According to this reputable source, cocaine is more addictive than tobacco. Not exactly a shocking or enlightening finding, but important because it shows attention being paid in research to the strength of addiction, including how it can vary depending on the substance. Interesting stuff.
I just stumbled upon this excellent collection of Suntory Old whiskey advertisements. The commercials are the story of a father and daughter who are unable to communicate because they have nothing to say to each other and can only bond, it would seem, over two fingers of Suntory Old on the rocks. At the bottom of the page is a link to the “Oldies but Goodies,” a treasure trove of old print advertisements. The imagery is almost all tough men, cigarette planted firmly in their mouth, either wandering freely or drinking in a dark, wood paneled bar. I especially like this one:
I only know Malcolm Gladwell through his New Yorker writings, nothing against the popular books, I just don’t think I would enjoy them that much. I did however, recently discover his blog and these two great posts on performance enhancing drugs in professional sports. I enjoy watching and playing sports, but this leads to personal frustration at what Mr. Gladwell accurately calls the “intellectual sloppiness” behind the current movement to ban steroids and their numerous offspring from being used by professional athletes.
It is clear that Barry Bonds unnaturally altered his physique in order to hit more home runs and I think that was wrong. But at an intellectual level is it really that different from Tiger Woods getting laser eye surgery to improve his vision? I say no, but the larger issues to me is the hypocrisy surrounding the idea of purity in professional sports in the United States. Little is pure about baseball, football, or basketball in America. Yet they all rely heavily upon the illusion of purity and fairness in each game, and as a result Barry Bonds has been pursued with a venom and persistence usually reserved for war criminals while Tiger Woods was rewarded with his own line of crappy Gatorade.
I find myself watching sports less and less, not because I dislike them but because greed has eleminated any illusion of parity.
I am interested in the advertising of beer and other alcoholic beverages, and this link has a good collection of television commercials from Japan. But more than the ads themselves, I find the slogans used to pitch alcohol, beer especially, fascinating and anthropologically revealing. The commercial below is a few years old and selling Sapporo’s Draft One beer, which actually isn’t a beer but a happoshu, or malt liquor. Regardless, the slogan that appears at 0:19 reads “feels like drinking freedom”, REALLY!? Now, this is not freedom in the sense of patriotic love of one’s country, more like freedom from responsibility/work/deadlines/etc., but still! Drinking freedom, along with the professionally catered beach party and live band? No wonder everyone is so happy.
It seems that a paper on how allowing people to drink in commericals impacts upon viewers desire to drink is long overdue.
This interesting link contains a series of advertisements highlighting the healthy, restorative properties of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and other now illegal substances.
Cocaine toothache drops were no doubt very popular with the youngsters pictured in this advertisement.
I have mentioned this housing project for homeless alcoholics in Seattle several times before, but this recent news piece warrants another post. The housing complex has saved the taxpayers of Seattle $4 million in the last year, an impressive figure for a programs that continues to be mocked by some. The residents of 1811 are also living longer and drinking less, meaning that social programs designed with decency and a recognition that not everyone is going to get totally sober so criminalizing them is useless, are an effective method for treating addiction.
This is huge news. The New York Times reports that the US Justice Department will stop the Bush Administration policy of raiding medical marijuana farms and distributors. To an extend this means that marijuana is now legal, or at least quasi-legal, in 13 US States. What will happen now will be particularly interesting to watch. Does this signal a change in US drug policy away from the “war on drugs” towards something somewhat more realistic, or is it shifting scare resources to contain the drug motivated war taking place in parts of Mexico?
I hope it is a change in policy direction towards something, anything, different from those of the past, even if it means my state seeing a rapid influx of giggeling stoners.
He was Akira Kurosawa’s favorite actor and a pitch-man for Sapporo Beer in the 1970s. These images are interesting because the catchphrase translates as, “Men don’t speak! Sapporo Beer.” Implying that real men are the strong, silent type (who also smoke and drink beer in large gulps, holding the glass like they just got out of prison).
Below is another video for Tory’s Whiskey from the 1960s. This one is especially fascinating to me as the last word at the end says “A man’s drink”, clearly gendering whiskey and its consumption in Japan.
And like my previous post on Tory’s commericals, we see color returning to “Uncle Tory’s” face as he gets increasingly drunk.
The New York Times reports that increased ecstasy use in Brazil is shifting the dynamics of drug use and enforcement. The increase in ecstasy use is not surprising, evidence shows a resurgence in use among American youth lately as well, and Brazil’s economic growth at a time of global financial collapse means it is an appealing market for large-scale dealers. What the piece glosses over but I think is of greatest interest are the laws and regulations of illicit substances in Brazil. The demonization of drug dealers in film and other media outlets has lead to prison sentences longer in some instances than those issued for murder. Couple this with the elimination of prison terms for drug use and you have a fascinating blend of legal and social structures. What then does all of this mean for an nation of ever increasing global significance?
Obviously poverty has to factor into a discussion as the income disparity between favela residents and the expanding middle class remains crushingly significant. But what about media responsibility and sensationalized reporting? Recent Brazilian cinema that attracted a global audience, City of God and Elite Squad are examples, has turned a spotlight on drug trafficking by those in poverty and made heroes of the police who use brutal tactics to confront it, but have largely ignored the middle class drug consumers.
Perhaps ecstasy use patterns can change this perception and inspire work focussed on lessening the appealing of dealing by giving those in poverty in Brazil opportunity.
