MetaFilter posts tagged with heroin

"Heroin Makes Him Evil"

msalt — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:25:58 -0800

Dig! Destroy The System. The entire film about the Brian Jonestown Massacre's rivalry with the Dandy Warhols (after a 30 second ad). One week only on Pitchfork TV.

'Cos it makes me feel like I'm a man...

PeterMcDermott — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:13:22 -0800

The first ever North American study into prescribing diamorphine to addicts was published today in the New England Journal of Medicine. And the outcomes are positive. This is the latest in a growing line of research studies into diamorphine prescribing. The Netherlands and Switzerland have both completed major studies that showed extremely positive outcomes in treatment resistant populations. Germany has recently begun a study along these lines, and a British study is about to report it's outcomes any minute now.

How often must a positive outcome be replicated before something becomes part of mainstream treatment provision?

Scotland's heroin problems

peacay — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 07:19:32 -0800

What happened to the Trainspotting generation? Heroin and Scotland: the relationship continues.

Reaping what's sown.

uaudio — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 10:38:41 -0800

With inadequate access to basic health care (WHO .doc summary), impoverished Afghans turn to cheap and available opium as 'medicine' for pain relief, cough suppression and other ailments. The level of addiction among children is at a critical level. Jawed Taiman's film Addicted in Afghanistan provides some further perspective. Previously on Metafilter.

Installation with mirror, headstone and chair

infinitefloatingbrains — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:44:29 -0800

Dash Snow, seminal artist, is dead of an overdose. Born into art world royalty, Dash was the great-grandson of prominent collector Dominique de Ménil. On the streets at 13, Dash gained notoriety for his graffiti as 'Sace' and his antics with the Irak crew. Famously profiled in a 2007 NYMag article, his debauched art was a reflection of his rough existence and vitality. While contemporaries and dealers are quick to cement his status as an icon, others reserve a far harsher judgement. He is survived by all of Manhattan. Previously

Stringer Bell goes legit?

PeterMcDermott — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 09:14:01 -0800

In a recent report for the Abell Foundation, University of Maryland Criminologist Peter Reuter asks whether, in light of the evidence from Switzerland, The Netherlands and elsewhere, Baltimore might not be the best place to try the first US heroin maintenance programme?

We can be heroes just for one day

panboi — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 05:01:21 -0800

Christiane F was a 1981 German film that portrayed the life of young heroin addicts growing up in 1970's Berlin. Notable for the collaboration of David Bowie, the film became well known for its realistic portrayal of drug use. The film's impact was helped by the involvement of David Bowie who agreed to the use of his songs for the film and also performed during a concert scene. The album released at the time also provides a very good selection of Berlin-era Bowie songs, such as Heroes and the haunting instrumental Sense Of Doubt. Based on the book Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo, itself based on interviews and articles in Stern magazine, the plot follows the true story of Christiane Felscherinow and her gradual descent into drug use and prostitution. Although the story is very harrowing, there remains a sense of hope at the end. Following the film's release, Christiane became something of a cult figure and attracts the interest of various fan sites. Christiane Felscherinow now lives in Berlin with her son.

Do you like bad boys?

msalt — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:51:12 -0800

Hated: GG Allin and the Murder Junkies (on Pitchfork.TV for one week, until 5/2/08). Very, very NSFW. GG Allin previously, wiki

A Day in the Death of...

snsranch — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 16:56:16 -0800

A Day in the Death of Donny B is a 1969 short film/docudrama following the life of a junky.

The larks, still bravely singing, fly / Scarce heard amid the guns below.

mek — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 21:57:18 -0800

The poppy is bitterly ironic this Remembrance Day. Borrowed from John McRae's classic In Flanders' Fields, the poppy has shifted from a symbolic meaning to the central subject of an ongoing conflict. As international intervention in Afghanistan continues, opium production has reached record-breaking heights, with this single country now producing 90% of the world's total supply (utterly dwarfing global licit supply). Meanwhile, the world suffers a global opiate shortage(pdf), Canada's heroin maintenance project is threatened by politics, and the National Review of Medicine suggests that prescription opiates are far more dangerous than the "usual suspects".

geopolitics of opium 2007

nickyskye — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 10:27:58 -0800

The amount of Afghan land used for growing opium is now larger than the combined total under coca cultivation in Latin America - Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. No other country has produced narcotics on such a deadly scale since China in the 19 th century. Opium in Afghanistan: Eradicate or subsidize? Previously. Some interesting sponsors of the Afghanistan online site, scroll down. India flanked [pdf] by opium production in Pakistan and Burma. Maps from GeOpium.org, geopolitics of illicit drugs in Asia. The Chief Constable of North Wales Police Richard Brunstorm, recommends in a report published today, that his Police Authority officially support his call for the legalisation and regulation of drugs. Mixed thoughts on that topic. Afghanistan: Potential Opium Production 1990 to 2006, graphic. Inside an Afghan opium market Estimated world requirements of narcotic drugs [pdf] in grams for 2007

One hell of an obituary

Gamblor — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:40:28 -0800

"Count Gottfried von Bismarck, who was found dead on Monday aged 44, was a louche German aristocrat with a multi-faceted history as a pleasure-seeking heroin addict, hell-raising alcoholic, flamboyant waster and a reckless and extravagant host of homosexual orgies."

It's excruciatingly painful being green

nile_red — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 01:13:49 -0800

Kermit has not done well since the death of Jim Henson...He's covered some sad songs , poured his heart out on myspace and picked up a new addiction.

The geopolitics of opium

daksya — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 19:23:14 -0800

So how's the War on Drugs proceeding in Afghanistan? Barry McCaffrey, former drug czar, trumpets, "Opium production has been dramatically slashed by 48% just in the past year[2005].". Oops, actually that's the acreage of opium cultivation; production went down by only 10%, due to increased yields. In any case, that's so last year. Instead of the socially detrimental policy of poppy eradication, wouldn't it be preferable to allow licensing of poppies for legitimate medical needs? The Afghan farmers agree, but some think the idea is flawed.

foxxy!

Paris Hilton — Thu, 04 May 2006 01:06:18 -0800

Fox pussies out. Recently a bill passed in mexico legalizing all drugs under certain specified quantities. The bill was promoted By Vincente Fox's party, and came from his offices. However he decided not to sign it under U.S. pressure.

There go my vacation plans.

East Europe IV Drug Use Images

peacay — Sat, 25 Mar 2006 23:45:26 -0800

Be Warned: some very disturbing and NSFW intravenous drug abuse images from Eastern Europe. [More Inside]

Lawless Iraq is 'key drug route'

Postroad — Thu, 12 May 2005 10:58:22 -0800

Lawless Iraq is 'key drug route' Drug smugglers exploiting internal chaos in Iraq have turned the country into a transit route for Afghan heroin, an influential drug agency says.

The 'Bali nine'.

sjvilla79 — Sun, 24 Apr 2005 03:43:24 -0800

The Australian media is calling them the 'Bali nine'. Nine young Australians are being held in Bali under suspicion for attempting to smuggle 8.3 kg (or 11.25 kg depending on what you read) of heroin through Bali's airport. They were caught with the drugs allegedly strapped to their bodies while accomplices were apprehended at a nearby hotel. Most of the nine Australians are now cooperating with police enquiries even though they fear doing so will further endanger the lives of their families (e.g. drug lords punishing them for talking). Don't get this latest case mistaken, however, with the other high-profile Australian drugs case in the Australian media right now. Beauty therapist Schapelle Corby, 27, is also being held in Bali for the 4.1 kg of top-notch marijuana found in her bodyboard bag some months ago. Prosecutors in that case have asked for a life sentence to be handed down to Corby. She has supposedly escaped death by firing squad. Her legal team and family, though, say she was a victim of dodgy baggage handlers and an Australian interstate drug smuggling operation that uses unknowing interstate Australian travellers as drug mules. Most Australians are worried about this, too. Of course, the strain of the case on Corby is beginning to show. But getting back to the 'Bali nine'. What will their fate be? Another Australian was just given an execution order in Vietnam for also smuggling Heroin. It's all nasty stuff, hey. News reports indicate that Australian officials will seek clemency for those involved in the latest Bali bust. Yeah, but how much good will that do? Indonesia is well known for enforcing strong anti-drug laws. And who can blame them?

Addiction to porn destroying lives.

travis vocino — Fri, 19 Nov 2004 12:42:07 -0800

Addiction to porn is destroying lives, Senate told. Experts compare the effect on the brain to that of heroin or crack cocaine.

HeroinLollipopsAndOpiumStarch

srboisvert — Thu, 14 Oct 2004 14:56:38 -0800

Where not to hide your drugs. Tips from the DEA. [via boingboing]

Don't touch that plant!

Gyan — Wed, 22 Sep 2004 19:41:28 -0800

Opium Made Easy: One gardener's encounter with the war on drugs.

MEANWHILE, at the Chinese laundromat ...

Peter H — Fri, 23 Jul 2004 09:52:36 -0800

"HEY MAN ... GREAT! I FEEL GOOFY, THE WAY MY OLD MAN LOOKS WHEN HE'S DRUNK!" - A famous word balloon from the Principia Discordia has recently been discovered to have its odd origins in an obscure comic book about heroin abuse from 1966.

dash_slot- — Mon, 24 May 2004 13:33:33 -0800

Opioids past , present and future.

Shooting gallery for addicts

giantkicks — Tue, 16 Sep 2003 11:21:21 -0800

"Vancouver has opened North America's first legal shooting gallery for drug addicts." -for all you poor saps where guns are a part of your everyday vocabulary, NO that's not a place where drug addicts shoot guns.- this is a pilot program supported by all levels of government in BC and in Canada, where addicts can inject drugs in a supervised, clean environment. The purpose of which ultimately I think is to bridge the huge gap between "them" and "us" and possibly shrink the distance addicts have to reach through for help. Does my heart bleed for "them"? Absolutely not. You choose your weapon, you suffer the consequences. But what this could lead to is less addicts and therefore less reason for addicts to commit crimes to support their addictions...

Geopolitics and Illicit Drugs

titboy — Wed, 05 Feb 2003 15:45:19 -0800

Well known for speaking the truth about governments and getting pressured for it [7th paragraph from the top], Alain Labrousse recently published his Dictionnaire géopolitique des drogues [Geopolitical Dictionary of Drugs]. I don't think it's been translated in English yet, but all his previous works have, so I'm sure an English version is on the way. His latest book is being well received by everyone who's interested in "open source" information about drugs, particularly how the various national economies profit from them. A recent review [in French], cites one example of twisted international relations concerning drugs [my translation]: Europe speaks no evil about activities in Morocco, the most important source of cannabis in the world, or in Turkey, where scores of laboratories transform afghan opium into heroin, simply because these two countries provide a frontline of resistance to radical Islam. In North America, in Mexico, the United States tolerated for 70 years the Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional - PRI), even though its leaders supported, and even chose mexican drug cartels. Geostrategic interests outweigh the most basic needs of the war against drugs.