1 00:00:00,920 --> 00:00:03,640 Speaker 1: Hello everyone, It's me Josh and for this week's s 2 00:00:03,760 --> 00:00:07,600 Speaker 1: Y s K Selects, I've chosen our episode how Crack Works, 3 00:00:08,080 --> 00:00:11,320 Speaker 1: and Boyle Boy does the title ever say at all? 4 00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:16,439 Speaker 1: Because we really really explain how crack works. So enjoy 5 00:00:17,079 --> 00:00:23,520 Speaker 1: How Crack Works. Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a 6 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:32,120 Speaker 1: production of I Heart Radios How Stuff Works. Hey, and 7 00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:35,199 Speaker 1: welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark. There's Charles w 8 00:00:35,360 --> 00:00:39,760 Speaker 1: Chuck Bryant, Jerry's over there, and uh, this is Stuff 9 00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:43,760 Speaker 1: you should Know. Jerry just waved like she's waving at 10 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:46,880 Speaker 1: the audience of the anger. She's waving to the world. 11 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:51,240 Speaker 1: It's a little weird. She may be on home Bloom. Uh, Josh, 12 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:58,279 Speaker 1: you know what's whack? Uh? Zach Attack from Saved by 13 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:00,280 Speaker 1: the Bell. I don't even know what it is. You 14 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:02,040 Speaker 1: don't know it's Saved by the Bell? Is what's wrong 15 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 1: with No? I know that I know what that show is, 16 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:05,880 Speaker 1: but I've never heard of the Zach Attack. It's just 17 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:10,679 Speaker 1: Zack being zack. Gotcha? That is whack? Yeah, well, never mind. 18 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:12,880 Speaker 1: I thought Crack was whack, but the Zach Attack is 19 00:01:12,880 --> 00:01:15,640 Speaker 1: truly whack. No, I disagree. I was gonna say no, 20 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:19,039 Speaker 1: it's not right because that's actually a pretty good show. 21 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:22,360 Speaker 1: But okay, yes, you crack his whack this. We're like 22 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:25,640 Speaker 1: imminent up in here. We're what we're like eminem up 23 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:30,640 Speaker 1: in here. Yeah, I guess so refer to R hip 24 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:35,280 Speaker 1: Hop episode now. No, I'm just saying people that they're 25 00:01:35,319 --> 00:01:38,600 Speaker 1: confused about why we sound so stilted and square, just 26 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:41,200 Speaker 1: go listen to hip hop and that explains everything. People 27 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:43,880 Speaker 1: like that one. Surprisingly, Yeah, it's a good one. Man. 28 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:46,160 Speaker 1: We got a good email from a or a Facebook 29 00:01:46,160 --> 00:01:48,880 Speaker 1: post from a graffiti artist. Oh yeah, yeah, good stuff. 30 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:52,160 Speaker 1: I can't remember his tag, but it was like really nice. 31 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:54,960 Speaker 1: But he was complimenting us or he was just saying hey, No, 32 00:01:55,080 --> 00:01:57,240 Speaker 1: he's like, hey, I'm a graffiti artist and here's my 33 00:01:57,240 --> 00:02:00,800 Speaker 1: my work. And I was very impressed. And he is 34 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:05,280 Speaker 1: not on crack no, because he's not whack right exactly, 35 00:02:05,520 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: So Chuck, I have a little, uh a little intro 36 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:17,160 Speaker 1: just if you'll bear with me. And the year was okay, 37 00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:20,480 Speaker 1: I was fourteen, Okay, what is it? It's one year 38 00:02:21,639 --> 00:02:29,760 Speaker 1: p b G very early on um cocaine, which is 39 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:32,160 Speaker 1: a drug that had been sweeping the nation for about 40 00:02:32,200 --> 00:02:36,280 Speaker 1: ten years by then. Yeah, uh, was up to a 41 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:41,480 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty dollars a graham. That's thanks to the 42 00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:46,840 Speaker 1: demand um and the available income of its well healed 43 00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:49,840 Speaker 1: yuppie users who were willing to spend that kind of 44 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 1: money on it. Sure, it's very much an expensive, white, 45 00:02:55,520 --> 00:03:02,919 Speaker 1: upwardly mobile person's drug. Cocaine was wall st Yeah, and 46 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:07,280 Speaker 1: there were at the time articles that kind of said, 47 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:10,600 Speaker 1: cocaine's probably not that addictive. We shouldn't worry that much 48 00:03:10,639 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 1: about cocaine. It's not a very big deal. It was mostly, 49 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:20,000 Speaker 1: like I said, a white drug. That same year, a 50 00:03:20,080 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: new drug hit the scene. It was cheap, five to 51 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:29,520 Speaker 1: ten bucks pop. It gave you a very quick, very 52 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:35,640 Speaker 1: intense high, short lived, and it swept through lower income 53 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:40,640 Speaker 1: African American areas of the United States, and all of 54 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:45,120 Speaker 1: a sudden we had a problem, an epidemic. Yes, because 55 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:48,520 Speaker 1: it was cocaine in a different form. Yeah, the country 56 00:03:48,600 --> 00:03:50,840 Speaker 1: went crazy for it. And not only was it cocaine 57 00:03:50,840 --> 00:03:53,120 Speaker 1: in a different form, it was cocaine being used by 58 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:58,000 Speaker 1: a different demographic that as we'll see, America has always 59 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:02,640 Speaker 1: been threatened by and always made legislation to damp and 60 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 1: drug use among Yeah, it's pretty interesting when you dig 61 00:04:05,960 --> 00:04:10,280 Speaker 1: into this stuff, and so in when people started to 62 00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:15,520 Speaker 1: get worried, Nancy Reagan became concerned. And when Nancy Reagan 63 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:21,440 Speaker 1: became concerned, as as usual, she started to lie. And 64 00:04:21,520 --> 00:04:24,719 Speaker 1: we will we will get into what allegedly might have 65 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:27,760 Speaker 1: happened and why crack might have been introduced in this 66 00:04:27,839 --> 00:04:30,320 Speaker 1: country because some people think it was the U. S. 67 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:34,960 Speaker 1: Government straight up. C I A, yeah, that's a really 68 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:38,279 Speaker 1: um good point. So what you're referring to is um 69 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:42,960 Speaker 1: Gary Webb's Dark Alliance article, right, yeah, series of articles 70 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:47,960 Speaker 1: in our book from I believe. Gary Webb was an 71 00:04:47,960 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 1: investigative journalist for the San Jose Mercury News, and um, 72 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:56,040 Speaker 1: they had a front page story where he basically figured 73 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:59,960 Speaker 1: out the connection between the CIA and the crack epidem 74 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:04,760 Speaker 1: that started in I think in Los Angeles south central. 75 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:07,440 Speaker 1: There was a dude named Freeway Ricky Ross who's still 76 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:11,719 Speaker 1: around I think, yeah, Um, And he was the largest 77 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 1: cocaine distributor UH African American cocaine distributor in l A. 78 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:20,560 Speaker 1: He was big time, and all of a sudden, out 79 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:24,360 Speaker 1: of nowhere, he had a new product called crack, and 80 00:05:24,440 --> 00:05:28,840 Speaker 1: it became very popular, very quickly. Um, and Gary webb 81 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:34,240 Speaker 1: In traced the origin of this epidemic back to through 82 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:40,159 Speaker 1: Ricky Ross, back to some Nicaraguan freedom fighting guerrillas that 83 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: were backed and trained and possibly commanded by the CIA. 84 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:49,200 Speaker 1: We're getting into this, so we just go ahead and 85 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:52,560 Speaker 1: dive in. Dive in. Yeah, do you want to? Yeah? 86 00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:56,080 Speaker 1: Why not? Okay? Um, all right, here's the deal. In Nicaragua, 87 00:05:56,360 --> 00:06:00,280 Speaker 1: Central American country. Um, in the nineteen thirties, a man 88 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:05,719 Speaker 1: name Anastasio uh Samosa took power, and then about forty 89 00:06:05,800 --> 00:06:10,200 Speaker 1: years later, in nineteen seventy nine, the people revolted, um 90 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:14,880 Speaker 1: overthrew him, and they were called the Sandinistas. Yes, so 91 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,159 Speaker 1: you know the whole Contra Sandinista war in Nicaragua that 92 00:06:19,279 --> 00:06:22,360 Speaker 1: raged in the seventies and eighties, that's what we're talking about. Yes, 93 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:26,720 Speaker 1: and the Sandinistas. Um, we're a communist and that didn't 94 00:06:26,760 --> 00:06:30,039 Speaker 1: fly so well with the US who had long uh 95 00:06:30,279 --> 00:06:33,440 Speaker 1: cherished Nicaragua for their farmland and like to have a 96 00:06:33,480 --> 00:06:36,800 Speaker 1: toe in their pond, so to speak. And so communism 97 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:38,480 Speaker 1: there didn't fly. And so they said, you know what, 98 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:41,640 Speaker 1: I think maybe we should fund the contrast, maybe give 99 00:06:41,640 --> 00:06:44,039 Speaker 1: them a little bit of financial assistance. Yeah, and the 100 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:46,200 Speaker 1: contrasts weren't just one group. They were it was like 101 00:06:46,240 --> 00:06:52,320 Speaker 1: an umbrella term for any democratic or UM an anti 102 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:58,200 Speaker 1: communist group that was trying to paramilitarily overthrow the socialist 103 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:01,560 Speaker 1: leadership in Nicaragua. That's right. So we decided to help 104 00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:05,160 Speaker 1: fund their civil war. And UM. The problem was that 105 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:09,240 Speaker 1: there wasn't a lot of dough like that we could say, like, hey, 106 00:07:09,320 --> 00:07:11,520 Speaker 1: let's use this money to do this, because it was 107 00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:14,360 Speaker 1: a secret war. There was no congressional approval. It was 108 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 1: a proxy war with the Soviet Union at the time. 109 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:21,280 Speaker 1: So some allege that this is when UM, the Reagan 110 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:27,200 Speaker 1: administration and the CIA got together to literally introduce cocaine 111 00:07:27,240 --> 00:07:33,160 Speaker 1: dealers in cocaine UH to South Central and crack cocaine 112 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:36,160 Speaker 1: to spread throughout the ghettos, to raise money and use 113 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:40,280 Speaker 1: that money to fund the contrast. Right, So here's the thing, 114 00:07:40,520 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 1: like that was never proven and Gary Webb never ever 115 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:46,760 Speaker 1: said he did not. He didn't say that the government 116 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:51,120 Speaker 1: directly introduced it on purpose or with the aim of 117 00:07:51,320 --> 00:07:54,600 Speaker 1: creating an epidemic in the ghetto. He found connections between 118 00:07:54,600 --> 00:08:00,440 Speaker 1: the CIA and drug lords, specifically Ricky Ross on one end, 119 00:08:01,040 --> 00:08:08,840 Speaker 1: and then the CIA backed impossibly commanded. UM, the Nicaraguan 120 00:08:09,080 --> 00:08:15,520 Speaker 1: Democratic Force. Yes, the this Contra force. UM. So their 121 00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:22,600 Speaker 1: their business, their group was funded entirely from cocaine sales 122 00:08:22,880 --> 00:08:27,400 Speaker 1: and trafficking. And they all went to this guy, Ricky Ross. 123 00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:32,200 Speaker 1: And there's no way that the CIA didn't know about this. Yeah, 124 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:35,080 Speaker 1: and there were at the time. Well we'll get back 125 00:08:35,120 --> 00:08:37,040 Speaker 1: to Webb in a second. But UM, in the eighties 126 00:08:37,080 --> 00:08:39,679 Speaker 1: there was you know, when the whole Iran Contra thing 127 00:08:39,679 --> 00:08:43,040 Speaker 1: broke out, there was the Carry Committee who did some investigating. 128 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:48,840 Speaker 1: The Carry Committee report, UH from John Carey. Obviously, UM 129 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:53,160 Speaker 1: found that quote the Contra drug links included payments to 130 00:08:53,240 --> 00:08:56,920 Speaker 1: drug traffickers by the U. S. State Department funds authorized 131 00:08:57,240 --> 00:09:01,200 Speaker 1: by the Congress for humanitarian assistance to the con tris UH. 132 00:09:01,280 --> 00:09:03,760 Speaker 1: And then later on there was an internal CIA investigation 133 00:09:03,800 --> 00:09:07,280 Speaker 1: in the nineties where they found that there is no 134 00:09:07,360 --> 00:09:12,000 Speaker 1: evidence that UM, the CIA actually brought drugs into the 135 00:09:12,040 --> 00:09:16,400 Speaker 1: United States. UM. However, and these are these are aal quotes. However, 136 00:09:16,520 --> 00:09:19,160 Speaker 1: during the Contra era, the CIA worked with a variety 137 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:22,280 Speaker 1: of people to support the Contrat program. And let me 138 00:09:22,360 --> 00:09:25,720 Speaker 1: be frank, there are instances where the CIA did not 139 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:30,000 Speaker 1: in an expeditious or consistent fashion cut off relationships with 140 00:09:30,080 --> 00:09:33,560 Speaker 1: individuals supporting the CONTRAT program who are alleged to have 141 00:09:33,600 --> 00:09:40,359 Speaker 1: engaged in drug trafficking activity. So basically, the internal investigation said, well, 142 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:42,240 Speaker 1: there might have been some people we were dealing with 143 00:09:42,280 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: that we're doing this, and as it turns out, we 144 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:49,480 Speaker 1: didn't really do much about it. Right, So, as far 145 00:09:49,520 --> 00:09:52,480 Speaker 1: as you can go without hyperbole, and it's still pretty shocking. Sure, 146 00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:59,600 Speaker 1: the CIA backed, trained, and possibly commanded UM at least 147 00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:05,479 Speaker 1: one Perilla group, the Nicaraguan Democratic Force and the Nicaraguan 148 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:11,959 Speaker 1: Democratic Force the f d n UM sold cocaine to 149 00:10:12,320 --> 00:10:15,840 Speaker 1: Freeway Ricky Ross. Freeway Ricky Ross is where the crack 150 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:19,240 Speaker 1: epidemic originated. And so just to finish up with web 151 00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:22,320 Speaker 1: though Um after he wrote this Dark Alliance series, he 152 00:10:22,440 --> 00:10:27,959 Speaker 1: was shunned by mainstream press in the United States. Sadly, 153 00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:32,640 Speaker 1: all three of the major newspapers, UM, you know, the 154 00:10:32,760 --> 00:10:34,240 Speaker 1: l A Times, New York Times, and I guess was 155 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:37,880 Speaker 1: that Washington Post Post came out and they were not 156 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:41,840 Speaker 1: only shunned, they like tried to discredit him. Oh yeah, 157 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:45,280 Speaker 1: they wrote articles they put UM seventeen reporters in twenty 158 00:10:45,679 --> 00:10:48,880 Speaker 1: words to a three day rebuttal of Dark Alliance that 159 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:51,240 Speaker 1: was the The l A Times. Yeah. Rather than pick 160 00:10:51,320 --> 00:10:55,480 Speaker 1: up the story, they tried to de demolish it, and 161 00:10:55,559 --> 00:10:58,840 Speaker 1: Webb New York Times um suggested he was a reckless 162 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 1: reporter prone to getting his facts wrong. He already had 163 00:11:02,160 --> 00:11:04,599 Speaker 1: wanted pull a surprise at this point, I think for 164 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:08,719 Speaker 1: something else, and um The Mercury News defended it for 165 00:11:08,720 --> 00:11:12,320 Speaker 1: a little while and then backed off and apologized. He 166 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:19,400 Speaker 1: ended up quitting and committed a very weird suicide in 167 00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 1: which he shot himself in the head twice. Uh, who knows. Obviously, 168 00:11:25,040 --> 00:11:26,840 Speaker 1: if you get on the internet, there are tons of 169 00:11:27,520 --> 00:11:29,960 Speaker 1: outlets that say, well, obviously it's not a suicide. It 170 00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:34,120 Speaker 1: was a murder. Um, so who knows about that? Other 171 00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:37,600 Speaker 1: other people have said, no, it does look kinky, but 172 00:11:37,720 --> 00:11:40,400 Speaker 1: the first shot wasn't fatal and he was able to 173 00:11:40,440 --> 00:11:44,160 Speaker 1: do it twice. Who knows, draw your own conclusions. Some 174 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:46,600 Speaker 1: raw nerve right there. But he claimed that there were 175 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:50,719 Speaker 1: people like you know, he saw what he thought were 176 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:53,560 Speaker 1: c i A. People like climbing up his fire escape 177 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:56,920 Speaker 1: and stuff the previous days. And who knows. All I'm 178 00:11:56,920 --> 00:11:58,880 Speaker 1: saying is they're making a movie about it with Jeremy 179 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:02,800 Speaker 1: Renner this summer is it right? Great good? I'm glad 180 00:12:03,559 --> 00:12:05,680 Speaker 1: he I ran across him when I wrote an article 181 00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:10,880 Speaker 1: on America's Army Jeremy Renner. Yeah, he wrote an expose 182 00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:14,360 Speaker 1: America's Army is this. Uh, it's a video game and 183 00:12:14,440 --> 00:12:17,760 Speaker 1: it's basically like a training game for the army where 184 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:23,040 Speaker 1: you can play this free game. Um, but you sign 185 00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:25,240 Speaker 1: up to be contacted. If you're any good at it, 186 00:12:25,320 --> 00:12:28,280 Speaker 1: the Army contacts you. And he did this. It's like 187 00:12:28,320 --> 00:12:31,360 Speaker 1: a recruiting tool through video games. But the Army categorically 188 00:12:31,440 --> 00:12:34,080 Speaker 1: denied that's what it was. But that's obviously what it was. 189 00:12:34,120 --> 00:12:37,679 Speaker 1: And Gary Gary Webb, one of his last expose a 190 00:12:37,960 --> 00:12:40,920 Speaker 1: was on that, and you know, we should mention that 191 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:44,520 Speaker 1: today all three of those major news outlets all say, boy, 192 00:12:44,559 --> 00:12:47,640 Speaker 1: we kind of got that one wrong. Yeah, um, we 193 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:50,600 Speaker 1: shouldn't have done that. Maybe we shouldn't have driven Gary 194 00:12:50,640 --> 00:13:11,200 Speaker 1: Webb to his possible suicide. So Gary Webb did all 195 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:13,920 Speaker 1: this investigation, did all this leg We're canning connect to 196 00:13:13,920 --> 00:13:17,920 Speaker 1: the dots pretty well, but there's still this maddening question 197 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:23,640 Speaker 1: of tantalizing question who invented crack it came out of nowhere, 198 00:13:24,320 --> 00:13:27,680 Speaker 1: and so to kind of answer that which we can't, UM, 199 00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:30,400 Speaker 1: you have to look at how crack is made, and 200 00:13:30,920 --> 00:13:32,360 Speaker 1: look at how crack is made. You have to go 201 00:13:32,400 --> 00:13:34,480 Speaker 1: back a lot further than the nine eighties. You have 202 00:13:34,520 --> 00:13:36,640 Speaker 1: to go back to the eighteen eighties, and actually a 203 00:13:36,640 --> 00:13:40,640 Speaker 1: little further before then, when cocaine first was introduced to 204 00:13:40,679 --> 00:13:44,760 Speaker 1: the United States after it was isolated the alkaloid was 205 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:48,840 Speaker 1: isolated from the coca plant in the mid nineteenth century. Yeah, 206 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:52,160 Speaker 1: and that's when it was isolated in I mean for centuries. 207 00:13:52,679 --> 00:13:55,440 Speaker 1: People in South America were wise to the fact that 208 00:13:55,480 --> 00:13:58,120 Speaker 1: if you chew on this plant, it'll give you some 209 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:01,640 Speaker 1: go juice you can work more. Yeah, and people still 210 00:14:01,840 --> 00:14:03,800 Speaker 1: chew the heck out of it. Yeah, So it was 211 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:05,920 Speaker 1: it was no secret to the South Americans. But like 212 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:08,319 Speaker 1: you said, it was the mid eighteen eighties when it 213 00:14:08,400 --> 00:14:15,280 Speaker 1: was actually isolated and UM became a narcotic, an abused 214 00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:18,600 Speaker 1: narcotic drug. Right. But first UM you could buy it 215 00:14:18,640 --> 00:14:21,480 Speaker 1: all over the place. You could order it through catalogs. 216 00:14:21,600 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 1: UM you can doctors could prescribe it. Sigmund Freud was 217 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:31,480 Speaker 1: an ardent prescriber of it UM and it was a 218 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:37,840 Speaker 1: very popular drug found in tonics. Coca cola for real, 219 00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:43,200 Speaker 1: that's not a myth. Um and cocaine was everybody loved 220 00:14:43,240 --> 00:14:47,240 Speaker 1: it for a while, yeah until well not until they 221 00:14:47,280 --> 00:14:50,440 Speaker 1: still loved it and still do today, I imagine. But 222 00:14:50,760 --> 00:14:53,440 Speaker 1: in nineteen fourteen it was made illegal with the Harrison 223 00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:57,480 Speaker 1: Narcotics Tax Act and UM, right, which do you remember 224 00:14:57,520 --> 00:15:01,000 Speaker 1: I said earlier that like everything like this, crack has 225 00:15:01,200 --> 00:15:04,880 Speaker 1: a real history of um. It shows the history of 226 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:09,720 Speaker 1: racism in regards to drug laws. So the Harrison Narcotic 227 00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:14,600 Speaker 1: Act UM outlawed opiates and cocaine for the first time 228 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:18,520 Speaker 1: in the United States, and it was based on concerns 229 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:23,320 Speaker 1: like Chinaman were luring white women there were to their 230 00:15:23,400 --> 00:15:28,720 Speaker 1: to their dens of iniquity and open Chinatown through opium 231 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:35,080 Speaker 1: and uh, Southern blacks were sniffing cocaine and it gave 232 00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:37,800 Speaker 1: them superhuman strength and they were raping white women as 233 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:40,960 Speaker 1: a result. So those two things were passed, and we 234 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:44,440 Speaker 1: have federal legislation from as a result of those kind 235 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 1: of fears. And if you kind of if you keep 236 00:15:46,800 --> 00:15:48,360 Speaker 1: that in the back of your mind and then pay 237 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:51,200 Speaker 1: attention to the drug policy that comes out later on 238 00:15:51,320 --> 00:15:55,120 Speaker 1: from crack. You'll it's been going on since then and 239 00:15:55,200 --> 00:15:57,840 Speaker 1: it continues to today. Are you saying a pattern emerges? 240 00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:03,520 Speaker 1: A pattern emerges? So, uh, cocaine is um. Cocaine powder 241 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:06,240 Speaker 1: is You have to actually manufacture it it. You don't 242 00:16:06,920 --> 00:16:09,120 Speaker 1: find a cocoa plant and like not shake it and 243 00:16:09,120 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 1: shake it and white powder falls out. It makes like 244 00:16:12,040 --> 00:16:16,040 Speaker 1: a tinkling sound in It is made by dissolving the paste, 245 00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:19,280 Speaker 1: the cocoa paste um in a mixture of hydrochloric acid 246 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:22,640 Speaker 1: and water. Then you had some potassium salt separate out 247 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:26,360 Speaker 1: the bad junk, maybe had a little ammonia, and then 248 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:29,880 Speaker 1: the powder is separated out and you've got cocaine powder, 249 00:16:30,000 --> 00:16:32,480 Speaker 1: cocaine and from there you can sniff it. You can 250 00:16:32,520 --> 00:16:35,000 Speaker 1: add a little water to it and inject it. Yeah, 251 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:37,920 Speaker 1: or you can make something called free base. Yeah. I 252 00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:40,080 Speaker 1: never quite understood what free base was. I thought it was. 253 00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:44,200 Speaker 1: I thought free basing was a thing. It is, yeah, 254 00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:47,440 Speaker 1: but free base is also and it's a noun anniverb Okay, 255 00:16:47,520 --> 00:16:52,040 Speaker 1: so maybe I do free base free base. Oh you see, 256 00:16:52,120 --> 00:16:54,760 Speaker 1: I've been doing it wrong. You've verb the noun. Okay, 257 00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:58,680 Speaker 1: so you've been doing it just just stuff doesn't work. 258 00:16:59,040 --> 00:17:02,560 Speaker 1: I don't know what everybody so excited about. Um. So 259 00:17:03,720 --> 00:17:07,400 Speaker 1: with free base, you take cocaine and you add something 260 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:15,080 Speaker 1: highly flammable, say ether um, and you after you dissolved 261 00:17:15,119 --> 00:17:18,359 Speaker 1: the the cocaine in ammonia, you add ether to it 262 00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:20,919 Speaker 1: and then you smoke it. But you're smoking something that 263 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,679 Speaker 1: has like a highly flammable solution involved. All that to 264 00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:29,040 Speaker 1: Richard Pryer, Yes, when he was filming Busting Loose, he 265 00:17:29,200 --> 00:17:32,159 Speaker 1: caught himself on fire. He was smoking free base and 266 00:17:32,480 --> 00:17:37,720 Speaker 1: drinking one one proof rome one night and I think 267 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:40,199 Speaker 1: he was doing it in his garage to which so 268 00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:43,639 Speaker 1: it was unventilated and he caught fire. Yeah, but you 269 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,119 Speaker 1: know what, there's also reports that he set himself on 270 00:17:46,160 --> 00:17:48,960 Speaker 1: fire on purpose, that he poured the stuff all over 271 00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:50,639 Speaker 1: his head and let him match. Oh we went a 272 00:17:50,640 --> 00:17:54,679 Speaker 1: little little cocko self immolation. Um. I think that may 273 00:17:54,720 --> 00:17:57,200 Speaker 1: be the right story. Now. I just saw a documentary 274 00:17:57,200 --> 00:17:59,359 Speaker 1: on him, and I think that's what they say. I'm 275 00:17:59,440 --> 00:18:02,520 Speaker 1: so glad you just corrected me mid podcasts. Do you 276 00:18:02,680 --> 00:18:05,399 Speaker 1: have any emails you prevented? Well, I mean that was 277 00:18:05,480 --> 00:18:08,120 Speaker 1: the long stories that he free based, and I think 278 00:18:08,119 --> 00:18:10,280 Speaker 1: he even came out later and said like, yeah, I 279 00:18:10,320 --> 00:18:12,760 Speaker 1: was free basing, but I also purposely set myself on 280 00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:16,640 Speaker 1: fire in the ravages of a free basing binge. Okay, 281 00:18:16,680 --> 00:18:20,600 Speaker 1: so free basing it was a thing at least as 282 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:24,840 Speaker 1: early as but it was it was difficult to do 283 00:18:25,600 --> 00:18:28,680 Speaker 1: multi step process and you needed something like ether. Ether 284 00:18:28,800 --> 00:18:30,359 Speaker 1: is not the easiest thing to get your hands on 285 00:18:30,840 --> 00:18:34,760 Speaker 1: and dangerous obviously. Sure, um, but there was a way 286 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:37,800 Speaker 1: to smoke cocaine, and free base was the way to 287 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:40,880 Speaker 1: do it. But that never really got a big foothold 288 00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:44,160 Speaker 1: in any demographic in the country. It was just kind 289 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:46,520 Speaker 1: of a thing that some people like Richard Pryor did 290 00:18:46,920 --> 00:18:49,680 Speaker 1: looking for a more intense high. I guess then all 291 00:18:49,680 --> 00:18:54,480 Speaker 1: of a sudden, mysteriously, out of nowhere, there is crack cocaine. Yeah, 292 00:18:54,560 --> 00:18:57,920 Speaker 1: crack is also manufactured um, but it doesn't require something 293 00:18:57,960 --> 00:19:02,080 Speaker 1: like either or anything flammable. Um. You dissolve it in 294 00:19:02,080 --> 00:19:06,159 Speaker 1: a mixture of water and either baking soda, sodium bicarbonate, 295 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:10,480 Speaker 1: UM or ammonia, and you boil it up, separate it 296 00:19:10,480 --> 00:19:13,359 Speaker 1: out into the solid, cool it down, and then break 297 00:19:13,400 --> 00:19:17,160 Speaker 1: it up and you've got your little whiteish or tan 298 00:19:17,400 --> 00:19:19,960 Speaker 1: crack rocks. And if you buy it on the street. 299 00:19:20,119 --> 00:19:22,879 Speaker 1: Supposedly they range in size from point one to point 300 00:19:22,920 --> 00:19:27,639 Speaker 1: five grams um and they contain the d e A 301 00:19:27,720 --> 00:19:32,840 Speaker 1: says between seventy pure cocaine. So it's quite a rush 302 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:39,080 Speaker 1: for you, sure, um, because it's so easy to make 303 00:19:39,160 --> 00:19:44,159 Speaker 1: crack from cocaine. Um. Like, nobody imports cracked across the 304 00:19:44,200 --> 00:19:46,760 Speaker 1: border into the US. It's all coke that comes into 305 00:19:46,800 --> 00:19:51,919 Speaker 1: the US and then Wesley Snipes converts it into crack 306 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:56,080 Speaker 1: uh in a factory operated and run by naked people 307 00:19:56,119 --> 00:20:00,600 Speaker 1: because he doesn't trust them. What was that new Jack City? Oh? Man, 308 00:20:01,480 --> 00:20:07,120 Speaker 1: I was like blade, Yeah, man, I forgot all about 309 00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:09,919 Speaker 1: the Jack City. That was great. And they call it 310 00:20:09,960 --> 00:20:12,719 Speaker 1: crack because it makes a crackling sound. That's the baking 311 00:20:12,720 --> 00:20:15,520 Speaker 1: soda when you put the fire on it, and speaking 312 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:17,919 Speaker 1: you put the fire on it. That's how you do it. Um, 313 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:20,200 Speaker 1: you have a little I mean, there's different kinds of pipes, 314 00:20:20,240 --> 00:20:23,439 Speaker 1: but the most often crack pipe you will see is 315 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:27,200 Speaker 1: the little straight shooter, a little glass tube. Yep, find 316 00:20:27,240 --> 00:20:29,280 Speaker 1: him on my dog walks in my neighborhood. Do you 317 00:20:29,320 --> 00:20:32,960 Speaker 1: really still yeah, crack is still around. It's not like 318 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:37,240 Speaker 1: it went anywhere. Um, he thought oh, they got that 319 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:40,800 Speaker 1: problem all under control. It's lift uh. So you you 320 00:20:40,800 --> 00:20:42,119 Speaker 1: you know, you have the crack in one end and 321 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:44,200 Speaker 1: then a filter of some kind like a steel wool 322 00:20:44,280 --> 00:20:46,640 Speaker 1: or something in the other. You heat it up with 323 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:49,800 Speaker 1: your lighter, yeah, under like on the outside of the 324 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:51,840 Speaker 1: glass tube, or you can yeah, I guess hit it 325 00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:53,639 Speaker 1: with the flame. But I think if you light it 326 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:56,480 Speaker 1: under the glass tube, that's generally the way to do it. 327 00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:58,679 Speaker 1: I think, Yeah, it vaporizes it, that's right, and you 328 00:20:58,720 --> 00:21:03,560 Speaker 1: smoke it and and um, pretty much immediately, Uh, you're 329 00:21:03,560 --> 00:21:06,080 Speaker 1: going to feel the effects. It's it's an immediate rush 330 00:21:06,119 --> 00:21:08,680 Speaker 1: that lasts only about ten or fifteen minutes. And that's 331 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:10,960 Speaker 1: something that I didn't used to know. I learned it 332 00:21:11,000 --> 00:21:13,240 Speaker 1: a few years ago, but I had no idea. I 333 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:16,560 Speaker 1: thought a crack, Hi, I was like, you know, a 334 00:21:16,600 --> 00:21:18,520 Speaker 1: couple of hours or something. No. I think it's one 335 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:21,440 Speaker 1: of the shortest ties on the market, which is I 336 00:21:21,480 --> 00:21:25,480 Speaker 1: guess why it's so addictive and dangerous rampant, because you 337 00:21:25,560 --> 00:21:27,679 Speaker 1: come down and you're like, I'd like to do that 338 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:31,120 Speaker 1: again exactly minutes. It's a short high, but it's also 339 00:21:31,160 --> 00:21:35,320 Speaker 1: an extremely intense high too, So um. Yeah, the the 340 00:21:35,600 --> 00:21:40,680 Speaker 1: the it's addictiveness or potential for addictiveness is really high. Yeah, 341 00:21:40,800 --> 00:21:43,719 Speaker 1: and so I know this article summarized very nicely for 342 00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:48,040 Speaker 1: you exactly how it reacts with the brain, and so 343 00:21:48,400 --> 00:21:50,720 Speaker 1: why don't you go ahead and just lay it on people? Alright. 344 00:21:50,800 --> 00:21:53,159 Speaker 1: It has to do with dopamine, as we know. Yeah, dopamine. 345 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:56,920 Speaker 1: It's like your pleasure center. It's it's the the basis 346 00:21:56,960 --> 00:21:59,560 Speaker 1: of the reward system that we have, which is how 347 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:02,159 Speaker 1: we learn to eat and how we learn to have sex, 348 00:22:02,200 --> 00:22:05,159 Speaker 1: to reproduce. Like we we feel good when we do 349 00:22:05,200 --> 00:22:07,280 Speaker 1: certain things, we want to do it again, and the 350 00:22:07,280 --> 00:22:10,359 Speaker 1: basis of that is dopamine. So in the brain, the 351 00:22:10,359 --> 00:22:14,760 Speaker 1: way it functions normally is UH neuron will release dopamine 352 00:22:15,160 --> 00:22:18,719 Speaker 1: and it will travel to a neighboring neuron, causing it 353 00:22:18,760 --> 00:22:23,520 Speaker 1: to fire and release a pleasurable sensation. And then that 354 00:22:23,680 --> 00:22:28,960 Speaker 1: dopamine UH molecule travels back to the original neuron via 355 00:22:28,960 --> 00:22:32,280 Speaker 1: a transporter and is reabsorbed. So it does its little 356 00:22:32,320 --> 00:22:35,400 Speaker 1: thing and then goes back home and it's good. Right, 357 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:40,119 Speaker 1: There's a certain finite amount of pleasure humans are designed 358 00:22:40,160 --> 00:22:44,280 Speaker 1: to experience naturally, because when we say reabsorbed, we said 359 00:22:44,280 --> 00:22:46,160 Speaker 1: it said that a lot. I don't think people understand 360 00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:49,520 Speaker 1: that means basically, it turns that off again. Right, It 361 00:22:49,640 --> 00:22:52,120 Speaker 1: does its thing and it's done. It doesn't do its 362 00:22:52,119 --> 00:22:53,439 Speaker 1: thing and do its thing and do its thing and 363 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:55,320 Speaker 1: do its thing. It does its thing once and goes 364 00:22:55,359 --> 00:22:58,119 Speaker 1: back to the original neuron exactly, sits on the couch 365 00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:01,000 Speaker 1: and its little neuron waits to be released again. Let 366 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:03,119 Speaker 1: me know when you have sex again or eat something 367 00:23:03,200 --> 00:23:08,720 Speaker 1: or some pizza. UM. So with with crack or other 368 00:23:08,800 --> 00:23:13,960 Speaker 1: drugs that UM target the dopamine system, UM, they interrupt 369 00:23:14,040 --> 00:23:19,600 Speaker 1: the process. Crack specifically interrupts the process of reuptake or reabsorption. 370 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:24,880 Speaker 1: So you're you're smoking the crack, right, and it triggers 371 00:23:24,960 --> 00:23:31,200 Speaker 1: this dopamine release flood. But crack attaches to the transporter 372 00:23:31,760 --> 00:23:35,880 Speaker 1: which keeps the UH, the dopamine from being reabsorbed, which 373 00:23:35,920 --> 00:23:38,680 Speaker 1: means it's just floating around in the synapse, the area 374 00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:42,280 Speaker 1: between two neurons, like hitting that one neuron again and 375 00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:45,399 Speaker 1: again and again. And it does it all throughout the 376 00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:51,159 Speaker 1: brain or all throughout the ventral tegmental area. And you 377 00:23:51,240 --> 00:23:53,600 Speaker 1: have this long or well not long, but you have 378 00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:57,520 Speaker 1: this very intense pleasurable sensation. Right, So basically the re uptake, 379 00:23:57,600 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 1: they just shut that down, so you're out there on 380 00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:03,000 Speaker 1: your own and then just floating around. Yes, your brain 381 00:24:03,080 --> 00:24:05,680 Speaker 1: is a big pleasure center. And then after I guess 382 00:24:05,720 --> 00:24:08,080 Speaker 1: five to fifteen minutes, like the crack wears off in 383 00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:11,640 Speaker 1: the dopamine is taken up once more. That's right, and 384 00:24:11,680 --> 00:24:15,199 Speaker 1: the high is over and your are left going I 385 00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:19,120 Speaker 1: want to do that again, exactly. I guess we should 386 00:24:19,160 --> 00:24:24,040 Speaker 1: talk about some of the effects of crack use. Um. Obviously, 387 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:26,439 Speaker 1: just like with cocaine any kind of stimulant like that 388 00:24:26,560 --> 00:24:30,159 Speaker 1: or in phetamine, you're gonna be at risk for heart attack. Yeah, 389 00:24:30,359 --> 00:24:33,320 Speaker 1: sometimes on the spot and because you smoke it too, 390 00:24:33,480 --> 00:24:37,080 Speaker 1: Like it has real, um, real potential for problems with 391 00:24:37,119 --> 00:24:40,960 Speaker 1: your respiratory system and your cardio pulmonary system in general. Yeah, 392 00:24:40,960 --> 00:24:45,520 Speaker 1: stroke is also a risk. Um. It's gonna make you 393 00:24:45,600 --> 00:24:49,240 Speaker 1: very energize at first. You might although your senses may 394 00:24:49,240 --> 00:24:52,359 Speaker 1: be heightened temporarily, your heart rate is gonna shoot through 395 00:24:52,400 --> 00:24:55,399 Speaker 1: the roof, your pupils are gonna dilate, your temperature is 396 00:24:55,400 --> 00:25:00,000 Speaker 1: gonna rise. Um, you're gonna be pretty anxious or irritable 397 00:25:00,080 --> 00:25:03,760 Speaker 1: as you start to come down, and then you could 398 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:06,600 Speaker 1: be really aggressive and you could you know, be more 399 00:25:06,640 --> 00:25:10,320 Speaker 1: prone to start a fight with a cop yeel like 400 00:25:10,359 --> 00:25:13,240 Speaker 1: you have superhuman strength or say some crazy stuff to 401 00:25:13,320 --> 00:25:15,359 Speaker 1: a passer by on the sidewalk because you have and 402 00:25:15,400 --> 00:25:17,280 Speaker 1: you have went to a gunk on the corners of 403 00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:20,600 Speaker 1: your mouth. That's true. Uh. If you have it with alcohol, 404 00:25:21,280 --> 00:25:24,040 Speaker 1: that's not a good combination because that produces a chemical 405 00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:28,000 Speaker 1: called uh coca ethylene. Yeah, lifts up like this is 406 00:25:28,040 --> 00:25:31,040 Speaker 1: a thing. It's like toxic is I'll get out. Well, 407 00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:36,520 Speaker 1: it's the crack or cocaine and alcohol um produce a 408 00:25:36,720 --> 00:25:41,280 Speaker 1: third drug, basically a hybrid drug that's more than the 409 00:25:41,359 --> 00:25:45,360 Speaker 1: sum of its parts. And um it creates a longer 410 00:25:45,480 --> 00:25:50,359 Speaker 1: lasting intense or high from crack. Um. But it's also 411 00:25:50,600 --> 00:25:54,480 Speaker 1: really toxic to the liver, really bad for you. Yeah, 412 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:57,040 Speaker 1: as if alcohol itself wasn't. Yeah, And it's not like 413 00:25:57,080 --> 00:25:59,359 Speaker 1: you have to do anything to it or to to 414 00:25:59,480 --> 00:26:01,800 Speaker 1: get this the like you just drink and smoke crack 415 00:26:02,240 --> 00:26:05,840 Speaker 1: and your body does the rest. Your your metabolism breaks 416 00:26:05,840 --> 00:26:09,320 Speaker 1: the stuff down and creates this coca ethylene and it's 417 00:26:09,320 --> 00:26:17,080 Speaker 1: like alcohol on cocaine. So, as we said, it's super addictive. Um. 418 00:26:17,119 --> 00:26:20,120 Speaker 1: And of course all this stuff whenever you hear about 419 00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:23,399 Speaker 1: drugs being addictive, it's all dependent on the person. Of course. 420 00:26:23,680 --> 00:26:26,800 Speaker 1: One person might smoke crack and never want to do 421 00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:30,359 Speaker 1: it again. One person might be hooked immediately. Uh. It 422 00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:34,560 Speaker 1: all depends on your your susceptibility to addiction, which varies 423 00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:38,080 Speaker 1: greatly for sure. Um. I remember learning when I was 424 00:26:38,119 --> 00:26:40,960 Speaker 1: a kid that you smoke crack once and you're addictive 425 00:26:41,000 --> 00:26:44,080 Speaker 1: for life. Yeah. I heard that about heroin too. Um. Yeah. 426 00:26:44,320 --> 00:26:48,199 Speaker 1: The but there is a very high potential for abuse 427 00:26:48,280 --> 00:26:53,840 Speaker 1: with crack because it's long, it's short, short term, short high, 428 00:26:53,880 --> 00:26:56,000 Speaker 1: but an intense high. Yeah. And what we don't want 429 00:26:56,000 --> 00:26:58,800 Speaker 1: to say, like crack it's not addictive, but we don't 430 00:26:58,840 --> 00:27:03,440 Speaker 1: want to spread the uh misinformation once you're hooked, Yeah, 431 00:27:03,440 --> 00:27:05,480 Speaker 1: which was really big in the eighties and the in 432 00:27:05,520 --> 00:27:08,280 Speaker 1: the Nancy Reagan War on Drug era, Like a lot 433 00:27:08,320 --> 00:27:13,520 Speaker 1: of misinformation was put out there just to scare people. Um. Yeah. 434 00:27:14,359 --> 00:27:18,600 Speaker 1: So um, we're talking about it being addictive. It's addictive 435 00:27:18,600 --> 00:27:21,520 Speaker 1: and because of the effect that it has on dopamine, 436 00:27:22,040 --> 00:27:25,800 Speaker 1: but it's also deletrious to your health because of the 437 00:27:25,840 --> 00:27:29,720 Speaker 1: effect that it has on your dopamine reward system. Well, yeah, 438 00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:32,600 Speaker 1: because uh, and I know we've covered this in other drugs. 439 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:36,760 Speaker 1: If you do enough drugs like this, um, it rewires 440 00:27:36,760 --> 00:27:38,840 Speaker 1: your brain to the point where it just isn't working 441 00:27:38,840 --> 00:27:41,640 Speaker 1: the same any longer you atually needed. Your brain has 442 00:27:41,720 --> 00:27:45,520 Speaker 1: like something some sort of sensor in there that's like, Okay, 443 00:27:45,560 --> 00:27:48,280 Speaker 1: there's way too much dopamine going on. This person should 444 00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:50,679 Speaker 1: not be feeling this much pleasure. So I'm going to 445 00:27:50,760 --> 00:27:53,879 Speaker 1: just stop producing as much dopamine naturally don't need it. 446 00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:56,359 Speaker 1: I'm going to destroy the dopamine that's floating around in 447 00:27:56,400 --> 00:27:59,640 Speaker 1: the synapsism, going to reduce the level so that when 448 00:27:59,720 --> 00:28:04,480 Speaker 1: you now, when you stop smoking crack, the the let 449 00:28:04,520 --> 00:28:07,800 Speaker 1: down is way worse because you don't have as much 450 00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:10,760 Speaker 1: natural dopamine as you did before you started smoking crack. 451 00:28:11,560 --> 00:28:15,600 Speaker 1: And um, so you're craving. Your desire for crack to 452 00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:20,000 Speaker 1: get back up is much more intense, much higher. Yeah. 453 00:28:20,080 --> 00:28:23,560 Speaker 1: And here's the thing with crack, which is a little weird. Um, 454 00:28:23,680 --> 00:28:26,919 Speaker 1: many times you need to smoke more and more of 455 00:28:26,960 --> 00:28:29,920 Speaker 1: it because of what you were just talking about, because 456 00:28:29,960 --> 00:28:33,120 Speaker 1: you need to get that high. But sometimes it will 457 00:28:33,119 --> 00:28:35,880 Speaker 1: actually make you more sensitive to it. And you will 458 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:39,440 Speaker 1: get super high off crack even as an addict, super 459 00:28:39,520 --> 00:28:45,760 Speaker 1: quick and you could super die instantly. Um, which I'm 460 00:28:45,800 --> 00:28:49,000 Speaker 1: not sure if they've reconciled how it can do both 461 00:28:49,040 --> 00:28:51,320 Speaker 1: of those things depending on who you are. Well, I 462 00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:53,160 Speaker 1: think it's the same thing. It's like, you know, some 463 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:58,160 Speaker 1: people get addicted to it immediately and other people take longer. No, 464 00:28:58,320 --> 00:28:59,680 Speaker 1: but I'm just talking about how it affects you. But 465 00:28:59,720 --> 00:29:02,440 Speaker 1: I guess is the same with alcohol, because some hardcore 466 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:05,040 Speaker 1: alcoholics take a long time to get drunk and some 467 00:29:05,120 --> 00:29:07,160 Speaker 1: get drunk like really quickly. Right, yeah, so it gets 468 00:29:07,160 --> 00:29:08,880 Speaker 1: this the same deal. I guess I'd probably have to 469 00:29:08,880 --> 00:29:15,040 Speaker 1: do with metabolism, passons metabolism, right, I guess so. So Um, 470 00:29:15,480 --> 00:29:18,719 Speaker 1: once you, once you are fully addicted, if you stop 471 00:29:18,960 --> 00:29:22,400 Speaker 1: smoking crack, which by the way, I think I speak 472 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: for Chuck too, and I say we highly recommend it 473 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:27,640 Speaker 1: if you smoke crack, to stop smoking crack. Yeah, and 474 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:30,840 Speaker 1: if you haven't started yet, then just keep that up. Yes, 475 00:29:30,960 --> 00:29:34,480 Speaker 1: do not start smoking crack, no reason to um if 476 00:29:34,520 --> 00:29:37,160 Speaker 1: you have all if it's if you listen to this 477 00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:40,960 Speaker 1: podcast after you became addicted to crack. Um, if you 478 00:29:41,160 --> 00:29:44,800 Speaker 1: withdraw from crack. You're going to experience a pretty big 479 00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:49,880 Speaker 1: calm down in general. Yeah, severe depression, anxiety, cravings. You're 480 00:29:49,880 --> 00:29:52,120 Speaker 1: gonna be not fun to be around. You're gonna be 481 00:29:52,160 --> 00:29:58,280 Speaker 1: really irritable and anxious UM and exhausted yet like agitated 482 00:29:58,320 --> 00:30:00,560 Speaker 1: all at the same time. Yeah. The good news is 483 00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:05,960 Speaker 1: that your brain will eventually restructure itself to return its 484 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:10,520 Speaker 1: dopamine levels back to normal or somewhere near normal. UM, 485 00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:13,719 Speaker 1: So you won't be depressed or withdrawn or anxious or 486 00:30:13,760 --> 00:30:17,680 Speaker 1: irritated irritable for the rest of your life. It's just 487 00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:20,680 Speaker 1: while you're undergoing withdrawals. That's what it's going to be like. 488 00:30:20,760 --> 00:30:23,360 Speaker 1: And it won't be pretty. It won't be pretty now. 489 00:30:23,360 --> 00:30:29,240 Speaker 1: And there's no UM medication designed to specifically treat crack UM, 490 00:30:29,280 --> 00:30:36,440 Speaker 1: and most therapies are pretty standard rehab therapy, like cognitive 491 00:30:36,480 --> 00:30:40,600 Speaker 1: behavioral therapy, which teaches you how to UM, how to 492 00:30:40,680 --> 00:30:44,600 Speaker 1: basically go through life resisting the temptation of smoking crack, 493 00:30:45,320 --> 00:30:52,239 Speaker 1: how to disassociate maybe UM triggers like places you go 494 00:30:52,920 --> 00:30:56,680 Speaker 1: just from that lifestyle. Yeah, just to decouple your mentality 495 00:30:56,760 --> 00:31:01,480 Speaker 1: from being addicted. It's just standard. You have treatment pretty 496 00:31:01,560 --> 00:31:04,480 Speaker 1: much and we covered that like extensively in addiction. And 497 00:31:04,520 --> 00:31:06,880 Speaker 1: there's another type of treatment that I hadn't heard of, 498 00:31:07,160 --> 00:31:10,520 Speaker 1: UM called contingency management. Had you heard of that? No? 499 00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:14,800 Speaker 1: I hadn't. Actually, it's apparently fairly popular for crack treatment. 500 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:17,960 Speaker 1: Well what is it. Well, basically, it's, um, you are 501 00:31:18,520 --> 00:31:22,120 Speaker 1: rewarded for not smoking crack, which I'm sure goes over 502 00:31:22,200 --> 00:31:26,720 Speaker 1: really well with Republicans. Where's my reward exactly? I haven't 503 00:31:26,720 --> 00:31:28,960 Speaker 1: smoked crack ever, Well, you haven't been addicted. You have 504 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:33,880 Speaker 1: to be addicted, so um, the uh, you're given like 505 00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:36,400 Speaker 1: a voucher or something. You make it like thirty days 506 00:31:36,440 --> 00:31:38,680 Speaker 1: you get a free movie ticket or something, or like 507 00:31:38,720 --> 00:31:43,200 Speaker 1: you're given stuff to um Yeah, incentive not doing crack. 508 00:31:43,280 --> 00:31:45,959 Speaker 1: And I'm sure stuff that is healthy, good for you 509 00:31:46,080 --> 00:31:48,560 Speaker 1: distracts you from thinking about crack. That kind of thing. 510 00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:52,560 Speaker 1: I hadn't heard of that before this article. Give someone 511 00:31:52,560 --> 00:31:57,040 Speaker 1: a movie ticket. You know you did good today by 512 00:31:57,040 --> 00:32:00,760 Speaker 1: not smoking crack. Here's a movie ticket, right. Uh. Always 513 00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:02,800 Speaker 1: like the street terms, we should go over those real quick, 514 00:32:03,000 --> 00:32:07,000 Speaker 1: because street terms, I think you're probably just made up 515 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:09,840 Speaker 1: by the media. Yeah, you know, I always feel like 516 00:32:09,960 --> 00:32:13,000 Speaker 1: they probably just call it crack or rock or they 517 00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:17,400 Speaker 1: call it bassa or French fries or real tops or 518 00:32:17,520 --> 00:32:22,200 Speaker 1: glow glow that's like, um, wasn't that the drug? And 519 00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:25,959 Speaker 1: strangers with candy was jerry like rubbed down or gums 520 00:32:26,000 --> 00:32:29,160 Speaker 1: and they call it like glow. Probably that great um 521 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:33,120 Speaker 1: rock sand that's my favorite, hot cakes, c d s. 522 00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:38,200 Speaker 1: Where is that? Candy? Sugar yam, jelly beans? I guess 523 00:32:38,200 --> 00:32:40,360 Speaker 1: they kind of makes sense. Jelly beans and French fries 524 00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:43,480 Speaker 1: makes sense. French fries does, yeah, because I mean doesn't 525 00:32:43,520 --> 00:32:48,320 Speaker 1: it look kind of like little pieces of French fries? Um, Yeah, 526 00:32:48,680 --> 00:32:52,240 Speaker 1: it's it's more. It makes more sense than bossa. Well 527 00:32:52,240 --> 00:32:57,240 Speaker 1: that's or real tops or here's one. There's no way 528 00:32:57,240 --> 00:32:59,880 Speaker 1: that anyone in the history of humanity has ever called 529 00:33:00,040 --> 00:33:05,280 Speaker 1: crack this electric kool aid. Yeah, they got the wrong 530 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:08,160 Speaker 1: drug there. Yeah, that would be acid from the famous 531 00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:10,800 Speaker 1: book Like what is that? I don't know. I think 532 00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:13,959 Speaker 1: those are newspaper writers who've never been on the streets 533 00:33:14,200 --> 00:33:36,280 Speaker 1: the kids today around the electric coolie. So one thing 534 00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:41,440 Speaker 1: that we talked about about crack is the weird sentencing 535 00:33:42,360 --> 00:33:48,680 Speaker 1: um laws dating back to nineteen and up until two 536 00:33:48,680 --> 00:33:52,200 Speaker 1: thousand and ten, when we passed the Fair Sentencing Act. 537 00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:55,200 Speaker 1: If you were caught with one gram of crack cocaine, 538 00:33:55,760 --> 00:33:57,880 Speaker 1: you would get as much time as someone caught with 539 00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:01,600 Speaker 1: one grams of cocaine. Outer. Yes, and let's go back 540 00:34:01,640 --> 00:34:06,120 Speaker 1: over this. In a graham of cocaine, powdered cocaine cost 541 00:34:06,240 --> 00:34:09,040 Speaker 1: a hundred dollars, a hundred and fifty dollars, and it 542 00:34:09,120 --> 00:34:14,279 Speaker 1: was extraordinarily favored predominantly by white people. Crack comes along 543 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:19,680 Speaker 1: five to ten bucks, cheap, intense, high um, and it 544 00:34:19,719 --> 00:34:25,759 Speaker 1: becomes favored by African Americans statistically speaking. Yeah, so some 545 00:34:25,880 --> 00:34:28,439 Speaker 1: might allege that the US government actually had a hand 546 00:34:28,480 --> 00:34:34,320 Speaker 1: in introducing crack to the ghettos and then made stiffer 547 00:34:34,520 --> 00:34:38,040 Speaker 1: sentencing once people were addicted to crack to put And 548 00:34:38,080 --> 00:34:41,279 Speaker 1: I'm not saying crack users are like awesome people and 549 00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:44,000 Speaker 1: people should do this, but it's a non violent crime, 550 00:34:44,040 --> 00:34:46,920 Speaker 1: and they were being put in prison for the same 551 00:34:46,960 --> 00:34:49,520 Speaker 1: amount of time as white counterparts who may be raped 552 00:34:49,520 --> 00:34:53,399 Speaker 1: and murdered people a hundred to one ratio to get 553 00:34:53,400 --> 00:34:57,200 Speaker 1: caught with a hundred times the powdered cocaine, to get 554 00:34:57,200 --> 00:35:01,560 Speaker 1: the same sentence as somebody caught with a hundredth of 555 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,920 Speaker 1: that amount of crack and it's not like that anymore. 556 00:35:04,960 --> 00:35:06,399 Speaker 1: They were all well hold on when there was one 557 00:35:06,400 --> 00:35:09,040 Speaker 1: other thing too, There were mandatory minimum sentences that were 558 00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:12,000 Speaker 1: extraordinarily harsh. Just getting caught with a little bit of 559 00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:14,600 Speaker 1: crack on you, any amount of crack. I believe you 560 00:35:14,719 --> 00:35:18,160 Speaker 1: got five years automatically five years. That was the mandatory 561 00:35:18,160 --> 00:35:22,080 Speaker 1: minimum for possession. Five years in prison for nothing else. 562 00:35:22,640 --> 00:35:24,360 Speaker 1: Like you could just be walking down the street and 563 00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:27,520 Speaker 1: get caught with crack and never have committed another crime 564 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:30,960 Speaker 1: in your entire life, and you would get five years 565 00:35:31,000 --> 00:35:34,040 Speaker 1: in prison for that. And that was from the Anti 566 00:35:34,120 --> 00:35:40,680 Speaker 1: Drug Abuse Act, of which screams Nancy Reagan, um. And 567 00:35:41,080 --> 00:35:43,160 Speaker 1: it was that was a big deal. It was the 568 00:35:43,200 --> 00:35:46,000 Speaker 1: law of the land until two thousand. Yeah, and uh 569 00:35:46,160 --> 00:35:49,480 Speaker 1: finally Congress past the Fair Sentencing Act, which reverted the 570 00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:53,239 Speaker 1: ratio to one to eighteen instead of UH one to 571 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:56,080 Speaker 1: a hundred by weight, and I got rid of that 572 00:35:56,120 --> 00:36:00,760 Speaker 1: mandatory minimum. And now Attorney General Eric Holder is actually 573 00:36:01,360 --> 00:36:05,799 Speaker 1: trying to get some retroactivity in these sentences and not 574 00:36:05,880 --> 00:36:10,160 Speaker 1: trying to they are actually releasing some people from prison. Um. 575 00:36:10,239 --> 00:36:12,840 Speaker 1: I remember we talked about that in the Presidential Partner episode, 576 00:36:12,880 --> 00:36:14,960 Speaker 1: Like that was something that a lot of people were 577 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:19,839 Speaker 1: calling for was blanket pardoned non violent crack users who 578 00:36:19,960 --> 00:36:23,759 Speaker 1: had been busted under this these mandatory minimums. Here's an 579 00:36:23,800 --> 00:36:28,320 Speaker 1: idea rehab somebody. But even still, there's still a skew 580 00:36:28,680 --> 00:36:35,840 Speaker 1: in the ratio between crack and cocaine. Um. Uh, probably arrests, no, 581 00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:39,600 Speaker 1: not not just that, the the sentences. I guess it's 582 00:36:39,600 --> 00:36:41,360 Speaker 1: still an eighteen to one ratio. It used to be 583 00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:43,600 Speaker 1: a hundred one, but it's still eighteen to one, And 584 00:36:43,640 --> 00:36:45,480 Speaker 1: people are like, why not just make it one to 585 00:36:45,560 --> 00:36:48,400 Speaker 1: want it's both it's cocaine and it's cocaine exactly, like, 586 00:36:48,440 --> 00:36:51,200 Speaker 1: what's the problem here. So, yeah, there's been a long 587 00:36:51,320 --> 00:36:55,840 Speaker 1: history of UM, I guess racism just put plain and simple. 588 00:36:55,840 --> 00:36:58,840 Speaker 1: There's really no other way to put it. Racism among 589 00:36:59,360 --> 00:37:04,040 Speaker 1: drug law. Yeah, and since they introduced the retroactivity releases, 590 00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:08,440 Speaker 1: they've reduced seventy sentences for an average of twenty nine 591 00:37:08,480 --> 00:37:14,560 Speaker 1: months per inmate and saved American taxpayers five and thirty 592 00:37:14,560 --> 00:37:18,520 Speaker 1: million dollars in the process. Um. Other people will say, 593 00:37:18,880 --> 00:37:22,640 Speaker 1: you're letting drug offenders out on the streets. Why are 594 00:37:22,640 --> 00:37:26,440 Speaker 1: we doing this? And um, so there are two sides. Obviously, 595 00:37:26,600 --> 00:37:29,800 Speaker 1: opinion wise to that story. We'd be remiss if we 596 00:37:29,840 --> 00:37:31,799 Speaker 1: didn't point out that people are upset about it in 597 00:37:31,840 --> 00:37:34,480 Speaker 1: some circles. Oh sure, it's not like that's a that's 598 00:37:34,480 --> 00:37:39,359 Speaker 1: a great idea categorically yeah, um, yeah, there's problems with 599 00:37:39,400 --> 00:37:43,080 Speaker 1: it for sure. Uh. Can we talk about crack babies? Yeah, 600 00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:45,040 Speaker 1: that was another thing that came out of the eighties 601 00:37:45,160 --> 00:37:48,080 Speaker 1: was the so called crack baby. Like there was a 602 00:37:48,160 --> 00:37:52,239 Speaker 1: huge part of this crack epidemic wasn't just addiction. It 603 00:37:52,400 --> 00:37:56,280 Speaker 1: was babies being born addicted to crack. And Uh, thanks 604 00:37:56,320 --> 00:37:59,560 Speaker 1: to a paper from by a guy named Dr Ira 605 00:37:59,680 --> 00:38:05,520 Speaker 1: ch has No Off, the crack baby fear started sweeping 606 00:38:05,560 --> 00:38:08,439 Speaker 1: the nation. I mean huge, man. There's a New York 607 00:38:08,440 --> 00:38:11,720 Speaker 1: Times video that you can go watch, like ten minutes 608 00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:15,080 Speaker 1: long called retro Reports. Is that what it was called. Yeah, 609 00:38:15,080 --> 00:38:18,000 Speaker 1: it was really good and it basically kind of brought 610 00:38:18,160 --> 00:38:20,120 Speaker 1: and I remember now, you know, back in the eighties 611 00:38:20,640 --> 00:38:23,000 Speaker 1: Peter Jennings on the nightly news saying that you know, 612 00:38:23,080 --> 00:38:25,160 Speaker 1: babies are and it's not Peter Jennings, of course, it's 613 00:38:25,160 --> 00:38:27,759 Speaker 1: whoever wrote the story. It was Peter Jennings Dan. Rather, 614 00:38:27,960 --> 00:38:33,440 Speaker 1: it was People Time Newsweek. Basically saying, these babies are 615 00:38:33,440 --> 00:38:37,080 Speaker 1: being born addicted to drugs. It will ultimately cost crack 616 00:38:37,120 --> 00:38:39,879 Speaker 1: babies will cost the United States five billion dollars. Yeah, 617 00:38:39,880 --> 00:38:41,280 Speaker 1: they were saying it was going to be a lost 618 00:38:41,280 --> 00:38:45,880 Speaker 1: generation and a nation of kids who are you can't rehab. 619 00:38:45,960 --> 00:38:49,320 Speaker 1: They're going to be the babies or aloof They shake, 620 00:38:49,400 --> 00:38:52,000 Speaker 1: they avoid eye contact, they avoid eye contact with their 621 00:38:52,040 --> 00:38:54,480 Speaker 1: own mothers, which proves that they're going to be anti 622 00:38:54,560 --> 00:38:57,160 Speaker 1: social deviance when they grow up. Yeah. And this is 623 00:38:57,200 --> 00:39:00,120 Speaker 1: not like we're not rewriting history, man, it was like 624 00:39:00,200 --> 00:39:02,719 Speaker 1: hardcore stuff that they were saying it was gonna be 625 00:39:03,280 --> 00:39:06,319 Speaker 1: uh they were One quote was, um, they will not 626 00:39:06,360 --> 00:39:09,120 Speaker 1: be able to hold uh, to form to hold a job, 627 00:39:09,200 --> 00:39:12,239 Speaker 1: or form meaningful relationships. Right, So they were expected to 628 00:39:12,280 --> 00:39:15,359 Speaker 1: completely overwhelm the education system, maybe not even have an 629 00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:20,200 Speaker 1: i Q of fifty, Yeah, and then completely overwhelmed social services. 630 00:39:20,680 --> 00:39:24,480 Speaker 1: So basically there was this this whole um generation of 631 00:39:24,560 --> 00:39:27,160 Speaker 1: kids that were expected to be totally messed up because 632 00:39:27,200 --> 00:39:30,400 Speaker 1: their mothers had smoke crack while they were pregnant, and 633 00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:32,879 Speaker 1: so women were having their kids taken away from them. 634 00:39:32,880 --> 00:39:37,400 Speaker 1: Some women were arrested and um, the the guy the 635 00:39:37,480 --> 00:39:40,799 Speaker 1: doctor who wrote the original paper, Dr Ira chsn Off 636 00:39:41,200 --> 00:39:44,719 Speaker 1: like started to very quickly back off of his original statements, 637 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:47,759 Speaker 1: which he's still today, Like he admits, like he was 638 00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:51,640 Speaker 1: pretty mouthy and not very savvy, pretty media naive, I 639 00:39:51,640 --> 00:39:53,879 Speaker 1: guess you could put it. And he said he would 640 00:39:53,880 --> 00:39:56,520 Speaker 1: give these long winded statements and then the press would 641 00:39:56,560 --> 00:39:59,640 Speaker 1: just pick out like the juiciest part. And like this 642 00:39:59,680 --> 00:40:05,200 Speaker 1: guy single handedly created the crack baby myth because it 643 00:40:05,480 --> 00:40:08,520 Speaker 1: never panned out in any way, shape or form. And 644 00:40:08,560 --> 00:40:10,920 Speaker 1: what they were saying was like the twitchy babies that 645 00:40:11,000 --> 00:40:14,160 Speaker 1: you're seeing on TV when they're talking about the the 646 00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:17,680 Speaker 1: symptoms of being a cracked baby. That's premature babies. Like 647 00:40:17,760 --> 00:40:20,520 Speaker 1: you take any premature baby who's premature for any reason, 648 00:40:21,080 --> 00:40:24,320 Speaker 1: and they're going to display these symptoms that are supposedly 649 00:40:24,360 --> 00:40:27,840 Speaker 1: associated with crack babies. Yeah, they did. The US government 650 00:40:27,880 --> 00:40:31,200 Speaker 1: sponsored a twenty five year study of crack babies, not 651 00:40:31,360 --> 00:40:34,040 Speaker 1: a two year study or a five year study. Twenty 652 00:40:34,040 --> 00:40:37,919 Speaker 1: five years. They followed these babies up into adulthood. Uh 653 00:40:38,080 --> 00:40:41,000 Speaker 1: is now over the funding ran out, and they found 654 00:40:41,239 --> 00:40:45,040 Speaker 1: that um by age four, the average i Q of 655 00:40:45,040 --> 00:40:49,120 Speaker 1: cocaine exposed children was UH seventy nine. The average i 656 00:40:49,160 --> 00:40:52,160 Speaker 1: Q for the non exposed children was one UM. When 657 00:40:52,160 --> 00:40:56,560 Speaker 1: it came to readiness at age six, about in each 658 00:40:56,600 --> 00:41:00,279 Speaker 1: group scored in the abnormal range. Basically, all of the 659 00:41:00,320 --> 00:41:04,799 Speaker 1: findings said, it's the same as these other kids. But 660 00:41:04,960 --> 00:41:08,120 Speaker 1: here's the deal. They weren't doing the study against crack 661 00:41:08,160 --> 00:41:11,400 Speaker 1: baby babies and white suburban kids. They were doing it 662 00:41:11,400 --> 00:41:14,839 Speaker 1: against a like model, which was other you know, poor 663 00:41:14,880 --> 00:41:18,080 Speaker 1: black kids basically that were not crack babies. And they 664 00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:22,200 Speaker 1: said they are all below average. So the deal is 665 00:41:22,320 --> 00:41:26,400 Speaker 1: is it's poverty. Right, it's not crack cocaine. They're scoring 666 00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:29,680 Speaker 1: the same as non non crack babies, and they're all 667 00:41:29,719 --> 00:41:34,879 Speaker 1: scoring lower because of poverty and and basically bad postnatal 668 00:41:34,920 --> 00:41:38,319 Speaker 1: care through adulthood. Right, like you, you might not have 669 00:41:38,360 --> 00:41:45,839 Speaker 1: any problems physiologically or not as not or cognitively from 670 00:41:45,840 --> 00:41:48,120 Speaker 1: being exposed to crack in the womb, but if your 671 00:41:48,120 --> 00:41:50,719 Speaker 1: mom's still smoking crack after you're born, you're probably not 672 00:41:50,719 --> 00:41:56,239 Speaker 1: going to get the best care from your parents as possible. UM. 673 00:41:56,360 --> 00:41:58,520 Speaker 1: And they did find in that same study that children 674 00:41:58,560 --> 00:42:01,280 Speaker 1: that were being raised in like a porting encouraging house, 675 00:42:01,960 --> 00:42:07,959 Speaker 1: even in um poverty stricken conditions uh tended to excel. So, 676 00:42:08,120 --> 00:42:10,640 Speaker 1: um it is it's pop. It was poverty they found out, 677 00:42:10,760 --> 00:42:14,440 Speaker 1: and um, postnatal care like you said, and being born premature. 678 00:42:14,560 --> 00:42:17,279 Speaker 1: But yes, but the correct baby thing never happened. It 679 00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:21,000 Speaker 1: was another example of hysterics. So right about now, I 680 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:24,840 Speaker 1: want to say, if if it sounds like Chuck and 681 00:42:24,880 --> 00:42:28,240 Speaker 1: I are being cavalier, have been cavalier with the idea 682 00:42:28,239 --> 00:42:31,799 Speaker 1: of crack, uh, we're not. We're not being cavalier with 683 00:42:31,840 --> 00:42:35,520 Speaker 1: crack or addiction. That's nothing to take lightly. But I 684 00:42:35,560 --> 00:42:41,440 Speaker 1: think what's created a bit of freneticness or passion maybe 685 00:42:41,480 --> 00:42:44,440 Speaker 1: in this one is just this idea that we're able 686 00:42:44,440 --> 00:42:48,320 Speaker 1: to look back now thirty years on and say, wow, 687 00:42:48,520 --> 00:42:55,040 Speaker 1: like America was genuinely hysterical, and that's it's something to 688 00:42:55,080 --> 00:42:59,280 Speaker 1: be amazed by and a little disconcerted with. Two. Yeah, 689 00:42:59,520 --> 00:43:02,200 Speaker 1: of course you should not take cocaine or smoke crack 690 00:43:02,239 --> 00:43:04,239 Speaker 1: when you're pregnant. No doctor on earth is going to 691 00:43:04,320 --> 00:43:06,800 Speaker 1: say that's a good thing. But the crack baby was 692 00:43:06,840 --> 00:43:09,440 Speaker 1: a myth. And the one Emory professor that was in 693 00:43:09,440 --> 00:43:12,560 Speaker 1: that New York Times researcher in the New York Times 694 00:43:12,640 --> 00:43:15,759 Speaker 1: video came out and said, you know what alcohol does 695 00:43:16,239 --> 00:43:20,279 Speaker 1: much more physical damage and is much more widespread as 696 00:43:20,360 --> 00:43:25,920 Speaker 1: an abuse drug during pregnancy than crack or cocaine ever is. 697 00:43:26,880 --> 00:43:31,200 Speaker 1: But they're not lacking ladies up that are pregnant for drinking. 698 00:43:31,680 --> 00:43:33,400 Speaker 1: And the reason they were doing it back then it 699 00:43:33,480 --> 00:43:36,120 Speaker 1: is because they were poor black women, right, Um, we 700 00:43:36,160 --> 00:43:42,120 Speaker 1: should say the crack epidemic also, while the sentences were stiffer, 701 00:43:42,239 --> 00:43:46,280 Speaker 1: the the amount you got caught with was a hundred 702 00:43:46,320 --> 00:43:50,000 Speaker 1: times smaller to get the same the same rap is 703 00:43:50,239 --> 00:43:53,680 Speaker 1: getting caught with powdered cocaine. Yeah, there was something that 704 00:43:53,760 --> 00:43:56,360 Speaker 1: came out of this crack epidemic that was a real threat, 705 00:43:56,920 --> 00:44:01,040 Speaker 1: and that was the rise of the modern um inter 706 00:44:01,160 --> 00:44:04,360 Speaker 1: city gang, at least as far as we know it. 707 00:44:04,440 --> 00:44:07,320 Speaker 1: Like crips and Bloods and folks and all those guys. 708 00:44:07,880 --> 00:44:11,720 Speaker 1: They they came out of this era. They were able 709 00:44:11,800 --> 00:44:15,480 Speaker 1: to buy the guns that they bought and fight the 710 00:44:15,480 --> 00:44:20,360 Speaker 1: turf force that they fought because they had this incredibly 711 00:44:20,400 --> 00:44:24,320 Speaker 1: addictive drug that they could sell and control pretty easily 712 00:44:25,280 --> 00:44:28,279 Speaker 1: in their hands all of a sudden. So where that 713 00:44:28,360 --> 00:44:31,120 Speaker 1: came from, who knows, but you can all you can. 714 00:44:31,920 --> 00:44:35,640 Speaker 1: The big problem with the crack epidemic that you can 715 00:44:35,680 --> 00:44:38,360 Speaker 1: trace directly back to it is the rise of the 716 00:44:38,400 --> 00:44:45,720 Speaker 1: modern gang drug gang. So in summary, crack whack, Yeah, 717 00:44:45,960 --> 00:44:53,920 Speaker 1: crack babies, myth, crack sentencing laws, whack whack, Gary webb 718 00:44:54,800 --> 00:45:00,440 Speaker 1: Um whacked whack. Very nice. I got nothing else? Okay, 719 00:45:00,560 --> 00:45:03,000 Speaker 1: perfect chuckers, how about you take us out with some 720 00:45:03,160 --> 00:45:07,759 Speaker 1: listener mail. All right, this is from Rebecca and it 721 00:45:07,840 --> 00:45:14,440 Speaker 1: is about PTSD and uh police chases. Um. I've been 722 00:45:14,440 --> 00:45:16,600 Speaker 1: a fan of you guys since the inception. I've listened 723 00:45:16,640 --> 00:45:19,799 Speaker 1: to every episode. I always wanted to write in until now, 724 00:45:19,840 --> 00:45:21,719 Speaker 1: I didn't have a reason. Listening to the Police Chase 725 00:45:21,719 --> 00:45:24,000 Speaker 1: podcast made me want to share my story. Years ago, 726 00:45:24,040 --> 00:45:26,839 Speaker 1: I was the victim of a police chase. Some teenagers 727 00:45:26,840 --> 00:45:28,960 Speaker 1: had stolen a car and were pursued by the cops. 728 00:45:29,320 --> 00:45:31,640 Speaker 1: I'm not sure what caused them to pursue at high speeds, 729 00:45:31,840 --> 00:45:34,279 Speaker 1: but they did. The chase resulted in the kids t 730 00:45:34,440 --> 00:45:36,799 Speaker 1: boning my car when I was stopped at a red light. 731 00:45:37,280 --> 00:45:40,160 Speaker 1: The kids tried to take an incredibly sharp turn. Essentially, 732 00:45:40,280 --> 00:45:43,719 Speaker 1: you turned onto another road and they're going way too fast. Um. 733 00:45:43,760 --> 00:45:48,040 Speaker 1: The chase escalated to an on foot chase. UM, and 734 00:45:48,200 --> 00:45:50,719 Speaker 1: it actually did end and arrests I ended up having 735 00:45:50,719 --> 00:45:52,200 Speaker 1: to be cut out of the car with the jaws 736 00:45:52,239 --> 00:45:55,920 Speaker 1: of life only suffered minor head injuries despite my car 737 00:45:56,000 --> 00:45:58,520 Speaker 1: being totaled. As a result of the incident, I began 738 00:45:58,600 --> 00:46:02,200 Speaker 1: having anxiety and pts D symptoms that were triggered by 739 00:46:02,239 --> 00:46:06,000 Speaker 1: police irons in intense stress. I had to receive treatment 740 00:46:06,080 --> 00:46:09,440 Speaker 1: similar to some of what you discussed in the PTSD 741 00:46:09,440 --> 00:46:13,680 Speaker 1: episode all as well. Now didn't take too long, um, 742 00:46:13,719 --> 00:46:15,919 Speaker 1: with therapy to overcome everything. I just wanted to share 743 00:46:16,040 --> 00:46:18,920 Speaker 1: the downside of police chases. I don't think that incident 744 00:46:18,920 --> 00:46:21,600 Speaker 1: required a high speed chase, and the result could have 745 00:46:21,640 --> 00:46:24,680 Speaker 1: been much much worse. I really wish that police would 746 00:46:24,680 --> 00:46:27,800 Speaker 1: stop to think before they pursued for minor crimes uh 747 00:46:27,840 --> 00:46:30,440 Speaker 1: and would get fined even or have some sort of 748 00:46:30,440 --> 00:46:33,719 Speaker 1: penalty for causing accidents within US at by standards. And 749 00:46:33,760 --> 00:46:37,120 Speaker 1: that is Rebecca. Well, thanks Rebecca, I appreciate you sharing that. 750 00:46:37,200 --> 00:46:40,480 Speaker 1: Sorry that happened to you. I'm glad you're doing better. Yeah. Um. 751 00:46:40,520 --> 00:46:43,720 Speaker 1: If you want to share a personal experience from something 752 00:46:43,800 --> 00:46:47,319 Speaker 1: that we have talked about in this episode or another one, 753 00:46:48,040 --> 00:46:52,000 Speaker 1: you can tweet to us s y SK podcast, Facebook 754 00:46:52,040 --> 00:46:54,560 Speaker 1: dot com, slash stuff you Should Know Stuff podcast to 755 00:46:54,600 --> 00:46:57,040 Speaker 1: how Stuff worce dot com and has always joined us 756 00:46:57,040 --> 00:46:59,200 Speaker 1: at our home on the web. Stuff you Should Know 757 00:46:59,320 --> 00:47:03,880 Speaker 1: dot com m HM. Stuff you Should Know is a 758 00:47:03,880 --> 00:47:07,000 Speaker 1: production of iHeart Radio's How Stuff Works. For more podcasts 759 00:47:07,000 --> 00:47:09,920 Speaker 1: for my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 760 00:47:09,960 --> 00:47:14,800 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. H