This Week in Psychedelics - 10.20.17

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Study: Colorado's Adult Use Cannabis Access Law Associated With Reductions In Opioid Deaths (NORML)
• Colorado Made $1 Billion in Legal Marijuana Sales (ATTN:)
• After the smoke clears: What's next for Northern California's cannabis industry? (The Cannabist)
• ACLU Pennsylvania: Blacks Eight Times More Likely Than Whites To Be Arrested For Marijuana Possession (NORML)
• The Rise of 'Canna-Vlogging': What to Expect When Creating Cannabis Video Social Media (Leafly)
• Is Weed Legalization the Gateway Drug to Psychedelic Legalization? (Disinfo)
• Another country is getting ready to vote on legalizing cannabis (CNBC)
• Denver's Public Libraries Expand Cannabis Collections (High Times)
• A healing drug: Former NFL players advocate the use of cannabis (AZCentral)
• Michigan Update: Mad Dash for Licenses, NMU Launches Cannabis Program (Leafly)
• Weed Edibles and Cannabis Chefs Popping Up At Food Festivals (High Times)
• Medical Marijuana Can Help Pets (ATTN:)
• Ellementa Founders Educate Women About Cannabis But Face Funding Stigmas (Forbes)
• A Guide to Federal Drug Rescheduling (And What It Means for Cannabis) (Leafly)
• Marijuana industry gets back to business of cannabis (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)
• 4 Best Practices When Designing Your Cannabis Business Website (Leafly)
• Meet the 24-year-old founder behind the career site for cannabis jobs (CNBC)
• The Home Grower's Guide to Simple Cannabis Breeding (Leafly)
• Feds Admit Their Prosecution of Medical Marijuana Users in Washington Was Illegal (Reason)
• What Makes a Medical Cannabis Program Succeed? (Leafly)
• A Michigan University Is Offering the First-Ever Degree in Marijuana Studies (TIME)
• Melissa Etheridge's Cannabis Mugshot Is Amazing (Leafly)
• Watch: Cannabis activists seek end to 'current wild west system' (Times of Malta)
• In California, Feinstein Challenger De León Seen as a Cannabis Progressive (Leafly)
• Cannabis Crunch – Weed May Fight Liver Disease, Burning Marijuana Farms and 12-Year-Old Justice Reformers (Psychedelic Times)
• How to Support Your Cannabis Garden with Trellising (Leafly)
• 'Never Share a Joint With a Stranger. Especially Bill Maher': This Week in Cannabis Quotes (Leafly)

LSD

• Here's What It's Like Taking LSD And Magic Mushrooms (BuzzFeed)
• Alicudi, Italy's LSD island (CNN)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Magic mushrooms might help depression by resetting the brain (The Verge)
• One Stoner Politician's Lonely Quest to Legalize Shrooms (VICE)
• The spore you know: As research into psilocybin's heath benefits grow, Californians face slim chance to legalize magic mushrooms (Sacramento News & Review)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• How MDMA Went From Club Drug to 'Breakthrough Therapy' (The Wall Street Journal)
• FDA Action On MDMA Gives New Hope To Researchers And Victims Of PTSD (Mint Press News)
• Ecstasy-related deaths are at a record high - but what can be done about it? (Mixmag)
• Calum Gill death: Student died after taking MDMA (BBC)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• Potent drug disguised as ecstasy causes mass overdose in Newcastle (Lakes Mail)
• WARNING: 'Blue Superman' pills responsible for a mass overdose are not ecstasy! (Rave Jungle)
• Boy aged 15 was in life-threatening condition after taking what he thought was MDMA from drug dealer Joseph Pearce (Cornwall Live)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine: The Future of PTSD Treatment? (Texas Standard)
• Ketamine Not Associated With PTSD Development in Military Trauma Setting (Psychiatry Advisor)
• PC: Suspect high on PCP when he shot at ISP trooper, K-9 Apache (WRTV)

Opiates/Opioids

• 14-Year Trend of Rising Opioid Deaths Reversed in Colorado After Marijuana Legalization (Reason)
• People Are Dying Because of Ignorance, not Because of Opioids (Scientific American)
• President Trump Is 'Looking Into' Report That His Drug Czar Pick Made the Opioid Crisis Worse (TIME)
• Naloxone giveaway participants help researchers gather lifesaving data (WTHR)
• The Pros and Cons of a Heroin Shortage (Reason)
• What is Opioid Use Disorder? (Pain News Network)
• The Terrifying New Trend in Heroin Addiction (VICE)
• Opioid Addiction Is a Mental Health Crisis, Not A Crime Wave (NBC)
• PBS Explores The Science of Opioid Addiction (The Fix)
• The Justice Department Is Now Going After Chinese Fentanyl Manufacturers (Reason)
• Why do we keep prescribing heroin to patients? (Medical Economics)
• With rules established, pharmacists can begin prescribing drug that can reverse opiate overdoses (Citizen Tribune)

Absinthe

• Absinthia Brings Organic Absinthe to Oakland (East Bay Express)

Kratom

• DEA Petitioned With Open-Records Request To Provide Details Of Ongoing "Shadow Campaign" Against The Botanical Kratom (PR Newswire)
• The Top 15 Health Benefits Of Kratom (Kratom Guides)
• Does Boiling Kratom Destroy The Alkaloids? (Kratom Guides)
• Natural kratom gains attention as a possible solution to opioid addiction, with science explaining how (The Georgia Straight)
• What Are Liquid Kratom Extracts? Benefits, Side-Effects, And Dosage (Kratom Guides)
• Opioid-mimicking substance becomes popular in Chattanooga area (WTVC)
• How To Get Most Out Of The Kratom Capsules? (Kratom Guides)

Kava

• Kava bar helps relax the stressed (Orlando Sentinel)
• Huge demands depleting Vanuatu kava, beef (One Papua New Guinea)

Khat

• Somalia's Bakool bans miraa consumption (The Standard)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Want To Stop Climate Change? Science Suggests Psychedelics Will Help You Love Nature (Psychedelic Times)
• Psychedelic Compound Yields Therapeutic Effects on Miniature Human Brains (Seeker)
• Study Suggests Psychedelic Drugs Could Reduce Criminal Behavior (Newswise)
• E-cigs are being adapted to smoke heroin, crack cocaine and ecstasy to make detection harder (The Sun)
• The Importance of Using Reagent Test Kits (Psychedelic Times)
• Mainstreaming Psychedelics: Secularizing spirituality with the aid of Eastern religion (Rick Strassman MD)
• Can Underground Psychedelic Therapy Ever Go Mainstream? (Pacific Standard)
• President Trump Says Rep. Tom Marino Is Withdrawing His Name for Drug Czar (TIME)
• Breaking Boundaries in Berlin: Altered Conference 2017 Set to Revamp Drug Use (TalkingDrugs)
• Indonesia's Drug Czar is Threatening a Duterte-Style War on Drug Dealers (TIME) 
• Researchers Think Psychedelic Drugs Might Do More Than Get You High (Newsy)
• Kiwi MDMA, LSD users being conned (Newshub)

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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 10.13.17

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• DEA Report: Marijuana Seizures Increased By 20 Percent In 2016 (NORML)
• VA Secretary Shulkin Still Hasn't Responded to The American Legion's Call for Marijuana Research (NORML)
• Al Sharpton defends pot at cannabis business expo (Wicked Local Framingham)
• Data Dive: Alaska Cannabis Sales Continue to Rise (Leafly)
• Is CBD Similar To Kratom And Opiates? (Kratom Guides)
• Cannabis intoxication may be stopped with anti-obesity drug (Medical News Today)
• Meet the People Who Sent Cannabis Into Space (Leafly)
• Eric Holder: Attorney General Sessions "Almost Obsessed With Marijuana" (NORML)
• Cannabis in a Distinct Society: Quebec's Idiosyncratic Grapple With Legalization (Leafly)
• Greg Barns: South Australia should become the first state in Australia to legalise recreational cannabis (The Advertiser)
• MPs join medical marijuana protest outside Parliament, with activists smoking joints and demanding legalisation (The Independent)
• Canadian Firm Invests in Massive Australian Cannabis Venture (Leafly)
• NORML Founder Keith Stroup to Speak at First Annual Cannabis Fund Gala & Awards (NORML)
• How Spain Influenced the America's With Cannabis (WeedReader)
• Testimony Submitted By MassCann/NORML In Massachusetts To Cannabis Control Commission (NORML)
• 'Worst year on record' for cannabis harvests amid widespread California wildfires (SFGate)
• Can You Get Evicted for Legally Using Cannabis? (Leafly)
• With cannabis legalization around the corner, Los Angeles contemplates another dumb move (Los Angeles Times)
• Canada's Largest Cannabis Producer Is Doubling in Size (Leafly)
• Los Angeles County Issues Its First Cannabis License (Forbes)
• Cannabis consumption increases violent behavior in young people in psychiatric care (Science Daily)
• Successful People That Smoke Marijuana (ATTN:)
• Group rallies for legalization of medical cannabis (Terre Haute Tribune Star)
• Personality Quiz: How Open Are Cannabis Consumers? (Leafly)
• Bob Dunning: No Cannabis Outlet Store? The killjoys... (The Davis Enterprise)
• Cannabis Crunch – Gorilla Glue Sues, MMJ Pitfalls In NY, and FDA Looking Into Cannabis Claims (Psychedelic Times)
• Legal pot opponents urge Cannabis Commission to 'protect the people' (Wicked Local Maynard)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Psilocybin-occasioned mystical-type experience in combination with meditation and other spiritual practices produces enduring positive changes in psychological functioning and in trait measures of prosocial attitudes and behaviors (Journal of Psychopharmacology)

LSD

• LSD's Health Benefits Convince Norway to Relax Punishment For Possession (Tonic)
• Only A Handful Of People In History Have Ever Overdosed On LSD. This Is What Happened To Them (IFLScience)
• Watch: Mormon Missionaries Try LSD For The First Time (High Times)
• Disneyland on LSD With A Giant Dog (The Austin Chronicle)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• FDA Approves Trials on Ecstasy and PTSD (Medical News Bulletin)
• Comedian Simon Amstell calls for ecstasy to be legalised (Buzz.ie)
• Dog-walker discovers €100,000 worth of ecstasy and MDMA (The Irish Times)
• 'Beautiful' Amy Vigus from Colchester died after taking MDMA at music festival, inquest hears (East Anglian Daily Times)
• Bitter pill to swallow as 11 party goers overdose in Newcastle (Newcastle Herald)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• 50 Years Ago: Debate over peyote in passage of bill of rights (Navajo Times)

Dissociatives

• If You Thought Ketamine Was Only About Rave Parties, Think Again (The Quint)
• One Doctor's Ketamine Concern (Medscape)
• Pharmacies selling ketamine get warning (The Times of India)
• PD: Man naked, high on PCP fatally shot in Bridgeport (WTNH)

Opiates/Opioids

• Pennsylvania man's drug rehab center was really a hub for heroin and fentanyl, feds say (The Washington Post)
• How a generation of young athletes became addicted to heroin (New York Post)
• Pennsylvania offering $5 million in naloxone kits to first responders (Philly Voice)
• Bad Opioid Policy Is Killing So Many People That New Hampshire's Medical Examiner Is Quitting His Job (Reason)
• Experts say Naloxone without prescription is helping save lives (WKRN)
• 14 People Overdose on Fentanyl-Laced Heroin in Camden in Four Hours: Officials (NBC 10 Philadelphia)
• Intranasal naloxone and related strategies for opioid overdose intervention by nonmedical personnel: a review (Dove Medical Press)

Kratom

• What Is A Good Kratom Dose For Energy And Positive Mood? (Kratom Guides)
• Analysis: Reports Of New York And Florida "Kratom Deaths" Are Unsupported By Facts (PR Newswire)
• What Is Kratom? Is It Bad For Your Health? (Kratom Guides)
• Kratom Non-Profit Seeks Missing Financial Records (Pain News Network)
• Kratom controversy (Adirondack Daily Enterprise)

Kava

• Will Kava Make You Fail A Drug Test? (Kratom Guides)
• Wisdom in a Cup of Fijian Kava (Hawai'i Public Radio)

Khat

• Khat Intertwined Liver Damage (Journal of Infectious Diseases and Therapy)
• Kenya: Judge Stops Release of Miraa Billion, Execution of Report (AllAfrica)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Scientists Grow Human Mini-Brains in Lab Then Dose Them With Psychedelic Drugs (Newsweek)
• Psychedelic Drug Doses: From Mega to Micro (Rick Strassman MD)
• The psychedelic renaissance is here. Will it last this time? (Massive)
• Researching psychedelics (Dakota Student)
• Club drugs are getting more powerful - so do police and the industry need to do more to prevent deaths? (Manchester Evening News)
• Getting high to get happy? (Independent Online)
• Woman jumps into fire after taking hallucinogenic drugs at music festival (Townsville Bulletin)

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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 10.6.17

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• Marijuana Prohibition Turns 80 (NORML)
• Pot, Paranoia, and Buddhist Wisdom: A Conversation with Stephen Gray (Psychedelic Times)
• Atlanta Decriminalizes Possession of Small Amounts of Marijuana (Reason)
• Tom Petty, Musician, Cannabis Advocate and Humanitarian, Dies at 66 (High Times)
• Holy Smokes: Cannabis as a Catalyst for Spiritual Growth (High Times)
• 'Dabbing' cannabis may release cancerous toxins (Medical News Today)
• How a Blue Butterfly Stamp Brought Down One of the Dark Web's Biggest Marijuana Vendors (Reason)
• Study Finds Top 5 Causes of Cannabis-Related Emergency Visits (Leafly)
• Cannabis Industry Struggles With Hiring People With Past Pot Convictions (Forbes)
• Watch This: The 'Sinister' Reason Cannabis Is Illegal (Leafly)
• Canadian Cannabis Confabs in Countdown to Legalization (High Times)
• Investing in Cannabis? Consider Going Global With Canadian Companies (Leafly)
• Voters decisively reject cannabis industry bans in local Alaska elections (Alaska Dispatch News)
• Will 'Microbusiness' Licenses Let Craft Cannabis Flourish in California? (Leafly)
• Celebrity Cannabis (SF Weekly)
• A Pro Chef Envisions the Future of Brick and Mortar Cannabis Restaurants (Leafly)
• BREAKING: Malta's First Official Cannabis Legalisation Movement Takes Root (Lovin Malta)
• Cannabis oil relieves chronic seizures suffered by six-year-old niece of Aston Villa star Gabby Agbonlahor (The Independent)
• Iowa Man Faces Deportation for a Single Gram of Cannabis (Leafly)
• NORML Weighs In For Personal Cultivation Rights In Washington State (NORML)
• What Is a Feed Chart and How Can It Improve Your Cannabis Garden? (Leafly)
• California's Cannabis Priestess Arrested on Felony Charge (Leafly)
• Cannabis Crunch – Toxins In Dabs, FBI Pot Arrest Stats And Snoop Dogg's Marijuana Tech Company (Psychedelic Times)
• 8 Common Household Ingredients That Contain Cannabinoids (The Fresh Toast)

LSD

• A Fateful Hunt for a Buried Stash of the Greatest LSD Ever Made (VICE)
• American Adults See Occasional LSD Use As Riskier Than Regular Binge Drinking (Reason)
• Silicon Valley's LSD habit is exploding, and now a 27-year old is offering how-to tutorials over Skype (Business Insider)
• A$AP Rocky Details His Love for LSD and Confirms Skepta Will Feature on Latest Studio Album (Highsnobiety)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Medical Psilocybin for Depression (ECU Daily)
• Are We Ready For Legal Psychedelic Mushrooms? (Fox and Hounds Daily)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• MDMA-assisted psychotherapy a "breakthrough" treatment for PTSD (The Rambler)
• More than Ecstacy, MDMA is Medicine (Los Angeles Free Press)
• FDA Moves One Step Closer to Approving MDMA for PTSD Treatment (Law Firm Newswire)
• Ecstasy For PTSD And Alcoholism? Here's What The Science Says (The Alternative Daily)
• Risky behaviour and adverse events are increasing among ecstasy users (UNSW Sydney Newsroom)
• Police are warning people about pink 'Mastercard' ecstasy pills (Mixmag)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Ayahuasca: Hallucinogenic drug used by indigenous Amazon tribes could help treat eating disorders, study finds (The Independent)
• This Guy Makes Bootleg Ayahuasca from Traditional Japanese Herbs (VICE)
• Memories Of Ayahuasca (Adventures Through The Mind)
• Veterans Are Turning to Ayahuasca for PTSD Relief (Motherboard)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Ibogaine: A Call to Action and a Demand for Integrity (The Fix)
• Ibogaine ideal substance to combat addiction (Kankakee Daily Journal)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• City caught in deadly grip of Black Mamba (The New Indian Express)

Dissociatives

• A new study shows how the powerful drug ketamine could help fight severe depression (Mic)
• Ketamine clinic opens in Aspen with aim to fight severe depression (The Aspen Times)

Opiates/Opioids

• How FIU hopes to pinpoint where heroin comes from and help stop the opioid crisis (Miami Herald)
• Heroin crisis: New drug addiction treatment could be 'game changer' that saves lives (The Courier-Journal)
• Nova Scotia pharmacies now offering free naloxone kits for opioid overdoses (The Chronicle Herald)
• Toronto bars begin carrying naloxone to help combat opioid crisis (CBC)
• 'The greatest drug fiends in the world': An American opioid crisis – in 1908 (The Washington Post)
• MetroHealth received $1.9M grant to increase naloxone distribution by law enforcement (Cleveland.com)
• Mattis: Trump Afghan Strategy to Combat Opium Trade (Breitbart)
• The harrowing rise of heroin, in one chart (Vox)
• Protecting Heroin Clinics From Prosecution (The Atlantic)
• The Tale of North Indian Opium Cultivators (BW Business World)

Kratom

• Kratom Overdose -– Risk Factors And How To Avoid It? (Kratom Guides)
• Which Are The Most Strongest Kratom Alkaloids? (Kratom Guides)
• Ketum, There's More To This Controversial Plant Than Meets The Eye (Malaysian Direct)
• Herbal supplement Kratom linked to death in Florida (KSGF)
• Upstate NY officer's death intensifies scrutiny of herbal supplement kratom (NewYorkUpstate.com)

Khat

• Somalia Bakool region bans khat for negative effect on al-Shabaab combat (AfricaNews)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Entheogens And The Mind Of Society (Adventures Through The Mind)
• Psychedelic Renaissance (HuffPost)
• Sitting, Not Guiding: The Power of Non-Directive Support (Psychedelic Frontier)
• Study Proves Psychedelics Are Super-Drugs That Can Treat Mental Illness (Outlook India)
• The Political Correction of Psychedelics. Part 4. Manageable Doses (Rick Strassman MD)
• DEA Agents Sold Opioids, Stole Cash, and Falsely Identified Drug Suspects, Say Feds (Reason)
• Healing With Tobacco: Rapé Tribal Snuff (Psychedelic Times)
• What's so controversial about microdosing? (Psymposia)
• Bruce Parry on returning to the jungle, hallucinogenic drugs, and why he wants to start a tribe of his own (The Telegraph)
• I was in the MAPS MDMA for PTSD study. It freed me from a childhood of abuse. (Psymposia)
• Magic mushrooms and ketamine: The controversial ways we might treat depression in future (Netdoctor)
• Italy recalls frozen spinach feared to contain hallucinogenic mandrake (The Local Italy)
• George Mason University student dies after taking hallucinogenic drug, falling from window (The Washington Post)

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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 9.29.17

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• More people were arrested last year over pot than for murder, rape, aggravated assault and robbery – combined (The Washington Post)
• Trump Extends Cannabis Protections 'Til December As Plans For Study, States Remain Hazy (Forbes)
• Marijuana Arrest Data Absent From Latest FBI Uniform Crime Report (NORML)
• Massachusetts High Court: Field Sobriety Tests Are Not Valid Measures For Determining Marijuana-Induced Impairment (NORML)
• Cannabis as a Spiritual Tool: Interview with Author Stephen Gray (Psychedelic Times)
• Pot Busts Rose Last Year After Hitting a Two-Decade Low in 2015 (Reason)
• College Medical Marijuana Policy Leaves Many Students Unable to Legally Consume (NORML)
• People Are Successfully Replacing Vicodin, Xanax and Ambien With Marijuana (ATTN:)
• Jeff Sessions Just Made the Head of the DEA Look Like a Pot Head's Hero (Reason)
• Washington State Releases Update On Legalization Findings—High Hopes Are Rewarded (NORML)
• 'Hello! Thanks for Visiting Maine. May I Take Your Cannabis Order?' (Leafly)
• Cannabis-infused drama 'Woodshock' mired in moody death spiral (Los Angeles Times)
• Bogus Stoned Driving Arrests Highlight Dubious Methods of 'Drug Recognition Experts' (Reason)
• Cannabis smokers 'incapable of walking' rescued from England's highest mountain (The Telegraph)
• Philippines Health Committee Passes Medical Cannabis Bill (Leafly)
• Muchas Gracias: How Spain Brought Cannabis to the Americas and influenced Hispanic Culture (Leafly)
• Snoop Dogg's venture capital firm is leading an investment in a cannabis tech company (Business Insider)
• California Cannabis Retail Market Revealed: Big Data Tells All (Forbes)
• The Wellness Soldier: How War and Cannabis Created a Canadian Force for Good (Leafly)
• Cannabis dealers in the UK are 'prescribing' weed to treat illnesses (Metro)
• City Council Considers Cutting Off LA's Cannabis Supply Chain (Leafly)
• Getting Too Drunk Vs. Getting Too High (ATTN:)
• Study: McDonald's Is A Big Hit With Cannabis Smokers (Forbes)
• Wanna Grow Your Own Cannabis? Start With Tin House's New Cannabis Grow Guide (The Potlander)
• San Jacinto agrees to grant up to 10 more pot business licenses (The Press-Enterprise)
• By Excluding LGBTQ People, the Growing Cannabis Industry Is Betraying Its Roots (Slate)
• Cannabis Crunch – Universities Waffle on Marijuana Research; Iceland, Peru Look To Legalize (Psychedelic Times)
• Stanislaus County could limit marijuana outlets. 'Green fees' also proposed. (The Modesto Bee)

LSD

• Can an LSD Overdose Kill You? (Big Think)
• 'Suicide headaches' drive patients to try LSD and magic mushrooms to stop the pain (International Business Times)
• Coroner no longer naming LSD as only cause of Lightning in a Bottle death (Paso Robles Daily News)
• How The Natural Hallucinatory Effects of Ergotism Influenced Renaissance Artists Like Hieronymus Bosch (Inquisitr)
• Hilarious footage captures the antics of Royal Marine commandos who were secretly given LSD and then fell about in fits of laughter when they were given orders (Daily Mail)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Hallucinogenic mushrooms found a new use (The Siver Times)
• From "Shrooms" to CalExit: California Could Have a Wild 2018 Ballot (IVN News)
• Berkeley police seize $1 million worth of 'magic' mushrooms (San Mateo Daily Journal)
• Heidi Klum's Ex Busted for Shrooms at Burning Man (Yes, That's Illegal There) (TMZ)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Santa Cruz-based MDMA therapy for PTSD reaches final testing phase (Santa Cruz Sentinel)
• The Killers talk doing MDMA at a Deadmau5 show (NME)
• Mystery Artist Chemical X & An "Unnamed Supermodel" Unveil Ecstasy-Filled Artwork (Highsnobiety)
• Deaths related to cocaine and MDMA more than doubles in Ireland over a five-year period (The Irish Sun)
• Parents alerted over batch of ecstasy circulating among school kids in Fife as cops detain man (The Scottish Sun)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Psychedelic brew called ayahuasca shows promise in the treatment of eating disorders (PsyPost)
• Could psychedelic drug ayahuasca have health benefits? (BBC)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• Ritualistic plant sparks controversy (The Collegian)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine-Induced Glutamatergic Mechanisms of Sleep and Wakefulness (Springer)
• Efficacy of intravenous tramadol and low-dose ketamine in the prevention of post-spinal anesthesia shivering following cesarean section: a double-blinded, randomized control trial (Dove Medical Press)
• Man with 'I love ketamine' bumper sticker is pulled over... and busted for ketamine (Metro)

Opiates/Opioids

• This App Tracks Opioid Overdoses in Real-Time All Over the US (Futurism)
• No, Simply Touching Fentanyl Can't Kill You (Reason)
• How British scientists are fighting the US heroin crisis (The Times)
• Vancouver overdoses taking longer, more naloxone to reverse (News1130)
• A Chinese Lesbian Warlord Used CIA Funding to Traffic Opium in Myanmar (War Is Boring)
• Mugshots reveal staggering transformation of heroin addict's face in the space of just two years (Mirror)
• U of S security officers add naloxone kits to tool belts (CBC News)
• To prevent OD deaths, Philly to give out naloxone as people leave jail (Newsworks)

Absinthe

• WATCH: Irish people taste testing absinthe for the first time will make you laugh (Irish Mirror)

Kratom

• Using Kratom And Other Healing Herbs To Beat Insomnia (Kratom Guides)
• Exclusive: Hillsborough confirms first ever death by herbal supplement Kratom in the county (WFTS)

Kava

• We tried kava – the national drink of Fiji that gets people high (Business Insider)

Khat

• Man arrested at Zurich Airport with two suitcases of East African drug (The Local)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Dismayed by Trump, Head of Drug Enforcement Administration to Leave (The New York Times)
• When Drugs Fuck You Up Forever (VICE)
• How to Win a War on Drugs (The New York Times)
• Psychedelic Podcasts That Will Stimulate Your Ears and Your Brain (Psychedelic Times)
• Quantifying Drug Use With Sewage and Cell Phones (Discover Magazine)
• The Political Correction of Psychedelics. Part 3. Psychedelics as Super-Placebos (RickStrassman.com)
• 'Robust public funding' needed for psychedelic drug research say researchers (CBC News)
• What the Scientologists can teach us about drug reform (Psymposia)
• The visionary conference that is about to happen in Prague (Political Critique)
• Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. An Interview with Iker Puente on Holotropic Breathwork (Psymposia)
• Will Psychedelic Therapy Transform Mental Health Care? (NBC News)
• Jhené Aiko Narrates Her Psychedelic 'Trip' Through Death, Love And Reawakening (NPR)
• Can Hallucinogens Have You Seeing Dollar Signs? Attend 'The Psychedelics of Money' to Find Out (Bedford + Bowery)
• Psychedelic Drugs in Biomedicine (Cell Press)
• Meth-Laced 7Up Reportedly Found in Mexico (Snopes)

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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 9.22.17

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Cannabis

• California Officially Calls On Feds To Reclassify Marijuana (Forbes)
• Pennsylvania Democratic Party Adopts Marijuana Legalization Into Policy Platform (NORML)
• New Hampshire Marijuana Decriminalization Takes Effect (Forbes)
• Study: Medical Cannabis Registrants Reduce Their Prescription Drug Use (NORML)
• Orrin Hatch Sponsors Medical Marijuana Research Bill (Inquisitr)
• The 28 States Where a Little Pot Can Still Send You to Jail (Reason)
• Study: Perceived Marijuana Access Declining Among Youth (NORML)
• Medical Professionals Brace for Cannabis (Santa Barbara Independent)
• Pot shampoo to cannabis sommeliers: Inside one of America's biggest marijuana business conventions (The Independent)
• NORML Canada Testifies In Parliament On Impending Legalization (NORML)
• Detroit Voters Will Have Say in Cannabis Regulations (Leafly)
• Growing Clean Cannabis to Pass California's New Rules (East Bay Express)
• Dr. Oz Defends Medical Cannabis on 'Fox & Friends' (Leafly)
• 2017 NORML Conference and Lobby Day In Brief (NORML)
• How Cannabis Can Combat the Opioid Epidemic: An Interview With Philippe Lucas (Leafly)
• Roger Stone Wants to 'Crush Jeff Sessions' (ATTN:)
• New Brunswick Announces $90 Million Cannabis Buy (Leafly)
• Johnson City Press: Riding the green wave: Science Hill graduates growing cannabis in Arizona (Johnson City Press)
• In Denver, Marijuana Users Aren't Hard-Core Partiers -- They Really Just Want To Sleep (Forbes)
• Cloverdale readies for cannabis businesses coming to town (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)
• Sen. Al Franken Is Evolving On Marijuana (Forbes)
• Ontario Government Aims to Sell Cannabis for $10 a Gram (Leafly)
• Denver and Colorado Springs Residents Both High on Legalizing Cannabis (Westword)
• The Loss of an Activist, the Passing of a Friend, James Bell (NORML)
• Parents explain to their kids why they smoke weed (Boing Boing)
• Meet the sexy bikini models who've started a cannabis-themed Instagram page celebrating their devotion to weed (The Sun)
• Cannabis Crunch – No Go On Pot Drones, Uruguay's Cash Only Weed Shops, And The Feds Are Coming For Your MMJ Data (Psychedelic Times)
• Male vs. Female Cannabis: How to Determine the Sex of Your Plant (Leafly)
• Cannabis Industry Weekly Recap 9/15/2017 ( Forbes)
• Wynne's cannabis retail plan a buzzkill (Toronto Sun)

LSD

• How Renaissance Painting Smoldered with a Little Known Hallucinogen (Hyperallergic)
• Coroner said woman at music fest died from LSD overdose. Now, he says she didn't (The San Luis Obispo Tribune)
• Name-Place-Animal-Thing: Of Productivity and LSD (The Wire)
• This bizarre anti-LSD video from 1969 is about a woman and her talking hotdog (Mixmag)
• Rare Military Footage Reveals LSD Tests on Soldiers (The Fix)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Psychedelic Mushrooms May Soon Be Legal In California, What Could That Mean For Us? (Dance Music Northwest)
• Psychedelic mushroom user to perform at UF (The Independent Florida Alligator)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) Selects Montrium's eTMF Platform as They Begin Phase 3 Studies of MDMA-assisted Psychotherapy for PTSD (Markets Insider)
• Hair Test Reveals All the Drugs Actually Hiding in Ecstasy Pills (Inverse)
• MDMA on the Mountaintop (Reality Sandwich)
• Police accused of turning blind eye to ecstasy-related crime after drop in convictions (The Telegraph)
• Law Student Dies of Ecstasy Bag Bursting in Her Stomach (Noiseporn)
• Father of four who died after taking ecstasy was "crying out for help" (Norwich Evening News)
• Police raids after children poisoned by ecstasy (Liverpool Echo)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Ayahuasca Afterglow—How Post-Trip Mindfulness May Play A Part In Treating Depression (Psychedelic Times)
• Florida's Ayahuasca Church Wants to Go Legal (Motherboard)
• Why One Man Left His 6 Figure Salary & What He Did Instead (Collective Evolution)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• 50 Years Ago: Battle over peyote divides council (Navajo Times)

Dissociatives

• Video: Can Ketamine Help You Reduce Problem Drinking? (Psychedelic Frontier)
• Michael Thase, MD: Can Ketamine Curb Depression? (MD Magazine)
• Juvenile Bipolar Disorder: Intranasal Ketamine Effective, Well-Tolerated (Psychiatry Advisor)

Opiates/Opioids

• Opioid Overdoses Are Shortening Overall Life Expectancy (TIME)
• The Affordable Care Act Is Being Exploited to Foster Opioid Relapse (TIME)
• Heroin must be treated like public health crisis that it is (Cincinnati.com)
• Fentanyl Importation Reaches 'Shocking' Levels, Says Prosecutor (Reason)
• CVS Pharmacy Will Limit Prescriptions for Opioids (TIME)

Absinthe

• University partnership develops Scotland's first absinthe (Heriot-Watt University)
• 5 Places in Bangalore That Serve Absinthe (Hungry Forever)

Kratom

• Kratom is safe for consumers: DEA got it wrong once; let's not repeat mistake (SILive.com)
• Coroner reveals details behind kratom overdose report (Adirondack Daily Enterprise)
• Kratom controversy: DEA taking the right approach (SILive.com)
• SPECIAL REPORT: What is Kratom, and why would you use it? (KMTR)

Kava

• 10 Incredible Health Benefits of Kava (TG Daily)

Khat

• Somalia: HirShabelle State Rejects Federal Government's Embargo on Miraa Flights in Jowhar (Somali Update)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Beyond Materialism: Interview with Rita Kočárová about International Transpersonal Conference 2017 (Psychedelic Times)
• Who Am I? Yoga, Psychedelics & the Quest for Enlightenment by Allowah Lani (Psychedelic Press UK)
• Charles L Raison, MD: A History of Psychedelics in Psychiatry (MD Magazine)
• Prince William discusses 'massive question' of legalising drugs (The Guardian)
• Balancing the Divine Feminine and Masculine in Medicine Circles (Reality Sandwich)
• A Buddhist Contemplates the Merits of Meditating on Psychedelics (Disinfo)
• How Psychedelic Science Privileges Some, Neglects Others, and Limits Us All (Psymposia)
• People Who Trip on Psychedelics Are More Likely to Be Environmentally Conscious (AlterNet)
• Charity warns that 'legal high' ban has led to switch to other illegal drugs (The Pharmaceutical Journal)
• Reconsidering LSD, other psychedelic drugs for treating depression, anxiety (Genetic Literacy Project)
• The Real Story of Shamanism: No Need to Don a Headdress or Take Hallucinogens (Ancient Origins)
• Psychedelic drugs: is it time to rethink our perspective? (ABC)

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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.