Researcher uses Reddit to find out what types of marijuana posts influenced legalization attitudes


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The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says it has cracked the code to identify the type of emojis young people use to talk about buying and selling illicit drugs.

But in classic ‘how do you do with other kids’ fashion, the federal agency doesn’t seem to have the strongest grasp of the lingo – omitting a new guide for parents, for example, common emojis that are. used in place of marijuana.

The agency even seems confused internally, because there is many iterations of his drug emoji to guide it’s like that different symbols used for the same drugs.

The DEA has also determined that the emojis 💣 and 💥 – ​​which it has interpreted to mean “bomb shit” – are used frequently enough in illegal drug deals to warrant attention to a government product. prospectus for the parents.

Via DEA.

And it makes you wonder what Canadians have to say about America’s leading drug agency designating the maple leaf emoji as “universal for drugs,” given its close association with the country. as the centerpiece of its flag.

Anyway, the DEA says his One Pill Can Kill Countryside “Provides an opportunity for the media, parents, teachers, educators and community organizations to raise awareness about counterfeit prescription drugs. “

“Do you know the meaning of some emojis? Emojis were originally designed to represent an emotion, event or activity, but have recently adopted a language of their own, ”the agency wrote. “Criminal organizations, including drug dealers, have noticed and use emojis to buy and sell counterfeit pills and other illicit drugs on social media and through e-commerce.”

The DEA’s reference guide “is intended to give parents, caregivers and influencers a better idea of ​​how this language is used in conjunction with illegal drugs.”

He admitted, however, that “this list is not exhaustive” and that the emoji guide is “a representative sample”.

DEA administrator Anne Milgram spoke about the new effort at a press conference last week.

“Criminal drug networks are at the center of social media now, with us every time our smartphones are,” she said. noted. “Known emojis and code words are widely used as online signals, in the online buying and selling of deadly drugs like fentanyl and fake pills containing fentanyl. This means that these deadly drugs are reaching our communities faster, easier and cheaper than ever. They are just a click away.

A power point on emoji data also included a slide on which social media platforms are most often used by criminal enterprises. Snapchat came first, followed by Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. (However, the slide mistakenly swapped the logos for TikTok and YouTube.)

Via DEA.

While the agency’s attempt to decode emoji trends among young people has a certain hindsight – how do you omit 🍃 and as a shortcut for marijuana?

Notably, however, teenager the use of illicit drugs, from marijuana to OxyContin, “declined significantly” in 2021, according to a federally funded survey released earlier this month.

“Emojis, on their own, should not indicate illegal activity, but be associated with behavior change; change in appearance; or a significant loss / increase in income should be a reason to start an important conversation, ”the DEA said.

While the agency works to curb drug trafficking, in part by deciphering emojis, it also works to promote research into currently controlled substances like cannabis, psilocybin and MDMA.

For example, a representative said this month that the DEA supports a White House proposal to streamline the process of researching Schedule I drugs.

It has also repeatedly increased production targets for these substances in order to meet demand from researchers studying their potential risks and benefits.

While these developments are promising, advocates are still frustrated that some plants and fungi remain in the more stringent drug category, especially given existing research that shows their medical value for certain conditions.

A federal appeals court recently rejected a petition asking the DEA to reassess cannabis programming under the Controlled Substances Act. However, a judge said in a concurring opinion that the agency may soon be forced to consider a policy change anyway based on a misinterpretation of the therapeutic value of marijuana.

Meanwhile, the DEA has given hemp companies that sell delta-8 THC products a boost, with representatives recently commenting that at least federally it is not a controlled substance. for the moment.

The first safe drug use sites in the United States are already saving lives by stopping dozens of overdoses in less than a month, New York officials say

Photo courtesy of Pixabay / terimakasih0.

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