No Speed Limit: The Highs and Lows of Meth
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.47 (906 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0312356161 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 256 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2014-08-22 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Speed School I found this book so fascinating I could barely put it down. It is very easy to read and basically tells you everything you could ever want to know about the history and use of meth.I give it four stars for two reasons. One, I found the outline of the book somewhat chaotic. The book is not laid out chronologically or otherwise but more like a series of individual stand alone essays. I had a feeling of a lack of continuity but it really doesn't take away from the book. I guess I would just be more comfortable with a standard chronological history.Two, there is an extensive bibliography but I would have preferred end note. Glamorization, thinly veiled Jesus Christ. Anyone who actually believes Owen's assertion that meth is "just another drug" has clearly not had much exposure to it, or is a current user himself (as Owen clearly is) and is in denial. A former meth (and heroin and cocaine, as well as alcohol, K, etc.) addict myself, I can tell you that meth is the ULTIMATE EVIL. Meth IS evil, and it literally brings out evil in every single person who uses it. The evil can be blatant (as it usually is), resulting in complete mental and physical destruction of the user and most everyone close to the user; or it can sometimes be more subtle, resulting in the publication . A very good overview. As an academic I've been intensely studying the issue of methamphetamine for several years now and am impressed by the range of methamphetamine-related issues covered by the author -- everything from a bit of history, to its spread through the West, to cooking the drug, to treatment, and to the effects of policies designed to control it. As a journalist Owen has the skill to draw the reader in, unlike many academic writers. Now and then he states things with certainty that an academic would waffle on, but overall the book is on the mark. And, as a journalistic account there are brief periods of "over the top" comments,
Cross-country truckers and suburban mothers. Murders, violent assaults, thefts, fires, premature births, and AIDS—rises in all of these have been blamed on the drug that crosses classes and subcultures like no other. Acclaimed journalist Frank Owen follows the users, cooks, dealers, and law enforcers to uncover a dramatic story being played out in cities, small towns, and farm communities across America. In this fascinating book, Frank Owen traces the spread of methamphetamine—meth—from its origins as a cold and asthma remedy to the stimulant wiring every corner of American culture. No Speed Limit is a panoramic, high-octane investigation by a journalist who knows firsthand the powerful highs and frightening lows of meth.. It was first synthesized in the late nineteenth century and applied in treatment of a wide range of ailments; by the 1940s meth had become a wonder drug, used to treat depression, hyperactivity, obesity, epilepsy, and addictions to other drugs and alcohol. Allied, Nazi, and Japanese soldiers used
As he points out in telling detail, the current demonization of meth follows that of any number of other drug epidemics that have hit America over the years, with media and law enforcement learning little from one to the next. Owen also relates how meth helped him meet deadlines as a freelance writer in the 1980s and includes the details of his own charming, four-day meth binge—for research purposes—in present-day New York City. From Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. In this intensely researched, fascinating account of methamphetamine, Owen takes readers through the late–19th-century synthesis of ephedrine from ephedra (a medicinal plant) to meth's current status as public enemy #1. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division