By Jacob Franek
This article is sponsored in part by Linewatch, available on DVD October 21st (What's this?) Linewatch - Credit: Sony Pictures
If you were to peel back the layers of society, you'd find a deep, dark culture of illegal drug abuse -- but to most, that ain't news. The fact is that the production, trafficking and sales of illicit drugs is a $400-billion-a-year industry. In fact, the drug industry is second only to the arms trade and is showing no signs of slowing down. Despite the fact that the use of illegal narcotics is so widespread, there are still probably a few facts about them that you didn't know. Case in point: these five things you didn’t know about drugs.
1- Cannabis was once used to pay taxes
As crazy as it may seem, cannabis once served as legal tender. Cannabis hemp was actually used as currency from 1631 all the way up until the early 1800s. Why? Blame the British: The English navy became solely dependent on cannabis hemp fibers for the production of ropes and sails for its fleet (hence, the term “canvas”). So central did cannabis become to the economy that early colonial law actually mandated that farmers grow the crop. Even more mind-blowing, though, is the fact that both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew cannabis on their plantations.
2- Heroin was once marketed as a cough suppressant
Here’s a fun fact: Bayer, the pharmaceutical giant responsible for Aspirin, once marketed heroin as a non-addictive morphine substitute and cough suppressant. To find out when this shocking mishap took place, you'd have to look back all the way to 1898, a time when tuberculosis and pneumonia were the leading causes of death (when routine coughs and colds proved to be fatal). The world was in desperate need of a cough remedy and heroin seemed to have it all -- being a cough suppressant that also functioned as a sedative -- except for the fact that, you know, it's heroin. The drug exploded globally and first met with great success, until reports of severe addiction surfaced. Thankfully, heroin fell out of favor shortly after the negative health effects became apparent (there's just something a little unsettling about seeing “heroin” on the side of a medicine vial).
3- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was written during a six-day cocaine binge
Robert Louis Stevenson, famed author of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, wrote his entire masterpiece in six days and six nights, all whilst on one hell of a cocaine bender. Even Stevenson's wife, Fanny, was amazed that her husband managed to put 60,000 words on paper in just under one week. To put this in perspective, Stephen King, one of today's most prolific writers, writes only about 1,000 words a day. Oddly enough, Stephen King was also a cocaine addict, openly admitting to being addicted to the drug from 1979 to 1987. King described cocaine as his “on" switch, and further praised it for saving him from alcoholism.
4- The inventor of LSD lived to be 102
Albert Hofmann -- notorious psychedelic drug chemist and inventor of LSD -- passed away in 2008 at the ripe old age of 102. Hofman's now infamous discovery came to fruition on April 16, 1943, when he accidentally absorbed a bit of lysergic acid compound, LSD-25, through his fingertips. Fascinated by the distortion in perceptions he experienced, Hofman investigated further, eventually ingesting 250 micrograms of LSD and embarking on the world's first acid trip as he biked home from his lab. In his autobiography, LSD: My Problem Child, Hofmann describes in graphic detail the dreamlike state that resulted: “It gave me an inner joy, an open-mindedness, a gratefulness, open eyes, and an internal sensitivity for the miracles of creation.”
5- Ecstasy started as a pyramid scheme
Back in 1984, a Texas-based evangelist by the name of Michael Clegg believed he had a higher purpose. Steadfast in the notion that the world would be a better place if everyone were on Ecstasy, Clegg began to mass-market the relatively unknown party drug with frightening determination. Clegg formed a network of distributors that became known as the Texas Group. So successful was the Texas Group in their marketing that before long, Ecstasy was available at Dallas bars and convenience stores and even from 800 numbers. Heck, you could charge it to American Express. How did the Texas Group reap such success? By applying basic business marketing principles: The group evolved into a pyramid scheme that allowed distributors to get a cut of sales from other distributors they recruited.
This article is sponsored in part by Linewatch, available on DVD October 21st (What's this?) Linewatch - Credit: Sony Pictures
Resources:
* www.parl.gc.ca
* http://info.sen.ca.gov
* http://ftp.wayne.edu
* www.guardian.co.uk
* www.thegooddrugsguide.com
* www.cbc.ca
* http://blog.wired.com
* www.alternet.org
* www.opioids.com
