"head" shop windows broken

Beez Neez

The real difficulty is that the stuff these shops are selling is an unknown quantity - most of the products are labelled "not for human consumption". The effects on some people are catastrophic - on others, not so but it's like playing russian roulette with people's health.

Picketing the shops is not the way to go though. Its' not 1960's Alabama after all

muffler

North_West_Art wrote: »

Head shop smoke is pure muck; if THC oil was legalised and made available then everyone could experience its benefits as a relaxant without the coughing and spluttering, and nicotine addiction.... but then the pharma companies would lose out heavily with the drop in sales of relaxant drugs, and drugs that alleviate the pain sufferred by multiple sclerosis patients (sorry for going off topic a bit here, was just reading pauric q's reply)

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6387-cannabis-truly-helps-multiple-sclerosis-sufferers.html

Legalise marijuana so and then everyone is happy (Jesus I just love the puns )

eman66

muffler wrote:

(Jesus I just love the puns )

Jeez Muffler, get down off your high horse

byte

The protestors would like to see all head shop owners stoned... (to death).

Ammonite

Picture on front of the Donegal on Sunday this week of the angry mob protesting in Donegal Town. It was a pretty sizeable crowd and not a few lone protesters so there is clearly a lot of anger.

North_West_Art

right, and does anyone suddenly stop and say...

'wait a minute! maybe we should all be standing outside the bank protesting instead, seeing as that they are taking €24,000,000,000 from us, AND giving themselves a pay-rise.....and in a final kick in the town halls, raising the interest rates on mortgage loans'

....no, we'll stand outside this headshop instead

Carrickman

North_West_Art wrote: »

right, and does anyone suddenly stop and say...

'wait a minute! maybe we should all be standing outside the bank protesting instead, seeing as that they are taking €24,000,000,000 from us, AND giving themselves a pay-rise.....and in a final kick in the town halls, raising the interest rates on mortgage loans'

....no, we'll stand outside this headshop instead

This is a point I have been making to a lot of people their should be 1000's out protesting the way this country has been run into the ground, against the bankers who are getting away with murder and against the lazy local TD's who have done nothing for this county with no motorway, no train, no jobs etc but no it's against Head Shops.

It reminds me of The Passion of St. Tibulus!

Harps

Its just the usual ignorance people have when they hear the word 'drugs'. Half those protesters probably drink on a regular basis..whats the difference?

And on the banks, people in this country are too lazy to care about an issue that actually means something, they ring Joe Dufy with their sob stories instead of actually trying to make a change. Fianna Fail will still get a considerable amount of votes in the next election regardless of what they do

ToniTuddle

Beez Neez wrote: »

why would anyone want to take any substance which is labelled "not for human consumption".

There is a huge thread in AH entitled "Legal Highs".
The debate rages on!
But basically they label the legal drugs like that and called them bath soaps and plant fertilizer as a roundabout way of getting them to the public quicker. If it was labeled for human consumption it would have to go through a series of tests....and would most definitely be made illegal!

Harps wrote: »

Its just the usual ignorance people have when they hear the word 'drugs'. Half those protesters probably drink on a regular basis..whats the difference?

And on the banks, people in this country are too lazy to care about an issue that actually means something, they ring Joe Dufy with their sob stories instead of actually trying to make a change. Fianna Fail will still get a considerable amount of votes in the next election regardless of what they do

What radio station is Joe Duffy on??
Everyone complains away about him I have yet to have the pleasure of listening to it

There is no fight left in Irish people. Happy to sit on their arses and complain instead of getting out there and doing something about it.

I remember seeing French folks out protesting good few times over simple things that the Government tried to do and they kicked up such a fuss they won.

Get people off their ass and stand up for free feicing will and freedom of choice!!!

feelpablo

Harps wrote: »

Its just the usual ignorance people have when they hear the word 'drugs'. Half those protesters probably drink on a regular basis..whats the difference?

And on the banks, people in this country are too lazy to care about an issue that actually means something, they ring Joe Dufy with their sob stories instead of actually trying to make a change. Fianna Fail will still get a considerable amount of votes in the next election regardless of what they do

This is one of the points i have been making lately.... people are giving out like stink that waynes are getting there hands on this stuff!!!

well i remember when me and all my mates were 14 and 15 gettin an older lad to get us drink in the offy... its exactly the same...if teens want it they will find some way to get it...

Im sick of the media scaremongering in this country, no reasonabile or logical debate into any matter....just pure fear drove into otherwise lucid peoples minds and yet they cannot see the comparisons to alcholol and either legal/illegal highs.......

and i dont touch that legal smoke s!!te cause i get a feirce headache off it the next day.. :rolleyes:

Sorry for the rant folks

LoanShark

Am I the only one who believes that all these marches on Head Shops is just a waste of shoe leather???

I do not support these shops nor, do I call for them to be closed..for the simple reason I have no idea what they sell or what it can do...
Now, maybe I am totally ignorant about the products, OR I am of the firm belief that maybe all the effort and time being given to the marches on closing these shops should be channelled into educating the public. Take for example the march in Donegal Town last week, The leaders of this protest have one agenda and the protesters have another...
Why could an evening of information not have been provided where parents and kids could have come to see the effects these drugs have upon them??? We use shock tactics for Drink Driving, Why not for these type of shops???

If they sell legal highs, Then all the red tape and BS will hold us up for a long time and we could be a life time trying to close these shops..........

But as my Father used to say and education is easily carried!! So I believe educate instead of Procastinate..

Harps

But its drugs..they should be banned, no questions asked :pac:

As I said above its all ignorance, ban everything, dont bother asking why people want these products, what effects they have, what effect banning them will have etc

Look even at major drugs like cocaine, how many of us actually have any real knowledge on them aside from the whole 'theyre bad for you, dont do them'.

People are always going to do drugs regardless of what the government and these groups want to force on us, theyre just scared to face up to that reality so instead of giving accurate information and advice on using them, its just ban them and tell people theyre bad. Its the same story in Britain where recently theyve had top drug advisers resigning because of that very fact

homer simpson

I neither agree nor disagree with these shops, but if they close its not going to stop people taking drugs (you even say so yourself) and will just go back to using drug dealers... how many people are hospitalised weekly by taking a bad line of cocaine, or taking a bad tablet made up of rat poisen?

We dont hear about them, they dont make the headlines. I say if you want to take drugs either legal or illegal feel free. But the people who take them know the risks, they know they are bad they know they can kill you (again legal or illegal) but they still will, if people are really that bothered find out where all the drug dealers live and go protest there, but i bet they wont! one word is driving people to hate these head shops media.

Like ive said drugs will be there love them or hate them, the people who take them know the risks, i say let them get on with it! We know the risks when we drive our cars every day but we still do it!

Harps

That was a sarcastic comment!

Alcohol is just as much a drug as anything else but because its not generally called a drug its ok, despite being considerabely more damaging to peoples health and much more costly to society than the majority of these other products. Same goes for cigarettes which admittedly are a lot less damaging than alcohol but some of the head shop products are no worse, again one is a 'drug', the other isnt

As I keep repeating, ignorance is the problem, its simply the word 'drug' thats the problem, its a taboo subject and anything under the term is just immedietly placed under the same banner regardless of its effects and dangers so theyre banned.

Drugs are never going away so people then just go back to the usual illegal stuff once these products are banned, more legal stuff comes through, that gets banned etc etc

The current system is a joke but because politicians are too scared to tackle the issue realistically they just do the easy thing and ban everything.

Graces7

There have been deaths. which surely is always a reason to campaign.

We need to care; period.

These young people are Ireland's future after all.

The substances being sold are largely unknown quantities also.

Which really is what is behind the anti posts here.

There is no monitoring etc; and if that is so then kids will assume that they are harmless.

And clearly they are not harmless.

Yes, all you say re drink etc is of course true. Sadly so; but all the more reason to block yet more sources of damage to the young.

At least parents care enought to try to do something against the frustration of the inept legislation.

Ireland is light years behind other countries.

And the few drug addiction centres we have are fighting a losing battle.

Try supporing them and getting better informed, please.

ednwireland

when i was a teen it was glue and lighter fluid
plenty of kids died
if this stuff is as dangerous as people make out it is then mke it illegal, push the kids to the next drug (apparantly available from china at 12cent a gramme)
i think the people protesting agianst head shops should sit down and talk to their kids if not just line em up for the next thing.

Shulgin

Graces7 wrote: »

There have been deaths. which surely is always a reason to campaign.

There have been no deaths in Ireland directly attributed to headshop products.

I would be far more worried if my kids were drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes.

Lsd,mdma and cannabis are all far safer and should be legalised. There would be no need for headshop drugs that have unknown dangers then.

ToniTuddle

Graces7 wrote: »

There have been deaths. which surely is always a reason to campaign.

We need to care; period.
There is no monitoring etc; and if that is so then kids will assume that they are harmless.

And clearly they are not harmless.
At least parents care enought to try to do something against the frustration of the inept legislation.

Ireland is light years behind other countries.

And the few drug addiction centres we have are fighting a losing battle.

Try supporing them and getting better informed, please.

Parents do not care enough to actually go out and read up about drugs.
Parents do not care to sit their kids down when they are 14 and have a conversation with them about it.
Irish parents are not open enough to even have conversations about flippin sex with their teenagers!

Yes, I'm sure there is a few that do but the large majority don't.
They just want the bad things to go away and kick up a fuss, damage property and show there offspring that's the way to get things done.

Ireland is light years behind I'll agree with you there! It shouldn't have to wait until the person needs to go to a drug addiction centre.
If the adults in young peoples lives were open and not so judgemental then the teenagers might actually go to them for help or ask more questions/look for guidance. It all stems back to that I feel anyway.

On the point of kids(I'm assuming you mean 18yr olds as I'm sure they ask for ID in these head shops??) assuming the legal highs are harmless, then they literally have no sense at all. Any substance that alters your mind and body is not harmless, it will do damage in some form even if that is later on in life.

storm2811

ToniTuddle wrote: »

Parents do not care enough to actually go out and read up about drugs.
Parents do not care to sit their kids down when they are 14 and have a conversation with them about it.
Irish parents are not open enough to even have conversations about flippin sex with their teenagers!

Yes, I'm sure there is a few that do but the large majority don't.
They just want the bad things to go away and kick up a fuss, damage property and show there offspring that's the way to get things done.

Ireland is light years behind I'll agree with you there! It shouldn't have to wait until the person needs to go to a drug addiction centre.
If the adults in young peoples lives were open and not so judgemental then the teenagers might actually go to them for help or ask more questions/look for guidance. It all stems back to that I feel anyway.

Have to agree,see that in a good few of my friends/relatives relationships with their parents!

Don't know what is with them though,stuck in their ways?
My mam's from europe though so shes far different,always discussing stuff like this with her and anything else!:pac:

Graces7

Shulgin wrote: »

There have been no deaths in Ireland directly attributed to headshop products.

I would be far more worried if my kids were drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes.

Lsd,mdma and cannabis are all far safer and should be legalised. There would be no need for headshop drugs that have unknown dangers then.

Not true.Re deaths I mean.

And the ignorance here re drugs speaks worlds.

As any drugs counsellor knows full well. These drugs damage brains and are seriously addictive.

True re alcohol and tobacco of course.....

And look at the huge efforts being made to overcome those addictions.

Ireland has but recently realised that driving drugged as as dangerous as driving drunk.

And don't start me re addiction to prescribed drugs....

Enough already:rolleyes:

Shulgin

Graces7 wrote: »

Not true.Re deaths I mean.

The long term side effects of headshop products are unknown, but people aren`t dropping dead from killer legal highs like the media would have you believe .

Other than the guy who jumped from a balcony on magic mushrooms (He had taken alcohol too) , who else has died directly due to a headshop drug in ireland?

As any drugs counsellor knows full well. These drugs damage brains and are seriously addictive.

Headshop drugs have no research done on them so they may or may not damage brains.

If you are talking about cannabis,lsd and mdma, They are nowhere near as toxic as alcohol/Tobacco. None of these drugs are addictive, not in the way heroin,cigarettes or alcohol are. Some people can get addicted to anything though. They can cause psychological problems in some people, yes. But they are small minority.

For example amount of ecstacy (mdma) consumed in Ireland every weekend is huge, there are very very few deaths or social problems attributed to that drug.

Ireland has but recently realised that driving drugged as as dangerous as driving drunk.

I agree

And the ignorance here re drugs speaks worlds.

explain?

ToniTuddle

Graces7 wrote: »

Not true.Re deaths I mean.

And the ignorance here re drugs speaks worlds.

The ignorance in the media speaks worlds!

As for the deaths. I believe the reason Mephedrome is being pushed for an earlier ban date is due to the poor lad in Belfast who killed himself.

They are blaming the drug and not the fact he was suicidal!

When E's were the drug of choice for the media to be attacking it was stupid. Sure....blame the last substance the person took as the cause of their death. Nevermind the 2 litres of vodka and bag of cocaine in their system. :rolleyes:

There was one lecture in my secondary school by some holy Christians about avoiding alcohol.
I've heard nothing since even in college about the damaging effects about alcohol/drugs in general.

If they would come and discuss the real facts about what happens to someone when they take the different drugs, the various possibly effects both good, bad and ugly. Show the drugs from every angle. Instead of this "It's bad stay away" bull.

ToniTuddle

storm2811 wrote: »

Have to agree,see that in a good few of my friends/relatives relationships with their parents!

Don't know what is with them though,stuck in their ways?
My mam's from europe though so shes far different,always discussing stuff like this with her and anything else!:pac:

Ooops missed this one.

Yeah it's probably due to basically a completely different generation! It's not their fault, I'm sure many of them would love to be more open and have their kids confide in them but they have no idea how to actually go about it.

You are evry lucky to have that kind of relationship with your Mum. Give her more hugs and tell her how deadly she is!

Drink and cigarettes are more accepted drugs as they have been around alot longer and more so because they have been in peoples view the whole time.