United States on the nod

[malchior]

I figured I'd spin up a opioid thread in light of the Washington Post/60-minutes report on how the drug companies lobbied to improve the flow of pain pills to market last year.

It sank the Marino drug czar nomination this morning which is astonishing considering that this administration throws the middle-finger at reasonable. It is exposing an increasingly corrupt drug industry. It was a fantastic report in many ways. One takeaway though is this is yet another example of how Citizen's United may have helped to break this country. The drug companies were free to target individuals for "donations" and were able to successfully grease this bill through Congress right into front of the whole establishment.

It is also a sad example about how corrupt and morally bankrupt our country has become even when it wasn't being run by an imbecile. It really is making me think about how bad everything is. A subset of the rich are killing people, reaping huge windfalls, and complaining about being taxed on those profits. We have really hit rock bottom and I wonder if we will wake up and take back our country from these sociopaths.

Beyond that in normal times I would hope this marks a turning point in the crisis. However we have a fucking moron in charge and the sociopaths are still running the show. I have my doubts this will get better sooner but one can only pray it does.

[Carpet_pissr]

Infuriating. And completely unsurprising.

[LawBeefaroni]

Well, being backed by the drug companies means that we don't get another War on Drugs backed by private prisons and law enforcement procurement. So there's that.

My CPR certification last year included demonstrating the ability to handle Naxalone administration intravenously. Now there's a nasal spray. A nasal spray.

[malchior]

Yeah the nasal spray is crazy. The towns around me are buying them in droves and just giving them to every entity you can think of that might have contact with an OD.

[Max Peck]

Well, being backed by the drug companies means that we don't get another War on Drugs backed by private prisons and law enforcement procurement. So there's that.

It just means that War on Drugs II wouldn't target the suppliers. Profit-driven prisons could still be filled up with dealers and mules and users, just like the original War on Drugs.

[LawBeefaroni]

Well, being backed by the drug companies means that we don't get another War on Drugs backed by private prisons and law enforcement procurement. So there's that.

It just means that War on Drugs II wouldn't target the suppliers. Profit-driven prisons could still be filled up with dealers and mules and users, just like the original War on Drugs.

You can't declare war on the white middle class. Well, besides economically.

[Daehawk]

No this time they prosecute doctors and care givers. Its why being in pain since a teenager is now worse because getting my meds is almost impossible and what I do get is 1/4th of what I did. Doctors now tell people with fused backs, fibromyalgia to try yoga or think it away with your mind because the Gov is killing them and us. I might as well fuse a permanent condom to my ass because all the gov does is like to stick their dicks in my ass and threaten my doctors. Im in more pain than ever since having to find a new doctor because my last one got fed up and left.

As some countries have I think all drugs should be fully legal. Just legalize them all. The dumb will weed themselves out while those who need help will get it. The tighter the gov clamps down and the hard they lash out the higher the death rate goes up.

[Rip]

As some countries have I think all drugs should be fully legal. Just legalize them all. The dumb will weed themselves out while those who need help will get it. The tighter the gov clamps down and the hard they lash out the higher the death rate goes up.

Agree.

[Daehawk]

I mighta been hasty in simply lumping people as dumb. The more they try and save me and thereby hurt me I can actually see why they turn to the street for help. Opiates work where other stuff does not work. If I have to find a new doctor I just dont see how I could do that in this time the way things are and I cannot function in the pain I have. Wife is even worse.

[malchior]

Trump's emergency declaration? It doesn't exist - they are scrambling to put it together now like a student when a term paper is due and they've been doing drugs all semester. What a way to runruin a country.

[Smoove_B]

The crisis is so much larger than we're acknowledging and I fear it's going to be a decade or more before we manage to figure it out. The damage done over the last 15+ years has been enormous. The idea that Trump would open his mouth and make an off-the-cuff claim that he has a plan when in fact there's literally nothing on tap (because there's no one in the government currently in place to address it) is hi-fucking-larious.

[gameoverman]

You can't declare war on the white middle class. Well, besides economically.

That's the part that bothers me about this whole opiate hysteria, it's a 'problem' facing the country. When it was drugs in minority communities then it was about crime. Lock up dealers and users, they're scumbag criminals, problem solved! Now? The President is supposed to come up with a plan to fix this, this is a healthcare issue, communities should have resources to save people from overdosing. Total hypocrisy.

I also support the idea of legalizing every drug. Make people aware of things, ala the warning on cigarettes, then let them have at it. It'll bankrupt the billionaire drug barons for one thing. Not a lot of people make billions illicitly selling beer since any adult can buy beer just about anywhere. Those who truly need the drugs will have easy access and low cost access. Those who merely want to partake can do so just as easily as they do now, but it'll cost less. Those who are addictive types will at least have a source for controlled dosages of whatever floats their boat. Meanwhile we can start reducing the ridiculous number of people we have in prison for stupid drug related offenses, so we'll have more space for the people who should be in prison.