Russia's top drug official: widespread legal drug use (pot) would produce "psychiatric deviations"

[The Straight Story]

Russia's top drug official warned in an interview with Foreign Policy on Friday of what he called the "catastrophic" consequences of marijuana legalization measures like California's upcoming ballot initiative, saying darkly that widespread legal drug use would produce "psychiatric deviations" and will only encourage drug addiction.

Viktor Ivanov, a former KGB officer and prominent member of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's inner circle, even took the unusual step of going to Los Angeles earlier this week to "conduct a campaign against legalizing marijuana in California," as he said in the interview. He also came to Washington this week to meet with U.S. drug czar Gil Kerlikowske and U.S. Afghan envoy Richard Holbrooke to discuss anti-poppy measures in Afghanistan and call for an intensified program of aerial eradication.

The United States has largely abandoned eradicating the poppy crop in favor of a narrower strategy focusing on cutting off funding to the Taliban and cracking down on traffickers. Ivanov says that isn't enough to counter the flow of heroin into Russia, which kills tens of thousands of users every year.

But California's laxity, it seems, was particularly startling to him. "I hadn't known about it before and I was absolutely shocked when I was in the city and saw these posters saying that you can get marijuana for medical purposes," he said. He met with Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Sheriff Leroy Baca to voice Russia's opposition to the measure. Noting that U.S. President Barack Obama has also expressed his opposition to legalization, Ivanov described it as "one of the cases where Russia and the U.S. agree completely

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/10/22/interview_viktor_ivanov

[bemildred]

1. LOL. Well, if he's against it, then it must be a good thing. nt

[bananas]

2. LOL!

:rofl:

[bananas]

3. DUZY!

[foxfeet]

4. The history of Russian psychiatry is nothing to brag about.

Not that ours is pure as the driven snow.

[county worker]

5. I have know several pot smokers in my day that have refused to act like ass holes to others after

a long history drug use. They seem to smile a lot and remain calm in the face of mass hysteria and hate. It is a disturbing trend because we need everyone on the battle line when the terrorists come to take our land!

[Odin2005]

6. Russia is almost as backward as Uganda when it comes to social policies.

:crazy:

[Fumesucker]

7. So comrade Ivanov, what is the per capita consumption of alcohol in Russia?

And is it having an effect on the longevity and mental stability of Russians?

[HopeHoops]

8. I don't know, man. It would be like, so, - hey, is that a bag of Doritos on top of the fridge?

:hippie: :smoke:

What was the topic, dude?

So when did Putin start surrounding himself with Republicans? He even wanted "Aaahhnold" to be governor of Moscow! :shrug:

[Warren DeMontague]

9. Wow. And all this time I thought "KGB" stood for

"Kind Green Buds"