A few months back, I had an awkward interaction with an Uber driver, and I hadnât had one like this in a very long time.
I requested the ride, and the driver picked me up in less than 2 minutes. Turned out, he lived very close to me, and I was his first trip of the day. We got chatting and he asked me if I was American.
Technically, I am American. I was born and raised there, but I self-deported over 30 years ago, and have not even set foot in the country in over 20. I donât really identify as American, even if I sound like one. I have a British first name, a British surname, a British passport and Iâve lived in London longer than Iived in the US of A. At this point, Iâm am much more British than American.Â
I replied to the driver in the affirmative, that I was indeed American. He said he recognised my accent, because he had spent a lot of time around Americans.
I then asked my driver where he was from originally. He said heâd lived in London for over 20 years, but was originally from Iraq. My driver didnât need to tell me why he left when he did.Â
Then there was a bit of silence, before I uncomfortably, nervously began laughing, while apologising for Americaâs terrible actions in his country. I was against the Iraq War, but that didn’t stop me from feeling guilty, and embarrassed about it. It was shameful. He didnât seem to hold a grudge, or if he did, he kept it to himself. Like I said, it was awkward.
Similar interactions used to frequently occur to me during the second Gulf war, and it was just as uncomfortable back then. So much so, that when a stranger asked me my nationality, I began to say I was Canadian.
Everyone likes Canadians, They are friendly, non-controversial, and innocuous, so pretending to be Canadian made my life easier. My interactions with strangers of all nationalities suddenly became more pleasant. There were no pregnant pauses, no awkward silences, and no judgement, or criticism. People stopped telling me George W. Bush was a total dummy. As if I need to be informed of something so basic.
It wasnât hard to pretend to be Canadian. My accent is neutral enough, and influenced by living in London so long that no one ever questioned my claim.
Once the war ended, and Obama was president, the USA became less of an international pariah, and I returned to being American again.
America is once again disliked by the rest of the world, perhaps more so than at any point in my life. And thatâs not hyperbole. In just a few months, Trump has resurrected the whole evil empire thing, only this time itâs a domestic policy, with a level of intentional cruelty that I didnât think was possible.
Iâm not doing this out of fear. Itâs embarrassment. Iâm ashamed of what America has become. The Trump regime is attacking freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, freedom of everything. Theyâre even attacking institutes of higher learning, like Harvard, one of Americaâs oldest, and most prestigious universities. And don’t forget all the illegal deportations, er I mean the kidnapping and trafficking folks to other countries – US citizens and non-citizens alike. No one is safe in Trump’s America.
Iâm hoping I wonât have to be Canadian forever. Iâm not a fan of deception. That said, I donât know how America comes back from this. If Trump really fufils his dream and becomes âPresident for lifeâ, then I might be Canadian for quite a while. Itâs cool, I already like maple syrup, and Iâm sure I can get a Canadian hockey jersey online. After all, Iâm Canadian, again.Â
After a 30 year career as a journalist, working for some of the largest news organisations in the world, including Associated Press and Reuters, and 15 years as a duty news editor for BBC News, Doug â the northlondonhippy is now a full time hippy, and writer. And for the last few years, heâs been #EpilepsyHippy. His life was a whole lot more fun before gaining that new title. For real.
Doug is also the author of âPersonal Use by the northlondonhippy.â âPersonal Useâ chronicles Dougâs years of experience with mind altering substances, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read. You will laugh, you will cry, and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
If you want even more, (and who wouldnât?) you could always check out Hippy Highlights â which is the best of the best stuff on the site, and itâs all free to read. What are you waiting for?
Most of us knew it was going to be bad when Trump got back into the White House, but few could have anticipated the speed at which he is destroying everything. From international alliances to the actual US Federal Government, he is slashing and burning it all down. The hippy takes a look at a country in distress.
In less than 100 days, Donald Trump and his regime have done more damage to America than I thought possible. In that brief time, Trump has managed to show the world that the USA has become unreliable, unstable, nasty, dictatorial, and imperialistic. And letâs not forget what his batshit tariff plan is doing to the international economy.
America is no longer your friend, ally, or partner. America is now a transactional actor. Whatâs in it for them? And beyond that, they want to dictate laws in other countries as well, and they will make any treaties or trade deals contingent on their weird whims. Â
America is now unapologetically an evil empire, and Luke Skywalker ainât coming to the rescue. America is lost, and it wonât be coming back any time soon. The faster the world accepts this new reality, the easier it will be for everyone.
Sicko-fants
Trump is not doing anything he didnât promise to do if re-elected. None of it should be a surprise, except for the speed and intensity of it all. He has surrounded himself with sycophants and ass-kissers who encourage and applaud his every move, as if the idiot were a genius.
Trump makes several heavily curated media appearances daily. He loves a good photo-op while surrounded by his cabinet, who all praise him mercilessly.
I donât recommend playing a game where you take a shot of whiskey every time one of them says âThanks to President Trumpâs strong leadershipâŠâ. If you do, youâll be hammered before the photo-op ends.
An unnamed administration official told the media not long after the inauguration that Trump looks at each day as an episode of an ongoing TV series. And every day he has to vanquish his enemies. He needs to create the illusion of winning constantly.
Trump is ruling by decree via âexecutive ordersâ, rather than the actual way of governing which includes the House and the Senate playing some sort of role. Instead, Donald has cut them out of nearly everything. And in some cases, he is even overriding them by withdrawing funding that already has congressional approval. Thatâs not meant to ever happen.
Trumpâs cabinet of crazies arenât just his Greek chorus of approval. They also enable him, and carry out his instructions, and further his evil agenda thoughtlessly. Loyalty, and fealty are the chief requirements to be in this administration. Plus looking good on TV. Naturally.Â
Trump lies constantly, and then they all parrot his lies. Itâs a continuing, non-stop firehose of falsehoods. Critical thinking, truth telling, and standing up for whatâs right and best for the country, wonât ever happen with this bunch of fascists.
Look again
Full Fat Fascism
Yep, I went there. The American government is full of full-on fascists, enacting full-on fascist policies. The entire world should be concerned.
Even if youâve seen this list of early warning signs of fascism before, itâs well worth revisiting now. A copy of this is displayed in US Holocaust Museum.Â
Hereâs the list again, annotated with links to examples of each item on the list, all from Trumpâs first term. The Trump Regime Mark II is already so much worse.Â
I didnât have imperialist ambitions on my bingo card for the second Trump administration.
Trump has threatened to take over the Panama Canal, to annex Greenland and take it away from Americaâs NATO ally, Denmark, and he wants to force Canada to become the 51st state. Even weirder, he wonât rule out accomplishing those goals via military force. He wants to invade, and take over sovereign countries, and territories. He claims itâs all needed to keep America secure. Sure thing, Donald.Â
At first people assumed he was joking, but Trump doesnât joke. He doesnât even laugh, except at the expense of others he deems lesser. No, Trump is deadly serious about being a conquerer.Â
North of the border, Trumpâs threats and insults have actually helped Mark Carney and his Liberal Party. They have gone up in the polls in the lead-up to their general election. Trump is unwittingly assisting them towards victory.
Plain-clothed immigration cops are acting like âsnatch squadsâ, kidnapping both legal and undocumented immigrants, as well as legal residents right off the street. It doesn’t seem to matter who gets swept up in these raids.
America then traffics these abductees across state lines, and to foreign countries. There is no due process, itâs just pretty much just this: âThese are bad hombres. Trust us broâ.Â
Theyâre trying to justify these clearly unconstitutional actions by citing an archaic law from 1798, called the Alien Enemies Act. Itâs quite a legal stretch, not that laws matter any more.
The Supreme Court has instructed the White House to âfacilitateâ his return, but they have refused, as has the Salvadorian government. The US Attorney General said he is never coming back. They say the only way anyone leaves CECOT is in a box.
Trump has repeatedly said he wants to âdeport US citizensâ, You canât deport citizens, whether born on US soil, or naturalised. If the US government really did this, then we need to call it out. Itâs kidnapping, or trafficking, but not deportation.Â
We are in uncharted territory now. No one seems to know what will happen once the White House unquestionably defies Supreme Court rulings. Who can enforce the laws, when the government breaks them?
The one Supreme Court ruling Trump does respect is that he has âabsolute immunityâ, so laws donât really matter to him now that heâs president again. The actual ruling is slightly more nuanced than that, but Trump doesnât do nuance.
America has never been perfect, but it feels like Trump and his winged monkeys want to diminish it. Destroy it. And take the rest of the world down with them. So far, theyâre succeeding.Â
The worst person in the world has been elected the President of the United States, again. The sooner the rest of the world accepts it, and reacts accordingly, the better.
America is lost. And itâs not coming back any time soon. Say it out loud. RIP USA.
After a 30 year career as a journalist, working for some of the largest news organisations in the world, including Associated Press and Reuters, and 15 years as a duty news editor for BBC News, Doug â the northlondonhippy is now a full time hippy, and writer. And for the last few years, heâs been #EpilepsyHippy. His life was a whole lot more fun before gaining that new title. For real.
Doug is also the author of âPersonal Use by the northlondonhippy.â âPersonal Useâ chronicles Dougâs years of experience with mind altering substances, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read. You will laugh, you will cry, and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
If you want even more, (and who wouldnât?) you could always check out Hippy Highlights â which is the best of the best stuff on the site, and itâs all free to read. What are you waiting for?
This hippy opinion piece takes a deep dive into the dismal state of British Medicinal Cannabis.
The subject is divisive, and thereâs bound to be an opinion in here that pisses off nearly everyone.
Introduction
Cannabis was legalised for medicinal use in the United Kingdom in 2018, under a ridiculously rigid, and poorly implemented regime for a substance that is quantifiably considered extremely safe. And it is all the medicinal users of cannabis, whether legally sourced, or reliant upon the legacy market, who have continued to pay the price for the mess that is legal cannabis in Britain today.
The general standard of the products legally available isnât great, nor is their continued availability. And the customer service side of this industry is even worse, from the initial tidal wave of bureaucracy, to chasing your regular, monthly prescription renewals. Itâs been a disaster.
Improvements are constantly promised, yet rarely ever seen, but the issues are even deeper, and more systemic than that. The entire set up is not fit for purpose, and needs to be overhauled from the ground up, using other countryâs superior implementations as a guide.
The First Elephant in the Room
It seems ridiculous that I even have to point this out, as I rarely see it mentioned, but to me it is the biggest, dumbest accommodation made, in the entire British legal cannabis system. And the way everyone just rolled over on it, continues to boggle my mind. That accommodation is this:
Medicinal herbal cannabis has to be vaporised. This is a mandatory restriction, because if you smoke it, somehow it magically invalidates your prescription, and makes your consumption illegal. WTF?
Smoking cannabis is one of the oldest, and certainly most common forms of consumption in history. It may not be the most ideal, but certainly shouldnât that decision remain with the consumer?
Itâs fine if doctors want to endorse and encourage vaporisation as their preferred method for patients medicating. I own several vaporisers myself, and I love them. But at the end of the day, when I need to finally get some sleep, nothing hits me the same way as a neat joint (no tobacco) of pure Indica flower.
Iâm sure some of you naughty legal prescription holders out there still skin-up on the QT as well, but the fact is that you shouldnât need to hide your preference for combustion.
By all means recommend vapes, endorse them, subsidise them even, but donât force them on everyone with some bizarre, performative, restrictive law. It makes a mockery of the entire system that is meant to legitimise the use of cannabis as an actual medication. Questioning, and denying the medicinal value of a perfectly valid method of consuming it, diminishes much of what youâre trying to achieve.
When the guidance, and the laws were being drafted, did anyone even put up a fight? There are plenty of people who were involved in this process, who knew better, yet rolled over anyway.
Cali Legal Weed
The US State of California legalised cannabis in 1996 for medicinal use. The system was really simple, and far superior to ours.
After an inexpensive visit to specialist doctor, who reviewed your medical history to see if you suffered from one of the many qualifying conditions that might benefit from cannabis, you were issued with a medical cannabis ID card. With that card, you could then visit your local, legal dispensary, where you could safely purchase your cannabis flower, from a knowledgeable bud tender, who had personally sampled every strain available, and could offer useful advice on your choices. You could even smell the aroma of the bud, before you buy, which is more crucial than you might realise when selecting the right strain for you.
Dispensaries popped up all over the state, and the sky didnât fall in. In fact, the system was so successful, that 20 years later, they extended legalisation to include all adult usage, medicinal or not.
Itâs not just California; more than half of all US states have now legalised weed. Many countries have relaxed their approach to cannabis, and many more are expected to follow in the near future. Sadly, Britain is not one of them.
British Legal Weed
To secure a legal prescription here in the United Kingdom, your only option at this point is to go private. The NHS still refuses to accept the undeniable benefits of medicinal cannabis use, but that is an argument best left for another day. I want to concentrate the system we have now.
As with going private for anything medical, private cannabis is expensive. There are consultation costs, prescription renewal costs (with some clinics), admin fees, delivery fees, and the cost of the actual medication itself. Oh. and donât forget you need a proper herbal vaporiser, which is not an insignificant cost.
You need deep pockets, and for many, those pockets need to be even deeper than what they might spend for the equivalent from the legacy market. Or if they previously grew their own, it would cost exponentially more. Going legal ainât cheap!
I donât currently have a prescription, but I do have more than one qualifying condition, so I am eligible. And I do have a Cancard, but more on this a little later.
I monitor the state of our legal cannabis market via the many subreddits, and forums online dedicated to the subject. While I will acknowledge that people tend to post complaints in general, more than praise, the scales of the posts I see on medicinal cannabis tip heavily towards the negative. Iâm sure there are some patients happy with the system, and if it works for you, thatâs great. But I am even more certain, anecdotally anyway, that the majority are not happy, and would welcome significant improvements.
Even the initial process can seem daunting to some, and quite frankly, that is because it is a huge bureaucratic mountain for many to climb.
You need to get a summary of your care, from your GP surgery. Not all surgeries are helpful. And you need to be able to prove that you have at least one qualifying condition, and that youâve tried two prescription medications that failed to help with it. Plus if it is a mental health issue, you also need proof you have tried therapy as well.
And thatâs just to qualify for the initial consultation, though to be fair, if you make this far, it seems most people are prescribed.
After your initial consultation, the real fun begins⊠Trying to get a hold of your medication of choice. Some clinics limit, or push you to products produced by their parent companies, and they all seem to want to push people towards oils first.
The clinic that prescribes you, then has to send your prescription to a dispensing pharmacy. Until recently, that prescription had to be on paper, but now it can be sent electronically. Either way, there will still be a delay in dispatch, assuming they have what was prescribed available, and in stock. And how many times you have to contact them all to chase it, when something goes wrong.
Most people have to try many strains before finding one that helps, as the doctors are not that knowledgeable about the products.
Thereâs an open secret regarding doctors who prescribe medicinal cannabis; theyâre really only in it for the money, and very few have any useful knowledge of cannabis, beyond the 2 hour online training course available to be able to prescribe it.
Donât get me wrong, my personal view is that any doctor should be able to recommend cannabis in the same way they recommend aspirin. And you should be able to self-refer for cannabis, the same way you can purchase aspirin over the counter. Technically, cannabis is safer than aspirin.
Who would you rather have helping you choose a strain for your condition? A fully trained doctor who spent 2 hours studying cannabis, and cannabis based products online, or a bud tender, thatâs tried every product theyâre selling? I know whose endorsement would matter more to me, and I bet Iâm not the only one.
Legal vs Legacy
In all of my 40+ years of consuming cannabis, I have never bought mouldy weed. Iâve never found insects in a bag of weed either, and I have hardly even seen a seed since the mid 1980s. And Iâve never had to wait 2-4 weeks for my medication. None of that is true for British medicinal cannabis. Everything Iâve mentioned has been an issue for patients at some point, especially the delays.
The legacy market has been efficiently providing quality products for decades, and continues to do so, all around the country. How it does that is yet another discussion, for another day.
The legacy market is unregulated, so it is obviously less than ideal, but itâs still a business, reliant upon repeat custom. Selling quality products insures punters come back, again and again.
From my perspective, the legacy market still remains superior to our legal prescription market. The quality, and standard of products is consistent for me, the prices have remained steady for years, and the customer service has always been first rate.
The legal market is stressful. The medicinal cannabis subreddits are full of people going through all sorts of unnecessary drama to receive their medication, if they receive it at all.
Delays arenât just common, they are expected, as is having your first (or second, or third) choice of medication unexpectedly unavailable for weeks, without explanation. And then when it does come back into stock, thereâs a rush on it, and they quickly run out again.
And if the random availability wasnât bad enough, the products themselves can vary. One batch of your favourite strain could hit just right, and then the next prescription for the same strain, does nothing for you. There is no consistency, and much of what is sold, is very dried out, lacking any aroma, or terpenes.
Whether you source it from the legacy, or legal markets, there is a superior third option for sourcing, but youâre not allowed to use it.
The Second Elephant in the Room
In many places, where cannabis is legal, growing your own at home is permitted. This is a no-brainer, as patients can produce their own high quality medication at home, much cheaper than they can buy it from either the legal, or the legacy market.
Growing quality bud is a skill, but it is one that most people can master given the time, especially if theyâre motivated. And who would be more motivated than someone suffering medically, who wants to keep their costs down, during a global financial crisis!?
Growing your own should be at the very heart of our drug laws, especially medicinally. It should be a cornerstone of the policy, instead of leaving greedy corporations to produce substandard products. As far as elephants and rooms go, Iâd say this is a massive one.
To sort of paraphrase Moses, âLet my people GROW!â
AI Generated, 6 fingered Moses knows where it’s at!
One Last Room, One Last Elephant
Medicinal cannabis is a divisive subject, but it is especially divisive within itself. The amount of bickering I see within the cannabis community is depressing.
Donât we all want the same thing? We donât want to see anyone arrested for possession, whether they have a prescription or not. We all want cannabis use to be seen as the positive, life enriching thing that it is, donât we? We want it legal for all.
Cancard is a scheme set up by another medicinal cannabis user who avoided a conviction in court by using a medicinal cannabis defence. This victory means everyone who uses cannabis, can use the same defence. Joining the card scheme means you qualify for a prescription, whether you have one, or not.
I have a Cancard myself, and have been a member of the scheme for several years. They offer police training, and in some parts of the country, that training has helped people like me avoid legal hassles, and in some cases, even keep their medication.
Sadly, much like a legal prescription, thereâs no guarantee a Cancard will prevent arrest, or prosecution. It will however, most certainly be a mitigating factor at some point. And that should result in an âNFAâ, as in no further action will be taken, since a successful prosecution is unlikely, because of the medical defence.
I donât understand all the hate. Carly, and Cancard just want to prevent arrests, and have done in many cases. A legal prescription is meant to prevent arrest, and confiscation as well, but that doesnât always work either.
Canât we all agree that NO ONE should be arrested, regardless of where they source their medication?
And thatâs the final elephant, in the final room.
When the UK government legalised cannabis, even privately, that was a tacit admission that cannabis is medicinally beneficial. No ifs, ands, or buts, about it.
Cannabis is cannabis, whether you grow your own, source it legally, or from the legacy market. If it keeps you healthy, and alive, that is all that matters.
If these were your only two choices, which would you prefer? Would you rather be illegally alive, or legally dead? Iâve already made my choice. Iâm still here.
Iâm actively trying not to die from a potentially fatal form of epilepsy, among other long term physical, and mental health maladies. If you take away my special private medication, and I croak, that shit is 100% on you. Iâm still here because of weed. Lots of us are.
Why canât we be more like California, and have an actual grown-up, functional, beneficial medicinal cannabis system thatâs affordable?
Why are our politicians from both main parties, so out of step with the electorate, the medical community, and the rest of the world on the simple subject of cannabis?
Why do we let our rabidly rightwing media dictate our health policy? Thatâs the real issue, but there isnât a room big enough to contain that particular pachyderm.
Itâs your body, itâs my body. We all have the innate right to make our own significant health choices that we know benefit us. I know you know this already, but how do we convince everyone else? It shouldnât be as hard as it has been, and continues to be. But Iâm not giving up the fight, Iâm still preaching the good word, till my very last breath. And Iâm still breathing.
***
After a 30 year career as a journalist, working for some of the largest news organisations in the world, including Associated Press and Reuters, and 15 years as a duty news editor for BBC News, Doug â the northlondonhippy is now a full time hippy, and writer. And for the last few years, heâs been #EpilepsyHippy. His life was a whole lot more fun before gaining that new title. For real.
âPersonal Useâ chronicles Dougâs years of experience with mind altering substances, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry, and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
You can also find Doug â the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippy but only if you look really hard.
And if you want even more, (and who wouldnât?) you could always check out Hippy Highlights â which is the best of the best stuff on the site, and itâs all free to read. What are you waiting for?
The hippy has been giving this a lot of thought, and recreational use of any drug is a myth. Youâll soon agree.
The first drug I ever properly used was alcohol. I started drinking at the age of 13, and I stopped at age 39. Drinking was a social experience, right from the start.
Most people have some level of social anxiety. We donât like to admit it, but the popularity of alcohol at social events, gives the game away. Alcohol makes it possible for people to be around other people for extended periods of time. It makes us gregarious, maybe even a little giggly too.
Could you imagine a night down the pub, or in a club, or even a dinner party, without social lubrication of some sort?Â
If booze ainât your bag, perhaps you like cannabis? Or cocaine? Maybe youâre one of those sober types, whoâs just naturally friendly and happy. Lucky you!
For most people, drug use, alcohol, or otherwise, is a social experience. We do it in groups, we do it to be social.
Now, imagine someone who drinks alone. I donât have to imagine, as after 26 years of regular, social drinking, I hit a rough patch in life, and for 6 months in 2002, I drank alone daily. Snorted coke too, and mixed in the odd MDMA tab as well. I was not having a good time, I was using it all to escape a bad one.Â
I was abusing booze, and drugs, and to me that makes my use medicinal. I was using it to lift my mood, and briefly escape my troubles. This use was negative; it wasnât good for me in the long term. My use wasnât social, and it certainly wasnât recreational either. It may not have been the most healthy of self medication, but I was definitely self medicating.
I was lucky. I realised the hole I was in, and quickly, and quietly climbed my way out, all on my own. I realised what I was doing wasnât in my best long term interests, so I gave up booze completely. Cocaine too. One day, I just stopped. I havenât had either in over 20 years. Itâs not some moral victory, it was a health choice for me, and one I was glad I made.
Recreational drug use is a myth, meant to make you feel shameful guilt about indulging.
After thinking about this for a very long time, Iâve reached the conclusion that all drug use (including alcohol) is either social, or medicinal, once you accept that all medicinal use isnât always beneficial, or positive.
When I first started smoking weed, it was within a social group. We all got high together. And then I bought a bag of weed for myself. I sparked up a joint on my own for the first time, and realised it made me feel better, physically, and mentally. Without it being explained to me, I naturally worked out how to self-medicate with cannabis. I didnât realise it at the time; it took many years to truly comprehend that I was self-medicating.
Iâve smoked cannabis for over 40 years, and I canât recall the last time I had some recreationally. I use it to feel better, to reduce my anxiety, and my depression, and have done since I started. I take enough to take the edge off, to allow me to function like a normal person.
I couldnât have lived my life the way I have, worked all the jobs Iâve done, or even traveled to war zones, without the medicinal benefits of regular, daily cannabis use.
Iâm old now, and I take a load of prescribed pharmaceuticals every day. I donât view cannabis any differently from the 10 prescription tablets I take daily. They all play their part in keeping me alive. Matter of fact, cannabis helps me with the side effects from the other medications I take, and I probably couldnât tolerate them all without it.
The school of thought on psychedelics has evolved. People are understanding that their use is far more medicinal than it is recreational. You can do a lot of good for your mental health through the smart use of psychedelics.
When I went through my shroom phase, back in the early oughts, I think I had the best mental health of my life. There was a loophole in UK law for a few years, that saw actual fresh magic mushrooms legally available to purchase online, and in Camden Market. It was a sad day, when the government sealed that loophole, and the sales ceased.
Shrooms helped lift my chronic depression, and pulled me out of a different hole in 2003. I was able to get my life back on track, and I kept it there until epilepsy decided to take over 15 years later.
And even with the epilepsy, my cannabis use has helped mitigate it somewhat. I know cannabis could be even more beneficial, if I could get the right balance of cannabinoids into my system consistently. I wish the NHS prescribed it.
If someone goes home every night after work, and downs a bottle or two of wine on their own, or even with their partner, that use is not social, is it? Itâs medicinal. Alcohol dependency is real. And itâs a medical issue, not a moral one.
Alcohol withdrawal is also real, and it is just as bad as coming off heroin. Alcohol can be lethal too, and has contributed to the deaths of more people that Iâve known over the years, than every other drug combined. Itâs legal status obscures these facts.
Drop an E at a club? Medicinal. Youâre doing it to expand your consciousness. Drop it with a group, itâs social too. Sometimes, it can be both. Theyâre not mutually exclusive.
Shooting smack in a back alley? Does that sound like fun? Does it sound recreational? Of course not! Itâs definitely medicinal, and whatever youâre trying to escape from, I hope it helps you. Is it ideal? No, not even close. Thatâs why many good people want to open supervised injection facilities. Medicinal again. Open them everywhere!
Addiction and dependency are medical issues. Tobacco, heroin, cocaine, and alcohol are all physically addictive.
Iâm dependent upon cannabis, the same way Iâm dependent upon my epilepsy medication, or blood pressure medication to keep me alive. I couldnât live without any of them. Itâs all medicinal use.
Whatever your drug of choice, if you share the experience with a group, your use is social. If you use it on your own, or with a close partner, your use is medicinal, whether it is beneficial or not.
Recreational drug use is a myth, and itâs used to guilt, shame, and punish us. Donât fall for it. As if enjoyment of something should lessen itâs significance, or usefulness. Your use is either social, or medicinal. There is no in-between, and there should be no guilt, ever. Just be as healthy as you can, for as long as you can, no matter what you have to take to get by in this life.
* **
After a 30 year career as a journalist, working for some of the largest news organisations in the world, including Associated Press and Reuters, and 15 years as a duty news editor for BBC News, Doug â the northlondonhippy is now a full time hippy, and writer. And for the last few years, heâs been #EpilepsyHippy. His life was a whole lot more fun before gaining that new title. For real.
âPersonal Useâ chronicles Dougâs years of experience with mind altering substances, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry, and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
You can also find Doug â the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippy but only if you look really hard.
And if you want even more, (and who wouldnât?) you could always check out Hippy Highlights â which is the best of the best stuff on the site, and itâs all free to read. What are you waiting for?
Are you from Earth? Me too! In a universe as vast, and enormous as ours, isnât it amazing that we both live on the same planet? Weâre practically related! What are the chances? A gazillion to one? Iâm not sure, Iâm not very good with maths.
Do you breathe air? I do too. Eat food, drink liquids? OMG, we are so much alike! Have you ever heard music? Itâs great, isnât it?
Humans. We are a funny little species. I really canât work us out. Most of us are nice, but some of us arenât. We all have more in common, than we have differences, but most of the time you wouldnât know it.
Humans come in all shapes, and sizes too. Some are short, some are tall, some are young, and some are old. And donât get me started on all the colours we come in! Youâll get fewer choices at a new car dealership, than you will with the shades of humanity. Weâre quite diverse, and different for a species that at its core is really all the same.
And we are all the same, we just pretend weâre different. Humans have different tastes in many different things, and thatâs often used to divide us. It shouldnât.
All Earth culture is human culture; that means all human culture is your culture if you want it to be. Youâre a human. Itâs up to you whether you embrace it or not. Itâs not appropriation; it is sharing, if you can accept that we are all the same. And we are. Your heart beats the same way mine does.
Is your god better than my god? Maybe there is no god? Who knows? If you find solace, and hope in your religion, good for you! And if you find your solace by shunning religion, good for you too! We can all believe different things, as long as we believe in each other.
When the space aliens invade in a science fiction film, they never announce themselves as coming from a country on another planet, just the planet. We accept that any advanced alien race that could visit us, thatâs able to traverse vast galactic distances, would come from a unified planet. We donât question it. Yet, the idea of our planet united, terrifies many. Why?
Our future rests with global cooperation, and not the foolish competition of countries. Borders are man-made, but so is cooperation. If we want our species to continue, we need to sort this out. Every single one of us has just as much right to be here, as anyone else.
We all deserve pure air to breathe, clean water to drink, a safe, stable food supply, and a warm place to sleep. But for some reason that is beyond my comprehension, many of us donât have the luxury of such basic amenities. I could throw a bunch of statistics at you, but you donât need them. You know what I say is true. Maybe you see evidence of it yourself on the cold, mean streets where you live.
It doesnât matter where in the world you are, if you donât have the basics, then you donât have much of a life. Chances are if you are reading these words, you do have the basics, and maybe even a little more. Good for you! There are many others who arenât as fortunate as you. Or me. How can we help?
Having compassion for your fellow humans is a good start. Individual humans are sometimes bad, but for the most part, weâre a pretty good species. Kindness goes a long way. And the cool thing about kindness is that it doesnât cost a penny. Kindness is free, and even if you give it away, you still have more in reserves. It never runs out, if you believe.
Every human struggles. No one likes to admit this, but the fact is that life is hard for all of us. We pretend that itâs not, but it is. Itâs not weakness to admit this; honesty projects strength.
We may not remember it, and thatâs probably a blessing, but each of our births was a traumatic experience. Life begins with pain, fear, and trauma, and thatâs before you even open your eyes.
From the moment youâre born, youâre expected to navigate a world that doesnât make sense. And youâre expected to eventually provide for yourself, and find purpose. Many of us struggle with that, some succeed, and others fail. We all do the best we can, but circumstance is often an impediment.
Luck plays too big a part in existence. And we all just accept it, as if there is no way we could change the system, and make it fairer. The problem is that the people who get the most from the system, are the ones who could change it, and they donât want to share. We should take that power away from them. Thereâs a lot more of us, then there are of them. But we donât. Humans in numbers donât appreciate their power, or value.
Letâs use some smaller numbers that we can comprehend. Our biosphere could be lost within a decade or so. That got your attention. I wouldnât want to make a firm prediction, but it will happen sooner than you think. It really is possible that Earth could become inhospitable to all living things within your relatively brief lifespan. Thatâs not an exaggeration. It might already be too late for us humans.
Life is finite, existence is too. We need to make the best of whatever time we have left, as individuals, and as a species. We canât save everyone, but we might be able to save some of us. Iâd like to see humans stick around for a good long time. If we get our collective act together, we might be able to continue to exist. There still may be hope. We just need to act fast; a lot faster than we are now.
Embrace your humanity, embrace other humans too. Donât believe those who try to deceive you into believing we are different, because weâre not. We all want, and need the same things. We all need to be fed, clothed, and loved. Love thy neighbour. Didnât some really famous hippy guy say that a couple of thousand years ago? Those words still ring true today.
Humans. Weâre a weird little species. Maybe you canât work us out either, but it sure is fun trying.
If you follow me on Twitter, you might already know that I turned 60 in January. It’s true. I’m an old mofo now. Go me! You might also know that I’ve spent the last few years learning to live with epilepsy. I ended up giving up my old job due to the slow onset of it. It sucks, but I’m doing the best that I can. Hey ho.
I wrote a proposal for this podcast last Autumn, and not long after I finished it, and while I was writing about my “epilepsy journey”, I had a brand new seizure. It was 4 days before I was about to mark being seizure-free for an entire year. Talk about less than ideal timing. Anyway, I got sidetracked, and this post is my effort to get back on track. It’s also my birthday present to myself. I am going to pitch my podcast online, and see if anyone wants to commission it.
You’ve no doubt spotted my holding graphic at the beginning of this post. It should give you a rough idea of what “Countdown to the End of the World – A lighthearted look at our looming apocalypse” is all about. I’ve been an “amateur doomer” for a while now, and it’s time I turned pro.
Why am I pitching this online, rather than trying to do it directly with broadcasters, or production companies? Good question. Mainly, because I’m clueless, and I lack the sort of shameless self-confidence that is required to cold call people. I’m also really honest, and I overshare a bit. See, I just did it again.
I’m actually just posting a part of the proposal, this is an edited version for online consumption. Anyone serious, and interested in pursuing this further, will receive the full proposal, along with the opportunity to meet with me (online or IRL) to discuss this further.
Why can’t I just produce this podcast myself? Technically, I could. I have all the production kit I need, but what I lack is production staff, promotional staff, and more importantly, a brand name to operate under. I need the backing of an established entity to attract the calibre of guests I have in mind. Simple as that. I want to do the subject justice, and I don’t think I can working on my own.
Enough pre-amble. Here’s a very short audio promo. If you like it, the proposal follows. I obviously don’t have the rights to the music, but it’s totally not for broadcast. Please have a listen:
Countdown to the End of the World – non-broadcast promo
The idea is simple, people love disaster films, they love end of the world movies even more. But now that we’re all co-starring in an actual disaster film, why aren’t people more interested? I get that the pacing is slow, but the disaster is still coming, whether we ignore it, or not.
To hammer this point home, Countdown won’t be listed in the “news” category of podcasts, but the “entertainment” section. That’s intentional. The end of the world has been used as the basis for entertainment since forever, just read the Bible. Why can’t we do the same with our own looming apocalypse? I say, we can.
Even if you follow the news, you are probably still ignoring the enormity of our problems. It’s a coping mechanism, I get that. My biggest concern with this idea, is that it will be overtaken by events, and life as we know it may cease, before I can put out the first episode. I need to get my skates on, if I’m really going to do this!
Still with me? Here’s the proposal. You can click on it, and scroll through it here, or download the PDF.
So what do you reckon? Would you listen to it? Would you subscribe? I have the first two series mapped out, 10 episodes each. I’m ready to start working on it now. Are you a commissioner? Know anyone who is? Can you help? You can find me online, contact me for more info. And thanks for reading this.
Even with urgent action, the climate apocalypse is a threat to all life on Earth, but you probably donât want to think about it.
Local graffiti spotted in north London – ((C) 2022 – the northlondonhippy)
The most recent IPCC report on the climate crisis is a sobering read, but even more so when you understand that nearly every prediction you have ever read regarding our future climate has been underestimated, or downplayed by the scientists who authored them. This is a hidden feature in climate research, the need for researchers to tone everything down, for an audience that remains in deep denial over whatâs coming, that will all be arriving faster than expected.
âFaster than expectedâ is a catchphrase in climate crisis circles. Whenever real world evidence is compared to a previous prediction, whatever the worst outcome is happening âfaster than expectedâ. It doesnât matter what the specific subject is, it could be the melting of sea ice at the poles, it could be the continued rise in greenhouse gases, itâs all happening faster than expected.
This is an ice shelf. Soon, the only evidence for it, will be this photo
Iâve been reading about all this for a long time, Iâm what can be described as âcollapse-awareâ. My eyes are open to all the evidence, and I am not in denial. I can see the direction of travel for society, and the planet. Itâs not good.
Being âcollapse awareâ is more than just having a handle on the climate crisis, our society has a lot of moving parts, and none of them seem well- oiled at the moment. From the pandemic, to the cost of living crisis, to the war in Ukraine, it feels like everything is in some sort of death spiral, but looming largest over all of it, is our rapidly warming planet.
Wildfires – so many wildfires. Expect to see even more this year
There are some really scary predictions out there, from reputable scientists, if you can be bothered to seek them out. The end of civilisation? The extinction of all human life? All by the end of the century? Yes, I have read predictions that state each of those things as extremely possible, if we donât take urgent action immediately.
The water is rising too, so expect more flooding
We are not going to take urgent action. If we were going to do that, we would have done it by now. We have known about global warming, and climate change, for many decades, and yet we have done nothing of substance to address them. We have prioritised short term profits, over long term sustainability. We wonât stop until we have extracted every last drop of fossil fuel from the planet, unless our extinction comes first. It probably will.
All this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to stop it. So get out and protest!!
Maybe youâve seen the Adam McKay film, âDonât Look Upâ on Netflix. If you havenât, I highly recommend it. I donât want to spoil it for you, but the meteor in the movie, is a metaphor for climate change. And by the time the public finally looks up, and really sees the impending doom approaching, it is already too late. This is where we are now.
I wish I could offer you more hope, but we are well past that point now. Even with the will, and determination to turn things around, it still is probably already too late. We lack the will, and determination, weâre hardly even paying attention, as we sleepwalk towards extinction. There may be no genuine hope, but there is plenty of âhopiumâ.
One of the cornerstones of our plan to prevent the climate apocalypse is something called carbon capture. It doesnât actually exist at scale yet, but much of our hopium is based on imaginary technology, and future discoveries. Sure, it might actually work, but it hasnât so far, and many are convinced it never will.
Many climate scientists are depressed, and despairing, itâs not just me. People far more knowledgeable than myself, are doomers too. We canât help it, our eyes are wide open, and we canât ignore it any longer. Even if we take the most urgent actions imaginable, it may already be too late. Open your eyes, youâll see it too, even though I know you would prefer not to see it. Once youâre collapse aware, itâs hard to see anything else.
Doug – the northlondonhippy is a writer, and journalist (lapsed), with over 30 years of experience in the media. He spent the 2nd half his career as a duty editor for BBC News, before that he worked for AP, and Reuters, but he got his start in the industry at MTV – Music Television in NYC, in the mid 80s. He is also the author of âPersonal Use by the northlondonhippyâ. Doug tweets as @nthlondonhippy
It might not seem like it, just yet, but I am now a full time hippy. Yay! The countdown clock has ticked down and for the first time in a decade and a half, I am now unemployed.
I spent the last 30 years working as a journalist, mixed media really, but mostly TV news. The last 15 years was for the same company. Itâs one youâve heard of. but Iâm not revealing it, yet. Iâm not revealing much of anything, now. Iâm still waiting for my final pay cheque. Once thatâs banked, then I can pull back the curtain. Iâm crazy, but Iâm not stupid.
I will be publishing a piece in the next couple of weeks, which reveals my identity. Somewhat.
Spoiler alert: You will get my first name, and you will find out where I used to work. Iâm still a nobody, my name wonât make a difference. I will still be the northlondonhippy, but I want to claim my real-life identity publicly, anyway. I have wanted to do this for a long time.
There will be a companion piece, which lays out my goals in my new role as the UK first self-proclaimed, cannabis evangelist. Itâs not a crowded field, but I still want to make my mark. Hallelujah and amen to that!
Now that I have the freedom to operate a bit more openly, I want to spend the next few weeks getting some advice, I want to contact some people I admire who fight to reform our drug laws, plus some campaigners in other fields, and some media folk too. I want whatever I end up doing to have some impact.
Personal Use – Book Montage
When I wrote and published âPersonal Useâ, I had no expectations. It was a fun, secret side project. I used to joke if I sold a million copies, I would quit my job and be a full time hippy. I havenât sold a million, not even close, yet here I am.
So while you wait for me to do whatever it is I am going to do, hereâs a selection of 10 hippy highlights to keep you entertained:
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy was a senior multimedia journalist until Feb 2020. With over 30 years experience of working in broadcast news, the hippy’s now left journalism to embark on a career as a full time hippy, writer and cannabis evangelist.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
The hippy says his next book, âHigh Hopesâ will be published in 2020. The hippy says a lot of things.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippybut only if you look really hard.
I feel like screaming this at the Brexiteers who continue to hurl abuse at people on the left. They are suffering from a brand new thing, that I have dubbed SWS, which stands for Sore Winner Syndrome.
Itâs like the home team beat the away team at football, but all the home team fans jumped on the away teamâs bus, just to continue the abuse all the way back their hometown. Not cool. If I won something, I would be happy. The winners of our recent election, donât seem happy at all.
Seriously, you guys won. Get over it!
You get your Brexit, you get a toxic, incompetent government, with more cruelty, and more austerity. What more could you want?
You own Brexit now. You own the next 5 years of this parliament, enjoy it. Youâve got no one else to blame. You won. We lost. Get. Over. It. Donât be sore winners. Itâs unbecoming of your massive victory.
It already feels like a 100 years ago, when we went to the polls last month and handed Boris Johnson this huge majority.
Well, I say âweâ, but there were a lot of us who didnât vote for Borisâs Tory Party and we are all still here. Fun fact: more of us voted for remain-leaning parties than leave-leaning parties. And how did that work out for us? We still lost. Fragmentation of the remain vote, like life, is a bitch.
The Tories only increased their vote share by 1% nationally, yet they won tons of seats. They seemed to get just the right amount of votes, in just the right places. Itâs almost as if someone was showing off, just how skilled they are at voter manipulation, by demonstrating the economy of their abilities.
Voter manipulation is easier than everyone thinks, because no one thinks it works on them. Guess what, like any repetitive advertising, it is extremely effective.
Here, you can take my super-fun, three question quiz:
1) What kind of chicken is âfinger lickinâ goodâ?
2) What do Weebles do?
3) What is the âreal thingâ?
Answers: 1) KFC, 2) they wobble but they donât fall down, and 3) Coca Cola. I bet you knew all three answers, as any good consumer would. Advertising works!
I grew up in front of the television, advertising certainly worked on me. Brand new kids cereal, gimme! Brand new toys, gimme, gimme. Vote against my own interests as an adult? Why not! You can be easily swayed. We all can.
Anyway, thatâs my theory. I suspect the same tools used by Cambridge Analytica to deliver the Brexit referendum result, have only been refined and improved to the point where an increase of 1% vote share, in just the right constituencies, is achievable through machine learning, AI and a whopping great big data set.
And the far right are employing these tools all over the world. If the left has any hope of ever getting anything done, they need their own dodgy dark tool box. Itâs not hacking, itâs voodoo, itâs data science and algorithms, and a Facebook advertising platform that allows micro-targeting at such a granular level that you can literally flip votes as needed.
One of the saddest things I kept hearing from the campaign trail, is the repeated refrain that former Labour voters switched to the Tories because they felt the country needed a change from Labour. Huh? Labour havenât been in charge of the government for 10 years, so what exactly were they changing from? Instead they voted Tory, the party that has been in government for the last 10 years, but they are expecting a different outcome. Mr. Einstein, what was it everyone says you said again, about insanity?
Look, I get it, we lost. Remain lost, Labour and the LibDems lost. We are leaving the EU at the end of this month, no ifs, ands or buts. And probably a year after that, we will get that hard, no-deal Brexit that Boris is so keen on, as the transition period wonât be extended. There is no chance of a comprehensive trade deal in a year. Shall we stockpile supplies for a third time? Oh we shall, we shall!
None of this matters. The Great British public doesnât care about the truth or reality any more. Boris will lie and tell us that everything is fine, and a large number of people will believe it. Lies are comforting in an uncomfortable world. Trump knows this too. Donât like reality? Then create your own twisted version of it instead.
For example, Boris has banned the word Brexit after the end of the month. Brexit will be nowhere near finished, but if he eliminates the word, he eliminates the problem. Heâs like Thanos with the Reality Stone. Reality can be whatever he wants it to be. Yay!
Who will the Tories blame when the economy tanks? I guess they will just tell us itâs all Jeremy Corbynâs fault, for not losing hard enough. If Corbyn was a better loser, we wouldnât be having all these problems. Stupid Corbyn!
Here are some random observations from the now dearly departed, Politi-hippy:
I was right about the branding of Jo Swinsonâs Liberal Democrats, their messaging was way off the mark. They performed worse than even I expected. And I certainly didnât predict Ms. Swinsonâs loss. Rather bizarrely, LibDem MP and current peer, Lynn Featherstone, liked and retweeted this piece, which was highly critical of her party. Iâm guessing she didnât read it, but if she did and still retweeted it, then wow. Just wow.
I was wrong about tactical voting. I had hoped it would save us. It didnât. We still lost. We could have toppled Tories, but we didnât.
Labour had so many problems, that I could write a series of books based on them all. I wonât, plenty of other people will do a better job than I ever could. The biggest issue to me, was the lack of unity within the party that was publicly revealed within minutes of the result. The split, between the centre and left wings of the party, will probably kill off Labour in the long term. They are a spent force, just check out the cavalcade of mediocrity trying to become leader. It looks and feels hopeless for them.
A small selection of shitposts
During the campaign, I made a shit-ton of shitty graphics and shit-posted them on Twitter. I briefly increased my reach on Twitter as a result. I went from being an absolute total nobody, to a just plain old total nobody, but in spectacular fashion.
Hereâs an overview of my a normal hippy month on Twitter, from last April. Remember, I suck at Twitter.
As you can see, I sent a whopping 60 tweets for a measly 13,000 impressions.
Hereâs another typical hippy month on Twitter, from October. Slightly better but still not rocking anyoneâs world.
This time, 98 tweets, for nearly 30,000 impressions. Still not setting the world on fire, not by a long shot. And look, I actually lost followers.
And then, witness the birth of politi-hippy. For around a month during the election campaign, I made a bit of an effort with original content in the form of the aforementioned shitposted graphics. Doing this improved my statistics significantly.
I sent a over 1,000 tweets, racking up around 700,000 impressions and I gained 40 new followers. While it is a big change for me, itâs still a drop in the bucket compared to anyone with name recognition and a decent follower count. I used hashtags, I tagged famous people, and I replied to tweets from well established accounts.
I had retweets and likes from a wide variety of notable people, including Glen Matlock, the original bass player for the Sex Pistols, and Bianca Jagger, the well known human rights campaigner and first wife of Mick. The Times columnist, India Knight, liked one of my graphics too.
Ultimately, none of this had an effect on anything, other than giving me a fun new hobby for a month. It did show me that getting anywhere on Twitter is a lot of work for very little reward.
Our side lost, my efforts online had zero effect, so politi-hippy is now crossing over to the great beyond. And with this final piece, indeed you are witnessing the slow death of politi-hippy.
I started out this campaign by asking how many children Boris Johnson has fathered. We still donât know. Our Prime Minister is the Jonny Appleseed of jism, he is the human lawn sprinkler of spunk. He could have a hundred little blond, floppy-haired sons and daughters out there, for all we know, and no one would care. We now have a deadbeat dad in charge of the entire country. Cool.
I really expected Borisâs first bit of legislation passed by his new, giant majority, to be a ban on court mandated paternity tests, but no, they went for the Brexit withdrawal bill instead. Maybe that paternity test ban will be next? Who can say.
But from now on, Iâm back to being the plain, old, normal version of the northlondonhippy. I want to reform the drug laws and get cannabis legalised. Thatâs my issue, thatâs what I will campaign for, hard. Iâll leave the rest of real politics to the grown-ups, or for what passes for grown-ups in todayâs world.
I was able to update one of my fun graphics, so it is valid for the next 5 years. This is the last official act of politi-hippy, before he draws his last breath. Sharing it is a public service. Enjoy!
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy is a senior multimedia journalist with over 30 years experience of working in broadcast news. Soon, the hippy will be leaving journalism to embark on a career as a full time hippy, writer and activist. This is not a drill.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
The hippy says his next book, âHigh Hopesâ will be published in late Spring. The hippy says a lot of things.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippybut only if you look really hard.
I’m going to tell you flat out, from the start, there is no revenge. I’ve never done a sequel to one of my pieces before, and I really wanted to nail the title. I’m not out to settle any personal scores, I just wanted to get your attention. Did it work? Are you reading? Cool.
The whole thing is really stressing me out, and I know I am not the only one. My coping mechanism is that I started making weird, funny graphics to express my quiet rage. I’ve made like 50 of them in the last week or so. I am ever so slightly obsessed. You can find half of them on the the original Politi-hippy post, including the 6 panel Baby Yoda series. No baby yoda is safe from Boris Johnson’ Tory party!
I’ve been sharing them on Twitter and at least one of them has gone viral enough that you may have actually seen it. It’s this one:
Yep, that was me. Basic joke, simple format, internet gold. Who knew? And here I’ve spent 15 years trying to come up with original material. I don’t mean to sell myself short, it’s a decent gag, but hardly my best. In my own defence, I posted it not long after the interview finished on TV, so my timing was very good. Sure, it’s uncredited, and I doubt many people will see me claim credit here, but that’s ok. I like making people laugh.
I’ve never gone viral before in any meaningful way, so this was a new one for me. I knew it had been successful when I saw other people posting it all over the place. The truth is, I suck at Twitter, but in the last week or so, I’ve learned how to suck at it less. Go me!
I went on to make a bunch of graphics around Donald Trump’s visit:
Similar format, another basic joke. Private Eye should hire me, when I am a free agent again. They won’t, I’m too expensive, and I doubt they pay in weed anyway. Will work for bud, just putting that out there.
I made a bunch for the Trump visit, but that was the best one. I did try some other jokes with the graphic, this is the only other one that seemed to land:
And I did this one, too, which seemed to do better with Americans than British people. And it’s funny, because it’s true. Allegedly.
Trump and Boris did meet, but you didn’t get to see it, until now:
Trump left early because a bunch of bad kids were gossiping about him, including his very best friend, Boris Johnson. Here’s what that looked like:
I even did an arty one, with a fancy-pants literary quote, that I had to Google because of my vague memory and piss poor American education:
Once dumb Donny ditched NATO, I shifted my attention to what I think is the key to this election, tactical voting. There’s far more of us, than there are of them, but we are fragmented. We need to be smart. Are you smart? Of course you are! Smart people vote tactically. We all might prefer different parties, but who we like is not nearly as important as who we defeat. We need to vote the Tories out! Feel free to share any graphic I’ve made, no need to credit me.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks and well done you! Since I started posting all these graphics, I have increased my visibility on Twitter exponentially. I’ve had tweets liked and RT’d by a former MP and peer, the ex-wife of one of the world’s most famous rock stars, newspaper columnists and the original bassist from the original punk rock band. That’s why I will be back to tell you all about this and more in part 3 of the Politi-hippy series, Politi-hippy-Post-mortem, coming as soon as I can, after election day. And man I can’t wait till election day is done!
As a special treat for making it all the way to the end, here are 4 bonus, extra graphics that I’ve only just started sharing on Twitter. You can share them too.
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy is a senior multimedia journalist with over 30 years experience of working in news.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippybut only if you look really hard.
And then I wrote about how I wish I could support the LibDems, but I can’t. Luckily, I don’t need to, but I would if it made tactical sense. I don’t hate them, but I should support them more than I do.
And I made a bunch of very shareable graphics. Have you shared any of them? There’s still time, and there’s plenty of choice, so choose one that expresses your own personal style! I especially recommend choosing one from the ‘baby yoda’ series. Confuse your political enemies with his cuteness. They’re not branded to me and I am making them publicly available. Go crazy, they are free!
Now that Iâve published all of these in one handy place, I am going to chill the fuck out. We will have a result soon enough, but I donât think any of us are going to like it. And chances are, a lot of these graphics may still be useful for our next election, coming in Summer 2020!
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy is a senior multimedia journalist with over 30 years experience of working in news. The hippy is finding this election campaign really depressing and stressful.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippy
By all rights, I should love the LibDems. They want to stop Brexit, and they want to legalise weed, two things I would like to do, too. I really should support them, but I donât. I canât. Not this time.Â
Do you want to know why we are having a General Election right now, and not that mythical second referendum on our membership in the EU? Jo Swinsonâs Liberal Democrats refused to join a government of national unity because of their twisted dislike of Jeremy Corbyn.
All a government of national unity had to do was sort out a referendum. Their agreement on the terms of a caretaker administration, would have included a âno new legislationâ clause. In other words, all they would have done is maintain the status quo until the referendum and then the subsequent general election. And then maybe, Brexit would have finally been sorted, one way or another. Instead, we get a general election around Xmas. Ho ho ho.
Swinsonâs attacks on Corbyn have left me cold. Donât get me wrong, I am not a huge Corbyn fan, but I do respect him. He is one of the most consistent politicians Iâve ever come across, with policies that would be popular with people, if they got to hear about them. But instead, the negative campaign run against Mr. C consists of personal attacks and twisted facts. But Jeremy Corbyn doesnât trade in personal attacks, so itâs all very one sided and unfair.
I have nothing against personal attacks, if they are warranted. For example, Boris the bully from the Bullingdon Club, has earned the personal attacks aimed at him. I really want to know how many kids he thinks he has. No one can ever really know for sure. Heâs a racist, and a liar. Those are undisputed facts, unless you drink the Kool-Aid served up by the Tories. Then you dismiss the overwhelming evidence of Boris Johnsonâs utter lack of character, and you press on.
Jo Swinson would say she attacks BoJo and Corby equally, but it is a false equivalence and you canât lump them both together. If anything, I bet Swinsonâs voting record is more closely aligned with Johnsonâs than Corbynâs.
If you Google Jo Swinson, the first suggested search term is âvoting recordâ. Itâs not pretty reading. Austerity, the bedroom tax, and university fees, to name just a few of her greatest hits. She was part of the Tory-led coalition, which is the root cause of many problems we have in our society today. Go Jo!
I didnât live in the UK in the 1980âs, but I know plenty of people who did. They are not fans of Maggie T, not by a long shot. I canât imagine Ms. Swinsonâs campaign for a statue in Thatcherâs honour is a vote winner either
Whooopsie!
Ms. Swinson says that she wants to stop Brexit and I believe that is true. She also wants to increase the LibDems seat count, which is also true. The problem is where these two goals collide, like in Canterbury and High Peak, where the local candidates stood aside, to allow another remain supporting party a free run at the seat. Jo Swinsonâs Liberal Democratâs wonât allow that, and have imposed new, outside candidates to take their places on the ballot. It seems that the need for seats outweighs the need to stop Brexit, as that is their primary priority. It is extremely disappointing.Â
One might say that because I am a north London media, liberal elite, that I would automatically support Labour. There is a kernel of truth to that. I donât like to brag about my liberal elite status, but sometimes, when I go to McDonalds, I supersize my mealâŠAND I upgrade to a shake. But only sometimes, Iâm not rich, like that uppity Jacob Rees-Mogg. I heard when he goes to McDonalds, he supersizes, he upgrades to the shake and he gets a McFlurry too. Not one of those little bitty mini ones either, but full sized. Shhhhhh, donât tell nanny!
The reason I mention my media background is because I am coming to the point of this piece. âJo Swinsonâs Liberal Democratsâ is terrible branding. I feel like some PR agency pulled a fast one by appealing to her vanity and turning her into the literal face and name of the party.
Have you see the bus? Jo Swinsonâs Liberal Democratsâ Bus. Have a gander:
Branding gone wrong
I can just imagine the creative agencyâs pitch meeting. Have you ever seen the Monorail episode of The Simpsons?
âJo, you have tested through the roof with our focus groups. People love you! So we want you to be the face of the campaign. Every leaflet will have a small headshot of you on the front, and a larger photo of you on the back!
And have you seen the bus? A close up of you, full bus height! Gorgeous! And, are you ready for this, you will love this! We are going to rebrand the whole party as âJo Swinsonâs Liberal Democrats!â
A breathless, jubilant Jo Swinsonâs shouts, yes, yes, yes! Where do I sign?
I can actually envision this being very close to the truth.
And when I first heard about this new branding, this was my immediate thought, now expressed in graphic form:
Seriously?
It sounds like a band name or an improv group struggling to break through at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It makes the party sound like her personal possession and plaything. And that shit is plastered all over her campaign bus! Itâs a branding faux pas on an epic scale. Itâs the âNew Cokeâ of political reinvention.
Iâm lucky, my local MP is as anti-Brexit as they come. My MP voted against triggering Article 50, and yes, my MP is a Labour MP with a sizeable majority. But I still checked a tactical voting website to see what they recommended. And you know what, they recommended I vote Labour for the best chance of stopping Brexit. I was going to do it anyway, but itâs nice to know itâs tactical too.
If I lived somewhere else, where voting tactically for a LibDem candidate made sense, of course I would do it. Theyâre not a bad bunch of people, even if their election branding is bad this go-round, and they have a history of propping up Tory governments. What matters most in this election, is stopping Brexit. Sky News have nailed the branding, they are rightly calling it the âBrexit Electionâ.
All of our votes count, but they really, really count this time. Your vote matters, do your homework, work out which party in your constituency is best placed to win and stop Brexit. Then hold your nose if you need to, but vote for the party helps Britain remain in the EU. Your county’s future depends on all us, including and especially, you.
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy is a senior multimedia journalist with over 30 years experience of working in news.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippybut only if you look really hard.
Do you know how many children our Prime Minister has? Does anyone?
Even Wikipedia is not sure, just take a look. It says he either has 5 or 6 kids. Thatâs extremely vague and it is somewhat disconcerting to me, that no one knows the answer.
Even Wikipedia doesn’t know for sure
Why hasnât anyone in the media asked Boris Johnson about this? It seems fairly basic to me. If you canât trust a man to tell you how many children heâs fathered, how can you trust him with anything else? If you misrepresent this, what else are you not telling the truth about?
I appreciate it is a complex question, and the answer is probably not as straight forward as you might think. And I would suggest, that there is more than one right answer to this question, depending upon how the question is framed.
If a journalist asked Boris outright, how many children he has, I expect he would reluctantly provide an answer. This answer would become the number of children Boris acknowledges and it would solve Wikipediaâs conundrum for them. We would have an answer we could attribute to the Prime Minister, and that would end the debate. Except it wouldnât.
It wouldnât end the debate because there will be another answer, to a slightly different question, and that number would be higher than the first. The problem with this number, is it will only be known to Boris and his attorneys, as it is the number of children Boris supports financially. Those pesky court-ordered paternity tests are an annoyance, but reaching a settlement with a non-disclosure clause probably makes it all alright. So this number is out there, but it will remain a mystery.
The third number, which is the actual number of children sired by Boris, is unknowable. The only being in the universe to have this answer, if he or she existed, would be an omnipotent god. Even Boris wouldnât be sure. There will be terminated pregnancies, there will be paternity denials, and there could even be some children born, that have no idea he is their daddy.
Put it this way, if you are aged somewhere between zygote and around 40 years old, and you have floppy blond hair, an innate ability to say random things in Latin, and your momma never told you who your daddy is⊠Odds are your daddy is Boris Johnson.
Why is the media so complicit in all of this? How can a politician be given a pass on issues of trust? If you canât trust a man to tell you how many children he has, how can you trust him on literally anything else?
Character matters. Honesty matters. And it starts with a really simple question: Mr. Johnson, how many children do you have?
The northlondonhippy is an anonymous author, cannabis evangelist and recreational drug user, who has been writing about drugs and drug use for over 15 years. In real life, the hippy is a senior multimedia journalist with over 30 years experience of working in news.
The hippyâs book, âPersonal Useâ details the hippyâs first 35 years of recreational drug taking, while calling for urgent drug law reform. Itâs a cracking read, you will laugh, you will cry and you can bet your ass that you will wish you were a hippy too!
âPersonal Useâ is available as a digital download on all platforms, including Amazonâs Kindle, Appleâs iBooks and Barnes & Nobleâs Nook. The paperback is available from all online retailers and book shops everywhere.
You can also find the northlondonhippy on Twitter: @nthlondonhippy
And, my fellow earthlings, I tried to convince everyone that we are all Citizens of Everywhere. Itâs our only hope.
Thereâs not a lot to be optimistic about these days, but we can all distract ourselves from the mess weâre in. My distraction, ironically, is hope. Donât lose hope, we can all help make things a little less miserable. This is my attempt to do just that.
