Mind-bending yesterday, mind-mending tomorrow

The doctor prescribed

In the early Seventies when we lived in Rayfield, Jos, my mother took me to see our doctor having had a bout of cold and cough that was getting a bit worrisome.

The doctor, an eccentric bon-vivant bow-tie wearing middle-aged virile predator with the penchant for sowing his wild oats in wayward or naïve secondary school girls prescribed Actifed.

I could see the horror laced with revulsion on my mother's face when she said pig medicine? It so happened, Actifed was under-going trials in pigs in the late 1960s when my parents were in the UK, she wore her mind as a picture on that day.

I eventually had my pig medicine which worked a treat, and it was a lot better than Liquifruta which was liquid alright but definitely not fruity, it had the most revolting taste, I almost remonstrated with my mother when I discovered that my sister's dislike of the rotten drug made her cry the roof down, any baby would if as much as a whiff passed their noses.

The psychedelic doctor prescribes

Beyond that, it was interesting to read in last week's Time magazine under the byline "Taking a trip for your mental health"; that hitherto mind-bending social drugs are gaining acceptance as medical mind-mending treatments.

Ecstasy (MDMA 3,4-methylene dioxymethamphetamine) is being tested in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder and anxiety - one wonders for the Iraqi war veterans; magic mushrooms (psilocybin) is helping obsessive-compulsive patients and Special K (Ketamine) is helping ones with major depression - what would now be used to put the cat to sleep?

If pigs could fly, their medicine might just make you want to jump too.

Finest quality Ecstasy from the Police

Rotten electioneering looms

With Dutch elections looming in November, a number of things have to come to the fore to excite the voting masses into probably making the wrong choices.

Somehow, electioneering with hot-button issues like immigration, integration and crime seems to develop a life of its own which suddenly gets beyond the control of the instigators and hopeful helps the electorate make the right choices.

In the Netherlands, we should expect no less tugging at these matters, one of which has already caused outrage – politicians can seem to act tough through their mandarins in government organisations, but people who usually have not sold their souls step back thinking, this is not the kind of Dutch people we want to be.

Immigration to the fore

So, it transpired that a Chinese woman who is a failed asylum seeker was committed to detention in readiness for deportation – that is no news – however, she has an 8-year old son, like any decent mother, she refused to have her son placed with strangers – professional foster parents who would pitifully lavish minimal parental care for the moneys that make up their livelihood.

If I had a child, I’ll rather feed it to crocs than have it stay with such leeches.

Herein, was the outrage, not so much that the woman decided to take her son with her to detention – that was her comfort and expression of love and I am all for that – but that the organisation in charge could not arrange an alternative scenario where mother and son would not end up in detention.

Not looking good at all

The issue is even more complicated because the son, by reason of being born in the Netherlands is Dutch, representing a clash of parenthood and the state – in this case, one would hope that the bond of parenthood is of greater significance.

The point has now been made again that the Dutch through their government is tough on immigration; however, once again – like in the Ayaan Hirsi-Ali case just 4 months ago; a face-saving strategy has to be concocted to shift the blame of both the political masters and the officials.

The woman appears to have produced some more information which has lead to her release from detention and we are told this has nothing to do with her battles for residency or the outrage concerning the detention of her son – Exactly. We, the people just have to be taken for fools on the premise that the rules have just been followed to the letter – as the Dutch are wont to.

Meanwhile, plans are afoot to rescind the decision to deport them to China, I wish them luck.

Asylum seekers milking health

In the same electioneering gloom, the Health minister has intimated the house that asylum seekers get more healthcare benefits than the Dutch; not only did this outrage the MPs who thought real problems healthcare problems were not being addressed; it would outrage the electorate.

Whilst ministers can use selective language like asylum seekers, since we do not carry visible labels on our heads depicting our status in the Netherlands, asylum seekers could very well become synonymous with all immigrants, fuelling all sorts of negative feeling to legally resident but different people – surely, the politicians know what game they are playing.

Finest Ecstasy from the police

Finally, it appears, the politicians might not be able to take laurels for being strong on law enforcement – 250 policemen had been found to be failing in the level of integrity required of law enforcement. Surprise! Drug trading, drug peddling and joy-riding seem to feature in the rap sheet of crooked and bent policemen.

Somehow, they have able to link lacking experience with integrity violations – my view, the oldies have learnt how not to get caught. It is no secret that I think the Dutch police are bone-idle, bureaucracy laden, pen-pushing abusers of the law – quick to levy petty criminals but completely lame when pursuing serious criminals.

Inquiry – my foot!

An inquiry is to be instigated – I have questions.

Why are you surprised the police are corrupt?

What is the secret to not getting caught?

Can I now report a crime against the person in any police station in a city, especially, if that police station is outside the nearest emergency treatment centre though the crime happened elsewhere in the city?

References

Chinese boy freed from IND expulsion centre

Asylum seekers 'sponging off healthcare'

Inquiry into 'shocking' rise in police crimes