UK health secretary sacks drugs adviser

  • Thread starter Thread starter muppet
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Drugs Health Uk
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the sacking of a government drugs adviser, David Nutt, and the implications of his statements regarding drug classification and safety, particularly concerning cannabis and LSD. Participants explore the intersection of scientific advice and political responsibility, as well as public perceptions of drug safety.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express outrage over the dismissal of Nutt, arguing that it reflects a misunderstanding of scientific thought and its role in policy.
  • Others suggest that Nutt's acceptance of a government position entailed a political responsibility, which may have conflicted with his scientific views.
  • There are claims that Nutt's statements regarding the safety of LSD compared to alcohol are controversial, with some participants asserting that LSD is nontoxic.
  • One participant references a study that suggests LSD is less harmful than tobacco and alcohol, challenging the perception of its danger.
  • Questions arise regarding the lethal dose (LD50) of LSD, with participants providing sources and estimates, indicating uncertainty about its toxicity.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus; there are multiple competing views regarding the implications of Nutt's statements and the relationship between scientific advice and political policy. Disagreement exists over the safety of LSD compared to alcohol, and the discussion reflects a range of opinions on the responsibilities of scientific advisers.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include varying interpretations of drug safety, reliance on differing studies and sources for claims about LSD's toxicity, and the complexities of the relationship between scientific advice and political action.

muppet
Messages
602
Reaction score
0
For those who haven't come across this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8334774.stm

My facebook status sums up my feelings on the subject:
Robert Old has never touched a spliff in his life, but thinks it's so patently absurd to sack a scientist for nominally creating "confusion between scientific advice and policy" that he's almost tempted to light up a camberwell carrot in protest.

Predictably, the shadow home secretary wallowed in the typical Tory self-image of the last bastion of law and order in a broken society, but the Lib Dem home affairs spokesman condemmed the move.

How do other people feel about this?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
muppet said:
For those who haven't come across this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8334774.stm

My facebook status sums up my feelings on the subject:


Predictably, the shadow home secretary wallowed in the typical Tory self-image of the last bastion of law and order in a broken society, but the Lib Dem home affairs spokesman condemmed the move.

How do other people feel about this?

Just goes to show how the world views scientific thought. I saw a book at the store the other day called 'Unscientific America' looked pretty interesting.
 
I'd say Nutt is at least partly to blame for this. The fact is that at when he accepted the position as government advisor he ALSO took on a "political" responsibility and was no longer an independent scientist.
He must after all have realized that what we was saying in the media about the classification of cannabis etc was in fact more policy than science AND that the policy he was advocating was in direct conflict with the official line. He has also been very clumsy in his contacts with media and has made a number of very controversial statements.

Also, I don't know much about the medical effects of drugs but some of his statements DO seem rather strange. He has among other things claimed that LSD is no more dangerous than alcohol which I find rather hard to belive.
 
f95toli said:
He has among other things claimed that LSD is no more dangerous than alcohol which I find rather hard to belive.

You may find it hard to believe, but it's true. LSD is nontoxic. It goes to show how schizophrenic the public view of drugs has become due to propaganda. In America, cocaine is classified as schedule II, while cannabis is classified as schedule I. The drug laws have more to do with history and politics than with their harmfulness.
 
f95toli said:
I'd say Nutt is at least partly to blame for this. The fact is that at when he accepted the position as government advisor he ALSO took on a "political" responsibility and was no longer an independent scientist.
He must after all have realized that what we was saying in the media about the classification of cannabis etc was in fact more policy than science AND that the policy he was advocating was in direct conflict with the official line. He has also been very clumsy in his contacts with media and has made a number of very controversial statements.

Also, I don't know much about the medical effects of drugs but some of his statements DO seem rather strange. He has among other things claimed that LSD is no more dangerous than alcohol which I find rather hard to belive.
You should read the study "Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs and potential misuse" (David Nutt, Leslie A King, William Saulsbury, Colin Blakemore). In terms of physical/psychological damage coupled with potential for abuse LSD isn't very harmful when compared to tobacco and alcohol.
 
dx said:
You may find it hard to believe, but it's true. LSD is nontoxic.

Do you have a cite with its LD50?
 
f95toli said:
Also, I don't know much about the medical effects of drugs but some of his statements DO seem rather strange. He has among other things claimed that LSD is no more dangerous than alcohol which I find rather hard to belive.

Just to clarify: LSD is not only no more dangerous than alcohol, it's actually significantly less dangerous. Check the paper I linked to.
 

Similar threads

News UK Diplomats slam Blair on Mid-East
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K