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211

Colombia’s president: Legalize cocaine, it’s no worse than whiskey (www.politico.eu)

submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone to c/world@lemmy.world

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Colombian President Gustavo Petro said during a government meeting that cocaine is “not worse than whiskey” and that it's only illegal because it comes from Latin America.

Colombia, the world's largest producer and exporter of cocaine, has spent decades fighting drug trafficking, but the country's left-wing president claimed the drug was being scapegoated by American politicians, who have waged the war on drugs for decades.

“Cocaine is illegal because it is made in Latin America, not because it is worse than whiskey,” Petro said during a six-hour-long government meeting.

“Scientists have analyzed this: cocaine is not worse than whiskey,” he added, suggesting that the global cocaine industry could be “easily dismantled” if the drug was legalized worldwide.

The thing is, he's absolutely right. There was a suppressed 1995 study by the World Health Organization on cocaine and its effects. The US threatened to pull out of the WHO at the time since the findings didn't match US drug policy. Instead of losing the US, the WHO quietly shelved the study.

https://www.brucekalexander.com/articles-speeches/cocaine/181-who-cocaine-study

https://web.archive.org/web/20090618160146/www.tdpf.org.uk/WHOleaked.pdf

From the conclusions section:

A continuum can be identified for cocaine use, which includes:

experimental use

occasional use

situation-specific use

intensive use

compulsive/dysfunctional use

Experimental and occasional use are by far the most common types of use, and compulsive/dysfunctional is far less common. Compulsive or dysfunctional users often have serious relationship, work, legal and health problems.

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[–] Saleh@feddit.org 2 points 9 hours ago

Crack isn't a derivative of Cocaine. powdered Cocaine is typically the HCl salt. Crack is the free base, which makes it soluble for IV injection or smokeable. Because of the "direct" connection to the bloodstream it works much quicker and harder with a shorter duration. But it is the same active chemical compound.

As for recreational Cocaine use, i have witnessed many people falling into addiction w.o. realizing it. Typically it would go like this: Only at Festivals -> only in the club -> yeah birthday home party -> We are all very drunk at the bar, what if we call a dealer to extend the evening? -> i brought some to the bar already, so we don't have to find a dealer this time -> i'm bored at home...

Cocaine is especially dangerous in this regards because it is "smoother", the effects don't last as long as for other stimulants and in lower dosages it can go below the radar of people unfamiliar with drug use, whereas people on amphetamine are more easy to spot already from their physical appearance under the influence.