Everything you need to know about the deadly new street drug 'K2' — its side effects aren't even the worst part

Spice, otherwise known as K2, Moon Rocks, or Skunk, is a lab-produced, mind-altering drugthat's been soaring in popularity in recent years.

Giant underground laboratories, many of which are in China, are churning out thousands of poundsof the stuff. During the first four months of last year, the US Drug Enforcement Administration reported a 330% increase in spice-related calls to US poison centers.

A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Thursday echoes those findings and adds that K2-related poisonings have risen in all US Census regions. Still, the problem appears clustered in several US cities, including New York.

Even more disturbingly, the drug is often marketed in those areas as a safer "alternative" to traditional marijuana, which experts say is far from the truth.

"The whole guise here is to make people think it’s similar to marijuana,” James Hunt, the DEA special agent in charge of New York's division told the Times yesterday, just days after emergency workers in Brooklyn transported 33 people suspected of overdosing on spice to the hospital.

Here's everything you need to know about spice, or K2.

What is spice?

Prince Harry gets tested for HIV

Prince Harry is pictured getting tested for HIV at Burrell St Sexual Health Clinic to show how quick and easy it is to be tested for HIV.

According to Kensington Palace which shared the photo, "Prince Harry believes that until everyone is relaxed about taking HIV tests - whether from higher risk groups or not - then tackling the stigma and fear surrounding this simple test will continue to allow the virus to win"

Here's the most popular music artist in every state, according to Pandora

We're halfway through a busy year in music. Already this year's new RIAA rules for music-streaming sales have bolstered blockbuster acts in a huge way.

Drake's album "Views" has been a runaway hit mainly off the strength of its streams. Even Adele, who was once notably holding her work from streaming services, has caved in and made her latest album, "25," streamable.

To get a sense of which artists are dominating the streaming field in the US, we turned to Pandora Radio, the streaming and recommendation service, for a list of the artists whose Pandora "artist stations" were most frequently added in each of the 50 states this year. It's a snapshot of what the streaming audience is most hungry for these days.

Turns out, Drake is just as popular as everyone thinks he is — though not everywhere. Some states have some curveball favorites.

Read on to see the top 10 artists in each state:

Tinubu called me a dog, thug – Dino Melaye fires back

As rumble behind the senate’s Wednesday closed-door session drags on, Senator Dino Melaye on Thursday admitted that he had issues with a Senator colleague (Remi Tinubu), whom he said, called him a dog and a Thug when impeachment plot against President Muhammadu Buhari was being considered.

He stated this at a press briefing after plenary on Thursday, noting that he reacted to an action of Senator Remi Tinubu, the wife of the APC’s National leader, Bola Tinubu.

“At the Executive session, an issue generated controversy and while contributing, Senator Remi suddenly stood up and called me a dog and a thug, of course, I had to react,” he said.

He wondered why Ahmed Bola Tinubu, while speaking through his Media Aide was asking him to apologize on altercation that erupted between equals.

Beat my wife and see what I’ll do – Tinubu dares Dino Melaye

A former Governor of Lagos State and a National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has vowed to deal with Senator Dino Melaye (APC-Kogi West), if he dared beat his wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu (APC-Lagos Central).

Melaye had on Tuesday reportedly vowed to beat Senator Tinubu during a closed-door session of the Senate over the forgery case against Principal Officers of the Senate.

Tinubu had expressed disapproval of the tactics suggested by Dino Melaye, who was of the opinion that commencing impeachment proceedings against President Muhammadu Buhari will make the Executive back down on the trial.

Shuleydee Releases Artwork For New Single #AYAMA - @realshuleydee

“SHULEYDEE IS NIGERIA'S FASTEST RISING FEMALE MUSICIAN TO LOOK OUT FOR IN 2016. Signed to forever records 

she plans to drop her monster hit single #AYAMA produced by Mr Mekoyo , it is rumored to be a great gyration song bigger than GODWIN , cant wait for the premier .

ABOUT SHULEYDEE: SHE HAILS FROM IMO STATE; A GRADUATE OF THEATER ARTS OF UNIVERSITY OF ABUJA NIGERIA, HER DIRECTION IS DEEPLY ROOTED IN REGGAE, NEW AGE AND HIGH-LIFE, SHE’S BLESSED WITH TALENTS, BEAUTY AND A UNIQUE STYLE OF MUSIC.

SHE RECENTLY PENCILED A MOUTH WATERING MANAGEMENT DEAL WITH WEIRD MC LABEL 0907 ENTERTAINMENT , SHE IS ALSO A BRAND AMBASSADOR TO SUTOL NIGERIA LTD AND DLG CLOTHING CO.

HER MAJOR INFLUENCES ARE REX LAWSON,FELA CHRIS BROWN, WEIRD MC,FAZE, J.MARTINS, FLAVOUR, TIMAYA, ONYEKA ONWENU, DON JAZZY, ORIENTAL BROTHERS  ETC , SHE HAS A CATALOGUE OF  HIT SINGLES , ADURE,  EBANO FT KAYSWITCH, SHONKOLO FT FLAVOUR, WEIRD MC FT SHULEYDEE, SUGARCANE, WAKEUP, AMEM PROD BY DEETUNES, ELUWA FT TERRY GEE  MANY MORE 

WE COUNTDOWN TO THE NEW SINGLE

Untold story of the Senators Dino Melaye–Remi Tinubu closed-door clash

PREMIUM TIMES has obtained further details of the altercation between Senators Dino Melaye (APC-Kogi) and Remi Tinubu (APC-Lagos) which saw both lawmakers calling each other names and charging at each other.
Those who witnessed the incident, which occurred during a closed-door meeting held by senators on Tuesday, said trouble started when Mr. Melaye urged the Senate to descend heavily on members who had offered to serve as prosecution witnesses in the ongoing forgery case against Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.
The Kogi senator is said to have accused the senators of being used by the presidency to destabilise the Senate and warned them to be ready to face the consequences of their action.
“You should go and tell those who sent you that nobody, I said nobody, no matter who he is, can ever control this Senate, ” Mr. Melaye was quoted as saying as he pointed at the affected senators, his face contorted in rage.
Our sources said when Mrs. Tinubu was recognised to speak, she rose, and said, “I’m just wondering why whenever Senator Dino speaks in this chamber, he is always threatening people and behaving childishly and at times like a thug.
“I think he needs to know that every senator here represents their constituencies. And that there is no need to threaten anyone.

New Music - Malboro _ GBERA & AGBAWO @malbyellowman

Malboro (Joshua Olumese Elimimaga) who hails from the dirty south of naija Hiphop community,

he is lyrically acclaimed with, good hooks and good looks,  he is one of 9jas upcoming underground musician with great vibes and sensational rhythm that gives a unique feel to the soul.

His kind of street metaphors and story telling  is what you all out there who love listening to Rap music should look out for.he premiers 2 dope singles  AGBAWO & GBERA.

agba owo features breezy produced by ice beats and Gbera  by malboro (giddi krunk)



FOLLOW

Twitter handle ..... @Malbyellowman 

Instagram .........  @Malboroyellowman 

Facebook............Malboro benson yellowman

 instagram @malborobenson IG

YOUR CHILDREN ARE SEXY?

A few months ago, I had taken my kids to a birthday party and found myself in what could easily have been a night club for kids. Scanty clothing such as tight or very short clothes, bum shorts, long weaves, etc, seemed to be the dress code. I noticed my son glancing around, probably wondering, "What in God's world are these other children wearing?" Or something like that.
Not long after, the kids were called out to dance to the hit songs of the season - these songs in my opinion should be rated PG 16. 4 - 6 year olds trooped to the dance floor, miming the sexually explicit songs and gyrating their bodies in the most sensual manner.
They could have given Beyonce a run for her money. They ran their hands over their bodies, shook their booties hard while their parents cheered them on. The boys had their upper shirts unbuttoned and rapped along perfectly to gangsta raps while doing flawless break dance.
Those who danced like actual children where shooed off the dance floor while the lewd ones were cheered on. As I watched, my child stared out of this circle looking longingly at the others dancing. I knew it was time to leave.
As we left, we went to an eatery where I bought them ice cream and gently explained to them the concept of decency and dancing with decorum.
Another time,I met a lady who had made-up her kids' faces like they were mannequins for Tara or Mac beauty products. Their skirts were so tight, that running up and down the slide was uncomfortable for them.

Driver crashes £150,000 Lamborghini into front of luxury car showroom damaging two Ferraris

A driver accidentally crashed a £150,000 Lamborghini into a luxury car showroom

The man, believed to be a photographer working on a photo-shoot, lost control of the expensive motor

A red-faced driver had to be treated for shock after accidentally crashing a £150,000 Lamborghini - into the front of a luxury car showroom.

The man, believed to be a photographer working on a photo-shoot, lost control of the expensive Lamborghini as he moved it outside Amari Supercars in Preston, Lancs.

The smash, on Tuesday afternoon, left not only the Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe wrecked but also damaged up to two Ferraris inside.

7 facts about relationships everybody should know before getting married

Contrary to what fairy tales may tell you, relationships take work. 

So we collected some of the best social science findings about what makes them last. 

Mike Nudelman/Business Insider

Drake Baer contributed to this story.

Take a look inside the dirty process that produces one of the world's most valuable illegal drugs

Coca plants grow just two months a year amid the lush greenery of the Colombian countryside. But the cocaine those plants produce powers a multibillion dollar industry that has spread around the world.

Despite the reputation for decadence and sophistication that has been built up around cocaine, the production process is simple.

Local farmers, sometimes families aided by neighbors, pick leaves by hand and then put them through a complex and noxious process to eventually turn those leaves turned into coca paste.

That paste can then be sold to traffickers, either Colombia's left-wing rebel group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) or one of the many gangs that have proliferated in the 20 years since the fearsome and powerful Medellin cartel of Pablo Escobar disintegrated in the wake of Escobar's ignominious death in 1993.

Despite intense and often violent efforts by Colombia (with strong backing by the US) to reduce coca cultivation, the trade has seen a resurgence in recent years. 

The photos below, taken by the Associated Press' Rodrigo Abd, document the coca-paste-production process, revealing the humble beginningsof one of the world's most lucrative illegal drugs. 

Three men shot at point blank range inside a car and it was caught on Facebook live video

Three Virginia men aged between 27 and 29, were shot yesterday on Facebook Live video. The men were sitting in their car on a street in Norfolk, Virginia and listening to music while one was filming when gunshots suddenly rang out. The men were shot multiple times by a lone gunman who quietly walked up to their car. The shooting was recorded on Facebook Live by TJ Williams (pictured left).

After the gun shots are heard, the camera falls to the ground and you start to hear people asking to call an ambulance. This is not the first time a shooting will be caught live on video. Watch the video after the cut...

Former Burundi minister, Hafsa Mossi assasinated

Former Burundian government minister and spokeswoman, Hafsa Mossi, was assassinated in the country's capital, Bujumbura today July 13th. Burundian police spokesperson, Pierre Nkurikiye, who confirmed the incident on twitter said

“Hon. Mossi assassinated 10.30 in Gihosha in the east of Bujumbura by two criminals in a vehicle,”

Narrating what happened, a close relative said

“She was inside her car near her home when a tinted car knocked her from behind. She went out to see what happened and was shot twice”.

Mossi was Burundi’s information minister and government spokeswoman between 2005-2007, and was, at the time of her death, a member of the East African Legislative Assembly. Said to be in her 50s, Mossi was a trained journalist.

Turkey is undergoing a 'seismic foreign policy shift' — and it could have 'unprecedented' consequences

In the past month, Turkey has moved to normalize relations with Israel, Russia, and now — according to comments made by Turkey's new prime minister, as well as a Foreign Policy reportpublished Wednesday — with the Assad regime in Syria.

"It is our greatest and irrevocable goal: Developing good relations with Syria and Iraq, and all our neighbors that surround the Mediterranean and the Black Sea," Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Wednesday.

"We normalized relations with Russia and Israel," Yildirim said. "I'm sure we will normalize our relations with Syria as well. For the fight against terrorism to succeed, stability needs to return to Syria and Iraq."

A new report published the same day in Foreign Policy claims that two members of Turkey's Homeland Party — a nationalist movement "with an anti-Western and anti-American platform" — have been meeting with Syrian government officials over the past year to discuss "how to prepare the ground for Turkey and Syria to resume diplomatic relations and political cooperation."

They say they have been relaying the outcomes of these meetings to high-ranking Turkish military and Foreign Ministry officials.