Thetownend.com

Just saw on news 60 arrests in Swindon today was that your mum?

No wonder it's quiet on here...

I wonder why Big Sven wasn't about when I went to get my Benilyn fix.

Not just drugs.
Immigration van down manny rd earlier too

If you on twitter follow wilts police, loads of door smashing pics , dogs waiting to go in premises and convoys of old bill plus seized stuff.
Nice to see them doing something

But you and I both know, this is little more than a cosmetic exercise...the culprits will be bailed back to the streets pronto, and then let off with a 100 hours of "community" work. There can be no victory in the "war on drugs"

There might be no victors, but there's plenty of losers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXUqJC3rXV0#t=23

Well someone is a bit poorer tonight

I wondered why there were so many police in Lyneham this morning. And now I know.

They can't be that clever as I never even got a knock at the door.

Neither can you as the NSA has traced your TEF IP address and passed it onto Wiltshire Police.

Unless our friend is e-mail and mobile free, then GCHQ with the help of the NSA, will have a tidy amount on record. Probably too small time to bother with.

That me fucked then, best to go out on a high, adiós. 

They will only get 200 hours community service if they bother to turn up in court!!  How many times do you read that ************** has been bailed to return on a certain date and just does a runner and disappear.

It's a good point....I've often wondered what the community work involves, because it's very difficult to detect any discernible value from it....you'd think that litter picking and graffiti cleaning might be 2 areas, that could be useful, but the town still seems to be covered in litter and scrawl.

Crack and Heroin busts so I doubt it'll affect many on here

Awwwww nooooo!

Some of us are still trying to get over Operation Julie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPMsaxqiL5Q

I tried crack once.

It was REALLY fucking strong. Even for somebody that was a regular user of numerous substances at the time I found myself having to sit down feeling quite ill until the initial rush passed. No doubt the rush would have become less obnoxious with further usage but I had no desire to pursue it and settled with coke and E's instead.

Courts come down hard on drug sellers usually. Compared to violence and thefts their sentences are much higher.
I loved smoking crack but didn't do it regularly. Fucking lovely drug imo.
Drew the line at heroin and aint tried the modern stuff that's about. The odd line of coke is my limit nowadays.

I'm staggered people need drugs in their lives.

There's a difference between needing and enjoying. Drugs can be lots and lots of fun*

Do you enjoy a beer 4D?. If so then by your logic you 'need' beer!


*Of course I'm aware some people become addicted. That doesn't mean to say that other user 'need' them.

I do need beer.  :)

I have never taken an illegal drug in my life

Ha.

You know the point I am making though?

If there was a post of the year contest it should end right now because this is the funniest thing I've read in ages.

I so expected the last word to be more-ish.

In fact I often picture Flashheart to be a bit like Superhans.

I don't agree with drugs but I understand what you're saying.

I know what I was trying to say ;)

My experience with crack with was not a pleasant one as the rush was all a bit too much. Feeling ill with the room spinning is not my idea of a good time. Clearly I took too big of a hit, especially for a first time user, but first impressions do last and it since then it had been something I've not been particularly eager to try again.

Legalities or a perception that they're scary and fuck your life up (not saying the latter isn't necessarily true)?

I know a lot of people will say drugs are fine,  they chill you out,  alcohol causes more social problems blah blah. The fact of the matter some drugs cause a dependency and can lead to crime and death.

Bit like alcohol then?

 :pint:

Even more so. I would have thought most A & E's would confirm this.

Are you Alan partridge?

Surely the same is true of alcoholism but, because it is socially accepted, we tend to be blissfully ignorant of it...

Brilliant.

and easily taxable

Ok then,  it's pretty sad that people need to drink,  take drugs etc to have a good time.

No

Aha!

Presumable you don't drink coffee or take paracetamol then? Grow up.

That's a sensible comparison. Grow up? I think you might want to take a long look at yourself.

Why do you think some substances are illegal and others aren't,  do you think the powers that be, scientists etc have less understanding than the bloke on the street? 

Have you ever taken drugs yourself 4D?

I'm in healthcare and I have to be honest that I have seen far more damage to people who are alcohol dependent than those who are on hard drugs

I've had a cup of coffee this morning.  :)

It's quite an expansive subject that everyone will have an opinion on. My opinion is that globally drugs do more harm than good, or if they didn't exist would the world find something else to destroy itself?

I've had the odd spliff now and again, and had a good time with some mushrooms once, but other than I'm not really 'into' taking drugs. Then again I don't begrudge people their own choices. If you want to do that shit, go ahead.

Booze is a more sneaky, pernicious drug than, say, Heroin. I've seen the effects of both long-term on people and whilst heroin is more 'hardcore' lets say, its effect is more immediately obvious than alcohol, whose long-term effects aren't really studied hard enough because the government and alcohol industry make too much money from not caring. Not that I'm saying we should ban booze, fuck no, I NEEDS IT.

Most of the major problems with illegal drugs come about because unscrupulous people out to make a quick buck get involved. Criminals running a supply chain is never a good idea- not everybody is as 'nice' as Walter White.

In the interests of balance surely the percentage of those who regularly drink is far greater than those who take hard drugs?

Even though the world may be a better place without recreational drugs, the fact remains that they do exist and will continue to exist for as long as there is a demand. People can say till they are blue in the face that drugs are bad but it is impractical and ineffective. If somebody is curious and wants to experiment then they will.

A blanket approach of 'drugs are bad, mmmkay' is really quite naive. Drugs do have their merits even if the merits are outstripped by their dangers. I don't think it's sad that people use drugs to have fun because they really can be lots and lots of fun. What is sad is that dependencies can develop along with other negative effects. Maybe with a more pragmatic approach to drugs the numbers of people that are harmed by them can be reduced. As somebody has already alluded to, moving the supply chain from the criminal element could be a good start.

I'm glad you brought that up. Most scientists agree with me. Here is the result of 5 seconds of googling:

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/nov/17/british-drug-policy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Nutt

You are the one who has no clue what you are talking about, and I'm the one with first hand experience. I say again, grow up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:HarmCausedByDrugsTable.svg

The governemt sacked their expert becasue they didn't agree with his findings...

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2009/nov/02/david-nutt-alan-johnson-drugs?guni=Article:in%20body%20link

Something me and my mates posited back at school was the idea of our annual 'drugs are bad mmmm'kay?' 'drug day' being just that. A day where we were allowed to take drugs in a safe environment to see their effects and understand them better.

Obviously thinking about it now giving drugs to schoolkids is probably not the best idea in the world, but the whole 'experimenting in a safe environment' thing has its benefits. I'd say a good proportion of drug-related deaths are from inexperienced or first-time users. I know in some Scandanavian countries they've started giving heroin addicts clean, safe, warm places to inject, with fresh needles and a nurse on standby in case anything goes wrong. They get their kick, do it safely, and then leave. I do think our big cities would benefit from that.

There is a lot of mileage for debate on this subject, it just strikes me as a little sad that people can't get along quite happily on this planet without feeling a need to get off it. I'm not trying to be preachy, I enjoy a few beers, but when you hear people saying "I had loads to drink, threw up this morning.... can't remember a thing about last night " that's pretty sad too.

It is sad, but then again I'd rather people in the middle east got shitfaced than launch missiles at each other. Lesser of two evils.

Be interesting to see what you're opinion is in say 20 years time.

We are intelligent beings that can manipulate the world around us to our benefit. I don't think that's sad at all, we just need to fix the negatives.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8yYJ_oV6xk

Having an intellectual debate with someone who doesn't know the difference between your and you're...

You're argument is invalid. Educate yourself.

Tobacco hasn't been banned as arguably due to the nicotine content is probably the most horrible and deadliest drug known to man.? Drugs aren’t explicitly illegal due to the harm caused.

MDMA is a class a drug which a lot of scientific studies have suggested is less harmful than legal drugs including alcohol. In fact there are many other illegal substances which are suggested to be less harmful than legal counterparts.

You can get hold of some pretty potent legal drugs very easily in the UK. Much like drinking alcohol, the harmful effects are going to come about through repeated use and dosage amongst other things. 40mg of AMT is bloody potent, but 1mg would perk you up like coffee would and no other side effects. A unit of alcohol is about 8g of ethanol – about half a pint. Try consuming 8g of caffeine in 15 minutes and see what happens (which is the argument Jayo was putting across I think). But quite obviously caffeine is generally going to be a lot safer than other stimulants.

The one thing that I always struggle to get my head around is the fact that Co-Codamol, an OTC paracetemol (500mg)/opiate (8mg) combination is sold in packs of 32 tablets which equates to 4 days of maximum daily dosage, but the packet states do not take for more than 3 days running or you could risk dependence.

I know the difference,  alas I can't use my phone. Hardly intellectual, is it? Can you honestly say that there has been no ill effects or changes in your personality over time?

Not mutually exclusive. The popular myth that drugs will make people less likely to fight holds about as much water as the concept of the war on drugs. They're often used on child soldiers to ramp up their aggression or by adult combatants to help them cope with the fighting and so be able to continue it. See the US troops in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos etc, the Soviets in Afghan. And more up to date, a lot of the anti-govt fighters in Syria (including the Islamists, bizarrely) and the Taliban in AfPak are off their swedes on combinations of speed and weed.

Can you claim the same about your alcohol/coffee/asprin use? How could you even prove that anyway?

Good thread this!

I urge everyone to watch the youtube video I posted on the previous page. The Great Depression and subsequent prohibition laws proved to us 80 years ago that prohibition does not work. Get the things that people want out of the hands of criminals.

I've seen Jayo around. He's a drug addled skank, shuffling around the mean streets of Swindon, often prostituting himself for the price of a wrap. Barely coherent most of the time, a shell of a man with most of his brain cells destroyed by illegal substances and his motor functions equally impaired.

Drugs are bad kids. Just say no.

 :shrug:  Just tried to get a bit of debate going  :)

Stick to questions 4D, not answers.

I'm not anti or pro drugs. I like a drink and I like a spliff. I've certainly got my self in more trouble when drunk rather than stoned. I do think it is a bit fucked up that I cant grow a plant in the ground, pick its bud and smoke it in the privacy of my own home but its perfectly legal to put gallons of factory made poison into my body!

Its also annoying when people give it the holier than thou shit and look down on drug users with contempt even though they have never tried it.

A massive dose of LSD would broaden your perspective on life. Or lead to crime and death or something.

I don't have a perspective on life  :)

This is all true, but was it the drugs or is that just me? Know knows.

I'm too self-righteous to do drugs anymore. I've always absolutely loved speed though.

Are you indulging now Jayo?  ;)

Now come on, I like a nice fajita as much as the next man, but really?

Doing two things at once! *who knows

Crack and meth?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEmnqqFO1Gs

I'll see your Hawkwind and raise you a Velvet Underground...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffr0opfm6I4

I'd say on a case to case basis my general view is alcohol appears to fuck people over more than drugs

Dostoyevsky regularly posts about his cider/wine consumption, not seen anything about drugs. Case closed.

Drugs are good if the user is in control of the situation. When they are not in control that the problems arise. The same can be said of alcohol or prescription medicines.
I've been to a few  funerals of friends who got hooked on heroin. There are some of my old mates who are still on it. Their lives are shit.
I look back on my late teens as the best time of my life. I was smoking dope daily, going to raves at the weekend and necking multiple e's. I don't regret it at all. It was brilliant and people of that era had a ball.

Some of the best nights ive had had been on e, still have the odd binge on coke every now and then. I hold down a profesional job, do no harm to others.if you know your limit then its no different to going down the pub and having a few pints

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uh7l8dx-h8M

This is my first post, so fill ya boots.
Living in Telford as a (plastic) Swindon fan, I haven't felt I've had a lot to offer. However, finally I feel I can contribute to this thread.
I LOVE drugs, unfortunately too much, and my crack and heroin habit in my 20s and 30s means I have had to pack them both in.
Never a day goes by that I don't miss them both, but having spent time in the underbelly of society I much prefer a smack head to a pissed up twat end in the boozer.
It's not the drug, it's whether you can cope. If you can't cope don't do the dope.

The laws on Drugs only exist to look after the people who are incapable of looking after themselves. Everything in Moderation is the Answer......

Haven't touched anything since New Years, special occasions now. Plus the coke they sell in Swindon is utter shit too

Wow. That's one heck of a first post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yJT1ImT600

and a very sad one

100% agree with you there

Not that sad. I'm happy to face up to the fact that I've ruined those little joys for myself due to a lack of discipline.
However, loads of people I've known can crank up now and again and live more than productive lives in fact it enhances their lives.

Drugs aren't a problem, dickheads like me are  :D

Can fucking say that again, cunt.

Or what?

Welcome to the forum.

Dickheads are the problem with everything in life, not just drugs.

Love the forum name.  Keith Talent: my all time favourite literary creation.

I have nothing really to add about drugs, though.

Say it ain't so, Ardiles.  A terrible caricature of the underclass from someone who has probably never been close enough to experience it.  London Fields is probably the only book I've hated, and yet for some reason finished. 

I can't remember the last time I took any illegal drugs, probably because my memory's shot from taking them.

Edit:

That read all wrong.  Keith Talent (not the forum poster) is a horrific character, I agree.  Too horrific to be believed, almost.  But he drew me in when I read the book.  Caricature?  Yes, definitely.  But a fascinating one.

Brilliant attitude. Fair play.