Salvia, THC and Shared Dreaming - Altered States meets Inception

Superfluous wealth can buy superfluities only. Money is not required to buy one necessary of the soul.

Thoreau, Walden: Conclusion

People, I just got the news: Hanna Montana, the actress, is dead as per the article “Goodbye Hanna Montana! Miley Cyrus caught smoking a bong”, published Monday, December 13, 2010, The Jamaica Observer and corroborated by the article “Miley Cyrus caught smoking a bong on Video”, published December 10, 2010 11:47 AM, Celebrity Circuit, CBS News

Then there is video evidence as per the video post “Miley caught smoking bong in leaked video footage”, viewed Wednesday December 19 2010, ITN Channel, YouTube as her alter ego Miley Cyrus was caught smoking a legal hallucinogenic named Salvia.

Legal in California by the way at least, as Proposition 19, currently supported by Facebook Co-Founders Sean Parker and Dustin Moskovitz as per the article “Facebook founders put US$170,000 into pot”, published October 9, 2010 12:09 PM PDT by Chris Matyszczyk, CNET News - Technically Incorrect is yet to make possession and smoking of Marijuana (Cannabis Sativa) legal there as well.

Curious, as when I was working at Telecom Provider CLARO as a RF Technician (2008 to 2009), I noticed some of the Mexicans smoking what appeared to be “beadies” once when I went into the car park on the 5^th Floor.

This was before they began banning Technicians from parking on the 5^th Floor and forcing us to park on the Ground Floor beside the gigantic 100KVA transformers. Not sure if it was Salvia, but it sure was NOT Marijuana or Ganja (Jamaican colloquial)!

The mere fact that it has hallucinogenic effects as is an import to California by South and Central Americans suggest that the eighteen (18) year old, aside from it not being her first “trip”, was probably not experimenting, but merely doing what most Reggae and Dancehall Artiste do on their downtime: try to maintain the “buzz” by smoking SOMETHING.

Aside from blogging, I also manage a rap group called Overseas G's and a Dance Group called Classic Dancers, and both of them on their downtime, I have observed, puff the White Dragon to their satisfaction. Thus it surprises me little if Selena Gomez lights up a bong as well (isn’t that a Latino name, like CNET News Natalie Morris nee Del Conte?!). People, sing the song, "Dizzy" by Tommy Roe.

For the record, I do not smoke, drink or indulge in fornication, having come from a rather strict Seventh Day Adventist background, resplendent in the females that I mainly like.

Mostly Christians, such as my deceased Audia Granston, who like me had backslidden and ended up liking other things from behind!

Stardom and wealth is its own curse; fear the paparazzi and their annoying buzz, but attract its unwanted attention in Private moments, this time caught on amateur home video on YouTube. I am not surprised.

The question begs though: why Salvia? Aside from it being legal, its hallucinogenic effects are no where near Morphine or even THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) the purified form of the active ingredient of Marijuana (Cannabis Sativa), which, ironically, is easier to obtain than Salvia via the Internet.

Even stranger, is that Salvia is the same hallucinogen featured in the movie Altered States (1980) in which the protagonist, a Harvard Professor played by William Hurt is seen in the movie traveling to Lima Peru, and partaking in a drug that results in the character experiencing a shared dreaming , the movie Inception (2009) arguably an expansion on this concept only in the dream world.

I used to speculate to myself back when I was at UTECH (1997 to 2000) doing Electronics and Telecoms that Shared Dreaming was possible, the ONLY reason why this story caught my eye.

I find this all fascinating, purely from a Bio-Chemistry point of view (yes, this is a Bio-Chemistry Article!!) as it appears that Miley Cyrus may have been having not a trip, but a Shared Dream, as it is odd that she should speak of a someone close during a “trip”, possibly asleep somewhere in Australia, dreaming of seeing her.

The incident does require further research, thought, as Salvia may being be a narcotic, but the movie Altered States (1980) does have a ring of truth to it; extensive “research” was being done back in the 60’s .

It is now actively being done in the field of Shared Dreaming and Dream Interpretation as per the philosophical and paranormal ( I prefer metaphysical!!) website “Shared Dreaming and the Facts behind the Myth”, viewed Wednesday December 19 2010, Lucid Crossroads.

The intention is obvious for the future in this rather murky metaphysical mash-up of Bio-Chemistry and Electronics: the use of hallucinogenic to calm the mind enough for implants enableing man-machine augmentation and Data Transfers, the ultimate techies dream of melding ones self with electronic gadgets

Such is the curious case of Arts Professor Wafaa Bilal of NYU (New York University) Tisch School of the Arts installing a 10 megapixel camera in the back of his head as part of a Project called “Project 3^rd I”, with the still pictures being exhibited in Doha, Quatar  as per the article “New York Professor installs camera in head”, published December 02, 2010 by Laura Dolan, CNN, CNET News and corroborated in the article “His hindsight is 20-20”, published December 03, 2010 by Erica Orden, NYU.

More chilling is Professor Wafaa Bilal own words, quote: “There is nothing private, which is ironically the state of the state we are in”. Chilling, as FaceBook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was quoted as saying the same thing once as per the article “Why no one cares about privacy anymore”, published March 12, 2010 4:00 AM PST by Declan McCullagh, CNET News - Politics and Law as well as opined in my blog article entitled “Google and Facebook - Customer Information on company Databases”.

Though not the first, undoubtedly it won’t be the last, as many stories abound with regards to connecting the brain directly to Electronics. After all, we now have cameras integrated into phones and Facebook on every page, so this would only make it more personal.

Mix in a little Salvia or a diluted form of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) and you have a sure way of achieving Shared Dreaming, as per the movie Inception (2009) – under more controlled circumstances as per the movie Altered States (1980).

Apple could look into this a possible future electronics gadget product for Shared Dreaming based on Salvia, legal only for eighteen (18) and up. Locally here in Jamaica, Telecom Provider Digicel, whose Marketing Department is running ragged again, may want to use this to advertise and support the legalization of Marijuana (Cannabis Sativa), a concept popular among Jamaicans.

This is as the grip of the Recession is making Jamaicans more price-centric in their buying habits, with an endorsement of legalized extracts of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) from Marijuana (Cannabis Sativa), which Seventh Day Adventists use for medicinal purposes.

This could be a part of Telecom Provider Digicel Marketing push in the future – when Jamaica legalizes the extract, not the plant, of course, a process currently ongoing in California via Proposition 19.

Perhaps this was Miley Cyrus way of supporting?!