Dr. Gonzo

TD didn't hijack the thread, the thread had already evolved into a general discussion on drugs, their impact on society and how society deals with the drug question. The thread is about a former champion player addicted to drugs who has now been arrested. TD's post is well within those parameters.

It also reduces the amount of violent crime, by the users to fund their habit and by the pushers to maintain their turf. The problem is while certain governments are able to fund their covert wars through black budgets funded in part by the illicit drug trade there is no hope of decriminalisation on a large scale. It is also an extremely convenient method of depriving people of their civil rights on the basis of labelling them a "suspected drug user". The thing with keeping all "recreational" drugs prohibited is that humanity is also deprived of the many benefits that some of these substances could provide. Marijuana has so many benefits that are well documented that it is a crime to keep it illegal. The fact that research into other drugs such as psilocybin, LSD & MDMA is halted by the criminalisation of them has probably put psychiatry back decades. I am convinced that the guided and educated use of hallucinogens can help people with addictions or other minor mental "illnesses" (for lack of a better word) far better than current psychology/psychiatry and the drugs they peddle on behalf of companies like Pfizer which are far more dangerous and addictive than many prohibited substances.

It wouldn't surprise me if most of these drugs are developed by US intelligence/military related industries - they already feed their pilots (and probably other armed forces) "dextroamphetamine" i.e. speed to enable them to perform long missions at optimum level. Diet pills are also basically "speed" which suppresses a persons appetite. Drugs are everywhere and I agree that the issue needs to be addressed in an intelligent way rather than just illegal bad, legal good manner. I think what is being fed to us in our food and what is prescribed by GP's/psych's is of far greater importance, particularly when people either don't know what they are consuming or are relying on someone else's "expertise" to make the decisions for them.

Yeah I understand that and I'm not having a go at you, just using this as an example. Many kids are exposed to drugs by the age of 14-15 and are just as ill informed about making a decision. I know there were some kids in my school who had tried marijuana before they had even finished primary school. The problem is around education I agree but even that counts for nought sometimes when confronted by your peers and the invincibility of youth. Just saying drugs are bad and shouldn't be touched is counter-productive because once a kid tries marijuana at the age of 14 or 15 and realises there isn't much wrong with it and they are not going to die it increases the chances they will then try something a bit "harder" because they think, well if I was lied to about this drug they're probably lying about all drugs.

I see many people on here commenting that they have no empathy or compassion for Cousins for whatever reason - but they miss the point that this isn't about someone seeking public approval, empathy or compassion. This is a man (still young) who has personal demons to battle which is made even more difficult by being in the public eye and having an ego fuelled by too many slaps on the back and wry smiles from a young age because he can run and kick an inflated piece of leather. I don't see him out there pleading for your approval so why do people on here feel the need to use the opportunity for their self-righteous moralising and judgment? It really is egotistical of them Just to pick out one argument, RobbieF commented on having given up the drink but also stating he can't understand why someone would inject or swallow something that is potentially harmful. The fact is regardless of having now given up booze you did pick up a drink for the first time once so you would know exactly why someone would inject or swallw something that is potentially harmful. You were lucky enough that your drug of choice was easier to give up than some others which create a greater chemical dependence due to the foreign nature of the chemicals used to our biology. Some drugs the body absorbs and processes better than others for this reason which is why it is more difficult for someone on speed to go cold turkey than someone who is on weed or MDMA. This is a broader social issue but the facts coming in are that prohibition doesn't work. There are many reasons but taking this one in particular, question why does speed/meth even exist? It's a cheap, easy to make substitute for cocaine. If natural drugs like weed, opium, psilocybin, coca were decriminalised or god forbid legalised it would take out a massive market for other prohibited drugs which are more potent & more addictive and are used to fund violent gangsters, dictatorships and even coups, assassinations and terrorism of the CIA who is one of the biggest drug runners in the world. When the Afghan war started Afghan opium accounted for about 7% of world supply - it now makes up somewhere around 92%. Same thing happened during the Vietnam War. This is why drugs remain illegal and why the chances of them ever being decriminalised are slim to none while the current world order remains.

On one hand that's right - but I don't think he's really asking for anyone's compassion or understanding is he? Addiction is an illness, albeit one that is self-imposed. Everyone has their demons and it doesn't really matter what your background is. I doubt he had his first line thinking it would end up like it has the last few years. I can understand the judgments that get thrown around because at the end of the day the addicts problem is self-inflicted and s/he has control over his own destiny with every action he takes. But once you fall into the habit (and it is very much to do with habit as well as chemical dependence) it can be a very difficult cycle to break. Thats all well and good but there's a reason the "Just Say No" crowd and the drug war has failed. The fact is all drugs are different. Alcohol is one of the most destructive drugs around but it is legal. Caffeine and sugar are drugs that invade most processed foods that we consume in western society. Drugs like LSD and psilocybin have many beneficial uses if the user is educated about them. Meanwhile drugs like heroin and meth have no real benefits whatsoever though are highly addictive due to the euphoric feelings they give you immediately and which you keep chasing after the first hit looking to recreate that feeling. So you can tell your kids that drug users are stupid and they should just stay away as drugs are dangerous but what happens when they have a puff on a joint and realise that its relatively harmless? How do you reconcile the fact that alcohol & tobacco are both dangerous/deadly but legal while marijuana and MDMA are no worse (and in many cases better) but are illegal? This is why "Just Say No" doesn't work because kids are smart and quickly realise that it is [censored]. This doesn't mean you should condone your kids taking drugs or even tell them it's up to them or there are no dangers with drugs, but education is better than simply telling them all drugs are bad and deadly and drug users are stupid because odds are they will have at least one friend if not a number of friends who end up at least experimenting with drugs at some stage.

Wow what an insane game this morning great win to the 9ers thought they hadn't capitalised enough on the Saints early TO's but to come back with only a minute or so on the clock and score a touchdown when it looked certain that a FG would send it into OT was just crazy. Bit let down by the game afterwards but hopefully tomorrows games will have some more great action for us - just a pity the Jets aren't involved this year its not quite the same when you're watching from the sidelines.

Richie Vandenberg

Good call, I remember you making those comments.

I've seen the issue of "fitness" raised a few times now and watching games in 2011 I didn't need to be told - it was plain as day the players were either unfit or lazy. My thoughts are whether it is because they previous coaching staff/FD didn't push the players hard enough they weren't fit enough or is it because of the age of our list and the fact quite a few are only in their 2nd/3rd and have had limited pre-seasons to build up the fitness base. Someone like Morton is in his 5th year next year but how many pre-seasons has he done? Similar with guys like Watts, Jurrah, Blease etc

Exactly. Look at where that has gotten us in the past regarding "name players" like White, Yze, Robertson, Johnston getting picked week in, week out on reputation alone which was mainly built either early in their careers or against weaker opposition.