The Netherlands (and especially Amsterdam) are special, I’m quite sure a similar campaign wouldn’t be possible nearly everywhere.
Possibly true, but throughout Europe you’ll find such things as hypodermic needle vending machines, to prevent people from using dirty needles, and safe-injection rooms.
Edit: Here’s a pretty in-depth Wikipedia article about Harm Reduction practices.
Dutch exceptionalism? It’s not easy to change a culture, but not impossible. Vancouver has many sensible drug policies, despite sabotage by the recently-overthrown Harper regime.
yes, injection rooms are common in German major cities. but they are not as “loud” and visible as the management of illegal drugs in Amsterdam.
If US drug policy were to be deliberately calculated for Harm Maximization it would be nearly indistinguishable from The War On Drugs…
wow that’s amazing
they should put up emergency needles filled with amphetamine behind glass on every corner. Break this glass in case of mistakenly snorting heroin! Finally we would be living in the slippery slope absurdist dystopia I always dreamed of.
Naloxone would be much better than amphetamine. With the added bonus that it is not a “fun” recreational drug like amphetamine.
Those things would last less than a day, as every night a different British stag party would smash the box and inject their groom friend for shits and giggles.
Actually it’s not that uncommon in Europe ( www.drugscouts.de, www.checkyourdrugs.at, www.saferparty.ch/diz.html)
During music festivals there will often be mobile drug testing stations where you can test your previously purchased drugs for free and without having to fear prosecution.
From political and offical sides they are often not approved of,but at least tolerated.
Naturally those testing stations are often the first ones to find very dangerous new types of drugs or pills that have been cut with potentially lethal stuff, so they (and the police) can warn the public right away.
interesting, I didn’t know this. shit, I visit the wrong festivals 
[quote=“SamSam, post:3, topic:68748”]
… throughout Europe you’ll find such things as hypodermic needle vending machines, to prevent people from using dirty needles, …[/quote]
I had a conversation with my kids (aged 11 and 12) about this while travelling through Europe recently. They were a bit surprised and confused about the ready availability of needles, so I explained that while it would probably be better if people didn’t use drugs (I’m saving that whole “yeah, drugs aren’t intrinsically evil” conversation for another time), it is still definately a good thing that peple who do use drugs can do so safely. Or, putting it another way, clamping down on paraphenalia so that users have to recycle needles and suchlike is in no one’s interests.
It took a little while, but I think they eventually understood the point I was making.
excuse me, but how is that a bonus again?!?
No drug is much fun if you’re not conscious when you take it. That’s the nice thing about naloxone in the event of an opioid overdose— it pulls the overdosed from the brink of death (usually) and back into waking life. I’d call that a bonus.
Now, if you are going for an absurdist dystopia, then a mix of methamphetamine and PCP would probably do the trick.
Nope. Never, as long there are assholes.
Basically, a mature society which favors helping people more than it favors punishing them.
Speaking of maturity:
[during the prohibition]
To prevent bootleggers from using industrial ethyl alcohol to produce illegal beverages, the federal government ordered the poisoning of industrial alcohols.
Its an active, engaged harm minimisation strategy that will almost certainly save lives. Where’s the confusion?
what a great example.
if only the USA could switch from the maximum harm mandatory sentencing model to one of harm minimization, that would be amazing. i can understand how some think this will never happen, but didn’t we think the same thing about marijuana legalization? i’d like to think it is possible.
Ireland are having an active debate on major reform now too:
