This Week in Psychedelics - 3.11.16

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Legalizing Weed Has Done What 1 Trillion Dollars and a 40 Year War Couldn't (Disinfo)
• Federal Agents Seizing Far Less Marijuana At Southern Border (NORML)
• 'Erowid' Analysis Finds People Like Cannabis No Matter What Other Drug They Take (Inverse)
• These Cannabis Activists Want To Get Arrested In Front Of The White House (ThinkProgress)
• FDA Sends Warning Letters To Cannabis Companies Over False Claims (Forbes)
• 5 Rare Disorders That Can Be Treated With Marijuana (ATTN:)
• This Ivy League doctor believes in medical cannabis' potential (The Cannabist)
• Study: Cannabis' Influence On Driving Performance Differs Significantly From That Of Alcohol (NORML)
• Signature Snafu May Doom Maine Marijuana Measure (Reason)
• Cannabis legalisation in UK 'would raise £1bn a year in taxes' (The Independent)
• Doctor Destroys Cannabis Myths Once And For All (Illegally Healed)
• Passage Of State Medical Marijuana Laws Don't Influence Youth Use (NORML)
• Cannabis Grower, Dispensaries To Donate One-Tenth Of Sales To Bernie Sanders' Campaign (Inquisitr)
• US Senators' Views On Medical Cannabis and DEA (NORML)
• Is "kosher" cannabis Israel's next big export? (KRON4)
• Wikileaf makes finding the best weed, at the best prices, easy (Boing Boing)
• 9 Problems With the Marijuana Rules Proposed by Massachusetts Legislators (Reason)
• Cannabis providers discuss future at private meeting in Missoula (NBC Montana)
• Meet the Man Who Hopes To Stop Marijuana Legalization in California (Reason)
• Colorado Springs Shuts Down Its Cannabis Clubs...in Eight Years (Reason)
• Cannabis and Sleep: 10 Things to Know About Your Herbal Nightcap (Leafly)
• New Jersey 'Weedman' Says Closing Pot Temple Violates Religious Freedom (TIME)
• 'Uncle Spliffy' Seeks To Change Negative Perceptions About Cannabis And Sports (The Weed Blog)
• Cannabis Science 101: The Physics and Chemistry of the Joint (Leafly)
• It's Time To Get Over the Prejudice Against Marijuana! (NORML)
• Cannapics: 7 Stunning Images of Cannabis Joints (Leafly)
• Police recover 9000 cannabis plants in Nelson-Marlborough aerial operation (Stuff.co.nz)
• Cannabis in First-Episode Psychosis Linked to Poor Outcomes (Medscape)
• Couple accused of murdering their 21-month old daughter kept skunk cannabis in the toddler's Tommy Tippee drinking cup, court hears (Daily Mail)
• Cannabis should be legalised and regulated, Lib Dems say (BBC)

LSD

• Could cuddling and LSD become the norm at work? (The Vancouver Sun)
• Star Wars animator took LSD during production: 'I got to the green screen and it was like 'Aaagh, I took way too much' (The Independent)
• What are the Benefits of LSD? Rethinking Acid as a Therapeutic Medicine (Psychedelic Times)
• Some People Swear That 'Microdosing' LSD on the Job Makes You a Better Worker (TIME)
• An LSD trip story: "Went to a Donald Trump speech on acid SUPER BAD VIBES" (Boing Boing)
• Student arrested for LSD in City Hall (The GW Hatchet)
• N.J. woman skipped court on LSD charge, prosecutor says (NJ.com)
• Man pleads not guilty to selling LSD (Daily Citizen)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Researchers seek spiritual leaders for magic mushroom study (Extract)
• Chicago man with psychedelic mushrooms arrested Friday (The News-Gazette)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• What It Was Like to Be Part of a Major Ecstasy Ring in the 90s (VICE)
• The Disturbing Truth About How Ecstasy Affects the Brain (Mic)
• Thames Valley Policeman Ryan Sproat dismissed for taking MDMA at nightclub (Metro)
• UC Santa Cruz MDMA Ring Busted; Sorority, Fraternity Members Jailed (CBS)
• Narcotics Agency Chief: Islamic school students mistaking ecstasy for vitamins to make them pray longer (Coconuts Jakarta)
• Ecstasy caused death of UC Irvine student who went to rave in San Bernardino County, coroner says (Los Angeles Times)
• Former Canberra doctor who used MDMA suspended for two years (The Canberra Times)
• New Research Aims To Reveal Cognitive Deficiencies In MDMA Users (Your EDM)
• MDMA Use May Damage Serotonin Receptors In The Brain, Risk Cognitive Impairment (Medical Daily)
• Ever taken MDMA? Then this news might concern you (Metro)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• High in the Amazon - Aurianna Joy's quest for peace in the jungle (The National Student)
• The DMT experience - Terence McKenna (Disinfo)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• Finding Psycho Spiritual Healing with a Huachuma Healing Ceremony (Psychedelic Times)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• DOB and 2C-B: The Controversial Legacy of Alexander Shulgin's Research (Psychedelic Times)
• Three schoolboys aged 15 fighting for life in hospital after taking legal highs 'similar to LSD' (The Sun)
• Father Of Round Rock Man Accused Of Choking Nurse While On K2 Disputes Police Account (Patch)
• College student from Salem admits peddling synthetic hallucinogen (The Salem News)
• Minnesota man gets 9 years for selling synthetic LSD (La Crosse Tribune)

Dissociatives

• What It's Like to Treat Severe Depression With Ketamine (New York Magazine)
• Paramedics to give ketamine to patients high on flakka (EMS1)
• 'I was shocked': Man arrested at customs after friend's ashes test positive for illegal drug (CTV News)
• Police Cripple 'Chinese Connection', Seize Ketamine Worth RM1.3 Million (Bernama)
• West Haven man on PCP arrested after trying to smother baby (Fox 61)
• Man high on PCP assaults women at Glen Burnie Target, police say (WBAL)
• Prosecutor: Driver in Crash That Killed Teens Was on PCP (ABC)

Opiates/Opioids

• Afghanistan Taliban War: Opium Fuels Conflict As Farmers Pray For A Prosperous Harvest (International Business Times)
• Heroin Epidemic Increasingly Seeps Into Public View (The New York Times)
• Medication maintenance: Methadone, Suboxone can cause more problems than they solve (Hartford City News Times)
• Senate poised to pass bill to combat heroin use and prescription drug abuse (USA Today)
• Naloxone Prescribed With Every Opioid? (Medscape)
• CVS Health to offer naloxone without prescription in 23 states by month's end (Drug Store News)
• Frank Bures: Non-medical prescription opioids and heroin use (Winona Daily News)
• Opium bounces back, enriching Taliban and Afghan officials (IRIN)
• Five myths about heroin (Culpeper Star-Exponent)

Absinthe

• Of Absinthe and Garden Laws (Patheos)

Kratom

• Shelby Co. officials want stores to stop selling Kratom (WBRC)
• Five men arrested for growing 'kratom' trees in Bangkok (The Nation)
• Group working to keep Kratom legal says it's a harmless herb when used properly (WBRC)
• Kratom: Opiate Withdrawal Help or Another Barrier to Addiction Treatment? (GroundReport)
• Parents and lawmakers call for Kratom ban (ABC33/40)
• Red Vein Thai Kratom Effects and Benefits (Kratom Guides)

Kava

• Fiji kava growers forced to sell early in bulk (Radio New Zealand)
• Kava and kava drinking (Vanuatu Daily Post)
• Winston results in flood of kava onto Fiji market (Radio New Zealand)
• A tasty sip of anti-anxiety: MeloMelo Kava Bar (The Daily Californian)

Khat

• How a mild stimulant generates hundreds of millions of dollars a year (GlobalPost)
• Third arrest made at O R Tambo in suspected drug syndicate (News24)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Do Psychedelic Drug Laws Violate Human Rights? (The Atlantic)
• Iran Is About to Execute Another 100 Prisoners for Drug Offenses (VICE News)
• How 5 Common Drugs Affect Sex (ATTN:)
• Mexican Drug Lord 'El Chapo' Launches PR Blitz for Better Conditions (TIME)
• The 5 Pills You Definitely Shouldn't Mix With Alcohol (ATTN:)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics (and other psychoactives) are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 3.4.16

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Weediquette Takes Viewers Inside the World of Marijuana (Reason)
• Colorado Hospital Allows First CBD Treatment For Epileptic Infant (Reset.me)
• What stock photos say about marijuana users (420 Intel)
• Here's What We Know About Cannabis And Cancer (Reset.me)
• Cannabis has given my son a gift (Des Moines Register)
• Vermont Senate Approves Legal Pot as Governor Cheers (Reason)
• Controlled Medical Marijuana Cultivation Legalized In Australia (Reset.me)
• Can cannabis gelato change Italy's attitude to weed? (CNN)
• Denver NORML Files Marijuana Social Use Initiative For 2016 City Ballot (NORML)
• Banned by Facebook, Cannabis Companies Turn to Pot-Friendly Social Media (Fortune)
• New Zealand urged to grow cannabis for medicinal purposes (Stuff.co.nz)
• Has DARE Gone Soft on Marijuana? (Reason)
• Setting Up a Mindful Marijuana Meditation Practice at Home with Joe Mattia (Psychedelic Times)
• 'Just Add Weed': How Brand Licensing Allows Cannabis Companies to Expand Across State Lines (Leafly)
• How One Millennial Started The 'Facebook Of Cannabis' And Got Invited To Richard Branson's Island (Forbes)
• Cannabis Entrepreneur Turns Dixie Cups And Duct Tape Into Successful Pot Plant-Shipping Business (Forbes)
• Medical Cannabis measure for Pennsylvania may be on cusp (Reading Eagle)
• NSW Government claim cannabis stays in system for up to 12 hours questioned by magistrate (ABC)
• Cannabis use affects processing of emotions (Medical News Today)
• Smoking marijuana makes me a better mum' Woman reads cannabis book to toddler (Express)
• Cannabis use linked to worse treatment outcomes for psychosis patients (Medical News Today)
• Takaka woman's use of cannabis to treat MS 'topical' (Stuff.co.nz)
• Meet Your Mate in This Stoner Party Bus (Reason)
• Poll: Florida Voters Back Constitutional Amendment To Permit Medical Cannabis (NORML)
• Cannabis Use Can Elicit 'Autistic-Like' Behavior (Broadly)
• Former Gresham bank is nowheadquarters [sic] of Cannabis Nation (Portland Tribune)
• The Cannabis Taxonomy Debate: Where Do Indica and Sativa Classifications Come From? (Leafly)
• Editorial: Cannabis issue demands comprehensive approach (Des Moines Register)

LSD

• Can very small doses of LSD make you a better worker? I decided to try it. (Vox)
• That time Trey Parker and Matt Stone took acid and went to the Oscars in drag (Death and Taxes)
• The price of MK-Ultra (Beaufort Observer)
• Man who stabbed another at Nimbin hostel 'was on LSD' (Echo NetDaily)
• New charges filed in woman's death on I-39 (Pentagraph)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Can Drug Trips Be Religious? Rabbis Take 'Shrooms for Science (Live Science)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Ecstasy used to treat PTSD: MDMA could be legal before you think (7NEWS Denver)
• A Nonprofit Is Raising $400,000 for a Kilo of MDMA by Hosting "Psychedelic Dinner" Parties (Thump)
• Patients Legally Take Ecstasy While Receiving Therapy In Marin County (CBS)
• Fake electrician attempted to stash pills in electrical box ahead of music festival (The Daily Telegraph)
• California police find puzzle box filled with ecstasy pills (KTTN)
• Police officer caught taking MDMA at nightclub is dismissed (ITV)
• Spring Break Safety: Activities can Bring Danger, Increased Risk (Vinton Today)
• Alleged Athens ecstasy trafficker fighting forfeiture of $180K seized from home and bank (Athens Banner-Herald)
• 'Totem OneLove' dance party organisers endorse pill testing at their 'Stereosonic' events - where two people have died after taking lethal doses of ecstasy (Daily Mail)
• Dumbarton teenager found dead after reportedly taking ecstasy (Daily Record and Sunday Mail)
• Thousands of Ecstasy pills seized near UCR campus (Inland News Today)
• Ecstasy overdose caused death of UCLA student who went to rave at county fairgrounds (Los Angeles Times)
• Hume drug lab: Man caught making MDMA in custody after guilty plea (ABC)
• 2 charged after police seize 800 ecstasy pills during stop (Boston Herald)
• Worthing death crash driver had taken MDMA (Shoreham Herald)
• Naperville-area man accused of dealing ecstasy (Chicago Tribune)
• Man arrested on drug charges after picking up package from post office (Chicago Tribune)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Can DMT Prolong Your Life After Clinical Death? (Collective Evolution)
• What Is the Difference between 5-MeO DMT and DMT? Choosing a DMT Therapy (Psychedelic Times)
• The Therapeutic Potentials of Ayahuasca: Possible Effects against Various Diseases of Civilization (Frontiers)
• What's an Ayahuasca Experience Like? 12 Days of Healing at the Temple of the Way of Light (Psychedelic Times)
• Open a Portal into Consciousness with Psychedelic Sculptures (The Creators Project)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• Texas Matters: Understanding Peyote (Texas Public Radio)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Iboga And Kratom Help Fight Overdose And Addiction – So Shouldn't They Be Legal? (Reset.me)
• Why is the U.S. Disregarding Plants Like Iboga and Kratom in the Fight Against Overdose and Addiction? (AlterNet)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• New Jersey police captain killed in car crash had 'double the legal level of alcohol, bath salts and prescription drugs in his system' (Daily Mail)
• Minnesota man gets 9 years for selling synthetic LSD (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine could be used to sedate aggressive hospital patients (Metro)
• Is The High Cost Of Legal Ketamine Treatment Driving People To Black Markets? (Vocativ)
• Potential Risks of Poorly Managed Ketamine Use in Depression Treatment (The American Journal of Psychiatry)
• Controversial drug offers hope to patients with chronic pain, PTSD (KSAT)
• PCP-addled woman bites off beau's tongue during make out session, briefly eludes police when victim can't spit out her name (New York Daily News)
• Depressed? Your doctor might soon prescribe ketamine (The Guardian)
• Not just a party drug: no ketamine means no surgery in some developing countries (The Guardian)
• 'Major' Hartford Supplier Found With Liter Of Liquid PCP, Police Say (Hartford Courant)
• CRPS Physician Says Take Control of Your Treatment (National Pain Report)
• Man sentenced to prison in drug case (The News-Gazette)

Opiates/Opioids

• Virtual Reality 'Heroin Cave' Could Help Smack Addicts Kick Habit (NBC)
• Boston's Heroin Users Will Soon Get A Safer Place To Be High (NPR)
• Can Naloxone work for potent W-18? (Hanna Herald)
• More than 30 pounds of opium found in luggage at O'Hare (WLS-TV)
• Police destroy opium, but only during the harvest (The Kathmandu Post)
• The surprising path from student athlete to heroin addict (CBS News)
• Two US employees killed in Pakistan drug-busting operation (The Guardian)
• Grassroots activists in Myanmar on march to destroy poppies (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
• Schemer's Office Speaks on Naloxone Bill (WICZ)
• From painkillers to heroin, progression of opioid abuse follows deadly track (Omaha World-Herald)

Kratom

• Some Say Kratom Is A Solution To Opioid Addiction. Not If Drug Warriors Ban It First. (The Huffington Post)
• Kratom Abuse and Treatment and Withdrawal (American Addiction Centers)
• Is Kratom the New Bath Salts? (The Daily Beast)
• Legislature getting fired up over Kratom debate (WIAT)
• Report shows potential harm of kratom (Herald Times Reporter)
• Senate bill would ban sale of kratom herb to those under 18 (Foster's Daily Democrat)
• Drug law will have predictable consequences (The Decatur Daily)
• Kratom: A dangerous drug or a helpful pain reliever? (FOX10)
• White Vein Sumatra Kratom Effects (Kratom Guides)
• Red Dragon Kratom - Benefits and Side Effects (Kratom Guides)
• Toxicology Rounds: Opioid-Like Kratom Use Booming, Cheap, Unregulated, and Addictive (Emergency Medicine News)

Kava

• Kava and the Rise of Healthy New York (The New Yorker)
• Driving following Kava Use and Road Traffic Injuries: A Population-Based Case-Control Study in Fiji (TRIP 14) (PLOS ONE)
• Tea and Sympathy: SquareRüt spreads the gospel of kava (The Austin Chronicle)

Khat

• Woman bust at airport with 17kg of Khat (IOL)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Drug Warriors Will Pay $3.6 Million for Maiming a Toddler (Reason)
• Parents hire K9 teams to search teens' rooms (Courier-Journal)
• Mexican Drug Lord 'El Chapo' Wants to Be Extradited to the U.S., Says Lawyer (TIME)
• Why the war on drugs is unwinnable (Boing Boing)
• Latest from the V&A: Sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll to recreate the Swinging Sixties - complete with psychedelic hallucinations (Daily Mail)
• Meet The Erotic Artist Bringing Psychedelic Sex To Instagram (The Huffington Post)
• How to Run a Drug Cartel (Reason)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics (and other psychoactives) are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 2.26.16

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Eric Holder Says Marijuana 'Ought to Be Rescheduled' (Reason)
• "The Drug War Created Stronger Strains": 5 Ironic Contradictions in Cannabis (Leafly)
• Study: Long-Term Cannabis Use Associated With Improved Pain Relief, Reduced Opioid Use (NORML)
• 3 Reasons Athletes Pick Cannabis Over Alcohol (Civilized)
• Are Mexican Tourists Coming to the US to Work in Cannabis Farms? (Latin Post)
• Facebook shutting legal weed pages (Boing Boing)
• Genius Girl Scout Starts Selling Cookies Across From Marijuana Dispensary (TIME)
• Vermont Senate Votes to Approve Recreational Marijuana (TIME)
• Canadian Court Orders Gov't to Let Medical Marijuana Users Grow Their Own (Reason)
• These Investors Are Quietly Investing in Cannabis Companies (New Cannabis Ventures)
• California Town Ditches Prison Economy, Embraces Cannabis Farms (MintPress News)
• More Than Just Revenue: The Social Capital Benefits of Legal Cannabis (The Huffington Post)
• Emergency Room Visits Double for Marijuana-Using Colorado Visitors (NBC)
• Instagram's Cracking Down on Weed, But These Apps Love Pot (WIRED)
• National NORML Board Endorses AUMA Marijuana Legalization Initiative in CA (NORML)
• Australia has new medical cannabis laws, but you still can't smoke it (Mashable)
• Practicing Marijuana Law and the Racist History of the Drug War w/ Moe Spencer (Disinfo)
• Cannabis Ceviche? Edible Marijuana Goes Gourmet (Bloomberg)
• U.S. Cannabis Cup might leave Denver for southern Colorado (The Cannabist)
• Poll: 60 Percent of Likely California Voters Support Initiative Effort To Legalize Adult Marijuana Use (NORML)
• Cannabis 2.0: Are Terpenes The Secret To Customizable Highs? (International Business Times)
• Utah Senate gives tentative approval to medical marijuana bill (FOX 13)
• 10 Cannabis Strains That Won't Make You (As) Hungry (Leafly)
• Marijuana: From Societal Scourge to Small Town Salvation? (Reason)
• No Matter Your Mood, Machine Learning Can Tell You What Cannabis is for You (PSFK)
• 10 Celebs Who Share Their Names with Cannabis Strains (Leafly)
• 10 top-rated states for medical marijuana (CNBC)

LSD

• The Benefits of LSD Will Change the Way We Talk About Drugs and Being High (Inverse)
• Step Inside San Francisco's LSD Museum (Mental Floss)
• Man takes LSD, jumps through second-story window (The Norman Transcript)
• Media jumps the gun to fear monger about 'LSD overdoses' in Pennsylvania (Raw Story)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Spiritual leader? Take shrooms for science! (Boing Boing)
• Watch: 61-year-old takes magic mushrooms for the first time (Boing Boing)
• SJ man had 'shrooms at theater, cops say (Courier-Post)
• Science seeks rabbis to do 'shrooms (Start-Up Israel)
• Theft investigation leads to psychedelic mushroom operation bust (WKBT)
• Convicted killer's appeal heads to 3-justice panel (Daily Republic)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• New Study Confirms That Molly Users Don't Know What They're Taking (Reason)
• Man Says Police Mistook Aspirin for Ecstasy, Settles Lawsuit (CBS)
• B.C. man admits to flying helicopter full of ecstasy, pot across border, but says he was doing so to save his town (National Post)
• Despicable E: Authorities just seized a load of Minion-shaped ecstasy pills (Metro)
• California police intercept puzzle box filled with ecstasy pills (UPI)
• 40% of Ecstasy users are taking 'bath salts, raising the risk of drug poisoning' (Daily Mail)
• 'Blue ghost' ecstasy caused William McLaughlin's seizure and death, says coroner (Belfast Telegraph)
• Disgraced soldier who snorted cocaine in the army jailed after dealing ecstasy in nightclub (Mirror)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Is Ayahuasca Mother Nature's "Red Pill"? (Collective Evolution)
• Chelsea Handler's Ayahuasca Journey (Haystack TV)
• The mysterious power of ayahuasca (El País)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• How Justice Scalia ruled on religious freedom – and why it matters (Deseret News)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Justin Hoffman Opens Ibogaine After-Care in Nevada to Help Addicts the Holistic Way (PR Newswire)
• Iboga Experiences and the Global Ibogaine Conference: An Interview with Jonathan Dickinson (Psychedelic Times)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• Lots of people might be taking the scary synthetic drug 'bath salts' by accident (Tech Insider)
• Dateline: Synthetic Drugs Targeting Teens like Tara Fitzgerald (2paragraphs)
• Violence-inducing bath salts may be common hidden ingredient in party drug (Ars Technica)
• Mason teen sold bulk amounts of LSD, designer drugs, officials say (WLWT)

Dissociatives

• The Science of Treating Depression with Ketamine (Reality Sandwich)
• Is Ketamine a Safe and Effective Rescue Treatment for Severely Agitated ED Patients? (NEJM Journal Watch)
• CBS News Features Dr. Ashraf Hanna Discussing How IV Ketamine is Successfully Treating Lyme Disease (PR Newswire)
• Role of hippocampal p11 in the sustained antidepressant effect of ketamine in the chronic unpredictable mild stress model (Translational Psychiatry)
• Ketamine for the difficult-to-sedate ER patient (EurekAlert!)
• Hartford Couple Smokes PCP, Kisses, And Chunk Of Tongue Bitten Off (Hartford Courant)
• Judge bemoans 'terrible' PCP in sentencing Westcott man for stabbing he doesn't recall (Syracuse.com)
• 'I Don't Feel Trapped On Earth': Ketamine Lifts Many From Depths Of Major Depression (WBUR)
• Police say PCP bust in Jersey City made cops sick -- literally (NJ.com)
• Middletown Police Find PCP, Marijuana In Car With Broken Windshield (Hartford Courant)

Opiates/Opioids

• Opium-Soaked Tampons Were the Midol of Ancient Rome (Atlas Obscura)
• America's Opium War in Afghanistan (Counter Currents)
• Mayor wants space where addicts can inject heroin safely (WLS-TV)
• U.S. Governors Act to Tackle Heroin Epidemic (TIME)
• Kroger makes overdose drug available at its pharmacies (The News Record)
• Naloxone, remedy for heroin overdose, closer to being sold over the counter at Walgreens (ABC 7)
• Myanmar Activists Say Destruction of Opium Fields Blocked (Voice of America)
• Australian opium companies to capitalise on billions of people with little or no access to pain relief (ABC)

Kratom

• Bill That Would Ban Kratom, Synthetic Opioids Clears Kentucky Senate (WKMS)
• Users Positive Experience and Thoughts (Kratom Guides)
• Controversial drug Kratom legally sold in Pennsylvania (WPXI)
• Poorly Regulated 'Herbal Supplements' Could Be Your Worst Nightmare (Forbes)
• White Vein Borneo Kratom (Kratom Guides)

Kava

• Chill Out at House of Kava, Bushwick's New Kava Bar (Bushwick Daily)
• Kava Peace (Salt Lake City Weekly)

Khat

• Tanzania: Over 836 Farmers Remove Khat From Their Farms (AllAfrica)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• 'Narconomics': How The Drug Cartels Operate Like Wal-Mart And McDonald's (NPR)
• Artist Creates Psychedelic Illustrations While On 20 Different Drugs (Elite Daily)
• Lift the Ban! Kofi Annan on Why It's Time To Legalize Drugs (Spiegel Online)
• Why More Young Professionals Are Turning to Psychedelic Microdosing (Psychedelic Times)
• Anxiety Drug Overdoses in U.S. Hit Record Levels (TIME)
• The drug war in popular fictional entertainment (Drug WarRant)
• The Search for the Elusive Soma: Nectar of the Gods, Fountain of Youth (Reality Sandwich)
• What Is Plant Medicine Healing? Finding the Roots of Psychedelic Therapy (Psychedelic Times)
• A vice president at JP Morgan introduced Timothy Leary to psychedelics (Tech Insider)
• Long Beach Author Investigates Psychedelics and Aldous Huxley in New Book ALDOUS HUXLEY'S HANDS (Long Beach Post)
• The Media Narrative Around Drug Use Is Shifting, But the Harsh Policies for Drug Crimes Are Not (Reason)
• Artist's Interpretations of Various Substances Will Put You Off Drugs For Life (THUMP)
• Scalia on Drugs (Reason)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics (and other psychoactives) are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 2.19.16

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Could Cannabis Help Stem the Heroin Overdose Crisis? (TakePart)
• The Science Is Clear: Marijuana Is Not A Gateway Drug (Reset.me)
• Bill Maher Smokes a Joint to Prove a Point About Marijuana Legalization (ATTN:)
• Legal Marijuana Sales Totaled $1 Billion in Colorado Last Year (Reason)
• California Nuns Illegally Grow Medical Cannabis, Sell It Online (Inquisitr)
• Meet the Marijuana Industry's Newest Customers: Dogs (Reason)
• Cannabis does not cause anxiety and depression, study finds (The Telegraph)
• Why Is Facebook Taking Down Marijuana Dispensary Pages? (TIME)
• Terminal brain cancer patient says cannabis oil saved his life (Sun Times National)
• Using Cannabis to Treat Depression (Leafly)
• Study: No Increase In Prevalence Of Cannabis Use Disorders (NORML)
• Where do Ireland's political parties stand on decriminalising cannabis? (The Journal)
• Albuquerque baby makes history with cannabis oil at Colorado hospital (KRQE)
• Using Cannabis For Sexual Health (Reset.me)
• Government's Cannabis ATM (SF Weekly)
• Will there be a 2016 Colorado Cannabis Cup? Permit denied (The Cannabist)
• Happy Presidents Day! The Founding Fathers and Cannabis (Leafly)
• Leafly Evolves Beyond Cannabis Strain Reviews (New Cannabis Ventures)
• 'Cannabis clubs' may be opening in four Swiss cities (The Independent)
• Step by Step, Pot-Legalizing States Free Their Marijuana Markets (Reason)
• Leafly Science Roundup: Can Cannabis Improve Your Workout? (Leafly)
• Ex-coach Ron McBride voices support for medical cannabis (KSL)
• Barcelona's Pot Boom and Bust (Reason)
• Adams County denies permit to 2016 Cannabis Cup at Denver Mart (The Denver Post)
• Beginner's Guide to Cannabis Breeding, Genetics, and Strain Variability (Leafly)
• Complex California Pot Act Created Unseen Problem (Reason)
• Snoop Dogg Invests In Canadian Cannabis With Smiths Falls Marijuana Deal (Inquisitr)
• The gene that puts cannabis users at risk of psychosis: Scientists discover why some smokers are more prone to mental illness (Daily Mail)

LSD

• Inside the LSD Museum That the DEA Somehow Hasn't Torn to the Ground (WIRED)
• The Strange Way LSD Both Mimics Psychosis And Improves Mental Health (The Huffington Post)
• LSD research making a comeback says U of S historian (CBC News)
• Study: LSD could lead to long-term psychological well-being (Palm Beach Post)
• Always Wanted to Do LSD With Philip K. Dick? You'll Love Playing Californium (WIRED)
• LSD research rebounding during 'psychedelic renaissance' (Saskatoon StarPhoenix)
• Society may have changed enough to warrant a retrial of LSD: expert (Global News)
• 2 students charged after 3 LSD overdoses at Villanova University (6abc)
• Williams Sentenced to Probation for LSD Possession (KOWB)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Magic Mushrooms in North America: Before the Wassons (Reality Sandwich)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Could MDMA Save Your Relationship? (Complex)
• Want to Legalize Medical MDMA? Attend a 'Psychedelic Dinner' (US News)
• Government urged to consider pill testing as number of ecstasy users appearing at NSW hospitals doubles (ABC)
• MDMA: Using Safely (The Bottom Line)
• 'Deplorable' Kids Company psychologist is banned from practising for 12 months after taking MDMA with a vulnerable client in a nightclub toilet (Daily Mail)
• MDMA, Purest Form Of Ecstasy, Often Contaminated With 'Bath Salts' (Medical Daily)
• Death At HARD Summer Ruled Ecstasy "Intoxication" By Coroner (Your EDM)
• Florida man says he was jailed after police mistook aspiring for Ecstasy (WFTV)
• Teen Raver Died From Ecstasy Intoxication, Coroner Says (L.A. Weekly)
• Delivery results in felony charges for Oglesby man (LaSalle News Tribune)
• Teen accused of distributing ecstasy in Canberra faces court (ABC)
• A man and woman arrested for possession of Ecstasy: Parma Heights Police Blotter (Cleveland.com)
• Valdosta man arrested on MDMA, cocaine charges (Valdosta Today)
• Eugene man, allegedly high on ecstasy, arrested on felony assault charge (The Register-Guard)
• Teen rushed to hospital after taking ecstasy tablet at Coatbridge fast-food restaurant (Scottish Daily Record)
• Couple celebrated birth of child by taking Ecstasy and pot: West York police (PennLive)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• DMT Cook Burned & Busted (Crime Voice)
• Services Are Now in Session for Church Offering Hallucinogens (The Chronicle)
• Aidan Reid: How a Peru drug experience made me quit a life of partying (Belfast Telegraph)
• Police stumble upon suspected drug lab (The Davis Enterprise)
• De La Vina Resident Burned in Drug Lab Fire (Santa Barbara Independent)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• National Council Does Not Condone Faux Native American Churches or Marijuana Use (Indian Country Today Media Network)
• First Amendment: Justice Scalia's disastrous decision on religious freedom (Janesville Gazette)
• Scalia And Lewin: From Harvard To The High Court (The Jewish Week)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• What's the Difference between Iboga and Ibogaine? Identifying the Right Treatment for You (Psychedelic Times)
• Psychedelic Research with Ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT: An Interview with Dr. Joseph Barsuglia (Psychedelic Times)
• Sunshine Coast alternative therapist calls on Government to research iboga plant to treat drug addiction (ABC)
• My First Iboga Experience: An Interview with Dr. Joseph Barsuglia (Psychedelic Times)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• NYU Research: Hair Sampling Shows Unintended "Bath Salt" Use (New York University)
• Soldier dismissed from army for supplying N-bomb (Stuff.co.nz)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine treatments working wonders on local girl (WOAI)
• Drug holds promise to fight acute depression (Palm Beach Daily News)
• Parklife Festival drug dealer told he could have killed someone with ketamine horse tranquiliser (Liverpool Echo)
• Man dies after falling from fifth-floor flat window while trying to perform a PULL-UP (Mirror)
• Inquest heard in ketamine addiction case (Barnsley Chronicle)
• Woman groped, suspect later found on PCP | POLICE BLOTTER (Renton Reporter)
• Police: PCP arrest made during traffic stop in Md. (WJLA)
• NJ man arrested for possession of PCP (Mid-Hudson News)
• Youth faces court over ketamine haul (The Standard)

Opiates/Opioids

• Kroger to make naloxone available over the counter (Sandusky Register)
• How snail venom may help end the heroin crisis (KING5)
• Penetrating Every Stage of Afghan Opium Chain, Taliban Become a Cartel (The New York Times)
• Cruz, Trump want to secure the border to keep out heroin. But will it work? (The Washington Post)
• China busts 35 restaurants using opium poppies as seasoning (WFXT)
• Walgreens to sell Naloxone without a Prescription (MyTechBits)
• Heroin-Addicted Identical Twins Reveal Shocking Ways They Say The Get Money For Drugs (The Huffington Post)
• Tasked With Combating Opium, Afghan Officials Profit From It (The New York Times)
• Overdose prevention pills don't cure opioid problem (Business Insurance)
• Poppy farmer thought it was a herb (Bangalore Mirror)
• 'Tea lady' inspires people to give up opium cultivation in Arunachal (The Statesman)
• Myanmar, a country rich in jade and gems, and OPIUM (The Northeast Today)
• Opium smugglers evade capture in Jordan (Al Bawaba)
• Myanmar Activists Say Destruction of Opium Fields Blocked (ABC)
• Broadway man charged with trafficking opium (The Sanford Herald)
• Opium Prohibition in Afghanistan (Cato Institute)

Absinthe

• Man wakes up after a night of drinking of absinthe in Magaluf and discovers a tattoo of a huge penis inked on his leg (Daily Mail)

Kratom

• Oxford police say selling Kratom is now illegal in city (Alabama's News Leader)
• Grateful Toad fined $12000 (Plattsburgh Press Republican)
• Herb Linked to Multiple Ark. Deaths (ArkansasMatters)
• Investigators seize illegal drug from 3 local businesses (4029tv)
• Oxford police warn against sale of new synthetic drug Kratom (The Anniston Star)

Kava

• New kava legal challenge in Germany over drugs institute ruling (Asia Pacific Report)
• New Kava Challenge (Vanuatu Daily Post)
• Two New Kava Bars Chill out the Bay Area With a Calming, Natural Concoction (7x7)
• One year mellow at Berkeley's MeloMelo Kava Bar (Berkeleyside)
• Divisadero's Long-Awaited Kava Lounge Softly Opens This Thursday (Hoodline)

Khat

• Madagascar flirts with food crisis as Khat fields replace staple crops (AfricaNews)
• Of Juja's JKUAT students and miraa chewing (Hivisasa)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• New Report Finds Drugs Bought On the Dark Net Have Higher Levels of Purity (Thump)
• Is Meth as Safe to Consume as Adderall? (ATTN:)
• Here are 10 fascinating drugs that our ancient ancestors used to get high (Raw Story)
• WATCH: Lana Del Rey Gets High on Psychedelics in New 11-Minute Video for 'Freak' (First to Know)
• Combat PTSD with psychedelic drugs? The VA or nonprofit organizations must fund more research now (New York Daily News)
• Why deaths won't stop the party: Drug test kits gain popularity as festival overdoses soar (Geelong Advertiser)
• Scalia's Mixed Drug War Record (Forbes)
• North Carolina's Welfare Drug Testing Program Is a Complete Failure (ATTN:)
• COLUMN: Psychedelic drug safety (Indiana Daily Student)
• Don't Punish All Drug Offenders for the Crimes of One (Reason)
• Pope Francis: Mexico Must Confront Drug Trade, Corruption (TIME)
• Effort made at CU-Boulder to ensure safe recreational drug use (Boulder Daily Camera)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics (and other psychoactives) are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 2.12.16

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Which Presidential Candidates Would Tolerate Legal Pot? (Reason)
• Facebook Is Waging a War on Weed (ATTN:)
• Australia Is Pushing to Legalize Marijuana Growth for Medical Research (TIME)
• Beyond THC And CBD: The Health Benefits Of Terpenes (Reset.me)
• 'Largest ever' Coventry cannabis factory found (BBC)
• Review: Cannabinoids Reasonable Option For Chronic Pain Treatment (NORML)
• Cannabis Science 101: The Complex Chemistry of the Bong (Leafly)
• Judge Who Sentenced Small-Time Pot Dealer to 55 Years Again Urges Clemency (Reason)
• Viral Hit: Gwenevere Tries Cannabis Oil (Leafly)
• Cannabis clubs provide a valuable service (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)
• Why And How I Gave Up Everyday Painkillers In Favor Of Medical Marijuana (Reset.me)
• Iowa House Republican introduces medical cannabis bill (Quad-City Times)
• Cannabis Business Expo coming to Tacoma Dome (The Olympian)
• Tim Farron calls for legalisation of cannabis for recreational use (The Guardian)
• Your Cannabis-Friendly Valentine's Day Gift Guide (Leafly)
• Legalizing Marijuana and Your 4th Amendment Protections (NORML)
• Parliament should allow doctors to prescribe cannabis (The Independent)
• Cannabis Company Med-X to Sell Shares Under Reg A+ on StartEngine (Crowdfund Insider)
• Marijuana, Cannabis, Ganja, Weed, Grass, Pot, Reefer, or Maryjane: What's In a Name? (NORML)
• Marley Natural: Inside Reggae Dynasty's Cannabis Launch (Rolling Stone)
• Innovative Cannabis Compliance Solution Gains Traction (New Cannabis Ventures)
• Australia to legalise medical cannabis cultivation if law gets greenlight (Mashable)
• Marley Natural Debuts New Line of Cannabis Products (Leafly)
• Australia set to legalize cultivation of medical cannabis (FOX News)
• How can you tell if a cannabis farm is being grown on your street (Liverpool Echo)

LSD

• When 12 Step Programs Don't Work: AA Founder Bill W. on How LSD Can Help (Psychedelic Times)
• Taking LSD leads to 'improved psychological wellbeing' - study (The Telegraph)
• Feed your head: Lockheed's unintentionally hilarious anti-drug "case study" films from the late 60s (Nightflight)
• Dave Stewart: LSD, Annie Lennox, and Me (The Daily Beast)
• Taking LSD is actually good for your 'mental wellbeing', scientists say (Metro)
• Should Lana Del Rey Worry About Acid Flashbacks? Scientists Aren't Sure (Inverse)
• The paradox of LSD: makes you psychotic in short-term, happier and more creative long term (ZME Science)
• LSD 'stamps' a big market among city party-goers: Police (The Indian Express)
• Police: Teen using LSD tried to break into Granger Township home (The Medina-Gazette)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Magic mushrooms and LSD may prevent domestic violence by providing 'spiritual experiences' (International Business Times)
• How I Learned To Embrace Infinite Love With Psilocybin Mushrooms (Reset.me)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• A History Lesson on MDMA & Ecstasy with a Short Video (Magnetic Magazine)
• DanceSafe Founder Educates Students on MDMA (Daily Nexus)
• Former ecstasy king-pin explains how the war on drugs, and the American Justice System is failing (Disinfo)
• Police: $100K in MDMA seized in Paterson drug raid (NorthJersey.com)
• Tyga Wants to Make Blac Chyna Suffer After Ecstasy Arrest (BET)
• No permanent ban for Kids Company worker who gave MDMA to client (The Guardian)
• Grandma Caught With 1,500 Ecstasy Tablets, Crystal Meth at Kualanamu Airport (Jakarta Globe)
• Over €8,000 worth of MDMA seized ahead of college students' Rag Week (Irish Independent)
• Teenage cadet's drug arrest as nine youngsters taken to hospital from camp after taking 'ecstasy' (Mirror)
• Businessman gets weekends in jail for trafficking in ecstasy (The Hamilton Spectator)
• Canberra man Rory Coghlan denied bail after allegedly selling MDMA to undercover police officer (ABC)
• Teenager left brain damaged after taking ecstasy celebrates 17th birthday as she continues to recover (Mirror)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• What Does DMT Feel Like? Putting Words to a DMT Experience (Psychedelic Times)
• Church Seeks to Offer 'Vision Quests' Near Elbe (The Chronicle)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• Native American church, known for using peyote and marijuana, to open branches in former O.C. pot shops (The Orange County Register)
• Native American church fight for right to use cannabis & peyote (RT)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• The Evidence for Ibogaine: What New Studies Tell Us About Ibogaine for Addiction Treatment (Psychedelic Times)
• Ibogaine Treatment Expanded in Brazil: Will the U.S. Take Note? (Drug Policy Alliance)

Dissociatives

• Manic depressives could be treated with KETAMINE say medical experts (Mirror)
• Ketamine To Treat Depression in Patients Resistant To Other Drugs, Biggest Mental Health Breakthrough In 50 Years (Inquisitr)
• The Science Of Treating Depression With Ketamine (Psychedelic Press UK)
• Northern California Clinics Now Serving Ketamine (Special K) to Treat Severe Depression (7x7)
• Restricting Ketamine Would Have 'Dire Consequences' for Surgery in Low-Resource Countries, Anesthesiologists Warn (Newswise)
• British vets relieved as ketamine ruled 'not a global health threat' (Horse & Hound)
• Ketamine found after traffic stop, Bennington police say (WPTZ)
• Northampton moter jailed for slamming kids heads into floor while high on PCP (MassLive)
• Man says he stabbed two men, almost killing them, because of PCP (WJLA)
• Man arrested for causing fatal New Haven crash while driving on PCP (FOX)

Opiates/Opioids

• Super Bowl Ad Exemplifies How Bad The U.S. Opioid Epidemic Has Become (ATTN:)
• Big Pharma Is Partly to Blame for America's Opioid Epidemic (TIME)
• FBI, DEA release graphic video about horrors of heroin use (WTOP)
• Addicted to Heroin? Trump Says Blame the Mexicans (The Daily Beast)
• Cruz, Like Trump, Plans to Stop Heroin With a Wall (Reason)
• Walgreens to sell heroin OD antidote naloxone without prescription (Daily Herald)
• Rapper DMX revived by Narcan – the opioid antidote that stops an overdose in its tracks (Yahoo! News)
• Lawmakers try to outdo each other on heroin epidemic (USA Today)
• Drug overdose deaths could be curbed by naloxone kits, says advocate (CBC News)
• Villagers sow the Mexican opium poppies that feed the US heroin boom (The Tico Times)
• Opium growers find salvation in coffee (Bangkok Post)
• Heroin 'apocalypse' shadows New Hampshire primary (USA Today)
• Is naloxone safe to use? (WKBN)
• Saudi executes Egyptian for drug trafficking (The Express Tribune)
• Villagers sow Mexico's booming opium poppies (Digital Journal)
• The Most Striking Super Bowl Commercial Goes To Heroin (Cinema Blend)
• Police destroy opium crop in Jharkhand (Business Standard)

Absinthe

• Absinthe 101: separating fact from fiction (Stuff.co.nz)
• Queenstown stag party and a bottle of absinthe prove bad combination for Christchurch man (Stuff.co.nz)

Kratom

• SacredKratom Launches New Botanical Store - SacredKratom.com (Press Release Rocket)
• Recovering addicts, local officials warn that kratom is dangerous and addictive (News Net 5)
• Oxford police warn about synthetic drug kratom (WBRC)
• South Florida lawmaker wants to ban herbal supplement kratom (Local 10)
• 9 investigates Kratom: Natural herb or deadly drug? (WSOC)

Kava

• Kava treated as an economic commodity (Fiji Broadcasting Corporation)
• Kava Bill to support industry (Fiji Broadcasting Corporation)

Khat

• Kenya: Doctors Link Throat Cancer Cases to Miraa Chewing in Meru (AllAfrica)
• Worcester 'khat' cops found guilty (IOL)
• Police on UK national dealing in Khat (South African Government)
• Briton caught with khat due in court (IOL)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Hallucinogen Use Could Protect Against Intimate Partner Violence (Newswise)
• Do Psychedelics Offer a Path To The "God Within"? (Religion Dispatches)
• Watch How underground therapists are using psychedelics to heal trauma (XFINITY TV)
• President's drug control budget is a first, but still a whole lot of wasted money (Drug WarRant)
• Vice Secretly Did Pill Testing At An Aussie Music Festival (Tone Deaf)
• Tennessee's Welfare Drug Testing Program Was a Complete Failure (ATTN:)
• Trump: 'Every Single' Person Obama Released Will Sell Drugs Again (TIME)
• Pre-Orders Are Now Available for a New Book on Yoga, Psychedelics & Enlightenment (EIN News)
• Pope Francis's Visit to Mexico Highlights the Church's Drug War Woes (TIME)
• Why some therapists are risking arrest to heal trauma using psychedelics (Al Jazeera)
• Could LSD, magic mushrooms curb domestic violence? Research finds 'calming' effect (Global News)
• Can A Drug Help Reduce Domestic Violence? (NDTV)
• Hallucinogens may protect against domestic violence: study (Daily News & Analysis)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics (and other psychoactives) are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.