Newsgroups: alt.drugs,rec.drugs.cannabis,rec.drugs.psychedelic,rec.drugs.misc,rec.drugs.chemisty,rec.drugs.smart,rec.drugs.announce,alt.answers,rec.answers,news.answers Subject: rec.drugs Frequently Asked Questions [ FAQ ] Summary: Introduction to rec.drugs and pointer to other FAQs (weekly posting) From: [d--em--n] at [brahman.nullnet.fi] (FAQ Posting Daemon) Date: Sun, 5 Jan 97 03:02:07 EET Archive-Name: drugs/rec-drugs-FAQ Posting-Frequency: weekly Last-modified: 07 Jul 1996 Version: 2.0 The QuickFAQ * Q: Where can I get the drug FAQs? A: FTP/Gopher/WWW to hyperreal.com. * Q: Can you mail me a FAQ... A: No. See part B. * Q: Is there strychnine in LSD (acid)? A: No. See part C question 1. * Q: Gimme a recipe for LSD/XTC/speed... A: No. See part C question 4. * Q: Can piss tests detect LSD/shrooms? A: No. See part C question 12. * Q: Will banana skins get me high? A: No. See part C question 16. * Q: What should I do before a piss test? A: Drink lots of water. See part C question 12. _________________________________________________________________ REC.DRUGS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Maintained by: [g--os--s] at [brahman.nullnet.fi] Special kudos to: [l--mo--t] at [hyperreal.com] Note: This is not an attempt at a comprehensive FAQ on all aspects of all drugs, that's what the individual drug FAQs are for. Instead, this is a guide on how to behave in rec.drugs, how to use network resources and an answer to some really frequently asked questions. Part A covers general stuff regarding rec.drugs and net, part B lists the FAQs, and part C gives slightly more detailed answers to the questions above and more. A) The rec.drugs hierarchy rec.drugs is a forum where people interested in the use of mind-altering substances, not necessarily even illegal ones, get together to share information and swap stories. If you are against drug use and post about it, be prepared to have lots of references and solid info on hand, since otherwise you WILL be flamed. Also, don't even THINK about trying to buy drugs on rec.drugs... you won't get any, period. rec.drugs is subdivided into the following groups: * rec.drugs.announce Announcements about drugs and related issues. (Moderated) * rec.drugs.cannabis The drug cannabis (aka marijuana or pot). * rec.drugs.chemistry Chemistry, pharmacology and related issues. * rec.drugs.psychedelic LSD, Ecstasy, magic mushrooms and the like. * rec.drugs.misc Stimulants, sedatives, etc. * rec.drugs.smart Smart drugs (nootropics). The first half of rec.drugs.* was created on Wednesday June 19th 1995, with the rest following on Wednesday April 3rd 1996, by public vote. It is the successor of the venerable alt.drugs, which was created in 1986 as the 2nd oldest group in the alt hierarchy. Please consult the "rec.drugs.* pointer", posted weekly in alt.drugs.*, for the rationale behind the change. The following groups of interest outside the rec.drugs.* hierarchy are considered valid and usable: * alt.drugs.caffeine Coffee, tea, and more exotic caffeine sources. * alt.drunken.bastards Abusers of the drug ethanol. * alt.hemp Various uses of the plant, focus on industrial use. * alt.smokers Nicotine addicts' discussion group. * rec.food.drink.beer Beer discussion. * rec.food.drink.coffee Coffee, with and without caffeine. * sci.med.pharmacy Technical discussion about pharmaceutical drugs. * sci.med.psychobiology Technical discussion about legal psychoactives. * talk.politics.drugs The politics of drugs. All alt.drugs.* groups except a.d.caffeine are considered obsolete. Rumors abound about the Feds/the cops/the DEA monitoring rec.drugs, but evidently nobody has been busted/investigated solely because of posting. But if you're going to admit to something illegal, it's a good idea to post it via an anonymous server. Just mail your message to [rec drugs misc] at [anon.penet.fi], and the rest is magic. For more details, mail [h--p] at [anon.penet.fi.] Here are some acronyms in common use on rec.drugs.*: 5-HT 5-hydroxytryptamine aka serotonin (a chemical found in the brain; many drugs affect serotonin levels) DMT N,N-dimethyltryptamine (an extremely powerful hallucinogen) DXM Dextromethorphan (a hallucinogen found in some cough syrups) FOAF Friend of a Friend LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide (a popular hallucinogen) WoD War on Drugs WoSD War on Some Drugs (ie. alcohol, nicotine, caffeine excluded) YMMV Your Mileage May Vary (ie. individual reactions are different) And finally, the unofficial IRC counterpart of rec.drugs.* is the channel #drugs, which is reasonably active; also check out #pot and #hemp. B) Other FAQs (WHICH I WILL NOT MAIL TO YOU) There are a whole bunch of FAQs for individual drugs and drug classes, which are posted highly irregularly. They can all be found at hyperreal.com in the directory /drugs/faqs thru FTP/Gopher/WWW. If you can't connect, the problem is at your end, not hyperreal's. Also check out the Network Resources file at hyperreal, and the WWW version of the rec.drugs FAQ at http://www.hut.fi/~jpatokal/rdfaq.html. For instructions on how to FTP, go over to news.announce.newusers and get the help files, or buy a book on using the Internet. If you can't use FTP, Gopher, WWW or other services that need a direct connection, fear not, you can use the FTP-by-mail services! Here's a list of server addresses, mail a message consisting of the word "help" to one: [f t pmail] at [sunsite.unc.edu], [f t pmail] at [src.doc.ic.ac.uk], [bitf t p] at [pucc.bitnet] C) Really Frequently Asked Questions All directory and file paths refer to hyperreal.com. Extensive references for almost all the info below is available here, you can check them for individual entries by clicking on the number of the question. 1. Is there strychnine (rat poison) in LSD? No, there is no strychnine in LSD. EVER. It is physically impossible to fit enough strychnine on a blotter tab to cause an effect; besides, since strychnine is expensive and the manufacturing process never uses it, there's absolutely no point in putting it there. (No, it does not bind the LSD to the paper or carry it across the blood-brain barrier or...) Large-scale lab analyses of street samples have never found ANY strychnine in LSD. The 'speedy' effects of acid, often attributed to the mythical strychnine, are in fact caused by a bad set and setting or possibly LSD breakdown products. See the LSD FAQ and /drugs/psychedelics/lsd/strychnine. 2. Does LSD leave crystals in your brain/spinal fluid that cause flashbacks? No. LSD is water soluble and entirely cycled out of your system within a few days. Full-fledged "pathological" flashbacks can be caused by any traumatic or extraordinary experience, including an LSD trip, but are not directly caused by the drug. See the LSD FAQ. 3. What happens if I take LSD while I'm on Prozac or other antidepressants? Certain antidepressants including SSRIs like Prozac will reduce the effect of psychedelics, but there are two notable exceptions. MDMA and a MAOI can induce a hypertensive crisis which may cause death! TCA or lithium and a hallucinogen will increase the effect of the drug, often to an unpleasant extent. If you have a story about taking a hallucinogen other than LSD on antidepressants, mail [k--n--n] at [helix.nih.gov] to participate in her study on this. 4. I have a recipe for making LSD with moldy rye bread and hair spray... No. The synthesis of LSD is a very, very difficult process that requires dangerous chemicals and lots of experience in organic chemistry. Check out http://hyperreal.com/drugs/faqs/synthesis.html for information on the synthesis of GHB, LSD, MDMA, methamphetamine, methcathinone and N2O. If you don't understand the synthesis, go read organic chemistry, we can't put it "in English" for you. As for some of the more famous recipes: * LSD from apple cores or orange peels: No. * LSD from Foster's beer: No, the recipe is some twit's idea of a joke. * LSD from moldy rye: A laboratory (not kitchen) can extract LSA, a related substance. See /drugs/psychedelics/lsd/ergot.culture. * LSD from morning glory: Another extraction of LSA, see the Morning Glory FAQ. * Meth from inhalers: An extraction of l-methamphetamine, a much weaker substance than real meth. 5. Can you overdose on acid/pot? No, overdosing on pot would require smoking or eating several KILOS of the stuff within 15 minutes. Overdosing on LSD is equally difficult. There is a case where a number of people snorted a massive overdose (equal to around 1250 hits) of pure LSD tartrate, believing it to be cocaine; some of them fell into comas and had other severe physical reactions, but lived through the experience with no permanent physical or mental damage. 6. What is Ecstasy (E, X, XTC)? Ecstasy should be 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), but on the street it is often a close chemical relative like MDA or MDE. It may also on occasion be a mixture of unrelated chemicals like LSD and/or methamphetamine (speed). Contrary to popular belief E is not laced with heroin; heroin costs too much, is very different in its effects, and is not active orally. What people think of as effects caused by heroin are often just MDA or MDE. 7. Does MDMA cause brain damage/Parkinson's disease/deplete spinal fluid? No, although investigations on possible brain damage continue; there is certainly no drastic brain damage though. The Parkinson's rumors come from a journalist confusing MDMA with MPTP, a product of screwed-up opiate manufacture which has nothing at all to do with MDMA. See the MDMA FAQ. 8. Are shroom kits legal, and do they work? The spores in the kits contain no psilocybin, so they are legal, except in California. They work, but only if you're willing to put effort into growing. See the Psilocybe Mushroom FAQ and /drugs/psychedelics/mushrooms. 9. Will marijuana do X to my body? Marijuana does not cause brain/immune/reproductive system damage, concentrate in the brain/testicles, enlarge breasts in males or damage chromosomes. It can cause lung ailments such as cancer, and driving while stoned can cause accidents. MJ smoke is not 10 times worse than tobacco, they are roughly equal, it may even be less harmful. See Marijuana Myths or the Cannabis Hemp FAQ for more details. 10. I just got a microdot of synthetic mescaline... No. An effective dose of mescaline would not fit in a microdot or on blotter, and mescaline in the black market is extremely rare anyway. Most of what is called mescaline is in fact LSD. 11. My friend told me that pot is often laced with acid... No. Pot is one of the cheapest drugs around, and just about anything added to it would make it more expensive. If somebody tells you that their pot was laced, almost always it just means they got hold of some really good pot and/or just got much more stoned than usual. If the pot was laced with acid, the acid would be destroyed by the heat when you smoked it. Occasionally pot laced with PCP, opium, or heroin is available, if so you will be told since it costs much more. 12. Help, I have a piss test next week and... Summary: Stop smoking and drink water. 8 glasses a day for two weeks should put you in the clear, but even a week is often enough. Herbs like Goldenseal do NOT help. Adulterants like Drano, bleach, or vinegar do NOT help and are likely to be noticed. Most urine tests cannot detect LSD, psilocybin or low doses of MDMA. See the Drug Testing FWI file at hyperreal. 13. What is "skunk"? Skunk is a type of hemp (cannabis). It originally meant Cannabis indica in general, but over the last 20 years has come to refer to a name of particular sativa/indica cross. While Dutch skunk is famous, the name did not originate there (although the cross now known as skunk may have). 14. What are the monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)? Plants that contain harmaline or hypericins (passionflower, Syrian rue, St John's Wort, and Banisteriopsis caapi) and some anti-depressant drugs (incl. Nardil, Parnate, ElDepryl and Selegiline; ask your doctor if you're not sure). THAT'S IT! Prozac, MDMA, beer, wine, cheese, chocolate etc are things you should AVOID when on a MAOI, but they are not MAOIs themselves. Combining MAOIs and other drugs can be very dangerous, do research beforehand. 15. What is Rohypnol? (Roofies, Roche #2, "-pam" drugs) Rohypnol is a brand name for flunitrazepam (marketed by Roche). It is a benzodiazepine and it's in the same family as diazepam (Valium), and so are most drugs whose names end in "-pam". It has sedative/hypnotic effects which are somewhat similar to alcohol intoxication. Using it with alcohol is NOT recommended due to a synergistic effect, the combination of benzodiazepines with alcohol may well KILL you! 16. Can I smoke or eat X to get high? All of the following either don't work or very little is known about them. Funny as it may seem, black market drugs are probably safer. Substances marked with (*) are very dangerous and can KILL you. * Aspirin: No, and aspirin is lethal in high doses. (*) * Banana skins: No, the Anarchist Cookbook's "bananadine" is a myth, along with almost all the drug recipes in the book. * Catnip: No, unless you're a cat. * Chia pets: No. * Cloud 9: No, it contains only a bit of ephedrine (a mild stimulant). A cup of coffee is much stronger. * Coke & aspirin: No, and aspirin is lethal in high doses. (*) * Cough syrup: Yes, if it has dextromethorphan (DXM). Some DXM cough syrups will make you sick though, see the Dextromethorphan FAQ. * Dramamine: Yes, but it's really nasty stuff. Hallucinations that seem like reality and no euphoria. See /drugs/psychedelics/misc/dramamine. (*) * Herbal E: No, see Cloud 9. * Jimson weed: Yes, but it's a deleriant like Dramamine. Many people every year are killed by overdose. See /drugs/natural/datura. (*) * Laughing gas: Yes, if it's medical or food grade and you're careful (people have died from suffocation). See the Nitrous Oxide FAQ. * Moldy rye: No, and you'll get quite sick if you try. (*) * Morning glory: Yes, but it causes nausea. See the Morning Glory FAQ. * Nutmeg: Yes, but most people find it unpleasant, primarily due to horrible taste, nausea/vomiting, and 3-day hangover. See the Nutmeg FAQ and /drugs/natural/nutmeg. (*) * Peanut shells: No. * Poppy seeds: No, the seeds contain no opium. * Toads: Yes, some rare toads, namely Bufo alvarus, secrete a smokeable venom containing the powerful hallucinogen 5-MeO-DMT. See /drugs/psychedelics/tryptamines. * Yubah Gold: No. In addition to the favorites above, a number of obscure legal herbs and plants can be used as drugs; most of the common ones contain only ephedrine or caffeine though. See the Natural Highs FAQ and /drugs/natural for more. _________________________________________________________________ Gnosis ([g--os--s] at [brahman.nullnet.fi])