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Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

theatlantic.com

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Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#151

Post by Semaphor »

elohesra wrote: post #56
chimeracoder wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> And even in the areas where people are creating safer alternatives (e-cigarettes), there are politicians nearby ready to use their banhammers. I don't think this ("banhammers") is a fair comparison. To my knowledge, most if not all of the major regulation regarding e-cigarettes is around restricting the sale to minors or restricting the areas in which they can be used, as opposed to a blanket ban on the sale or pos…

> All of that is analogous to existing regulation regarding cigarettes But this is why e-cigarette campaigners say that politicians are just meddling out of personal distaste, rather than any scientific backing. The two core reasons why cigarettes cannot be smoked indoors are: 1) Doing so (potentially) causes deleterious effects to people who inhale the second-hand smoke. At the very least, it can be agreed that it's…

> which emit harmless water vapour

Considering how few e-liquids contain water…

The base is usually vegetable glycerin [0] and/or propylene glycol [1], sometimes a low amount of distilled water or alcohol is added (I think up to 10%; usually with glycerin to lower it's viscosity) and finally food-grade flavours for taste. And of course nicotine in varying amounts from usually 0-36 mg/ml (36mg being rather rare in EU but I heard vapers in the US sometimes go that high)

Harmless is a very strong word. The Clearstream study [2] concluded that it "could be more unhealty to breath air in big cities compared to staying in the same room with someone who is vaping.", which is great but wouldn't make me use the word "harmless".

As a vaper for over 2y now after being a smoker for 8y, I obviously disagree with regulating vaping the same way smoking is, but imo we need some kind of regulation, sadly, as people are idiots. There is everything from Chinese liquids of strongly varying degrees of quality (that was the problem with the 2009 FDA study) to people who think they can just blow huge clouds in restaurants.

My personal policy is not to vape at all where people are eating and anywhere else indoors, unless it's specifically vaper friendly, to stealth vape (a technique where you inhale deeply and breathe out slowly, avoiding visible vapour).

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycerol

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propylene_glycol

[2] [PDF] http://clearstream.flavourart.it/site/wp-content/uploads/201...

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#152

Post by zmonkeyz »

collyw wrote: post #76
chc wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The idea that anybody you'd label an "entrepreneur" can pull money out of thin air legally, without any capital, without any connections and without working for anyone else is rather peculiar.

Is the American dream not based on that?

Pretty much.

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#153

Post by 12345432143422 »

jlgaddis wrote: post #4
mabbo wrote: post #3

It's become obvious that laws can't stop drugs. Imagine a world where the level of convenience described here was normal, but without the bullshit. No more money wasted on police trying to stop it. No sales to minors (at least, no more than cigarettes and alcohol have now). Taxes on income by drugs dealers (Colorado is showing a hell of a windfall). Reliability and safety in quality, so that you get exactly what you…

> We might even get there soon. I don't think the country, as a whole, will, but I do believe the more liberal areas will get there much quicker (as we're already seeing). I live in Indiana, the only state where one cannot buy alcohol on a Sunday. I don't think marijuana is gonna be legal here anytime in the near future.

The only state? News to me, as a Minnesota resident.

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#154

Post by Myrmornis »

CocaKoala wrote: post #118
stakecounter wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wasn't trying to be pedantic. I probably should've been more direct but what I mean is that it's a disservice to the article to distinguish alcohol from all other recreational drugs like that. The way it's worded makes it sound like alcohol is not a drug at all, which opens up people's minds into treating the two differently even though one literally IS the other.

The article talks about drug dealers. Unless you call the cashier at the local liquor store your dealer (and you're super weird if you do that; don't do that), it seems exceedingly clear from context that they're referring to illegal drugs. Blatantly ignoring contextual clues like that is obnoxious at best.

Wow, wtf? Why are you guys downvoting [username-redacted]? Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer. You do realize the USA is not the only country in the world right, and that the USA is leading the world in cannabis legalization variously across different jurisdictions in the USA? Which drugs fall in the illegal set and which fall in the legal set depends on jurisdiction. Just because your mom and pop told you that drugs were bad, doesn't mean your mom and pop were expert ontologists / semanticists. "Drugs" includes alcohol and MDMA and cannabis. "Illegal drugs" depends on jurisdiction. I'm surprised computer programmers are having trouble with this.

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#155

Post by DonGateley »

MichaelGG wrote: post #101
wmeredith wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're probably right. One of the most interesting things about heroin is that there are no long term negative side effects other than the addiction itself. This is as opppsed to something like meth that will make your teeth fall out with regular use. All the pitfalls of heroin addiction are socioeconomic. I'm sorry for your loss.

Constipation and weakening of bowel can be quite inconvenient side effects of opiate use. Methamphetamine is also fairly safe (mainly psychosis and heart issues right?). Teeth falling out is more of a result of people tweaking for days without taking care of themselves. After all, methamphetamine is a Schedule II, prescribed, commercial medication.

Teeth falling out is more a consequence of smoking its hydrochloride. The vapor condenses to hydrochloric acid which has a predictable effect on teeth.

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#156

Post by corin_ »

Myrmornis wrote: post #154
CocaKoala wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The article talks about drug dealers. Unless you call the cashier at the local liquor store your dealer (and you're super weird if you do that; don't do that), it seems exceedingly clear from context that they're referring to illegal drugs. Blatantly ignoring contextual clues like that is obnoxious at best.

Wow, wtf? Why are you guys downvoting [username-redacted]? Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer. You do realize the USA is not the only country in the world right, and that the USA is leading the world in cannabis legalization variously across different jurisdictions in the USA? Which drugs fall in the illegal set and which fall in the legal set depends on jurisdiction . Just because your mom and pop told…

Scientifically alcohol is a drug, culturally it isn't called that. Even go somewhere where people don't drink and they wouldn't use the term "drugs" as an umbrella to include alcohol.

> "Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer."

Yes, technically correct, but just like jschmitz28 it's incredibly pedantic. The phrase "drug dealer" isn't used to mean "someone who technically sells drugs", it's used to mean "someone who sells illegal recreational drugs". In this case the mom and pop version is what absolutely everyone uses.

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#157

Post by akavi »

josefresco wrote: post #42
peterwwillis wrote: post #21

It's funny that they didn't interview any actual neighborhood-dealers. The people sitting on the corner slinging dope have a much more dangerous job than people with clientele who are discreet and wealthy. I suppose it's because they're perceived as so dangerous that reporters never talk to them. But ask a corner man his life story and he'll tell you about serving time, getting shot, and paying off cops to stay alive…

"actual neighborhood-dealers" Actual neighborhood-dealers in my neighborhood are more like the one depicted in the article, than the "corner" style inner-city dealers you see in movies and on TV. They might not be hustling around NYC selling to business people in office buildings, but they aren't "on the corner" packing a gun and paying off cops either.

"Corner" style inner-city dealers definitely still exist.

If you're in SF, walk by the corner of Turk and Leavenworth and you'll have quite a few entrepreneurs of a different sort offering you "Roxies and Ps" or "Chiva".

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#158

Post by Myrmornis »

corin_ wrote: post #156
Myrmornis wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wow, wtf? Why are you guys downvoting [username-redacted]? Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer. You do realize the USA is not the only country in the world right, and that the USA is leading the world in cannabis legalization variously across different jurisdictions in the USA? Which drugs fall in the illegal set and which fall in the legal set depends on jurisdiction . Just because your mom and pop told…

Scientifically alcohol is a drug, culturally it isn't called that. Even go somewhere where people don't drink and they wouldn't use the term "drugs" as an umbrella to include alcohol. > "Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer." Yes, technically correct, but just like jschmitz28 it's incredibly pedantic. The phrase "drug dealer" isn't used to mean "someone who technically sells drugs", it's used to mean "some…

> Even go somewhere where people don't drink and they wouldn't use the term "drugs" as an umbrella to include alcohol.

Ah, interesting, I didn't know that. How many muslim cultures and languages are you familiar with?

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#159

Post by elohesra »

vertex-four wrote: post #102
elohesra wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I cannot cope with the smell of e-cigarettes Okay, fair enough. Have you tried asking the vapers if they would mind not smoking them indoors? I know I've stopped doing so in confined conference rooms after a coworker commented that they didn't like the smell. I appreciate it sucks that vaping is just one more thing which intrudes on your personal space and freedoms, but so do so many things at the office, from peop…

> Have you tried asking the vapers if they would mind not smoking them indoors? Yes. Unfortunately, some people do not seem to care about others, especially when they see what they're doing as "harmless". There seems to be a certain militancy among some vapers that doesn't exist around most other things.

Wow, arseholes. It's hard to recommend any course of action really, because I can't think of any coworkers I've ever had who'd refuse a reasonable request like that. I guess I'd offer to buy them some flavoured nicotine gum and ask them to try that for a while?

Re: Your Friendly Neighborhood Drug Dealer

#160

Post by corin_ »

Myrmornis wrote: post #158
corin_ wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Scientifically alcohol is a drug, culturally it isn't called that. Even go somewhere where people don't drink and they wouldn't use the term "drugs" as an umbrella to include alcohol. > "Of course a local liquor store is a drug dealer." Yes, technically correct, but just like jschmitz28 it's incredibly pedantic. The phrase "drug dealer" isn't used to mean "someone who technically sells drugs", it's used to mean "some…

> Even go somewhere where people don't drink and they wouldn't use the term "drugs" as an umbrella to include alcohol. Ah, interesting, I didn't know that. How many muslim cultures and languages are you familiar with?

That's my experience when people are speaking English, whether first language or not, in other languages I have no idea.
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