UK - Don't Talk to Frank ... Frank Talks Crap

[JumpinJackFlash]

The 'Stories' section gets to me, FRANK just seems to interview people who have wrecked their lives taking drugs. Now I know, government website, so what, but I think the creators realise this and so they put in some stupid story about some parents smoking a kids surfboard wax because they thought it resin or something.

The 'Your Space' section seems to be more inclusive that drugs might not be completely bad. I sent an e-mail to them asking why they didn't have any positive drugs stories, didn't get a reply, that's why their slogan isn't talk with FRANK, it's just covering against litigation. I suggest that all those in here who regularly frequent the "advance drug discussion" forums call them up and start ranting strange combinations of letters and numbers then they might get some experts in who know what they are talking about.

[Pondlife]

I like to think that the people behind "talk to frank" have their hearts in the right place, but when all's said and done it's just reefer madness 2.0 isn't it?

The real problem I have with this, apart from the inaccuracies that have been pointed out, is that anything that distorts the truth ends up being counter-productive, and with something as potentially dangerous as psycoactive substances that's bad.

If you underplay the positive and overplay the negative, then when people discover that it's not 100% correct they will assume that it's 100% wrong. Here is a good example of the dangers of "just say no" (or variations thereof):

http://www.heroinhelper.com/user/experiences/lies.shtml

Why do countries with more relaxed attitudes to alcohol have less youth alcohol problems? Why do countries with more relaxed and honest attitudes to sex have lower teenage pregnancies? It's not rocket science is it?

[Whit]

www.talktohank.co.uk

Reputation Comments on this post:

My rep power is pretty high so I don't usually give it out for jokes but...keep up the good work! LOL

[Shiacmkmleer]

Originally Posted by Whit

www.talktohank.co.uk

That website is 50 diffrent types of hilarous. Swis isnt stoned and its the funniest thing hes seen in days

[Bajeda]

Originally Posted by Whit

www.talktohank.co.uk

Just discovered that today and come in here to post it but it would seem you beat me to it.

What a great site! The A-Z of Drugs section is brilliant.


Some good quotes from what I've read so far:

"Drugs are illegal, but lying about them isn't"

"Ignorance is a Class A Narcotic and can seriously damage your health."

"Alcohol - A little known drug used primarily by the Mambomambo tribe in the Amazon basin, who use the plant as a rite of passage into manhood. Alcohol has many properties which make it useful as a medicine, and because of the the NHS spend £1.7 billion pounds a year on alcohol research."

"Sex- an evil drug which spreads AIDS to all unmarried users. Many users claim that "using a condom" will prevent the spread of AIDS. Lies, condom usage increases an individuals risk of contracting AIDS by 3000%"

[Lunar Loops]

This from the KFx website (http://www.ixion.demon.co.uk/index.htm) :

Frankly Unacceptable
4.6.07

Frank recently published their "Campaign Update" at the end of May 2007 with their 19-page "Cannabis Explained" document. And while we can generally expect publications from Frank to peddle the usual Government line when it comes to drugs and their related risks, this new Update is far worse. It has a number of ommissions and inaccuracies which suggest, at best, some sloppy editing/proof-reading and at worse a worrying lack of drugs awareness amongst those responsible for disseminating drugs information across the UK.
From the first photograph on the top of page 3, the Update is a strange affair. This graphic shows a collection of waste, trimmed and browning cannabis leaves, looking quite autumnal but utterly unlike what anyone would use for intoxication. Another image on page 7 shows a collection of crack pipes, rather than cannabis equipment.
But it is the "factual" content which is most alarming. The document makes a number of erroneous, unsubstantiated or dubious statements including:

• that cannabis resin is made by scraping the dried leaves of cannabis plants
• that smoking cannabis in joints is the least harmful way to use it
• that use of cannabis damages the immune system
• becoming horribly confused about defintions for herbal cannabis, skunk and sensimellia
• relying on a set of unproven "strengths" of cannabis from a 2004 Healthwise document to "show" how strong different strains are
• failing to mention contaminants in SoapBar and glass-contamination of herbal cannabis

Following criticism of the document from KFx, the UKCIA and other commentators, the Home Office has written back to say that they are reviewing the content of the "Update." However, at the time of writing they haven't chosen to take it off the Home Office website which means that this inaccurate, dangerous and misleading piece of work is still being disseminated around the country.
For a copy of the Update - see HERE
For a point by point rebuttal of the document by UKCIA go here
If you want to see what KFx said to Frank about the document click HERE

Reputation Comments on this post:

a thankful reminder that people like to still spread lies around. Thanks

[Alicia]

Talk to frank will always talk crap. its made that way it wants people/worried parents to acknowledge there bullshit. To believe it as gospel although they also seem to think these people are stupid and would never look behind what there being told or reading, and even worse these some of these people will then go around and preach there newly taught bullshit to others then strengthening the lies and ruining any harm reduction at all.

[Nagognog2]

The United States Constitution and Bill of Rights are written on hemp (cannabis) paper. Most likely the Magna Carta is too. So would burning these documents be illegal? Or destruction of illicit drugs?

This gets so confusing!

[dirk]

Originally Posted by Nagognog2

So would burning these documents be illegal? Or destruction of illicit drugs?

some would say that it depends upon wether you inhaled or not

[machine_elf]

Swim has found staggering inaccuracies with "frank"
It grossly overstreses neglegable risks and fails to tell of the more real risks and thereby doesn't give serious harm reduction.

Its a farce.

[Orchid_Suspiria]

Get naturally high by getting more exercise?Frank can fuck off!Swim likes to live life a little more in the slow pace if ya know what swim means

[Alfa]

This one is much nicer! the 'getting help' link doesn work. Would be funny if that linked to DF. To bad the site has no SEO. Would be funny if it would turn up higher in the search engines than talktofrank itself. And Frank's SEO is as good as it's info.

[radiometer]

I too wish that the creators of talktohank would continue to build it up. It's brilliant, and should be finished or handed over to those who will do so.

[Whit]

Tis a neat little site I know!

One of my favourites:

DXMFound in many cough and cold medicines, you've probably been taking it your entire life, DRUGGIE!

I also love the advert on the home page "Can you read this easily? If not you need help" - obviously it's blurred!

[Whit]

Warning this may upset some viewers...... Seems you can't dance how you like now aswell......

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008...rugsandalcohol


EDIT: The "Stoner" looks more like he's pissed tbh. Why don'nt they mention that I wonder!?!?!

Reputation Comments on this post:

As much as I despise that ad, thanks for reminding us what a bunch of ignorant fucktards the media is.

[Micklemouse]

They do mention that he may have mixed his drugs though.

If it wasn't so sad it'd be hilarious. Please add this to the Video archive.

Was that a deliberate misspelling of Grauniad btw?

[Whit]

Being as he's a "Cannabis smoker" who............................................... .................................................. .................................................. ............ "may have chosen to mix his drugs".... (With alcohol)

I think it's prety safe to say that psychologically he's going to go down as a "Cannabis smoker" No doubt deliberate.

He could have been "A piss head"............................................. . "who may have chosen to mix his drugs" (With weed)
. I don't see the difference between the two? They chose however to emphasise he is a "stoner" I hate my country!!!

Hehehe, no it wasn't, thanks for sorting that

EDIT: Hey btw, I need some guidance adding that vid :S - Scrap that it's in there now

[~lostgurl~]

A new entry has been added to Drugs Archive

Description:
2 mins

The government's new drugs awareness campaign is a spoof wildlife documentary about a teenage house party – complete with a voiceover impersonating David Attenborough.

To check it out, rate it or add comments, visit Talk To Frank - Anti Drugs Advert
The comments you make there will appear in the posts below.

[FuBai]

Isn't this almost exactly the same as the American thing with "stoners in the mist"? Seems that we've just nicked American drug education techniques again, and as with DARE, I'm sure they will be an unmitigated success...

[~lostgurl~]

Talk To Frank - Anti Drugs Advert

HA can you please merge threads

[Whit]

"The Pill Taker" (WTF!), so called becaused he was TRYING to take Ecstasy, but unfourtunately due to a nasty scheme to control your life and make lots of money by the worlds governements (+ large industry bodies), has ended up taking, compressed white shit, from a guy down the street with more ASBO's than qualifications.

Seems as though your not even allowed to dance the way you like anymore aswell! Remember to conform to the governements guidlines on dancing... I'm sure there out there!! If he's enjoying himself.... so F*ing what!?! They could atleast shown him to be enjoying himself!

[KL_Thomie]

How pathetic...

Swim and the Swiys have been lowered to the rank of dumb beasts while it's their own system that messes everything up.Next year they're gonna put Swius in concentration camps maybe?They would better make shows like spuiten & slikken in the Netherlands.Instead showing this crap making Swiu look as "not human" they would better point out the real dangers and how to deal with them like drinking enough water etc.Swim has seen more people drop down or crash while driving from alcohol overdose than X(He means WAY more)or whatever dope.I hate this crap so much that it doesn't even make me p*ssed of anymore.
Now Swim's going to light his soapbar,take a puke and then crawl back in his zoo...

[aerozeppelin123]

Lol I know that video is such a load of BS, the only way young people will ever listen to the authorities about drugs is if they are honest and tell them, yes drugs can be great and you can have an amazing time and not always suffer bad consequences...but there are risks.

Otherwise people see their friends taking drugs and having fun and NOT ruining their lives forever, and they start to believe nothing the government says, because according to them it's all negative, which isn't true at all.

[Evil GIR]

That vid makes me feel sick, I just wish the people who are involved in this kind of brainwashing propaganda would curl up and die some where.

Fuck Frank, I wish i had the funds to start a massive anti-frank bill board campaign.

[Bajeda]

It feels particularly appropriate to mention Richard L. Miller's book Drug Warriors and Their Prey: From Police Power to Police State in this thread. It compares Germany's repression and ostracization of the Jews to the US's ongoing attempts to distinguish drug users from the rest of society to legitimize their oppression. The analogy works well in this case, even though I feel comparisons of people/policies to the Nazis are overused at times.

The tools at Talk to Frank seem to have gone a step further and tried to make it seem like drug users aren't even really human with the whole Animal Planet documentary style. I love the combination of verbal ambiguity with negatively connotative visuals in the video. I don't know if they are trying to use tongue-in-cheek humour to connect with their target audience, trying to manipulate perceptions of drug use more subtly by being less explicit, or both. Like the "pill-eater" whom the video narrator said was 'enjoying his dance' while the guy looks like an extra for a zombie movie except without the make-up. It doesn't look like he is really enjoying himself, but then again I've never seen someone rolling with an expression like that.

Argh, its videos like these that raise my blood pressure!