@General Lighting 527262 wrote:
this is certainly more interesting than the average “rave related” research – though much of the drug related research in the past is good I’m sure its been used to advance prohibition / restriction as much as tolerance but I really can’t see how this one could be used negatively as its too niche and random!
I think it’s important to understand that scientific research, when conducted correctly and with as little bias as possible gives policy makers the truth of whether there are dangers, long term effects, etc, on which to make decisions by. Unfortunately, drug research has been rife with methodological incompetence and bias.
Even when done right the media often do more damage than good by reporting over simplifications without reading the actual material. Results of increased chance will be reported as full blown cause and effect to sell more papers.
If you read into modern research authors are often aware of the failings of the past, and I think that any research carefully done is useful. Whether or not it will be used to argue for or against prohibition is up to policy makers and politicians who have preferred to simply ignore the facts (and seen with the case of David Nutt), not even bothering to get informed on the issues but sticking with gut feelings and 2 dimensional ‘anti drug’ attitudes.
I’ve chosen this area to get the truth about certain lifestyles. Once the facts are clear the other debates can follow but the research is a tool, not a campaign for or against those lifestyles.
I won’t get into my personal opinion about specific drugs and legislation as I have to take a fairly professional approach to this study, but I think it’s clear to most academics and people within the communities that the current system is neither up to date with current research, nor working to reduce use or increase safety of users. The more quality research is done, the better chance there is of creating a system based on fact instead of hunches and gut feeling.
Hope this helps you all to understand the rationale behind the research and show how taking part in the research will benefit everyone, building pressure against political ignorance.
