Was going to post a photo of a krokodil user but decided against it as it was too graphic.
Russia, home to two million heroin users, has begun facing a significant problem thanks to its increasingly “successful” war on drugs.
You see, around four years ago, Russia’s heroin addicts have discovered how to make a synthetic opiate many times more powerful than heroin by using cheap codeine-based headache pills and other readily available ingredients. The replacement drug appeared because heroin was too expensive for many users and due to Russia’s efforts of stopping the flow of Afghan heroin into Russia, not always available.
The home-made drug is known as krokodil and its effects on users are absolutely horrific (DO NOT click that if you’re squeamish). Its poisonous ingredients quickly turn the skin scaly and then rot it to the point where flesh starts falling off the bone. And to make things worse, treating the krokodil addiction is close to impossible.
“With heroin withdrawal, the main symptoms last for five to 10 days. After that there is still a big danger of relapse but the physical pain will be gone. With krokodil, the pain can last up to a month, and it’s unbearable. They have to be injected with extremely strong tranquilisers just to keep them from passing out from the pain.”
All this makes me wonder why governments still insist on continuing their failed wars on drugs. I mean, the more they crack down on drugs the greater the market becomes – because the demand is still there. And with the greater market come great profits for those who can offer an alternative product to fill it.
Why don’t they just legalize all drugs and then control the market like they do with alcohol and cigarettes? Health warnings, age limits, education, etc… Give the addicts drugs, clean needles, a safe place to do it and offer them support if they want to give up the habit. Because so far, the only thing achieved by making drugs illegal is violence, crimes, and horrible drug alternatives (krokodil makes meth look like children’s candy).
