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Ythan
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Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin
#26503526 - 02/25/20 04:33 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin www.newsweek.com
An Army veteran running for Congress in Arizona has suspended his campaign after overdosing on heroin.
Chris Taylor, a city councilman in Safford, was found unresponsive at home by his wife last Wednesday, The Gila Herald reported. She performed chest compression until paramedics arrived and revived him.
Authorities also found items linked to intravenous drug use at the Safford Fire Department, where Taylor volunteers, according to The Arizona Republic.
The incident last week was a relapse for Taylor, who has battled an addiction to opioids since he was in high school, according to the newspaper.
In a statement provided to Newsweek, Taylor said he was suspending his campaign and will be seeking treatment.
"I have suspended my campaign for the US House of Representatives and am seeking treatment for substance abuse disorder," he said. "I will fully cooperate with local authorities on any matters arising from my recent relapse and overdose."
Taylor added that he had relapsed after years of sobriety and has to "figure out what went wrong."
He added: "I'm not going to hide from this. I'm not ashamed of what happened. I wish to sincerely apologize to the amazing people who have supported me. I don't know what went wrong. I recently relapsed after having so many solid years in sobriety. I have to figure out where I went wrong.
"Thankfully I have every resource available to me through the Veterans Affairs Administration and I have the strongest support system one could dream of. My family stands behind me 100% and I feel the love and prayers of our amazing Gila Valley Community."
He added: "The only thing I can do is face this head-on in complete humility and put one foot in front of the other so that I can get the help needed to be the father and husband that my family deserves. I'm human and I have never pretended to be anything but. I know that through the Grace of my loving savior Jesus Christ I will be restored to full health and bounce back from this and be stronger than ever."
"I want to face this head-on while addressing the stigma associated with addiction," Taylor added to Newsweek. "Any way I can make a positive out of this horrible ordeal I want to do that."
Taylor was running for the Republican nomination in Arizona's 1st Congressional District in a bid to unseat Democratic Rep. Tom O'Halleran.
The married father of two served two combat tours in Afghanistan after enlisting in the Army as a psychological warfare specialist, according to his campaign website.
His campaign website also says he founded a non-profit organization called Desert Eagle Addiction Recovery in 2014, which is "dedicated to helping individuals, especially fellow combat veterans, suffering from drug addiction."
As the organization's executive director, Taylor "has been able to help countless individuals find recovery and the help they need to become healthy, productive members of society again."
On his campaign website, Taylor explained how the opioid epidemic in the U.S. should be tackled by placing funds in the private sector and non-profit organizations, by securing the U.S.-Mexico border and by "cracking down" on the addiction treatment industry.
"My heart breaks for the thousands of families crippled by the evil scourge of drug addiction," he wrote on the website.
"A whole generation is being wiped out because of ineffective policies and our inability to stop the heroin and fentanyl from flowing across the southern border like a raging river."
Safford City Council and the Safford Fire Department have both been contacted for comment.
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Holybullshit
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Ythan] 1
#26503791 - 02/25/20 06:34 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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What the fuck does "cracking down" on addiction treatment mean and how is it supposed to help?
Want to figure out what went wrong? Maybe expecting imaginary men in the sky to do the heavy lifting had something to do with it.
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...and our inability to stop the heroin and fentanyl from flowing across the southern border like a raging river."
It's just supply and demand...those drugs are going to get here someway somehow from somewhere, as long as we want them. Says he's been battling an "opioid" addiction that began in highschool...I am going to go out on a limb here and say the opioids he was dosing in high school didn't come from Mexico.
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Doc9151
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Holybullshit]
#26504561 - 02/26/20 09:23 AM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
Holybullshit said: I am going to go out on a limb here and say the opioids he was dosing in high school didn't come from Mexico.
He's in Arizona, it's very possible that the drugs did come from Mexico, Heroin has been coming out of there for decades or do you think kids only raid mom and pops medicine cabinet?
-------------------- Psilocybe cubensis data collection thread. please help with this project if you hunt wild cubensis. https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=26513593&page=0&vc=1#26513593
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trvptamine
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Registered: 07/06/15
Posts: 4,859
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Doc9151]
#26505055 - 02/26/20 03:34 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
Doc9151 said:
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Holybullshit said: I am going to go out on a limb here and say the opioids he was dosing in high school didn't come from Mexico.
He's in Arizona, it's very possible that the drugs did come from Mexico, Heroin has been coming out of there for decades or do you think kids only raid mom and pops medicine cabinet?
I think what he means is the guy probably started with prescription opioids as a teenager like a lot of us Heroin addicts did. For me it was 80mg of hydrocodone or 400mg of tramadol a day in highschool that got me into it. Those drugs are made in the USA.
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Holybullshit
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Doc9151] 1
#26505918 - 02/27/20 06:04 AM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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^Yes, that's exactly what I meant.
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Doc9151 said:
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Holybullshit said: I am going to go out on a limb here and say the opioids he was dosing in high school didn't come from Mexico.
He's in Arizona, it's very possible that the drugs did come from Mexico, Heroin has been coming out of there for decades or do you think kids only raid mom and pops medicine cabinet?
As someone who was smoking meth/crack before I could drive I know kids don't only raid their parents medicine cabinets...but drug dealers don't only sell heroin, they also sell prescription opioids.
I did say go out on a limb, and while not completely unheard of, I think it is extremely unlikely that he went from never touching an opioid in his life to shooting/smoking black tar heroin.
Edited by Holybullshit (02/27/20 07:54 AM)
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SpunkyMonkey88
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Registered: 10/08/19
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Holybullshit] 1
#26506164 - 02/27/20 09:12 AM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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War on drugs is such an epic fail... it only funds violent/organized crime. Time to tax, sell, regulate and educate what is already being distributed by thugs. Use those tax dollars to educate the youth on the dangers and to provide public support systems for addiction recovery rather then paying to house users in jail all while providing funding for the cartel.
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Doc9151
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: SpunkyMonkey88]
#26506504 - 02/27/20 01:24 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
SpunkyMonkey88 said: War on drugs is such an epic fail... it only funds violent/organized crime. Time to tax, sell, regulate and educate what is already being distributed by thugs. Use those tax dollars to educate the youth on the dangers and to provide public support systems for addiction recovery rather then paying to house users in jail all while providing funding for the cartel.
couldn't agree more
I lived in Jeddah, Saudia Arabia for a few years and have seen someone lose their head over 3 joints, receive 21 lashes for alcohol possession and use by the public never slowed down. This is when I realized that it doesn't matter how strict the penalties may be, people will continue to seek out & use illicit substances.
If governments truly want to protect their populations they will do as Spunkymonkey88 stated, It's time to tax, sell, regulate and educate. People will always self medicate so it's better to be sure that they are getting a quality product instead of the cartel/gang banger garbage.
Edited by Doc9151 (02/27/20 01:26 PM)
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O_Dweeds
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Registered: 09/27/14
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: SpunkyMonkey88]
#26506505 - 02/27/20 01:25 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Unfortunately the "War on Drugs" is doing psychologically & financially exactly what it was designed to do. Move hundreds of billions at the wholesale level & trillions in its entirety each year.
-------------------- Oxygen. Water. Neil Young Our word "planet" comes from the Greek word planetes, meaning "wanderer." "There ain't no revolution, only evolution, but every time I'm in Georgia I eat a peach for peace." Gregg Allman
Edited by O_Dweeds (02/27/20 01:38 PM)
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O_Dweeds
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Re: Arizona Army Veteran Running for Congress Suspends Campaign After Overdosing on Heroin [Re: Doc9151]
#26506527 - 02/27/20 01:37 PM (4 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
Doc9151 said:
Quote:
SpunkyMonkey88 said: War on drugs is such an epic fail... it only funds violent/organized crime. Time to tax, sell, regulate and educate what is already being distributed by thugs. Use those tax dollars to educate the youth on the dangers and to provide public support systems for addiction recovery rather then paying to house users in jail all while providing funding for the cartel.
couldn't agree more
I lived in Jeddah, Saudia Arabia for a few years and have seen someone lose their head over 3 joints, receive 21 lashes for alcohol possession and use by the public never slowed down. This is when I realized that it doesn't matter how strict the penalties may be, people will continue to seek out & use illicit substances.
If governments truly want to protect their populations they will do as Spunkymonkey88 stated, It's time to tax, sell, regulate and educate. People will always self medicate so it's better to be sure that they are getting a quality product instead of the cartel/gang banger garbage.
It is truly disgusting how much of a widespread disregard for human life, especially with children, has grown south of the border due to greed/drug use. It happens everywhere to a degree, but it's a plague down there. They're not even trying to cover it up, "Yep this is how we operate", it's embarrassing.
-------------------- Oxygen. Water. Neil Young Our word "planet" comes from the Greek word planetes, meaning "wanderer." "There ain't no revolution, only evolution, but every time I'm in Georgia I eat a peach for peace." Gregg Allman
Edited by O_Dweeds (02/27/20 04:03 PM)
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