Sex, Drugs, Rock N' Roll

Rihanna likes to bring the controversial. Here's some druggy love for you this lovely Saturday.

And I Quote...

"I distrust camels, and anyone else who can go a week without a drink." --Joe E. Lewis

News Spotlight: Roasting Sheen

So Comedy Central held a Charlie Sheen roast Saturday night. It will be airing next Monday, Septemer 19. I can't fucking wait.

And I Quote...

“Beauty is worse than wine; it intoxicates both the holder and the beholder.” --Aldous Huxley

News Spotlight: Winehouse Update

Looks like the overdose theory is out the window in Amy Winehouse's death--at least any of the hardhitting ones people automatically assumed were responsible. It seems we'll never know exactly what happened, but this at least should bring a little more respect to her legacy.

From E! Online: "Amy Winehouse had no illegal drugs in her system, but there was alcohol in her bloodstream when she died, her family is revealing.

Toxicology tests done on the British soul singer have come back, but it hasn't been determined yet if the alcohol that was found in her system played any part in her death...

"Toxicology results returned to the Winehouse family by authorities have confirmed that there were no illegal substances in Amy's system at the time of her death," read a statement released today by family spokesman Chris Goodman.

"Results indicate that alcohol was present, but it cannot be determined as yet if it played a role in her death," the statement continues. "The family would like to thank the police and coroner for their continuing thorough investigations and for keeping them informed throughout the process. They await the outcome of the inquest in October.""

News Spotlight: Amy Winehouse

Since I didn't get a chance to mention the unfortunate death of Amy Winehouse over the weekend, I will say my part now. She was one of my favorite artists and anyone who knows me knows one of the things I talk about most when it comes to music is my longing for her to get it together and bless us with more. I can honestly say I have never been this sad about a musician dying. I think the ultimate culprit of these tragedies is the fact celebrities find themselves surrounded by people who only kiss their asses to keep the freebies coming and that they often reject the people that have their best interests at heart and try to set them straight.

Details of her death are starting to surface and there's a lot of confict--some news sources reporting that no drugs were found in her home, while others saying she bought ecstacy and cocaine the night before and went on a drinking binge. The autopsy will be done today so the truth will surface. Either way, music has lost one of its true gems.

Metal Taboo's Liquor Bizness

Metal Taboo is now in the liquor business. Well sort of. We are now serving flasks to add to our vice offerings. There are two different styles of flasks. The first are designed using high gloss colored resin backgrounds with embedded taboo inspired metal emblems. The second consists of original artwork (based on pieces in the Metal Taboo metalwork line) using colored resin layers. Both are unique, handmade, high-quality, and designed to keep you tipsy (errr most likely trashed) in style! Take a look.

Shout Out to Breaking Bad

I'd just like to give a warm welcome back and shout out to Breaking Bad. Unarguably one of the (if not the) best shows on television returned last night with a bang. Now that Walt has passed the threshold of "breaking" and is full-blown bad, the show is better than ever. Last night's episode was as impressive as usual and I am more than grateful to have my Breaking Bad fix back. TV may be mindless, but it sure in hell beats needing a meth fix.

News Spotlight: Robbery Fuckery

Here's some Tuesday morning fuckery for you. Musicians never dissapoint. At least he was being environmentally friendly with use of the cell phone and all.

From Los Angeles Times: "CONWAY, Mass - A musician, using a stickup note posted on his cell phone, robbed a Massachusetts pharmacy of prescription pain pills just hours before his scheduled rock concert, authorities said on Monday.

Michael Todd, 30, a bass player and singer with New York rock band Coheed and Cambria, was arrested Sunday at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts, several hours before the group was set to open for headliner Soundgarden.

Prosecutors say Todd went to a Walgreens in nearby Attleboro Sunday afternoon and showed a pharmacy employee a text message on his Blackberry saying he had a bomb and demanding prescription painkillers.

"It is somewhat routine that in robberies, the robber gives a note to the clerk, but obviously this was a little bit more high-tech," said Gregg Miliote, spokesman for the Bristol County District Attorney's Office.

A frightened employee allegedly then handed over a half-dozen bottles of oxycodone pills, and Todd fled the store, taking a taxi to his parked tour bus outside the hall, said Miliote.

Attleboro police managed to track down Todd after piecing together details from surveillance video at the pharmacy and a witness's description of the taxi, he said.

At his arraignment Monday in Attleboro District Court, Todd was charged with armed robbery and drug possession, Miliote said. Judge Dan O'Shea ordered Todd held on $25,000 cash bail.

"Michael Todd was arrested today on what we consider very serious charges and therefore he will not be finishing up the current tour," said a statement from the band on its Facebook page.

Musician Wes Styles will take on bass duties starting Monday for the remaining dates in Poughkeepsie, New York; Quebec City and Halifax, Canada; it added.

"We are surprised, to say the least, and will address the situation with Michael after the tour. For now, we just want to have a great time out here and finish with some killer shows," the band statement said."

News Spotlight: Wizards and Whiskey

The world's favorite wizard has revealed that all that enemy slaying and mind trickery took a toll. In his GQ interview, Daniel Ratchliffe says that he drank quite a bit on set of the last Harry Potter movie and became "reliant" on alcohol. The whole childhood star turning into an alcoholic or drug user is a recurring theme in Hollywood so it would seem these stories wouldn't have much shock value. But it's fucking Harry Potter! What is the (wizarding? Muggle?) world coming to?

News Spotlight: More Amy Winehouse Fuckery

Why won't Amy Winehouse just get her shit together already?! There are few things I really look forward to and her return to music is one of them. She started a "comeback" tour last night. Unfortunately, she was drunk and awful so a comeback it was not. All the news outlets are reporting that she got booed offstage after a set filled with stumbling and other drunkard behaviors. There is nothing more sad than wasted talent. Well, except wasted talent due to drug and alcohol addiction. I hope for her own sake as well as for the sake of music that she can face her demons.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

A.K.A. Another reason to get shitfaced.

And I Quote...

“Men are like a fine wine. They all start out like grapes, and it's our job to stomp on them and keep them in the dark until they mature into something you'd like to have dinner with.” --Kathleen Mifsud

Happy 4/20!

And I Quote...

“I've only been in love with a beer bottle and a mirror.” --Sid Vicious

"The Hard Sell" : Taboo In Advertising

This ad by the National Health Service in the UK is not only a print ad, but also had a matching commercial in which the man was actually dragged by the fish hook. Needless to say, it didn't sit so well with the public and the ads drew hundreds of (actually closer to 1000) filed complaints. In the end, the commercial was considered the most disturbing to people. The the print ads were ruled to be avoided in locations where the ads could easily be seen by children and the tv ads similarly couldn't be aired with children's programing.

And I Quote...

“I'm a simple man. All I want is enough sleep for two normal men, enough whiskey for three, and enough women for four.” --Joel Rosenberg

"The Hard Sell" : Taboo In Advertising

The Health Ministry of Israel did not find these ads for Kiss: All Natural Tobacco amusing one bit. But the interesting part is that they did not go after the ads for being obscene. They filed a complaint on the grounds that the cigarette packets resemble human beings and therefore violate the law against the use of humans in cigarette ads. And it worked. The tobacco company was fined for the use of humans in the ads. Who knew humans looked like this in Israel?

And I Quote...

“Marijuana is like Coors beer. If you could buy the damn stuff at a Georgia filling station, you'd decide you wouldn't want it.” --Billy Carter

"Vice Pioneers" : Marijuana

Cannabis sativa from Vienna Dioscurides, 512 A.D.


Shakespeare: To weed or not to weed, that is the question.


The less harmful gateway drug?

We've taken a look at some extremely harmful drugs for "Vice Pioneers," but what about the most popular and one considered least dangerous? Although opponents of marijuana use believe the drug is a starter addiction that leads to heavier drugs, there is also a widespread acceptance of the drug for recreational and medical use. With the strong pushes recently to get marijuana legalized and the undoubtedly common use of it, it seemed fitting to reveal some of its history.

From Wikipedia: "Cannabis, also known as marijuana (sometimes spelled "marihuana") among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug. The word marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish marihuana. According to the United Nations, cannabis "is the most widely used illicit substance in the world."

The typical herbal form of cannabis consists of the flowers and subtending leaves and stalks of mature pistillate of female plants. The resinous form of the drug is known as hashish (or merely as 'hash').

The major psychoactive chemical compound in cannabis is Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (commonly abbreviated as THC). Cannabis contains more than 400 different chemical compounds, including at least 66 other cannabinoids (cannabidiol (CBD), cannabinol (CBN) and tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), etc.) which can result in different effects from those of THC alone.

Cannabis use has been found to have occurred as long ago as the 3rd millennium BC. In modern times, the drug has been used for recreational, religious or spiritual, and medicinal purposes. The UN estimated that in 2004 about 4% of the world's adult population (162 million people) use cannabis annually, and about 0.6% (22.5 million) use it on a daily basis. The possession, use, or sale of cannabis preparations containing psychoactive cannabinoids became illegal in most parts of the world in the early 20th century. Since then, some countries have intensified the enforcement of cannabis prohibition, while others have reduced it.

History
The use of cannabis, at least as fiber, has been shown to go back at least 10,000 years in Taiwan. Má (Pinyin pronunciation), the Chinese expression for hemp, is a pictograph of two plants under a shelter.

Cannabis is indigenous to Central and South Asia. Evidence of the inhalation of cannabis smoke can be found in the 3rd millennium B.C], as indicated by charred cannabis seeds found in a ritual brazier at an ancient burial site in present day Romania. Cannabis is also known to have been used by the ancient Hindus and Nihang Sikhs of India and Nepal thousands of years ago. The herb was called ganjika in Sanskrit (गांजा/গাঁজা ganja in modern Indic languages). The ancient drug soma, mentioned in the Vedas, was sometimes associated with cannabis.

Cannabis was also known to the ancient Assyrians, who discovered its psychoactive properties through the Aryans. Using it in some religious ceremonies, they called it qunubu (meaning "way to produce smoke"), a probable origin of the modern word "cannabis". Cannabis was also introduced by the Aryans to the Scythians and Thracians/Dacians, whose shamans (the kapnobatai—"those who walk on smoke/clouds") burned cannabis flowers to induce a state of trance. Members of the cult of Dionysus, believed to have originated in Thrace (Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey), are also thought to have inhaled cannabis smoke. In 2003, a leather basket filled with cannabis leaf fragments and seeds was found next to a 2,500- to 2,800-year-old mummified shaman in the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China.

Cannabis has an ancient history of ritual use and is found in pharmacological cults around the world. Hemp seeds discovered by archaeologists at Pazyryk suggest early ceremonial practices like eating by the Scythians occurred during the 5th to 2nd century B.C., confirming previous historical reports by Herodotus. One writer has claimed that cannabis was used as a religious sacrament by ancient Jews and early Christians due to the similarity between the Hebrew word "qannabbos" ("cannabis") and the Hebrew phrase "qené bósem" ("aromatic cane"). It was used by Muslims in various Sufi orders as early as the Mamluk period, for example by the Qalandars.

A study published in the South African Journal of Science showed that "pipes dug up from the garden of Shakespeare's home in Stratford-upon-Avon contain traces of cannabis." The chemical analysis was carried out after researchers hypothesized that the "noted weed" mentioned in Sonnet 76 and the "journey in my head" from Sonnet 27 could be references to cannabis and the use thereof.

Cannabis was criminalized in various countries beginning in the early 20th century. It was outlawed in South Africa in 1911, in Jamaica (then a British colony) in 1913, and in the United Kingdom and New Zealand in the 1920s. Canada criminalized marijuana in the Opium and Drug Act of 1923, before any reports of use of the drug in Canada. In 1925 a compromise was made at an international conference in The Hague about the International Opium Convention that banned exportation of "Indian hemp" to countries that had prohibited its use, and requiring importing countries to issue certificates approving the importation and stating that the shipment was required "exclusively for medical or scientific purposes". It also required parties to "exercise an effective control of such a nature as to prevent the illicit international traffic in Indian hemp and especially in the resin".

In the United States the first restrictions for sale of cannabis came in 1906 (in District of Columbia). In 1937, the Marijuana Transfer Tax Act was passed, and prohibited the production of hemp in addition to marijuana. The reasons that hemp was also included in this law are disputed. The Federal Bureau of Narcotics agents reported that fields with hemp were also used as a source for marijuana dealers. Several scholars have claimed that the Act was passed in order to destroy the hemp industry, largely as an effort of businessmen Andrew Mellon, Randolph Hearst, and the Du Pont family. With the invention of the decorticator, hemp became a very cheap substitute for the paper pulp that was used in the newspaper industry. Hearst felt that this was a threat to his extensive timber holdings. Mellon, Secretary of the Treasury and the wealthiest man in America, had invested heavily in the DuPont's new synthetic fiber, nylon, and considered its success to depend on its replacement of the traditional resource, hemp.

Legal status
Since the beginning of the 20th century, most countries have enacted laws against the cultivation, possession or transfer of cannabis. These laws have impacted adversely on the cannabis plant's cultivation for non-recreational purposes, but there are many regions where, under certain circumstances, handling of cannabis is legal or licensed. Many jurisdictions have lessened the penalties for possession of small quantities of cannabis, so that it is punished by confiscation and sometimes a fine, rather than imprisonment, focusing more on those who traffic the drug on the black market.

In some areas where cannabis use has been historically tolerated, some new restrictions have been put in place, such as the closing of cannabis coffee shops near the borders of the Netherlands, closing of coffee shops near secondary schools in the Netherlands and crackdowns on "Pusher Street" in Christiania, Copenhagen in 2004.

Some jurisdictions use free voluntary treatment programs and/or mandatory treatment programs for frequent known users. Simple possession can carry long prison terms in some countries, particularly in East Asia, where the sale of cannabis may lead to a sentence of life in prison or even execution. More recently however, many political parties, non-profit organizations and causes based on the legalization of medical cannabis and/or legalizing the plant entirely (with some restrictions) have emerged.