On Perfectionism, Control & Finding The Middle Path

Some things can't be controlled.  I say that as a long-term sufferer of OCD... not the self-diagnosed "I'm so OCD, teehee" kind but the "there's this brain surgery you could try" kind where even psychologists et al. have run out of (good) ideas.  The "wash your hands until they bleed" and "count every calorie that goes into your mouth" kind that has resulted in inpatient stays many moons ago.  Needless to say I'm familiar with the list-making, nitpicking "planning" activities all Type A peeps do from a young age.  To be clear, I'm not knocking goal-setting with clear deadlines.  That's one of the most effective ways to actually accomplish long-term objectives & turn abstract dreams into concrete realities.  It's a matter of degrees.  But again, not all things can be accounted for ahead of time, or controlled. 

This is something I've learned the hard way after turning down promising experiences due to it being the "wrong time/fit/vibe" only to majorly regret it later.  Sometimes I let others influence my decision when I absolutely should not have--overly negative people who were likely jealous or afraid THEY would lose their control over me if I'd taken the opportunity.  Also, when I examined the real motivation behind my avoidance/rejection of said opportunity, it was often down to my own anxiety and fear of the unknown, which is what all the planning and control is REALLY about in the first place.  If you account for every possible pothole and speed bump ahead of time, you can avoid catastrophe!  Make flawless decisions, generate flawless outcomes...

Except none of us is psychic.  We don't have a fucking clue what tomorrow will bring.  What seems "flawless" and foolproof today can prove cringe and regrettable in a month or year.  Things that look ideal on paper can be miserable in real life.  Plus, the planning itself can be a path to nowhere.  If you put all your focus on the distant term and then get a terminal disease or end up paralyzed in a car wreck without having truly LIVED, what good is that?   I'm not saying you should jeopardize everything you've worked for by breaking the law or doing other reckless shit, but it's important to maintain a sense of balance and aim for a well-rounded life.  To actually LIVE while working toward distant goals.  As the saying goes, those who live in the past are depressed; those who live in the future are anxious.  Only those who live in the present moment are truly content and at peace.
.




The Middle Path

Extremes are for suckaz

Balance, moderation.  The middle road.  These concepts can be hard for people with high-achieving personalities, OCD, perfectionism or any degree of these things.  Maybe you come from a family or culture that pressures you to be the best, whether athletically, academically or in some other respect... parents that tell you 2nd place is for losers.  Any grade but an A+ is as good as an F.  That you must be the prettiest, thinnest, most popular girl if you want to be Prom Queen/Homecoming Queen, and do whatever it takes to get there.  You find that they're generally right:  being the best requires hard work and sacrifice. 

And then you get out in the real world and realize these values don't really align with your own and, worse, they were actively harming your mental health.  So you go to the other extreme, doing just enough to get by and prioritizing your happiness above all else.  "Slacking".  Indulging, living for the moment.  Actively rebelling against everything you were taught.  But this doesn't feel quite right either.  

So you come back to the center and do your best to create a life that feels authentic.  A simple life that honors your values & biological rhythms without being overly indulgent.  And still, people judge and criticize.  But this time, you step back and examine THEIR motives.  You realize they're just as screwed up as anyone and if they truly cared, they would only offer advice when asked.  That only unhappy people who refuse to examine their own flaws spend their time picking apart other peoples' daily lives, appearance, relationships, the state of their finances or homes. 

Instead of being hurt by their words, you put up emotional boundaries and refuse to let them drag you back to that hellish place of perfectionism where your inner critic drives you to self-harm.  You quietly congratulate yourself for simply surviving to this big age and having things to show for it--a car, a roof over your head, clothes, electricity, food in the fridge, your sanity (most days).  Amazing friends & immersive hobbies.  And then you go right back to painting your nails a funky color, reading your Tarot cards or whatever oddball thing you were doing when they tried to disrupt your peace.  💅

This is what healthy separation from toxic loved ones should look like.  It's definitely harder when one or both parties suffers from mental illness or other problems affecting mood & behavior (substance abuse, cognitive disabilities, religious brainwashing, ADHD/autism, etc) but it's still doable.  And bonus:  you don't have to cut them out of your life forever to put up these boundaries!  If they really love you, which they usually do, they will eventually come around.  You can see them on your terms, and interactions will generally be far more pleasant than when you lived under their physical/financial/emotional control.  

(My OCD is mostly manageable on a day-to-day basis but can "flare-up" during periods of acute life stress or physical illness.  From the outside I may look like an underachiever with a "who cares" attitude, but I've worked very hard to cultivate that attitude because it's my greatest defense against the "demon" of perfectionism and dangerous thought loops that got me hospitalized multiple times as a teenager.  I have some very specific triggers and as long as they aren't being set off by actual events, I'm generally fine.  I have family members whose every waking moment is consumed by OCD rituals so I'm grateful for the peace of mind I do have.  I just wish people without mental illness/developmental disabilities would start trusting those of us WITH these things to be the experts on our own lives.  We know what we're capable of and what we aren't, and we want you to treat us with the same respect and grace you treat everyone else in your life.  Hold us accountable when we fuck up, don't hide bad news from us because you assume we'll "freak out".  Talk TO us, not ABOUT us.  If we want advice on how to run our lives, we'll ask.  Same as you).

Another Shitstorm: Sexually-Transmitted Diarrhea Sweeps the Nation

It's happening again (or should I say, "crappening" again):  Another self-induced outbreak in the U.S. is being met with laugh reacts and emojis by a science-denying public of infantile plague spreaders.  This time sexually-transmitted in nature.  A spate of articles warning of treatment-resistant "sexually transmitted diarrhea" are making the rounds, and already the denialism is loud.  "Just in time for midterms, eh?!"  "More fear porn, no thanks!"  "Just when we got over the cyclospora" etc. 

Unfortunately this self-induced shitshow (sorry, last one) is all too real, and it's not hard to imagine what's causing it but I'll go ahead and spell it out for the slow ones in the back:  oral-anal contact.  And for the REALLY slow ones:  putting your mouth & tongue in/on/around someone's asshole.  Which an increasing number of people, including otherwise "vanilla" heterosexuals, does these days.  Why?  Dear God, why?  Presumably because it's talked about in popular music and depicted in porn and people are utterly incapable of not following idiotic trends without a second thought, even dangerous sexual ones.  







(Specific) Causes

This shouldn't require a tutorial

So what pathogen is the actual CAUSE of this particular diarrhea?  That's the scary thing:  it's not just one, two or even 3 bugs to blame.  There are so many fecal-oral diseases that are not spread via other types of sex that it's a bit disturbing how anyone ever thought this was a good idea.  Why Sex Ed classes aren't warning specifically against oral-anal contact is beyond me when so many people suffer from chronic GI diseases like ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease and C. diff, which kills between 15,000-30,000 Americans per year and infects half a million.  It's a well established fact that viral/bacterial infections can trigger diseases up to and including colon cancer in people under 50, so this should all be taken a lot more seriously. 

C. diff is just one nasty infection that can be spread this way.  Here are a few more that have been linked specifically to treatment-resistant diarrhea:

Risk > Reward

Historical Precedent:  Gay Bowel Disease 

In the late '70s and early 1980s right before the dawn of AIDS, gay men were afflicted with what was then termed "gay bowel disease," (notice any familiar bugs in that link?) a collection of colon and rectal diseases spread by anal sex and oral-anal sex.  They were also discovered to have astronomically high rates of Hepatitis B compared to the general population.  And then, of course, came HIV/AIDS which was also transmitted more readily via anal sex than other types.  It was even labeled "GRID" or "GRIDS" (Gay-Related Immune Deficiency Syndrome") in the earliest days.

Of course, viruses and other pathogens have no knowledge nor preference for one sexual orientation over another.  Not all gay men engage in these practices and many heterosexuals do, which has always been the case.  But this is even more true today in the post-AIDS world of on-demand porn and open discussion of sex practices like "eating booty" among celebrities and influencers.  More people engaging in these dangerous practices = more cases of these diseases regardless of sexual orientation, and it won't stop with fecal-oral disease.  (See: monkeypox).   

And those diseases do not remain restricted to consenting adults who engage in these acts; they inevitably spill over into exposed children and babies, elderly people, immunocompromised patients and others.  So even if YOU don't engage in these behaviors, you could still be affected directly or indirectly, such as by increased antibiotic resistance or transmission outside of a sexual setting (food or water contamination).  That's why none of this is the least bit funny.

Women know all too well how getting even tiny traces of backdoor bacteria in the urethra will cause a burning urinary tract infection that can progress to the bladder, kidneys and bloodstream if left untreated.  Well, the same happens when you get it in your mouth: it enters your stomach, small and large intestine and multiplies, causing acute illness that can become chronic or even fatal in severe cases.  Antibiotic-resistant means just that--there are no or very few treatments that work, and those that do may leave your gut in a terrible state after the fact. 

Harm Reduction

Exit only

This is normally where I'd tell you some convenient ways to reduce your risk while still engaging in the behavior, but that's just not possible here.  Part of harm reduction is being able to honestly weigh the risks vs. benefits of a given activity and discern when the risks are just too high to justify engaging in the behavior.  This is certainly the case with some drugs:  toxic inhalants like paint, glue and computer duster; carfentanil, krokodil.  Putting your mouth or tongue on somebody's anus is comparable in terms of disease risk.  It doesn't matter how well they clean the area--it's impossible to remove all traces of infectious pathogens, which are invisible anyway.  No amount of temporary pleasure is worth possibly contracting and spreading a deadly or debilitating disease like antibiotic-resistant diarrhea, C. diff, Crohn's disease or the bacteria that cause colon cancer.

This isn't about being biased toward a sex act I don't like or being homophobic (newsflash:  I'm gay).  It's about basic hygiene and common sense.  We're already facing a huge disease burden due to low vaccination rates, antibiotic resistance, lack of universal healthcare, climate change and its downstream effects (vector-borne disease, biodiversity loss, etc) & these shady BSL labs that constantly have "leaks" and safety breaches.  The last thing we need is more preventable transmissible disease. 

With all this hippie dippie talk about the "gut-brain connection" and the "microbiome," overlooking dangerous sexual practices like this is hypocritical bordering on ludicrous.  If you want to be taken seriously, you must be consistent.  This isn't a problem probiotics and kombucha will fix.

Transing the Gay Away: The Iran Model

For those uber-lefty liberals who believe that gender ideology is progressive or forward-thinking in ANY way/shape/form, take a look at this:

Iran says the quiet part out loud

Iran has never been known for its progressive social policies (well, not since about 1979 at least).  It's illegal to be gay there--punishments include flogging, imprisonment and the death penalty under Islamic law.  But there's one loophole co-signed by the ruling religion itself:  sex change.  The state even provides partial financial support for those seeking (or pressured into) these operations.  If one partner in a gay couple undergoes a sex change, the pair can stay in the country and remain together without being stoned to death... or whatever method they use to execute sinners and infidels over there.  We have our own barbaric methods here with the death penalty so I'm not in a position to judge that aspect of it. 

Lesbian extermination in the 21st Century.

I'm also not judging their brutal form of gay conversion therapy because we do the very same thing here in the U.S.  ~70% of children referred to gender clinics are female, and up to NINETY PERCENT of them are same-sex attracted.  Whether you call it conversion therapy or not, that's exactly what it is--turning a lesbian girl into an imitation of a hetero boy to make her "normal".  Changing the body to align with the unscientific, Stone Age gender roles of boys liking blue/trucks/girls and girls liking pink/dresses/boys.  Creating lifelong medical patients and surgical amputees out of teenagers in the name of an ideology, whether religious or political or otherwise, is WRONG.  In fact it should be renamed The Iran Model because we're literally copying their sick scheme to a T.  (So maybe I AM judging, sue me).  

Actually, our version is worse because we inflict it on children and are beating an entire generation over the head with these bogus gender concepts.  Iran is keeping it restricted to a minority of adults who at least have the option to leave the country, go back into the closet or accept their punishment if they choose not to have the surgery.  Yes, that's brutal and awful and homophobic and violates every human rights law in existence, but at the bare minimum they aren't rendering children infertile and incapable of sexual function before they're old enough to understand what that actually entails.  They're not pushing toxic puberty blockers on 10, 11 and 12 year olds or turning female sports into a catchall category... locking males with penises convicted of sex crimes in a 5 x 9' cell with women or firing people from their jobs for using the wrong (right) pronouns. 

In other words, Iran is using transgenderism as a loophole for their religion; the West is making it a religion unto itself.  Both are bad and wrong in their own ways, but the point remains that this is in no way a liberal or progressive movement.  Also, the actual transsexuals with gender dysphoria who just want to be perceived as the opposite sex without making their whole existence about "trans" issues or changing the gender binary are being used as a shelter for all manner of personal agenda-pushing by the queer, tucute, gender fluid, crossdressing, autogynephile, MAPS and endless other identities which I'd think would be pretty offensive.  

🎃🏚🧟👻🧛🏻‍♀

 

Hello again!  Hope you're feeling spooky because Halloween is fast approaching.  Now taking donations for the second half of October.  Bitcoin links below and Cashapp available upon request.  Every dollar & Bitdollar appreciated!  All contributions are 100% anonymous and go right back into funding the blog.  See you again on the 1st!  📆


BITCOIN:
18cwb3qFkGghVqqzNSX59EFypzzF8Dd7Vg

BITCOIN CASH:
qz84t4ua2achx90a7yk8efelvufggflhu5tzalry7l

Reefer Madness 2.0: Kratom Kalamity! 🍃🍵😱

Why are we like this, America?  Why do we take ancient natural things like cannabis, Kratom, coca, Khat, salvia and opium and make deadly weapons-grade commercial versions like the JWH series ("Spice/K2"), MGM-15 and 16, cocaine & crack, synthetic cathinones ("bath salts"), salvia divinorum extracts up to 80x potency and synthetic/semi-synthetic opioids as potent as carfentanil and the nitazenes?  I know part of it is due to the drug war itself, but that's not the whole story because we do it even with legalized/decriminalized drugs.  Kratom, for instance, and salvia when it was widely legal.

To be clear:  a substance's "natural" vs. "synthetic" status tells us precisely nothing about its safety.  It's important to remember that plants like datura, comfrey, henbane and amanita muscaria can be as deadly or MORE deadly than many synthetic/man-made substances.  But naturally occurring plant-based drugs are more likely to have a longer history of human use as well as a variety of complex alkaloids, some of which have a "ceiling" effect or negative effects that discourage overdose.  When you take the active alkaloids and isolate them, such as cocaine/coca or morphine/Opium, you start to see heightened addiction and overdose risk.  Ditto when you go the fully synthetic route, creating potent molecules that resemble the plant alkaloids but don't exist in nature.  Keep this in mind as you read the next few paragraphs.
 





The Kratom Konundrum

This is Kratom...

Kratom leaf contains the active alkaloids mitragynine and trace amounts of 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OHM) but also a variety of other lesser known alkaloids like paynantheine and speciogynine as well as some opioid blockers.  These are responsible for the fact that kratom doesn't cause respiratory depression even in high doses and isn't quite as euphoric or addictive as single-molecule opioids like oxycodone.  That's not to say Kratom can't be addictive or cause overdose in high doses.  It absolutely can be and has, it just does so by a different mechanism.  But the risk is lower than with traditional opioids when safe dosing and moderation are observed.

Read this until you understand because it's important:  it's possible to overdose on ANYTHING, at least in theory:  oxygen, salt, water, exercise, sunlight.  We need all these things to remain alive, but you can also overdo it to the point that they kill you.  Likewise, ANY mind-altering drug can kill you in high enough doses, though some are more potent & easier to overdose on than others.  While synthetic kratom-like drugs such as MGM-15 & 16 and 7-OH have caused a rash of deaths in a short time, exceedingly few healthy adults have died from plain kratom leaf alone; nearly all had pre-existing health conditions and/or multiple drugs in their system at the time of death (or excessive amounts of kratom extracts/alkaloids in their system that could not have come from plain leaf alone).  

...this is not.

Recent Deaths, Hysterical Headlines & Bans

Where we're at now with the current "kratom" death trend is due to the super-potent synthetic products sold in gas stations, head shops and herbal supplement shops.   These products are not kratom leaf but ultra-potent knockoffs, some of them containing multiple ingredients like synthetic 7-OH plus cat's claw. This is EXACTLY what transpired with bath salts, Spice and tianeptine in years past.  While media headlines warn about a spate of "kratom deaths," the truth is right before our eyes in the photos and captions of said stories, contradicting them at every turn.  Packets of branded "SMAX Pseudo" tablets and "7Tabs" are posted under stories with titles fingering KRATOM as the offending agent, which is like blaming a Maltese for mauling a woman to death when a pack of pit bulls is clearly pictured beside her mangled body.  THEY'RE BOTH DOGS, BUT THAT'S WHERE THE SIMILARITIES END. 

100 milligrams of codeine = 100 MICROgrams of fentanyl

Fentanyl may be an opioid that acts on the same receptors as Imodium or codeine, but it's many times more potent and easier to overdose on (see chart above for specific numbers).  Unfortunately, we don't have the exact numbers for how plain kratom leaf compares to potent synthetics like MGM-15/16 or Pseudoindoxyl so it's impossible to gauge what "safe" even looks like with those totally novel substances.  

It's so damned frustrating watching the media spew dangerous disinformation in the middle of the deadliest drug epidemic this nation has ever known.  In fact, the opioid crisis is the 2nd deadliest disaster of any kind this nation has ever experienced, yet here you are, dutifully slandering another fucking plant so pharma can patent its individual components and sell it back to us at a premium, undoubtedly less safe and 100x more expensive than it is now.  Just like they did with Marinol, Nabilone, Epidiolex and cannabis.  Or khat and Bupropion/Wellbutrin.  Or Ephedra/Rx amphetamines.  You get the picture.  They want a total monopoly on our health, and they'll get it thanks to this neverending campaign of drug scapegoating and baseless fear if we don't push back hard, fast and consistently.

Even with potent "bath salt" stimulants and cannabinoids, very few users died when using the pure, properly labeled single substance purchased directly from the source during the height of the research chemical craze.  The problem is, was, and will always be these branded multi-ingredient concoctions like "White Rush" and "Benzo Fury".  Why?  Because you can't even determine a relatively safe dose if you don't know wtf you're taking!  MDPV is not the same as 4-MMC which is not the same as 4-FA.  Likewise, "cat's claw" does not have the same effect as MGM-15 which is different than 7-OH.  And some substances are simply too potent to take safely at all, as is probably the case with some of these kratom knockoffs.  I wouldn't know because I never have and never will take something sold at a head shop, gas station or other store of ill repute.  🥴 

Respect yourself enough to choose sobriety if your only choice is "SMAX Pseudoindoxyl" or sobriety.  No high is worth dying over.  And please, call out bullshit reporting and political pandering when you see it.  







Harm Redux 102

Only abstinence is 100%, but harm reduction methods can greatly reduce risks.

If your usual dose of Kratom or opioids aren't doing it for you anymore, the solution is to take a tolerance break... NOT to increase the dose or try something stronger.  That's a one-way ticket to Hell.  Just quit for 3-5 days and you'll be as good as new and can probably lower your dose when you resume your usage.  Nobody said it's fun or easy but it can be done with the right meds on hand for withdrawal symptoms (Imodium, NSAIDs/Tylenol, antihistamines and/or Zofran for nausea, doxylamine for sleep, etc). 

That's if you're a daily user of Kratom or other opioid drugs.  If you're not, do everything in your power to not get to that point.  This is called being a responsible adult/drug user.  Pencil your T-breaks into your month (or every other month at the least) and try to schedule them for times you don't have much to do.  Make it a "spa weekend and chill" vibe.

Bulk kratom leaf powder direct from Indonesia

Only buy plain kratom leaf from trusted vendors online or in vetted local Kratom shops and avoid anything labeled "extract," "enhanced blend" or kratom that's pressed into a pill.  (Capsules are generally fine, but make sure it's plain leaf inside and not "enhanced" leaf or one of the dangerous synthetics).  To reduce possible pathogens, boil your Kratom before consuming as a tea.  Do not use Kratom if you have heart or liver disease or are under 18, and never drive a car under the influence.  Avoid combining Kratom with other recreational or Rx drugs/substances, as it can cause dangerous interactions via multiple pathways (serotonin syndrome and liver enzyme inhibition).





If Kratom is So Powerful...

Kratom:  a SIP, a PARTY, a TRAGEDY!  

 ...why the huge market for all these potent alternatives?  Kratom comes in a wide variety of colors and forms, each with its own subtle flavor & effects.  There's Thai kratom, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Papua New Guinea.  If it was really so powerful, euphoric and addictive, users would be spending their last dime buying out every gas station in a 20 mile radius.  Instead, addicts are opting for the actual drug-like options:  mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15/16, 7-OH...  Multi-ingredient concoctions and mislabeled products that could contain some brand new nitazene or other opioid for all we know.  You don't see meth addicts converting meth into a more powerful drug for a reason.  Ditto fentanyl.  Kratom is clearly not on that level.

By all means, regulators should put federal age requirements on plain kratom leaf and ban the branded synthetics that are killing people.  But if I read one more news headline containing the word "kratom" when the substance in question has nothing whatsoever to do with kratom and actually helps prove how benign kratom is, I'm going to scream.  Facts never matter more than when discussing matters of health & safety.  Every station that releases a factually inaccurate, sloppy fearmongering story for the sake of ratings is going to hear from me.  That's one thing I do control.  And I urge all my readers to send their respectful but strongly worded letters to every media outlet guilty of this too.  Your voice truly does matter on this, and that's coming from a skeptical nihilistic pessimist who gave up on voting long ago.

Ironically, this recent flood of super-potent mimic drugs proves that plain kratom leaf really ISN'T the demon drug it's been made out to be.  If it was, there wouldn't be such a market for stronger options.  All these extracts, enhanced blends, synthetic MGM pills, pseudoindoxyl tablets and 7-OHM potions are filling a niche in the legal/grey area drug market.  Even with all the colors and strains of Kratom leaf:  crushed, finely ground, red/green/white/yellow and beyond, it's still not enough.  And that's a good thing because it means plain kratom just isn't that addictive or potent on its own.  No, you absolutely shouldn't experiment with it if you're not already a regular opioid user or pain patient, but if you are, it's unlikely to be all that euphoric or mind-blowing compared to other options.  This is what makes it a good maintenance drug.  

As I've said emphatically before, I'd enthusiastically support minimum age requirements on all Kratom products including plain leaf, as it's not appropriate for children under any circumstances.  Kids can't buy tobacco, nicotine products, alcohol or weed, so they shouldn't be able to buy a partial opioid agonist OTC either.  Same goes for tianeptine and any other remaining "legal highs".  But the real problem are these branded and mislabeled concoctions.  It's past time the FDA steps in and puts a stop to this greedy gold rush instead of merely scaring the public in the hopes of gaining support for dangerous, ineffective bans that make the whole situation worse by ensuring that every last gram of the drug supply is tainted.   

"And now for our feature presentation:  "Reefer Madness 2.0:  Kratom Kalamity!"  See what happens when this Assassin of Youth is unleashed on the gas-buying public.  They just wanted to fill up their tanks but got a whole lot more than they bargained for.  Now they're hooked, hopped up, keen, zooted, zonked out, fiending, pwned by the pwder.  And all from an innocent looking cup of tea.  Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "tempest in a teapot."  If you thought Reefer Madness was scary, just wait until you see... 

"Reefer Madness 2.0:  Kratom Kalamity!"  (Available on Hulu, Netflix and wherever drug war propaganda is sold).


^^^^^^^ How our media sounds.  

Glenn Greenwald is a Rape Apologist

 Regarding the rape apologist victim-blaming Cornell U takes: popping up all over the internet:

Women have a right to be anywhere a man can be after dark or any other time.  That's the meaning of "free country."  We can wear whatever the fuck we please--if you don't like it, take your ass to Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan.  We have every right to consume alcoholic drinks like men do starting at age 21 and to consume cannabis or other drugs where they're legal.  None of these things implies sexual interest or consent to have sex with you.  Being blackout drunk (and naked) is not consent because giving consent is literally impossible in that situation.  Walking on our hands naked and clapping our ass cheeks in your face with the words "WET ASS PUSSY" painted on our faces ≠ consent to have sexual intercourse.  The only thing that counts as consent is an enthusiastic YES to questions such as "do you want to go all the way?" or "mind if I touch you here?".  

The bullshit argument that the appearance or behavior of the victim is the core cause of rape is just that:  bullshit.  If that's the case, explain why women in Middle Eastern countries where everything but the eyes and ankles are covered still get sexually assaulted.  Why elderly and mentally handicapped people in care homes fall victim to sexual predators... why women in correctional facilities in prison jumpsuits are raped by guards & trans-identified men.  Why BABIES IN DIAPERS & children in elementary schools are raped and assaulted all over the face of this planet every minute of every hour of every godforsaken day.  Even animals aren't safe around men.  

Men more likely to get raped in the military than in prison.  

If rape was the fault of the victim and not the rapist, why do so many men in the U.S. military and U.S. prisons end up on the receiving end of rape by other men?  Were they "asking for it," or is that just us?  For a country that so often emphasizes personal accountability and "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" philosophy, it's stunning how quickly the blame shifts to the victim in cases of rape/sexual assault.  No other violent crime draws a similar amount of "did it even really happen?" debate--not robbery, physical assault, carjacking, shootings/stabbings or anything else.  Even though these crimes often happen in dark corners or private places and there's no "physical evidence" beyond the victim's claims and injuries, which they could've inflicted themselves. In theory.

I'm not suggesting we start hounding other victims of violent crime.  I'm bringing attention to the hypocrisy of rape apologists who will tie themselves into knots to avoid putting the blame and consequences where they belong:  on the perpetrators.  The "devil's advocates" who try to muddy the issue by making it about how much both parties drank or how many sex partners the victim had or anything other than the issue at hand.  Being drunk or high does not give you a license to commit rape.  If you routinely feel the urge to sexually assault someone when under the influence, it's incumbent upon YOU to stop ingesting drugs/alcohol.    





Et Tu, Glenn Greenwald?

This clown just exposed himself.

Of all the shitty takes on this situation by random nobodies on the interwebs, it was that of Glenn Greenwald that shocked and sickened me most.  For the uninitiated, Greenwald is a gay journalist who's worked for Salon.com, The Intercept & The Guardian.  His political views lean heavily toward the Civil Rights/anti-establishment end of the spectrum.  So to see him trying to refute a post stating that "choosing to have a drink is not consent"--which should go without fucking saying in 2026--was more than a little disappointing.  It was stomach-turning and should be career ending since his career involves posing as a Civil Rights proponent. 

From Greenwald's X.com account.

He assumes it was consensual sex--that a severely intoxicated lone woman CONSENTED to a gangbang by a bunch of rowdy frat boys.  I don't know what gay men do when they let their hair down, but that's not the norm for women. The possibility of physical injury, unwanted pregnancy, STDs and reputational damage is so great that almost no woman would willingly consent to such a thing.  He continues:

Yes, because race is totally relevant here.  

After hyperfocusing on the intoxication level of everyone involved, he introduces RACE as another red herring, suggesting that people are just jumping on this accusation train because the accused are non-white.  Talk about a fucking reach.  These were all privileged frat boys at one of the nation's oldest, most prestigious colleges. What happened to that class consciousness you were always droning on about on Jimmy Dore's show?  Suddenly you wanna pull out the divisive identity politics to bolster your bullshit argument when it's convenient to you? 

People who try to cloud the issue like this only do so for one reason:  they have no actual argument.  It's just like the OJ supporters who made his double murder about "race" and Rodney King and everything but the actual crime and his history of violence.  You're projecting your own biases and hatred onto a case that has nothing to do with you, in this case, your hatred of women.

It honestly makes me question whether Greenwald is a 3-letter disinfo agent because those are some masterful distraction tactics.  If you fall for this, you're a fucking idiot.  The U.S. has practically decriminalized rape and sexual assault, as evidenced by the pathetically short sentences or entire lack of them handed out across the board (see: Jesse Butler, Robert H. Richards IV, Brock Turner, Roman Polanski & Christopher Belter).  Many of the aforementioned were found guilty or confessed to the crimes in court, yet still spent not one day in prison.  The very fact that so many rape cases are fought in civil court due to statute of limitations, rape kit backlogs and maltreatment by police proves this violent crime is not being treated as such.  Whether the victim is a woman or child, they can expect to be put on trial alongside the perpetrator. 

Sane, humane procedures in New Zealand

This isn't how it's done everywhere.  New Zealand allows judges to intervene if attorneys ask questions meant to humiliate, intimidate or shame the victim for unrelated past choices/behaviors.  Accusers are granted lifelong anonymity in the media and can choose to testify from behind a screen in another room or via pre-recorded video statement if they wish.  




Personal Accountability for Individual Choices

Blame Shifting: An American Pastime

Like men tell women when debating abortion, "sex has consequences".   If men are so terrified of false accusations, it would behoove them to avoid sleeping with total strangers they neither know nor trust.  Strangers who are drunk or high and could well "regret" it the next day.  Perhaps THEY should stop getting falling down drunk around these alleged predatory women who make up 2% of all sexual assault cases.  They should also consider that they're statistically more likely to be raped by another man than to face a false accusation by a woman.  So all of this bleating about false accusations is disproportionate to the actual reality. 

If you're not a rapist yourself but frequently side with accused men in cases like the Cornell University case, ask yourself why.  Is it because you actually believe it didn't happen, or are you just afraid to stand up to terrible men?  Do you disbelieve all statistics, or just ones you don't like personally?  Do you believe men are entitled to force sex on women, whether via physical force, threats/intimidation, taking advantage when they're unconscious or simply not taking 'no' for an answer?  Do you realize you're siding with oppressive evil forces like the men on Epstein Island and that your words hurt real survivors who read your comments?  

Time to bring the "report it to their employers" energy to rape apologists like Glenn Greenwald.  Their shitty opinions might not be a crime, but they should be held accountable for them.  Screenshot when you see something and send it over to the offender's employers.  I'll be contacting The Intercept shortly.

If this article gets put behind a censorwall I'm gonna be so pissed.  All opinions posted here are just that--opinions.  If you don't like them, do better.

[Cannabis Review] - Lucky Elk: White Runtz THCa Everyday Indoor Smalls (7g)

Thanks to the impending ban on "intoxicating hemp" products by Donald Gay Trump, I'm reviewing another THCa hemp strain for you lovely folks after just stocking up on 2 strains from 2 other vendors last month.  I swear I don't indulge this often IRL but I'm making up for lost time, as I didn't know THCa weed was a thing until it was nearly too late.  So here we are.  Also, be sure to check out my 1st kratom review in ages right here.

I ordered 7g of Lucky Elk's White Runtz Everyday Smalls (Indoor) on September 5th (a Saturday) and received the order Monday, Sept 14th.   My total was $44 + $6 shipping until I logged in, which gave me a 20% discount for Labor Day!  Sweet.  So it ended up being $41 including USPS Ground Advantage shipping.  (There was a brief payment issue for which I was asked to send payment again--I checked my bank account and it had indeed been refunded so no issue there.  Gladly resent it but it did add some time onto the handling). 





White Runtz


The White Runtz (top shelf buds) were sold out, as were all of the other bargain options of this strain, so it appears pretty popular.  There are 235 reviews of it on the site, of which the star breakdown looks like this:

White Runtz reviews on LuckyElk.com

White Runtz (31.74% THCa) is a cross between Gelato and Zkittlez, the latter being one of my all-time favorite strains.   It's a balanced 50/50 hybrid with a tropical aroma and an uplifting but mellow high.  Right up my alley.  I've been searching for that original giddy, non-sedating Zkittlez high ever since that 14g bag from the dispo ran out a couple of years back, but I've yet to find anything that comes close, whether sourced from professionals or homegrown.  Medical dispensaries in my area are known to mislabel shit as rare & exotic strains to increase sales, so who even knows if it was really Zkittlez or something else entirely.  Meh. 

Super stealthy high-end packaging!  Puffin' like a sir.  🧐

Everyday Smalls

Everyday Smalls

Lucky Elk's Everyday Smalls are indoor grown with organic ingredients and no pesticides, which is cool if true.  They also have "Premium Indoor Smalls" which cost $5-$10 more.  The site says these are machine trimmed with some hand trimming for precision, plus a water removal process that leaves behind only the good stuff.  I'm not familiar enough with all that to comment, as I've only trimmed by hand and don't use fancy drying gadgets.  Is it some kind of oven or drying rack that dehydrates the buds to dry/cure faster than hanging and jarring would?  Likely, as it seems like they've been a tad hurried through that last step.  (Not unusual for this industry in my limited experience).

This strain also won a "Leafly Award," but I can't seem to track down what that means in this context.  Which award, what year and for what specifically?  (Another question I have is whether "regular" strains and THCa strains are listed separately on sites like Leafly, since everyone claims it's "all weed" and the only difference is delta-9 content.  Do THCa strains come exclusively from cannabis stock (I.e. "Alaskan Thunderfuck x Chocolate Thai"), cannabis crossed with CBD/hemp plants (Alaskan Thunderfuck x Suver Haze) or something else entirely?  Is this just pot that's harvested super early to keep delta-9 levels down?

Not a question for Lucky Elk but something that's been on my mind lately.  🤔







The Actual Damned Review

In the bag vs. on a plate

Anyhow, the White Elk packaging was stealthy & WELL covered in the legal sense.  Don't wanna give away too much about the packaging, but it was very professional & helps explain the higher cost of their top-shelf buds.  My 7g of "smalls" smelled before I even ripped open the inner package--loud, pungent, skunky and just bold af overall!  I have a hard time detecting vanilla, cream or soft sweetness, but I suppose once you get past the knock-out weed smell, you can kinda catch a whiff of it in the background.  The buds themselves are small--among the smallest I've seen.  They almost resemble dog food kibbles when dumped out on a plate or bowl. 🐕‍🦺   Pretty blend of colors though, with a mix of lime green, sunset pink and pastel purple. 

While the bag came with a moisture pack, the buds are still pretty dry and turn to dust when ground.  None of that affects their quality or flavor though--the high is magnificent and much less tweaky than the Pineapple Express in my current rotation.  It's similar to the Bolo Runtz but also different... and slightly more "up" in the mood department.  While I haven't tried Gelato, I've sampled one of its parents (Sunset Sherbert) and found it to be one of the best pain relieving strains around... incredibly "melty" and relaxing in the muscle department.  

In short (yeah, right) I think I like the Lucky Elk strain best of the 3 I ordered this time around in the effects department, which is to me the only real metric that counts with weed.  Give your fugly, your unmanicured, your strange-smelling masses yearning to be smoked.  As long as they get my mind right and aren't full of toxic added crap, you won't hear any grumbling from me!  Let the "connoisseurs" have the dessert weed that tastes like a 7-layer parfait with chocolate sprinkles.  If it packs no psychoactive punch, what good is it?  It'd be like choosing Grape flavored Children's Dimetapp over a high dose of Dilaudid or OxyContin because it tastes better.  True, this strain is named after candy, but the creator clearly didn't overlook anything in the effects department so my review is as follows:

Price:  4.8 of 5 stars
Packaging/Stealth:  5 of 5 stars
Shipping Time:  4.6 of 5 stars
Effects:  4.9 of 5 stars
Aroma:  4.8 of 5 stars
Overall:  4.9 of 5 stars



Coming soon:  Lucky Elk  🔵  B l u e  N e r d z  🔵  review!



⋆⭒˚.⋆~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*⋆⭒˚.⋆

Got a favorite online THCa vendor you want to plug?  Now's your chance before the ban!  Drop their name/website in the comments below, and be as specific as possible about why they're your fave (prices, variety/selection, etc).  But please don't spam your own site/affiliate link or post more than once.  Phishing attempts & other bad faith comments will be removed and the offending users blocked. 👊🏼  Thanks!






⋆⭒˚.⋆~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*⋆⭒˚.⋆

♎♀👸🏼💜🍂 October Donations

 

Happy October, dear readers!  Now taking donations for October 1st.  No amount too small--even $1 helps.  Google Adsense does not support ads on this blog due to the drug content, so I rely on your contributions to keep it up and running.  Thank you!


BITCOIN:
18cwb3qFkGghVqqzNSX59EFypzzF8Dd7Vg

BITCOIN CASH:
qz84t4ua2achx90a7yk8efelvufggflhu5tzalry7l