Newsgroups: alt.drugs,alt.answers,news.answers Subject: alt.drugs Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Summary: Introduction to alt.drugs and pointer to other FAQs (weekly posting) From: [d--em--n] at [brahman.nullnet.fi] (FAQ Posting Daemon) Date: Sun, 6 Nov 94 02:23:20 EET Archive-name: drugs/alt-drugs-FAQ Posting-Frequency: weekly Last-modified: 1994/29/10 Version: 1.1 ALT.DRUGS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Maintained by: [g--os--s] at [brahman.nullnet.fi] 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 alt.drugs, how to use net resources and an answer to some *really* frequently asked questions. The info has been collected from sources too numerous to list, but a special tip of the hat must go to Lamont Granquist for his extensive help in compiling this. A) The alt.drugs hierarchy alt.drugs is a forum where people who enjoy 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 alt.drugs... you won't get any, period. alt.drugs is subdivided into a number of groups. In addition to alt.drugs, which covers everything without its own group, there are the following: alt.drugs.caffeine Coffee, tea, and more exotic caffeine sources. alt.drugs.chemistry Neurochemistry as well as manufacture. alt.drugs.culture Trip accounts, hippie culture, pot etiquette, etc. alt.drugs.pot All forms of cannabis and everything related to it. alt.drugs.psychedelics LSD, DMT, mushrooms and company. alt.drugs.usenet The most addictive drug of all! A joke group. Most of the groups are relatively new and thus not received by many sites. If your site does not receive them, ask your sysadmin to add them. In addition, there are some drug-related groups not under alt.drugs: alt.coffee Coffee, with and without caffeine. alt.drunken.bastards Abusers of the drug ethanol. alt.hemp Various uses of the plant, focus on industrial use. alt.psychoactives Primarily nootropics, ie. "smart drugs". alt.smokers Nicotine addicts' discussion group. rec.food.drink.beer Beer discussion. sci.med.pharmacy Technical discussion about pharmaceutical drugs. sci.med.psychobiology Technical discussion about legal psychoactives. talk.politics.drugs The politics of drugs. Rumors abound about the Feds/the cops/the DEA monitoring alt.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 [alt drugs] at [anon.penet.fi], and the rest is magic. For more details, mail [h--p] at [anon.penet.fi.] B) Other FAQs (WHICH I WILL *NOT* MAIL TO YOU) The following FAQs are posted regularly: Weekly: Drug-Related Network Resources FAQ, Newsgroups Notice Biweekly: Addresses FAQ, FTP Instructions FAQ, Natural Highs FAQ Monthly: Anti War-on-Drugs Activists' List, The Drug Price Report There are a whole bunch of FAQs for individual drugs and drug classes, which are posted highly irregularly. You will find most (not all) of these at the FTP/Gopher/WWW site hyperreal.com in /drugs/faqs, along with megabytes of other information. The following FAQs are known to exist, in various stages of development: Absinthe, Bibliography, Bong-Pipe, Caffeine, Cannabis Hemp (alt.hemp), Codeine, Dextromethorphan, Ecstasy, Eating Marijuana, Grain Alcohol, Gravity Bong, Growlights, Institute for Hemp, LSD, LSD-Tattoo, Marijuana Consumption, Marijuana Law, Marijuana Myths, MDMA (Ecstasy), MDMA Synthesis, Methamphetamine (Speed), Morning Glory, Natural Highs Australia, Neuropharmacology, Nutmeg, Opioid, Opioid Analgesics, San Pedro Potency, Smart Drink, Solvents, Tryptamine Carriers, W 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 [decwrl.dec.com], [f t pmail] at [sunsite.unc.edu], [bitf t p] at [pucc.bitnet] C) Really Frequently Asked Questions 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. 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, not impurities in the drug. See the LSD FAQ. 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. 3. What happens if I take LSD while I'm on Prozac or other antidepressants? With SSRIs like Prozac, the effects of psychedelics are reduced greatly; however, the medical consequences are unknown. Do NOT mix psychedelics with MAOIs, TCAs or lithium. If you have a story, mail [k--n--n] at [helix.nih.gov] who is doing a study on this. In general, avoid mixing the two. 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. If the 'recipe' involves morning glory seeds, it's usually just an extraction of LAA, a related but far weaker substance; see the Morning Glory FAQ. If the recipe involves moldy rye bread, it's a nasty way to kill yourself. Likewise, the fabled synthesis of methamphetamine from Vicks inhalers is just a crude extraction of l-methamphetamine, a much weaker relative. 5. Can you overdose on acid/pot? No, overdosing on pot would require smoking several KILOS of the stuff within 15 minutes. Assuming you did manage this feat, you would instantly throw up most of it. 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, 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 *never* laced with heroin, heroin costs too much and is very different in its effects. 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 a lot of effort into growing. See /drugs/psychedelics/mushrooms in the FTP sites for more. 9. Will marijuana do 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 (alt.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. 12. Help, I have a piss test next week and... To summarize: Stop smoking and drink water. 8 glasses a day for two weeks should put you in the clear, but even a week is often sufficient. Supplements like Golden Seal are not necessary. Also, most urine tests cannot detect LSD or psilocybin. Check the FTP sites for more. 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)? The drugs Nardil (phenelzine) and Parnate (tranylcypromine) and plants containing harmaline, namely passionflower, Banisteriopsis caapi and Peganum harmala. THAT'S IT! Prozac, MDMA, beer, wine, cheese, chocolate etc are things you should AVOID when on a MAOI, they are *not* MAOIs themselves. 15. Can I smoke bananas/peanut skins or take Coca-Cola and aspirin or a box of Dramamine or lick toads to get high? Bananas/peanuts: No, the Anarchist Cookbook's "bananadine" is a myth. Coke & aspirin: No, and aspirin is lethal in high doses. Dramamine: No, you'll just get *real* tired. Licking toads: Some rare toads, namely Bufo alvarus, secrete a venom containing the powerful hallucinogen 5-MeO-DMT. Check the directory /drugs/psychedelics/tryptamines on the FTP sites for more.