Tag: the war on (some) drugs

Ohio governor calls kratom an imminent public health risk, pushes for ban

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is urging the Ohio Board of Pharmacy to classify kratom as a Schedule I drug, citing it as an “imminent public health risk” due to its potential dangers, particularly for teenagers and babies.

Kratom, which is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is sold in products like the Feel Free drink at gas stations and stores in Ohio and Kentucky.

The governor’s proposal would make Ohio the first state to take such strong action against kratom.

Doctors at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital are raising alarms about its risks.

Dr. Stephanie Merher, a neonatologist, said, “Some of the moms who have taken this and not taken anything else, they have actually needed to go on buprenorphine or methadone to get off of this. It’s that potent.”

She has treated babies exposed in utero who exhibit symptoms similar to opioid withdrawal, including fussiness, tremors and difficulty eating.

Dr. Shan Yin, medical director of the Cincinnati Drug and Poison Information Center, explained that kratom and kava, another ingredient in Feel Free, create a “speedball-like” effect. He noted, “It’s also at this point, unregulated. So, you never know quite what’s in it.”

Feel Free is sold as an herbal product, not a controlled substance, and carries a “21+ only” warning, which the company says it voluntarily implemented. However, that is not required under federal or Ohio law, so anyone can purchase it in the state.

Kentucky lawmakers enacted a 21-plus age limit on kratom last year, while Indiana banned it completely in 2014. Ohio currently has no restrictions.

Earlier in August, Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacson (D) told WLWT he wants to protect kids from the synthetic form form of Kratom known as 7-OH. “You can buy it at convenience stores and gas stations and vape stores in super concentrated forms with no age restrictions. It’s not behind the counter. And so we need to do something about it.”

Botanic Tonics, the maker of Feel Free, disputes the safety concerns, asserting that its product contains only natural, whole-leaf kratom, not the concentrated synthetic form known as 7-OH.

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Single dose of psilocybin provides lasting relief from depression and anxiety in cancer patients

A clinical trial examined the effects of psilocybin combined with psychological support on cancer patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Results showed that a single dose of psilocybin had robust antidepressant effects in these individuals. Fifty percent demonstrated sustained depression reduction, while 43% experienced a sustained reduction in anxiety. The research was published in the journal Cancer.

Depression is a mental health condition that involves persistent sadness, loss of interest, and feelings of hopelessness. It is often accompanied by anxiety, which is characterized by excessive fear, worry, and physical tension. Both conditions are common psychological responses to the challenges of living with cancer.

Cancer patients often face uncertainty about their prognosis, undergo painful treatments, and experience changes in physical functioning, all of which can heighten anxiety. Depression may develop as a response to the emotional burden of diagnosis, fatigue, changes in body image, or loss of independence. These conditions can negatively affect treatment adherence, as patients may avoid appointments or struggle to follow medical recommendations.

Anxiety can also intensify physical symptoms such as pain, nausea, or insomnia, creating a cycle of distress. Depression may reduce motivation and energy, limiting the patient’s ability to engage in daily activities and draw on social support. Emotional distress in cancer patients is associated with a poorer quality of life and, in some studies, worse clinical outcomes.

Study author Manish Agrawal and his colleagues explored the impact of psilocybin combined with psychological support in 30 patients with cancer and a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. Some had curable, and others had incurable forms of cancer. The average age of participants was 57.5 years, and 19 were female. None were hospitalized for depression at baseline, and 61% were not receiving psychiatric medications. During the course of the study, two patients died, reducing the number of participants in the final analysis to 28.

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Venezuela Asks U.N. to Help Stop American Anti-Drug Efforts in Caribbean

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil on Tuesday called for U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres to help “restore common sense” and stop the United States’ ongoing efforts to combat drug cartels in Caribbean international waters — which the Venezuelan narco-state deems a “threat.”

Gil met with U.N. Resident Coordinator in Venezuela Gianluca Rampolla on Tuesday. According to the regime’s main propaganda outlet, VTV, the officials “debated the threats facing Latin America and the Caribbean from the United States.”  Secretary-General Guterres has not publicly commented on Venezuela’s request at press time.

“We request the support of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres to restore common sense. In this regard, we share our concerns about the deployment of US military units and even nuclear weapons in the Caribbean, which threatens peace,” Gil wrote on his official Telegram account.

“In the face of false narratives, used as a pretext to justify aggression against Venezuela, we confirm that the 2025 World Drug Report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNDOC) has ratified Venezuela as a territory free of illicit crops. Furthermore, the efforts of the Bolivarian Government have been duly certified by the UNDOC,” he continued.

Gil’s meeting with Rampolla and his request to Guterres come days after the administration of President Donald Trump increased its efforts to combat drug trafficking in the region and curb the flow of drugs entering the United States. Reports published this month indicated that the U.S. deployed three Aegis guided-missile destroyers and reportedly “about 4,000 sailors and Marines” to Caribbean international waters to fight against local drug trafficking organizations. Subsequent reports published this week detailed that the United States deployed the USS Lake Erie guided missile cruiser and the USS Newport News, a nuclear-powered attack submarine, to reinforce the U.S.’s ongoing efforts. Both are reportedly expected to arrive in the region by early next week.

Socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro and members of his authoritarian regime have condemned the United States’ ongoing drug-fighting efforts in the Caribbean and have repeatedly insisted, without evidence, that the United States’s actions are instead part of a purported plot to “invade” Venezuela and oust Maduro from power.

Maduro is actively wanted by the United States on multiple narco-terrorism charges and stands accused of being a leading figure of the Cartel of the Suns, a U.S.-identified Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) led by top leading members of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and the Venezuelan military. Interior Minister and long-suspected drug lord Diosdado Cabello and Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López also stand accused by U.S. authorities of leading the Cartel of the Suns and are wanted on multiple narco-terrorism charges. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced this month that the United States doubled its bounty on information that can lead to Maduro’s arrest from $25 million to $50 million.

In recent days, Maduro has ordered a series of “preparations” for the alleged American “invasion” and launched a campaign to enlist civilians into the Bolivarian Militia that local and international outlets widely reported as a failure. On Tuesday, Defense Minister López claimed that Venezuela would also deploy “large ships” to “combat drug trafficking” in Caribbean waters.

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Did Putin Give the US Permission to Encircle Venezuela?

The contagion of war is spreading like wildfire. Venezuela has been feuding with the United States since 2019, when all communication came to a standstill. In recent weeks, the US placed a $50 million bounty on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and has accused him of aiding the world’s top drug traffickers. The US has sent thousands of illegal Venezuelan migrants back to Venezuela despite pushback from the government. Tensions have boiled over after Trump visited with Putin.

Did Putin give Trump the green light to move in on Venezuela? Deep ties with Russia have protected Venezuela, but all alliances can come to an end with the proper incentives. On Monday, over four and a half MILLION Venezuelan troops were deployed after it was announced that US warships were circling Venezuela. “This week, I will activate a special plan with more than 4.5 million militiamen to ensure coverage of the entire national territory — militias that are prepared, activated and armed,” Maduro announced on state television. “The empire has gone mad and has renewed its threats to Venezuela’s peace and tranquility,” Maduro continued.

Maduro was indicted in 2020 during Trump’s first term under suspicion of narco-terrorism. The US placed a $15 million bounty on Maduro, which was later raised to $25 million under Biden but powerful people are protecting the Venezuelan president.

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Analysis: Marijuana Retailers Not Associated With Increased Prevalence of Motor Vehicle Accidents

The opening of marijuana retailers is not associated with any immediate increases in motor vehicle accidents, according to data published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.

Yale University researchers assessed motor vehicle crash data for the weeks prior to and after the adoption of adult-use marijuana legalization in Connecticut. They also compared motor vehicle crash data during the same period with that of a control state (Maryland). 

Researchers reported “no significant changes” in the prevalence of either statewide accidents (compared to Maryland) or local (within proximity to dispensaries) accidents.

“Here we show that the introduction of recreational cannabis dispensaries in Connecticut did not lead to a significant rise in MVA [motor vehicle accident] rates statewide or at the local level near cannabis dispensaries,” the study’s authors concluded. “The lack of substantial differences in crash rates within the eight weeks before and after recreational dispensary openings suggests that dispensaries may not be a relevant determinant of traffic safety in the proximity of these outlets.”

The study’s findings are consistent with those of a three-year analysis of motor vehicle crash data from Washington state, which reported “no statistically significant impact of cannabis sales on serious injury/fatal crashes” following retail commercialization. By contrast, assessments from other states evaluating longer-term trends in traffic safety following legalization have yielded mixed results. 

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California’s Small Cannabis Farmers Have Been Left High and Dry

Dan Golden has been growing weed for almost 20 years. As he hand-watered his plants on his 70-acre farm, he maintained a firm stare. He’s long abstained from alcohol—ever since his daughter was born—and his daily routine begins at 6 am. “This is life or death for me. I’ve never done anything else,” said Golden. The property is seated in a narrow valley in Humboldt County, California, a three-hour drive from the nearest store in Garberville, with large rock outcroppings running east to west. Before 2020, he owned the land outright, but four years ago, he was forced to refinance it to pay for the exorbitant fees and permits required to be a compliant legal cannabis farmer.

Cannabis has long been part of counterculture in America, and arguably no place and its peoples have done more to fuel the evolution of the plant and its mythos than Humboldt County. And yet, perversely, no place has been as left behind by legalization.

Through a series of broken promises, legislative missteps, and onerous compliance measures, the small, legacy farmers once on the front lines of normalizing marijuana for decades have been snuffed out. Now their communities are suffering. “Everyone thinks: Growing weed, that must be fun,” Golden said. “They don’t know how hard it is.”

Since 2016, when cannabis was voted legal for adult use by ballot measure, the market has been rife with snafus in California. Promises to protect those that gave rise to the industry fell flat; instead, these farmers have been met with byzantine laws, expensive permit fees, regulations, and taxes that have hampered their ability to stay competitive in open markets. Most attempts to aid craft cultivators have failed or have been denied, and many farmers say the July 1 increase of the California cannabis excise tax—from 15 percent to 19 percent—could be yet another crushing blow. Though Governor Gavin Newsom said he’d sign a freeze of the increased excise tax if it reached his desk, legislators have so far failed to act.

Many of the players have since quit the game altogether. Agricultural real estate prices have tumbled in Humboldt County as local businesses not directly associated with cannabis try to hold on in the shifting economic landscape. Meanwhile, mega-cannabis corporations dominate the market with questionable labor practices and deflated prices meant to eliminate competition. In typical corporate-capture fashion, these companies have pushed out competitors by sheer scale, lowering their prices so no one else can survive, then, once they’re the only ones left standing, they’re able to jack the prices back up.

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Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Patient Count Falls to Lowest Level Since June 2020

The new figure marks the eighth consecutive month of decline, down from 326,828 in July and well below the 2022 peak of nearly 387,000 patients.

The downward trend comes as Oklahoma’s once rapidly expanding program stabilizes and tightens. When voters approved medical marijuana in 2018, the program quickly became one of the most accessible in the nation, with low barriers to entry and no cap on business licenses. At its height, nearly 10% of the state’s population held medical marijuana cards, a rate unmatched anywhere else in the country.

Since then, the state has also introduced more stringent oversight, which may be contributing to the shrinking patient base. Several readers have contacted out to us in recent weeks to say that their renewal was denied, but they were given no reason as to why. We reached out to the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority for comment, but they have yet to provide a response.

Another factor contributing to the decrease in medical cannabis patients is the proliferation of hemp-derived THC products, which can be found easily in smoke shops and online.

In the meantime, advocates with Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action are working to place a recreational marijuana measure on the November 2026 ballot. The proposal would allow adults 21 and older to possess, purchase, and grow marijuana while creating a taxed retail system. Petitions are now available at more than 400 sites in over 100 cities, giving supporters widespread access as the campaign pushes forward.

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Anti-Drug, Law Enforcement And Religious Groups Urge Trump To Oppose Marijuana Rescheduling

A coalition of anti-marijuana, law enforcement and religious groups are imploring President Donald Trump to oppose a cannabis rescheduling proposal that he says his administration will decide on within weeks.

Led by Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM), the coalition sent a letter to the president on Monday, saying the organizations “strongly urge that you reject reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug” under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), a move that Trump had endorsed during last year’s campaign.

One signatory of the letter, the Drug Enforcement Association of Federal Narcotics Agents, represents personnel at the Drug Enforcement Administration, the agency that the cannabis reform proposal currently sits before.

“President Trump has an opportunity to make a stand for the safety of children across America by opposing the flawed proposal to reschedule marijuana,” SAM President Kevin Sabet said in a press release. “Marijuana has not been approved for any medical use by the FDA, nor has any raw plant. And it likely never will. It is an addictive drug with a high risk of abuse. That’s why it sat in Schedule I for decades and why it must stay there.”

Cannabis is currently classified as a Schedule I drug, but the Biden administration initiated a scientific review that led it to it to propose moving it to Schedule III. That wouldn’t federally legalize the plant, but it would allow state-licensed marijuana businesses to take federal tax deductions and remove certain barriers to research.

In the letter, the organizations acknowledged that the argument that marijuana shouldn’t be placed in the same schedule as heroin are “politically salient and easy to understand.” However, they said reform advocates “fundamentally misunderstand how drug scheduling works.”

“Contrary to popular belief, drug scheduling is not a harm index,” they said. “Rather, it balances the accepted medical use of a substance with its potential for abuse.”

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South Dakota Medical Marijuana Industry Cheers Sting Operations On Hemp Product Sellers

South Dakota’s medical cannabis industry voiced its support for sting operations targeting sellers of hemp products that create a marijuana-like high.

The comments from Jeremiah Murphy, a lobbyist for the Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota, came during Tuesday’s meeting of the state’s Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee.

Murphy’s association represents the state’s 116 licensed medical cannabis cultivators, manufacturers and dispensaries.

The industry “commends the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office” for its sting operation targeting hemp-based THC products at eight Rapid City-area smoke shops and convenience stores, Murphy said.

Law enforcement bought samples of gummies, THC drinks and other products with “hemp-derived” ingredients. Strains of THC is a family of high-inducing molecules found in large concentrations in the cannabis plant.

The hemp plant is a cousin to cannabis that contains tiny quantities of THC. Hemp-derived intoxicants often get their THC from chemically modified or distilled CBD. CBD is a different, nonintoxicating molecule found in cannabis and hemp.

Hemp is legal to cultivate under the 2018 farm bill, and hemp-derived products are legal under federal law. Since mid-2024, however, South Dakota has barred the sale–but not the possession–of products made with chemically synthesized versions of THC.

The Rapid City compliance check followed a July 10 letter from Pennington County State’s Attorney Lara Roetzel to businesses suspected of unlawful hemp sales.

Katy Urban, spokeswoman for Roetzel’s office, says the agencies are waiting for testing results to determine if any laws were broken.

Sioux Falls Police Department spokesman Aaron Benson said the SFPD has performed one compliance check, and is waiting on results from a lab test to determine how to proceed with one case. Benson declined to say how many businesses were visited, citing the open investigation.

Committee hears support for compliance

At Tuesday’s medical marijuana committee meeting, Murphy repeated an assertion he’s used for nearly two years now:  The availability of hemp-derived alternatives to medical cannabis puts the state’s highly regulated medical marijuana industry at a disadvantage.

“Why do I go to a doctor and pay him, and why go pay the state to pay even more money, when I can go to the vape shop, or I can go to the hemp store and they’re selling exactly what I need?” Murphy said.

The number of medical marijuana cards issued in the state stands at around 14,000, but changes slightly every day, Whitney Brunner of the Department of Health told the medical marijuana committee Tuesday.

“Any data point presented on patient cards is representative of a snapshot in time,” Brunner said.

Cards issuance has picked up slightly since voters rejected a ballot measure to legalize recreational cannabis last fall, but remained at about 14,000 as of this week. A little more than 70 percent of the cards have been issued to people for the management of chronic pain, Brunner told the committee.

Medical cannabis purveyors supported the law banning the sale of synthetically altered hemp products, but the law hasn’t led to a crush of cases against sellers. Around 100 charges had been filed as of last month, between juvenile and adult cases, according to the Unified Judicial System. Several of those charges were attached to individual defendants.

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Canada’s Refusal To Cooperate With DEA On Fentanyl “Superlab” Investigation Fueled Cross-Border Tariffs  

President Trump’s new hemispheric defense strategy, stretching across North, Central, and South America, now includes the deployment of 4,000 troops and three guided-missile destroyers positioned in international waters off Venezuela, as part of a broader campaign to dismantle command-and-control hubs of narco-terrorists and purge Chinese-linked drug and money-laundering networks from the region. 

Last week, the Pentagon positioned three Aegis guided-missile destroyers (the USS Gravely, USS Jason Dunham, and USS Sampson) directly off the coast of Venezuela as new force posturing takes hold in the region, with the Pentagon’s crosshairs focused on narco-terrorists fueling America’s drug death crisis that claims 100,000 lives per year. 

Simultaneously, attention turns to Canada, which, like Mexico and other surrounding countries, remains a very weak partner in the region as the Trump administration advances its hemispheric defense strategy to clean up the Americas ahead of the 2030s. Trump’s cleanup of the Western hemisphere is almost comparable to his micro efforts to restore law and order in crime-ridden Washington, D.C. – and soon, in many other cities nationwide left in ruins by failed Democratic leadership that allowed violent crime and open-air drug markets to flourish. 

Sam Cooper of the investigative outlet The Bureau has uncovered in recent years that North America’s fentanyl crisis is not just a drug death crisis wiping out military-aged men and women by the hundreds of thousands – it’s also a sprawling international money-laundering machine, run through Chinese Triads, Mexican cartels, and Canadian financial networks in a massive transnational crime web that fuels the crisis. Some view this operation to subvert Washington as Chinese irregular warfare, explained here.

Cooper’s work, as we’ve covered in recent years, spans Chinese narcos using laundering networks via TD bank and other Canadian financial institutions to “Breaking Bad-style” superlabs in Canada to all things China subverting the Americas…

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