONNECTION, and with that comes good-old true love.” ~ Serge Benhayon c.2002
What is Serge Benhayon saying here?
Could it be that Simple?
Could it be possible that this applies to all of us?
Could it be possible that Connection is what is missing?
Is Connection simply meeting our children for who they are and not what they do?
Could it be possible if our children found Connection at home and school in their early days, that would be enough?
Is Serge Benhayon saying that ‘good-old true love’ which does not have an ounce of emotional love is what is needed?
Could this be the reason why we find a way to fill up the void?
Could our way, our drug so to speak be Gambling? Shopping? Alcohol? Food? Porn? or other Distractions?
Simple Living Global are dedicated to humanity by bringing more awareness and keeping up to date with what is really going on in our world.
It will need a few more blogs to cover the damage that drugs do – not only to our body but to all those in our family, community, country and the world.
The following links give the reader a deeper insight into the actual drug and we will keep on publishing more to add to our Treatise called The Real Truth about Drugs.
Simple Living Global is committed to using this platform to bring a greater awareness when it comes to the illicit world of Drugs.
Marijuana
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-marijuana/
Amphetamines
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-amphetamines/
Spice
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-spice/
Opioids – Part 1
https://simplelivingglobal.com/opioids-part-1/
Cocaine
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-cocaine/
Heroin
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-heroin/
References
(1) (2016). Listen First
https://www.unodc.org/listenfirst/en/index.html
(2) (2016). A Brief History of the Drug War
http://www.drugpolicy.org/new-solutions-drug-policy/brief-history-drug-war
(3) Krans, B. (2016, April 8). ‘War on Drugs’ Campaign is a Failure, U.N Report Concludes
http://www.healthline.com/health-news/war-on-drugs-a-failure-un-concludes#5
(4) (2016, April 22). The Global War on Drugs is a Failure
http://www.kcrw.com/news-culture/shows/to-the-point/the-global-war-on-drugs-is-a-failure
(5) United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). World Drug Report. New York, 2014 http://www.unodc.org/documents/wdr2014/World_Drug_Report_2014_web.pdf
(6) (2016). Drug Trafficking
https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/drug-trafficking/index.html
(7) West African Commission on Drugs. Not Just in Transit: Drugs, the State, and Society in West Africa. Dakar: West African Commission on Drugs, 2014, p.21 https://www.unodc.org/documents/ungass2016/Contributions/IO/WACD_report_June_2014_english.pdf
(8) Home Office and Bradley, K. (2016, May 26). Trade in So-Called ‘Legal Highs’ Now Illegal
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/trade-in-so-called-legal-highs-now-illegal
(9) (2016, May 26). What Exactly Are Legal Highs?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32857256
(10) (2016).Trafficking in Fraudulent Medicine
https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/fraudulentmedicines/introduction.html
Comments 168
The desperation that aches inside a person bereft of true love – not the emotional kind of love – but the type written and felt in this blog post – hurts and hurts. Quite simply to avoid all of the pain and not feel it this hurt has to be dampened down, eradicated – simply stopped. I know this as I chose to use drugs under the guise of ‘good and fun times’ with others of the same ilk in order to avoid what we were feeling. We were not in control of who we were – we were altered beings that had managed to, for a short time, dull the pain of life and continued to experiment and abuse all manner of substances to not FEEL. For me I realised one day that life was not supposed to be this way – not for me and with the true and deep support of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine – discovered that the majority of the whole world out there is walking with similar hurts and pain. Bringing clear and simple language to what is truly going on is Simple Living Global’s forte, this website will support many to see that there is a different way.
How many like you Lee Green ‘chose to use drugs’ for fun times and as you say it was, to avoid what you were feeling. So here you are, a real life story talking about how drugs dull the pain of life and altered your natural state.
So many in our world are suffering and billions spent on our drug problems globally is not really making any changes.
We at Simple Living Global feel the figures quoted are not accurate as so much around this subject is hidden and not ready available for the statisticians.
This blog, the first in a series about drugs is to bring more awareness and trust that those reading will start to ask questions. As you say Lee there is a different way and our very first blog on this site was called “Is there Another way?”
Lee, you’ve really hit the nail on the head: looking for ‘good and fun times’. Me too. What’s jumping out at me reading this blog is how WE have contributed to the global ills tied up with drugs. It’s a bit like the law of complicity: if you were with the murderer and did nothing to stop them then you are complicit in the crime. Same for us: those who dabble for ‘good and fun times’ are equally complicit in the human toll on all its levels – from the production to the smuggling to the overdoses. We KNOW the impact of drugs on the world (from the class As to the class Bs and beyond, however ‘harmless’ they seem) and we said yes to that. This is not to say we should punish ourselves, but to take responsibility for our part making up the whole and to take that into how we choose to live now, going forward.
Yes, another thing in our world that has been around so long we just take as normal. If the ‘war on drugs’ is not working, do something else. Many people understand that the solution, is changing our society so drug use [legal and illegal] is not required to cope. Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine has suggested a way that worked for me.
The thing is Ken Elmer they are ‘doing something else’ now as the war on drugs is not working but what is very clear is nothing seems to be working as our drug problem is globally out of control.
What this blog is presenting is another way and it really is super simple and what you are confirming is that it does work and you are living proof. So here we have you, applying the simplicity of the teachings of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine and you no longer are a drug user. A powerfull claim that is the Truth and a confirmation that there is another way.
Yes Ken things as they are really are not working.
On 14th July, Jeremy Vine on BBC Radio 2 had a phone in on Chemsex.
Chemsex is where people use drugs as part of sexual activity. The drugs are usually GHB/GBL, Mephadrone and Crystal Meth.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40597941
The UK Government are working on a strategy to deal with New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), Chemsex drugs and the misuse of prescription medication.
This was announced on 14th July, hence the radio phone-in.
Listeners heard real life stories of people as young as 16 using Chemsex.
Without reading this blog by Simple Living Global, I would have been very emotional listening to this program.
HOWEVER I was able to listen with understanding pondering, whilst listening, on the possibility that it is because our young are not being connected to at home and at school that is the cause of our worldwide drug problem.
What if this were true and we took this onboard and interacted with our young through placing connection first? Meeting them for who they truly are – not for anything that they do?
Could this change the direction of the current statistics and reduce the numbers of drug users and drug-related deaths?
What if the power to change this is really in all of our hands?
I used to use drugs, drink alcohol and indulge in food and other activities because I was so uncomfortable being in my skin and it was considered ‘normal’. I suffered with mental illness and a constant anxiety as I knew I was not ‘truly living MY life’… Since finding and embracing the true support and honest, Living examples (true role models in Universal Medicine) of what it is like to live Lovingly I have lost all my desires to check out, I don’t even want sugar or dairy anymore (2 things I was seriously dependent on) and I am no longer considered normal!…
Hey world, how are you feeling?…you are uncomfortable with my choices but I have never been so good to myself, I never made all the loving choices I’m making today, I never felt able to be myself as I do now without any need to escape myself or my situations so is it possible that our norm has gone way off and away from what true love and real connection are?
What you say here Jo about how our world considers drugs, alcohol and indulging in food as ‘normal’ is what is creating so much illness and dis-ease in our bodies.
We need to get to the Why question if we are to see real change. Why does someone take drugs or use alcohol? They were not born with the need so when did it start and what happened?
I have enough experience to claim that those who take drugs and alcohol and or consume food way beyond what they need or what their body wants is because something happened to them. What we tend to do is focus on the problem and never address the root cause.
One day humanity will realise there is no real true change unless we go to the root cause. Universal Medicine are leaders when it comes to this and my life has had a complete turnaround because of their teachings.
Nowhere else have we been presented with the real answer as to why people take drugs. If anything most of us judge drug users and have very little understanding, or little willingness to understand. This blog brings in the understanding and also asks us to consider whether our drug is the gambling, shopping, food, alcohol, porn and the many other distractions that we use; seeing that these are no different to or better than illicit drugs – if connection is what we’re truly seeking.
I agree with you Shevon as in my experience it is clear that very few have a deep understanding or non judgement about why people use drugs to alter their natural state. Why stop at illicit drugs when we have legalised drugs life caffeine and alcohol which we know also alters your state of being. Then as you say what about our ‘fix’ that society accepts as food, shopping, gambling to name a few. Imagine taking all that away and we stand a chance of seeing what the real ill is behind our additions.
So much time and money is wasted and yet we have not got closer to the truth and things are certainly getting worse.
This blog and what it has to say is a wake up call bringing awareness to humanity.
Your blog highlights a lot of questions that aren’t being answered by those in authority. If world leaders are saying that the war on drugs has failed, maybe they need to start looking at different approaches in stopping the drug trade. The quote by Serge Benhayon seems to be a very logical, practical and very simple beginning to looking at the issues of why drug use is so prevalent. This sounds like a very simple answer and asks the question of why this approach hasn’t been used. There are always going to be those that produce and sell the drugs but if the youth are met for who they truly are and no longer need to check out, then eventually it will get to a point when there will be no demand for these harmful substances.
You make a great point here Tim Bowyer about another way that Serge Benhayon has clearly presented. Nothing else is working and nothing seems to be changing.
This ‘logical, practical and very simple beginning to looking at the issues of why drug use is so prevalent’ is a simple answer.
We all know that our world thrives on complication and making things ultra complex and you miss the point. What simplicity brings in is a fresh new approach that has not yet been ‘tried and tested’ but gives us a real answer. The amount of monies spent in trying to end the drug wars is not working but if we start at the youth we got a chance. In time as you state it will ‘get to a point when there will be no demand’ and that is our answer.
Why do we report it as melodramatic when news reports reveal the real stories of what is happening on the streets and with everday people? Why do we switch off?
We like to think that it is just the minority that have problems with drugs, for example, and so think that we don’t have anything to do with it if we are not drug users, but that is not the case. If it’s not happening on my watch or in my backyard let’s be honest most of us are not interested.
This is where this website is different as it has the utmost dedication to humanity. It is committed to presenting the Truth on matters that we like to bury our head in the sand about.
We ALL have a responsibility and every time that we put – getting ahead above connecting with people – we have contributed just as much to the harm being caused.
Good point you make here Shevon about why we like to think it is just the minority that have problems with drugs.
A new comment from Simple Living Global today on our Real Truth about Amphetamines
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-raw-truth-about-amphetamines/
responding to a comment talking about party organisers who have drugs as the central theme. Hold on – these are not the drug addicts we all picture in our minds, but the ‘well heeled’ people who have jobs and are good citizens going for extreme hard stuff.
Could it be possible that our statistics are no where near the real life true figures as this type of stuff is never going to make it to statistics?
What if some of these people are in powerful positions and cannot be challenged?
Is this why things are escalating and out of control with substance abuse?
Are those who can bring about change too afraid to speak up?
We all know the fate of whistleblowers and is this why we hold back when it comes to TRUTH?
There is currently a War on Drugs in the Phillippines.
Over the last few months there have been a lot of reports in the news about the mass killings that are happening of those that are involved in drug dealing, are drug users and any criminals. The killings are happening by police and ‘vigilante groups’ in the Phillippines.
The numbers that have been killed between 1st July 2016 and 3rd October 2016 were at least 3,600, see this article https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/04/philippines-secret-death-squads-police-officer-teams-behind-killings?client=safari
Wiping people out is clearly not the answer.
So is it about connection and ‘good-old true love’ as Serge Benhayon is saying?
This man said this in 2002.
Why is it that 14 years later the problems with drugs are steadily increasing worldwide?
Why are we choosing to not take notice?
I agree Shevon that “wiping people out” (ongoing mass murder) has not solved our drug problems… so we can allow this hell to keep going endlessly, (‘business as usual’) or we can consider the simple, more revealing question that implicates us all in our worlds problems AND in the true solution to them; why have we not been working to make life about love above anything else?
I know I can’t wait for the world to choose love… I need to choose it now and know I am part of a new trend which will eventually lead to a differently motivated world.
Taking drugs is ‘normal’ for so many; no big deal.
Then you just have read this blog and the statistics to see what LIES we tell ourselves.
It’s like a less dramatic version of putting your fingers over your eyes while watching a horror movie.
The horror movie is still playing right there for all to see if we choose to look.
There is currently a call for medical professionals to use their positions to reform the way that drug users are dealt with, from punishment to more focus on treatment.
‘Health should be at the centre of this debate.’ is what one group of researchers have said:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/314120.php
This call is letting us know that we as a humanity are waking up to the fact that there is more to dealing with drug problems than locking someone up.
There is much wisdom being presented in this blog and even our medical profession would benefit as there could be another way and it starts with a true connection to our inner-most self.
Could it be that simple?
Shevon’s research shows that the war on drugs has not worked as drug use only keeps increasing. People in the field are asking to try a different approach:
“…at a UN general assembly in April, many countries asked for health and human right to be prioritized over punitive responses.”
It is utter common sense to me to go to the root of a problem.
Drug use is an end player, a symptom of unhappiness of some kind,
so, imagine if we invested in understanding this and addressing the lack of connection, intimacy, support and true care in the lives of those who have turned to drugs?
This has been done in small studies with huge success already… so what are we waiting for?
The use of synthetic cannabinoids called spice (what was known as ‘Legal Highs’) has very high use with people who are homeless, with one city in the U.K. reported to have 80-95% of homeless people dependent on them.
http://bit.ly/2iP8Xtk
In the same article, The Conversation report that the New Psychoactive Substances Act making these ‘Legal Highs’ illegal could be increasing both the street market and cost of the drug.
This link about one country confirms what some of us already know and feel is happening globally.
https://www.j2dw.ca/2017/01/what-you-dont-know-about-substance-abuse-in-the-workplace/
This article is saying that many workplace ‘substance abuse issue’ related costs are hidden.
Substance abuse in the workplace can have a significant impact on mental health at work.
Addictions and mental health conditions are often related. This is called a concurrent disorder.
Alcohol is a socially accepted part of everyday life with 80% consuming alcohol in Canada.
This country associates drinking with pleasurable social, community or workplace events such as festivals, sports or workplace parties.
Alcohol and drug abuse among employees and their family members can be an expensive problem for workplaces causing significant issues such as:
Loss of Productivity
Absenteeism
Injuries
Decreased Employee morale
Increase in Health Care costs
Legal Liabilities
Employees’ Compensation costs
THE COST OF DRUG ABUSE – $8,000,000,000
COST OF ALCOHOL ABUSE – $14,000,000,000
3 million risk acute illness from Alcohol
4.5 million risk chronic conditions like Cancer and Liver Disease
3,000 children approx. born with an alcohol abuse syndrome per year
47,000 deaths are linked to substance abuse annually
So here we have a snapshot of one country in our world where most of them accept Alcohol as the normal part of everyday life. Can we join the dots and see WHY they have alcohol and drug abuse statistics as quoted above?
Could the $26.3 million annually provided by this Government’s Substance Use and Addictions Program go to better use instead of prevention and treatment initiatives?
Are we in an endless cycle trying to keep up with the demand and supply chain?
In other words, more money is going to be needed as the age for addiction seems to be getting younger and younger.
Who is writing the eight schedules for this Federal drug control statue that include laws for substance abuse in the Controlled Drug and Substance Act?
Yes, it is a super important policy by the Federal Government.
Are the ‘numerous strategies’ to cope with the substance abuse the real answer?
Are we willing to at least consider the possibility that there may be another way?
WHY are we so afraid to stand up and challenge all of this legal stuff?
Who are the policy makers and who is writing the Laws about alcohol, a scientific proven poison?
WHY does there seem to be no research or funding to find the root cause of WHY someone chooses to abuse, assault, attack and harm their body with poisons like drugs and alcohol?
What is going on at the start point where we take our first sip, smoke, sniff or snort?
Have we bothered to stop and consider with our common sense hat on that if we drink alcohol even if it is just the odd glass of wine or beer with the boys – are we able to then write TRUE LAW and bring about real change?
If our employer – the bigwigs in the CEO, Presidents, Directors and other top positions are doing alcohol and the odd bit of drugs – could they honestly have the authority or true power to tell their employees – testing for alcohol and drugs is mandatory?
Is this making sense?
In other words, do we say it is ok to drink poison ‘responsibly’ because we are still doing it as it suits us but at the same time come down on others who have a bigger problem than us?
Or do we start to question what on earth is going on as well researched blogs like this are spelling out the REAL TRUTH ABOUT DRUGS AND ALCOHOL.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-alcohol/
Is it time to Get Real and Get Honest so we can get to the Truth.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/get-real-get-honest-and-get-to-truth/
Alcohol and Drugs alter our natural state and there is no getting away from this immutable fact.
I agree SLG – great comment. I also found these stats – from Alcohol Concern – https://www.alcoholconcern.org.uk/alcohol-statistics which are also eye popping:
“Alcohol is 10% of the UK burden of disease and death, making alcohol one of the three biggest lifestyle risk factors for disease and death in the UK, after smoking and obesity
An estimated 7.5 million people are unaware of the damage their drinking could be causing
Alcohol related harm costs England around £21bn per year, with £3.5bn to the NHS, £11bn tackling alcohol-related crime and £7.3bn from lost work days and productivity costs”
Alcohol and drugs are running riot in our lives and causing havoc in our world today.
I see how rife alcohol abuse is in the corporate world. It is so the norm that people can’t even see there is a problem. With alcohol as the foundation for every work gathering, lubricating conversation, removing awkwardness and defining what it means to have a good time. And with senior folks leading the way, it can be hard for those who don’t feel to drink. I choose not to drink and I am seeing a quiet revolution in places I work: people choosing to abstain, to not feel judged, to honour what feels right for their bodies and not to get carried along with the peer pressure. To me, that’s the true definition of drinking responsibly.
Reading these comments and statistics makes it clear to me that we need a very clear perspective to get us out of the mess of drugs and alcohol and this means brave voices from those who are not seeing it through rose-(wine)-colored-glasses because alcohol is currently still part of their personal ‘support’ system. With objectivity it is clear that even the occasional glass of red wine is not true ‘support’ but part of a very deeply harming greater issue; that being a very clouded communal vision of what alcohol is really doing in our lives.
Jo, I feel you have redefined OBJECTIVITY here. What you say about being able to have a very clear perspective means not allowing our perspective to be clouded, diluted or tainted with that which we are trying objectively to assess.
It works for politicians and the level of integrity they are living every day in order to do their jobs with integrity. It works with health professionals and the level of true self care they are bringing in order to care for another. It works with journalists and the level of truth they are living in order to bring truth in their writing. It works with those in organisations opining on what we should do about drug and alcohol abuse in order to bring an un-polluted view to their advice. It works with those making our laws and the level to which they can bring forward laws unbiased by their own choices or our ‘very clouded communal vision’.
ITV news have reported that prisoners in a U.K. prison are being provided with leaflets that have guidance on how to take Spice ‘safely’. Spice is a New Psychoactive Substance.
http://www.itv.com/news/granada/2017-02-16/prisoners-given-leaflets-on-how-to-take-spice-safely/
Somehow we have accepted that this is the best that we can expect when dealing with drug use – harm minimisation. But in Truth what is this really saying?
Is this the best that we can hope for -that people will use drugs so we might as well teach them how to do it safely?
This reminds me of the old adage ‘If you can’t beat ’em join ’em.’ which really means we have given up on finding the truth and root cause of any situation.
It is high time that we started to dig dig and be open to asking more questions in order to find out why drug use is so prevalent.
Settling for what we have accepted thus far is not addressing the issue.
Having any drug leaflet on how to take drugs ‘safely’ is not the answer if we use our common sense.
Spice is lethal and one day it will be known and this website is saying it now before our Real Truth about Psychoactive drugs blog comes out.
Drugs are killing us and there is not just the cost of human life. What about ALL those who are affected by those who take drugs?
Could it be possible that we are not ready to challenge those who keep coming up with new laws and policy making which is not really getting to the root cause of WHY anyone wants to alter their natural state artificially.
WHY are we so afraid of the truth and how long can we keep pretending that we are on top of it when everywhere around us is telling us we are not?
Thank you Simple Living Global.
Some occupations are reported to have huge drug problems amongst staff.
In USA (2008-2012) – Accommodation and Food Services (Hospitality) had 16.9% full-time staff with substance misuse disorders.
This was the industry with the highest rate.
In the same period the construction industry was 2nd with 14.3% of employees having substance use disorders.
http://www.equipmentworld.com/hard-hat-high-how-substance-abuse-endangers-construction-workers-hurts-recruiting-and-threatens-your-bottom-line-part-1/
There is a very frank interview with the the construction company president – GE Johnson on illicit drug use in this article too.
In any job we need to be bright, alert, sharp, awake and astute so that we can deliver a good quality service and avoid errors.
We all know that illicit substances change our natural state. It’s easy to describe someone as ‘not being themselves’ when they are under the influence of drugs as our behaviour become irratic. So why do we think that this is the answer to any difficulties that we may be having in life?
I have seen professionals lose their jobs and develop serious health conditions as a result of drug use.
Drugs have so many ill effects – why has their use become our go to pill? If we are honest we can all agree that as babies and children we would never naturally go to drugs to deal with any distress or dis-ease, so their use cannot be natural, no matter how much we try to justify it.
What about real medicine as in the way that we walk, talk, live and breathe through life?
Why is this not our first port of call when things get rough?
What happened to the natural boundless joy and energy we had as children, that we now accept a false energy in its place through illicit substances and stimulants?
This is a great link for anyone interested in knowing that the story shared about a construction worker on marijuana now in prison for manslaughter is not an isolated case.
Thank you Shevon for bringing this to our awareness.
Before we go pointing the finger or judging anyone, we need to stop and put our understanding hat on. People just don’t just wake up one day and start smoking pot.
Something is going on for them and they go to smoke their weed because it supports them to forget and numb what is really going on for them.
So we can go around blaming or doing whatever we do but nothing will change until we get to the root cause of WHY someone does any drug in the first place.
Could it be possible that unless we are stimulant and drug free in our own body, we may just have a blind spot and not detect anything in another?
In other words we are doing mind altering substances which of course are legal like caffeine, sugar and alcohol and this affects our ability to see clearly in another what is going on. Worth pondering on this.
http://www.wvgazettemail.com/gazette-op-ed-commentaries/20170226/michael-r-brumage-adverse-childhoods-affecting-our-drug-obesity-problems
Check this news report from West Virginia Health Chief.
Here are some highlights –
Our attempts at solutions have focused on proximate causes:
anti-drugs campaigns, smoking cessation and obesity reduction, among others.
Effective preventive solutions have evaded us because we have failed to ask the right questions.
All of our public health problems are demand-driven and so it should come as no surprise that supply-restricting solutions inevitably fail without addressing the demand side of the equation.
The question we have not asked is – “What is missing in peoples’ lives that they turn to drugs, alcohol, food and tobacco for relief?”
The answer is complex. Meaning and purpose come from a sense of being connected to something greater than yourself and your thoughts. Drugs, alcohol, food and tobacco are common denominators that people use for temporary relief when they lose this sense of connection, but they have damaging long-term consequences. Poverty and adverse childhood experiences play major roles in this vicious cycle.
Dr. Michael R. Brumage – Executive Director and Chief Health Officer
Kanawha-Charleston Health Department
So here we have a bigwig who is actually asking the question that Simple Living Global presents all the time –
What is missing that makes someone go to substances that harm?
He talks about CONNECTION – the very thing we have been saying.
It is high time we paid attention to blogs like this and our medical professionals like Dr. Michael Brumage who are onto something because what is clear is our current way of dealing with these global issues is not cutting it.
Is there another way?
https://simplelivingglobal.com/is-there-another-way/
So this blog has some facts like, the War on Drugs was declared in 1971.
Then World Leaders are saying now that the War on Drugs has failed.
If we just applied some common sense it would be true to say that the reason we have the illegal drug trade going on is because there is a demand. We can make it the law and stop them but it then drives the whole thing underground, in the dark world, which we all know is going on under our watch.
We can catch the criminals and lock them up, yet so far this has not really resolved the issue as things are getting worse.
Would it be wise to at least consider –
Are we looking at this the wrong way or is our approach so far failing because let’s face it, things have got really bad?
I say we listen to this wise man called Serge Benhayon who seems to have the answers for us to get to the root cause. That way we can get our younger generation sorted and eventually see an end to our out of control world drug epidemic.
Metro – 28th April 2017
There has been a surge in the number of pensioners who are now drug addicts. This is being blamed partly on those who first started taking hard drugs in the 1980’s. The information is said to have come from Public Health England.
We often say that people will grow out of using drugs or hope that this is the case, but clearly these latest statistics are letting us know that this is not always what happens.
Could the lack of connection that Serge Benhayon speaks of that starts at home and at school still be with our elderly?
Will we keep continuing to see the rise in the use of illicit drugs, until we choose to RE-CONNECT with ourselves and each other?
Could this be the missing piece?
An article in the Washington Post talks about how one drug company has helped to fuel an opioid crisis in Florida but the government cannot hold it accountable due to uncertain legal territory and stiff resistance from the company:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/classic-apps/major-dea-opioid-case-falters-on-uncertain-legal-ground/2017/04/02/fc258688-e24f-11e6-a453-19ec4b3d09ba_story.html?utm_term=.b414ff7bcc85
The government asserts that the company failed in its responsibility to support the suspicious order of over 500 million pills of oxycodone between 2008 and 2012, which was 66% of all oxycodone pills sold in the state.
The government states that the investigation into internal documents could have resulted in 44,000 federal violations and incurred fines of $2.3bn but after six years of investigations that spanned five states, the government has taken no legal action.
The drug company concerned has tentatively agreed to a settlement with federal prosecutors to pay a $35m fine and admit to no wrongdoing.
The company’s response was that “everyone knew what was going on in Florida but they had no duty to report it”
A former law enforcement official said, “They weren’t taking this seriously, and people were dying. People were dying all over the place.”
Lets look at the path of a pill:
1. The company makes the pill
2. They send it to the distributors
3. The distributors then send it to the retailers (pharmacies/Hospitals)
4. The retailers then sell to the public
The problem for the law enforcement officials in this case was to find out who was responsible.
The company was willing to acknowledge its responsibility to report suspicious large orders but they said they shouldn’t be held responsible once the distributors had the drugs.
Another law enforcement official said, “When you get to manufacturing level, its hard to prove that they knew what was happening. But they were making the product, they were selling it to the country’s largest distributors, and they had a responsibility under the law to detect and report orders that were suspicious. These orders were beyond suspicious.”
This is a good question of where does responsibility actually start and finish.
Is it possible that IT IS the company’s responsibility from manufacturing the drug right down to the person taking the drug?
Since 2000, nearly 180,000 people have died due to opioid overdoses in the USA.
Is it possible that company’s profit margins are being made more important than human lives?
As with everything in life that we don’t like, it is easy to point the finger and blame but…
Is it possible that we ALL have a part to play in where the responsibility lies?
Reading a news story on 19 May 2017 about a couple that staged their baby’s death.
Both were drug addicts and the baby had ‘fractured skull and brain injuries likened to those from a road crash or a fall from a first floor window’.
How serious is this and does the prison sentence of 11 years really deal with the situation?
Are we as a world ready to admit that something is not right when someone takes drugs of any kind as it alters their natural state?
Would anyone in their right mind ever harm a tiny baby who is super fragile and precious?
What is it about drug taking that makes us lose sight of our innate caring and loving ways?
Could it be possible that if we allow any form of abuse (in this case drugs) to enter our own body, we lose our own moral compass of what is not abuse – ie. What is truth and what is not?
Next – do we need to stop at this case and start asking some more questions –
Why do we lock them up and do rehabilitation but not question the root cause?
In other words WHY are these people taking drugs?
What was going on in their childhoods that led to the death of their baby?
What happened to them that led them to taking drugs in the first place?
What makes anyone want to take substances that alter who they truly are?
How do we end the cycle of abuse once and for All?
https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2017/mar/11/drug-addiction-alcohol-treatment-local-authority-funding-cuts?CMP=oth_b-aplnews_d-2
The Guardian – 11 March 2017
Drug Addiction isn’t going away so why are treatment centres being slashed?
This news article was written by Anonymous as they work in a treatment centre in the UK where council funding has been cut by 42% since 2010.
“our caseloads are out of control”.
Worth reading this as you get a brief on what is really going on.
So heroin is out these days with fewer numbers and Alcohol and party drugs like methamphetamine and ketamine are in.
However, the heroin users require more attention as they get older and sicker.
“They often have hepatitis C, smoke tobacco and succumb to liver and lung diseases as a consequence.”
“We are left to manage a host of intractable problems that we are not qualified or able to deal with.”
They are vulnerable people with complex needs and demand for our support is increasing”.
So how are we dealing with this serious problem of drugs which is only part of the bigger issue mentioned in this story?
“Addiction services are often retendered with contracts being awarded to the cheapest bidder.”
“I have friends who have left this sector feeling demoralized and burnt out”.
Enough said – it would be true to say that those making decisions are not connected to the stuff going on in our streets. In other words the real raw reality of what is actually happening.
We can sit and blame our government and politicians or anyone in a position of power or we can get our hands dirty by getting right in there where we can and do our bit.
Too many of us give up at the thought of helping another, or even questioning what on earth is going on with alcohol and drug related problems off the scale.
I for one cannot hold back, sit on the fence, seek comfort in my old life, which was utter distractions. Instead I have dealt with my buried issues and hurts and have not had alcohol for over a decade.
Instead I choose to study, learn and write to bring more awareness to our world in my spare time.
Doing nothing and pointing the finger is no longer an option. Getting on with it – is.
We all have a hand in the ills we have created on Earth and it’s high time we done something, so we can get out of it without blaming and judging others.
An article in the BBC News, 29th June 2017, talks about ‘Albanian gangs ‘controlling’ UK drug trafficking market.’
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said it was increasingly concerned by what it called the Albanians’ “high-profile influence within UK organized crime.”
Criminal gangs from other countries is nothing new as there has been, for a long time, other countries influence on organized crime.
The Albanian gangs are emerging as a “significant threat” and have particular influence on the cocaine market.
Officials said the gangs were characterized by their readiness to resort to serious violence.
The deputy director of the NCA said “Its very much a group that’s small in number but big in impact. We have seen an emergence of violence, particularly around enforcing the drug trade, in this group.”
The report also states that the corruption among staff at ports and airports was a “key vulnerability” as it made it easier for gangs to smuggle in drugs and bring in illegal immigrants.
The corruption is not just limited to port and airport staff. It encompasses a huge range of sectors and professional enablers, from bank insiders, accountants and delivery drivers.
One can only speculate as to how far up the corruption goes but with the large sums of money involved in organized crime, the incentives are huge.
The world is not as big as it used to be.
Gone are the days of the local gangs like the Kray’s or the Richardson’s.
Yes violence has always been part of gang culture but the incidence of extreme violence is on the rise.
It seems to get noticed these days you have to go one better, or in this case, one worse, than the other gang.
So, what can we do?
Do we wait around until they all kill themselves, which will never happen because there will always be someone to take their place, or do we start to look at the demand for these drugs?
Whose responsibility is it?
Governments?
Law enforcement?
Everyone’s?
Is it possible that the only reason there is a drug trade is because we, the average person on the street, needs it?
Is it possible that if we looked at why we need a substance that alters our natural state, there would be no need for drugs and therefore there will be no need to have drug gangs?
As like any business, the drug trade is governed by supply and demand…We always have a choice!!
An article in The Economist – 24th – 30th June 2017, pp. 39 – 40 on adoptions and foster care in the USA was an enlightening read.
Basically there has been a decrease in the number of babies up for adoption, BUT the numbers needing foster care has increased.
So what has that got to do with drug abuse and illicit trafficking?
One reason for the decline in adoptions has been the fact that adopting from abroad has become harder.
Due to corruption and child trafficking scandals, adoptions from countries like Guatemala have been stopped.
However the number of foster placements needed have increased due to the opiod epidemic. The mis-use of prescription painkillers and the use of heroin have become the SECOND MOST COMMON CAUSE for a child’s removal from their parents. The first is neglect.
Whilst the intention is for birth parents and their children to be reunited, the article states that only about a quarter of parents in this scenario are.
So we are in a perpetual cycle.
Could it be as Serge Benhayon is presenting that we are not connecting with our young and so they grow up to be the adults who are addicted to drugs; they have children, there is a lack of connection and the whole cycle continues?
Do we need to look at EVERYTHING and RE-EXAMINE HUMAN LIFE if we truly want to get to the root cause of why drug addiction is rapidly increasing?
Do our forms of research need to go much deeper and wider asking questions as to the cause of societal issues rather than settling for just relationships between factors? Yes there is an increase in foster placements, Yes it’s to do with the use of opioids but WHY?
There are many more questions FOR US ALL to deeply consider.
The Week – Issue 1135 dated 29 July 2017
Indonesia has a ‘narcotics emergency’ and the president has urged police to shoot dead drug traffickers who resist arrest, especially foreign drug dealers.
They are insisting this is not advocating a shoot-to-kill policy as was the case in the Philippines, where there was an anti-drugs crusade last year which led to thousands of drug dealers and suspected drug dealers, being killed.
Are any of our solutions really working when it comes to drug crime?
Are we on the front foot and if we think we are why are things getting worse?
Have we stopped to question why drug traffickers have business in the first place?
Have we considered the supply and demand and what that actually means?
In other words, there has to be a demand if there is to be a supply in the first place.
We can keep killing the drug traffickers but this will not end the crisis as those who want drugs will find another way.
What we all need to do is stop, really stop and admit nothing is working and there has to be another way.
Looking at nailing this long-term, we need to start now with real education from an early age stating the facts and all that Simple Living Global are presenting on this website about drugs, health and well-being.
We then need to help those on drugs and get to the root cause of WHY anyone chooses to take drugs in the first place.
Enough research has been done and spending more of our money to confirm what we all know, simply makes no sense.
What does make sense is that we as a world need to unite and wake up – we have created a world fuelled with drugs and the impact is now in our face more than ever.
Nothing is working and it is time to turn to those, like the founder of this website who not only has first hand experience with drug users but plenty of knowledge to back up what is needed now to turn the tides.
We are not born addicted to drugs.
Something happens and then we make a choice, an ill choice.
We have a responsibility to find out what happened and get to the root cause and if not, things will continue escalating. No amount of research or solutions are going to get us on the front foot of the drug crisis.
Nothing is working dear governments and policymakers, so why not be open to what this blog is presenting?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-40935150
BBC news – 15 August 2017
The number of drug related deaths in Scotland rose by 23% in 2016.
Statistics from the National Records of Scotland showed –
70% of deaths were among people aged 35 or over
88% of the deaths were related to the taking of opiates or opioids
55% involved heroin and or morphine
49% were linked to benzodiazepines like diazepam
The minister for public health, Aileen Campbell is saying the drug problem in Scotland is complex and there is an ageing group of people who are long term drugs users. They have a pattern of addiction which is very difficult to break and they have developed other chronic medical conditions as a result of prolonged drug use.
The scale of the problem was a ‘national tragedy that requires a fundamental rethink of our approach’ – David Liddell, chief executive, Scottish Drugs Forum
What are we – the general public on the street going to do with these statistics?
What would we do if we were asked to come up and rethink another approach?
Are we going to simply accept this as another news story or are we going to start talking about it?
We all know nothing will ever change unless we demand answers and ask our governments to put research and funding into WHY anyone takes drugs in the first place?
Without this important factor we will never get to the root cause and no amount of prevention, rehab, education, treatment and enforcement is going to bring those figures down, once and for all and this is not rocket science.
Is a strategy or a solution or high quality treatment going to do the job?
What about the families that are suffering as a result of someone with drug addiction?
What about the human being with a story that is behind every statistic?
What are we missing and what is it that we are not learning as things are getting worse?
Do we need to have a nation who is going to have a big AGM and get us all talking and asking questions and using common sense at the core of any communication?
Do we care enough to at least start discussing this at every opportunity with anyone and everyone so that others are in the loop about what is really going on?
How are we as the most intelligent species on this earth going to deal with our rise in drug related deaths as nothing so far is working?
More on the US opioid crisis that has got me thinking about supply and demand.
http://news.theweek.co.uk/optiext/optiextension.dll?ID=KghKdmsVXW3PPLAO2Hu4HCUc1bWVqKY0lOrFEaKwHjvIYLk0SHRw%2BQhRH%2BYCTSz3i2DLUrmQeX0wofRtYhK1LrrxXdHCy
The US has declared a state of national emergency.
Opioid overdoses are now killing more than gun crime and car accidents put together: 90 Americans are dying every day.
In some states the problem is so bad that coroners are running out of space to store dead bodies.
650,000 more people are expected to die of opioid abuse over the next 10 years.
The biggest killers are heroin and prescription painkillers like oxycodone, plus potent synthetics like fentanyl.
Analysis suggests the problem begins with doctors over-prescribing or poorly managing opioid prescriptions. People get addicted and either keep getting prescribed the drug or stop being prescribed and then move to other types of drugs and methods of getting hold of them, to feed that addiction.
There is a ‘tide’ of illegal drugs coming into the country to service the demand.
One senator who is a doctor has said this is showing not just a law enforcement crisis, but a national health crisis.
One quote says “It is much easier in America to get high than it is to get help”. Apparently only 10% of addicts get support.
What is happening here that is fuelling this?
Why are opioid prescriptions through the roof?
Is there a connection between legitimate opioid prescriptions and rates of illegal drug use and trafficking?
More on opioid usage. New UK data shows prescriptions for opioid painkillers have doubled in 15 years.
1 in 20 people were prescribed potentially addictive painkillers in 2015, up from 1 in 40 the previous year. Prescriptions are also getting longer, with an average course of 64 days in 2000 increasing to 102 in 2014.
Despite the increasing prescription levels, apparently after an initial period, the body develops a tolerance for the drugs so for the majority of those taking them are not actually benefiting. Instead, they will be suffering side effects or risking addiction and ‘should be supported to come off these medicines’.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-41201397
Interestingly, women make up the majority of those prescribed.
I wonder why that is?
This reminds me of when I used to have back problems.
When I would have an ‘episode’, I would immediately be prescribed these types of painkillers.
I took them rarely. What I was really looking for was answers – why is my back hurting so much? What is going on for my body? How can I help myself?
Looking back, the doctors didn’t even know where to start so they just prescribed away and hoped it would right itself.
What if we started making a deeper enquiry about pain when it arises? What is really going on for the body and why – underneath?
The Telegraph – 26 June 2017
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/26/myanmar-cambodia-thailand-burn-1billion-narcotics-police-struggle/
To mark the United Nations International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia torched nearly $1 billion worth of seized narcotics as police struggle against this growing industry.
Drug Enforcement Officer, Myo Kyi said that this is ‘a record amount of drugs’.
The biggest bonfire in Yangon, Myanmar set fire to stacks of opium, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine tablets worth $220 million.
Myanmar remains one of the world’s great drug-producing nations and is the 2nd biggest producer of heroin in the world after Afghanistan. Armed gangs in Myanmar are said to ‘churn out vast quantities of opium, heroin, cannabis and millions of caffeine-laced methamphetamine pills known as “yaba” which are then smuggled out across South East Asia.’
26.7 million methamphetamine tablets had been seized since 2015 in one part of Yangon.
The United Wa State Army (25,000 militia) are said to be Asia’s most heavily armed drug dealers who have their own autonomous territories on the border with China. However, the Wa deny producing drugs and are said to have staged their own burning for the United Nations anti-drugs day.
In 2016, Buddhist monks and military officers were among the 13,500 people prosecuted for drug crimes. An increase of 50%.
In Cambodia officials burned $4 million of drugs on the day.
Thailand has the world’s 6th largest prison population and the 10th highest incarceration rate in the world. The main reason for this is said to be because of its strict anti-drugs laws.
This one article tells us a lot about one subject in 3 countries in one part of the world.
It begs the question of where are we at globally with this drugs situation?
Is it surprising that Buddhist monks have been prosecuted for drug crimes?
Criminal behaviour associated with drugs is usually seen as isolated to those ‘down and out’ on the streets who are homeless or are in poverty, but this article is highlighting that there are others in society who we might not usually associate with drugs being involved.
Why would Buddhist monks, who on the face of it represent purity, clean living and calmness have any association with illicit drugs?
The article does not say whether the crimes are for personal drug use or drug dealing, but either way any association with illicit drugs is harmfull and is not in line with pure Buddhist philosophy.
So, is it fair to ask – what is missing in the lives of Buddhist monks that would mean that they gravitate towards illicit drugs in any way?
Could this article on International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking by Simple Living Global hold some if not all the answers?
An article from CNN, 19th Sept 2017, talks about how “Opioid overdoses shorten US life expectancy by two and a half months.”
Opioid drugs, including both legally prescribed painkillers such as oxycodone and hydrocodone, as well as illegal drugs such as heroin or illicit fentanyl, are not only killing Americans, they are shortening their overall lifespans by about two and a half months according to a new analysis published in the medical journal JAMA.
Also reported, was the fact that drug overdose deaths are expected to continue to reach new record highs.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), expects drug overdose deaths to top 64,000 in 2016 when the numbers are finalised. Most of these overdoses involved an opioid.
Since 1993, the number of opioid related drug deaths has more than quadrupled.
While prescription opioids like oxycodone or hydrocodone were considered to be driving factors in the increasing rates of overdoses in the early part of the 2000’s, heroin and illicit fentanyl have become the driver in recent years. The number of overdose deaths related to fentanyl is expected to more than double, from an estimated 9,945 in 2016 to 20,145 in 2017, the CDC says.
The President of the United States has said that, “The opioid crisis is an emergency, and I’m saying, officially, right now, it is an emergency. It’s a national emergency.”
Considering that statement, five weeks have passed and the White House has yet to make any formal announcement of a national emergency.
Many health officials point to the over prescribing of narcotic painkillers as one of the roots of the opioid overdose epidemic with the No.1 reason that people misuse prescription drugs, is to manage pain.
It’s clear that the opioid overdose epidemic is getting out of hand.
It’s one thing to say that there is a ‘national emergency’ but another thing putting in a plan of action to halt the deaths due to overdosing.
Opioid drug use is killing people and they say the No.1 reason of use is to manage pain… WHY is this?
WHY are people having to become addicted to opioids because they are not getting adequate treatment or adequate pain relief?
An article from CNN, 20th Sept 2017, talks about “41 state attorney general’s subpoena opioid manufacturers.”
Prescription and illegal opioids are commonly abused because they are so addictive.
Opioid medications bind to the areas of the brain that control pain and emotions, driving up levels of the feel good hormone dopamine in the brain’s reward areas and producing an intense feeling of euphoria.
As the brain becomes used to the feelings, it often takes more and more of the drug to produce the same levels of pain relief and well-being, leading to dependence and later, addiction.
A coalition of 41 state attorney generals have served five major opioid manufacturers seeking information about how these companies marketed and sold prescription opioids.
The coalition is also demanding documents and information related to distribution practices from three drug distributors.
The coalition was announced in June, with the aim of investigating what role these companies have had in contributing to the United States’ opioid epidemic.
Documents were also requested of three major pharmaceutical distributors.
According to the Drug Channel Institute, a group that tracks the pharmaceutical industry, these three companies had more than $400 billion in revenue last year and manage about 90% of the country’s national drug distribution.
The attorney generals are hoping to learn whether these companies may have marketed or distributed their products illegally.
The New York state’s attorney general said, “Too often, prescription opioids are the on-ramp to addiction for millions of Americans.” He pointed out that, according to the National Institute of Health, about 80% of all new heroin users begin with using prescription opioids.
A number of states, not involved in the coalition, have already filed their own lawsuits against pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors.
Drug overdoses are the leading cause of accidental death in the US, killing more people than guns or car accidents.
With the president of the US already stating that the opioid crisis is a ‘national emergency’, but yet, still not having made any form of official declaration, this is a positive step forward from the American states to produce more transparency.
The effects of opioids and other drugs cannot be underestimated and anything that will bring this very harmful behaviour into scrutiny is very much needed and very welcome.
Metro – 12 October 2017
Student aged 21 dies at a house party after taking –
Heroin
Ecstasy
Amphetamines
Cocaine
Ketamine
Cannabis
Alcohol
PLUS fake Valium – unlicenced diazepam pills
Could anyone survive this and is anyone surprised this young person died of ‘combined toxic effect of drugs and alcohol’?
How does a student described as ‘full of promise’ by the coroner end up like this?
What on earth was going on for him and what was his mental state before the party?
What sort of house allows this sort of behaviour and have we for a moment considered all those who are left devastated because of this death?
Can we blame or do we just see it as a tragic accident?
When are we going to stop and ask questions and keep asking questions?
What is going on for someone who society calls Intelligent because they are studying?
What sort of Intelligence drives someone to take such a lethal cocktail of drugs?
What would have happened if this guy survived that night?
What sort of mental health would he be in and what would be the long term effects?
WHY would anyone in their right mind even consider mixing drugs and alcohol because let’s face it both are poison to our human body?
WHY are we allowing mind altering drugs to be used in a house with a party full of people?
WHY have we accepted this form of abuse and WHY just let it continue?
How many more drug related deaths are going on all around the world every day?
When are we going to learn that drugs and alcohol are killing us and there is no getting away from that immutable fact?
They are ABUSE whatever way we choose to look at it.
Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA have conducted research where they have established a link between reduced anti-social behaviour in those that have used psychedelic drugs including ayahuasca.
This has lead them to suggest that ‘clinical research with classic psychedelics in forensic settings should be considered’.
This is very concerning.
https://uab.edu/news/innovation/item/8802-study-suggests-psychedelic-drugs-could-reduce-criminal-behavior
The article has been read 3,279 times – so what are we going to do with this information?
Daily Mail – 14 October 2017
10,000 drug drivers banned from roads since 2015.
It is the first time national statistics has been released showing the scale of the problem.
Driving under the influence of substances including cocaine and cannabis can now be detected by devices in ten minutes.
National Police Chiefs’ Council revealed half of motorists are testing positive for banned substances when stopped by officers on suspicion of drug-driving.
Is this anything new really?
We all KNOW that alcohol changes us – in other words, it alters our natural state.
This means that we are choosing to be irresponsible when we drive a vehicle with alcohol in our system. Our laws allow a certain amount of alcohol so that somehow makes it ok.
Now we have a greater issue as drugs are illegal and people take them and drive.
But in Truth is it different or just one and the same?
Is it high time our world got honest and real so people can be assured that no one is going to be driving a vehicle in an altered state?
Metro – 29th September 2017
A pensioner has avoided jail after telling a court he is getting too old for drug dealing.
The gentleman concerned was caught with thousands of pounds worth of cannabis.
When I read the article it made me ask the question – how is it even into an elderly age we can carry on these behaviours?
It made me question what has happened to him and how come there has been no change over all these years and a previous prison sentence?
This blog by Simple Living Global certainly has questions for us all to look at regarding our worldwide drug problem. I have to say, without the wisdom shared in this blog, I would be lost as to why this gentleman would behave in this way and be so ingrained in this behaviour, but it does make sense to me that without connection and being met for who we truly are there is a void that seeks to be filled and so whether a person is aged 4 or 74 it makes no difference, we all feel the emptiness and suffer as a result of experiencing a lack of true love.
Simple Living Global have shown me another way to live that has transformed my life immeasurably and that even though we may have been treated with a lack of true love and respect from others it is never too late to start connecting to ourselves through taking deep care and being honest with what feels true in life and what does not. I so cherish and value what this website is presenting, it is an honour to be able to write comments on this site to support the fact that there is another way to live.
An article in the BBC News, 28th October 2017, talks about “HMS Vigilant – Nine sailors sacked after failing drug tests.”
Nine sailors serving aboard HMS Vigilant, which carries the Trident nuclear deterrent, were dismissed from the Royal Navy after failing drugs tests, the MOD said.
The drug taken was cocaine.
Earlier this month, the submarines captain was relieved of his command after an alleged “inappropriate relationship” with a female crew member.
All Royal Navy vessels have a ‘no touching’ rule that prohibits intimate relationships on board.
HMS Vigilant is one of Britain’s four Vanguard-class submarines which carry up to eight Trident missiles armed with nuclear warheads.
A Rear Admiral, a former commander of a type 42 Destroyer, said, “This is not just a submarine, it is one of our deterrence submarines. It is absolutely disgraceful. People in the Navy should remember playing for our country on an international level is a great privilege. It is a question of putting service before self.”
These men had been under the sea for 91 days. They had a month off due to being docked at a bay in the US while munitions were being loaded onto the submarine and in that month they were alleged to have had ‘drug fuelled parties’.
As one Navy source said, “What do you think is going to happen? It was a month long party and it should not have been happening.”
Of course, drug use should never be condoned in any occupation but with this sort of vessel, with its destructive capabilities, it applies even more so.
Surely the first question that should be asked is, why, when the crew had time off, did they get involved in drugs?
Is it possible they already had a drug dependency?
We can understand that they want to let off steam, and we can understand if they got totally drunk, but to actually go down the drug road, does it speak of a deeper more entrenched problem?
Michael Fallon, the Defence Secretary, has now ordered all submarine crews to be tested for drugs.
Is it possible this is going to be the next scandal to hit the armed forces?
With regard to the issue of these illicit relationships on board –
Although there is a strict ‘no touching’ rule on board these vessels, human nature being what it is, it must come as no surprise when the crew disregard this rule.
Again the quote from the Navy source applies here: “What do you think is going to happen?”
Daily Mail – 12 August 2017
We all know about drink driving and that it is all about alcohol.
How many of us have heard about drug driving?
This news story is about a motorist who rammed another car while driving at 79 TIMES THE DRUG-DRIVE LIMIT. The man had a by-product of cocaine in his blood.
So this is one of the highest readings the police force has seen, so what on earth is going on?
WHY would anyone take to the wheel when they are taking drugs?
Could it be possible that because ALL DRUGS ALTER OUR NATURAL STATE this man was not himself and his decisions thereafter are not actually him?
Whilst this is not an excuse, it does require us all to have a deeper understanding of any drug, because it is a substance that is having an affect on our mind.
What will it take for us to pay attention, honk our horn and demand that things are not just left and accepted when it comes to drug driving?
WHY is there any legal limit and who sets limits as legal when we all know the dangers and harm that drugs are causing?
WHY are we not able to use good old fashioned common sense?
Is it high time to re-write the book of Truth when it comes to taking RESPONSIBILITY for our choices – be it alcohol or drugs, so that we can have a world that is real and not harming in any way whatsoever?
I recently read an article where a driver caused serious brain injury to another motorist as they veered off onto the other side of the road, whilst driving under the influence of morphine and cannabis.
The driver initially lied to the police about what they had taken, stating that they had taken nothing stronger than cough syrup. They also claimed that the Class B drug that was found in their system was due to passive smoking at a party.
I have heard it said many a time that when we are under the influence of drugs we are not ourselves. I have witnessed many people under the effects of drugs and seeing them before and after, they are definitely not themselves whilst under the influence. It is no surprise that not only do serious road accidents happen but also drug users can be so much in denial they will attempt to lie their way out of the situation.
In the end we do have to ask what is going on for someone that they need to take drugs in the first place.
Could it be because we are in an enormous amount of emotional pain and are trying to numb that?
Reading this news story is a reminder for me of the harm that occurs when we do not deal with the root cause of pain and the impact this has on others when we look for solutions. We impact everyone, not only other citizens but members of our immediate family as in this case the driver was a parent and the news story reports that at court, no immediate arrangements had been made for the care of the children.
Last weekend I was reading an article which was about a group of people from a particular country bringing cocaine into the UK in mass amounts. The gentleman next to me started chatting to me about it and I shared how it always seems to be one group or another that we seem to focus on in the media when it comes to drug rackets and drug smuggling.
He made a really good point and asked ‘What if the media had different headlines?’
Like – Demand for drugs is increasing hence more importation
or
Drug importation increases as we demand more drugs.
He asked what would happen if we reported it that way and looked at WHY the demand for drugs is increasing, rather than focusing solely on the dealers.
What would happen if we reported in that way?
An article in the ‘Omaha World-Herald’, 6th April 2014, describes how “Nebraska gets a cut of illegal drug revenue, in an artful way.”
http://www.omaha.com/news/nebraska-gets-a-cut-of-illegal-drug-revenue-in-an/article_99e65742-3e1c-5640-b05c-720cb8135776.html
A group of police officers sat in a bar asking the owner about a piece of artwork on the wall.
The poster shows a skull resting against a headstone with a marijuana joint and a syringe laid into crossbones.
The bar owner gives the answer that it is an obscure piece of the Nebraska tax code inspired by the war on illegal drugs. The artwork is a replica of Nebraska’s $100 drug tax stamp.
The stamps are offered in denominations of $10, $50, $100, $500 and $1,000.
Nebraska began issuing the stamps in 1991 following the passage of a tax on illegal drugs signed into law and they can be bought at Nebraska’s Department of Revenue Offices across the state.
Drug tax laws, which exist in 20 states offers a way for those states to collect money on illicit transactions. If you possess illegal drugs, Nebraska law requires that you have a stamp on your drugs.
A stamp doesn’t legalise the product, but a person can be charged for not having one.
In Nebraska, the law was intended as another way to punish drug dealers. The state has collected $544,588 from evaders of the drug tax since 1991, according to State Tax Commissioner.
Since the stamps were first offered, 625 of them have been sold in Nebraska’s revenue offices, bringing in $10,220, most likely from collectors of the stamps rather than drug dealers or users. No name is required for drug tax stamp purchases because buying them might entail a form of self-incrimination.
Many drug dealers and buyers find out about Nebraska’s tax only after being charged with a crime.
The tax is $100 per ounce of marijuana; $150 per gram of a controlled substance such as cocaine and $500 for each 50-dose unit or portion of a controlled substance not usually sold by weight such as LSD or steroids.
Those who have less than 6 ounces of marijuana, less than 7 ounces of a controlled substance or less than 10 doses of a drug are not required to have a stamp.
5% of the tax proceeds go toward funding administration and enforcement of the tax. Half of the remaining money is devoted to law enforcement and drug education programs in the county where the drugs were found, while the other half goes to the Nebraska State Patrol.
Being caught without a stamp means the person must pay the drug tax and a fine for not paying it. People also face a potential Class IV felony, which carries up to five years in prison and a separate $10,000 criminal fine.
The Hall County attorney said he’s never heard of a drug runner actually having the stamps on his drugs.
An Omaha criminal defence attorney said taxing an illicit product doesn’t make sense.
In Kansas, attorney’s stopped filing tax drug tax charges in routine cases after the State Supreme Court ruled a defendant convicted of marijuana possession cannot also be convicted of not having a stamp.
Without doubt, we have definitely lost the plot here.
They may get a few people like the occasional drug user that will buy these stamps, but to get someone that actually deals in the drugs and potentially bring themselves to the attention of the law, is another matter.
The article states that this tax law was intended as another way to punish drug dealers by fining them for not buying a stamp and that they could also get five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to just increase the fines of those they convict rather than giving the drug dealers a licence to sell?
However we want to look at this, it is saying that these drugs are illegal and you will be punished if you are caught with them, but on the other hand, if you pay the government some money, we will ‘turn a blind eye’ and we will let you buy or sell these drugs.
Is it possible that this is just condoning the use of illegal drugs?
Is it possible that this is just encouraging the use of illegal drugs?
Is earning a few thousand dollars in tax revenue really worth the potential increase of people using drugs?
Why is it that when we carry out criminal activity it is not just in one area but many?
An example I came across recently was of someone who had been arrested for drug dealing where thousands of pounds worth of money and drugs were found in their home.
Amongst the illicit items was a work of art that had also been stolen.
Yesterday at work we received a Drugs Alert for MDMA Ecstasy.
The briefing actually stated that Public Health England have notified the Metropolitan Police about 3 people who have developed severe reactions after taking what they have believed to be ecstasy tablets.
2 out of the 3 were in hospital with 1 in an induced coma and in a life-threatening condition.
I can imagine that all those that know these people will be severely affected especially emotionally.
What if we started to take notice of the questions in this blog by Simple Living Global?
Would we approach drug use differently?
Would we start to ask the WHY questions?
Could it be as simple as ‘connection’ being the missing piece and as a result of the missing connection we have these devasting incidents?
Is there more to drug use than we have been willing to look at?
Evening Standard – 22 January 2018
A drug-addict driver on Boxing Day had a car crash which killed him and a whole family in Australia.
Most of us would be quick to assume that the drug addict was young. He was 50.
How are we ever going to stop this?
Are we aware of the knock on effect? In other words the lives of all those that will be affected because of those who have died?
WHY do our laws permit a certain amount of drink or drugs in our system and say that is ok to drive a vehicle when we all know it is clearly not?
Do we really need to rethink our policy and change the laws when it comes to drugs and that includes alcohol?
Are we ready to admit that any mind altering substance cannot ever have a limit placed on it as it is going to end up like this?
WHY is there not a blanket ban across every nation, where we all come together and say any substance that harms our human body is not fit for consumption and there will be consequences?
Are those who make the policies and stand in authority to blame or can we do our bit?
Can we all start with EDUCATION and as early as we can, so our kids are well informed of the dangers of drugs?
Can blogs like this and a website like this full of well researched content be the answer?
OR are we going to wait for our governments, who will continue to wait for even more scientific research, to keep proving what we all know – Drugs Kill and this news story is confirmation of that fact.
There have been growing concerns about Fentanyl in the UK in particular the numbers that are dying from taking it.
Fentanyl is dubbed the ‘Drop Dead’ drug because it can cause people to suddenly drop dead without warning.
One newspaper article that I have read in the Daily Mail dated 5th August 2017, speaks of a father who’s daughter died after she took an overdose. The young lady was a student and was struggling with her mental health. She was dissatisfied with the treatment from local mental health services so she started to self-medicate by ordering Fentanyl on the Internet.
Fentanyl is up to 100 times stronger than morphine. I know that I have been given morphine post-surgery and it is a drug that in my experience completely wipes out feelings of pain in an instance, so I cannot imagine what it must feel like to take Fentanyl and then having it every day due to addiction.
From January – August 2017 the news report states that 60 people in the UK died through taking Fentanyl.
In 2016, 12 people were killed by a single batch of Fentanyl in Sacramento, California and in Huntingdon, West Virginia there were 27 overdoses within a 4-hour period.
Back to the UK – the article states that Fentanyl first became prevalent in the North East of England in late 2016 when it was used as a ‘cutting agent’ in batches of Heroin.
Easter 2017 saw 6 deaths in Leeds and Barnsley linked to Heroin laced with Fentanyl.
6 similar deaths were seen in 3 weeks in Stockton-on-Tees and 7 deaths in 8 weeks in Hull.
Anti-drug charities are concerned that Fentanyl could trigger an epidemic of deaths amongst those who started using Heroin in the 80’s and 90’s and became addicted.
China – the article states that the Chinese have developed 30 types of Fentanyl derivatives including Carfentanil, a tranquiliser designed to be used on elephants and is 100 times stronger than Fentanyl.
People are also said to be at risk of death by just being around Fentanyl, with a police officer almost dying after touching granules during a raid. What stopped him dying was taking a dose of the Fentanyl antidote Naloxone.
There is much more in the newspaper article about individual cases and parents speaking about the loss of their children. This is great cause for concern and this is just one drug.
Do we all give up and become overwhelmed by these stories and quickly shut our newspapers or stop reading them?
What will truly make a difference going forward?
Is it possible that if we are supported to address any unresolved hurts in our own lives, we can start to heal and then offer a different way to humanity – that it is possible to live without hurts and without pain?
The Week – 17 February 2018
24% of 11 – 15 year olds in England now admit to having tried drugs. That’s a rise of 9% from 4 years ago.
Is it worth us all contemplating on what Simple Living Global is presenting in this blog?
Many of us believe that children and teenagers taking drugs is a normal part of their development and it is expected that they will dabble, but what if we did not accept this as normal?
What if we questioned why our children and teenagers seek drugs?
What if we spoke with them from an early age about drugs and the ill effects and educated them about drug use?
Would that enable them to make an informed choice?
What if as adults we were true role models and lived in a way where no illicit substances are taken and that there is a great degree of regard for the well-being of the human body?
What if we dealt with our own issues and emotions as adults, so that there is no pull towards drugs and we can then be true inspirations for our children?
What if our children are crying out to be met for simply who they truly are and the pain of this is what leads them to take drugs?
What if as adults we deeply cared for and met ourselves?
Would that provide true role models for our children?
Office for National Statistics
Deaths related to volatile substances and helium in Great Britain: 2001 to 2016 registrations
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/articles/deathsrelatedtovolatilesubstancesandheliumingreatbritain/2001to2016registrations
2001 to 2016
834 deaths VSA
78% were males
Important to note – 27% of all volatile substance abuse deaths involve more than one substance and or alcohol.
For the record – volatile substance abuse is defined by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction as “the deliberate inhalation of volatile compounds to produce psychoactive effects”.
Volatile substances include, fuel gases, aerosol propellants, some types of industrial glues, nitrous oxide, alkyl nitrites (known as poppers) and some anaesthetics.
So what on earth is going on here and WHY ?
Are we asking the right questions?
Are we waiting around for even more studies?
Are we looking everywhere but not getting to the root cause of WHY any man would want to take substances not designed for human consumption?
What is going on in someone’s life that they think it ok to take fuels that we all know are toxic poison and lethal?
What is it about us that seems to be ok producing more and more statistics but not stop and dig deep into our resources to find out why we have this VSA in society today?
WHY would we consider to take anything that is going to change rapidly inside us and not know where it will end up?
Who would do this and WHY?
How bad must things really be if we want to ingest something that is in an aerosol when our common sense would tell us SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT?
What is it about us that allows this stuff to go on and not say anything or do anything?
It would be true to say that most of us would not know how to start or where to start, but could it be possible that by simply bringing up this stuff in conversations next time – we are doing something?
In other words we are making this type of talk more important than the small chit chat about the weather and just by doing this more will know and more of us will talk.
Allowing things to just go on and seeing these news stories as more of the ‘same stuff’ gives permission to the ills in society to continue.
Expressing and making sure we keep the pulse alive by discussions at every meeting and dinner table assures us that we are doing our bit even if it may not seem like much.
This comment is an example of doing something – activating and presenting that which is known to bring more awareness. Nothing more and nothing less. Job done.
I have often questioned corrupt things that happen in our world and how they occur. I often question whether there are people on the inside of companies and systems that have enabled this to happen.
This news article from the Metro – 18th April 2018 is a prime example of this –
A gang of people smuggling drugs into the UK using 2 baggage handlers were jailed.
Drug laden suitcases that arrived at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 from Brazil were moved from the international arrivals carousel to the domestic arrivals hall to avoid security checks.
This was not a one-off event.
6 times over 15 months, the National Crime Agency intercepted a total of 100 kilos of cocaine with an average of 78.5% purity and a street value of £16,000,000.
However, there would have been times that the drugs were successfully smuggled. The Judge in the case stated that the street value was at least £32,000,000 but the precise figure may never be known.
It is reported that corrupt air staff in Brazil loaded bricks of cocaine onto flights. Workers in the UK were then sent photographs and descriptions of the bags to be taken off the international carousel. Couriers would receive a text with a photo of the bags to pick up.
2 baggage handlers were given hefty prison sentences of 15 and 16 years for conspiring to import the drugs.
The drugs in question were cocaine, crack cocaine and cannabis.
Another man was jailed for 20 years.
It would be very easy to leave it there and point fingers at the staff and other men who were involved, but are we asking WHY this is happening in our world?
What if these men, that have enabled this to occur in their workplaces, are no different to you and I on the street when we do things without integrity or we live to a standard that we know is less than the Truth and is harming to others, or we are motivated by doing things for self-gain including obtaining money at any cost?
Are we not also enabling corruption to happen and thus making room for more of these type of events to occur?
Independent – 22 May 2018
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/cocaine-drugs-violence-middle-class-crime-uk-police-a8364336.html
Police Should Target Middle Class Cocaine Users to Cut Violent Crime, Says Senior Officer
The Operational Policing Lead from the Police Federation said that given the choice between wealthy recreational users and addicts living on estates, he would stop the middle classes buying drugs.
He is quoted as saying – “If you look at why there is a market for cocaine from South America it is because people who can afford it are buying it and fuelling the problem. Street level users are a problem because they steal to fund their habit, but on their own they will not support an organised crime group. The big market is people with money to spend…”
In its first Serious Violence Strategy the government named the drug market as one of the key drivers of attacks and murders, amid a 22% increase in knife crime.
In 2016/17 – 57% of murders were either the victim or the suspect were known to be involved in dealing or using illicit drugs.
The Operational Policing Lead has said “I think there could be more deterrent for people using drugs recreationally because at the moment there are no consequences. The only way it stops being fun is if the consequences outweigh it.”
What this Operational Policing Lead is saying is very interesting and whilst I know that people from all ‘classes’ in society use drugs I had not been aware of some of the things he has raised like the lack of consequences.
Why do we have double standards – penalising and arresting some but not others?
Why are some people targeted for stop and search and not others?
Are we basing our actions and implementation of laws on stereotypes, rather than being open and assessing the person in front of us?
What if whether it is the middle class or it is the man or woman who lives in a poor income area, at the root of the drug use is a lack of true connection – connection with self and others?
What if this were true?
Would it make a mockery of our whole class system knowing that both are suffering from the same ill and in truth are seeking the same thing – CONNECTION?
Will removing trainers from drug runners and giving them plimsoles, stop county lines?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-44328655
One police force has decided to use this tactic to address the issue.
With all due respect to our police force who work very hard to deal with serious crime – what would make us think that removing trainers will have any affect?
County Lines are where drug dealers establish a network between a city and a county area into which drugs are supplied. The deals are carried out over an established mobile phone network and drug runners go between the city and county areas to replenish stock and deliver cash. Violence, intimidation and weapons are used. The homes of vulnerable people are used as a base to deal drugs from. This is known as cuckooning.
Children and teenagers are often used as drug runners.
Could it be possible most, if not all drug runners will just find another way – whether it be running with plimsolls, getting new trainers or going bare feet?
Could it be possible that until the root issue is addressed as to why our youth fall into drug dealing – nothing will change?
Having worked with vulnerable people for over 10 years, I have seen this situation of cuckooning many times.
In partnership meetings that I have attended, the police have said that what is paramount as a basis for addressing this issue is that the various police forces in the city and in the county areas work together by co-operating and sharing information.
They said that the biggest difficulty they have are when police forces don’t work together as this prevents them from identifying those who are running these drugs rackets. It also prevents the safe return of children and young people.
Taking the attitude that it is not important as the young people who are working as runners are not from their area was the biggest failing.
Is it possible that by failing to work together we enable the spread of county lines and any other illegal drug activity and thus the abuse of children continues?
Why do things need to happen on our doorstep before we truly care?
Fentanyl is now being used in lethal injections for the death penalty in the USA.
However in a recent case, the execution is on hold due to concerns of the use of another drug in the lethal injection mixture. This is all a great dichotomy and if we are to break it down, logically it makes no sense.
We have one drug called Fentanyl that people are highly addicted to.
We have people dying in the thousands due to Fentanyl related deaths in the USA.
It is now classed as an epidemic with countries not knowing what to do, as it is wiping out so many people and then we deliberately use the same drug to kill those who have committed crimes.
It doesn’t really add up?
If we were truly concerned about the addiction to Fentanyl and the harm taking this drug does we would seek to wipe it out and place our efforts into finding out why people are increasingly using it, rather than use the same drug to kill those that we have deemed are no longer worthy to live on earth because of the crime they have committed?
Do these double standards really work?
Is this an example of why we cannot get to the root cause of this drug epidemic as we are too invested in using drugs when we feel we have ‘good reason to’.
Rather than seeking solutions through more drug use, would we be more honest if we stopped as a society and admitted that what we have is not working and instead choose to place as our number one priority all of our resources into getting to the root cause of any behaviour, including drug use and any crime?
The Guardian – 28 July 2018
Cocaine used at middle class parties is helping to fuel drug-related gang violence among young people on the streets.
The mayor of London said recreational drug use was not a “victimless crime” and he has seen clear evidence of a link between cocaine consumption and rising violence in the capital city.
So will our calls for action to be taken against people who buy the drug, alongside a crackdown of gang members work?
Are we on the front foot or have the dealers already got their next plan of action going and we just seem to be catching up?
Simon Kempton, who leads on drug policy for the Police Federation said middle class drug users were to blame for the drug trade and related violence.
Street level users are a problem because they steal to fund their habit but on their own they will not support an organised crime group.
“The big market is people with money to spend and they are often oblivious to the misery they cause because it is not on their doorstep.
Middle class drug users do not come across the radar of police because they are consuming it behind closed doors.”
HELLO
Can we just take a STOP moment and re-read what this kingpin on drug policy has to say as he works for the police?
This is interesting and to some it may just bring some light on the underworld of drugs that has clearly been off the radar and not in the news.
We need more awareness of the drug problem and where it stems from and why
ADD to that we need to get real, as this news story is telling us that middle class – those with money are doing this habit and they get away with it and have no idea of what the suppliers are up to.
They have money which means they can buy and that’s all. The End.
There is zero responsibility for how they get their illegal substance.
What we all need to do now is ask – why would someone of middle class status who has what society would call a good living, need a substance that alters their natural state?
What on earth is going on in their life that would give rise to taking something that could potentially harm them for life, bring on ill mental health or even kill them?
We think middle class people are intelligent so why would they be into drugs?
Could we start conversations around every dinner table simply by saying –
SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT?
The Week – Issue 1185
21 July 2018, p.7
Colombo, Sri Lanka
‘Sri Lanka’s president has announced plans to end his country’s 42-year moratorium on executions and start hanging repeat drug offenders, citing the “success” of the Philippines’ brutal war on drugs…Officials say Sri Lanka has become a through-point for smuggled narcotics, which has led to a sharp rise in drug-related crime.’
Is this really the way to deal with any drug problem?
If this blog by Simple Living Global is read and contemplated on, we will see that it is presenting that there is more to drug use than we currently understand.
If we are to ponder on the words of Serge Benhayon about connection – could this offer us great wisdom about what is missing in our world?
If this is true, that connection is the missing ingredient, then what good is carrying out executions for repeat drug offenders?
Is the mere fact that the drug offending is repeat telling us that the ‘offenders’ are craving connection?
Will the executors and all those who endorse this new law be cutting off even further the opportunity for these men and women to have connection by killing them?
Could those that are involved in making these kinds of decisions be lacking connection too?
Does it become easy for us to make decisions of this nature, when we are dis-connected?
I know that when we are connected and feel who we truly are and live in connection with this it is impossible to harm another.
Daily Mail – 11 August 2018
A young mother has been left unable to walk after her regular use of a party drug caused spinal cord damage called Lichtheim’s disease.
The woman lost feeling in her body from the chest down after contracting a disease from inhaling nitrous oxide through balloons, also known as laughing gas.
She had been consuming 15 balloons per weekend and now has to relearn how to walk and use her hands.
She said “About a month before I was doing a balloon and I got pins and needles in my neck and back. I started feeling numb in my body.”
Lichtheim’s disease is thought to start when nitrous oxide starves the body of the vitamin B12 by stopping it being properly absorbed. The lack of vitamin B12 damages the fatty sheath protecting nerve fibres in the spinal cord which control movement and sensation. The condition is treated with vitamin B12 injections.
How many of us can relate to this, whether we take drugs or not that we are getting signs and symptoms in our body, letting us know that something is not right before something major happens?
Is it because we do not understand what the messages are or because we have a way of living that constantly overrides what is happening in our bodies, so that we are unable to stop and take note?
Do we know that there are substances that we are taking, both legal and illegal that are doing great harm to our bodies or are we in denial?
Can we really say that some drugs are good or that we are not ill affected, when we read stories like this, even if we do not have a physical disease?
Or do we like to hold onto a view that some drugs are good or some of us are left untouched, because it means we can continue with drug taking and ignore our body and the wisdom that otherwise could be communicated?
Thank you Shevon for this comment as I had not heard about this story and it is important to note that this is not your regular drug that most of us know about.
I was not aware that a party drug – the laughing gas from balloons could lead to such a debilitating effect on the body but if I am honest, of course a gas not designed for human consumption is going to play havoc inside our body.
My question is – what on earth is going on for anyone who needs to inhale a toxic gas every weekend, in other words become addicted just like any other drug?
How is their daily life?
What choices made them get to this point?
How do we get to the root cause with absolute honesty?
Are we looking to fix up the problem with a solution?
Is there more here to consider as when we harm ourselves, there is a bigger picture at play?
In other words, all of humanity are effected even if one person on the planet is not living in harmony – a true natural state of being.
I am no halo head and I have done my share of nonsense in the past but I got a wake up call, which was a serious medical condition. That was a point in my life where my body was saying “enough of your wayward behaviour, time to deal with your buried hurts and issues, stop looking for ways to harm yourself and others and get on with it”.
Well a decade + later, I can say with hand on heart, no drain on our health system whatsoever, that I have made the changes. I take deep care of this body I have – no perfection or striving to be something, but listening to the subtle messages and making adjustments constantly as what worked yesterday, may not work today.
Furthermore, I know that all this wisdom and another way of living would be a waste of time if I did not share it, so I found a way to support others. This website.
I have made the commitment and dedication to keep writing and sharing by way of blogs and comments with no hope or wish to have a mass following, but a knowing that this platform holds a space where some may come one day when they ask that question – IS THERE ANOTHER WAY?
Evening Standard News – 23 August 2018
A shop in the UK was found with 13,500 silver canisters of “hippy crack” which is nitrous oxide and has a street value of £5,620.
It is illegal to sell or import nitrous oxide because it has psychoactive effects.
The store has allegedly sold alcohol to people who were drunk.
So this is a tiny news story and with the amount of money involved, not really a drugs cartel story.
However, it is not insignificant in content.
This means that we have suppliers making sure they give us what we demand.
Before we all finger point, judge and blame these crazy shop owners, let us stop and consider what business would they have if we simply did not ask for alcohol, drugs or any other stimulant that alters our natural state of being?
It is high time to take the Responsibility back to each and every one of us who makes up this world?
Drugs of any kind exist to alter our state – so why not ask the question WHY do we need drugs in the first place?
Is it the honesty of where we are at right now what we need to contemplate, consider and ponder on, or do we blindly go around blaming everyone but us – the people who are asking for it in the first place?
Daily Mail – 25 August 2018
A new drug called Monkey Dust is ravaging through Stoke on Trent in Staffordshire.
The drug is said to make people unpredictable, makes them feel invincible, strong and numb to pain.
One officer said restraining a Monkey Dust user was like tackling Incredible Hulk.
Users have scaled buildings, leapt off roofs and run naked through the streets.
They believe that they are being chased by demons and paedophiles.
Dust users have been reported to have attacked innocent bystanders, stabbed people, smashed down doors with their hands and in at least two cases committed rape.
Several people have also died from taking the drug.
One case describes a man in his mid-thirties who after taking monkey dust went over to the busy A50, climbed over a safety barrier and whilst weaving through heavy oncoming evening traffic, was knocked down and killed by a lorry.
Staffordshire Police have been hit with 950 Monkey Dust related calls in the 3 months preceding this news article. That’s an average of 10 calls per day.
West Midlands Ambulance Service has received more than 500 monkey dust calls in the past 2 years. 25% came in the 3 months preceding this news story.
One paramedic said:
‘This sort of thing is happening daily and it’s getting worse. I’ve been in this job 15 years and I’ve seen every type of drug. But this is totally different. There is no appealing to reason. When you are shut in the back of the ambulance with them it’s really scary’
Talking about the unpredictable nature of the behaviour she said:
‘One man was lying on the floor and appeared to be unconscious. But then he suddenly jumped up and started behaving like he was superhuman.’
Monkey dust can be injected, snorted or swallowed. It’s 5 times cheaper than heroin.
One person spoke of breaking both their ankles and the bones in their feet by jumping from the 2nd floor window of a flat.
Head of CID, Detective Chief Superintendent Javid Oomer, points out that synthetic drugs, derived from khat, widely used in East African countries and with an almost identical chemical make-up, to monkey dust has been on Britain’s streets since 2013.
However, MDPHP (monkey dust), a variant of such drugs has only surfaced in 2015 in Britain.
In USA stories started appearing several years ago of people biting their victim’s faces whilst using monkey dust.
What happens to us when we take drugs that alter our natural state and allows the kinds of atrocities described above to happen?
What is it about the world that we live in today that there is a desire for more new drugs?
Are we taking note of the harm that is being done to the human being and our body from these clearly harmful substances?
What will it take for us to wake up to the fact that drugs are harmfull no matter what shape or form they come in and in truth are not designed to support the human being at all.
Is it possible that drugs are designed to retard our awareness and growth, so that we are unable to connect to who we truly are?
The Guardian – 1 September 2018
New study, starting 3rd September will seek to establish whether microdosing with the drug LSD has benefits – or whether the perceived positive effects are all in the mind.
Microdosing using psychedelic drugs – either LSD or magic mushrooms – is said to have become very popular, especially with people working in the California digital tech world, some of whom are said to take a tiny amount one or more days a week as part of their routine before heading to work. Users in Silicon Valley claim it sharpens their thinking and enhances creativity while others believe it lifts the fog of depression.
Microdosers tend to use tiny amounts of LSD – as little as one-fifteenth of a tab – or of psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms.
The new research will be conducted by a foundation which was set up to pioneer research into mind-altering substances.
The study leader, said it will be unique. Because the cost and the illegality of LSD could make a conventional study prohibitively expensive, he has hit on a way of running it by inviting those who already microdose to join a “self-blinded” study. They will take either what they usually use in a capsule or an identical dummy capsule, without knowing which is which. Participants will complete questionnaires and tests, and play cognitive games online. Only at the end will they learn whether they were happy and focused because of LSD or because they thought they were using that substance.
The Swiss scientist Albert Hoffmann, who first synthesized LSD in 1936 and began taking it years later was said to have microdosed in his old age. Those who do it talk of a sense of flow and focus with none of the extreme hallucinogenic sensations associated with the drug.
Here are a few quotes –
“If you go online there are hundreds and hundreds of people expressing very positive outcomes…”
“…People have reported that it has lifted their depression, while others say it makes them feel more excited about their work…”
What if there is a natural way to lift us out of the fog of depression and have thoughts with clarity and sharpness, without the needs for a pill or any drug?
What if this all has something to do with the way that we are living and our commitment to life?
https://simplelivingglobal.com/commitment-to-life-part-1/
What if there is a natural flow of energy from our kidneys when we are committed to life and this supports a sharp mind and true creativity?
https://simplelivingglobal.com/world-kidney-day/
What if there is something missing in our day to day life that leads us to take this type of illicit substance?
What happens to the human body and the human being long-term after taking this substance on a daily basis, no matter how small the dosage is?
Is this being studied?
What if the author of this blog and founder of this website – Simple Living Global – were assessed and studied for sharpness, focus and true creativity – what would we find?
I know just from reading this website that the founder is pouring with all of the above qualities, far beyond what any mind-altering substance could produce and so the big question is –
Why are we choosing to place more money into researching the effects of this drug, when there are people in this world who live free of any illicit substances, who are vital, free from mental illness and live joyfully every day?
Does this seem too good to be true or is it possible that if we turned our attention to those that are truly living a healthy life, it would expose that all of the research trials that we have been investing in, have all been a waste of time, effort and energy?
More on this topic –
The Times Magazine – 1 September 2018
Could You Treat Your Depression by Tripping on Magic Mushrooms?
This article goes into more discussion on this topic and what I found interesting was this information below on the facts –
There are essentially 3 kinds of psychedelic drugs, which variously induce hallucinations and “altered” states of being. The first, artificially manufactured, is LSD – lysergic acid diethylamide…The second are naturally occurring but exotic hallucinogenics found in various animals and plants from toads to cacti, usually in South and Central America. The third is psilocybin, produced in more than 200 species of mushrooms and most commonly farmed in countries such as the Netherlands…
So it begs the question – why are we so insistent that a drug that induces ‘ hallucinations and “altered” states of being’ can in any way shape, or form be of benefit to us?
Why do we insist that if something has origins from a plant or is plant based, then it must be good for us and have healing properties?
Why are we chasing these altered states of being and are we trying to escape something in our day to day lives, by seeking this high?
What will it take for us to really and truly start to questions our actions and the next fix that we are chasing and ask the question – WHY?
The Guardian Weekend – 24 November 2018
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate – or GHB as it is commonly known, was first synthesised for use as an anaesthetic in the 1960s and has since been used variously as a treatment for narcolepsy and in the 1980s as a fat-burner and muscle builder. By the early 2000s, word that it could induce euphoria had spread and it began to appear more frequently as “liquid ecstasy”. Unlike many other party drugs, GHB can be made in the UK with the right mix of industrial chemicals and most dealers can be found online.
On a neurological level, GHB works in a similar way to depressants such as alcohol and medicines from the benzodiazepine group, such as diazepam and lorazepam.
It can be found in powder form, but more usually as an odourless, colourless, slightly salty liquid that prompts a brief, powerful euphoria. When the dosage is ‘wrong’ or when it’s mixed with another central nervous system depressant such as alcohol, GHB can put the user into a coma in a matter of minutes.
For some partygoers ‘G’ makes sense – no sugar, no calories and no hangover.
GHB’s popularity among young women and clubbers in general marks the third stage of its evolution as a drug.
First it was known as a potent and dangerous date rape drug, slipped into people’s drinks.
Then it became popular at chemsex parties.
Now it’s increasingly popular with young clubbers, all over Europe.
According to data given to the Guardian by the 2018’s Global Drug Survey, out of 1,000 GHB users 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men overdosed in the 12 months up to December 2018.
Adam Winstock – psychiatrist and founder of the survey said –
“That’s a staggering rate of overdose compared with other recreational substance. GHB terrifies me as a specialist. It sits in a risk category all of its own, way above other party drugs. The fact the users fall into unrousable states is incredibly dangerous. They’re not only vulnerable to assault, they might stop breathing altogether.”
Some argue that GHB is harder to withdraw from than heroin.
Harmen Beurmanjer – leading GHB researcher based at Novadic-Kentron, a drug rehabilitation centre in the Netherlands says –
“It starts with shaking, then anxiety, paranoia and finally complete delirium. You cannot withdraw alone; you need medical attention and withdrawal symptoms happen very quickly. A person will have entered delirium within 6 hours.”
Some pay as little as 30p a dose for GHB.
Beurmanjer states that the rise in GHB’s popularity is because it is cheap. He has many female patients who started because it is a dose of liquid confidence. “It won’t cure your anxiety”, he says “it’s just that you don’t feel it when you’re on GHB. And they become addicted so fast because they feel great. But when they quit they say ‘I feel like I’ve lost part of my personality. With GHB I know how to talk to people, I can be my best self – without GHB, I’m afraid of everything.’”
In the short term it makes users feel invincible, in the longer term it leads to an increase of anxiety and depression.
Beurmanjer continues “GHB takes over your emotional regulation system. So when you come off it, you realise you can’t cope with your emotions properly.”
GHB addicts are given therapy and pharmaceutical grade GHB in decreasing doses to wean them off slowly and avoid physical withdrawal.
November 2018 – Research published by the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) said that abusing GHB can damage long-term memory, working memory and cognitive function.
One 21 year old biochemistry student described as clever and extroverted with a buzzing social life, died through taking GHB at a chemsex party. He arrived at the party 4am, by 5.45am when the ambulance arrived he had already suffered a cardiac arrest. Whilst paramedics were able to restart his heart, his brain had been starved of oxygen for too long and he never recovered. He died in hospital 2 days later.
So this is one drug and we have a snapshot here of the history, current usage and the devastating effects of this drug.
The question arises – Is it worth it?
Are we willing to weigh up the consequences of taking this drug or are we happy believing that it won’t happen to us, so it does not matter?
What is it about our everyday lives that we are wanting to escape from by using these deadly drugs?
Have we asked why our young professionals are using these drugs?
When I read about teachers and social workers for example using GHB in their recreational time, it is deeply disturbing.
Is it possible for a social worker, who is dealing with safeguarding children to really do their job, if they are taking substances that alter their natural state?
How alert and perceptive can they be, if they are using illicit drugs?
How confidence boosting is any substance if any user is reliant on it?
Is it possible that true confidence that is sustainable and natural can only come from within and not from any external product?
A comment posted above in February 2018 quotes this –
24% of 11 – 15 year olds in England now admit to having tried drugs.
Today is the start of Children’s Mental Health Week in UK and I just stopped to think about this statistic which is now out of date.
So what is the real figure today and is anyone really interested?
Do we want to get involved with the ‘fun’ aspect of any awareness campaign or do we really want to ask serious questions and start with SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT?
Joining the dots with all the research and reading I do consistently, I have come to realise that our kids are not doing great and it feels like there is a void in their lives and so to fill it they find ways and in this case, trying drugs.
We all know drugs are even more accessible now and easy as ordering a pizza.
There is the thing to fit in and look cool and for others it just helps to take the pain away of the agony and misery that is there and does not want to be felt.
So in comes the drug to do exactly that – alter our natural state, numb whatever feelings we don’t want and forget about everything in that moment.
Was it worth it?
Did it last?
Do we want more of the same to get that feeling we had when we took the drug?
Have we become dependent on this and do we crave this substance?
Is this what leads to us to try other types of drugs, without ever knowing the real harmfull consequences?
Is this dependency on drugs as a teenager leading us to want more and to pay for it we have to do things that are dangerous?
Do our children who are involved in drugs end up working for the real drug dealers?
Are we all aware of what county lines are about?
I am no medic but I have studied extensively and more to the point I have worked with many many people who have taken drugs or continue to do so.
This real life experience that we call ‘anecdotal’ is priceless if you ask me.
It holds the key to so much wisdom that we could bring to the world.
It is from these real life interactions, observing others, their movements and having conversations, which have real quality of communication, that I have been able to take note and express by way of writing.
This comment, this blog and this website are confirmation of this fact.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bristol-cocaine-capital-europe-uk-most-used-city-sewer-research-mdma-methamphetamine-a8823331.html
Independent – 14 March 2019
A study examining traces of the cocaine in sewage across the continent has named Bristol the cocaine capital of Europe.
Researchers analysed wastewater in 2018
73 cities | 20 European countries | 46 million population
As well as cocaine the wastewater was examined for traces of amphetamine and methamphetamine.
The findings pointed to increases in several locations for MDMA.
According to the report, methamphetamine, which has historically been concentrated in Czech Republic and Slovakia, now also appears to be present in Cyprus, East Germany, Spain and Northern Europe.
The unsurprising conclusion was MDMA and cocaine use rises sharply at weekends in most cities.
It does not require any formal qualifications to work this one out.
What we can all agree with is SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT.
A large study is speaking to us that there is high drug use under our nose (pun intended) yet most of us are unaware. In other words, we are not smelling and sniffing out that something is going on where we live in our city.
So what is going on for us in the week that gives rise to drugs at weekends?
What type of lifestyle choices are we subscribing to and is it worth it?
Has anyone thought that perhaps the old way of alcohol and tobacco is no longer cutting it and we need stronger and potent substances to do the job of numbing us and giving us an altered state of being?
It is high time we read this blog, all other blogs on this website and the thousands of comments posted thus far that are saying – we need to talk about these topics and consider if there is another way, because things are getting worse, all over the world and not just in Europe?
Independent – 19 May 2019
Cocaine Use Doubled in Britain in Five Years and Purity Levels at Record High
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/cocaine-doubled-five-years-britain-purity-levels-record-high-a8920786.html
As a follow on to your comment Simple Living Global, we have another news article from the Independent which gives us an update on this subject.
Cocaine use in Britain has more than doubled in 5 years and the purity of the drug has reached a record high, an analysis of waste water has shown.
The analysis, carried out by forensic scientists at King’s College, London shows London and Bristol are in the top 5 cities with the highest use of the Class A drug in Europe alongside Barcelona, Antwerp, Zurich and Amsterdam.
London is one of the few cities in Europe where consumption of the drug is almost as high during the week as at weekends. The analysis also suggests 1 in every 50 people in London take the drug every day.
The purity of cocaine has mostly risen due to increased supply and production in Latin America. There are cartels operating in the UK to off-load that excess supply.
Dr. Leon Barron – Forensic Scientist
Kings College, London
Concentrations of cocaine in waste water –
900 milligrams per 1000 of the population per day.
This rose from 392 milligrams per 1000 in 2011.
In research conducted by Kings College Hospital in collaboration with the University of Suffolk, cocaine was found present in 100% of the freshwater shrimp samples tested in British waterways.
This is very serious – what is going on?
Why is the use of cocaine increasing?
The fact that in one city consumption is almost as high during the week as it is on weekends is saying something.
According to Frank, a UK Government funded website
https://www.talktofrank.com/drug/cocaine#how-it-feels
Cocaine makes use feel:
Happy
Excited
Wide Awake
Confident
On top of our game
It also –
Makes our heart beat faster
Raises our body temperature so we feel hot
Stops us feeling hungry
Makes us feel sick
Makes us need a poo
Creates anxiety and a feeling of panic
Induces paranoia and
Makes us so confident that we do things that we wouldn’t normally do including risky behaviour
Is it time that we stopped to ask – why we need a drug to feel all of the above?
What is it about human life that does not enable us to feel full of vitality and content about who we are?
Is it possible that we are hindering a feeling of settlement within through the dis-harmonious way we are living?
Is the way we are living causing us to seek substances that give us a high and ‘takes us away’ to forget and escape daily life?
If we are honest are more and more of us struggling with day to day life?
Is it possible that we are not living who we truly are and this causes us to seek outside of ourselves for any stimulant we can find?
Gram of cocaine can be delivered quicker than it takes to get served in a busy bar, this article from MixMag says
https://mixmag.net/feature/british-cocaine-dealers
Deliveries happening as quick as 20 minutes.
High level dealers can call an encrypted number and order any amount up to kilograms of cocaine for instant courier despatch.
Taxis are also being used as mobile drug premises with passengers using the taxis to take them to various destinations to deliver packages.
Today, there is more cocaine being produced than ever and purity is described as ‘unprecedentedly high’, according to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
There is more than double the amount of ‘pure’ cocaine being produced in Latin America compared to 10 years ago.
Colombia
2018 – 1,379 metric tonnes of cocaine was reported to have been produced in the year.
Port in Antwerp, Belgium seized 50 tonnes of cocaine.
UK
Cocaine use has doubled amongst the young, according to Home Office statistics.
London, UK
One dealer says he ‘has never been so busy’.
Friday nights are reported to be the busiest.
Earns £150,000 a year tax free for about 14 hours of work per week.
Does any of this make sense?
We might want to blame the governments, etc. but what if a trade can only thrive if the consumers demand it?
Why are we demanding more illicit drugs?
What is it about human life that we are trying to escape from?
Where will we end up if we continue in this way?
Cocaine deaths have risen to the highest level ever recorded in the UK –
432 people died, nearly quadruple the number that died in 2011.
Something is not right here and whilst some of us may see this all as just a bit of fun, the cost to human life, as evidenced by the statistics are deadly.
The Times – 27 March 2019
The Metropolitan Police Commissioner is saying that knife crime is the worst she has seen and that drugs are “the root of it all”.
Last year knife killings were the highest since records began in 1946.
Are we paying attention to the Head of Scotland Yard when she said “drug purity was strong, prices were not rising and demand had grown.”?
She blamed “aggressive and entrepreneurial people out there who are using young people and vulnerable people in all sorts of ways to make maximum amounts of money”.
She thinks that serious violence is affecting young people and it is far less in terms of addiction and the acquisitive crime and far more about the market and the availability.
A Chief Constable is saying that the best knife crime prevention technique is to run away as fast as you can.
The Director General of Operations for the National Crime Agency said that the purity and street prices of drugs were unaffected by large seizures, either at the border or en route to the UK.
He said there had been an increase of 80% in production of heroin in Afghanistan in recent years and that Columbian cocaine production had more than doubled and that the link between serious violence and drugs is clear.
Here is confirmation that those in positions to report back to the public are telling us about the direct correlation of drugs and violence. This is a fact and we cannot negate this.
Are we on the front foot or are we still looking to solutions to deal with this major problem, which was once very rare in the UK?
If we take note of the production increase – this alone is staggering and speaking volumes to us.
80% more of a drug being produced tells us demand is very high and the suppliers are on the front foot because they are getting it to the customers even though the whole trade is illegal.
So do we need to be asking more questions?
How can we have such tight border controls and policing going on if large amounts are being supplied – there has to be more that we are choosing not to be aware of?
If we simply join the dots it is clear – SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT
If we read any blog on this website related to drugs, we get the same message – It alters our natural state and that means something inside us changes.
So what exactly is it that changes?
WHY are we taking the drug in the first place?
What happens to our behaviour when we take drugs?
What goes on inside our mind and what thoughts are we getting?
What are we acting on when we have these thoughts entering?
WHY are drugs so addictive and why is there no real education about this?
WHY are we not bringing awareness to young children and adolescents about the dangers of drugs, the stats and the facts, so they KNOW exactly what it is way before they make a choice to take drugs or not?
Without asking questions, we are never going to get to the root of WHY we have drugs and violence on our streets at epidemic levels that are rising by the day.
Is this a wake up call for one nation or for ALL of us regardless of what country we live in?
I had an interesting conversation with a man from Ireland who made the choice to leave his homeland because he realised he did not want to live a life of drugs.
He was clear that he did not want drugs and alcohol in his life, going forward.
He said all his mates were deeply unhappy with their jobs and needed an escape so cocaine, ecstasy and alcohol were the combo at weekends but it got out of hand very quickly and most are now fighting addiction.
What is amazing is this is a living science – a man in the neighbourhood talking openly about his take on why so called ‘normal’ young men were hooked on drugs and they had jobs so most of us think they must be ok.
What if we paid more attention to what people have to say – those who have lived it, seen it, been there and done it? Surely they have some great anecdotal evidence that beats any laboratory or double blind tested stuff with a hypothesis.
This 32 year old man was certain that drugs are easily accessible and every guy back in his homeland that he knows takes drugs. He told me they make a choice to do it and they could easily make a choice to get out of it.
If we are going to be honest, does this type of drug taking ever get recorded and are we really churning out accurate research statistics about the drug epidemic that is facing the whole world?
People who work and hold down jobs that society deem as doing good are taking drugs.
Where will this end and when, if we continue to turn a blind eye to what is really going on under our nose, in our street, neighbourhood, community, town, city, country and beyond?
What is our Responsibility – those of us who are not in the cycle of drugs?
Euro News – 7 June 2019
https://www.euronews.com/2019/06/06/european-agency-warns-about-uberisation-of-drug-market
A European drug agency says it is seizing record quantities of increasingly pure cocaine and have warned of the potential ‘uberisation’ of the drug trade, as more people use smartphones.
140 tonnes cocaine seized by authorities in 2017 – doubled from previous year.
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA)’s annual report (2019) on the trends and developments in the drug market, warned there was drug trafficking on social media and darknet markets, where cocaine dealers use online ‘call centres’ to deliver drugs to users online orders.
The report warned this could lead to the “potential ‘Uberisation’ of the drug trade, making it resemble the American ‘ride-sharing’ company, when users can book a nearby taxi from an app on their phone.
The agency warned these trends “are indicative of a competitive market, in which sellers compete by offering additional services beyond the product itself.”
The following is taken from the video on this news story link –
Cocaine seizures are at record levels
Cocaine purity at street level reached highest level in a decade
Growth in large-volume trafficking is a major challenge
Entrepreneurship can be seen in innovative distribution methods
Cocaine is the most commonly used illicit stimulant drug
Wastewater analysis reveals increases in cocaine metabolites in 22 of 38 cities
Treatment needs for cocaine problems seem to be growing
There are indications of changes in heroin market
The quantity of heroin seized increased
Heroin labs detected in Europe and more precursor chemicals seized
Heroin is still the most common illicit Opioid on the drug market
People who inject are at risk of contracting infectious diseases
New Synthetic Opioids are a growing concern
They have been linked with poisonings and deaths
Only small amounts are needed to produce 1000s of street doses
Six highly potent fentanyl derivatives were detected in Europe last year
Cannabis is the most widely used and seized drug in Europe
THC content in herbal cannabis and resin has doubled over the last decade
This raises concerns about potential harms
Cannabis is now the most commonly named substance when entering treatment for the first time
New cannabis products add to the challenges in a complex policy area
Cannabis products from international legal markets are now appearing in Europe
And low strength cannabis products are being sold in health food or specialist shops
Europe’s role in synthetic drug production is growing
New substances are being used to make chemicals needed for synthetic drug production
21 MDMA labs were dismantled in the EU, producing large volumes for EU consumption and export
MDMA content in ecstasy tablets has reached a 10 year high
Dear World
Here we have once again more ‘evidence’ confirming that our drug use is on the rise with no signs of slowing down. Like other places in the world, Europe is not in anyway free of drugs. In fact, the high volumes we can glean from this news story tells us the demand from us, yes us – those that seek these drugs of choice are the reason why we have this type of news reporting.
How come no one yet is talking about WHY anyone chooses to take drugs in the first place and what on earth is going on with them that they want a mind altering substance?
What if we start a conversation by saying SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT and then get honest and see where that takes us all?
If we pretend this is not happening, or it is over there in another part of the world – we may just be posing a reductionist view and missing the point that we are all accountable and responsible for what goes on in our planet.
Seeking to escape with drugs or a mission on Mars is not the answer and we do all know that.
Time we got honest and admitted the reality of the mess we have created on this plane of life, as things are certainly not great or worth championing and celebrating if this is what our drug use is currently, in one part of the world.
Metro News – 24 June 2019
A teenager has died after taking ecstasy and cannabis after a gathering with friends.
The police want to warn others of the dangers and potential risks of taking drugs.
How many more of these news stories are we going to hear?
Is campaigning going to be enough or do we need to look for another way?
Can real education be presented at schools from day dot to bring awareness to our kids and young teenagers, so they fully understand exactly what different drugs do to the mind and body?
This website holds many facts, stats and questions for the reader to consider about substances including alcohol, amphetamines and cannabis.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-alcohol/
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-amphetamines/
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-marijuana/
What if we could do research studies to see if real education works and the impact it can have if we bring it in at an early age?
What if we need to educate parents and guardians too as they also have a responsibility?
If a teenager is addicted to nicotine, cannabis or other drugs, will this tragic death stop them and if it does, is it that simple and easy to do so?
Anyone who has studied drugs would tell us that dependency on these substances is fast and we need more of the same to get the feeling we want.
This means more drugs, which then leads to other drugs and in some cases a whole mix of drugs with alcohol. All poison to the mind and body.
Whilst we have legal limits and different opinions about what drugs are ok to use and not use, we will continue to remain divided about our war on drugs, as it has been called in the past.
In truth, the only change we have had are things have escalated and got much worse.
Independent – 15 August 2019
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/drug-death-toll-england-wales-record-high-overdose-poisoning-substance-a9059296.html
Drug deaths in England and Wales have hit a record high with around 56 people dying every week from illicit substances.
In 2018 there were 4,359 deaths related to drug poisoning – the highest number since records began in 1993.
The above figures also mark the highest annual increase with deaths increasing by 16% from 2017 – 2018.
Opiates such as heroin and morphine continued to be the most frequently mentioned substance.
Drug poisoning in both males and females have increased.
Deaths involving cocaine doubled between 2015 – 2018 to their highest level.
The numbers that died involving new psychoactive substances (formerly known as legal highs) has increased.
MDMA deaths are at their highest ever.
This is not just an issue affecting the UK with a similar news story published in March 2019 in USA Today –
U.S Deaths from Alcohol, Drugs and Suicide Hit Highest Level Since Record Keeping Began
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2019/03/05/suicide-alcohol-drug-deaths-centers-disease-control-well-being-trust/3033124002/
So the question that arises is – are our governments to blame?
Is figure pointing the answer?
Is anyone to blame or would we benefit from adopting a different approach when looking at the drugs epidemic?
What if it would be wise for us to question why there has been such an increase in people using drugs and dying from drug use?
Are we willing to understand the root cause of why any of us turn to drugs in the first place?
Is it worth us all asking the questions raised in this blog by Simple Living Global?
Would this open us up to consider the wisdom shared above by Serge Benhayon?
Is it possible that connection is the answer?
Are we willing and ready to truly understand what this means?
Would this mean we would need to change the way that we live and what we all see as priorities in our lives?
Could this make a true difference?
Council on Foreign Relations – 22 October 2019
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/mexicos-drug-war
Violence continues to rage in Mexico more than a decade after the former president launched a crackdown on drug cartels.
Mexican drug cartels are leading suppliers of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and other illicit narcotics to the United States.
Mexican cartels are also leading manufacturers of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid many times more potent than heroin. U.S. seizures of this drug has soared in recent years.
The cartels also produce and smuggle vast quantities of marijuana into the United States but legalization of the drug in some states and in Canada has pushed Drug Trafficking Organizations to refocus on harder drugs, such as heroin, whose demand has skyrocketed with the rise of the U.S. opioid epidemic.
The cartels and the drug traded fuel violence in Mexico, contributing to tens of thousands of homicides every year.
Since 2006 when Mexico launched a war on the cartels, the United States has provided it with billions of dollars in security and counter narcotics assistance.
The country has seen over 300,000 homicides since antidrug campaigns began in 2006.
2018 homicides linked to drug cartels is a new high – 36,000.
2019 the trend continued with 90 murders everyday.
It now gets more serious so pay attention – read and re-read what is being presented here.
In Mexico, cartels pay off judges, police, politicians and other officials using their vast drug profits, which the U.S. government estimates to be worth tens of billions of dollars per year.
The government of the United States, despite waging a “war on drugs” and conducting other counternarcotics efforts abroad, has made little progress in reducing the demand for illegal drugs.
2016 – Americans spent $150 billion on cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana, which was 50% more than in 2010.
Meanwhile, growing use of synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, has led to a public health crisis.
90% of lethal drugs in the United States come from Mexico.
Most of the illicit drugs from Mexico are smuggled into the United States through over 300 ports of entry or legal crossings, which are controlled by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Traffickers hide or disguise drugs in passenger vehicles, tractor trailers, buses and cargo trains.
In recent years, cartels have also used drones to transport contraband.
Once in the United States, traffickers deliver drugs to smaller local groups and street gangs – mainly composed of Mexican nationals or U.S. citizens of Mexican descent, who manage retail-level distribution in cities throughout the country.
This news article expands on even more…
The toll on human rights – for example 37,000 people missing since 2006 remains a mystery.
How is that possible and how has this happened?
Even after a $3 billion handout Mexico has yet to root out government corruption and dismantle violent criminal networks.
What is needed?
Will a great wall do the job or deploying more personnel and latest surveillance technologies?
The Trump administration announced in December 2018 a program with Mexico to stem irregular migration and narcotics trafficking, pledging more than $4 billion.
Enough said, our war on drugs is getting us nowhere and the above confirms this and so does history because wars are not the answer. We cannot fight or go into combat, as we are in a losing battle from the start.
WHY has no one asked about those that buy the drug?
In other words, the consumers, the punters, the customers who want the self medication that fuels the drug industry.
Let’s get real – the drug cartels exist because we, those that make the demand put them there.
Stop taking the drugs, buying the drugs or dealing in drugs and the market ceases.
Imagine if $4 billion and the rest that our world spends on fighting drugs went towards real education so we stop future generations going anywhere near drugs, helping those that are ready to take responsibility, do the rehab needed, come off their addictive wagon and get a proper reality check and that means a drug free life.
We seem to be content pumping money into the fight but what if we don’t need to fight as the very answer is simple economics – supply and demand. Stop the demand and there will be no need for suppliers to profit. We cannot blame them when we have a hand in what is going on.
The Guardian – 29 October 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/oct/29/spice-so-called-zombie-drug-uk-poorest-communities
The news story starts with the following …
You can tell a lot about a society by the drugs it depends on.
In the UK right now, the main drug of choice is Alcohol.
338,000 hospital admissions in 2017-2018.
6,000 deaths and 900 fatalities due to drunk drivers.
ALCOHOL brings £12 billion in tax revenue.
Cocaine is another recession-proof perennial
23kg per day is snorted in London
600 deaths last year (2018)
Purity soars and price falls due to rise in Columbian output
Cocaine still has the brand of a luxury good, conferring on its users the association of being in an elite class of substance abuser.
Cannabis, after decades of demonisation as “killer skunk” has been rebranded to the public as an essential medicine, now that hedge funds are pouring millions into the new legal cannabis markets in Canada and the U.S.
Then there is Spice – so called zombie drug ripping a path through the lives of Britain’s poorest communities. Users are often homeless, either living in hostels or on the streets.
95% homeless people in Manchester use it.
Spice came to prominence in the late 2000s and early 2010s in British prisons, where it could easily be smuggled in, either soaked onto letters or passed over by visitors. Most tests could not detect it and its lack of the familiar fug of cannabis made it easy to smoke.
Apparently, Spice kills time like no other drug. Some users say a year of smoking it passes as quickly as a few months. In most cases, it knocks the user out cold. That is the point, as the user wants total shutdown.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-spice/
Talking to the taxi driver today, he told me that he picked up 3 young people from the city at night and the female jumped in the front passenger seat and started kissing him.
He pushed her off and asked had she been drinking vodka or whiskey as it was wild behaviour and he immediately associated it with alcohol.
She said alcohol for a night out bingeing would cost £40 – £50 and this party pill she popped cost her £5 and gives her crazy thoughts and puts her in a wild state for over 6 hours so it’s much cheaper.
So here is real life talk about what is going on in our towns and cities.
We can turn a blind eye but if we look at the comment above from Shevon Simon who quotes that drug poisoning has increased and all the other facts stated, we can be left in no doubt that SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT.
These party drugs serve a purpose for these young people.
So alcohol is too costly and they find a solution – another way.
At no point is the harm considered or what the consequences could be by taking poison to achieve an altered state.
Without judgement, could we respectfully ask the question –
What is going on for a young member of our society where they have the need to take a party popper because it’s cheap and they get what they want – the mind altering state of being which removes them from the reality of real life?
ADD to that their behaviour does affect others and it is clear it is not them.
So what is it that gets inside us and behaves in an ugly way that we call wild and crazy?
What about the taxi driver who still seems shaken by this mad moment, where he cannot make any sense of this as he does not understand WHY someone would do that intentionally to get a high?
We have a serious drug problem in this world and we are far far from solving it and our solutions are not working. Fact.
There is a whole under the radar dark world dealing with drugs and it’s a huge industry right under our nose, but most of us prefer not to talk about that kind of stuff.
Campaigning and thinking we are nailing it has not got us on the front foot.
We need a world AGM and everyone has to do their bit and contribute by talking and keep talking and having conversations until we knock out the ill movements that get any of us into an altered state.
Talking will get things exposed in our neighbourhoods, in our communities, in our towns, in our cities and in our countries. Then we can unite, join the dots, apply good old fashion common sense and understanding of what is really going on, that up until now we made a choice to ignore.
Let’s bring this ugly stuff out into the light.
Let’s enrol real role models – those who walk the talk and talk the walk.
Let’s make sure these role models are living a transparency in their private life same as their professional life for a decade plus before we even consider them.
Let’s feel the quality of people who are in it to genuinely support humanity and not just want to get identification, recognition or creditation for their good work.
Let’s ensure our future role models are living in a way everyday that reflects what life will be like and is possible for the future.
Let us know and feel that this is possible, as there are those who live in this way among us in the community and it is for us to observe them first and then make the movements to seek their wisdom and guidance so that we can turn the tides for mankind once and for all.
Daily Mail – 26th October 2019
Epidemic of Drug Driving
Britain is in the grip of a drug driving epidemic with more than 60 people a day being banned from the roads.
Nearly 20,000 motorists were convicted over the last year for being under the influence of drugs – almost four times as many as previous years according to figures from the Driver and Licensing Agency (DVLA).
Among them were 44 teenagers aged 15 and 16 who were caught high on drugs at the wheel even before they could sit their driving tests. A further 201 newly qualified drivers were also caught drug driving at the age of 17.
Six people were disqualified after killing someone while driving under the influences of substances including cocaine and cannabis.
The data from DVLA does not show whether a jail sentence was imposed but some of those who killed while driving under the influence of drugs escaped with a four-year driving ban.
The DVLA data suggests drivers in their late twenties are the worst offenders, with 25 being the most common age for disqualification for drug driving. But it isn’t just young people being caught – 78 drivers over 60 were prosecuted for failing drug tests with the eldest driver banned being a 74-year old woman.
In 2015, drug driving became a specific criminal offence. In the first year of the new law, more than half of drivers stopped on suspicion of taking drugs failed roadside tests. A police survey showed that officers in 26 forces had carried out 5,857 roadside drug tests with 3,718 testing positive in the 12 months to February 2016.
Last year the Daily Mail revealed how accidents involving drug drivers had also risen by more than 50 per cent in a year.
Motorists convicted of drug driving face the same penalty as drink drivers – a minimum ban of a year, unlimited fine and up to six months in prison, though few are jailed.
There is no difference whether we are inebriated from drugs or alcohol – both of these take us away from our natural state and impair our normal sensory functions and the potential harm is evident for all to see.
Drugs have been around for a very long time so I find it difficult to comprehend why drug driving has only been a specific criminal offence since 2015.
It is clear from the DVLA statistics that age is no barrier to drug taking.
Why is drug driving on the rise?
Are we changing one harm-full substance for another?
Is it possible that we believe taking drugs and driving is not as bad as drink driving?
Just like drink driving, drug driving is illegal for a reason.
Where is our responsibility in knowing we are ingesting a substance that has the potential to, through our actions, injure someone or worse kill?
Euro News – 12 March 2020
https://www.euronews.com/2020/03/12/revealed-europe-s-drugs-of-choice-are-cocaine-and-mdma
Europeans are taking more cocaine and MDMA than ever, according to a new study.
New data released by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Addiction (EMCDA) from April 2019 has revealed a surge, across Europe in the use of MDMA – the active ingredient in ecstasy.
The study analysed the wastewater of 49 million people across Europe.
Of 42 cities surveyed, 23 saw an increase in residues of MDMA in wastewater, suggesting that what was once “a niche or subcultural drug limited to dance clubs and parties is now being used by a broader range of young people in mainstream nightlife settings” EMCDA said.
Of 45 cities surveyed for cocaine use, increases were found in 27, with Belgium, the Netherlands, UK and Spain among the top ten. The city with the highest cocaine use was Antwerp in Belgium with 1,275.7 mg per 1,000 people per day found in its wastewater in 2019.
Crystal Methamphetamine
The study also tested for use of amphetamines and methamphetamines – also known as “crystal meth”. The highest concentrations of the former were in Sweden, with Stockholm and Gavle top of the list, while the use of methamphetamines was most common in the Czech Republic and Germany.
“We are seeing lots of shipments of cocaine being seized in Antwerp because they have a large port, so the drug is available there, which must be one of the reasons. We are seeing an increase in cocaine use in Belgium overall,” Joao Matias, scientific analyst, at the EMCDA told Euronews.
Equally, he said, a trend has tended to be that while in southern Europe cocaine is more prevalent, in northern Europe amphetamines are more common.
RESEARCH
European Monitoring Centre for Drug and Drug Addiction
Waste analysis and drugs – a European multi-city study
https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/html/pods/waste-water-analysis_en
International Business Times – 26 March 2020
https://www.ibtimes.com/lockdown-or-lock-fears-alcoholism-addiction-confinement-2947569
At the very end of this news story it says there is currently a question of how millions of recreational drug users are coping during the pandemic, when supplies may become difficult.
A 24 year old student who of course wants to remain anonymous says that at the beginning of the lockdown there were almost no dealers moving around but they have reorganized.
‘You have to order the day before, in larger quantities and the dealers have resumed business.’
This in itself speaks volumes and is a clear confirmation that our demand for drugs is not going away, regardless of what is going on in our world. Even a lockdown in a global pandemic will have dealers undercover but not for long – they find another way and its business as usual. In fact with the ordering of larger quantities they stand to profit even more.
Next – what is the real state of our world if someone in their early 20’s is doing drugs?
When we read statistics, do we really get the full picture as many will be hiding and not saying ‘count me in as a drug user’?
As a race of beings we are so off the mark from our natural state and our addiction to drugs confirms this.
INTERPOL News – 30 April 2020
https://www.interpol.int/en/News-and-Events/News/2020/Dealers-using-food-delivery-services-to-transport-drugs-during-COVID-19-lockdowns
Drug dealers are using food delivery services to transport drugs and other illicit goods during global lockdown.
Arrests around the world, as countries including Ireland, Spain and Malaysia report modus operandi to Interpol. Cocaine, Marijuana, Ketamine and Ecstasy were drugs reported, identifying delivery drivers who were transporting these drugs.
Delivery drivers may be complicit or unwitting links to drug transportation. Cases brought to Interpol were falsely disguised as food delivery drivers and legitimate food delivery drivers, knowingly and willingly delivering drugs on behalf of criminal organizations for financial gain. They have also been used as unwitting drug mules.
We have country-wide lockdowns and whilst the masses are busy re-acting to the pandemic and all the noise that has come with it, the underworld of drugs continues to remain in-action, on the front foot, so to speak and create new ways to get their supplys to those that demand it – those that seek any form of drug and want it delivered.
We could say this is like a movie and it cannot possibly be real. They think of all sorts of ways that most of us could not even imagine or come up with such ideas, to get the drugs delivered.
The drugs world, from those that manufacture, produce, traffic and deliver offer a service and we could say as a business they are doing very well. Their business model is working, regardless of what we have to say or not say. They are in for the long-haul and nothing seems to stop them, not even huge seizures or jail sentences for those that get arrested.
What we ought to be asking is WHO wants these drugs?
Who are the customers – the real punters, as we know it is not just those on the streets?
WHY are most of us in the dark, so to speak when it comes to what is going on in the name of crime and drug trafficking?
Are we interested or is this just some news we would like to not talk about as it leaves us feeling un-comfortable or disturbed?
WHY are delivery drivers that are supposedly called ‘legitimate’ happy and willing to deliver drugs on behalf of criminal organizations for financial gain?
WHY are they putting profit before people and what happened and when did they throw out their moral compass which has responsibility, accountability and integrity as the core tenets?
Time we got real dear World. We keep blaming the dark world of drugs but let’s get honest – who put them on the map in the first place? In other words, how did they get there?
Easy really and simple to answer. We did – those of us that demand drugs of any kind that we know are not legal and in truth not needed. Nevertheless, it suits us, so we turn a blind eye to all the bits that make us un-comfortable.
AND Finally, have we stopped for long enough to consider the cost to society.
YES the public purse that has to consistently spend monies on criminal activity when it could be going elsewhere to much more purpose-full causes that would help as a race of beings to actually evolve.
Independent – 7 May 2020
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/coronavirus-drug-dealers-nhs-id-badges-lockdown-uk-a9503261.html
Drug dealers are making fake NHS badges to move around freely during the UK’s lockdown.
The National Centre for Gang Research (NCGR) found that members of “county lines” gangs were also dressing as joggers, posting drugs through letterboxes and doing “drive-by” sales to evade police detection.
Whilst shoppers were panic buying food, drug dealers were running bulk deals and selling “lockdown party packs” to capitalize on the restrictions.
The director of NCGR said the previous model of county lines dealing, which sees children used to transport drugs from urban hubs to smaller towns and rural areas has been made “too risky”.
Dealers are increasingly driving runners around or hiring local people to do the job.
Street gangs are being forced to find new tactics, such as shifting grooming and recruitment online to social media. This means young people can become involved in dangerous gang activity from their phones, while their family members would have no idea.
With suppliers finding it harder to transport drugs, this will drive up the prices for users and some police have raised concern that “desperation” may cause an increase in theft and shoplifting.
As with everything Simple Living Global comment on, regarding drugs, there is the one point that must always be noted. The suppliers are only in business because there is a demand.
That demand comes from us – the public who want the drugs. This means suppliers are in business and are willing to do what it takes to feed the demand. If it means forging NHS badges to get the drugs to their customers then they will do that.
What we need to remember is that suppliers would be out of business tomorrow if we all stopped buying drugs but we know that is not going to happen overnight.
There are huge volumes of drugs being produced and transported under the radar in a dark world that operates 24/7.
We can choose to ignore all of this going on or we can start to engage in conversations and talk about this stuff openly so others have awareness. Pretending it is not going on under our noses on our streets is WHY things are what they are today.
In the old days, if there was suspicion we would talk about it but in modern day 21st century – todays world, we call it ‘minding our own business’ and say nothing, do nothing and hope there is not any disturbance coming our way, as we like our life just how it is – thank you very much.
Our blog on this website Do Nothing, Do Something is well worth reading
https://simplelivingglobal.com/do-nothing-do-something/
We each have a Responsibility and whilst we are not here to advocate, endorse or join the war on drugs brigade, we are here as a website for humanity – which is about the people and for the people to simply bring awareness to what is going on in our world.
REUTERS World News – 18 May 2020
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-morocco-crime/moroccan-smugglers-embark-on-long-new-route-to-ship-drugs-to-europe-idUSKBN22U1RS
Moroccan drug traffickers are being forced to use alternative routes as normal drug routes are being blocked since the country imposed an internal lockdown that has stopped movement between cities and closed air and sea borders.
Police say a circuitous journey is being made involving food trucks and fishing boats to smuggle locally grown cannabis, requiring long and expensive sea trips in a bid for a safer route.
Previously, cannabis grown in the northern mountains was trucked for the short distance to the Mediterranean coast and then across the sea by speed boat or concealed in daily fleets of commercial shipping.
Since the start of this year, police have seized 62 tonnes of cannabis resin, known as hashish.
The United Nations drugs agency said that North African and the Middle Eastern drug busts show that the restrictions have failed to halt the narcotics trade, as European users buy more to see them through lockdown.
While cannabis trafficking continues, the pandemic restrictions have entirely stopped shipments of cocaine being flown through Morocco, which at one time was a way station on the way to Europe.
Dear World
We are in a global pandemic with lockdown restrictions worldwide.
Do we need to get real and honest about the demand for drugs during this time?
Do we think that suppliers are taking a day off or are they on the front foot, so to speak in getting ahead with new and innovative ways to transport and deliver drugs?
Have they got the shipments sorted and are those who profit continuing with their ‘business as usual’ hat on, whilst the majority of us are living in fear and anxiety of catching a virus?
Have we thought about this – many who were making do with the alcohol and smoking are not feeling the cut off, numbing, checked out state of being that it used to give them?
In other words, job insecurity, worries about the future, health, their kids and a world in panic and fear with nowhere to go but ‘stay in or else’ has got some wanting a new mind altering substance to take the edge off life.
Could this be possible or are we too busy trying to cope with life and not paying any attention to the goings on in the drug world?
What if suppliers are having an even busier time, because the demand has gone up, as new customers are coming from all over?
What if our efforts and great police work are not keeping us ahead, because the dealers are already working way ahead as they have done so far in meeting the demands?
What if we need to look at the whole drug thing from another angle and that means stop thinking a certain type of person does drugs?
Today we have the so-called ordinary folk, women in business, full time mothers with young kids, youth who are in their teens, university students, the middle class lovely neighbour with the decent job and house to match and others in society that we may not have even thought would ever do drugs. That is the reality and until we start to open our eyes and read blogs and comments like this, get talking to each other and asking questions, we are not going to nail the war on drugs that has been going on under our nose and on our watch since day dot.
Simple Living Global has thus far done so with commitment and dedication and will continue to report the facts to raise awareness.
Independent – 27 May 2020
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/heroin-heathrow-airport-drug-smuggling-fruit-nut-box-a9535586.html
170kg of heroin has been found at Heathrow Airport.
£8.5 million potential street value – packets of the drug were hidden in freight consignment containing more than 600 commercial boxes of fruit and nuts.
Envelopes of heroin were concealed in the walls of cardboard boxes.
This was the largest class A drugs detection this year at Heathrow.
Minister Chris Philip said “Illegal drugs fuel crime, violence and exploitation which is why our work to prevent them reaching our communities is so vital”.
We would have to agree with the National Crime Agency that this significant amount of heroin would have ended up on the streets of the UK and ultimately lined the pockets of the criminals involved in drug supply.
Officials say that travel restrictions and international lockdowns have made it harder for criminal groups to move drugs, guns and money, forcing them to take bigger risks.
With due respect to all those working hard to fight this war on drugs, are we really getting ahead of the game, so to speak?
Are we on the front foot and are some of us who read the news just thinking it’s a world of drugs out there and that it is not going on in our streets or our communities, when in fact what is driving the supply is the people we least suspect using drugs now as part of their self medication.
Do we all need to wake up and note, that many more people are now consuming drugs, whereas before it was alcohol and the odd bit of pot smoking?
It has now got much more serious.
The suppliers have to get on the front foot and keep coming up with new ways to meet the demand and that demand is coming from us – those society least expect living a very so-called normal life and looking the part so no one suspects.
What if even more drugs are in demand as lockdown has brought with it another set of problems and that means we need self medication – something strong that will numb us and alter our natural state of being as the basic poisons like caffeine and alcohol are no longer cutting it? Possible?
Back to the news story – where there is a demand there has to be a way the supplier is willing to get the drugs to the customers. If that means hidden in the walls of a cardboard box that contains fruit, then that is what they will do. They are creative and will keep coming up with new ways whilst we continue to read news stories like this, which in truth are becoming more frequent now.
Time to wake up Dear World. This drug problem is not going away and we now have evidence it is getting worse. Yes it’s great more seizures and more arrests but have we really got to the root cause of WHY anyone starts to take drugs in the first place?
Research gives us what we want to hear and then what?
When are we going to admit that human life is not working? Something is going on in our lives that we are not willing to address, deal with or take action on and so we find other ways, like drug taking and it is completely destroying not just the person but all those whose lives they affect, not to mention the whole of society.
Something is clearly not right if the drug suppliers are willing to take bigger risks than ever to ensure their customers get what they want – their drug of choice, call it self medication as that is what it is.
Independent – 3 June 2020
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/county-lines-drugs-phone-numbers-children-uk-a9544506.html
UK Police have shut down 87 “county lines” phone numbers, since November 2019 that were used to deal drugs from London across the country in a national crackdown. The estimate is that around 1000 lines are operating at any time.
Officers are targeting those who operate branded phone lines to sell their product and then organise distribution of heroin and crack cocaine to smaller cities and towns.
Children and vulnerable people are frequently used as couriers and the model has been linked to increases in knife carrying and violence across Britain.
There is a growing evidence base, which showed obvious pattern of phone usage.
The Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said that while previous operations had focused on lower-level dealers who included children and modern slavery victims, police were now targeting senior figures to permanently shut down prolific lines.
“We want to destroy the business model. We are beginning to turn the tables. Our operations have become increasingly successful and criminals should be deterred from running county lines because of the ever increasing risk of being caught.”
She adds that county lines were not just an issue the police could solve alone. ‘we need to reduce the demand for drugs and support those addicted to these lethal substances.
We need to design out the ability to run these lines.’
The police want to target the controllers who exploit children and vulnerable adults and collect the profits at the end. They remain in the shadows and are responsible for a trail of misery and mayhem across the UK.
In one year, 1,300 people were charged with 20,000 offences, including more than 20 murders.
This news story is telling us how much resources go into stopping county lines, but can we say we are turning the tides?
Are we really on the front foot or have those dealers been extra creative during lockdown season – plotting and planning behind closed doors with new ways to meet the orders from those that demand?
Are we anywhere near close with the actual figures of those who may not appear to be taking drugs like cocaine but they are, under the banner of “recreational drugs” and this hidden demand is fuelling the suppliers’ business?
Is this stay at home new way, for the time being, adding to the demands as more want relief and the altered state of being that these drugs offer?
Are our suppliers always going to be on the front foot with new ways to deliver drugs to our door or can we safely say it’s all under control and there is nothing to be concerned about as the police are doing a great job and that will be enough?
Basic commerce teaches us that there is no supplier unless there is a demand. Business will continue until there is no demand and then the supplier goes out of business.
In the drug world business – where are we really at with the supply and demand if we could be honest for one moment?
Daily Mail – 4th July 2020
Public School Pupils Take More Drugs and Start Drinking at a Younger Age
A study claims that pupils from private schools start drinking at a younger age, binge drink more frequently and take more drugs than state-educated ones.
And by the age of 21, they show no more signs of maturity than their non-fee-paying counterparts.
Researchers from York University said that while fees were often ‘exorbitant, we found, for the first time, that private and state school students do not differ in their wellbeing across adolescence’.
The study added: ‘There is a growing body of evidence questioning the benefits of private over state education for children’s outcomes.’
Around 7 per cent of secondary school pupils are privately educated. Average day attendance fees are around £18,000 a year and for students who board this can rise to £35,000 a year.
Studies show they achieve better average grades than pupils from state schools, are more likely to attend prestigious universities such as Oxford and Cambridge and earn more when they start working.
The study team led by a professor of psychology tracked 2,400 pupils from state schools and 269 form private schools through to the age of 21. They questioned each one on drink and drug use, their sex lives and criminal behaviour.
The results, published in the British Journal of Psychology, showed those from fee-paying schools were younger when they first tried alcohol, engaged more often in binge drinking and were more likely to try cannabis or other illicit drugs.
They also tended to have more sexual partners. However, they were less likely to be in trouble with the police, indulge in anti-social behaviour or have unprotected sex than state school students.
The professor of the study said: “Our findings are particularly relevant for parents considering private education for their children. They may assume it will add value to children’s development and that this justifies the investment in exorbitant school fees. But our results suggest it ads little positive value to children’s social or emotional development and may even have a negative influence on it. Compared to state school students, private pupils were more likely to take risks and started drinking alcohol at a younger age.”
Why are youngsters at private schools more inclined to start drinking alcohol and taking drugs at an earlier age than state schools?
Is it simply a case of there being more wealth around for private students or is there something deeper going here?
Is it possible that the private students, especially the ones that board, are missing out on much needed family support?
Is it possible that being sent away to school is going to bring up issues like self-worth, anxiety or abandonment?
Is it possible that this momentum of life at these private schools will carry on into their adult lives?
There is much hype about the prestige of going to private schools but if this behaviour is indicative of what actually goes on in these schools, is it possible it makes the whole process a farce with the implication that going to a private school is just seen as a ‘rite of passage’ and not the learning opportunity it could be?
Generally, parents will send their children to private schools as they themselves went to one and so, is it possible that the parents got up to the same antics?
Is it possible then, that one thing we may need to question is are the parents of these children just perpetuating the behaviour?
Although, privately educated students may have more benefits as a result of their education, is it possible that none of that truly matters if they are going to be more dependent on alcohol and drugs?
A young mother aged 25 who always spoke against the dangers of drugs died after taking cocaine for the first time.
Society would say that someone who is a teaching assistant is intelligent and we could then say how does this happen when they know the dangers?
We could look at the life story – married for 12 years and then left to enter a lesbian relationship with a neighbour. Husband claims this woman was anti drugs and new partner openly states they took cocaine on the night her partner died. She was very drunk and put to bed, but the coroner’s report states she had taken cocaine.
What may seem like a bit of fun when it comes to drugs never is.
Many of us start with alcohol, which we all know is a scientific proven poison that alters our natural state. For any reader who may doubt this statement, please visit our article on this website called The Real Truth about Alcohol.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-alcohol/
Could it be possible that being in an ‘altered state’ leads to the next choice being made that is equally harmfull and in this case taking a lethal drug which became a cocktail with the alcohol already in the blood system? The coroner said that this was perhaps the first and only time that this woman took cocaine.
When we are so anti drugs – what happens that changes that in an instant?
What happens to our rationale, common sense and moral compass?
Without further speculation it is a tragedy and a grand loss when human life is taken in this way and so suddenly. The knock on effect is huge and the devastation to all those related and beyond is worth taking a moment of pause to consider.
We as a world seem to have judgements and beliefs about who and what drug taking people are but in truth it can be the lovely young teaching assistant who gets so drunk just after new year that she was found dead in her bed the next morning.
Ruling – her death was drug and alcohol related.
A question – if the partner was not intoxicated with alcohol and cocaine, could this woman be alive today as she may have clocked something was not right and alerted the medics? Possible?
What we also need to question is what is going on in the life of the partner who survived after a drug and alcohol fuelled night?
How can we help and deal with the root cause of WHY any of us would want to take a poison that could easily cause death?
The Guardian – 21 November 2020
Today in the national newspaper we have the title of this news story “Calls for Tougher Penalties over ‘Chemsex’ Drugs”.
Will harsher penalties issued for the possession of drugs used by gay men for “chemsex” be the answer to this drug problem because we have our government drug policy advisers warning us about a raft of their dangers?
Chemsex is the term used to describe sex between men that occurs under the influence of drugs.
GHB – Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid and GHB – Gamma-butyrolactone and related substances collectively referred to as GHBRS give euphoric and stimulant effects.
So if the UK re-classify this drug from its current position of Class C to Class B this would mean that possession could be punished with a 5 year prison sentence.
Will this change in law cut it and do those who seek this type of pleasure ignore it because the risk of getting caught and ending up in prison is not even a consideration?
The report from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs mentioned a series of significant dangers associated with GHBRS, which have been known to facilitate serious crimes like murder, rape, sexual assault and robbery. There was a steep rise in deaths between 2008 and 2015.
The report states that GHBRS can cause “profound unconsciousness” and their toxic strength puts users at risk of overdose and death. They also cause a particularly severe, life threatening withdrawal syndrome.
Hello – before we go any further let us just tdo a stop and pause then re-read.
Profound Unconsciousness – what do these 2 words actually mean to us?
We could say that means great and intense (both words used to describe profound) unconsciousness – a state of being where we are unaware.
Hello Hello – an intense or great state of being unaware.
ADD to that the drug has a toxic strength that puts users at risk of overdose and death and we have a formula that is so potent and powerful that coming off it (withdrawal) is so severe it can be life threatening.
What is it about sex that we need this type of drug to stimulate us but we forget about the consequences?
What thoughts are bombarding our minds that make us seek this type of pleasure from drugs that are so dangerous?
Can we join the dots and say in a simple narrative that these drugs alter our state in such a profound way, that we become capable of serious crimes?
Do we need to ask WHY was nothing reported or brought to public attention 5 years ago when the statistics were showing us a steep rise in deaths associated with these drugs?
WHY do these types of reports seem to be on the back foot and why are we not taking drastic measures after reading what the outcome is from ingesting these toxic substances?
Are we as individuals ok and just accepting what goes on in our world or what the media chooses to report or are we interested in how and why anyone seeks to take drugs in the first place?
The Telegraph – 25 January 2021
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/25/husband-murdered-wife-pensioner-sentenced-life-judge-dismisses/
A school teacher was murdered by her husband and also an elderly lady passing by who intervened to assist. Both received blows to the head with severe force causing fatal brain damage.
The man accepted responsibility and the consequences of his actions are a life jail sentence.
The crime was caused by a psychotic episode and he had taken a new psychoactive substance and under the influence of this committed these murders.
The QC sentencing said “Anyone who takes new psychoactive substances, which are Class A drugs, is interfering with their own mental processes and responsible for the consequences.”
Case closed, man behind bars and that’s it. We never ever question more but we feel for the victims.
For the record – the defence barrister tells us that his client expressed ‘genuine remorse and contrition’ for the killings. We could dismiss this or explore a bit further and dig deep here.
The drugs altered his natural state of being.
Have we considered what exactly happens and what gets inside us that we have such “force” as mentioned above, to be so cold and brutal as to kill our own wife? Makes no sense to most of us, but we accept the one way thinking that has been around for aeons.
What exactly is in these new psychoactive substances and what on earth was going on for him that he needed to take them?
WHY does anyone seek drugs to alter their mind?
When are we going to change our line of questioning or do we need to hear about more tragic cases like this one?
It is never just those who fall victim – it is the trail of devastation on their families, friends, colleagues, neighbourhood and communities. It makes people distrust and instills fear about how we as humans are capable of behaving and that means we are all affected.
How would the mind process be of the children this woman was teaching when they find out the facts about how she was killed?
There is so much to consider here and if we do not question the drugs more in detail, then we are certainly going to be left with more tragic stories of this kind.
Global Drugs Survey – Key Findings Report 2020
25 January 2021
https://www.globaldrugsurvey.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GDS2020-Executive-Summary.pdf
The following has been taken from pages 2 – 4 as it is relevant to this article about Drugs.
Data Collection Period was before the pandemic
Global Drug Survey 2020 ran between 7 November to 30th December 2019
SAMPLE CHARECTERISTICS GLOBAL DRUG SURVEY 2020
Data from over 11,000 people from more than 25 countries were used in the preparation of this report.
66% male
52% under age 25 with
22% 35 years or older
87% were white
38% had at least an undergraduate degree as their highest level of educational attainment.
54% reported going clubbing 4 or more times per year.
DRUG USE: GLOBAL SAMPLE –
20 drugs used most commonly in the last 12 months:
8 were Psychedelic/Dissociative Drugs
6 were Stimulant Drugs
3 were Prescription CNS Depressants (Opioids / Benzodiazepines)
2 were Tobacco/Nicotine-based products
1 was Alcohol
Excluding alcohol & tobacco/nicotine products, the top 10 drugs used in the last 12 months were:
THC-containing cannabis
MDMA
CBD-only cannabis products (non-psychoactive)
Cocaine
Amphetamine
LSD
Benzodiazepines
Magic mushrooms
Ketamine
Prescription opioids
Use of Drugs in the Last 12 Months:
94% Alcohol
64% Cannabis
60% Tobacco
37% MDMA
31% CBD
31% Cocaine
29% E-Cigarettes
SEEKING EMERGENCY MEDICAL TREATMENT
Using data from the Global Drug Survey 2020 sample
13 drugs were ranked, in terms of what percentage of people who recently used the drug reported seeking Emergency Medical Treatment (EMT) in the last 12 months.
Heroin was the highest at 12.7%
Across many drug classes, younger women (under 25 years old) report higher rates of seeking Emergency Medical Treatment, than any other group. This is most evident for GHB, Alcohol, MDMA and Ketamine. It is uncertain whether it is due to this population adopting riskier patterns of use or due to physiological differences, but the finding suggest the need for specific harm reduction messages for young women, to mitigate this elevated risk.
Global Drugs Survey – Key Findings Report 2020
25 January 2021
Pages 8-11
https://www.globaldrugsurvey.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GDS2020-Executive-Summary.pdf
The following are more key findings taken from the Global Drug Report 2020.
The content highlights some important factors worth noting as this really is going on.
Note – this is based on a sample of the population.
The raw and real reality is that there are more that slip under the radar or may never get to be counted as a statistic. However, suffice to say we have a global drug problem yet to be nailed. We are nowhere even close to being on the front foot with our ‘war on drugs’ agenda.
MDMA
Global Drugs Survey (GDS) 2020 respondents used –
MDMA used average 10.5 days in the last year.
23,000 who used MDMA in the last 12 months completed the specialist section on patterns of use, harms and redosing. Most participants used MDMA frequently.
The use of MDMA powder is now as common as MDMA tablets (ecstasy).
Despite advice to “start low, go slow” and to test dose MDMA from a new batch, almost half reported never doing this.
MDMA continues to be perceived as good value for money.
Seeking emergency medical treatment (EMT) with MDMA.
Those seeking EMT after taking MDMA was highest in women under 25 years.
9% of those seeking EMT reported taking no other substance.
Concurrent use of alcohol being reported by 60% and cannabis by 26%. Since alcohol also increases dehydration and the ability of the body to regulate its temperature, it can also impair the ability to judge the effects of MDMA. This can lead to increased dosing which can result in higher blood MDMA levels, leaving you feeling unwell.
49% of users said they had no idea what is in their pill or capsule and how much MDMA it contains. This means safer dosing is left to blind faith or judgment, which can result in avoidable risk.
Redosing too soon can lead to a spike in blood plasma levels that increases the risk of harm.
Re-dosing is when the user takes their next dose of drug.
FACTORS IMPACTING ON MDMA REDOSING BEHAVIOUR
44.6% Redose when I am coming down
30.9% Redose when deciding to stay out longer
30.9% Redose after a fixed time
19.2% Redose when friends dose (again)
16.5% Redose before/during favourite DJ set
16.3% Redose an hour after I have peaked
14.8% Redose randomly
12.9% Redose when I am offered more
10.3% Redose when I am peaking
7.4% Redose when I am coming up
VALUE FOR MONEY:
LSD was rated as the best value for money drug in the world (again) for the third year running.
We asked people who had used different drugs within the last 12 months on a scale of 1-10, how they would rate that drug on value for money (10 being the highest). This graph is based on global respondents.
DRUG SCALE
LSD 8.5
GHB/GBL 8.1
AMPHETAMINE 7.7
MDMA, Pills 7.7
Alcohol bought in shop 7.6
Magic Mushroom 7.5
MDMA, Powder 7.5
Ketamine 7.0
Methamphetamine 6.2
Heroin 6.1
Alcohol bought in bar 5.9
Nitrous Oxide 5.8
Synthetic Cannabinoids 5.5
Cannabis 4.8
Cocaine 4.6
Aside from magic mushrooms, the data shows that synthetic drugs that can be easily produced on a large scale are considered better value for money than plant-based drugs such as cocaine or cannabis.
Note: As drugs, including alcohol become more expensive, people use less often.
Less use is associated with less harm.
GHB: 1 IN 5 RESPONDENTS WHO HAD USED GHB IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS REPORTED PASSING OUT
GHB is used more commonly by gay men. People reporting using GHB more than 50 days per year are more likely to be gay or bisexual. GHB is a risky drug regardless of how often it is used. Those who use GHB frequently may develop tolerance but are still at risk of overdose. This is not a theoretical risk. It is very real.
21% who reported recent GHB/GBL use and who answered this question, reported passing out unconscious, following the use of GHB in the last 12 months.
60% of those who reported passing out said that they did so on more than one occasion in the past 12 months.
DARKNET DRUGS RISING:
Year-on-year increase in respondents to the Global Drugs Survey report accessing drugs through the darknet, across 7 years of GDS monitoring.
There was a big uptake in the last 12 months of new users.
Year 9 – the Global Drug Survey has explored the growth of the fastest growing drug market in the world – Darknet drug markets, sometimes known as cryptomarkets.
Accessed using a free software that enables the user to conceal their location and remain anonymous, these markets protect the seller’s and purchaser’s identities, with transactions completed using Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Offering a wide product range, higher quality, convenience and less risk of interpersonal violence, year-on-year we have noted a rise in people using these markets. Trends on the impact of using darknet drug markets on people’s drug use suggest stability over time.
Of real note, our GDS 2020 results show a continued rise in recruitment of new users, suggesting real growth in the consumer base using these sites, despite scams, market closures and well publicised police stings.
Dear World
This Global Drugs report is speaking volumes. That means there is seriously a lot of content here for us to wake up to and start to become aware.
As this is not an essay – we will focus on just one point.
“Despite advice to “start low, go slow” and to test dose MDMA from a new batch, almost half reported never doing this.”
The most pertinent question here that we ought to be asking is where on earth does this advice come from? Who is dishing out so-called advice saying ‘start low and go slow’ for MDMA or any drug? Is this coming from the same place as when we are told to ‘drink alcohol responsibly’?
Any drug alters our natural state.
How can we therefore be responsible in our behaviour or even consider starting at a low dose or a test dose?
Do we really need to analyse a pill or powder or any drug, so we can make an informed decision or can we admit that the very essence of us seeking a poison (let’s get real, that is what these drugs are) is a telling sign that irresponsibility is how we are choosing to live as we are on that road? For the purpose of this statement just made, let us say that responsibility is about having the awareness to end any form of abuse to the human body.
This blog, the 100+ comments thereafter and ALL other blogs and research by way of comments from Simple Living Global on this website, will leave not a single reader in any doubt, that any amount of drug consumed, ingested or taken in the name of socialising, recreational or otherwise, is harmfull to the human frame.
We have the evidence and the scientific research telling us enough about drugs – so how come we are seeing a greater rise in drug use, drug abuse, overdose and deaths?
What if we start to question what the root cause is and make this our global survey and not move on until we get the answers? Then apply what is needed and monitor the changes for ALL of us to be aware. Without awareness, how on earth will we take responsibility and make the necessary movements to change our behaviour?
Sky News – 2 March 2021
https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-pandemic-is-pushing-more-people-to-buy-illegal-sleeping-pills-and-anxiety-drugs-online-evidence-suggests-12232644
Pandemic is pushing more people to buy illegal sleeping pills and anxiety drugs online, according to new figures.
Purchasing ‘benzodiazepines’ without a prescription is against the law.
The video on this link tells us that children are also taking these drugs and social media plays a big part with the advertising.
So who will we blame and where is this all going to end and when?
Are we able to look at our lifestyle choices during lockdown that have led to this rise in sleeping pills and anxiety drugs?
Is it our late nights, lack of routine and responsibility that has played a part in why we suffer with symptoms that could easily be avoidable?
Will our quick-fix, band aid solutions cut it this time when history has shown us to date that they have never worked as we are not going to the root of the problem itself?
Next –
Purchasing ‘benzodiazepines’ without a prescription is against the law.
So WHY are we able to buy online without any problem and age is not a factor either?
None of this is making sense unless we consider the following to bring some understanding.
These dodgy suppliers online that we want to blame for fuelling this crisis are simply there because WE, yes we the public, the customers, the consumers DEMAND it and they make sure they SUPPLY because there is profit to be made.
If there was no quick money to be made, do we really feel they would continue supplying us?
We could also add that this is all about putting PROFIT BEFORE PEOPLE. If we stop to consider this for just one moment. Any one of us who is involved in the production and sale of drugs that harm another human being, simply to profit is not the truth and we all know that. It is time to stop pretending and get real and super honest.
AND Finally – our world of academics and the so-called scientific research bodies do not rely on anecdotal evidence. Is it time we give it a go as ALL else is failing us thus far? Anecdotal simply means the people saying it and not coming from labs, double blind testing, huge amounts of funding and theory after theory in words and numbers that most of us have no idea what it is.
What if those that have walked the steps have something valuable to say because they have the experience, so to speak lived in their body? What if they imparted their known wisdom, in other words what they now know as they are free of the very thing that harmed them? We could apply this to anxiety, sleep issues, drugs, alcohol, excess eating and anything that humanity need to know about.
Dismissing anecdotal evidence is costing us and society is none the wiser, as we all go around unable to make any real progress, as we are shut down because it lacks scientific approval of some kind that our world needs and accepts as the only way.
This news story is one real life example – we call that anecdotal evidence.
She talks about how these drugs got her addicted and side effects were loss of memory and depression. Quote “I just did not have any reason to wake up. Lockdown was perfect because I just didn’t want to wake up, so I wouldn’t.
Another former drug addict says “benzos were harder coming off than heroin”.
How serious is this and are we paying attention?
Imagine if more of us could speak up about our real life experiences with drugs and share this information with others – could it make a difference or are we just going to wait for more and more scientific journals read by the elite and discussed, but not on the streets for the masses who do not understand that language?
Society needs to wake up and that means all of us – we have waited far too long just accepting what is dished out to us by those supposedly who have the answers that we call ‘reliable’.
Bury Times – 4 March 2021
https://www.burytimes.co.uk/news/19132548.dealers-selling-sweets-laced-lethal-drugs-streets-bury/
Children are being targeted on the streets by drug dealers selling home made ‘sweets’ laced with lethal drugs.
Police confirmed the products looked identical to popular sweets like Kit Kat, Maltesers and Skittles and are infused with cannabis or hard drugs like MDMA – ecstacy.
The popularity of “drug sweets” has led to a huge number of alarming incidents across the UK with officers confirming that one teenage girl had to be treated for an overdose in a supermarket car park after ingesting the dangerous ‘treats’.
Other discoveries included cannabis products imported from the US, cereal boxes laced with drugs and ‘cannabis candy’.
This is one small story and what it highlights is that suppliers will find a way to profit and if there is a market, in this case children, they will explore and if there is a demand, then bingo they will find a way to deliver. But if no child was interested, these cottage industries setting up like small sweet shops selling drugs under the radar would need to find another business.
This is a public concern as we now know our kids are seeking drugs – so how will this all unfold?
Are we going to wake up now, pay attention and listen up? – we have a serious 911 on our watch.
Do we think our kids are going through a phase of some kind and will come out of it unharmed or un-changed, as we call that part of ‘growing up’?
Is this news story alerting us all to be more aware of what is going on in our streets?
Drugs have been around for a very long time but we could say history showed the target population was not children. This has changed now and we all need to be asking WHY and HOW we have got to this point in our so-called modern day where we are supposedly more advanced and intelligent than ever before.
Metro News – 11 May 2021
Who on earth would be interested in a tiny news story about a woman arrested for stopping her vehicle on a motorway to do her make up?
So what and what is the point of reporting this, we could say.
Police found she was driving without insurance or a valid licence.
The important point to note is that this woman tested positive for cocaine.
A tiny story – a microcosm of what is going on in our world today.
Ingesting a toxic substance comes with consequences. This is a classic example.
This blog details much about the drug cocaine and we cannot be in any illusion about the harmfull nature of what this poison does to the mind and body.
Anyone with a driving licence knows the rules and this woman is no exception. The thing is she did not take the responsibility and we all know why. This confirms that cocaine does alter your natural state, as does any drug.
How serious that this stopping on a motorway did not cause a major accident or cause death? It is clear she was not herself as no one in their right mind stops on a motorway – ever.
So how does society deal with this as it’s going on everywhere?
In other words, people we may not even think are into drugs are sniffing or snorting or ingesting or smoking some drug of choice.
The purpose of writing this comment is to bring awareness. By expressing the facts and presenting another way, we offer the opportunity to the reader to consider more and not just flick the page in the newspaper and forget the news as it is disturbing or it makes us feel uncomfortable.
What happens to all those who take cocaine that are not our predictable druggies on the streets or high powered individuals who need it to work and excel in their world? What about the average citizen that looks decent, presentable, holds down a job, has a house and a family – what about them?
Drug taking has reached epic levels in society. We can wake up to that fact or we can pretend it is not going on. We can do our own research to find how many drug seizures are being reported and how violent our drug industry has become.
Back to this tiny news story – we could say this is laughable about a woman stopping on the motorway and doing her make up or we could say next time it could be a family injured or a motorway pile up that would make it to news headlines?
Why wait for that to happen when each and every one of us could start talking about drugs like cocaine and how it has become the norm in our modern society today?
First Post – World News – 21 September 2021
https://www.firstpost.com/world/nearly-3-tonnes-of-heroin-seized-from-mundra-port-eight-biggest-drug-busts-in-the-world-9983801.html
$2.7 BILLION STREET VALUE
3 TONNES OF HEROIN seized in Gujarat district of India – September 2021
23 TONNES OF COCAINE – Europe’s biggest haul – February 2021
$61 MILLION – Toronto, Canada largest ever drug bust – June 2021
Cocaine | Crystal Meth | Marijuana
Biggest Meth bust in US history – October 2020
Cocaine | Heroin | Meth
Columbia’s largest ever drug bust – May 2016
8 TONNES OF COCAINE seized
$1.5 BILLION – Australia’s largest Methamphetamine seizure in history
MDMA | Crystal Meth
260 TONNES OF HASHISH seized in Afghanistan – June 2008
Weight = 30 double decker buses
$260 MILLION
10 TONNES OF COCAINE seized in jungles of Columbia – March 1984
$1.2 BILLION
Dear World
How do these numbers affect us?
Does it stir up anything inside us?
Are they not worth pondering on?
Are we interested in these numbers?
We have seized much more than the above mentioned and if we add up ALL the other seizures worldwide, we could say ‘well done’ as it means we are making progress. But are we really and truly?
For every seizure – how much is passing under the radar, in the black market, on the dark web in our world of illicit drugs?
Let’s get real and super honest – we are not on the front foot but these seizures tell us that this is big bucks and big business, not to be discounted as if this is not big news.
1984 – 10 tonnes of cocaine and 2021 we have 23 tonnes.
37 years later and we are no where near on the front foot. The dealers and those that supply are, but not the authorities that work to catch the criminals and seize the drugs.
Our drugs industry is worth billions and billions and millions gain through profits.
At what cost and where are we as a human race of beings if we cannot nail this illicit drug demand, even though we have super so-called advanced intelligence?
Rarely do we see a media journalist ask or pose the question about the demand.
Those who are not seen as on the streets or in prison but in the comfort of their homes, asking for meth, cocaine, cannabis and whatever else they want, delivered to their doorstep just like a takeaway, with no questions asked. Why do they never get press coverage and how come they stay hidden away from public awareness?
We are fooled if we seriously think that all illicit drugs end up with criminals, the homeless and those that attend clubs and all night parties. No no no – we have a large population group, some refer to as middle class that we see as well respected, hold down good jobs and have a standing in society and so they are not suspected, let alone questioned. But the truth is they exist and they have a lions share of the drug market.
Time we did our on the street research as a citizen journalist and report what we see and can no longer negate.
Many of us feel helpless when it comes to illicit drugs and how damaging it is for our families, communities and our society as a whole and we don’t know what to do.
How about we just talk about what we feel, what we have witnessed, seen or heard and share – not to circulate and gossip but to bring more awareness to others that may not know about this?
How about at the next dinner table conversation we get talking about blogs like this and all its comments on the topic of illicit drugs and see where it goes?
Doing nothing, saying nothing and just accepting news as we read it confirms no change.
Greed and corruption are part of the drug world and we all know that.
What most of us never do is question WHY we have so much greed and corruption in our world and why we allow it.
NOTE – this comment is also on our 911 EMERGENCY blog on this website
It is very rare for us to post a comment twice but this news is relevant and important and serves both blogs equally.
DEA – United States Drug Enforcement Administration – 27 September 2021
https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2021/09/27/dea-issues-public-safety-alert
The DEA issues a public safety alert on the sharp increase in fake prescription pills containing Fentanyl and Methamphetamine.
DEA warns that International and Domestic Criminal drug networks are flooding the United States with lethal counterfeit pills.
This is the first public safety alert in 6 years to raise public awareness of a significant nationwide surge in fake pills that are mass produced by criminal drug networks in labs, deceptively marketed as legitimate prescription pills and are killing unsuspecting Americans at an unprecedented rate.
Fake prescription pills are widely accessible and often sold on social media and e-commerce platforms – making them available to anyone with a smartphone, including minors.
These counterfeit pills have been seized by the DEA in every U.S. state in unprecedented quantities.
9.5 million counterfeit pills seized this year – more than the past 2 years combined.
DEA laboratory testing reveals at least 2 milligrams of fentanyl, which is considered a lethal dose and 2 out of every 5 fake pills with fentanyl contain a potentially lethal dose.
Note – A deadly dose of fentanyl is small enough to fit on the tip of a pencil.
The vast majority of counterfeit pills brought into the United States are produced in Mexico and China is supplying chemicals for the manufacturing of fentanyl in Mexico.
“The United States is facing an unprecedented crisis of overdose deaths fuelled by illegally manufactured fentanyl and methamphetamine. These counterfeit pills are dangerous and extremely addictive drugs and are more lethal than ever before.” DEA
The drug overdose crisis in the US is a serious public safety threat with rates currently reaching the highest level in history.
2020
93,000 died of a drug overdose in the United States
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Fentanyl, the synthetic opioid, most commonly found in fake pills, is the primary driver.
Drug poisonings involving methamphetamine, increasingly found to be pressed into counterfeit pills, also continue to rise as illegal pills containing methamphetamine become more widespread.
Drug trafficking is also inextricably linked to violence.
2,700 firearms seized linked to drug trafficking, which is a 30% increase since 2019.
Dear World
We have a 911 emergency.
This may be one nation reporting but we know it is going on all over the world.
There is no country free of illicit drugs today and yet we have allowed this to carry on.
Time to wake up and clock this report.
High time we started asking more questions.
Best time now to read The Real Truth about Amphetamines on this website as Meth is covered in detail. https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-amphetamines/
Whilst our authorities put effort into their mission to protect communities and enforce drug laws to bring to justice all those – foreign and domestic, responsible for sourcing, producing and distributing these counterfeit pills and all illicit drugs, what can we do?
Where is our personal individual responsibility?
Where are we watching things happening but saying and doing nothing?
Where are we contributing or enabling these activities to continue in our neighbourhood?
Why are we afraid to speak up and say it as it is when it comes to the drug world?
Why are so many of us caught up in our new modern pain killers that contain fentanyl?
If a deadly dose of fentanyl can fit on the tip of a pencil – what is that saying to us?
How serious is this and WHY and HOW has it got to this point?
What is the pain we are burying and not dealing with that leads to taking lethal drugs that do far more damage than we could comprehend?
WHY has our pain got so bad that we are looking for stronger and stronger doses of medication that can literally kill us?
WHY are so many unable to stop or make the movements to change direction when it comes to illegal drugs?
ALL these questions need to be asked if we are to ever see the tides turn and get on the front foot when it comes to our drug issues worldwide. We no longer have the time to wait for more research or let the government and authorities do their job. It is time we ALL stepped in to do our bit without further delay.
Time to talk about it at every conversation and at every dinner table.
This is far more important for humanity than the latest fashionista on social media or the next celebrity food show or reality TV of any kind.
YES Dear World – this is real life and this is a BIG 911 call to ALL of us.
SKY News – 2 September 2021
https://news.sky.com/story/drug-related-deaths-hit-record-high-in-england-and-wales-after-rising-for-eighth-year-in-a-row-12371678
Drug related deaths have hit a record high in England and Wales after rising for 8th year in a row.
4,561 deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales in 2020 and this is the highest number since records began in 1993, according to the Office of National Statistics. (ONS)
861 deaths were due to accidental poisoning
705 by mental and behavioural disorders as a result of drug use
500 instances of intentional self-poisoning
2,996 deaths were related to drug mis-use
2,263 deaths involved an opiate
777 deaths involved cocaine
There was a 9.7% increase from the year before and the 9th consecutive annual rise in deaths linked to cocaine use.
45 – 49 age group had the highest rate of drug mis-use deaths, followed by age 40 to 44.
The population group is known as Generation X – people born in the 1970s and has consistently had the highest rate of drug misuse deaths over the last 25 years.
What we have are “possible explanations” and nothing concrete, absolute or certain when it comes to these statistics.
What we also have are different approaches like ‘commitment to tackling and combating drugs mis-use with ambitious strategies’.
Will this really and truly cut it and will it get us on the front foot, as we know things are getting worse and we cannot continue dealing with the issue after it has happened?
In other words, a post-cause response is not going to get us ahead of the game, so to speak. We have to find another way that will nail this, knock it out and turn the tides, once and for all.
Dear World,
We all know about the opioid epidemic and drug mis-use deaths in America.
Well it has landed and confirmed – we have this going on in the United Kingdom.
Have we got time to speculate, ponder and consider all the possibilities and probabilities or send our researchers out to do even more studies, whilst the rise continues OR do we need another angle, a different approach, so we can get to the root of why we have this devastating and seriously damaging impact, that drugs are having on society as a whole?
We are told there is a certain age group where these drug related deaths are highlighted so this needs further WHY questions, so we find out how it has got to this point where so many are relying on drugs to prop them up in daily life.
This website is spelling it out – a library laying the facts out there for ALL of us to have understanding about different types of drugs and that includes alcohol. Most of us do not think alcohol is a drug but let’s keep it in this category, as it is equally a poison to the human frame.
The articles about drugs on this website are detailed and factual and contain worldwide statistics when it comes to drugs and alcohol. In addition to this, Simple Living Global continues to publish comments like this one, with new research studies or statistics that are worthy of reporting, so the world continues to be updated on what is going on. There would be zero purpose in publishing a blog or article with information about a drug and leave it at that. For example, there has been a meteoric rise in the use of cocaine and the media are reporting more of what is going on for the suppliers and those involved to deliver the drugs. This website keeps the pulse going by writing what is needed to expand the original article and quoting the stats and the facts.
In the actual article, the author is offering an opportunity, by way of commentary, by asking the readers to consider lifestyle choices, undealt with stuff that may be possibly buried, which leads to behaviour that is not coming from our natural state of being. Also to consider how we cope and what our strategies are to function in daily life and how are we when it comes to our expression. This is not just about talking and engaging with another but how open are we really and how willing are we to take responsibility for our life and where it is at.
This is huge and we all need to start somewhere. So here are a few tips to get going…
1. Stop the judgement and going into right and wrong.
2. Stop reacting to others when we become aware of their drug of choice.
3. Stop and get off the ‘feeling sorry and sympathy wagon’.
4. Stop listening to the constant chitta chat nonsense flooding our head.
5. Get a dose of absolute honesty from the medicine cupboard and then…
6. Have understanding that something deeper is going on for this person.
7. Get help and ask for support without feeling shame or feeling exposed.
8. Read the detail and re-read any article that you find on this website.
There are enough questions posed on this website for anyone who is seeking true change and genuinely asking for another form of support. Go ahead and find the route to detox from the medical professionals and then consider the Simple Living Back to Basics Program. It has worked, we have the results and we know what is needed and what is not.
Blaming those that supply drugs, our governments, our lack of funding for the priorities in our health systems, have not and will not ever change anything.
It is high time we found another way and took matters into our own hands and that means we need to take our daily medicine – Absolute Honesty to start with, followed by another big daily dose of RESPONSIBILITY.
Bottom line – it is our willingness and true intent that will bring about real change.
NBC News – 10 December 2021
A former DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) agent was sentenced to federal prison for conspiring to launder money with a cartel in Columbia.
The U.S. narcotics agent admitted to his crimes and blamed former colleagues at the DEA for fostering a culture of corruption that desensitised him to the implications of violating the law.
His attorney states that “when my client joined the DEA, he was schooled in how to be corrupt and how to break the law…In this alternative universe it became easier and less suspect to accept money and gifts from criminal informants who worked with the U.S. premier narcotics agency”.
The U.S. District Court Judge expressed disgust with the failings of the DEA and said other agents corrupted by “the allure of easy money” also needed to be investigated.
Judge Charlene Honeywell said “this has to stop and it is apparent to this court that there are others too”.
Whilst this is a “shocking breach of the public’s trust” it is well worth noting the responsibility handed to agents that work for the DEA to combat international drug trafficking –
• Government’s use of front companies
• Shell bank accounts and couriers
Do we know what really goes on and how much transparency is needed if we are ever to know the real truth?
How many would abuse their badge when handling confidential informers who move tens of millions of dollars of dirty money, every year under the DEA’s supervision?
The DEA has had repeated cases of misconduct, including agents charged with wire fraud, bribery and selling firearms to drug traffickers.
This agent was authorised to handle sensitive financial transactions, despite failing a polygraph exam, declaring bankruptcy and having close ties to a suspected money launderer, who was godfather to his children with his Columbian wife.
He pleaded guilty to 19 federal counts. His lifestyle was described as luxury as he bankrolled $9 million that he and his co-conspirators diverted from undercover money laundering investigations.
Is this enough red flags to suspect a work colleage?
Is everyone at the DEA asleep or turning a blind eye?
Has this been going on for a long time but only just come to light?
Does anyone take note if they know someone working as a narcotics agent (for the government) has a $767,000 sports car and a home in the Carribean?
Do agents get caught up in wanting and seeking what the drug lords have, in terms of material and financial wealth?
Does something take over and the person changes and loses their moral compass, integrity and responsibility?
When this agent was sentenced he addressed the court saying the biggest punishment was not being able to explain to his young children why he was going away for a long time and that he became a federal law enforcement agent 20 years ago with a sense of pride.
“Unfortunately, there came a time when I made a decision that went against the person who I was, that damaged my wife and embarrassed my country. I should have know better and I didn’t. I failed.”
Will this statement change anything for those caught in the game or lured by what this drug world can offer in terms of security – more money, better house, bigger car, jewels and the rest…?
How do we fail?
How do we ever come back from such a fall?
Does time locked up inside a prison change us?
This agent tells us he went against the person who he was and there was a time and there was a decision. In other words a choice was made and this jail sentence is the end result. He was stopped and so we all ought to be asking these questions –
WAS IT WORTH IT?
And AT WHAT COST?
Do we really buy it that those that are involved in any aspect of the drug industry sleep without any tension and are deeply settled OR do they have an eternal unrest that never seems to go away?
CNN Health – 31 January 2022
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/01/31/health/unintentional-drug-overdoses-preteens-teens-study/index.html
Unintentional drug overdoses led to 200,000 years of lost life for pre-teens and teenagers in the U.S. who died between 2015 and 2019, according to a new study, published this week in JAMA Pediatrics.
Is it time we questioned, WHY has the number of young people dying from un-intentional overdose been increasing steadily over recent years?
We know and agree with the co-author that ‘this is completely unacceptable from a public health standpoint’ and that the interventions aimed at adults do not work well for other ages.
Whilst doctors are urged to talk to the teen about the dangers of drugs and the effects on the brain, as well as talk to the parents, can we get real and honest.
Do our doctors have the resources to do so with their workload and excess amount of patients to see? Are they really and truly equipped to deal with this?
Why are we all not up in arms that our kids are having ‘problems with Opioids and Fentanyl’?
Could it be possible that we are simply not equipped to deal with drug issues on this scale?
Could it be possible that adult detox programs are not going to work for these children or adolescents as they come with a different root cause?
Could it be possible that our doctors’ training has to include substance abuse, as many patients now and in the future will show up with drug related issues?
“We are still in the middle of a raging and rising Opioid epidemic in this country (U.S.) and kids younger and younger are getting into it and Fentanyl is just literally killing them.”
Dr. Paula Riggs, a professor and director of the Division of Addiction Science, Prevention and Treatment in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
Dear World
Our efforts have failed us
Our ignorance has failed us
Our solutions have failed us
Our strategies have failed us
Our reliance on the next study has failed us
Our acceptance that it is not our problem has miserably failed us
Time we got a 911 emergency wake up call.
This is not going away. We are all responsible as this is on our watch.
How can we ignore something in another country or far away when we are all inter-connected?
We know if it is going on in any part of our world (the microcosm) it can and it will affect the whole world (the macrocosm).
Worth reading every single comment on this drugs blog as much research is out there confirming the state of our world when it comes to ingesting a poison – drugs.
EuroNews – 15 February 2022
https://www.euronews.com/2022/02/15/dozens-arrested-in-belgium-and-spain-in-major-drug-trafficking-operation
During a major International drug trafficking operation, European police forces have arrested 45 people.
Drugs are being imported to various European ports from Latin America using cargo planes, private jets and shipping containers.
Over 600 law enforcement officers, in close co-operation with prosecutors and investigative officers, carried out raids against members of “one of Europe’s most active Albanian speaking cocaine trafficking networks”. The raids took place at more than 80 locations across Europe.
Countries were involved in the operation include – Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands.
Counterfeit police clothing as well as a large quantity of acetone were seized.
Europol said “this high-level criminal network had set up a string of enterprises in various countries to launder the profits.
Dear World
This is everyday news now we could say.
The WHY question is not something we are asking or calling for.
WHY is this happening and WHY are we not able to get on the front foot, so to speak?
Drug suppliers work around the clock, always coming up with new ways to traffick their illegal substances across the world and nothing will stop them. History has shown us this over and over again.
Yet none of us are stopping to ask WHY is there more and more demand now than ever before?
How are we living and what lifestyle do we have that needs the drugs we want supplied?
It is time to go back to the drawing board and call out ALL those and that means the general population that demand these drugs so we know WHY we have such a high rise in drug trafficking that has no chance of stopping, regardless of how many seizures we make.
Next – 600 law enforcement personnel in 80 locations – that is a lot of manpower and a lot of resources and this is just one operation.
Has anyone even considered the demand is driving the supply and where is that demand coming from?
The Observer – 20 February 2022
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/feb/20/valium-deaths-soar-as-drug-users-mix-benzos-with-cocaine
Deaths linked to prescription anti-anxiety drugs like Valium are at their highest level for a decade due partly to the increasing popularity of illegal drugs like Cocaine.
Valium deaths soar as drug users mix Benzodiazepines with Cocaine.
55% of death certificates, according to an analysis of government data were where Benzodiazepines, which are sedatives used for treating anxiety and insomnia was mentioned.
63% increase in the last decade for deaths linked to Diazepam, first marketed as Valium.
Diazepam can be fatal when mixed with illegal recreational drugs.
It is believed by some experts that drug dealers are increasingly offering “street Valium” to counteract the effects of stimulants such as Mephedrone (Mcat) and Cocaine.
Cocaine continues to grow in the UK – latest data indicates “unprecedented availability and a street purity that is higher than ever”.
“Benzos” are psychoactive substances that supposedly calm brain activity and are highly addictive, but there are no figures available to indicate how many people are addicted to Benzodiazepines.
Dear World
What can we summarise and deduce from this news story?
Firstly, that drug use is not going away.
Next – we are no where on the front foot when we know treatment is not readily available and many will not ever bother to seek the help they need.
Next – why is it that we never question the demand? That means we never ask enough WHY questions about who is taking the drug to initiate such a high demand, whereby the UK are finding Cocaine growing in popularity with “unprecedented availability and street purity”. Does this not concern us or are we the ones that enable all this to continue as we just accept it?
This is telling us that the street purity itself is a demand. The punters expect stronger and more potent stuff and not drugs that lose their potency because of the bulking agents used by dealers, as this brings more profits.
Next – with sleep disorders of all kinds now a global epidemic together with anxiety, are we surprised we have this going on?
WHY is it that with all the intelligence we have on this earth, we are yet to nail some basic stuff like sleep and anxiety?
WHY on earth does someone have anxiety and what is really going on that gives rise to this? Without a consistent line of questioning we are failing as human beings when it comes to evolution.
Forget evolving, we are going nowhere when we have a drug crisis like this going on with no sign of it decreasing.
We have another news story that may seem like we have heard this before.
A man jailed committing a crime whilst intoxicated with drugs. Some murder and it can be close family or strangers.
Is it time we start to ask more questions and not just leave this as yet another drug related news story?
These are human lives and we don’t seem to have any answers that actually make sense. The solution is keep them away and inside prison, locked up and punish and re-habilitate them. Ignore the fact that so many continue taking or dealing with drugs whilst inside.
How are drugs altering the human mind?
Why don’t we ask what on earth happens?
What gets inside someone who ingests drugs?
What does the mind altering substance do to behaviour?
Why are some acts under the influence of drugs lethal?
We ought to start questioning everything so that we have answers.
Most of us are not savvy or aware about drugs and we have our opinions or we read something and that’s about as far as our awareness goes.
This is not cutting it and we all know the drug world has gone to epic levels.
We have not won the war on drugs and neither are we going to with our solutions and current way of dealing with it all.
Time we stepped out of the box, so to speak with our line of questioning.
We don’t just wake up, take some drugs and commit an unlawful act.
Something happens before that – we make the movements to take the drugs we want but what makes us take them and why?
Imagine if all our researchers went back to ground zero and worked together worldwide to find out what happens before, during and after drugs are ingested?
We may just find the clues, then we can use anecdotal evidence and that means what people in real life have experienced. What better way to know more than from those that have walked the steps?
Common sense now needs to be on the map and out there.
We are too busy dismissing the innate wisdom we hold and the good old fashion talk that has answers that may turn the tides when it comes to the harm of drugs and alcohol, to name a few of our modern day plagues on earth today.
Independent News – 29 April 2022
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/children-illegal-drugs-police-commissioner-b2067988.html
Children as young as eight “pretending to be drug lords in school playground “.
Crime Commissioner for Dorset David Sidwick calls for a generational shift “to teach youngsters about dangers of illegal substances at younger age and more emphasis on risk of gateway drugs such as cannabis.
Research has shown alarming evidence of primary school children being targeted by county line gangs who traffic drugs from urban to rural areas.
Now young pupils are said to be normalising talk of drugs and acting out drug behaviours at break time instead of playing traditional make-believe games.
Sidwick says “The way it was expressed to me was the kids were acting out as though it’s normal to be a drug lord, it was normal to talk about drugs…”
Mr Sidgwick suggested they needed to be a generational shift with children taught about the dangers of drugs at a younger age. In the same way we need to get ahead of things like misogyny and hate crime, we have got to get ahead of drugs. You have to get younger with what we are talking about” he said.
He highlighted the need for more emphasis on tackling illegal gateway drugs such as cannabis, ketamine and MDMA which can often be a young person’s first experience with banned substances.
He suggested the key to getting through to a generation of youngsters who smoke and drink far less than those before them was to emphasise the risk of drugs such as cannabis to the health and the way they look.
Speaking specifically about class B drug cannabis, he said “Now we are able to look at population studies, we see there is a much greater link of the causality of cancer, with the causality of birth defects – I have seen one quote which said the last time there was a state sanctioned drug like this it was called thalidomide”.
He added “It’s got to be about the risks. It has got to be about the fact that there are people wandering around with ketamine for example who do not have bladders anymore.
According to research by the children society in 2019, children as young as seven are being exploited by brutal “county lines” drug dealers in the UK.
Police previously found children as young as 10 linked to the 2000 drug dealing county lines estimated to be operating in the UK, but the report found younger victims may be overlooked because they are below the age of criminal responsibility.
The youngsters are forced or coerced into moving trucks across the country and work in cannabis factories, shoplift, pickpocket or act as in enforcers, according to the report, as they are exploited with promises of money drugs status and affection.
Dear World
It would be wise to consider the demand as there seems to be an increase in supply when it comes to drugs. We can no longer afford to turn a blind eye and assume drugs are only for those on the streets, when we all know the masses are using drugs for their own recreational pleasure purposes.
This article and all the comments thereafter confirm drugs in any form are poison to the body and it alters our natural state of being.
The Guardian – 17 May 2022
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/may/16/california-drug-smuggling-tunnel-us-mexcio-border
United Stats authorities have discovered an underground smuggling tunnel on the California-Mexico border.
The drug smuggling tunnel contains reinforced walls, electricity supply, ventilation and a rail system. The tunnel ran one-third of a mile and was 1.2 metres in diameter and 6 stories deep.
Federal Agents seized 799 kg cocaine, 75 kg meth and 1.6 kg heroin.
Since 2006, over 15 tunnels on the California border with Mexico have been found.
The cross-border passages date back to early 1990s and have been used primarily to smuggle multi-ton loads of marijuana.
By federal law, U.S. authorities must fill the United States side of the tunnels with concrete after they are discovered.
Cardiff University – 7 June 2022
https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/2629189-covid-19-and-brexit-caused-sharp-rise-in-copycat-ecstasy,-study-suggests
A new study has highlighted the apparent effect of Brexit and the pandemic on the trade in the illegal party drug Ecstasy – also known as MDMA.
45% of substances sold as MDMA at English festivals in 2021 contained None.
Instead they contained other drugs such as cathinones and caffeine.
Researchers believe that a combination of Brexit and the pandemic lockdowns with UK nightlife shut down may have contributed to a sharp rise in “copycat” ecstasy in summer last year and they warn of the unknown health risks to drug users ahead of this year’s festival season.
When UK nightlife re-opened ahead of other European countries, demand outpaced supply.
Professor Fiona Measham, co-author from the University of Liverpool said “This is not the first time we have seen cathinones being sold as ecstasy at UK events.
In 2014, shortly after the ban of mephedrone, methylone came on the UK drugs scene. After methylone was banned, N-ethylpentylone emerged in 2017. In the latest festival, 3 other cathinones reared their heads.”
“Without laboratory tests, it is not possible to tell what is really in the drugs that people purchase…”
Dr. Michael Pascoe, co-lead author and Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cardiff University
The Guardian – 8 June 2022
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jun/08/brexit-helping-cause-harmful-increase-in-fake-ecstasy-study-warns
A combination of Brexit, Covid lockdowns and police operations against supply chains has led to a sharp and potentially harmfull increase in fake MDMA.
Criminologists and chemists have found that almost half of substances sold as MDMA, also known as ecstasy at festivals in England last year did not contain any of the drug.
In the first peer-reviewed scientific study of the trend, experts say that many pills bought by party-goers as MDMA were made up of ingredients such as cathinones, a new psychoactive substance (NPS) and caffeine. Some users reported ill-effects such as panic, psychosis and prolonged insomnia.
Scientists warn that the impact of Brexit is still felt on legal and illegal markets, suppliers may continue to flood festivals and other events with fake MDMA.
English music festival goers and MDMA seem to go hand in hand.
What is it about going to these open air festivals that require us to have an ‘altered state’ and WHY are we all accepting this when every year we see fatalities?
MDMA – full name 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine is a synthetic and that means man made drug that alters mood and perception.
Note the word “methamphetamine” is in the full name and by calling it ecstasy or molly is not going to change that fact. The only thing it is designed to change is our natural state.
We seem to spend more and more resources, which means time and money on working things out when it comes to all illicit drugs but the most obvious we are not going to and that is taking any drug seriously harms the human body. This means no drug, even the party drug or the festival drug is going to bring about any benefit.
Why do we not want to be educated or aware of the real facts when it comes to drugs?
What is behind our so called ‘fun loving choices’ that are seriously harming our body?
Mail Online – 11 June 2022
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10905967/Rehab-centre-reveals-40-cent-spike-treatment-inquiries-doctors-warn-isolated-executives.html
Working from home is fuelling addiction to alcohol and drugs.
The use of cocaine is at “epidemic” levels and abuse of ketamine, a drug among festival goers, is said to be rising fast.
A rehabilitation centre in London famous for treating celebrities for addiction has seen a 40% rise in private treatment last year.
58% increase in inquiries about cocaine addiction and 88% increase in inquiries about ketamine.
The UK illicit drugs market was worth £10 billion a year and had 3 million users.
Experts believe that these figures are not accurate and the true figures are higher.
An official review of drug misuse, published last year said most addicts died in their 40s and data is expected to show that in 2020 drug abuse killed more people under 50 than Covid-19.
Dr. Niall Campbell, a consultant Psychiatrist at the Priory in London said –
“Without the need to go into the office, or attend meetings in person, people prone to addiction find more opportunities to continue them. And for younger adults, being cut off from an office and maybe still living with parents, there is an enormous emotional strain and we are seeing more depression and anxiety in the 20+ age group, which in many cases leads to unhealthy and addictive behaviours.
People are using all sorts of subterfuge to drink or take drugs at home, so they go up to the top of the house, in the attic room or to the garden, the shed or garden office and secretly drink alcohol from a stash they have kept in the car boot.”
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction found:
Cocaine users entering specialised treatment over a 10 year period
81% were male
19% were female
22 years – average age at first use
31 years – average age of first receiving treatment
Sky News – 14 June 2022
https://news.sky.com/story/drug-production-in-eu-on-the-rise-with-one-new-psychoactive-substance-discovered-each-week-12633690
A total of 52 new psychoactive substances were discovered in 2021 in Europe.
The EU drugs agency has warned of a proliferation of new psychoactive substances being sold and consumed on the continent.
The EMCDDA – European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction said illegal drug manufacturing is on the rise in Europe and also raised concerns about the growing global scale of the drug market.
The annual report from EMCDDA stated that “synthetic drug production continues to increase in Europe” – with laboratories producing drugs like amphetamines, methamphetamines and other man-made narcotics.
New drugs were appearing at one per week, with 52 novel substances identified last year. Variants of synthetic opioids and cannabinoids were among those coming up.
350 drug production facilities were discovered and destroyed in 2020. Most were found in Belgium and Netherlands.
According to the report, the increasing globalisation of the drug trade can be observed by the growing links between European crime syndicates and their Mexican counterparts. It also states that “historically, poverty and insecurity has fuelled the cultivation, production and trafficking of illicit drugs.”
As well as “traditional” drugs, the EMCDDA also noted the growth in production of novel narcotics like cathinone. This drug is similar to amphetamines and thought to be the main ingredient in khat – a plant used in some parts of the world for its stimulant effects.
Cathinone is a substance generally imported from India, at lease 52 production facilities have been identified in Europe since 2015.
BBC News – 4 July 2022
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-62040790
Spanish police have seized 3 underwater drones built to smuggle drugs across the sea from Morocco.
These unmanned submersibles are capable of carrying up to 200 kg of cargo.
Police say they have broken up a gang suspected of building vehicles and supplying them to drug smugglers across Europe.
This is the first time police have discovered an underwater vehicle capable of being operated unmanned. These devices allow drug traffickers to transport large quantities of narcotics remotely across the Strait of Gibraltar, which is the narrow strip that separates Morocco from Spain.
Armed with GPS navigation systems, the vehicles could be operated by drug traffickers from anywhere in the world using an internet device as simple as a tablet.
Spain has become a key point for drugs into Europe because of its proximity to Morocco – a major cannabis producer and its close ties with former colonies in South America, where much of the world’s cocaine is produced.
The 9 mile Strait of Gibraltar separates Europe from Africa and is a favoured route among drug smugglers.
Dear World
Are we surprised with the innovative ways that the drug world is operating, because the suppliers have to find ways to keep up with the demand as it profits them? However, if there was no demand there would be no drug industry.
We are a long way off but putting our emphasis on the suppliers negates the question of where is the demand coming from in the first place.
Let’s stop and research who are those that want these drugs.
This is not a bit of street stuff and drug dealing. These are major players and they could just be our next door neighbour or those that work in the corporate world and/or serve us in hospitality. It is everywhere. Let us not forget that.
The demand has to come first and then the supply.
Mail Online – 1 July 2022
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10974897/Drug-driving-charges-trebled-five-years-record-high-77-prosecutions-day-average.html
According to new Government figures – Drug Driving charges have trebled in 5 years.
43% rise in drug driving prosecutions in the past year.
Police arrest twice as many drug drivers as drink drivers in some areas.
66% of drug drivers prosecuted lost their licence last year.
9 banned for life
DVLA figures released show 8 areas where police stop more drivers high on cannabis or cocaine than on alcohol.
62% of intoxicated motorists in the City of London caught in 2021 were high on drugs, not alcohol.
During the month long operation by 43 police forces, 2,572 drivers were found to be high on drugs, which is an average of 83 a day.
Dear World
Before we champion our recreational use of drugs or consider legalising as other countries have, do we need to stop and ask these police forces what they are observing and WHY there is such a huge rise now in drug driving?
OR do we need more “evidence based research studies” to delay us and tell us more of what we all know and that is no drug is safe as it alters our natural state?
Time to wake up world – this is really happening and we cannot ignore it as it’s going on everywhere, not just the UK.
https://www.oregon.gov/adpc/pages/opiate-opioid.aspx
The State of Oregon on their government website give us the difference between Opiates and Opioids. The most precise is to refer to both groups as “opiates and opioids” – the naturally derived and the synthetic. Currently, these drugs are referred to using the term “opioid”.
The above has been covered in detail in our Opioids article on this website, but what is to be noted here is the following:
https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-real-truth-about-opioids-part-1/
Both groups of drugs are “narcotics”
The word “narcotic” means sleep-inducing or numbness-inducing.
The word “narcotic” comes from the Medieval Latin narcoticus, from the Greek narkoun “to be numb”.
So what is this telling us now that we know where the actual word is coming from?
It was given back in medieval times which tells us drugs have been around for a very long time. We all know that.
We also know that some drugs do not induce sleep but actually do the opposite.
What we can question is WHY we want something to induce numbness?
What is it that we don’t like, don’t want to feel, don’t want to sense or don’t want to deal with that we require drugs, call them narcotics to keep the stuff buried?
There is no other simple explanation if we are ingesting a drug that is numbness inducing.
We call ourselves thee most intelligent species residing on the planet – are we really ?
Bloomberg UK Business – 3 August 2022
Drug related deaths in England and Wales have reached a record high.
The Office of National Statistics said the overall rising trend over the past decade has been primarily driven by opiates, but also those involving other substances such as cocaine.
4,859 deaths related to drug poisoning registered in 2021.
This is the 9th consecutive annual rise and the highest number since records began in 1993.
The figures cover drug abuse and dependence, fatal accidents, suicides and complications involving controlled and non-controlled drugs, prescriptions and over-the-counter medications.
Drug-related deaths have risen 81.1% since 2012.
Columbia | Mailman School of Public Health – 18 August 2022
https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/new-study-estimates-over-55-million-us-adults-use-hallucinogens
According to a new study, 5.5 million people in the United States used hallucinogens in 2019.
LSD use between 2002 and 2019 increased overall and in all age groups.
The study is the first to provide formal statistical analyses of trends in the prevalence of hallucinogen use overall and by age groups during the last 2 decades. The findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal Addiction.
Hallucinogens are a broad category of psychoactive substances, including “classic” psychedelics such as LSD and are mostly designated as Schedule I drugs in the U.S. and may entail risk for adverse consequences including anxious reactions, confusion, acute delusional states and a prolonged sense of fear and dread.
LSD and Ecstasy and several other hallucinogens are associated with an increased risk of autonomic, endocrine, cardiovascular and neurological adverse effects, including elevated blood pressure, heart rate and loss of appetite, tremors and seizures.
PCP is considered one of the most dangerous hallucinogens and is known to cause adverse effects similar to LSD and ecstasy but unlike those drugs, PCP can lead to hostile and violent behaviours that may result in trauma.
Dear World
The popular media are reporting of a forthcoming ‘psychedelic revolution’ with commercialization and marketing, which of course will reduce the risks involved to the general public.
We are told that there are rising rates of unsupervised hallucinogen use among the general public and adults reporting positive effects of ‘microdosing’ and expecting therapeutic benefits of hallucinogens without negative effects.
Can we go and re-read the above where adverse consequences include anxious reactions and acute delusional states? Add to that prolonged sense of fear and dread and we are left in no doubt that there is nothing beneficial to the human body when any hallucinogen is ingested.
Are we aware of the increased risk to our autonomic, endocrine and cardiovascular systems and do we know their role and how important it is to have this working properly?
WHY would anyone want to harm their own body is the number one question we ought to be asking before we jump on the next trend of microdosing.
How are we living, what on earth is going on that we are seeking out drugs, which let’s face it are mind altering substances?
No point blaming the suppliers when it is us, the general public making the demands.
We want it and so we get it supplied.
Time to ask WHY we want it and WHY are we not finding out WHY we need drugs to function in life.
European Society of Cardiology – 26 August 2022
https://www.escardio.org/The-ESC/Press-Office/Press-releases/Illicit-drugs-are-used-by-one-in-ten-intensive-cardiac-care-unit-patients
Illicit drugs are used by 1 in 10 ICCU – intensive cardiac care unit patients.
Illicit drug use is associated with a 9-fold greater risk of death or life-threatening emergencies in intensive cardiac care unit patients, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2022.
Dr. Theo Pezel, the study author said “Our study shows that patients with acute cardiovascular conditions who take illegal drugs are more likely to die or experience cardiac arrest of cardiogenic shock while in hospital, compared with non-users.
Multiple drug users had an 11-fold risk of poor in-hospital prognosis compared with those taking one drug.
“Illicit drug use was common in ICCU patients but under-reported”
Illicit drug use has increased by 22% in the past decade to an estimated 275 milion people worldwide.
The most commonly used substances are:
Cannabis
Cocaine
Ecstasy
MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamamphetamine)
Amphetamines
Heroin
Opioids
Dr. Pezel said that patients admitted to ICCU, should be tested for drugs to identify those with an increased likelihood of detrimental outcomes.
Birmingham News – 14 September 2022
https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/top-doctor-demands-action-youngsters-25007567
A top neurologist demands action over the use of nitrous oxide, also known as ‘laughing gas’ which is popular with teenagers and young adults across Birmingham.
He says “They pose a health hazard as well as littering streets and parks. They think it’s a laugh but it could have a catastrophic impact”.
Dr. David Nicholl says it must be ‘perfectly obvious’ to suppliers the excessive demand for the mini canisters, known as whippits and the larger ‘smartwhip’ cans far outweighs legitimate use. He warns the craze is triggering hospitalizations locally.
He wants to see retailers who sell the canisters ‘under the counter’ to have the full knowledge that it is being used for inhalation purposes and to face a tough clampdown.
Nitrous Oxide is legitimately used as a medical anaesthetic in hospitals and in the food industry to whip cream and ice cream.
Driven on by social media videos, which are making light of the potential risks, the doctor said he is worried young people were oblivious to the risks.
One hospital case where a young person was admitted had gone through 2 large cylinders of nitrous oxide in a weekend – the equivalent of 160 smaller doses.
Some experience lasting dizziness, slurred speech and confusion sometimes extending to seizures and nerve damage. In worst cases, users are unable to stand or walk.
Dr. Nicholl stated that one of his patients was still on crutches a year after the incident, unable to walk unaided.
An asthmatic teenager died after she was filmed inhaling the drug.
Laughing gas or “hippy crack is the 2nd most used drug by 16 to 24 year olds in the UK, after cannabis.
Users inhale it after transferring the drug from a canister into a balloon, leaving them relaxed or giggly for a couple of minutes.
The silver canisters litter pavements, parks and outside schools. Some young people use multiple canisters at a time and some use hundreds a week, said Dr. Nicholl.
Some websites sell these drugs online and promote ways to encourage inhalation.
Dear World
WHY has demand rocketed?
What is going on for our young population?
How many of us know that nitrous oxide inactivates our vitamin B12 reserves in the body?
Are we all aware that this is no laughing matter when users report tingling in the limbs and prolonged use can cause anaemia and a form of nerve damage, called peripheral neuropathy?
Regardless of our opinions, there is no reason for any human being to even consider taking a drug to alter their natural state and yet we do.
What is even worse is that we have normalised it as Dr. Nicholl is a one off specialist calling to account those that enable these drugs to circulate and increase demand.
Had he not stood up and spoken out, many of us would not be aware this is going on in our streets, our neighbourhoods and towns and cities.
The problem will get worse as this comment states – the demand has rocketed.
Without asking the WHY and HOW questions, we will continue down the ill road in the ignorance that we were not aware.
This blog and the hundred plus comments thereafter confirm we have got a global crisis when it comes to drug consumption.
The Hindu News – 18 September 2022
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/rise-in-smuggling-activities-in-mizoram-due-to-myanmar-crisis-officials/article65905611.ece
The Myanmar political crisis has led to “an increase in smuggling activities” in Mizoram with a rise in the seizure of contrabands and exotic wild animal species, dried areca nuts and Burmese cigarettes in the north-eastern State.
According to the State government’s data, the volume of Heroin recovered by the Excise Department and the State police in 2021 was 34.52 kg.
During January to May 2022, 19.81 kg of Heroin has been seized and 374 people have been arrested for possessing the contraband.
An Excise and Narcotics Department official said “there is no doubt that the Mayanmar political crisis has led to the significant increase in trafficking of drugs, especially Heroin, from Myanmar to India via Mizoram.
“Many Myanmar people are rendered jobless and have no stable sources of income due to the current political crisis there. Many of them were lured into smuggling activities.”
Up to 16 September 2022, the state police have recovered –
22.93 kg of Heroin
101.26 Methamphetamine tablets
ITV News – 30 September 2022
https://www.itv.com/news/2022-09-26/children-as-young-as-9-arrested-for-dealing-drugs-itv-news-investigation-finds
5,425 children have been arrested for drug offences over the last 4 years.
Children as young as 9 years old are being arrested for dealing drugs in the UK, as police forces and charities warn the cost of living crisis could see more young people targeted by criminal gangs.
Children under age 10 cannot be charged with a criminal offence.
DCI Jess Milne said “If you are being offered large amounts of money so that you can buy expensive trainers and you can buy things you would not ordinarily get access to, then I can see how that would affect their ability to become involved in drug supply.”
Sky News – 21 October 2022
https://news.sky.com/story/around-2-6-million-young-people-used-an-illegal-drug-in-past-year-charity-finds-12710861
2.6 MILLION YOUNG PEOPLE USED AN ILLEGAL DRUG IN THE PAST YEAR
1.3 MILLION YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE USED A CLASS A DRUG IN THE PAST YEAR
75% increase since 2021 in young people using substances to help them with life’s problems
1 in 5 users using substances to help them with life problems
1 in 3 young people aged 16-25 have used an illegal drug in the past 12 months
54% increase on young people using a Class A drug in last year.
Age 13
Smoking weed with other children at school
In same year progressed to harder drugs, including Class A
Saving lunch money to score drugs
Using drugs in bathroom while peers in classroom
Now Age 20
Partly blames the music scene for exposure to drugs after witnessing open drug use while gigging as a teenager.
Outside that scene, progressed to taking Crack, Heroin and whatever else they could get.
Realises now that the drug use was never about partying or have fun with friends but instead used to cope and self medicate to avoid the pain of life. Lot of feeling “hopelessness” and not liking or able to express those feelings.
Taking the drugs “I haven’t got to feel anything”.
Metro News – 24 November 2022
https://metro.co.uk/2022/11/24/lamborghini-with-crime-pays-number-plates-seized-from-drugs-gang-17820334/
Police in the UK have arrested a £6 million drugs gang, together with a convoy of expensive cars and luxury caravans.
Among the haul was a Lamborghini with the words “CRIME PAYS” on the number plate.
Despite the high value of the gang, only £300,000 in assets have been seized so far.
The money was made by trafficking 50 kg of high purity cocaine.
Oregon Health & Science University – 7 December 2022
https://news.ohsu.edu/2022/12/07/teen-cannabis-abuse-has-increased-245-over-20-years-study-finds
Oregon Health and Science University physician-scientists identified trends in abuse, misuse of a variety of substances among youth, in the United States.
A new study led by Oregon Health and Science University reveals adolescent cannabis abuse in the United States has increased drastically.
245% increase since 2000.
The findings, published in Clinical Toxicology, found more than 338,000 instances of intentional abuse or misuse among American children aged 6 to 18.
58% the majority of ingestions occurred in males.
80% of all reported exposure cases occurred in young people aged 13 to 18.
The study also revealed that the substances most commonly misused or abused are more widely available substances such as over-the-counter medications, household products and commonly prescribed pharmaceuticals.
Misuse and abuse of substances – cannabis, alcohol and others among youth remains a serious public health challenge in the United States. The study aimed to learn more about the patterns of this behaviour among school-aged children and adolescents.
“Our study describes an upward trend in marijuana abuse exposures among youth, especially those involving edible products,” says lead author Adrienne Hughes, M.D., Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine in the OHSU School of Medicine.
Hughes notes that compared with smoking cannabis, which typically results in an immediate high, intoxication from edible forms of marijuana usually takes several hours, which may lead some individuals to consume greater amounts and experience unexpected and unpredictable highs. “These edible and vaping products are often marketed in ways that are attractive to young people and they are considered more discreet and convenient. These findings highlight an ongoing concern about the impact of rapidly evolving cannabis legalisation on this vulnerable population.”
The Guardian – 8 December 2022
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/08/as-mexicos-epidemic-of-violence-rages-on-authorities-seem-powerless-to-stop-it
Soldiers and national guard troops have been deployed throughout Mexico to combat crime gangs but violence remains high with more than 26,000 murders so far this year.
Over 26,000 murders this year, it is clear the strategy of using military to control crime gangs has failed.
Staggering level of homicides and other lethal practices are still the norm in Mexico.
Shootouts, cars set on fire and bodies lying in the street – armed violent and lethal conflict. Judge shot dead, roads blocked off as inmates from a prison tried to escape.
2015 – 2021
400% increase in number of murders in one state.
Sky News – 31 December 2022
https://news.sky.com/story/misuse-of-party-drug-laughing-gas-is-no-joke-neurologist-warns-12777297
Misuse of party drug laughing gas is no joke warns neurologist.
The inappropriate use of Nitrous Oxide has led it to being the most common cause for emergency admissions to neurology wards – and it can kill.
Misusing Nitrous Oxide can lead to life-threatening risks, a leading neurologist has warned. The party drug, commonly known as laughing gas, is second to cannabis as the most commonly misused substance among 16 to 24 year-olds in England.
“I think it is wrong to call it laughing gas because that makes it seem like it is a joke. It is a drug that is used as an anaesthetic, but that is with 50% oxygen in a supervised environment with health professionals who understand doses.” says Dr David Nicholl, Clinical Lead for Neurology at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust.
Acute exposure to the gas can lead to anaemia and nerve damage and it has also been linked to fertility issues.
Dr Nicholl said misuse of the substance is currently the most common cause for emergency admissions to the neurology ward. “People come into hospital off their legs, difficulty walking, presenting with tingling in the hands and feet, slow speech and more rarely seizures.
One ophthalmologist colleague has seen a patient who went blind, but that was secondary to hypoxia caused by inhaling Nitrous Oxide.” He had seen some users take canisters that are up to 3.9 kgs in weight. “If you took this in one sitting it would kill you,” he said.
New data from N20 Know The Risks, a research project led by Queen Mary University, showed that while 91% of people had seen Nitrous Oxide canisters before, only 41% knew what they were, and 97% of those surveyed said they did not know inhaling Nitrous Oxide could damage the spinal cord.
REUTERS World News – 15 January 2023
https://www.reuters.com/world/jamaica-seizes-80-million-worth-cocaine-cargo-ship-2023-01-15/
Jamaican authorities have seized an estimated $80 million worth of Cocaine from a ship at the port of Kingston in one of the country’s biggest-ever drug busts.
The shipment was hidden inside a cargo ship from South America.
1,500 kg of Cocaine were split into 50 bags containing 1,250 packages.
Transnational criminal organizations have long used Jamaica as a hub to move weapons and drugs, including sending Cocaine to North America and Europe.
October 2022
Interpol said Jamaican authorities had made a record bust of 500 kg of Cocaine, worth $25 million shipped on a private jet to Canada.
The Guardian – 27 January 2023
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/27/myanmar-opium-production-surges-since-coup-un-finds
2022
33% rise in poppy cultivation in Myanmar.
According to a United Nations report, conflict and economic hardship has forced farmers from remote, conflict-prone areas and border states to rely on opium production.
Based on UN estimates, the overall value of the Myanmar opiate economy ranges between $660 million and $2 billion, depending on how much was sold locally and how much of the raw opium was processed into Heroin or other drugs.
Virtually all Heroin reported in East and South East Asia and Australia originates in Myanmar. The country remains the 2nd largest Opium and Heroin producer in the world after Afghanistan.
Decades of political instability have made the frontier regions of Myanmar largely lawless, to be exploited by drug producers and traffickers. Most of the Opium exported by Myanmar goes to China and Vietnam, while Heroin goes to many countries across the region.
“It is really where the value is for traffickers. Very high profits.”
Jeremy Douglas – UN office regional representative
Its synthetic drug economy has also been surging for the same reasons, with reported regional seizures of Methamphetamine and other drugs reaching record levels.
UCLA | University of California, Los Angeles – 2 February 2023
https://www.uclahealth.org/news/counterfeit-pills-sold-mexican-pharmacies-found-contain
COUNTERFEIT PILLS SOLD IN MEXICAN PHARMACIES FOUND TO CONTAIN FENTANYL,HEROIN AND METHAMPHETAMINE
A UCLA led study provides the first scientific evidence that bricks and mortar pharmacies in Northern Mexico tourist towns are selling counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine.
These pills are sold mainly to U.S. tourists and are often passed off as controlled substances such as Oxycodone, Percocet and Adderall. They are available without prescription – potentially adding to the already high number of overdose deaths stemming from the use of those potent drugs in Mexico and the U.S.
The researchers reported on 40 pharmacies in 4 cities in Northern Mexico.
68% had at least one controlled substance for sale without prescription in bottles or individual pills.
“It is not possible to distinguish counterfeit medications based on appearance because identically-appearing authentic and counterfeit versions are often sold in close geographic proximity.”
Psychiatrist.com – 23 February 2023
https://www.psychiatrist.com/news/skin-rotting-zombie-drug-tied-to-increase-in-us-drug-overdoses/
SKIN-ROTTING ‘ZOMBIE DRUG’ XYLAZINE LINKED TO INCREASE IN U.S. DRUG OVERDOSES
Xylazine is a fast-spreading, deadly new street drug often cut into other drugs or used to extend the effects of Fentanyl and mimic the high of Heroin.
The drug can cause sedative-like symptoms and severe skin rot.
Although this drug is approved for the use in veterinary medicine, the drug is unsafe for humans and overdoses cannot be reversed by the opioid antidote, Naloxone.
Approved for horses, cattle and other non-human mammals.
This street drug acts as a sedative, analgesic and muscle relaxant.
Street Names for Xylazine
Tranq | Tranq dope | Zombie drug
In the past few years, opioid users have started taking it to extend the effects of Fentanyl or Heroin.
Some users may not intentionally seek out Xylazine and in many cases they are not aware that it has been cut into other drugs that they buy or use.
Early 2000s
The tranq trend appears to have begun in Puerto Rico.
2006
Philadelphia was the first U.S. city to document its use.
Since then, it has spread across 36 states in the U.S. with xylazine-related overdose deaths recorded in Ohio, Maryland, Massachusetts and Texas.
Public health warnings about the drug have been issued by New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
ABC News Australia – 4 March 2023
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-04/biggest-drug-bust-australian-history-/102053860
A covert International Police operation has stopped 2.4 tonnes of Cocaine, worth $1 Billion, linked to the Mexican drug cartel from reaching Western Australia.
It is believed to be the nation’s biggest ever drug bust.
Sky News – 9 March 2023
https://news.sky.com/story/more-than-200-arrested-and-drugs-guns-and-swords-seized-during-county-lines-crackdown-12829198
222 people have been arrested during a week-long crackdown on county lines gangs in London, police have revealed. The crackdown took place across Monday 27 February and Sunday 5 March.
£1 million worth of drugs were seized, 5 guns, 51 weapons which included knives, machetes and swords.
177 vulnerable people were safeguarded by police, several of them children who officers say were being “preyed on” by the drug gangs and “used as a commodity”.
“These networks traffick them and subject them to modern slavery involving horrendous emotional and physical abuse. Victims are coerced through violence, blackmail and debt bondage, to hold and supply drugs.
Those involved use weapons and serious violence including kidnaps to intimidate and threaten victims.
Alongside children, the county lines networks preyed on vulnerable adults to fuel Class A drug addictions” said Detective Superintendent Rick Sewart, the lead responsible for county lines at Scotland Yard.
The police force said in a statement “Instead of criminalising these children, officers work with Rescue and Response to ensure they are safeguarded and supported.”
EUROPOL – 15 March 2023
https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/heat-rising-european-super-cartel-taken-down-in-six-countries
8 – 19 November 2022
Co-ordinated raids were carried out across Europe and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), targeting both the command-and-control and the logistical drugs trafficking infrastructure in Europe.
49 suspects have been arrested during the course of the investigation and are considered to be drugpins of high value by Europol. They had come together to form a “super cartel” which controlled around one third of the Cocaine trade in Europe. The activities of this prolific criminal network involved large-scale drugs trafficking and money laundering.
The Cocaine importation into Europe under the suspects’ control and command was very large and over 30 tonnes of drugs were seized by law enforcement over the course of the investigations.
University of California, Los Angeles – 29 March 2023
https://www.uclahealth.org/news/drug-overdose-fatalities-among-us-older-adults-have
DRUG OVERDOSE FATALITIES AMONG U.S. OLDER ADULTS HAVE QUADRUPLED OVER 20 YEARS.
Highest rates were among Blacks.
According to a new research study from UCLA, the overdose mortality of those age 65 and older is suggesting the need for greater mental health and substance use disorder policies addressed at curbing the trend.
The deaths stemmed from both suicides and accidental overdoses.
75% of the unintended fatalities involving illicit drugs such as Fentanyl, Heroin, Cocaine and Methamphetamine.
67% of intentional overdoses were prescription opioids, antidepressants, benzodiazepines, antiepileptics and sedatives.
The Maritime Executive – 17 April 2023
https://maritime-executive.com/article/italy-seizes-record-2-tons-of-cocaine-floating-in-the-mediterranean
Italy reported a record seizure found off the coast of Sicily which highlights a tactic increasingly being used by smugglers.
2 tons of Cocaine – estimated value of $450 million was found floating in the Mediterranean.
70 bundles containing 1,600 packages of Cocaine were found. Each bundle was neatly wrapped and strung together with netting. Life jackets were attached to the large bundle, in theory, to ensure it did not sink.
Cocaine seizures have increased 5-fold since 2018 when 3.8 tons was confiscated.
Italy is said to be a prime route for entry of narcotics into Europe with the report citing Bulgarian criminal gangs behind the traffic.
February 2023
The New Zealand Defence Authority revealed a large operation in which they had discovered 81 bales of Cocaine floating in the Pacific. 3 tons were retrieved with an estimated value of $316 million.
Sky News – 21 July 2023
https://news.sky.com/story/five-tonnes-of-cocaine-worth-737m-seized-in-italys-biggest-ever-drugs-bust-12924937
5 tonnes Cocaine worth £737 million seized – Italy’s biggest ever drug bust.
Officers had been closely tracking a ship, which had initially set sail from South America.
Surveillance aircraft had spotted packages being thrown from the deck and into the waters of the Strait of Sicily so they could be collected by a waiting fishing trawler.
University of Michigan News – 18 April 2023
https://news.umich.edu/in-some-us-schools-1-in-4-students-report-misusing-prescription-stimulants/
1 in 4 students report mis-using prescription stimulants in some U.S schools. This means they used the medication without a doctor’s orders or nonmedically, e.g., for recreation or to stay awake.
Middle and high schools with the most students taking prescription stimulants to treat ADHD also had, overall, the highest percentage of students who mis-used prescription stimulants within the past year.
This is the first large study to examine the prevalence of prescription stimulant misuse and correlating factors in U.S middle and high schools.
Students in schools with the highest rates of stimulant therapy for ADHD had a 36% higher risk of misusing prescription stimulants.
Stimulant therapy for ADHD has increased in the last 2 decades.
Prescription stimulants are one of the most widely shared prescription drugs among teens and the most misused prescription drug among teenagers.
Medication-sharing among teenagers is a big reason children who are not on stimulant therapy have access to prescription stimulants but it is not the only factor. Some schools in the study with little or no stimulant therapy still had misuse.
Another study found that students who had used both stimulant and non-stimulant medications for ADHD were more likely to misuse prescription stimulants or to use cocaine or methamphetamine, in the past year, compared to students who reported never using stimulant or non-stimulant therapy.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(23)00079-2/fulltext
EUROPOL NEWS – 2 May 2023
https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/288-dark-web-vendors-arrested-in-major-marketplace-seizure
In an operation by Europol, involving 9 countries, law enforcement have seized the illegal dark web marketplace “Monopoly Market”.
288 suspects involved in buying or selling drugs on the dark web were arrested.
€50.8 million in cash and virtual currencies seized
850 kg in drugs and 117 firearms also seized
Seized drugs included
258 kg Amphetamines
43 kg Cocaine
43 kg MDMA
10 kg LSD and Ecstasy pills
The operation composed of actions in Austria, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Brazil, UK, USA and Switzerland.
Kings College London News Centre – 24 May 2023
https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/first-death-uk-associated-with-xylazine
First death in the UK associated with Xylazine.
New research published in the Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine by academics from Kings College London details the death of a man aged 43 is the first in the UK to be associated with Xylazine and marks the entry of the drug into the UK drug supply.
The death was from the effects of Xylazine with Heroin, Fentanyl and Cocaine.
The man was shown to have a history of illicit drug use, mainly heroin and ‘crack’ cocaine. He had been referred to addiction services on multiple occasions but did not engage.
Xylazine is a non-opioid sedative, painkiller and muscle relaxant used in veterinary medicine as a tranquiliser for large animals. The drug known as ‘tranq’ of ‘tranq dope’ when cut with heroin and fentanyl is causing widespread problems in North America, as it can dangerously lower breathing and heart rate. If injected directly into the user’s bloodstream this reduces the need to re-dose but this can cause large open skin ulcers to form and has led to it being dubbed a ‘zombie’ drug.
“This is a really concerning drug that has not been detected in the UK before. This person was likely to have bought heroin and not know it was laced with xylazine and fentanyl. The drug is not included in standard drug screens in the UK, so we do not know how widespread the xylazine problem is.
Dr. Caroline Copeland from the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences
“This is the first evidence of the drug outside North America.”
Kirsten Rock – Lead author from the Institute of Pharmaceutical Science
NYU Langone Health – 24 May 2023
https://nyulangone.org/news/research-finds-major-increase-seizures-illegal-ketamine-sparking-concerns-about-risks-use
New research finds major increase in seizures of Illegal Ketamine, sparking concerns about risks of use.
The analysis was led by NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS) at the University of Florida.
349% rise in seizures of illicit Ketamine by drug enforcement throughout the United States from 2017 through 2022.
Ketamine is short-acting dissociative anaesthetic commonly prescribed off-label to treat chronic pain and depression. It can increase the likelihood that people who use recreationally or who use inadvertently may encounter an adulterated and potentially harmful version of the drug.
The study author – Joseph J. Palamar, PhD, MPH and associate professor in the Department of Population Health at NYU Langone said “This dramatic rise in Ketamine seizures by law enforcement may be indicative of rising non-medical and recreational use. Unlike the illegal Ketamine years ago, most illegally obtained Ketamine today is not pharmaceutical grade and is sold in powder form, which may increase the risk that it contains other drugs, such as Fentanyl.”
During the pandemic, the U.S. government eased prescribing practices for controlled substances so that more patients could use telemedicine and retain access to vital medications. Although many patients benefited, the loosened restrictions also gave rise to an industry of pop-up clinics prescribing Ketamine online and of-label for a variety of mental health conditions, with little oversight of side effects.
The danger, according to Dr. Palamar, is that any illegal powder in the United States may be contaminated with Fentanyl – just as it is now turning up in Heroin and Cocaine. He also warns that media and medical promotion of prescription Ketamine in recent years is fuelling black market use and availability.
University of Michigan – 8 June 2023
https://record.umich.edu/articles/non-lsd-hallucinogen-use-rising-among-young-adults/
Non-LSD hallucinogen use rising among young adults.
Young adults aged 19 to 30 nearly doubled their past 12 month use of non-LSD hallucinogens in the United States from 2018-21, according to a new study by the University of Michigan and Columbia University.
A doubling of prevalence in 3 years is a dramatic increase and raises possible public health concerns.
The use of psychedelic and hallucinogenic drugs for a range of therapeutic uses is increasing.
The Guardian – 15 June 2023
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jun/15/six-charged-over-seizure-of-17bn-worth-of-meth-allegedly-en-route-to-australia
$1.7 BILLION worth of Methamphetamine en route to Australia has been seized.
Authorities intercepted the drugs, hidden in canola oil bottles, in Canada and substituted a harmless substance.
The seizure was part of a probe into a global smuggling syndicate.
January 2023
$720 million worth of liquid methamphetamine was smuggled from Canada to Australia in canola oil bottles, according to police.
May and June 2023
2 further shipments seized of liquid methamphetamine with a combined street value of $800 million.
One of the hauls involved 2,900 kg of the drug, making it the largest methamphetamine seizure on record in Canada.
“While organised crime and drug trafficking are not new, what is emerging is the trafficking of illicit drugs in state warcraft.
In parts of the world, some state actors appear to be working with organised crime to distribute illicit drugs to regions in a bid to undermine societies and democracy. This challenges our rules-based order and the rule of law at levels never before seen.”
Hilda Sirec – Assistant Commissioner | Australian Federal Police
U.S. News – 30 June 2023
https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2023-06-30/xylazine-involved-drug-deaths-skyrocket-in-u-s
Overdose drug deaths involving the animal tranquiliser Xylazine had a 34-fold increase from 2018 to 2021, according to news research.
Federal officials say this is part of a growing threat in the U.S.
1971
A drug that can be used to sedate large animals was approved for veterinary use in the U.S.
The drug, also known as “tranq” has been moving through the illicit drug supply where it is combined with fentanyl. Researchers found that fentanyl substance were mentioned alongside xylazine in nearly all overdose deaths involving the tranquiliser from 2018 through 2021, with cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin among other illicit substances listed.
A separate study by the CDC found xylazine was detected in nearly 4,900 of roughly 54,000 deaths involving illicit fentanyl substances and co-involved as a cause of death in more than 3,700 cases from January 2021 to June 2022.
Xylazine can cause breathing and heart rate to slow and also skin abscesses and ulcers, leading to amputation.
Note – the study found increases in rates of xylazine involved overdose deaths across all age groups between 2020 and 2021. Adults aged 35 to 44 had the highest mortality rate and those age 55 to 64 experienced the largest year-over-year increase, with a rate in 2021 that was more than 3 times the 2020 rate.
“The reason why we are having more fatalities is because there is an under-recognition of polysubstance overdoses.”
Dr. Kelly Ramsey – Chief of Medical Services for New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports.
Ramsey also says that some cities have been monitoring overdose deaths involving xylazine but the true impact of the drug may be largely unknown in other areas.
EUROPOL – 30 June 2023
https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/65-tonnes-of-cocaine-found-hidden-between-bananas-in-colombia-and-spain
€223 MILLION worth of Cocaine was intercepted during 3 operations in Spain and Columbia.
Europol supported the Spanish Civil Guard to dismantle a criminal network involved in the multi-tonne trafficking of Cocaine from South America to the EU.
Seizures included:
6.5 tonnes of Cocaine
Vehicles
Luxury Watches
Electronic Devices
1.5 million in cash
To front the business a wholesale frozen fish company in Algeciras was used. The criminal network laundered the illicit assets through this company, while also being involved in attempts to corrupt public officials. The cocaine smuggling was hidden between bananas. The cover shipment was the importation of bananas from Ecuador to Columbia.
JAMA Network Open – 21 July 2023
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2807486
The prevalence of HCV – Hepatitis C virus positive pregnancies increased markedly and maternal HCV infection was associated with increased risk for adverse perinatal outcomes.
Hepatitis C virus is the most commonly reported chronic bloodborne infection in the United States and injection drug use is the primary risk factor for disease transmission among adults.
2010 – 2015
The U.S. saw a tripling of acute HCV cases.
Coinciding with the second wave of increased Heroin and third wave of synthetic Opioid overdose deaths during the Opioid epidemic.
Over one third of newly reported HCV cases were among young women.
Highest incidence consistently occurred among persons aged 20 to 39 years.
2014 – 2017
HCV cases among pregnant women in the U.S. exceeded that of Hepatitis B and syphilis combined, despite HCV being the only infection among the 3 to not receive universal screening during prenatal care.
Maternal HCV infection poses potential risks for the foetus, including pre-term birth and neonatal death.
This cross-sectional study of over 70 million births or spontaneous abortions showed the prevalence of HCV-positive pregnancies in the U.S. increased 16-fold between 1998 and 2018.
Maternal HCV infection was associated with increased odds of pre-term labour, poor foetal growth or foetal distress.
Over the 21 year study period, the proportion of HCV-positive pregnancies increased in all age groups.
22-fold among women aged 18 to 20
31-fold age 21 to 30
8-fold age 31 to 40
These increases were concurrent with increasing proportions of pregnancies in women with Opioid use histories.
Age group 21 to 30 experienced an accelerated increase in HCV-positive pregnancies after the start of the second wave of the opioid epidemic in 2010.
American Academy of Pediatrics – 1 August 2023
https://publications.aap.org/aapnews/news/25337/FDA-DEA-call-on-drug-manufacturers-to-address
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) called on drug manufacturers to increase production of stimulant prescription drugs to address shortages in medicine used to treat children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other disorders.
45.5% increase in the dispensing of amphetamine products and other stimulants in the United States.
Stimulants are controlled substances that have a high potential for abuse, which can lead to addiction and overdose. Therefore, the DEA sets limits on how much can be produced. Officials say that manufacturers did not produce the full amount permitted in 2022.
70% of the allotted quota was sold in 2022 and that means 1 billion more doses could have been produced. Data for 2023 shows a similar trend.
U.S. News – 8 August 2023
https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2023-08-08/nurses-other-health-care-workers-at-high-risk-of-drug-overdose
New research finds that nurses, social and behavioral health care workers and health care support workers are at high risk of Drug Overdose.
Social workers and behavioral health care workers are more than twice as likely to die of overdose.
“Health support workers, including home health care workers have double the odds of dying from a drug overdose and registered nurses are about 50% more likely to do so” said study author Dr. Mark Olfson – Professor of Psychiatry, Medicine and Law at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.
For the study, researchers analyzed data from 176,000 health care workers aged 26 and older between 2008 and 2019.
85% of drug overdose deaths were considered opioid related.
Stress is one contributor and physical injuries are common among home health care aides, which leads to taking opioids and becoming addicted.
Olfson said “They have very high rates of occupational injuries – among the highest of all occupations in the United States.
“Workers in jobs that provide substance use counselling may have a history of drug use, which can increase risk,” Olfson said.
“Many healthcare workers are often subject to incredible amounts of stress.
Early on this has to do with rigorous training and costs of that training and later it has to do with job responsibilities…
People in health care are a unique group, taking on the responsibility of caring for others and often having to sacrifice their own well-being. As we see overdose rates continue to increase in general in the time period of this study, the unique impact on health care has not been examined before.
In addition to possibly not having enough time to adequately address any physical or mental health needs, acknowledging a mental health or substance related issue is risky in many health professions because it can impact licensing and credentials.”
Dr. Smita Das – Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, California
Chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Addiction Psychiatry
NIH | National Institutes of Health – 17 August 2023
https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/marijuana-hallucinogen-use-binge-drinking-reached-historic-highs-among-adults-35-50
Marijuana and Hallucinogen Use, Binge Drinking has reached historic highs among adults aged 35 to 50.
The NIH funded study also shows younger adults reported marijuana, vaping and hallucinogen use at or near historically high levels.
Past year use of marijuana and hallucinogens by adults 35 to 50 years old continued a long term upward trajectory to reach all time highs in 2022.
Among younger adults aged 19 to 30, reports of past year marijuana use and hallucinogen use as well as marijuana and nicotine vaping significantly increased in the past 5 years, with marijuana use and vaping at their highest historic levels for this age group in 2022.
Binge drinking for adults aged 35 to 50 reported the highest prevalence ever recorded for this age group, which also represents a significant past-year, 5-year and 10-year increase.
CDC | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – 1 September 2023
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7235a3.htm
Counterfeit pill availability in the United States is increasing; drug overdose deaths are at historically high levels.
Evidence of counterfeit pill use in overdose deaths more than doubled from July-September 2019 to October-December 2021 and tripled in western U.S. states.
Evidence that decedents of counterfeit pill use were younger, more often Hispanic or Latino and more frequently had a history of prescription drug misuse and drug use by smoking.
CBC News – 15 September 2023
https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/ontario-multi-substance-use-deaths-1.6967147
Drug overdose deaths from multiple substances are on the rise in Ontario since the start of the pandemic, according to a new report.
Stronger drugs are a common theme that is worrying doctors.
The amount of resources taken to resuscitate is higher now.
While the pandemic has subsided for now, it left poor mental health and financial hardship in its wake. This is fuelling a “tsunami of overdoses” said Dr. Marko Erak of Humber River Hospital emergency room in Toronto.
Overdoses are becoming more complicated as Erak said that he finds people end up having more than one drug in their system.
A new report published shows that people are increasingly dying from multiple toxic substances since the start of the pandemic.
https://odprn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Substance-Toxicity-Report-Final.pdf
The trend is apparent throughout Canada and in the United States.
Data from 2021 shows 8 people died every day from consuming a toxic substance.
This is 5 times higher than the number of people who died in traffic accidents in the province the same year, according to the report.
At the same time, the number of deaths in 2021 was double the amount in 2018.
The study focused on the following 4 substances, which were found to be involved in the majority of deaths:
• Opioids
• Alcohol
• Benzodiazepines
• Stimulants
The report points out that 96% of benzodiazepine deaths in 2021 also included Opioids.
“This combination is likely because benzodiazepines extend the effects of the opiates.
When combined there is double the risk that a person will die or have increased withdrawal symptoms”.
Tara Gomes – lead author of the report on Drug Overdose Deaths in Ontario
Research Scientist based at Unity Health Toronto
Those who died in 2021, the study found:
52% were aged 25 to 44
75% were men
40% lived in lower income neighbourhoods
Toxic substance deaths were also 3 times higher in Northern Ontario.
ABC News – 20 September 2023
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-19/drugs-seized-990-arrrested-organised-crime-operation-vitreus/102872804
Following a national crackdown on organised crime, 1,000 people have been arrested and drugs worth an estimated $475 million have been seized across Australia.
1.2 tonnes of drugs found including:
814 kg of Methamphetamines
182 kg MDMA
185 kg Cannabis
Other drug seizures included:
$11.5 million of Cannabis
6 x 80 metre long greenhouses containing 2,284 cannabis plants, sophisticated hydroponic equipment and drug utensils.
Europol News – 22 September 2023
https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/operations-co-funded-eu-lead-to-197-arrests-in-spain
Europol has supported the Spanish National Police in 29 criminal investigations led by Spain and involving other EU Member States and non-EU countries, have led to the arrests of 197 suspected members of criminal organisations of 34 nationalities.
6 high ranked members of criminal networks were among the arrested individuals.
Seizures:
5 tonnes Cocaine
3 tonnes Cannabis
1.7 tonnes Heroin
28 firearms
57 vehicles
€4 million cash
€12 million in properties
€10 million frozen bank accounts
New Zealand Herald – 26 September 2023
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/prison-smuggling-at-least-360-georgia-prison-guards-arrested-for-contraband/GP5S4GQL5ZEMBLOVRSHSVPS4DA/
360 prison guards have been arrested since 2018 in New Zealand for smuggling contraband into prisons.
80% were women and half of them were under age 30.
The figures reflect the prison system struggling to recruit employees and often hiring young women with no law enforcement experience.
Contraband is the “driving force” for violence inside Georgia prisons.
Gang members recruit allies sometimes to come and work as officers and smugglers.
Other officers can be corrupted by money or intimidated by threats of violence, according to the report.
Some prison employees were paid thousands of dollars before they were caught in schemes that continued for months or years, the investigation found.
Employees may bring in illicit cellphones, drugs, tobacco or turn a blind eye to contraband deliveries. They may also issue warnings about upcoming shakedowns, help launder money or unlock doors.
Central Narcotics Bureau Singapore – 13 October 2023
https://www.cnb.gov.sg/NewsAndEvents/News/Index/forty-seven-suspected-drug-traffickers-and-abusers-arrested-for-transactions-conducted-on-chat-applications
47 drug traffickers and abusers arrested in a series of island wide anti drug operations conducted by the CNB.
The following was seized:
5,500g Cannabis
286g “Ice”
226g Ecstasy tablets
Ketamine
LSD stamps
The Cannabis and Ice can feed the addiction of approx. 950 abusers for a week.
The Guardian – 19 October 2023
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/19/eu-launches-crackdown-on-cocaine-smuggling
EU warns of ‘child soldiers’ exploited by drug gangs.
Children exploited by drug gangs face the same plight as “child soldiers” forced into killing and maiming people for criminals and cartels.
The EU has launched a series of initiatives to crack down on Cocaine smuggling.
Ylva Johansson – The European Commissioner for Home Affairs said that young people were becoming caught up in an increasingly booming and brutal trade that was one of Europe’s biggest security threats and the situation is escalating.
These young people are being radicalised and groomed to become killers.
Johansson cited a recent arrest in Stockholm of a 16 year old killing 2 women, one in her 20s and the other in her 60s, while children were in the house. He was arrested in possession of an automatic weapon and linked to another murder.
50% of all homicides in the EU are now drug-related.
Fears are growing over synthetic drugs made in laboratories as well as Cocaine.
2021 is the most recent year for which full data is available.
303 tonnes of Cocaine was seized in EU – 5 times more than a decade ago.
75% of all seizures was in the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.
The consequences are spiralling corruption, as cartels bid to co-opt port logistics firms, local union officials and politicians and a dramatic increase in violent crime.
Australian Federal Police – 11 December 2023
https://www.afp.gov.au/news-centre/media-release/afp-investigating-fake-united-nations-drug-mule-scam
The Australian Federal Police has identified an emerging scam where travellers are offered millions of dollars to transport illicit drugs by criminals purporting to be United Nations (UN) officials.
The criminals behind the scam offer the alleged drug couriers up to $35 million dollars to transport a suitcase into Australia on behalf of an individual purporting to be from the United Nations.
The new drug mule trend was first exposed after Australian Border Force (ABF) officers conducted two separate baggage examinations at Melbourne International Airport.
Associated Press – 13 December 2023
https://apnews.com/article/thailand-methamphetamine-smuggling-51ddf9242d7a1a9b8a151166137e0cc9
Police in Thailand seize a record haul of 50 million Methamphetamine tablets near the border with Myanmar.
The tablets were hidden in sacks in a 6 wheeler truck.
UNODC say that this was not a surprise “given the extreme supply being produced by militias and traffickers in northern Myanmar.”
Myanmar has historically been the region’s main drug production area in part because of lax security measures in border areas where minority ethnic groups have long been fighting for greater autonomy. Some of the armed groups there have been heavily involved in narcotics production for decades.
June 2023 United Nations drug agency’s report on synthetic drugs in East and Southeast Asia warned that the HUGE trade in Methamphetamine and other illegal drugs shows no signs of slowing down.
https://www.unodc.org/roseap/en/2023/06/regional-synthetic-drugs-report-launch/story.html
High volumes of Methamphetamine continue to be produced and trafficked in and from the region, while the production of Ketamine and other synthetic drugs has expanded.
High volumes of Methamphetamine trafficked from Myanmar into Bangladesh and rising frequency into northeast India.
2022
27.4 tons of Ketamine was seized in the region
167% increase with all countries and territories in the region reporting an increase except Hong Kong and China.
Large mixed shipments of Methamphetamine and Ketamine were seized by authorities across the region, indicating organised crime continue to push the 2 drugs as a package to grow Ketamine demand.
Research is needed as it is unclear how widespread Ketamine use is.
Tamil Guardian – 29 December 2023
https://www.tamilguardian.com/content/15000-arrested-military-backed-drug-crackdown-sri-lanka
Sri Lanka police arrested 13,666 people during a week-long military backed anti-narcotics drive. 1,100 addicts were detained and sent for compulsory rehabilitation at a military-run facility.
The operation led to the seizure of 440 kg of narcotics, including 272 kg of cannabis, 35 kg of hashish and 9 kg of heroin.
Authorities say the Indian Ocean island is being used as a drug trafficking transit point.
Human Rights were saying that the police were arresting drug users and small time dealers but ‘not focusing on large-scale traffikcers’.
Sri Lanka’s biggest drug haul by weight was in December 2016 when 800 kg of Cocaine was seized.
The Telegraph – 2 January 2024
Inside the ‘zombie’ drug epidemic sweeping West Africa
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/kush-synthetic-drug-addiction-epidemic-west-africa/
Experts say kush, a synthetic, cannabinoid-like drug is as dangerous as heroin and cocaine – and it’s killing around a dozen users a week.
Under a bridge near a bustling market near Freetown, the young people gather in their masses. Dressed in nothing but rags, they stand like zombies – shoulders slouched, heads cocked to one side – as they aimlessly shuffle in circles. Many are without shoes, their feet bare and swollen from infection.
Those that have yet to reach this catatonic state pass a joint between themselves. It’s a mixture of opioids, cannabis, disinfectant and, locals say, ground-down human bones that have been dug up from graves. They inhale the fumes, slowly breathe out, and wait for euphoria’s embrace.
A 21-year-old school dropout, who is homeless, is among the addicts here. He comes daily for his hit of kush. It induces a long-lasting, hypnotic high which can detach users from reality for several hours.
He says: “When I smoke kush, I forget my problems. It usually takes me to ecstasy. I used to smoke a couple of slings of marijuana a day but after I was introduced to kush by friends, I never turned back. I sold my clothes and books to satisfy my addiction. I started stealing house-hold items, phones, pots and dishes to buy drugs.”
He adds: “I love it. It makes me feel happy for a moment, enough to forget my worries and societal problems.”
Kush first emerged in Sierra Leone 6 years ago.
Manufactured and distributed by criminal gangs, the drug typically costs 5 leones (20p) per joint – though many users will spend £8 a day, a small fortune for a country with an average per capita income of under £400 a year.
The composition of the drug varies from place to place. Fentanyl and tramadol are said to be ingredients, as is formalin, a disinfectant. There are also several media reports of human bones being crushed up and added to kush.
The drug has become commonplace across Sierra Leone, with whole neighbourhoods and communities addicted to the narcotic. But putting a precise figure on usage rates is difficult.
The Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital says it has been overwhelmed with addicts in recent years.
The number of referrals keeps rising on a daily basis, and many are sedated upon arrival at the facility due to their violent tendencies.
The Teaching Hospital provides isolation treatment, which lasts between three to six weeks, and antipsychotic drugs to help wean patients off their addiction. But it is the only facility of its kind offering active care to kush patients in Sierra Leone.
Indeed, there are just five psychiatrists in the entire country, home to roughly 8.4 million, according to the WHO, making it impossible to tackle the spiralling epidemic.
Sierra Leone’s youth unemployment rate – which stands at 60% is one of the highest in the world and further compounding the issue.
Jobless people are turning to kush in order to “escape the harsh realities of life”.
The drug can also prove fatal.
When high, users have been known to bang their heads repeatedly against walls, walk into traffic or fall from high places.
Health experts estimate around a dozen kush users die weekly in Sierra Leone, with their bodies often recovered from the streets and slums.
But it’s not just Sierra Leone which is grappling with the fallout from kush. A wave of addiction is slowly moving across West Africa, with the horrors now being repeated in Liberia and Guinea. Estimates suggest more than a million people from the region are now addicted.
A consultant psychiatrist at the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital said: “Kush is a very dangerous drug like heroin or cocaine, it’s strong, cheap and easily available, there is weak regulation and control over the sale of the drug and it’s becoming widespread in West Africa. The lack of jobs and opportunities is a driving force leading many youths into drug addiction after the disruption of economies by the Covid pandemic.”
It doesn’t matter where in the world it is – there will always be those that strive to take advantage of others and prey on their weaknesses.
Drugs, in whatever form they come in, destroy lives, wreck lives and kill lives.
Europol News – 26 January 2024
https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/15-arrested-in-intercontinental-crackdown-against-nigerian-crime-syndicates
17 countries joined forces with Europol – 468 law enforcement officers involved, monitoring transit hubs across the globe.
15 arrested in Inter-continental crackdown against Nigerian crime syndicates, who were active in the EU and abroad.
These poly-criminal Nigerian criminal networks were responsible for a multitude of serious crimes, such as the smuggling and distribution of drugs, trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation, fraud, illegal waste smuggling and money laundering.
Nigerian criminal networks have long been renowned for trafficking in human beings and a variety of fraud but in recent years they have also gained a strong foothold in drug trafficking across several EU markets. In the crime area, Nigerian drug traffickers are particularly active in transporting and distributing both Cocaine and Heroin.
One of the most commonly observed modus operandi for transporting drugs in and out of the EU is by air. Drug mules from both Nigeria and the EU take frequent trips and smuggle drugs on their person typically swallowed, concealed in body cavities or hidden in luggage.
In addition, International law enforcement shows that Nigerian criminal networks co-ordinate a large share of Amphetamine trafficking. These drugs are sent from African countries via the EU towards Asian or Australian destinations.
Criminal leaders live luxurious and lavish lifestyles, directing their couriers and lower-level organisation members from a distance. To ensure drug mules or victims of human trafficking remain under their control, the kingpins apply measures such as severe threats, the use of extreme violence or intimidation with obscure religious practices.
Typically, Nigerian criminal networks are well organised with an almost militia-style hierarchy. With the promise of protection and power, secret societies recruit new members. These secret societies are called confraternities.
These crime syndicates have been established across the globe and act as the backbone of Nigerian organised crime.
CNN News – 31 January 2024
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/31/us/fentanyl-crisis-portland-state-of-emergency/index.html
Oregon Government have declared a 90 day state of Emergency in Portland’s Central City to address the Fentanyl crisis.
The emergency declaration was made to address the public health and public safety crisis, citing overdoses, deaths and fear driven by Fentanyl use.
“Our country and our state have never seen a drug this deadly and addictive and all are grappling with how to respond” Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said.
In 2020, some hard drugs, including Fentanyl were decriminalized and this measure received criticism, as Opioid overdose deaths have steadily climbed since.
4-fold increase over 5 years in drug overdose deaths involving Fentanyl.
The emergency order allows the city, state and county to allocate resources to the response and stand up a command center in the central city.
Euro News – 12 February 2024
https://www.euronews.com/2024/02/12/costa-rica-asks-eu-for-help-to-fight-surging-drug-trafficking-and-violence-in-the-country
Costa Rica asks EU for help to fight surging drug trafficking and violence in the country.
Costa Rica and the EU will co-operate to fight narco traffic in the country where drug-related murders have reached record numbers in the past year.
There has been an upsurge in homicides over the past decade, with most of them linked to drug trafficking.
66% increase in murders between 2013 and 2023
70% of them being related to drug trafficking
Costa Rica is a major hub for drugs headed to Europe and the U.S.
Cocaine and Fentanyl have swamped the outskirts of the country’s capital, where police are hunting for gang leaders.
In one of the most dangerous drug districts, police search for cartel bosses suspected of being in hiding.
40% rise in murder rate – record high in the last year, related to gang warfare over territory.
Note – Costa Rica has no army. Military cannot be called in to deal with the drug trafficking and violence the country is now facing.
UVA Health – 26 February 2024
Poison centre calls for ‘magic mushrooms’ spiked after decriminalisation
https://newsroom.uvahealth.com/2024/02/26/poison-center-calls-magic-mushrooms-spiked-after-decriminalization/
Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have found that calls to US poison centres involving psilocybin, or ‘magic mushrooms’, among adolescents and young adults rose sharply after several US cities and states began decriminalising the hallucinogen.
According to the National Poison Data System, psilocybin-related calls more than tripled among teens aged 13-19 and more than doubled among adult aged 20-25 between 2018 and 2022.
Local and state efforts to decriminalise the possession, use and cultivation of psilocybin began in May 2019. Oregon and Colorado have decriminalised psilocybin, as have several cities, including Washington, D.C, Detroit, and Seattle.
The director of UVA Health’s Blue Ridge Poison Centre and chief of the Division of Medical Toxicology at the UVA School of Medicine said: “It is markedly concerning to me that children are gaining access to these products. We have limited data on the potential long-term consequences on the developing brains of children when exposed to such compounds that impact the brain’s neurotransmission.
We also do not understand fully why some individuals have markedly adverse complications to psilocybin, known as ‘bad trips’, that can lead to harm to the individual taking or others who may be victims of violent behaviour.”
During the 10 years examined in the study, most calls involved intentional consumption of psilocybin:
• 81.1% of calls for ages 13-19
• 78.3% of calls for ages 20-25
Males accounted for about 75% of the calls in both age groups.
75% of the youths aged 13-19 and 72% of the young adults required some sort of medical attention after being exposed solely to psilocybin. Researchers found that the most common effects of the drug were:
• 36.6% Hallucinations or delusions
• 27.6% Agitation
• 20.2% Abnormally fast heart rate
• 16% Confusion
The powerful psychological effects of psilocybin can, even in moderate doses, cause adverse reactions that can include anxiety, disorientation, fear, grief, paranoia and panic attacks. Psilocybin-induced impairments in judgement and perception can contribute to dangerous behaviour, accidents, self-harming and even a risk of suicide. There are reports of deaths from falls or jumps from tall buildings attributed to psilocybin use.
The researchers note that the increase in psilocybin-related calls among young people from 2018-2022 is “particularly alarming” because the hallucinogen’s use is banned for those aged 21 and younger even in cities and states where it has been decriminalised.
The epidemiologist at the Blue Ridge Poison Centre said: “As psilocybin may become more widely available, it is important for parents to be aware that psilocybin is also available in edible forms such as chocolate and gummies. And we learned from our experience with edible cannabis that young children can mistake edibles for candy.”
This is serious stuff – And a great example of why psilocybin should remain illegal.
WHY are governments clamouring over themselves to find drugs to decriminalise?
Could it be possible that taxable income on the products has something to do with this?
Could it be possible that, those who are enabling the decriminalising of these drugs, are the ones who need them?
With the decriminalising of psilocybin, the calls to poison centres have increased – shouldn’t this a BIG RED warning sign to those in authority?