‘When you get caught between the moon and New York City’, be sure to read your government-supplied guide…to shooting up heroin:

The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene publication is titled “Take Charge, Take Care,” and offers advice on avoiding overdose, preparing your drugs, and taking care of veins in which you inject those illegal narcotics. The brochure, excerpted on the following pages, has been criticized by law enforcement agencies as a primer for addicts. The Bloomberg administration has defended the guide, contending that it would help save lives via the safety tips offered.

Take a look at the Table of Contents. The section on “Knowing Your HIV Status” isn’t first, or second…it’s actually the seventh thing you’ll get to, presumably after you’ve already filled your bloodstream with the nasty stuff. And the very last section, buried in the back of the brochure? “Ask For Help To Stop Using“. I’m so glad we have our priorities straight.

Incidentally, the Bloomberg administration also announced this afternoon they have other brochures set for release. Among them, a step-by-step guide to casual sex with strangers or mere acquaintances, which has several bonus chapters: What This Says About Your Self-Esteem, What That Genital Itching Could Mean: A Conversation About STDs, and RU: 486- One Night Stands? No Problem!. Foreword by human petri dish Tiger Woods.