And I am connien. I'll need to post a picture of my Ugly Gloves I made as part of my technique practice on my loom.

I'm alivt on Ravelry.

Jeez, you guys, I'm editing an article about the rate of overdose deaths due to opioids in states that have medical marijuana laws, compared to states that don't have medical marijuana laws. I thought there'd be a little difference, but the rate of opioid overdose-related deaths in states with medical marijuana laws is a full 25% lower. That's pretty amazing.

Interesting, Steph. I know marijuana crime rates have dropped significantly, along with the general crime rate, since recreational mj was legalized here.

I would worry about a third variable, that states with enlightened medical policies regarding marijuana would be more likely to have enlightened policies toward other drugs.

But I suppose that a good portion of the Discussion section is spent on that issue.

Wow, that is something. I imagine many many people who use opioids are self-medicating for one thing or another, huh.

I would worry about a third variable, that states with enlightened medical policies regarding marijuana would be more likely to have enlightened policies toward other drugs.

The article was about overdose deaths from prescribed opioid painkillers. I'm not sure what kind of enlightened policy could exist about that. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you.

I imagine many many people who use opioids are self-medicating for one thing or another, huh.

The article used data only on people with prescriptions, though it's obviously extremely possible to find a doctor who will write a prescription for opioids without too much diagnosing going on.

My dad has a lot of chronic pain, and takes a staggering amount of opioids. I'm not criticizing, because undertreated/untreated pain management is a legit problem in the medical field, and I'm glad he gets the medication he needs. But really, the amount of oxycodone he takes in one dose -- even though it's prescribed by his doctor -- is a little scary. If Ohio had a medical marijuana law, maybe he could cut back on the meds.

I'm not sure what I expected a site named Ravelry to be about, but it wasn't knitting.

But this brings up a question. Do ravel and unravel mean more or less the same thing? How can that be?

Do ravel and unravel mean more or less the same thing? How can that be?

In the same way that "cleave" can mean cut in two, or joined together.

The article was about overdose deaths from prescribed opioid painkillers. I'm not sure what kind of enlightened policy could exist about that.

Well for instance, I worked in inpatient pain management in the state of Washington, which had an elaborate system in place to pass patients up to expert oversight. Lots of training for physicians, and a strong message that if pain treatment with opioids was anything other than brief and uncomplicated you were at risk if you did not seek consultation. Lots of expert back-up for physicians.

That, and strong training to encourage adequate pain management acutely, so fewer people were drawn into long-term use. When physicians don't feel like they have expert back-up, they tend to under-medicate acutely.

When I moved back to the midwest, I was shocked to see that most pain management was done by family doctors and shady characters with offices in strip malls, with little state involvement unless there was a disaster. There were punitive responses in place if someone overdosed, but not a good structure for helping the physicians do a better job in the first place.