Getting High

Noted historian John Chasteen traces the global history of marijuana, exploring its rich heritage with captivating insight. Among the first domesticated plants, Surprisingly, though, only infrequently has it been used as a recreational drug. Instead, there is a vibrant spiritual dimension to its long history that has been continually ignored.

Description Between 1994 and 1996, music writer Paolo Hewitt spent the greater part of his life on the road with Oasis, in the U.K., Europe and America. He came back with tales that would cement the legend of the brawling, effing, hedonistic, charismatic, confessional and extraordinarily talented Gallagher brothers, Noel and Liam, and their group. Hewitt is a rare and perceptive fly-on-the-wall during the band's hectic rise to the height of their powers, as their first two albums are released to the kind of excitement scarcely seen in British rock music since the sixties. Hewitt takes the Gallaghers' story right back to their parents' roots in Ireland, and the descriptions of Noel and Liam's childhoods in working-class Manchester reveal the seeds of their determination to make Oasis the force it became. Getting High is an illuminating, funny, sometimes shocking reminder of how big a band can get, and how quickly the insanity sets in. Oasis have today sold in excess of 70 million records worldwide. Hewitt's intimate account of this explosive and beloved band, in their prime, is a rock classic and a riveting narrative. Praise for Getting High: 'Paolo is the only person to speak about what it was like on the road with us because he's been there. He's been there, he's seen it, he's done it.' Noel Gallagher 'Top read.' Melody Maker 'Unlimited access to all areas of the Oasis bandwagon is the ace up this biography's sleeve.' Q '10/10 - sometimes you get what you pay for.' Esquire 'By adopting a fly-on-the-wall approach and writing Oasis's story as though it were a novel rather than a straight biography, he succeeds in entertaining, informing and occasionally putting you inside the head of the Gallagher brothers.' Hot Press 'In Getting High we get closer to the real Oasis, not the tabloid fancies, the music press stereotypes of Noel the genius, Liam the wanker and three other blokes who don't count. Hewitt paints an engrossing and uplifting portrait of one of the most important bands of the decade.' The Word and Issue 'Getting High is refreshingly well written' Total Guitar 'Compelling drama' Manchester Evening News 'If you only buy one book about Oasis, then make sure it's this one.' FHM 'This well-researched tome chronicles many a pivotal moment in Oasis's history and is filled with plenty of ribald anecdotes.' NME 'Head and shoulders above every other Oasis book. I hated finishing it so much I read it again.' Irvine Welsh

An inside look at how patients living with terminal illness created one of the country’s first medical marijuana collectives Marijuana as medicine has been a politically charged topic in this country for more than three decades. Despite overwhelming public support and growing scientific evidence of its therapeutic effects (relief of the nausea caused by chemotherapy for cancer and AIDS, control over seizures or spasticity caused by epilepsy or MS, and relief from chronic and acute pain, to name a few), the drug remains illegal under federal law. In Dying to Get High, noted sociologist Wendy Chapkis and Richard J. Webb investigate one community of seriously-ill patients fighting the federal government for the right to use physician-recommended marijuana. Based in Santa Cruz, California, the Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) is a unique patient-caregiver cooperative providing marijuana free of charge to mostly terminally ill members. For a brief period in 2004, it even operated the only legal non-governmental medical marijuana garden in the country, protected by the federal courts against the DEA. Using as their stage this fascinating profile of one remarkable organization, Chapkis and Webb tackle the broader, complex history of medical marijuana in America. Through compelling interviews with patients, public officials, law enforcement officers and physicians, Chapkis and Webb ask what distinguishes a legitimate patient from an illegitimate pothead, good drugs from bad, medicinal effects from just getting high. Dying to Get High combines abstract argument and the messier terrain of how people actually live, suffer and die, and offers a moving account of what is at stake in ongoing debates over the legalization of medical marijuana.

“Hart’s argument that we need to drastically revise our current view of illegal drugs is both powerful and timely . . . when it comes to the legacy of this country’s war on drugs, we should all share his outrage.” —The New York Times Book Review From one of the world's foremost experts on the subject, a powerful argument that the greatest damage from drugs flows from their being illegal, and a hopeful reckoning with the possibility of their use as part of a responsible and happy life Dr. Carl L. Hart, Ziff Professor at Columbia University and former chair of the Department of Psychology, is one of the world's preeminent experts on the effects of so-called recreational drugs on the human mind and body. Dr. Hart is open about the fact that he uses drugs himself, in a happy balance with the rest of his full and productive life as a researcher and professor, husband, father, and friend. In Drug Use for Grown-Ups, he draws on decades of research and his own personal experience to argue definitively that the criminalization and demonization of drug use--not drugs themselves--have been a tremendous scourge on America, not least in reinforcing this country's enduring structural racism. Dr. Hart did not always have this view. He came of age in one of Miami's most troubled neighborhoods at a time when many ills were being laid at the door of crack cocaine. His initial work as a researcher was aimed at proving that drug use caused bad outcomes. But one problem kept cropping up: the evidence from his research did not support his hypothesis. From inside the massively well-funded research arm of the American war on drugs, he saw how the facts did not support the ideology. The truth was dismissed and distorted in order to keep fear and outrage stoked, the funds rolling in, and Black and brown bodies behind bars. Drug Use for Grown-Ups will be controversial, to be sure: the propaganda war, Dr. Hart argues, has been tremendously effective. Imagine if the only subject of any discussion about driving automobiles was fatal car crashes. Drug Use for Grown-Ups offers a radically different vision: when used responsibly, drugs can enrich and enhance our lives. We have a long way to go, but the vital conversation this book will generate is an extraordinarily important step.

“A humorous and informative trip through the drug’s various medicinal compounds, a timeline of the its history, and recipes that take you beyond the standard pot brownie—with pro tips from cannabis-friendly celebrities sprinkled throughout.”—Vanity Fair Once literally demonized as “the Devil's lettuce,” and linked to all manner of deviant behavior by the establishment's shameless anti-marijuana propaganda campaigns, cannabis sativa has lately been enjoying a long-overdue Renaissance. So now that the squares at long last seem ready to rethink pot's place in polite society, how, exactly, can members of this vibrant, innovative, life-affirming culture proudly and properly emerge from the underground—without forgetting our roots, or losing our cool? In How to Smoke Pot (Properly), VICE weed columnist and former High Times editor David Bienenstock charts the course for this bold, new, post-prohibition world. With plenty of stops along the way for "pro tips" from friends in high places, including cannabis celebrities and thought leaders of the marijuana movement, readers will learn everything from the basics of blazing, to how Mary Jane makes humans more creative and collaborative, nurtures empathy, catalyzes epiphanies, enhances life's pleasures, promotes meaningful social bonds, facilitates cross-cultural understanding, and offers a far safer alternative to both alcohol and many pharmaceutical drugs. You'll follow the herb's natural lifecycle from farm to pipe, explore cannabis customs, culture and travel, and discover how to best utilize and appreciate a plant that's at once a lifesaving medicine, an incredibly nutritious food, an amazingly useful industrial crop, and a truly renewable energy source. You'll even get funny and informative answers to burning questions ranging from: How can I land a legal pot job? to Should I eat a weed cookie before boarding the plane? In two-color, with charts and illustrations throughout, How to Smoke Pot (Properly) is truly a modern guide to this most revered herb.

Some people suffer from chronic, debilitating disorders for which no conventional treatment brings relief. Can marijuana ease their symptoms? Would it be breaking the law to turn to marijuana as a medication? There are few sources of objective, scientifically sound advice for people in this situation. Most books about marijuana and medicine attempt to promote the views of advocates or opponents. To fill the gap between these extremes, authors Alison Mack and Janet Joy have extracted critical findings from a recent Institute of Medicine study on this important issue, interpreting them for a general audience. Marijuana As Medicine? provides patientsâ€"as well as the people who care for themâ€"with a foundation for making decisions about their own health care. This empowering volume examines several key points, including: Whether marijuana can relieve a variety of symptoms, including pain, muscle spasticity, nausea, and appetite loss. The dangers of smoking marijuana, as well as the effects of its active chemical components on the immune system and on psychological health. The potential use of marijuana-based medications on symptoms of AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and several other specific disorders, in comparison with existing treatments. Marijuana As Medicine? introduces readers to the active compounds in marijuana. These include the principal ingredient in Marinol, a legal medication. The authors also discuss the prospects for developing other drugs derived from marijuana's active ingredients. In addition to providing an up-to-date review of the science behind the medical marijuana debate, Mack and Joy also answer common questions about the legal status of marijuana, explaining the conflict between state and federal law regarding its medical use. Intended primarily as an aid to patients and caregivers, this book objectively presents critical information so that it can be used to make responsible health care decisions. Marijuana As Medicine? will also be a valuable resource for policymakers, health care providers, patient counselors, medical faculty and studentsâ€"in short, anyone who wants to learn more about this important issue.

Get High Now is an illustrated, mind-blowing magic carpet ride of more than 175 ways to alter human perception and consciousnesswithout drugs or alcohol. Culled from science, physiology, spiritual practices, and the audio visual arts, these "all natural" highs playfully and safely explore the mind-body connection to entertaining and illuminating effect. Accessible and well-researched, each entry introduces concepts such as lucid dreaming, optical and auditory illusions, controlled breathing, meditation, time compression, and physical and mental exercises, explaining the ways in which they affect our minds and bodies and how to do them. Readers follow the author and his "HighLab" testing team through mind-bending and sometimes hilarious investigations, such as how to lull the mind into hallucinatory states with audio loops; why multiple bee stings lead to euphoric states; what cheeses to eat to induce psychedelic lucid dreams; how to control your breathing to create an out-of-body experience; and many more. Including solo, tandem, and group highs, Get High Now features hundreds of ways to calm or stimulate the senses and open new windows to experiencing the world.

Significant changes have taken place in the policy landscape surrounding cannabis legalization, production, and use. During the past 20 years, 25 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis and/or cannabidiol (a component of cannabis) for medical conditions or retail sales at the state level and 4 states have legalized both the medical and recreational use of cannabis. These landmark changes in policy have impacted cannabis use patterns and perceived levels of risk. However, despite this changing landscape, evidence regarding the short- and long-term health effects of cannabis use remains elusive. While a myriad of studies have examined cannabis use in all its various forms, often these research conclusions are not appropriately synthesized, translated for, or communicated to policy makers, health care providers, state health officials, or other stakeholders who have been charged with influencing and enacting policies, procedures, and laws related to cannabis use. Unlike other controlled substances such as alcohol or tobacco, no accepted standards for safe use or appropriate dose are available to help guide individuals as they make choices regarding the issues of if, when, where, and how to use cannabis safely and, in regard to therapeutic uses, effectively. Shifting public sentiment, conflicting and impeded scientific research, and legislative battles have fueled the debate about what, if any, harms or benefits can be attributed to the use of cannabis or its derivatives, and this lack of aggregated knowledge has broad public health implications. The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids provides a comprehensive review of scientific evidence related to the health effects and potential therapeutic benefits of cannabis. This report provides a research agendaâ€"outlining gaps in current knowledge and opportunities for providing additional insight into these issuesâ€"that summarizes and prioritizes pressing research needs.