US leads world in substance abuse, says WHO

[sputnikgirl]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080701/hl_nm/drugs_who_dc

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States leads the world in rates of experimenting with marijuana and cocaine despite strict drug laws, World Health Organization researchers said on Tuesday.

Countries with looser drug laws have lower rates of abuse, the researchers report in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Medicine.

The survey of 54,000 people in 17 countries found that 16 percent of people in the United States had used cocaine in their lifetimes -- far higher than the next highest rate, found in New Zealand, where 4.3 percent of people reported having used cocaine.

Even coming from a somewhat reputable source, it still won't change US drug policy.

 

[gunslingingbird]

Now, there's something we didn't know.

 

[titsrock]

I'm not sure if I really buy that coke figure...I mean, yeah, the 80s was nothing but a decade long blowfest...but times have changed.

The War on Drugs, while honorably intended, has been a complete failure.

 

[Friday on my mind]

I think people lie a lot on those surveys.I don't know what age group those people were but 17% only admitted ever doing coke? Among people my age who were adults in the late 70s and 80s I would bet at least 50% did it at least once and probably much more that that ,at least going by the people I knew lol.
Think of all the people who would have to get other jobs without the war on drugs.The beaucracy itself is a lobby for no changes in laws.DEA,prison guards,police as well as lots of others would all be affected.

 

[Jagger69]

Hey...we're the USA. We gotta be number one no matter what!

 

[Torre82]

I for one think coke is too expensive. Then again.. if you factor in how many red bulls you'd need to keep you up for half a week.. and how ineffective they'd be after the first 24 hours..

Yeah, coke is pretty cheap.

Hmph, substances. 'Abuse' is an overused word. ::takes a swig of whiskey:: I wouldnt say most people are abusing any of the substances they use. Addiction, however.. that's a real thing ya gotta watch out for.

 

[Peter Gazinya]

oh yeah? Says WHO?

 

[tubuler]

The US isn't even close to strict when it comes to drugs when compared to countries like Indonesia or Singapore. Getting caught with a large amount of narcotics (even something as harmless as marijuana) can get you put to death in those countries.:violent:

 

[bigbadbrody]

marijuana does a body good

 

[Friday on my mind]

The US isn't even close to strict when it comes to drugs when compared to countries like Indonesia or Singapore. Getting caught with a large amount of narcotics (even something as harmless as marijuana) can get you put to death in those countries.:violent:

That of course is true and like other things since the US has so much money lol a lot of things are sent here.You got a load of grade a coke to sell USA is place to sell it lol.We are nuts about such things we think of them as some edgy forbidden fruit that you are not suppose to do so of course we want to do it.While they have had some problems the europeans are much less fighting a war and have much less of a war to fight.Take it out in the open more and the allure will be less I bet.Also I think things like pot are way less powerfull than a beer or two for most people.Recently there was some people saying it would be good idea to allow people to smoke pot before flying especially as opposed to them drinking.Drinking makes some violent,obnoxious etc,while pot is not known for any of that.Of course people like Fox news just aired the story to mock them as left wing nutty pot heads as opposed to being right wing nutty drunks I guess.

 

[Synthmesc_Droog]

^ It all depends on the nature and quantity of the attempted smuggling operation, Tubular. An Australian woman was recently convicted of trying to smuggle a body-board bag's worth of buds into Indonesia. It was hyped up by the media, they protested her innocence and tried to sway the legal process but IMO she's guilty as charged. She didn't receive the death penalty - but 20 years is still a long fucking time to spend in prison.

And i've mentioned this on another thread, but there is a clear and concise link between the rising rate of crack/cocaine use and the rise in homicide rates and handgun sales in the USA during the 90's.

 

[calpoon]

Hmph, substances. 'Abuse' is an overused word. ::takes a swig of whiskey:: I wouldnt say most people are abusing any of the substances they use. Addiction, however.. that's a real thing ya gotta watch out for.

I'd feel comfortable with this survey if it simply factually stated the number of people that have (admitted) using illicit substances.

but I don't support it's misleading conclusion.

not only does this seem to stipulate that people who admitted to having tried a substance, as in have done it once, are "abusing" it, but that totally skews the numbers of drug consumption by completely skirting around and disregarding the actual numbers.

you have one person that uses heroin every day for 30 years, and 17 people that have tried it once, and according to the survey that equals 18 drug users.

what is the actual amount of drug consumption? it varies dramatically on a case by case basis.

you could have a country where 60% of people have used or do use drugs, and other where only 10% use drugs, and the later in truth consumes more than the former. That's what I'm saying about this being inaccurate.

 

[Friday on my mind]

^ It all depends on the nature and quantity of the attempted smuggling operation, Tubular. An Australian woman was recently convicted of trying to smuggle a body-board bag's worth of buds into Indonesia. It was hyped up by the media, they protested her innocence and tried to sway the legal process but IMO she's guilty as charged. She didn't receive the death penalty - but 20 years is still a long fucking time to spend in prison.

And i've mentioned this on another thread, but there is a clear and concise link between the rising rate of crack/cocaine use and the rise in homicide rates and handgun sales in the USA during the 90's.

I bet there was a clear and concise rise in homicide rates and gun sales in the 1920s during prohibiton as well.The violence in both cases IMO was due to the substances being illegal but also highly profitable .The killings were people competeting to control those rackets as they used to be called.Once prohibition was ended all the profit was gone and the violence basically came to an end.Yeah the mob went on using all that money they had made and still killed a few of each other occasionally but events like the st valentines day massacre were over.Its really a choice between which is worse the effects of the substances themselves or the effects and crime and violence if they are made illegal.

 

[Facetious]

Certainly the U.S. govt has nothing to do with this !

War on drugs my ASS ! :thefinger

They're stealing our funds (via taxes) and not doing shit about curtailing the supply of drugs coming across "that border". WTF do you expect ? Why would any such administration (rep or dem) suspend this so called "war on drugs" ? It provides them with another source of income.

You don't get it . . do you ? :helpme:

Read Me

 

[Synthmesc_Droog]

It wouldn't let me rep you Facetious, but excellent post there mate. :thumbsup:

 

[tubuler]

^ It all depends on the nature and quantity of the attempted smuggling operation, Tubular. An Australian woman was recently convicted of trying to smuggle a body-board bag's worth of buds into Indonesia. It was hyped up by the media, they protested her innocence and tried to sway the legal process but IMO she's guilty as charged. She didn't receive the death penalty - but 20 years is still a long fucking time to spend in prison.

I know about the "Ganja Queen" case. 20 years for a victimless crime is WAY too fucking harsh.

Even if she was guilty what's the worst thing that would have happened if she had succeeded in smuggling 4.2 kilos of marijuana into Indonesia? She sells it to a bunch of potheads who proceed to get stoned? What's so bad about that? Who cares? Nobodys life is on the line.

No one deserves to be executed, or locked up for 20 years, over a couple kilos of marijuana. It really is tragic and unfair.

 

[Synthmesc_Droog]

Yeah, the Indonesian Justice system is really suspect. The whole country is, just a little IMO. I've been to Bali many times. Little kids often come up and ask if you want to "buy buds". I always tell them to piss off. I remember the first time I went, I had a tiny little bud in one of my pockets of my boardies in my luggage. I got to the hotel and realised it was still in there from a few nights ago. I flushed the thing. Fuck getting caught puffing away on a j at 4:20pm.

More often than not the little kids sell you the shit and then go and tell the cops you've got some and take the informants reward too! Little sods.

 

[Fresno]

hen I was in high school it was the same!

 

[D-rock]

When you take into account that a lot of people in the USA have more disposable income during that time and there is has been a dedicated illegal supply chain during all that time it isn't surprising we would still lead it even with strict laws. The black market also makes the products sell for a lot more than were it’s not as illegal to do so. Drug lords are ruled by the laws of economics like a lot of other people are, even if what they do is illegal. They would be more likely to take the drugs where they could get the most profit out of it.

 

[General Warcock]

The CIA was bringing drugs up from South America as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR8s-mIj9BM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5b6kf5PIzX4

Probably still are...