This Week in Psychedelics - 9.28.18

Cannabis

• Canadians Involved In Marijuana Industry Not Welcome In US, Feds Confirm (Marijuana Moment)

• DEA Reclassifies Plant-Derived Marijuana Medicine To Schedule V (NORML)

• FBI: Marijuana Arrests Spike For Second Straight Year, Far Outpace Arrests For All Violent Crimes (NORML)

• Youth Marijuana Use Isn’t Increasing After States Legalize, Meta-Analysis Of 55 Studies Concludes (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana Looks Like An Alien World Under An Electron Microscope (Marijuana Moment)

• Maine Officials Investigating Restaurant That Calmed Lobsters With Marijuana (TIME)

• Lawmaker Pushes For Marijuana Legalization In Kenya (Marijuana Moment)

• Coca-Cola Is Eyeing a Possible Entry Into the Cannabis Market (TIME)

• Brooklyn DA erases 56 marijuana convictions, vacates over 3,000 pot warrants (New York Daily News)

• Seattle judges throw out 15 years of marijuana convictions (BBC)

• Amsterdam’s Marijuana Strategy Means Cops Don’t Have Much To Do, Comedy Central Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Molson Coors Plans To Sell Marijuana-Infused Teas, Seltzers And Beer (Marijuana Moment)

• Wall Street’s Marijuana Madness: ‘It’s Like the Internet in 1997’ (The Wall Street Journal)

• Republicans in a US territory just legalized marijuana (Vox)

• Cannabis Stocks Had A Roller Coaster Of A Week (NPR)

• Are Police Breaking The Law To Campaign Against Marijuana Legalization? (Marijuana Moment)

• How EMTs and Doctors Treat Cannabis Overconsumption (Leafly)

• House GOP Blocks Marijuana Tax Fairness Vote (Marijuana Moment)

• TSA Will Report Weed at LAX to Cops, Who Can't Do Anything About It (Reason)

• Researchers Injected People With THC To Test Their Motor Skills (Marijuana Moment)

• It's Not Just Cannabis Stocks -- Salaries And Jobs In Legal Weed Are Climbing Too (Forbes)

• Why millennials prefer cannabis to booze: ‘Zero enjoyment out of drinking’ (and it’s cheaper) (MarketWatch)

• Willie Nelson Wants To Smoke Marijuana With Trump And Putin (Marijuana Moment)

• Kindergartner can take cannabis drug to school, judge says (Los Angeles Times)

• O’Rourke And Cruz Clash On Marijuana And Drugs At Senate Debate (Marijuana Moment)

• Pot Faux Pas: A Cannabis Club Owner Weighs In On Marijuana Etiquette (WBUR)

• Here’s Where Maine’s US Senate Candidates Stand On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Legal marijuana: Vote for it, even if you aren't going to smoke it (Detroit Free Press)

• Leading Congressional Marijuana Opponent In Danger Of Losing Seat, Polls Find (Marijuana Moment)

• Idaho Gubernatorial Candidates Disagree On Marijuana Legalization (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• What Happens When You Give L.S.D. to an Elephant? (The New York Times)

• Silicon Valley figures remember Steve Jobs's death — and debate the rumor that he was 'tripping' when he died (Business Insider)

• Could LSD Microdosing Be Beneficial? (Labmate Online)

• Sofia Boutella on Playing a Character Spiked with LSD in Gaspar Noé’s ‘Climax’ (Collider)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Reclassification recommendations for drug in 'magic mushrooms' (ScienceDaily)

• Could "Magic Mushrooms" Help You Stop Smoking? (The Fix)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Pilot Study Finds MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy Significantly Reduces Social Anxiety in Autistic Adults (Psychedelic Times)

• Scientists Dosed an Octopus With MDMA and It Engaged In Some Serious Heavy Petting (The Inertia)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• 'Psychedelic Indiana Jones' claims he can 'predict FUTURE' with shamanic drug (Daily Star)

Morning Glory Seeds

• Children eating flower seeds to get high (Click 2 Houston)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine gives hope to patients with severe depression. But some clinics stray from the science and hype its benefits (STAT)

• Party drug used for depression at UW Health amid research on psychedelics (Wisconsin State Journal)

Opiates/Opioids

• A major study questioned the evidence for safe injection sites. It’s now been retracted. (Vox)

• Fentanyl crisis: Is China a major source of illegal drugs? (BBC)

• The Health 202: Congress reaches deal on major opioids' package (The Washington Post)

• Solving America’s painkiller paradox (Vox)

• DEA launches '360 Strategy' to combat heroin and prescription drug abuse epidemic in Baltimore (Baltimore Sun)

• Pulitzer Prize winner Terry DeMio on life as a heroin beat reporter (Psymposia)

Kratom

• FDA Death Data On Kratom Linked To Adulterated Products, Not The Kratom Plant Itself (Benzinga)

• Kratom Dosage In Powder And Capsules (Kratom Guides)

• Kratom In Missouri: Legality And Where To Find Locally (Kratom Guides)

Kava

• Price of kava fluctuates (The Fiji Times)

Khat

• New drug ‘khat’ finds way into Bangladesh (The Independent)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Capitalism on Psychedelics: The Mainstreaming of an Underground (Chacruna)

• For $1000, These ‘Sitters’ Will Save You from a Bad Acid Trip (VICE)

• The Risks of Long-Term Microdosing (The Third Wave)

• Why I regret my war on drugs (UnHerd)

• When supplies of drugs run low, drug prices mysteriously rise, data shows (Ars Technica)

• Psychedelic Film and Music Festival to feature trippy entertainment ‘for healing’ (AM New York)

• Get Ready for Your Psychedelic Voyage by Reading Experience Reports (Psychedelic Times)

• ‘Without drug traffickers, we’d have peace’: Colombian villagers flee new killings (The Guardian)

• Some 129 countries sign up to Trump's pledge at U.N. to fight drugs (Reuters)

• Making amyl nitrite an illegal drug would be ineffective, warns former AFP chief (The Guardian)

• The Invisible Majority: People Whose Drug Use Is Not Problematic (Filter)

• It's time we walked the talk on treating drugs as a health issue (Stuff.co.nz)

• $18 Million Worth of Cocaine Found in Bananas Donated to Texas Prison, Authorities Say (TIME)

• Does Donald Trump Want To Ban Chocolate, Or Is He Just Confused? (Marijuana Moment)

• Integrating Huichol and Mazatec Wisdom Without Doing Harm: Interview with Mario Gómez Mayorga (Psychedelic Times)

• Sheffield University criticised over 'never inject alone' drug advice (The Telegraph)

• Why doctors should support regulated markets in illicit drugs (The BMJ)

• Drug Tolerance Explained (Psychedelic Heaven)

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.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

This Week in Psychedelics - 9.21.18

Cannabis

• South Africa Decriminalises Personal Cannabis Use and Cultivation (Talking Drugs)

• Governor Signs Marijuana Legalization Bill, Making History In US Territory (Forbes)

• Louisiana Congressman Wants To Drug-Test All of Congress (Reason)

• The first country to legalize pot is taking it slow (CNN)

• Coca-Cola Is Eyeing the Cannabis Market (Bloomberg)

• What Is CBD Oil and Why Do People Take It? (Discover Magazine)

• Can Canadian Online Cannabis Retailer Namaste Technologies Become The Amazon Of Cannabis? (Forbes)

• Massachusetts Credit Union to Provide Banking Services for Cannabis Companies (High Times)

• Feds Would Compile Tips For Growing Marijuana Under Proposal Advancing In Congress (Marijuana Moment)

• Cody Johnson Interview: Cannabis as a Unique Psychedelic and more (Ganjly)

• Marijuana References In Popular Music Are On the Rise, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• This Oil Infusion Appliance Is The KitchenAid Of Cannabis (Forbes)

• Canadian Marijuana Users, Workers, Investors Will Face Lifetime Bans from Entering the U.S. (Reason)

• Democratic lawmaker calls on DHS to clarify border rules for Canadian marijuana users and workers (Politico)

• Louisiana regulators remove patient cap on marijuana doctors (Associated Press News)

• Congressman Wants Feds To ‘Buy American’ Marijuana Instead Of Importing From Canada (Marijuana Moment)

• Election 2018: A Complete Guide to Cannabis on the Ballot (Leafly)

• Beto O’Rourke Slams Drug War And Police Killing Of Botham Jean At Dallas Event (Marijuana Moment)

• Dagga smoking an entry point to more serious drugs – Cele (Daily Maverick)

• Association of Cannabinoid Administration With Experimental Pain in Healthy Adults (The JAMA Network)

• Police Are Using Pot to 'Smear' a Dead Man, Say Botham Jean Family Attorneys (Reason)

• Jeff Sessions Breaks Cannabis Silence To Spread Fake News About A Marijuana ‘Myth’ (Marijuana Moment)

• California Police Chief Claims Legal Weed Delivery Could Lead to ‘Assaults and Homicides’ (Reason)

• Congressional Black And Hispanic Caucuses Focus On Marijuana Reform At Events (Marijuana Moment)

• ‘My son is proof medicinal cannabis works’: Alfie Dingley is now seizure-free and learning to ride a bike (inews.co.uk)

• Marijuana Legalization Debated By Ohio And New Mexico Gubernatorial Candidates (Marijuana Moment)

• U.S. should follow Canada's lead, allow military to smoke marijuana (Rooster Magazine)

• California Gov. Jerry Brown Keeps Saying Mean Things About Marijuana Consumers (Marijuana Moment)

• Kristen Bell Reveals She Smokes Marijuana Once a Week and Might Host an Ecstasy Party (Us Weekly)

• Trump FDA Chief More Worried About Teens Using Marijuana Than Nicotine (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana Museum Opens in Las Vegas to Celebrate All Things Cannabis (TIME)

• Shorting cannabis stocks is getting costly (CNBC)

• PETA Says Getting Lobsters High On Marijuana Doesn’t Make Eating Them More Humane (Marijuana Moment)

• Hollywood's Red Carpet Was Sprinkled With Hints Of Cannabis Green For Television's Biggest Night (Forbes)

• Top Cop Caught On Tape Making Racist Comments About Marijuana Legalization (Marijuana Moment)

• This Canadian Pot Company Had An Unbelievably Wild Day on the Stock Market (TIME)

• Marijuana Opponent Compares Legalization To Deadly Hurricane Florence (Marijuana Moment)

• Let Us Congratulate These Florida Cops for Keeping 11 Pounds of Weed Off the Streets (Reason)

• New York Lawmakers Schedule Marijuana Legalization Hearing (Marijuana Moment)

• The medicinal cannabis panel is already failing children like my daughter (The Guardian)

• Cannabis Plant-Raised Pork Is Now a Thing (and It’s Delicious) (Leafly)

• How high can the world's most-valuable cannabis company go? (Quartz)

• Cannabis Stocks Will Make More People Rich Before Diving (Forbes)

• Authorities Smoke Out Cannabis Products at Church Properties (NBC Southern California)

• Lawmaker Presses Trump Official On Banning Canadians From US For Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Retail investors in Canadian cannabis are 'buying air,' analyst says (CNBC)

• Job training for cannabis retail staff coming soon to Alberta (Grow)

LSD

• First Ever Trial to Study the Effects of Microdosing LSD Began This Month (High Times)

• What do blind people see when they take LSD? (Health24)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Legalizing Psilocybin Could Be The Next Frontier In Drug Policy Reform After Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Like 4/20, mushrooms have their day: 9/20. 'It'll catch on.' (Rooster Magazine)

• Prof David Nutt reveals how those people with depression who took magic mushrooms are doing now (The Canary)

• Mushroom legalization in Colorado gains both political and legal support (Rooster Magazine)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Octopuses Rolling on MDMA Reveal Unexpected Link to Humans (Inverse)

• Elementary School Boy Accidentally Shares Father’s Ecstasy with Friends Thinking It was Candy (Nextshark)

• Clint Eastwood’s daughter Francesca has a drug-fuelled threesome in new movie MDMA (The Sun)

• Student, 22, died after taking £7 MDMA to celebrate the end of her university exams (The Sun)

• A guide to taking MDMA for the first time (The Tab)

• MDMA, the main ingredient in ecstasy, could be key in helping veterans with PTSD (CBS News)

• What is MDMA? Effects of ecstasy drug and how dangerous it really is (Mirror)

Ayahuasca/DMT/5-MeO-DMT

• Ayahuasca stirs up debate over its effects (Kahpi)

• DMT trip 'feels like dying' - and scientists now agree (BBC)

• Welcome Home: My 5-MeO-DMT Experience (Maps Of The Mind)

• Mother-of-one musician, 32, who went to mountain retreat for hallucinogenic treatment in bid to beat her epilepsy died after seizure on Middle East trip (Daily Mail)

• Ayahuasca Research Boosts Brazilian 'Psychedelic' Science (Folha de S.Paulo)

• Was the Prophet Muhammad Tripping on DMT? (SF Weekly)

• The Marbella retreat run by a British accountant where guests pay £500 to get high on mind-bending drug blamed for student's death (Daily Mail)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• “Healing Powers” Heads to Spain to Feel the Psychedelic Sensations of San Pedro (MERRY JANE)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Positive outcomes after ibogaine detoxification linked to persisting changes in mood and life perspective (PsyPost)

Salvia Divinorum

• The Strange Realm of Salvia Research (Psychedelic Times)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• Spice Users are Becoming a Cruel Online Joke (VICE)

• Huge rise in ambulance callouts to deal with spice users (The Guardian)

Dissociatives

• Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine Appear to Require Opioid System Activation (Psychiatry Advisor)

• Police: Woman who caused disturbance was on PCP (Rutland Herald)

Opiates/Opioids

• The Federal Agency That Fuels the Opioid Crisis (The New York Times)

• New Heroin User Numbers Are Dropping Amid A Fatal Overdose Epidemic (BuzzFeed News)

• The Health 202: Obscure provision in House opioids' bill could restart war on drugs (The Washington Post)

• As opioid death toll worsens, California doctors will soon be required to perform database checks (Los Angeles Times)

• To avoid overdoses, some test their heroin before taking it (ABC News)

Kratom

• Everything I Learned About Using Kratom for Pain (Pain News Network)

• Man electrocuted in Satun allegedly trying to steal kratom leaves (The Nation)

Kava

• Captivate Your Senses With Kava (ProHealth)

Khat

• Khat (Plant) Market Segmented by Type, Application, Offering and Geography to 2023 (TheBusinessTactics.com)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• The Dire Need for Systemic Critique Within Psychedelic Communities (Chacruna)

• Justice Department Inspector General to Investigate DEA Program Linked to Massacres in Mexico (ProPublica)

• Are Music Festivals to Blame for Overdose Deaths? (The New York Times)

• Defqon.1 deaths: sniffer dogs don't deter revellers from drug use, researchers find (The Guardian)

• 'Absolutely tragic': Premier vows to shut festival down after two overdose deaths (The Sydney Morning Herald)

• Lab Testing Anomalous Street Drug Samples in Kensington Philadelphia (Medium)

• A different kind of house call: Teams bring addiction care to patients, wherever they are (STAT)

• Trump Administration Plans U.N. Meeting to Ramp Up the International Drug War (The Intercept)

• Psychedelic Sea Sponges to the Colorado River Toad: Magic Medicine is a Rabbit Hole of Hallucinatory Wisdom (High Times)

• Drugs, Alcohol and Suicide Are Killing So Many Young Americans That the Country’s Average Lifespan Is Falling (TIME)

• Pop-Up Museum Psychedelic Robot Coming to The Crescent (Dallas Innovates)

• Colombia cocaine production acreage at 'record level' (BBC)

• Britain's drug testing charity is ready to roll out in Australia (The Sydney Morning Herald)

• Psychedelic drugs could mimic near-death experience: study (CTV News)

• Opening the Mind with Psychedelics (GR|MAG)

• The Origin Story of Con Ciencia Indígena: Interview with Mario Gómez Mayorga (Psychedelic Times)

• Over four decades, an 'inexorable' epidemic of drug overdoses reveals its inner secrets (Los Angeles Times)

• People my age shouldn't be dying at music festivals. Pill-testing saves lives (The Guardian)

• Why Canada Should Legalize Psychedelics Next (VICE)

• The psychedelic drug debate: why Buddhist ethics matters (Patheos)

• ‘Psychedelic Indiana Jones’ drug expert claims LSD, mushrooms and MDMA ‘to be made legal’ (Daily Star)

• Cure for cocaine addiction in reach, say scientists (The Guardian)

• Psychedelic Drugs to Treat Depression, PTSD? (WebMD)

• LSD, Magic Mushrooms, and “Tripping All the Time” (SFGate)

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.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

This Week in Psychedelics - 9.14.18

Cannabis

• Canadian Military Reveals New Rules Regarding Cannabis Use (High Times)

• Marijuana Use Is on the Rise Among Baby Boomers According to a New Study (TIME)

• Legal Canadian Marijuana Workers, Investors Will Be Treated Like Illegal Traffickers, Official Confirms (Newsweek)

• Did Barack Obama Smoke Marijuana At Disneyland? (Marijuana Moment)

• NYC Prosecutors Drop 3,000 Weed Cases (Reason)

• New York: Brooklyn DA Intends To Vacate Thousands Of Past Marijuana Convictions (NORML)

• Tesla Shares Fall After CEO Elon Musk Smokes Cannabis on Joe Rogan's Live Web Show (News18)

• The Response To Elon Musk's Cannabis Use Shows That We Have A Giant Double Standard To Overcome (Forbes)

• Scientists Explore How Cannabis May Fight Psychosis (VOA)

• Congressional Leadership Strips Provisions Facilitating Medical Marijuana Access For Veterans (NORML)

• Marijuana Bill Approved By Congressional Committee, Despite Drug Conviction Restriction Dispute (Forbes)

• Legal Marijuana Access Disrupts The Illicit Market, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• European Parliament Working to Make Medical Marijuana Available on the Continent (Marijuana.com)

• Miami-Dade Police Give Most Pot Citations to White People, While Black People Are Jailed (Miami New Times)

• Federal Court Rules In Favor Of Worker Rejected For Medical Marijuana Use (Marijuana Moment)

• Republican Members of Congress Just Sent Jeff Sessions Yet Another Letter Asking Him To Stop Holding Up Marijuana Research (Reason)

• Cannabis for Chronic Nerve Pain: Mechanism Revealed? (Medscape)

• Neil deGrasse Tyson Warns People Not To Smoke Marijuana In Space (Marijuana Moment)

• Scottish ministers to hear arguments for medicinal use of cannabis (The National)

• Most Doctors, Nurses And Pharmacists Support Legalizing Marijuana, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Treat teenage cannabis dealers as potential victims, says thinktank (The Guardian)

• Marijuana In Texas: Where Ted Cruz And Beto O’Rourke Stand On Legalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Concerns raised over lack of guidelines for medics regarding use of substances like cannabis oil (Irish Examiner)

• Top Trump Health Official Signals Support For Marijuana Decriminalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana Censorship: A Byproduct of Prohibition (NORML)

• Colorado Ballot Measure Would Change Industrial Hemp Definition (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis and Crypto: Equal Beneficiaries in the Fight to Hit the Mainstream (Cointelegraph)

• New Book: Obama Considered Decriminalizing Marijuana, But Then Trump Won (Marijuana Moment)

• 5 Ways Creatives Are Fixing Cannabis’s Image Problem (Artsy)

• Here’s Where Indiana’s US Senate Candidates Stand On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Mat Zo Discusses Marijuana Dependence on Twitter (EDMTunes)

• Brett Kavanaugh Accepts Cory Booker’s Recommendation To Read Drug War Book (Marijuana Moment)

• Why The Adult Cannabis Market Could Kill Its Medical Counterpart (Forbes)

• Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Talks Marijuana And Psychedelics With Joe Rogan (Marijuana Moment)

• Workers In These Industries Are Most Likely To Consume Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Pot Prohibition Makes Self-Defense Illegal (Reason)

• Google Execs Told Marijuana Jokes To Lighten The Mood After Trump’s Election, Leaked Video Shows (Marijuana Moment)

• Sen. Dianne Feinstein Signs Onto Marijuana Bill After Decades Of Drug War Advocacy (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis stocks are on fire after a $220 million M&A deal (Quartz)

• Criminal Justice Reformers Slam Marijuana Bill’s Drug Conviction Ban (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• After 26 years in prison for LSD, and clemency from Obama, Timothy Tyler is a free man (Psymposia)

• "I've seen my own DNA": Paul McCartney on his LSD experience with the Beatles in the 1960s (Meaww)

• ‘Acid’: A hallucinatory novel that overturns traditional ideas of family and motherhood (Scroll.in)

• When Aldous Huxley, Dying of Cancer, Left This World Tripping on LSD, Experiencing “the Most Serene, the Most Beautiful Death” (1963) (Open Culture)

• Salina woman pleads in LSD-fueled knife attack on a stranger (WIBW)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Psychedelic Mushroom Advocates Push Initiatives for May 2019 Citywide Ballot (Westword)

• “FDA approve ‘magic mushroom’ treatment” (Talon Marks)

• Police say York man took psychedelic mushrooms before killing cat (Press Herald)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• “Reduction in social anxiety after MDMA-assisted psychotherapy with autistic adults: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study” (ResearchGate)

• UW to test using MDMA to treat PTSD (School of Medicine and Public Health at University of Wisconsin-Madison)

• 'MDMA' Is The Drug-Fueled Thriller Showing You Another Side Of Asian America (NYLON)

• Pregnant teen ‘took ecstasy to try and kill her unborn son’ (Metro)

• Reminisce Festival: Overdoses lead to MDMA warning (BBC)

• Student Patrick Coakley died after taking MDMA 'bombs' at Canterbury’s Club Chemistry (Kent Online)

Ayahuasca/DMT/5-MeO-DMT

• Should Ayahuasca Tourism in Peru Be Regulated? (Chacruna)

• Romancing the Toad (Reality Sandwich)

• Inside the Ayahuasca Experience (Psychotherapy Networker)

• Ayahuasca and the Global Marketplace (Reality Sandwich)

• A DMT trip 'feels like dying' - and scientists now agree (BBC)

• Ayahuasca: Tribal tradition or dangerous hallucinogenic brew? (The City Paper Bogota)

• Police discover DMT drug lab after neighbors report a burglary in Cottonwood Heights (KUTV)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Ibogaine Therapy Can Offer Addiction Relief During Opioid Withdrawal (Ladybud)

• Ibogaine: One Man's Journey To Mexico For Psychedelic Addiction Treatment (WBUR)

Salvia Divinorum

• Nightmare drug Salvia could help end the hellish opioid crisis (Rooster Magazine)

Dissociatives

• Rapid Depression Remission and the “Therapeutic Bends” with Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (Psychedelics Today)

• Ketamine Works as a Fast-Acting Antidepressant, But the Full Effects Are Still Unknown (Smithsonian)

• Ketamine: Mechanisms of Action, Uses in Pain Medicine, and Side Effects (Clinical Pain Advisor)

• Local ketamine clinic sees high success rate in ketamine treatment (KTRE)

• Grade-A student, 22, gave birth in prison after ‘going off the rails’ and attacking two women while experimenting with Ketamine (The Sun)

Opiates/Opioids

• Opioid billionaire granted patent for addiction treatment (Financial Times)

• Naloxone nasal spray works best to stop opioid OD: Study (UPI)

• Overdose is a policy issue, not an individual one. (Sheila Vakharia)

• FDA Approves New Dosage Strength of Buprenorphine and Naloxone Sublingual Film for Opioid Dependence Treatment (Pharmacy Times)

• Experts Call Bullshit On Backstreet Boy AJ McLean’s Opioid Detox Kits (VICE)

• I’m So Sick of Opioid Disaster Porn (Slate)

• Minnesota health officials offer free Naloxone training to public (Chron)

• Naloxone can reverse opioid overdoses, but does the drug belong in elementary schools? (USA Today)

• Opium production breaks records again (Daily Times)

• Police save little girl from hot car after mother overdoses on heroin (Fox 8)

Kratom

• Statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., on new warning letters FDA is issuing to companies marketing kratom with unproven medical claims; and the agency’s ongoing concerns about kratom (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)

• Could the Opioid Crisis Be Solved With Kratom? “A Leaf of Faith” Says Yes (MERRY JANE)

• Shoplifters snagging liquid kratom from Martin County stores (TCPalm)

Khat

• New 'legal high' creeping into Bangladesh (Dhaka Tribune)

• Over 4,800 packs of khat seized in Oman (Times of Oman)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Study Explores Religious and Spiritual Roots of Psychedelically-Induced Mystical Experience (Psychedelic Times)

• Treating Addiction With Psychedelics – Part 1: Overview (The Third Wave)

• Treating Addiction With Psychedelics – Part 2: Preparation (The Third Wave)

• Treating Addiction With Psychedelics – Part 3: The Experience (The Third Wave)

• Treating Addiction With Psychedelics – Part 4: Integration (The Third Wave)

• Psychedelic Justice: Disrupting the Cultural Default Mode Network (Chacruna)

• Renaissance or Dead End? The New Debate on Psychedelic Drug Use by North American Buddhists (Buddhistdoor Global)

• The Psychological Violence of Mexico’s War on Drugs (The Crime Report)

• Accurately Weigh Your Dose: A Guide on How To Properly and Safely Measure Substances (Psychedelic Times)

• A Psychedelic Film and Music Festival is set to mellow out NYC (Metro US)

• Gender and Critical Drug Studies: Reproducing Female Vulnerability in Gendered Drug Discourse (Points: The Blog of the Alcohol and Drugs History Society)

• Camden council OKs return of needle exchange; mayor hopes it's only short-term solution (Courier-Post)

• Children say cannabis easier to get than alcohol: 'The war on drugs has failed' (The Independent)

• Gendered violence & overdose prevention sites: A rapid ethnographic study during an overdose epidemic in Vancouver, Canada (Wiley Online Library)

• Drugs and Creativity: Fact or Fiction? (Neurology Times)

• Why Did Dallas Police Search a Man's Home for 'Narcotics' After One of Their Own Killed Him? (Reason)

• New Study Challenges Hallucinogenic Stereotypes (Washington Square News)

• 'Microdosing' growing in popularity among tech workers, but is it safe? (WRAL)

• Drug danger chart shows which drugs you should never mix, and which you totally should (Rooster Magazine)

• The forgotten history of psychedelics and their use in addiction therapy (NOTED)

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.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

This Week in Psychedelics - 9.7.18

Cannabis

• Psychosis: Cannabis extract normalizes brain function (Medical News Today)

• A silent movement for the legalisation of cannabis is spreading across India (Scroll.in)

• Using Cannabis to Treat the Effects of Trauma (Chacruna)

• Senate Bill Would Legalize Medical Marijuana For Military Veterans (Forbes)

• Elon Musk Smokes Marijuana in His First Appearance Since Tweet About Taking Tesla Public (TIME)

• How dark market cannabis plugs are being taken advantage of. Again. (Rooster Magazine)

• Senators Press Trump Cabinet Members To Expand Marijuana Research (Marijuana Moment)

• Utah Medical Marijuana Campaign Exposes Opponents’ Misleading Push Poll (Marijuana Moment)

• Stockton Offering Minor In Cannabis Studies (CBS Philly)

• Supreme Court Nominee Kavanaugh On Marijuana Enforcement And Presidential Pardon Power (Marijuana Moment)

• The Argument For Smoking Cannabis Flower (Forbes)

• Major Pro-Legalization California Union Sides With Cops Against Marijuana Deliveries (Marijuana Moment)

• Nerve Pain in the Legs? Medical Marijuana May Alter Brain Connections, Bring Relief (American Academy of Neurology)

• Top Lawmakers Talk Hemp Legalization At First Bicameral Congressional Conference Committee Meeting (Marijuana Moment)

• Individual and combined effects of acute delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol on psychotomimetic symptoms and memory function (Nature)

• How Many Americans Can Hold A Joint Of Marijuana Without Fear Of Going To Jail? (Marijuana Moment)

• Support for Prop. 2 dips following LDS Church opposition, but most Utahns still support medical cannabis ballot initiative (Utah Policy)

• New Jersey Mayors Demand Social Equity In Marijuana Legalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• Death Sentence for Malaysia Man Who Gave Patients Free Cannabis Oil (Talking Drugs)

• Marijuana Consumption Booming Among Baby Boomers, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Pro-Legalization Trump Backers Cry ‘Fake News’ Over Report On Anti-Marijuana Committee (Marijuana Moment)

• Tobacco Giant Altria Is ‘Exploring Options’ On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Anti-Legalization Rep. Pete Sessions ‘Very Receptive’ To Medical Cannabis Group (Marijuana Moment)

• Canadian Cannabis Corp Makes Historic Investment in Jamaica (Forbes)

• A Top House Republican Questions Jeff Sessions’s Anti-Marijuana Moves (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis on the Menu at Your Next Hotel Restaurant or Spa? (The New York Times)

• XRAY's “This Is Cannabis” Discusses the Science of Weed In Terms Everyone Can Understand (Willamette Week)

LSD

• First ever trials on the effects of microdosing LSD set to begin (The Guardian)

• Does Microdosing LSD Stimulate Creativity And Productivity? (Science Trends)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Parents hope mushrooms work magic on depression (The Times)

• FDA Approved A Psilocybin Drug Trial For Depression (NowThis News)

• Series to investigate lore of ‘magic mushrooms’ (Stillwater News Press)

• Gardai uncover first ever 'magic mushroom lab' in Ireland following raid (Irish Independent)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• The Differences Between British and American MDMA Users (VICE)

Ayahuasca/DMT/5-MeO-DMT

• Paul McCartney 'saw God' after taking drugs during Beatles heyday (The Guardian)

• This Incredible VR Film Takes You on an Ayahuasca Journey to the Amazon (VICE)

• What Ayahuasca Is, and What You Should Know About It (Teen Vogue)

• What Happens When You Die? Scientists Have Recreated a Near Death Experience to Find Out What It Feels Like (Newsweek)

• Ayahuasca rituals can be profoundly beneficial – if they’re done properly (The Guardian)

• Ayahuasca and the Global Marketplace (Psymposia)

• I spent two days taking the spiritual psychoactive ‘Ayahuasca’ on a reclusive island (The Tab)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• DEA puts "Fake MDMA" in Schedule I (Orlando Sentinel)

• Meet Dr. Zee, the Chemist Trying to Solve Life’s Problems With One Pill (MERRY JANE)

Dissociatives

• First-Ever IV Ketamine Infusion Consensus Guidelines For Chronic Pain Released (Pain Medicine News)

• Study: Ketamine acts like an opioid when used to help treat depression (Boston Herald)

• Man high on PCP gets shot trying to carjack man in Cleveland pizzeria parking lot (Cleveland.com)

• Officers, K9 exposed to drug while checking vehicle outside military site: police (PennLive.com)

• Woman arrested on murder complaint tells police man found dead in motel smoked PCP and killed himself (Tulsa World)

Opiates/Opioids

• Purdue Pharma L.P. to Fund Harm Reduction Therapeutics, Inc.’s Work to Develop Inexpensive, Over-the-Counter, Life-Saving Naloxone in the United States (Business Wire)

• New Research Sheds Light on How Opium Poppies Evolved Their Powerful Painkillers (Gizmodo)

• Sick River: Can These California Tribes Beat Heroin and History? (The New York Times)

• I Would Have Started Heroin Recovery Earlier—and Healthier—If I Had Access to a Safe Injection Site (Tonic)

• Officers in Sterling treated for opioid exposure after responding to overdose (The Boston Globe)

• Supervised Injection Facilities Save Lives (Reason)

• Man Who Kicked Heroin Addiction Now On Mission To Give Back To Local Kids (CBS Philly)

• Naloxone: ‘It’s harm reduction’ (LaSalle News Tribune)

Kratom

• Lawsuit says kratom tea caused teen’s brain damage (Tampa Bay Times)

• Kratom Users Reveal Psychological Symptoms of Withdrawal From the Drug (Inverse)

• Kratom: Clinical Implications for Nurse Practitioners (AdvanceWeb)

Kava

• Vanuatu welcomes Polish move to re-legalise kava (Radio New Zealand)

• Man arrested for stabbing employees at Te Mana Kava Bar in West Palm Beach (WPTV)

• No Harm in Kava (Eugene Weekly)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Misreporting and Confirmation Bias in Psychedelic Research (Scientific American)

• Addiction Doesn’t Always Last a Lifetime (The New York Times)

• An Introduction to Eroto-Psychedelic Art (The Oak Tree Review)

• Psychedelics, Meditation, and Self-Consciousness (Frontiers in Psychology)

• This Man Took 140 Drugs and Wrote a Harm Reduction Bible (VICE)

• Abolishing the DEA Would be Good for Your Health (71Republic)

• Do psychotropic drugs enhance, or diminish, human agency? (Aeon)

• Sound-based liquid printing could lead to new designer drugs (Engadget)

• People Say Microdosing Can Increase Cognitive Ability And Regulate Emotions. Here's What We Know About It (BuzzFeed News)

• What is a Drug? (Medium)

• The Psychedelic Film And Music Festival Embarks On Inaugural Event This October In NYC (Broadway World)

• How to Prevent Overdose Deaths—and How Not To (Reason)

• Thousands of people use drug-testing facilities at UK music festivals (BBC)

• The Internet Is Acid, and America Is Having a Bad Trip (Medium)

• Unlocking the Shamanic Perspective for a Profoundly Magical Existence (High Existence)

• Psychedelics Improve Physical Performance (Andrew Joseph)

• 4 Plant-Based Alternative Medicines That Show Promise in Treating Addiction (ZME Science)

• How psychedelic drugs are tackling mental illness (news.com.au)

• The Prohibition of Psychedelics Burdens the Most Fundamental Right in the Grossest Way Possible (Andrew Joseph)

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.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

This Week in Psychedelics - 8.31.18

Cannabis

• Inside The Trump Administration’s Secret War On Weed (BuzzFeed News)
• Delaware: Governor Signs Marijuana Expungement Bill Into Law (NORML)
• Medicinal cannabis cultivation licence issued to East Coast business for first time (Newshub)
• Alarmed By Large Marijuana Purchases, Oregon Imposes Strict Temporary Limits (Marijuana Moment)
• Lawmakers In US Territory Send Marijuana Legalization Bill To Governor (Marijuana Moment)
• US Lawmakers Discuss Marijuana Legalization With New Mexican President’s Team (Marijuana Moment)
• Whole-Plant Marijuana ‘Entourage Effect’ Helps Patients More Than Purified CBD, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)
• 'Cannabis-Involved' Traffic Fatalities Fall in Colorado (Reason)
• Clean Slate Act To Seal Records Introduced To Congress (NORML)
• GOP Senator Pushes Back Against White House Anti-Marijuana Plans (Marijuana Moment)
• The White House Allegedly Has A Marijuana Smear Squad. Cannabis Experts Say Bring It On. (Forbes)
• Pediatrician Report Says Risk of Marijuana Use During Pregnancy Remains Uncertain (Reason)
• Canadian Voters Are Way More Worried About Donald Trump Than Marijuana Legalization (Marijuana Moment)
• Woman Charged for ‘Gifting’ Weed, Which Is Totally Legal in Massachusetts (Reason)
• Almost Half of Wisconsin Voters Will See Marijuana Ballot Questions In November (Marijuana Moment)
• Pot Topics: Illinois opioid patients may soon have medical cannabis alternative (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Push To Legalize Marijuana Consumption Spaces In Oregon Kicks Off (Marijuana Moment)
• 23andMe Data Suggests Cannabis Use Can Be Inherited—and Linked to Schizophrenia (Fortune)
• Brain scans show how cannabis extract may help people with psychosis (The Guardian)
• Vermont Democratic Party Calls For Marijuana Legalization Expansion (Marijuana Moment)
• Burners are stopping at Nevada's pot shops, taking the risk (Reno Gazette Journal)
• Where Florida’s Gubernatorial Candidates Stand On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)
• Big Alcohol moves in to dominate the cannabis market (Rooster Magazine)
• New York Lawmakers Announce Four Marijuana Legalization Hearings This Fall (Marijuana Moment)
• N.J. to resume minor marijuana prosecutions, but AG asks for discretion (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Cannabis Marketers Try To Crack The Compliance Code (Forbes)
• State Financial Regulators Push Congress To Fix Marijuana Banking Problems (Marijuana Moment)
• A Look At The Limitless Possibilities Of Drinkable Cannabis (Forbes)
• Cannabis in Spiritual Practice: Celebration of the Life Force (Reality Sandwich)
• Why Kim Kardashian's Favorite Hair Care Company Cancelled Its Line of CBD Products (Reason)
• Elizabeth Warren Falsely Claims She Endorsed Massachusetts Marijuana Legalization (Marijuana Moment)
• Cannabis Entrepreneurs Ask For More 'Science' (Forbes)
• Cannabis And Cancer (Psychedelic Heaven)
• Why is Homegrown Cannabis Federally Illegal? (Forbes)
• No, CVS Pharmacy Is Not Entering The California Marijuana Business (Marijuana Moment)
• With A Wave Of Consolidation, The Cannabis Industry Rises To The Next Level (Forbes)
• Is Aurora Cannabis Inc. a Buy? (The Motley Fool)
• Will Canadian Cannabis Producer Aphria Join The M&A Bandwagon? (Forbes)

LSD

• LSD Administered as a Single Dose Reduces Alcohol Consumption in C57BL/6J Mice (Frontiers in Pharmacology)
• On LSD at a 'Rainbow Gathering,' man strangled woman and bit someone's finger off (Bring Me The News)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Magic Mushrooms Break on Through to Biosynthetic Reality (GEN)
• FDA Approves Landmark Psilocybin Trial for Treatment-Resistant Depression (MD Magazine)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Dutch ecstasy, amphetamine production among world's largest (Deutsche Welle)
• Mum's horrific warning as 14-year-old son 'left to die' in street after taking 'MDMA' (Scottish Daily Record)

Ayahuasca/DMT/5-MeO-DMT

• Study Investigates Near-Death Experiences and Dimethyltryptamine (Psychedelic Times)
• Why Some Meth and DMT Users Are Using Vapes (VICE)
• British teen died after drinking ayahuasca with Colombian tribe (New York Post)
• Ayahuasca Freed Me From Chronic Depression and Suicidal Thoughts (Reset.me)
• 'Patients Say Ayahuasca Is Like a Reboot for the Brain' (Haaretz)

Peyote/San Pedro/Mescaline

• Peyote Veneration in Challenging Times: Issues of Land and Access in South Texas (Environment & Society Portal)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• Spice should be upgraded to Class A drug, say police and crime commissioners (The Independent)
• 'Fake MDMA' that keeps users awake for three days found in London for first time (Metro)
• 'UPS' pills being sold as MDMA can cause "extreme anxiety, paranoia and hallucinations" (Mixmag)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine May Ease Depression By Acting Like an Opioid, Study Suggests (TIME)
• Ketamine Offers Hope For Chronic Depression But Is Hard To Obtain (Ladybud)

Opiates/Opioids

• Huge North Carolina Fentanyl Bust Turns Out To Be 13 Pounds of Sugar (Reason)
• Mexicans Urge Legalizing Poppies to Weaken Drug Cartels (Latin American Herald Tribune)
• Mexico Congress receives initiative to legalize opium poppy (The Yucatan Times)
• Opioid crisis: breakthrough in hunt for non-addictive painkiller (The Guardian)
• Fentanyl for sale to UK users through Chinese websites (The Guardian)
• Beijing rejects Trump's claims that China is behind fentanyl crisis (CNN)
• Dozens sickened after exposure to heroin, fentanyl at Ohio, Pennsylvania prisons (NBC News)

Kratom

• Kratom proponents act as feds push to make it a controlled substance (KNOE)
• CU Kratom Critic: "We Don't Know If It Works or What the Proof Is" (Westword)
• Benefits and advantages of kratom powder (Augusta Free Press)

Kava

• Kava bar workers find a new home after striking out at Bushwick tea room (amNY)

Khat

• More than $124K In Khat Drug Seized At DFW International Airport (CBS Dallas / Fort Worth)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Study finds religion influences how you experience psychedelic drugs (PsyPost)
• Prison officials are blaming inmate letters soaked in K2 for making guards sick (VICE News)
• Psychedelic Psychotherapy Is Coming: Who Will Be Included? (Psychology Today)
• The overdose crisis, beyond opioids: Stimulants remain a huge and growing problem to smartly confront (New York Daily News)
• Here’s What Happens When a Few Dozen People Take Small Doses of Psychedelics (The Atlantic)
• Why Psychedelic Drugs Are Entering The World Of Psychiatry (GQ)
• The hidden world of underground psychedelic psychotherapy in Australia (ABC News)
• Beyond Psychedelics — Why Respectful Integration is the Key to Transformative Experiences (Live Learn Evolve)
• Fight Drug Abuse, Don't Subsidize It (The New York Times)
• Duterte's Deadly Drug War Targets a Catholic Priest (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 are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.