Subject: Brooks Pharmacy promulgates Drug War lies
From: [email-masked] (Sol Lightman)
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1993 19:28:43 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.drugs,alt.activism,misc.activism.progressive,alt.activism.d

The following pamphlet was obtained from a Brooks pharmacy.

I'm reproducing it here in its full form.  I will leave
the vivisection to alt.drugs.  For those of you who read
this pamphlet and say `so what's the big deal?,' I would
say your knowledge of illicit drugs and their effects is
severely deficient, and that you should make an effort to
educate yourself in this area.

After the pamphlet is a sample letter to your local Brooks drugs
store manager.  I encourage you to send one out.

I think that letters should also be sent to key bureaucrats in
the Brooks company.  These letters would have to be well researched,
and would basically outline what a pamphlet like this should say.

I've seen some excellent bits and peices floating around here
about responsible drug use and drug use safety.  This is the
kind of material that should be included.

If anyone wants to write or help write such a letter, mail me.

Brian

--
Parent Guide To Drug Abuse

Some facts about drugs and alcohol 
to help parents understand
as much as their children

Brooks Pharmacy
You'll like what we do for you

--

Parent Guide to Drug Abuse

How can you tell if your child is using drugs?

There are many early warning signs you can watch for if you think
your child may have a drug or alcohol problem.  Remember that
these simptoms can be indicators of other physical and emotional
problems and shouldn't be considered diagnostic or conclusive in
themselves.

o sudden appetite or loss of appetite
o neglect of personal appearance
o acting intoxicated
o redness of eyes
o wearing sunglasses at inappropriate times
o abnormally pale complexion
o change in speech patterns and vocabulary
o frequent, persistent illness, sniffles, cough
o change in sleep patterns, such as insomnia, oversleeping,
  frequent naps
o unexplained period or reactions of moodiness, irritability,
  hostility or depression
o over-reaction to criticism or simple requests
o lessening of accustomed family warmth
o preoccupation with self
o loss of interest in school, sports, hobbies
o lack of energy
o changes in friends; peer pressure is often a factor in drug and
  alcohol abuse
o secretive phone calls
o periods of unexplained absence from home
o disappearance of money or valued items from home

}}begin tirade
}}for (temper = spent) do
}}   Now  Hoooooooooooooooooolllllldd up!!!!
}}
}}  I know I said I wasn't going to chop this thing up,
}}  But I just had to express my RAGE AND FRUSTRATION
}}  With this all too common Drug War tactic.
}}
}}  I AM SICK OF TOLERATING THE DEMONIZATION OF
}}  DRUGS BY THE ESTABLISHMENT.  THIS IS A CRIME
}}  I DEEM ALMOST AS INSIDIOUS AS THE PERSECUTION
}}  OF THE JEW AND THE BLACK MAN.  WHAT THIS SECTION
}}  BASICALLY DOES IS TAKE ALL OF THE UNDESIRABLE
}}  TRAITS WHICH A CHILD CAN EXHIBIT AND EFFECTIVELY
}}  BLAME THEM ALL ON DRUGS.  THE SECONDARY EFFECT
}}  OF THIS TACTIC IS TO FORM AN UNJUSTIFIED STEREOTYPE
}}  OF THE DRUG USER.
}}
}}  IN THE WORDS OF FLAVOR-FLAV - I DON'T WANNA BE
}}  CALLED YO NIGGA!!!
}}  
}}  I AM NOT YOUR SCAPEGOAT!!!
}}
}}end tirade;  

--

Where to go for Help

If you suspect your child of drug or alcohol abuse above all
don't panic.  Remain as calm as possible.  There are numerous
resources and agencies to help you decide the best way to deal
with the problem.  Some of them are:

Your physician
Hospital stress/crisis center
Local mental health center
State Agency for Drug Abuse Prevention
Your church
Your school
Alcoholics Anonymous
Al-Anon
Local parents groups

Some other sources of information:

American Council for Drug Education
6193 Executive Blvd.
Rockville, MD 20852
1-301-984-5700

National Federation of Parents
for Drug-Free Youth
1820 Franwell Avenue
Room 16
Silver Spring, MD 20902

PRIDE
Robert Woodruff Building
Volunteers Service Center
Suite 1216
100 Edgewood Avenue
Atlanta GA 30303

The Pyramid Project
Pacific Institute for Research & Evaluation
3746 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
Suite 200
Lafayette, CA 94549

Toll-Free Numbers:

Cocaine Hot-Line: 1-800-262-2463

National Federation of Parents for Drug-Free Youth:
1-800-554-5437

National Institute on Drug Abuse: 1 -800-638-2045

Pyramid: 1-800-227-0438

PRIDE: 1-800-241-9746

--

Parent Guide to Drug Abuse

There is probably nothing more frightening to parents than the
thought of dealing with drug or alcohol problems in their family,
specifically with their children.  It appears that there are no
hard and fast answers to prevention; drug problems plauge
families of all types.

Drug trafficking in the United States is big business - over $80
billion annually.  So, how does a parent prepare for the problem?

Prevention, of course, is the answer that begins with early
education, both of parents and of children.  If prevention
doesn't work, early detection is critical.  Identified in its
early stages, drug and/or alcohol use or dependence can be
eliminated, without long-tern negative effects.

The following information will help you, as a parent, understand
the dangerous effects of drug and alcohol abuse, and to make you
more capable in preventing or identifying use.

Drug Abuse

In adolescence, drug abuse is the use of any chemical substance,
legal or illegal, not prescribed by a physician, which causes
mental, physical, emotional, or social harm to a person close to
him/her.

All drugs can be harmful.  Multiple drug use is very common. 
Greater risks are taken when a combination of drugs are taken.

Alcohol

Ethyl alcohol, a depressant, is the active ingredient in wine,
beer and all liquors.  The alcohol content in one beer, one glass
of wine, or one shot of liquor is the same.  Over 3 million teens
in this country are alcoholics and the average beginning age for
drinking is 12.5 years.  Alcohol interferes with learning and
social adaptation, impairs judgment and increases risk taking.

Chronic alcohol abuse is the leading cause of diseases of the
liver, pancreas, brain, peripheral nerves, red blood cells.  It
also increases the risk of infection, is the leading cause of
birth defects, and is able to act as a carcinogen (cancer causing
agent).

Alcohol is an addictive drug which can cause a physical
dependence after prolonged use.

Other Depressants (``Downs'')

Depressants are drugs which depress the functions of the brain
and central nervous system.  They are taken in tablet or capsule
form.

Barbiturates: sedatives or drugs which make you sleepy.  Although
these drugs are prescribed by doctors for a few medical
conditions, they are among our biggest drug abuse problems. 
Twice as many people die from overdoses of barbiturates as from
overdoses of heroin.  Barbiturates cause mental confusion,
dizziness, and loss of memory... conditions which can cause
people to forget how many pills they've taken.  Mixing
barbiturates with alcohol can be very dangerous, and is a
frequent cause of accidental death.  Barbiturates are very
addictive and withdrawal from them can cause medical emergency -
fear, restlessness, convulsions, even death.

Common names for barbiturates include: Seconal ("red devils"),
Nembutal ("yellow jackets"), Amytal ("blue heavens"), Luminal
("purple hearts"), Tuinals ("rainbows") or Quaaludes ("ludes").

Narcotics

Narcotics act much like barbiturates.  They are derived from
opium or can also be made synthetically.  Narcotics are mainly
used in medicine as pain killers.  They make people both
physically addicted and mentally dependent.

Opium: a white powder from the unripened seed of the poppy plant. 
It can be eaten, but is usually smoked in a pipe or mixed with
marijuana.

Morphine: extracted from opium, it is one of the most strong,
medically used pain killers and is strongly addictive.

Heroin: a strongly addictive drug prepared from morphine. 
Outlawed even from medical use, heroin creates a temporary high
and is always addictive.  The great need for heroin often leads
to personal desperation and crime in an effort to get money to
buy this expensive, illegal drug.  Heroin can be sniffed,
injected under the skin or into a vein.

Stimulants

These drugs stimulate the nervous system, making people more
active, alert, and nervous.  They relieve drowsiness and disguise
the effects of fatigue and exhaustion.  Regular use makes people
irritable and overactive.  The stronger stimulants produce
temporary euphoria.  They are not physically addictive but can
produce a psychological dependence or craving.  Withdrawal
Symptoms are depression and headaches.

Amphetamines (Speed): taken in tablet or capsule form, or
injected into the bloodstream.  They produce a decreased sense of
fatigue, increase in confidence, talkativeness, restlessness, and
an increased feeling of distrust of people and amphetamine
psychosis (a serious mental illness in which the user loses
contact with reality).  This psychosis sometimes continues long
after the person stops taking the drug.

Cocaine: derived from cocoa leaves, this white powder is sniffed,
liquefied and injected or smoked (free-basing).  Cocaine produces
a fast and powerful feeling of elation.  Long term snorting can
cause sleepiness, anxiety and delusions and can irritate the
nostrils, throat and sinuses.  Smoking allows cocaine to reach
the brain faster than snorting, but does not allow the user as
much control over how much is absorbed into the body.  Therefor,
smoking increases the chances for severe emotional reactions. 
Although rare, cocaine can cause death.

Psychedelics

Mind altering substances which change a person's perception of
surroundings.  They produce hallucinations and delusions.

Marijuana: the crushed and chopped leaves from the hemp plant. 
Smoked in cigarettes (joints) or pipe, marijuana can produce a
giddy feeling like drunkenness, change in perception or mood,
feelings of well-being or fear, and possibly hallucinations. 
Commonly called ``grass'' or ``pot,'' marijuana contains the
chemical THC and 421 other identified chemicals.  Marijuana can
cause overstimulated heart, chest pain, chronic bronchitis, loss
of immune cells, cancer risk, brain damage, impaired performance,
reduced respiratory resistance, sinusitis, pharyngitis,
asthma, reproductive damage, and genetic damage.

One in 10 high school seniors smoke pot daily.  The strength of
THC in marijuana has increased from 1 to 4%.  When a person mixes
pot and alcohol, he/she is more likely to suffer alcohol
poisoning because marijuana suppresses the vomit impulse in the
brain.  Studies also show that there is a definite decrease in
performance skills four to six hours after intake, thereby
effecting driving skills.  In addition, because marijuana is fat
soluble, one joint has a 1/2 life of 7 days and takes 4-6 weeks
to be metabolized out of the body system.

Hashish (Hash): also prepared from the hemp plant and smoked in a
pipe or eaten.  It is more powerful than marijuana.

LSD (Acid): the best known and most powerful mind-changer.  An
amount too small to be seen with the naked eye can cause
disorientation for up to 12 hours.  Reactions to LSD are
extremely unpredictable... distortion in time and space, brighter
colors, vivid sounds, feeling of strangeness, a sense of beauty
in common objects, sometimes fear and panic, sometimes psychosis.

DMT: a power psychedelic prepared as a powder or liquid.  It is
usually injected into the vein or smoked with marijuana in
``joints.''

Psilocybin: comes from a mushroom and less potent than LSD, it
takes a larger dose to produce the same effect.

Peyote: from the peyote cactus, it causes strong visual effects.

Mescaline: also from the peyote cactus.  It is stronger than
peyote itself.

STP: laboratory-produced hallucinogen.  Its effects can last up
to three days.

PCP (``Hog'' or ``angel dust''): animal tranquilizers.  Its
effects can include a feeling of numbness in the arms and legs,
and hallucinations.  Sprinkled in tobacco or marijuana cigarettes
or taken in capsules, PCP can create a temporary psychosis very
much like acute schizophrenia.  It often leads to paranoia and
has been linked to serious violence.

--

This brochure is part of a series focusing on health and better
living, provided as a public service by Brooks Drug, Inc.

Brooks Pharmacy

You'll like what we do for you

400-39    #0201129 SP50

--

Dear Brooks Manager,

   Recently I read a pamphlet which your Pharmacy distributes,
and I was rather disappointed with the contents.  The pamphlet
is entitled "Parent Guide to Drug Abuse."  It contains many
inaccuracies about several illicit drugs.
   The most flagrant example is in the section on marijuana.
The pamphlet states, in no uncertain terms, that marijuana
causes brain damage, genetic damage, destruction of immune 
system cells, damage to the reproductive system, and asthma.  
Marijuana does none of these things.  Neither has it been
proven that marijuana use results in chronic bronchitis, 
impaired performance, cancer risk, or reduced respiratory
resistance, which the pamphlet also claims.
   Needless to say, a pharmacy should not publish fallacies 
and scientific inaccuracies.  I was certainly not impressed by 
your professionalism and scientific integrity upon reading 
this publication.
   In the area of treatment of drug abuse, the pamphlet was
adequate, though caution should be taken to ensure the quality
of the institutions which were recommended to families seeking
help with a drug abuse problem.
   However, the pamphlet was totally negligent in 
distinguishing between responsible drug use and drug abuse.
I realize that this is because you do not want it to appear 
that your pharmacy condones illicit drug use, but you should
think of your customers.  It is irresponsible to give families
the impression that all drug use is abuse, and many problems
can and have been caused by worried parents rushing their 
children off to centers for treatment which they simply do not
need.  In many cases the treatment has even proved to be 
damaging and destructive!
   Also, the pamphlet offers no advice at all for harm 
reduction.  Many steps can be taken to limit the detrimental
effects of drug abuse.  In the case of marijuana, proper
consumption techniques through the use of water-pipes can
greatly reduce risks of throat damage.  In the case of any
of the psychedelic drugs, the family can work to provide a
proper set and setting for the user to take his drug.  This
not only reduces the risk of psychotic episodes, but also will
serve to bring back a loving sense of family unity -- the
single most important factor in helping a drug abuser to
recover.
   Again, you should think of your customer first.  It may
seem attractive to remain in step with federal drug control
efforts, but you are hurting your consumers.  More than 
sixty million Americans use illicit drugs.  I am sure that
they do not appreciate being slandered.  I encourage you to 
live up to your slogan by taking the lead in family drug 
education -- please remove the pamphlet and replace it with 
something more accurate and useful.

                                             Sincerely,

--
The University of Massachusetts at Amherst                |  _________,^-.
Cannabis Reform Coalition                               ( | )           ,>
S.A.O. Box #2                                            \|/           {
415 Student Union Building                              `-^-'           ?     )
UMASS, Amherst MA 01003      [email-masked]  |____________  `--~ ;
                                                                       \_,-__/ 
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