The 1961 U.N. Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs
In 1961, in an effort to incorporate the discovery and growing use of synthetic opioids such as methadone, as well as cannabis and drugs with similar effects that were not a part of previous treaties, the U.N. developed the Single...
A Short History of Cocaine
In the early 1500s, the Italian explorer, Amerigo Vespucci, introduced Europeans to the Inca’s use of coca leaves. The Andean region’s indigenous cultures had been chewing the leaf for centuries as a remedy to alleviate hunger, fatigue and sadness. While...
The Baby Boomers’ Counterculture and a New Era for Drug Policy
Drug use in the U.S. and its policy response took a decidedly marked turn in the late 1960s driven largely by the baby boomer counter culture. The growing prosperity of the 76 million most educated generation to-date along with their...
Policy Alternatives and the Debate – Overview
Amid the debate for drug policy reform, much confusion surrounds the terms legalization, depenalization, decriminalization, and even harm reduction. Each is different and must be properly understood in order to implement suitable drug policies. Harm reduction generally refers to policies...
Drug Use and Crime Overview
Recreational use itself of any drug may not lead someone to damage his life or those around him, but all addiction begins with seemingly innocent occasional use. Yet, it is not only the user who becomes an addict –approximately 10%...
Modern Cocaine Use
Unfortunately, America’s collective memory from its first experiences with cocaine addiction would fade into the recesses of history. Decades later in the 1970s when the U.S. drug culture was flourishing, mostly through marijuana and less so with LSD, cocaine’s sudden...