Science

‘Magic mushroom’ chemicals could be legal sooner than you think, if scientists have their way

*mushroom picture not for identification purposes So if the called-for reclassification does indeed take place, psilocybin would go from being treated like an outlawed narcotic to – basically – a prescription sleeping pill. “We should be clear that psilocybin is not without risks of harm, which are greater in recreational than medical settings,” Johnson says.…

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Biography/Memoir

Sheriff releases videos of deputies making ‘callous comments’ about drug-addled inmate

“Look what I brought for show-and-tell today.”  … “Has he tried to eat anyone’s face yet?” …  “I wish we could show this to his girlfriend like, ‘You love this?”​ -Three Oregon deputies’ on cellphone videos while an inmate was in a padded jail cell and flailing around uncontrollably from a drug overdose. Perry [an Iraqi veteran] arrived…

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Science

This parasite drugs its hosts with the psychedelic chemical in shrooms [and a crystal meth-like amphetamine]

*”the cicadas walk around as if nothing’s wrong even though a third of their body has fallen off (and they are in the process of dying, while infecting those around them” *warning : using psilocybin in combination with amphetamines is NOT recommended. Potential negative side-effects are extreme. The team took great pains to check that Massospora [pictured above] really does contain…

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Politics

Why Oregon is right to decriminalize cocaine, meth and heroin

*Oregon State ArchivesWhile some people may find this softer stance on hard drugs shocking, the consensus from the world’s leading drug policy and addiction experts is that “tough on crime” drug war policies have been a spectacular failure, and decriminalization is exactly the direction our laws should be headed to protect people and society from crime…

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Medicine/Healing

PTSD and ecstasy: science and perception

*Women Veterans Monument​ Chronic PTSD is a relatively common condition in military personnel returning from active duty. However, it can be a difficult illness to treat. Some individuals respond to antidepressants such as sertraline or paroxetine, and some respond to specific types of psychotherapies. Nevertheless, these treatments do not substantially help many individuals suffering from…

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Psychology

Men who have used psychedelics are roughly half as likely to commit intimate partner violence

A new study has found evidence that men who have used psychedelic drugs in the past have a lower likelihood of engaging in violence against their current partners.  “We were interested in looking at the association between psychedelics and violence for a number of reasons,” said Michelle Thiessen, a clinical psychology graduate student at the University…

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