Getting High

Floridians Love Overdosing On Prescription Drugs, Especially Benzos

By Chris Sweeney Wed., Oct. 24 2012 at 12:48 PM
Categories: Getting High
benzos.jpeg
Deaths in Florida caused by oxycodone dropped nearly 18 percent, yet the pain drug remains one of the top killers in the state, according to a report from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The report, released Wednesday, shows that deaths from benzodiazepines jumped 13 percent in 2011 and were the drugs that caused the most deaths for the year. The popular class of anti-anxiety meds includes Xanax and Klonopin.

So what else does the drug death report show?

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benzodiazepines, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Oxycodone
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Getting High

Swank Caron Rehab Center in Delray Sued for Allegedly False Advertising

By Chris Sweeney Thu., Sep. 27 2012 at 9:20 AM
Categories: Getting High
rehab.jpeg
Where's the executive leadership program?
If you're going to drop $100,000 on rehab, the place better live up to its plush promises of personal chefs and nutritionists. It'd also be nice to come out of the place not addicted to whatever vice drove you there, but there are no guarantees in life.

Scott Dickenson of Atlanta has sued the Caron Foundation of Florida in Delray Beach on grounds that the place provided few of the services it advertised, lied to lure him in, and then swindled him out of a whopping $102,000 for an eight-week-long stay.

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Delray Beach, Scott Dickenson
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Getting High

Riviera Beach Ex-Employee Sues City Over Drug Test He (Probably) Passed

By Stefan Kamph Mon., Sep. 10 2012 at 6:30 AM
Categories: Getting High, Law & Order
urine-drug-test-glove.jpg

Mike Hunter, a man who used to work for Riviera Beach running the public-access TV channel, is suing the city over a drug test. 

He took the test, was told the results were negative, then decided it had been unconstitutional to test him in the first place, canceled the test, and got fired for "refusing" a drug test.

He may actually have a case. His suit hinges on state law that requires "reasonable suspicion" for drug testing of non-safety-related employees, he says. 

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Doretha Perry, drug testing, Michael Hudson, Riviera Beach
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Getting High

DEA Storms Synthetic-Pot Distribution Centers Across Florida

By Chris Sweeney Thu., Jul. 26 2012 at 5:00 AM
Categories: Getting High
Synthetic-Pot1.jpg
See also "Synthetic Marijuana Ban Seems Like a Good Idea, Probably Won't Do Much" and "Broward Commission Moves to Ban Bath Salts, Fake Weed"

The war on synthetic drugs has gone federal, and in a big way.

Officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration and Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday stormed what they're describing as one of the country's largest distribution hubs of herbal incense, commonly referred to as synthetic marijuana.

The DEA isn't releasing any information until a news conference later today. But Ric Bradshaw of the PBSO told the Palm Beach Post that the warehouse was stocked with "literally tons" of product and "volatile chemicals."

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drug bust, Drug Enforcement Administration, K2, Marijuana, Spice, Weed
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Getting High

Synthetic Marijuana, Bath Salts Banned in Dania Beach

By Chris Sweeney Wed., Jul. 25 2012 at 5:00 AM
Categories: Getting High
BathSaltsPic.jpg
See also "Synthetic Marijuana Ban Seems Like a Good Idea, Probably Won't Do Much" and "Broward Commission Moves to Ban Bath Salts, Fake Weed"

The Dania Beach City Commission on Tuesday evening cleared the way for a ban on selling bath salts and herbal incense, more commonly referred to as synthetic marijuana.

Unlike some of the other laws that are aimed at banning specific chemical compounds used in these substances, Dania Beach is looking to make it illegal for retailers to sell or display these chemicals within city limits.

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Drugs, K2, Marijuana, Spice, Synthetic Marijuana, Thomas Wright III
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Getting High

South Florida Seniors Comment on Pot Use, Are Hilarious

By Rich Abdill Tue., Jul. 24 2012 at 9:42 AM
Categories: Getting High
grandma-smoke-pot.jpeg
We told you a few weeks ago about South Florida activist Robert Platshorn, who is raising money to put out hundreds of informercials informing senior citizens about how weed is, like, so good for you. He says the senior demographic is key to the legalization movement, and his Kickstarter is going great guns in the right direction.

The centerpiece of today's Sun-Sentinel also helps that movement -- by revealing that getting high with old people is probably one of the most fun things you can do with a Schedule I controlled substance.

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Getting High

New OxyContin Formula Pushing Users to Shoot Heroin

By Rich Abdill Thu., Jul. 12 2012 at 10:38 AM
Categories: Getting High
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Oxycodone
In 2010, the formula for OxyContin, a slow-release form of the powerfully addictive painkiller oxycodone, was changed to make it harder to abuse. It became almost impossible to grind up and dissolve effectively, making it mostly useless to addicts who would snort, smoke, or inject the drug to get an instant high. It was supposed to stem the tide of abuse -- which, researchers say, it did. But at what cost?

"Our data show that OxyContin use by inhalation or intravenous administration has dropped significantly since that abuse-deterrent formulation came onto the market," said Theodore Cicero, a Washington University researcher who investigated its effects. "[But] the most unexpected, and probably detrimental, effect of the abuse-deterrent formulation was that it contributed to a huge surge in the use of heroin."

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Getting High

Pot Smuggler, Advocate Robert Platshorn Starts Kickstarter for Ganja Documentary

By Rich Abdill Thu., Jul. 12 2012 at 8:00 AM
Categories: Getting High
grandma-smoke-pot.jpeg
West Palm Beach activist (and convicted drug-runner) Robert Platshorn wants to get marijuana legalized, and he says the key to doing it is simple: old people.

He's been traveling extensively and giving talks to senior citizens as part of his "Silver Tour," which he launched in 2010 to reach out to powerful senior voting blocs -- particularly Florida's -- in an effort to target a demographic that isn't used to thinking about weed. But the live shows he's been giving to audiences of all ages aren't enough, he says, and he wants to expand into -- get ready -- infomercials.

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Getting High

Crazed, Blind, French-Speaking Octogenarian Forces Spirit Air Emergency Landing

By Rich Abdill Tue., Jul. 10 2012 at 7:55 AM
Categories: Getting High
spirit-air.jpeg
All they wanted to do was fly from L.A. to Fort Lauderdale.

About 100 passengers were stuck in Houston on Sunday after an unruly 81-year-old man forced a Spirit Air red-eye flight to make an emergency landing in Texas, according to ABC News. The man was "like, touching everybody," according to one passenger. "He was going to the bathroom, not letting anybody go to the bathroom, come out of their seats, you know, kicking the walls."

The man reportedly could not speak English or see.

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Getting High

Rudy Eugene Wasn't High on Bath Salts; Let's Slow Down the Freak-Out

By Rich Abdill Thu., Jun. 28 2012 at 12:27 PM
Categories: Getting High
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Well, turns out "Miami Zombie" Rudy Eugene wasn't high on bath salts when he chomped on Ronald Poppo's face.

"The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner found only marijuana in the body of the man who was fatally shot while chewing a homeless man's face over Memorial Day weekend," wrote NBC Miami.

Wait, wait -- marijuana? QUICK. WE HAVE TO OUTLAW THAT STUFF!

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Rudy Eugene
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