Hollywood Is Stupid

Portugal's 2001 decriminalization of personal drug use was paired with a radical shift toward health-centered responses—harm reduction, treatment access, and social reintegration. For approximately two decades, this model delivered remarkable public health outcomes that became a global reference point for progressive drug policy. However, recent data reveals a more complex picture: while Portugal's absolute metrics remain significantly better than pre-2001 conditions and most European comparators, the trajectory has reversed markedly since 2019, raising critical questions about policy sustainability and implementation quality. The Initial Crisis and Policy Response Portugal entered the 1990s facing a genuine drug catastrophe. By 1999, approximately 100,000 Portuguese—roughly one percent of the population—reported addiction to hard drugs, predominantly heroin. The country recorded 369 drug overdose deaths that year, the highest rate in Europe at that time. Beyond mortality, ...

The Local Government Act 1888 abolished the liberties of England and Wales, including the Liberty of the Clink in Southwark, primarily to address the serious administrative fragmentation that had accumulated over centuries. The abolition came into effect in 1889 when the new County of London was created. The Nature of the Liberties The Liberty of the Clink (also known as the Liberty of Winchester, the Manor of Southwark, and the "bastard station") was a medieval exemption from royal jurisdiction that originated when the Bishop of Winchester acquired the land around 1149. Although the liberty was geographically situated in Surrey, it remained outside the jurisdiction of both the county sheriff and the City of London authorities. Instead, it operated under the sole jurisdiction of the Bishop of Winchester, who derived his administrative powers from his status as Chancellor or Treasurer of the King. Medieval Origins and Regulation (1161-1546) The regulated sex trade ...

During the HMS Beagle's return from its five-year voyage (December 1831 - October 1836), Captain Robert FitzRoy made a deliberate detour from Ascension Island back across the Atlantic to Bahia (Salvador), Brazil, in August 1836 before continuing to Cape Verde and eventually England. This seemingly circuitous routing was driven by FitzRoy's meticulous commitment to hydrographic accuracy and verification of his chronometer measurements. The Critical Measurement Discrepancy When the Beagle had first arrived in Rio de Janeiro in 1832, FitzRoy discovered that a difference exceeding four miles of longitude existed between the meridian distance from Bahia to Rio as determined by the French expedition under Baron Roussin and his own measurements via the Beagle. This was not a minor discrepancy—in maritime navigation and hydrographic surveying, such differences could represent significant inaccuracies that would undermine the entire chain of measurements across the globe. Fitz...

The foundation for Saint Paul's Catholic Church began with community initiative in 1876 when George Shadbourne wrote to Archbishop Joseph Alemany, OP, expressing the desire to establish a new parish in the growing Noe Valley area and offering to help collect funds, purchase land, and construct a church. Archbishop Alemany approved the request, recognizing the pastoral needs of the expanding community. A collection was taken among parishioners, and land was purchased on Church Street for $2,800. This initial property acquisition included the key lot at 29th and Church, plus three additional lots facing Church Street, providing a solid foundation for future expansion. The first church building was constructed in 1880, with Archbishop Alemany himself laying the cornerstone on April 29, 1880. This initial structure was modest by comparison to what would follow—it seated 750 people and served approximately 200 families in the parish. The church cost $18,000 to construct. The loc...