CNN Sometimes Even Worse Than Fox News

Is that possible? In some ways, yes. Both networks are in the habit of passing on junk science as factual news, but at least with Fox you are aware of the bias because of their obvious political slanting. CNN on the other hand, passes on complete crap surrepticiously. Take this article on opium which uses the North American hysteria-through-ignorance attitude toward drugs to paint an image of Afghani parents abuse their children through a cycle of intergenerational addiction. Oh, the horror!...

Afghan infants fed pure opium

By Arwa Damon

In a far flung corner of northern Afghanistan, Aziza reaches into the dark wooden cupboard, rummages around, and pulls out a small lump of something wrapped in plastic.

She unwraps it, breaking off a small chunk as if it were chocolate, and feeds it to four-year-old son, Omaidullah. It's his breakfast -- a lump of pure opium.

"If I don't give him opium he doesn't sleep," she says. "And he doesn't let me work."

Aziza comes from a poor family of carpet weavers in Balkh province. She has no education, no idea of the health risks involved or that opium is addictive.

"We give the children opium whenever they get sick as well," she says, crouching over her loom.

With no real medical care in these parts and the high cost of medicine, all the families out here know is opium. It's a cycle of addiction passed on through generations. The adults take opium to work longer hours and ease their pain.

Aziza's elderly mother-in-law, Rozigul, rolls a small ball in her fingers and pops it into her mouth with a small smile before passing a piece over to her sister.

"I had to work and raise the children, so I started using drugs," she says. "We are very poor people, so I used opium. We don't have anything to eat. That is why we have to work and use drugs to keep our kids quiet."

The entire extended family is addicted....

So what? Americans are addicted to porno, daily showers and coffee. As long as their can get their supply goes uninterrupted, there's no problem. its when you screw around with the supply that the bad happens,

In the middle of the article there's this link:

The health dangers from opium

If you follow it out you might that the ONLY short term physical HARM from opium ingestion is possible constipation (or death if overdosing - like any other substance including water or oxygen). The ONLY long term harm is habituation.

Afghani's have been medicating themselves and their sick children opium for hundreds of years with no collapse to their civilization. Give them some credit for knowing what they are doing.