VIDEO – RECOVER ME – July 3, 2026 – International DJ Fat Tony has worked all over the world, headlining festivals and seen behind the decks at A-list exclusive parties. But behind the glamour, he’s battled drug and alcohol addictions, toxic relationships and mental health challenges. Ahead of his new book Recover Me: A User’s Guide to Overcoming Addiction and Insanity, he’s opening up about what he’s learnt over the years as he celebrates 20 years sober. WATCH
Author: Leonard Buschel
WTF? – June 29, 2026 – Per the report, citing information from The Boston Globe, anti-marijuana activists said they’ve collected enough signatures to force a referendum that would once again put the issue on the ballot for November’s midterm election.Massachusetts first legalized the recreational use of cannabis when Bay Staters voted in favor of legalization in 2016. The Independent reported that Wendy Wakeman, a Republican strategist who also acts as a spokesperson for the group behind the effort to end marijuana sales, Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, said she is “cautiously optimistic” that the referendum will move forward. Read More
OH HAPPY DAY – July 2, 2026 – Habitual users of fentanyl have developed such a strong tolerance to the drug that standard doses of medications to manage withdrawal and initiate recovery are no longer working for many patients, a team of researchers in Los Angeles has found. Researchers found that the purity of street fentanyl in Los Angeles varied wildly, ranging from less than one milligram of the deadly opioid to more than 650 milligrams. Their study, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, presents a picture of the dangerous volatility of the city’s street supply and the…
VIDEO – SONG OF THE WEEK – 97,819 views since Dec 23, 2016 – Been so long, I’m living till then. Cause I’ve been to Canaan – And, ah, I won’t rest until I go back again. WATCH
STICK WITH THE WINNERS! – July 7, 2026 – Rabbi Brian Zachary Mayer (rB) has found a hobby in the challenge of summarizing himself into a few sentences. rB is the executive director of Religion Outside The Box, a worldwide, internet-based congregation of over 3,500 members world wide. In 2025, rB published Rabbi Brian’s Highly Unorthodox Gospel—a fun read about religious autonomy and spiritual authority. Q. Do you think addiction is an illness, disease, a choice, or a wicked twist of fate?A. “Understanding is the booby-prize.” — attributed to Werner Erhard.Q. Where are you from and where do you reside…
LAUGHING WITH SADNESS – July 1, 2026 – In her book, Fully Baked, comedian and former Saturday Night Live writer Rosebud Baker, to quote her favorite programming, Bravo, “mentions it all.” She writes about the weight of her difficult upbringing as the granddaughter of James A. Baker III, the former Secretary of the Treasury of President Ronald Reagan and the Secretary of State under President George H. W. Bush. She details the grief following the death of her sister, who drowned at age 7 in a freak pool accident, and the miscarriage she would have decades later. With astonishing candor,…
BORING – July 2, 2026 – Today, our Hollywood stars are in a grim, competitive sprint to see who can lead the most sterile and joyless existence possible. Look at any red carpet and you’ll find a parade of gaunt, unhappy faces: a pageant of actors, actresses and pop stars suffering from socially acceptable anorexia courtesy of fat-loss jabs, masochistic morning ice baths and aggressive teetotalism. Honestly, I’m not sure which is worse. It’s evident that we have reached peak wellness – the most insufferable and middle-class of modern afflictions, where Pilates and wild swimming are favoured social activities, entire…
AUDIO – FOR HOW MUCH LONGER? – June 29, 2026 – Kristin Williamson is taking in the fine weather with her newborn son, drink in hand. But like a growing number of consumers, her drink of choice these days is often non-alcoholic. “Those non-alc have been just a great opportunity to make you feel like you’re still contributing at social gatherings,” she said.The statistics on drinking habits are sobering. For the fourth year in a row, the Canadian per capita consumption of alcohol has fallen, hitting a 20-year low, according to a recent Statistics Canada report. The Canadian average for…
A REAL HERO – July 3, 2026 – I grew up in a dysfunctional family and experienced a lot of chaos in my early life. My dad was an alcoholic, and my mum was addicted to prescription drugs. We moved house constantly, never settling anywhere for long and I remember vividly that feeling of never having enough food. Despite these challenges, I managed to build a successful career or myself in the building trade. I had apple trees in the garden, two cars in the driveway and it felt like I had finally left the trauma of my past behind…
VIDEO – COPS WITH HANDCUFFS GO WILD – June 30, 2026 – The ‘Sobering Problem’ documentary by WSMV4 Investigates reveals the troubling trend of thousands of sober drivers arrested for DUI. The shocking discoveries went on to spur the creation of a new state law and earn a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award. WATCH
VIDEO – A TRAVESTY – July 2, 2026 – Gov. Mike Kehoe vetoed or withheld more than $500 million in state spending for fiscal year 2027, including $2 million from the Department of Corrections budget designated to support rehabilitation programs for people leaving prison, particularly those with drug-related offenses. … Dan Hanneken founded in2Action, a re-entry program in Columbia, after serving three stints in prison connected to a drug addiction. He started the program roughly two decades ago and now hosts more than 80 residents at a time. “When I was released from prison the third time, I actually never…
UNJUST – June 29, 2026 – A new California law gives just more flexibility to keep defendants in jail rather than releasing them to community-based mental health treatment programs. Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed into law a change to criminal sentencing practices that gives judges more discretion to decide whether someone accused of a crime merits a mental health diversion. The bill overwhelmingly passed both chambers of the Legislature this year. Beginning in 2018, the state of California asked judges to grant a mental health diversion for most crimes if a qualifying mental health diagnosis was a significant factor in…
FAMILY LOVE – June 30, 2026 – “It’s unprecedented to go from being in prison multiple times to being the highest-paid star on the planet,” Ben Falk, the author of Robert Downey Jr.: The Fall and Rise of the Comeback Kid, exclusively tells Us Weekly. “He’s never doubted his own ability, but I imagine even Robert is pretty surprised!” Downey is a vocal advocate for prison reform who credits his wife, Susan Downey, with supporting his recovery. (The couple wed in 2005 and share son Exton, 14, and daughter Avri, 11. Police caught Downey driving 70 mph in a 50…
EVERYONE MATTERS! – July 7, 2026 – The San Diego facility began as a cluster of houses in City Heights and has grown into a residential treatment center with 31 beds on Central Avenue, an outpatient facility, three sober living houses and short-term recovery services. When the center was founded, being gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer was not widely accepted, making it difficult for the community to trust and access medical treatments and rehabilitation programs. “It wasn’t very culturally competent at the time,” Sarafina Scapicchio, deputy executive director of Stepping Stone, said. The vast majority of Stepping Stone’s clients…
ALANON TOO? – July 3, 2026 – The Matt Talbot Prayer Society is aiming to help parents protect their children from the dangers of substance abuse with special Spiritual Protection Packs containing items and prayers designed to help families bless their homes and pray for loved ones. The Society is encouraging parents to bless their children’s rooms weekly with Holy Water and to pray regularly for protection from drugs and addiction. A spokesperson for the Matt Talbot Prayer Society said many families are now facing the devastating consequences of addiction, with increasing numbers of young people being exposed to drugs…
RN TRAUMA – June 30, 2026 – It is alleged that he brazenly stole “controlled substances from Heritage Valley to satiate his known drug addiction,” the complaint reads. The complaint alleges reports about Chismire’s alleged theft were ignored by leadership. Further, the plaintiffs claim that Chismire continued to steal drugs even after federal investigators visited the facility … The nurse who allegedly had the issue with substance abuse, Nolan Chismire, is also named as a defendant. Chismire worked in the emergency department at Heritage Valley until early 2026, when federal investigators took an interest in the case, the plaintiffs contend. Read…
“If you’re quiet, you’re not living. You’ve got to be noisy and colorful and lively.” – Mel Brooks, b. June 28, 1926
GOOD NEWS? – June 19, 2026 – For years, many people believed a glass of wine with dinner might actually be good for you. Just think about all those really old French people drinking wine, living their best life. But a new study says there’s no evidence that any amount of drinking improves your health. Researchers analyzed U.S. health data and found no health benefit from alcohol …at any level of consumption. Instead, they found the risk of death increases even among people who would be considered moderate drinkers. For example, men who drink around two alcoholic beverages a day,…
SAD BUT TRUE – June 19, 2026 – Cleavotta Morgan said her son, Daejon Morgan, called her every day from his cell at Men’s Central Jail. The 20-year-old inmate would ask her to pass the phone around to different members of the family. She’d often put the receiver up to his dog Hunter’s ear so he could hear the animal’s excitement at the sound of his voice. The family thought of his incarceration as a “blessing,” she said. “We thought it would be a safe place for him,” Cleavotta Morgan said of her son and the L.A. County jail system.…
VIDEO – IT’S FATTENING? – June 25, 2026 – Put drinking on hold & you can fast so effortlessly…with coffee. We help people go from “sober but stuck” to “sober and free” by showing them how to build life they don’t want to escape from. WATCH
MONEY CAN HELP – June 25, 2026 – Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Ag-FDA Subcommittee, and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) renewed a years-long effort to authorize billions in federal funding for substance use treatment and prevention with the reintroduction of the Turn the Tide Act …which would secure over $65 billion in federal funding over the next 10 years to combat substance use disorder, both in the Granite State and across the country. In 2025, it is estimated that nearly 45,000 overdose deaths in…
VIDEO – STOP DRIVING – June 25, 2026 – A Macomb County judge has now issued two bench warrants for the arrest of Kim Mathers after her failure to appear in court for three hearings stemming from two separate drunken driving cases. She pleaded no contest to the two charges issued in the alleged hit-and-run only three days before …her arraignment for the Chesterfield Township OWI, leading prosecutors to request the bond violation hearing for the previous case. WATCH
VIDEO – HOW VIAL – June 24, 2026 – Tonya Crowder, Marlene Durham, and Demetrius Onuaguluchi were indicted last week in federal court. According to the indictment, the clinics only accepted cash, and many of the patients were paid by so-called “crew leaders” to seek prescriptions for controlled substances like oxycodone and hydrocodone. Prosecutors say patients would get their prescriptions filled at Wellwise Pharmacy, which is owned by Onuaguluchi, and “crew leaders” would then take possession of the drugs to “divert to street-level distribution.” The operation is alleged to have taken place between 2021 and 2025. According to the indictment,…
VIDEO – WATCH WHAT YOU PUT YOUR NOSE – June 25, 2026 – Inventia Healthcare is recalling more than 11,000 bottles of chlorthalidone 25-milligram tablets. Beekeeper’s Naturals is recalling one lot of its saline nasal spray after testing found elevated levels of yeast and other possible contaminants. The company says people with weakened immune systems or lung conditions could face a risk of serious infections if they use the product. WATCH
A TRAGIC TREND? – June 25, 2026 – Responding officers found five unconscious people, all suspected of drug overdoses, who were treated at the scene. Police told DC News Now that officers administered Narcan to three men and two women. According to the police report obtained by DC News Now, officers and medics located some victims outside on DTLR on H Street. While on the scene, first responders received another call for more people on 14th Street and H Street NE. Of the five victims, one man was taken to the hospital for further treatment. Read More
VIDEO – GOD BLESS AMERICA – June 25, 2026 – Esperanza’s Homes for Heroes Substance Use Program has been up and running for nearly a year and is already helping dozens of veterans recover in the community. The program is reaching veterans like Tyrone Askins, who began self-medicating with drugs and alcohol to cope with PTSD after leaving the military. Bryan Hamilton, a peer support specialist with the Esperanza Substance Use Program, has seen firsthand how addiction has affected the veteran community in Tucson. That experience inspired him to help create the program. WATCH
WHO NEEDS A BUILDING? – June 28, 2026 – Michael Nicholson started taking the drug “years ago,” saying it “went hand-in-hand with weekends, partying, football and alcohol”. As his personal struggles mounted, including the death of his dad, he said he had found himself using cocaine to “numb everything”. Nicholson eventually went to addiction support group Silkworth for help, which he said was the best thing he had ever done. “My life was a mess, an absolute mess,” he said. “I was just pushing people away. When you’re an addict, everyone else is the problem, you’re not the problem. Read…
VIDEO – SONG OF THE WEEK – June 28, 2026 – David Clayton-Thomas, the Grammy-winning lead singer of Blood, Sweat & Tears, DIED on June 25, 2026 at age 84 705,314 views since Feb 14, 2018 – Montreal Jazz Festival 2006. 4 BS&T SONGS: – 00:10 And When I Die – 04:43 God Bless The Child – 12:30 You’ve Made Me So Very Happy – 18:31 Hi De Ho WATCH
STICK WITH THE WINNERS! – June 30, 2026 – Alysse Bryson is a strong woman in long-term recovery, an innovative media maven, marketing guru, public speaker, and gal about town. With her humorous outlook on life and fierce determination to succeed, Alysse has made a significant impact in the world of media and modern day sobriety. Q. If you are in recovery, what was your drug(s) of choice and when is your sobriety date?A. My sobriety date is 05.01.2006Vodka and cocaine were my vices specifically. But I was never that picky, so anything booze and drug related went into my…
SHE STOLE OUR HEARTS – June 24, 2026 – Singer-songwriter Jewel Kilcher, typically referred to mononymously as Jewel, opened up last Tuesday in an episode of the No Magic Pill podcast about her journey from a homeless teenager stealing food in San Diego to a chart-topping artist determined to break the cycle of addiction that surrounded her growing up. Kilcher, 52, said she was raised in a saddle barn in Alaska before her parents divorced when she was eight and her mother left. She was then raised mostly by her father, who she said became “physically abusive” and drank heavily.…