PSA Weekly Roundup: July 6th, 2024
"Stolen Valor" update(s), industry highlights, a shameless plug, and a sneak peak (or two).
Happy Saturday!
Wherever you are in the world today, I hope this inaugural PSA weekly roundup finds you well amidst a great start to your weekend.
To subscribers old, new, and prospective: welcome! Without diving into my pragmatic idealist spiel (for now) - this newsletter will undoubtedly adapt, evolve, and diversify in style, structure, and medium of choice in the weeks, months, and (hopefully) years ahead - so both your collective support and patience are greatly appreciated as I develop this potentially promising brand on the fly.
There’s a lot of ground to cover this week, so without further ado, here’s the rundown for this roundup:
A few updates on the ongoing “Stolen Valor” saga involving James Davis - founder of the controversial psychedelic advocacy organization Bay Staters for Natural Medicine.
Some psychedelic industry highlights and journalistic shoutouts to some fantastic recent coverage over at Double Blind, Psychedelic Alpha, and Ecstatic Integration, among others.
A shameless plug and sneak peak of what might come next here at PSA.
Bay Staters’ Veteran Fraud Updates: Instagram intimidation and Looming Legal Consequences
If you aren’t yet familiar, check out my twitter thread detailing the backlash BSNM Founder James Davis has faced in the wake of his now-self-admitted impersonation act of US Veteran Mike Botelho.
In the weeks both prior and following the initial story’s publication (along with the update post over at Talking Joints Memo) - I’ve been approached by over three dozen (and counting) former BSNM collaborators - the vast majority of whom have said that they stopped their involvement with psychedelic advocacy (at least in part) due to Davis’ “strange, unethical, and immoral behavior” - as Botelho himself described it late last month.
As documented by former BSNM collaborators online in recent weeks, this isn’t the first time James Davis has been accused of impersonating others to advance his own personal agenda, which I was recently able to further verify.
Earlier this week, one formerly prominent BSNM volunteer contacted me with evidence that back in February 2022, Davis admitted to creating an instagram account for an organization that *does not and has never existed* - called Mothers Against Psychoactive Substances (M.A.P.S.) - for the purpose of intentionally confusing/misinforming people looking for the real MAPS online. When he was confronted via text, it only gets weirder, as Davis seemingly attempted to double down on his reasoning. For reference, I’ve included (independently verified) screenshots of the text exchange in question below:
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: this is an ongoing situation, as I anticipate that more of the troubling allegations I’ve received regarding Davis’ professional and personal behavior will be fully substantiated and corroborated in the weeks ahead - so stay tuned.
Highlights from a big week for psychedelic industrialists and advocates alike.
Lykos’ takes it up a notch:
If you’re deep enough into the weeds of psychedelic media to be reading this Substack, then you’re likely aware of the PR war being waged by MAPS/Lykos in the wake ICER and FDA panels casting (some) doubt on the future of Lyko’s MDMA-Assisted Therapy Treatment.
(However, if you aren’t yet familiar, be sure to check out this extensive deep-dive into Lyko’s post-panel vote PR strategy by Jules Evans over at Ecstatic Integration)
Since then, there have been no shortage of think pieces, social media spats, and seemingly outright personal attacks - all of which are worth reading/viewing to decide for yourself what to believe and who to support in this hotly contested debate over the future of MDMA therapy here in the US.
Personally, I really appreciated the nuanced perspective offered by Josh Hardman, founder of Psychedelic Alpha - who was gracious enough to bring his thoughts beyond the paywall in an extended tweet - available here.
4-ACO-DMT and Testing Discrepancies out in Santa Ana.
Gotta say, Double Blind Magazine has been on FIRE lately - with longtime psychedelic journalist Michelle Lhooq churning out a bunch of eye-catching reporting in the last few weeks.
In particular, I was riveted by Lhooq’s coverage of the Shruuumz FDA recall and the issues surrounding the Santa Ana, California-based company’s “proprietary blend” of psychedelic compounds used in their products.
As plant medicine decriminalization efforts ramp up in a number of new states across the US, I anticipate the conversation surrounding grey-market “legal psychedelics” will only grow larger and louder in the very near future - and I certainly hope to be able to cover some of the regulatory chaos to come.
REACH Washington: Finally, a Veteran-penned Decrim Initiative
Yesterday afternoon, I had the pleasure of speaking with Lauren “Lolo” Feringa, a former US Army medic and co-founder of the the Hippie and a Veteran Foundation. She’s also one of the co-authors of REACH WA’s exciting new decriminalization voter initiative - which Feringa believes is the only psychedelic decrim initiative in the US that was actually written by a US military veteran.
My conversation with Lauren was just the first of many that I’ll be having with the good folks at REACH WA over the next few weeks - as I’m working on a feature article detailing the past, present, and future of Washington state’s psychedelic community! Stay tuned in for more updates on the surely-to-further-evolve psychedelic advocacy landscape out west.
What’s next for PSA: Story Ideas, Suggestions, and a Modest Attempt at Brand Expansion
While this inaugural weekly roundup serves as a starting point for PSA’s ongoing coverage of the psychedelic renaissance - the scope, sequence, and publication frequency of this new venture of mine are all still very much TBD.
That said, I have no shortage of story ideas - including but not limited to:
Taking you inside a federally-funded psilocybin mushroom research lab in Rhode Island.
Exploring the potential tax benefits of stateside psychedelic tourism with community leaders across New England
Touring a psychedelic church less than an hour outside of Boston - where church leaders have been making psilocybin gummies for their congregation for almost a decade… and only recently drawing the ire of their local government due to renewed public interest in psychedelics.
So, if you’re a news editor looking for high-quality (paid) freelance content either hit me up personally or keep an eye on your inbox for a formal pitch of one or more of the above ideas from yours truly.
More generally-speaking, if you would want to read more stories like those then consider buying some of our brand new Psychedelic State(s) of America Merchandise - all sales of which will directly fund future coverage here at PSA.
That’s all for this week! Be sure to like, share, and subscribe to PSA if you haven’t already, and if you made this far then thanks for reading!