The Banana Peel Project

Just some stuff that’s been keeping me entertained the last couple of weeks:

Drugs in Portugal: Did Decriminalization Work?

TIME magazine publishes a short piece on a recent Cato Institute report claiming that “in the five years after personal possession [for all drugs] was decriminalized, illegal drug use among teens in Portugal declined and rates of new HIV infections caused by sharing of dirty needles dropped, while the number of people seeking treatment for drug addiction more than doubled.”  Maybe Portugal’s a good model, maybe not.  But regardless, it makes you think.

The newly digitized FDA Notices of Judgment Collection, 1906-1964

Does it get any cooler than this?  “The FDA Notices of Judgment Collection is a digital archive of the published notices judgment for products seized under authority of the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act.  The NJs are resources in themselves but also lead users to the over 2,000 linear foot collection of evidence files used to prosecute each case.” I’m so on it.

Mad Pride

Newsweek, of all things, has a pretty good story on mental health patients’ movements like the Icarus Project.  Patients’ movements have actually been happening for a long time–it’s only their increasing visibility in the news and in the blogosphere that’s really new.  What’s most interesting is the tremendous number of groups (not mentioned in the story) that organize around the issue of staying on–rather than getting off–psychiatric drugs.  More things to think about.

If you’re concerned about privacy, don’t apply to live in a Stanford co-op

The New York Times uncovers an obscure article by the incensed mother of a Stanford undergraduate student who was unexpectedly placed in a co-ed dorm room.  Later in the day, we find out that what the National Review and The New York Times had thought was a bitter struggle between a concerned parent and a private educational monolith turned out to be some really pointless family drama.  Thanks for all the great, relevant coverage.