Matters of Substance August 2007 contents
Volume 17, Number 3
ISSN 1177-200X
| The Director's Cut | Introduction to this issue, and comment on criminal justice. |
| Cover story - Rehabilitating our criminal justice system | Problems with alcohol and other drugs significantly contribute to New Zealand’s burgeoning imprisonment rate. In this article, we identify some ‘best buys’ for government – policies and practices that could produce the biggest bang per buck in addressing how to deal with drugs in our criminal justice system. |
| Guest Editorial - Alcohol, poverty and development | Øystein Bakke writes about alcohol as the two-edged sword of the developing world. Its problems are a burden to families and communities struggling with poverty, but the problems only worsen with rising prosperity. |
| Opinion - Saving us from ourselves | At what point does banning substances in the interest of the public good intrude on individuals’ rights to choose the way they live? Anna Nuzum argues that party pill and other bans are paternalistic encroachments that worsen the problems they seek to solve. |
| 05 will save lives | Despite some of the best road safety laws in the world, a troubling number of drink drivers are still caught in each police blitz. It’s time to seriously consider lowering the blood alcohol content limit. |
| In so many words | CAYAD workers report on some pleasing successes at bringing families together to discuss drug and alcohol issues affecting young people in the Clendon area. |
| Tune in, turn on, get better? | Could there be therapeutic uses for psychedelic drugs? We once thought so, before the whole scene went terribly wrong. Now some scientists are starting to look at the idea again. |
| Research Update - Drug use in New Zealand | New Zealand’s Illicit Drug Monitoring System is conducted annually as part of the National Drug Policy. In our new Research Update feature, Chris Wilkins describes the study and provides key findings from 2006. |
| Policing harm | For as long as drugs remain illegal, the police will have a massive impact on drug related harm. In this article, reprinted from Druglink, Jamie Bridge looks at how police have helped and hindered harm reduction around the world. |
Trading extraordinary commodities | This month several Pacific nations will decide on free trade in alcohol and tobacco. Linda Hill writes about the negative health and economic impacts that could result if these small countries open their doors. |
| Bringing down the powerwall | Just about every dairy and petrol station in the country sports a wall of tobacco packaging right behind the register. Sneha Paul argues this is no coincidence, and that the ‘powerwall’ is a deliberate form of marketing that has to go. |
| Mythbusters - Let’s drink like the French | The fact that the French encourage their kids to drink wine has led to a rosy utopia of sensible alcohol consumption. We read that on the Internet somewhere. |
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