An autopsy report issued August 7th lists cocaine as a contributing factor in the death of beloved TV pitchman Billy Mays.  Mays, who died in June at age 50, was best known for his energetic infomercials for products like OxyClean, OrangeGlo, and the Awesome Auger.  Mays’ popularity recent took off with the success of his Discovery Channel reality show Pitchmen, which chronicled how Mays’ and his business partner, Anthony Sullivan, chose which products they were going to make famous.  The untimely death of the self-deprecating Mays shocked his fans, a reaction that was eye-opening itself. In a world were someone’s 50″ plasma is as much a part of the family as a 50-year-old uncle, crazy screaming Uncle Billy had been taken too soon. Continue Reading

The war on drugs is non-existent and with the latest results from a World Health Organization survey of 17 countries, the United States drug policies have clearly failed. According to the recent survey, the United States ranks the highest in marijuana and cocaine use

42.4 percent of the US citizens surveyed admitted to having used marijuana. New Zealand trailed close behind with 41.9 percent. However, the United States leads the world in cocaine use by a large margin.

What is most interesting are the results from the Netherlands where adults are allowed to possess and purchase small amounts of marijuana from regulated businesses. While many U.S. officials accuse the Dutch drug policy of fueling drug abuse, only 19.8 percent have used marijuana. Looks like the land of the free has got it all backwards. The question now is whether the U.S. can flip the drug culture from drug abuse to recreational drug use; sounds like a “change we can believe in” to me.

(via DoseNation)