Police warn highly dangerous party drugs hit Australia

[Chiral]

reports that batches of ecstasy laced with the pesticide levamisole have arrived on Australian shores following a worldwide shortage of MDMA. The claims surfaced in Zurich at an international drug conference recently where it was also asserted cocaine is being cut with the chemical MCPP.

Levamisole is commonly used to treat worm infestations in cattle, pigs and sheep, although Wikipedia states it has also been used to treat human in the past. It has long been a common cutting agent in cocaine and ecstasy, with a 2008-2009 report by the US Drug Enforcement Administration finding 69% of cocaine samples tested positive for the substance. Toxicology reports following the death of DJ AM showed levamisole in his system. MCPP – meta-Chlorophenylpiperazine – has been around since the 1970s, and in the mid 2000s gained popularity as a ‘designer drug’. It is commonly found in pills claimed to be ecstasy.

News.com.au report that these ‘highly dangerous’ batches of cocaine and ecstasy are already on Australian streets. “It is very, very dangerous because people don’t know what’s in the drugs,” said Detective Superintendent Nick Bingham. “We have certainly seen a spike in seizures and arrests of cocaine,” he continued. “It’s the first time we have seen cocaine seizures significantly overtake heroin, although it is still a small population of the overall drug seizures.

SOURCE

[FancyPants]

Oh and yet pill testing stations remain illegal...

[Uncle. S]

"Ecstacy: You don't know what you're really taking"

not anymore, good work getting the decent pills off the streets so that the market can be flooded with poison...

[Auxin]

Yeah, if they gave a rats ass about public health instead of increasing penalties for drug possession at every opportunity theyd just increase penalties for selling 10+ doses of tainted drugs- to make all the dealers and middle men want to deal with clean stuff. But no, they'll say 'that would send the message that untainted drugs are safer than rat poison'.

I'd say you really need to fix your government... but then I'm not really one to talk lol

[nabraxas]

I'd say you really need to fix your government...

Even if i believed that it was possible to fix government, the only party that has a clearly stated, sane policy on these matters, in the English speaking world, seems to be the UK Green party:

A realistic policy on drugs would:

Cannabis will be available through a limited number of regulated outlets, as under the Dutch model.

Decriminalise small-scale possession of recreational drugs such as ecstasy.

Repeal the Public Entertainment (Drugs Misuse) Act (AKA Barry Legg Act), which has prevented harm reduction in clubs from taking place.

Take the drug trade out of criminal control and place it within a regulated and controlled legal environment.

http://policy.greenparty.org.uk/policypointers/ppdrugs.pdf

With only about 1% ov the vote in the UK i wouldn't hold my breath waiting for those policies to be put into action.

The Australian Greens have a much higher %age ov the vote, maybe around 8%, but their policy on drugs is pretty flimsy, they seem to shy away from endorsing decriminalisation as if it would cost them votes...

The Australian Greens believe that:

1. The Australian Greens do not support the legalisation of currently illegal drugs.

http://greens.org.au/policies/care-for-people/drugs-substance-abuse-and-addiction

[Yawning Man]

Oh and yet pill testing stations remain illegal...

 

[Bread Filter]

Oh and yet pill testing stations remain illegal...

 

Fight the power.

It is not illegal to own reagent kits. Although they are fairly useless these days with pills they are still very valuable with some of the newer RC's.