#drug-policy

#drug-policy

For more than 50 years, America's official position on marijuana has been seen as nonsensical. By classifying pot as a Schedule I drug, the federal government has lumped it with heroin and LSD as substances with "no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse." In 1972, two years after marijuana was relegated to the most restrictive category of drugs in America, a government report found that weed's "actual impact on society does not justify a social policy designed to seek out and firmly punish those who use it."

Yet it now seems that the biggest change to US federal drug policy for more than 50 years will happen through a Republican president. On Monday, Donald Trump confirmed the rumours that he is very strongly considering rescheduling cannabis (or marijuana, as it is still called in US state documents, due to an early-20th-century drive to emphasise the plant's foreignness) from Schedule I in the Controlled Substances Act where its currently sits alongside heroin to Schedule III, next to drugs such as codeine.

However, it didn't explain how previous prohibitionbased policies designed to reduce cannabis use have driven up the strength of street cannabis, the source of most cannabis for people with psychosis, thus making the problem worse.

The world's largest producer and exporter of cocaine doesn't know its own production. The figure exists, but no one can vouch for its accuracy. After nearly 20 years using the same methodology, Colombian President Gustavo Petro denounced its inaccuracy and decided not to release the numbers. The cocaine production figure, which has continued to rise, became a state secret. Four dubious digits that summarize a huge problem: Colombia lacks a reliable method for measuring one of the world's most profitable illegal businesses.

Cannabis has been part of human culture for thousands of years, woven into rituals, medicine, recreation, and trade across civilizations. While its roots can be traced back to ancient China, India, and the Middle East, the plant's global journey has been shaped by differing laws, cultural practices, and social attitudes. In today's world, cannabis is both one of the most controversial and celebrated plants-criminalized in some regions, normalized in others, and increasingly legalized for medicinal or recreational use.

Ortiz recalls being taught by his mother to always stand up for himself and not to take any bullying, which significantly influenced his activism.

Researchers investigating brain structures found that adolescents who eventually used drugs exhibited larger brain sizes prior to any substance use, indicating innate differences rather than direct causation from drug use.

In 2022, Thailand made history by becoming the first Asian country to remove marijuana from its illegal narcotics list, transforming its drug landscape.

Public health officials believe that opening a new help center for crack addicts in Frankfurt's Bahnhofsviertel could significantly help those suffering from addiction.

"We need drug policy to follow the science and reflect the reality on the ground in states across the country." - Ilhan Omar

"In President Trump's first 100 days we've seized over 22 million fentanyl laced pills, saving over 119 Million lives." - Attorney General Pamela Bondi

The total amount of cocaine seized in Germany in 2023 amounted to a record 43 tons, more than twice as much as in the previous year.

Reducing the funding for naloxone and overdose prevention sends the message that we would rather people who use drugs die than get the support they need and deserve, said Dr. Melody Glenn.