Um.

Well, now i've read a statement that boggled my little mind, and i'm wondering if it's just me.

First, a warning, as if any of you needed it. The dangers of LSD include:
During a trip the person may put themselves in danger without realizing it;
In some people the drug can cause intense anxiety and panic attacks;
Some people experience flashbacks of bad trips, even months later;
In those already vulnerable, LSD may be the trigger for psychotic illness, paranoia and other symptoms typical of schizophrenia.

Why am i listing this? Glad you asked. A study, presented in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, looked at data from six trials from the 1960's-1970's and has concluded that in some people, LSD use may help alcoholics give up drinking, at least for a few months.

That in itself caught my attention, but what made me wonder if the researchers had lost their marbles was the statement "Given the evidence for a beneficial effect of LSD on alcoholism, it is puzzling why this treatment approach has been largely overlooked."

Excuse me? In people already struggling with a substance addiction, we have to wonder why we don't give them LSD to help them stay dry?

Is it just me, or should this be filed under the category of lousy ideas?


Today is:

Alfred Hitchcock Day -- some internet sources say March 8, and no one knows who picked either day, but he is worth celebrating

Arbor Day -- China; Taiwan

Australia Celebrations:
Adelaide Cup Day -- SA
Labour Day -- VIC
Canberra Day -- ACT
Eight Hours Day -- Tas

Commonwealth Day -- British Virgin Islands; Gibraltar; Turks and Caicos Islands; Tuvalu

Donkey Appreciation Day -- formerly celebrated, but the lowly donkey is no longer as indispensable as he was; if you share my fondness for beasts of burden, celebrate it anyway

Girl Scouts Birthday -- US

Graekarismessa (Mass of St. Gregory) -- Torshavn, Faroe Islands (traditional day on which the oystercatcher, their traditional bird, returns)

Huddling of Fairies of the Third Flight -- Fairy Calendar

Ichinomiyajinja Nougu-ichi -- Niigata, Japan

Kronprinsessans Namnsdag -- Sweden (Name Day of HRH Crown Princess Victoria, the Heir Apparent; an official flag day)

Lesser Eleusinian Mysteries -- Ancient Greek Calendar (sunset to sunset Mar. 19, dates approximate; celebrates the marriage of Kore and Dionysos)

Martyrdom of Hypatia of Alexandria -- in 415, she was murdered for the three crimes of being intelligent, female, and pagan

National Day -- Mauritius

National Heroes and Benefactors Day -- Belize

National Baked Scallops Day

National Napping Day -- lie down and be counted on this first Monday after DST begins

Plant a Flower Day -- sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation; now's a good time to give wildlife friendly perrenials a head start, starting them indoors if you have to

St. Gregory the Great's Day (Patron of choir boys, educators, masons, musicians, popes, schoolchildren, singers, stonemasons, students, and teachers; England; Kercem, Malta; Legazpi, Philippines; Montone, Italy; San Gregorio nelle Alpi, Italy; West Indies; against gout and plague)

St. Seraphina's Day (Patron of the disabled and handicapped, and of spinners)

World Day Against Cyber Censorship -- sponsored by Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International

Youth Day -- Zambia


Birthdays Today:

Frank Catalano, 1978
Darryl Strawberry, 1962
James Taylor, 1948
Liza Minnelli, 1946
Al Jarreau, 1940
Barbara Feldon, 1932
Andrew Young, 1932
Edward Albee, 1928
Jack Kerouac, 1922
Gordon MacRae, 1921
Clement Studebaker, 1821


Today in History:

Martyrdom of Hypatia of Alexandria, philosopher, 415
Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving the city in the hands of the victorious Roman general, Belisarius, 538
Orvieto, Italy, rules it will behead and burn Jewish-Christian couples, 1350
Jews are expelled from Syria, 1496
New Jersey becomes an English colony, 1664
The first steam engine in America installed, to pump water from a mine, 1755
Andrew Watson makes his Scotland debut as the world's first black international football player and captain, 1881
In Vicksburg, Mississippi, Coca-Cola is sold in bottles for the first time, 1894
The first main line electric train in UK, from Liverpool to Southport, begins running, 1904
The Girl Guides (later renamed the Girl Scouts of the USA) are founded in the United States, by Juliette Gordon Lowe, 1912
The foundation stone of the new Australian capital in Canberra is laid, 1913
Mohandas Gandhi begins 200m (300km) march protesting British salt tax, 1930
The Truman Doctrine is proclaimed to help stem the spread of Communism, 1947
The Church of England ordains its first female priests, 1994
Former Warsaw Pact members the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland join NATO, 1999
Financier Bernard Madoff plead guilty in New York to scamming $18 billion, the largest in Wall Street history, 2009