[In the News] New Mexico Releases Comprehensive Methamphetamine Recommendations [In the News] New Mexico Releases Comprehensive Methamphetamine Recommendations
New Mexico has a new plan for taking on methamphetamine. A working group led by the Alliance's New Mexico office and New Mexico's drug czar, Herman Silva, has released comprehensive recommendations focusing on prevention, harm reduction, treatment and enforcement. The recommendations came out of a collaboration of local and state law enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the New Mexico Department of Health, treatment providers, harm reduction providers and academic researchers.
The recommendations, which were created to address what the group identified as the biggest gaps in current state methamphetamine policy, can be used to create a comprehensive legislative package. The key elements would include additional funding for prevention, expansion of harm reduction practices, increased treatment funding, jail diversion on the model of California's Proposition 36, and development of safety standards for cleanup of methamphetamine labs.
The recommendations will also be useful at the grassroots level. Though they highlight the most critical issues statewide, community coalitions will be able to use them to assess how methamphetamine is impacting their local community. They can also serve as a tool for people meeting with their city council members or legislators to advocate for particular aspects of the plan.
As a follow-up to the release of the recommendations, the working group will meet again in December to prepare for the next legislative session. The session will last only 30 days, but with strong interest from the governor and people across the state, there is a good chance for positive methamphetamine-related legislation to pass. Reena Szczepanski, director of the Alliance New Mexico, said, "I think we have a really good opportunity because so many people are concerned with methamphetamine."
Szczepanski sees in particular a strong potential for progress in the area of treatment. New Mexico has more people who need drug treatment and do not receive it than any other state. Szczepanski says, "What's really amazing about this state is that there have been so many people who have had family members affected by methamphetamine abuse or who have struggled with these addictions themselves who are stepping forward to say, 'We don't need to be throwing people in jail.'"
Progress in New Mexico may also translate into progress in other states. Szczepanski will be attenting the National Alliance for Model State Drug Laws conference next month, and will be sharing the recommendations document with policymakers from around the country. She expects this model to be of interest to other states because it facilitates creation of a comprehensive, coordinated policy that connects stakeholders working on different aspects of the methamphetamine issue.
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best way to keep speed i got a hold of a decent amount of base at the weekend, more than i can possibly consume in the next few weeks.
whats the best way to store it?
i was told the frigde but i dont have a 'safe fridge' if u know what i mean.
any other ways?
thanks
dea.gov: METHAMPHETAMINE: THE CURRENT http://www.dea.gov/pubs/intel/03052/index.html
September 2003
Overview
Methamphetamine production, trafficking, and abuse are problems affecting every country in the Asian and the Pacific Rim Regions. As early as World War II, methamphetamine abuse had become a scourge for Japan. During World War II, the Japanese Government (as well as the German, British, and U.S. Governments) used methamphetamines to keep their soldiers active for extreme amounts of time over long periods of engagement. After the end of World War II, large military stockpiles of methamphetamine found their way into the public sector. At one point in the early postwar years, Japan had approximately two million methamphetamine addicts in a population of only 88 million.
Burma (Myanmar), China (People’s Republic of China), and India are nations that play key roles in the production of methamphetamine in the East Asian and the Pacific Rim Regions. China and India are significant producers of precursor chemicals, such as ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, which are used in methamphetamine production. Burma and China are the two largest producers of methamphetamine. Burma is known for the production of methamphetamine tablets (“Ya-Ba”), while China produces crystal methamphetamine (called “ice” and “Shabu”).
Trafficking organizations find synthetic drug production (especially methamphetamine) attractive for several reasons: there is no dependence on growing seasons; no large workforce is required; necessary chemicals are easily obtained; it is easy to locate laboratories near consumer markets; and there is a high profit return on their investment.
Precursor Chemicals
China and India have vast commercial chemical industries, which produce significant quantities of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. The proximity to illicit methamphetamine production areas facilitates the diversion of these chemicals to the illegal drug arena. Significant amounts of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine produced in China and India are exported to countries such as Burma, Canada, Germany, Mexico, and the United States. While China and India each produce over 400 metric tons of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine a year, only limited quantities of these chemicals destined for illicit drug production are seized.
Since 1999, China and India have made extensive efforts to control the diversion of United Nations-listed precursor chemicals. These efforts include the passage of new legislation and immediate enforcement of these new regulations by China (February 2000) and India (December 1999). Both countries also participate in a variety of diversion-control efforts with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Production and Trafficking
Methamphetamine Tablets (a.k.a. “Ya-Ba”)
Burma is the primary producer of methamphetamine tablets in the region. Other countries also producing tablets, although in much smaller quantities, include Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. U.S. Government estimates place Burmese methamphetamine tablet production in excess of 800 million tablets per year. According to officials in Thailand, Burma produces up to 80 percent of the methamphetamine tablets that are consumed in Thailand each year. The Government of Thailand considers Burmese methamphetamine production to be Thailand’s number-one national security threat.
The primary producer of methamphetamine tablets in Burma is the United Wa State Army (UWSA), an insurgent group that has a cease-fire agreement with the Burmese Government. The UWSA and several other drug trafficking organizations began methamphetamine production in the early to mid-1990s to supplement their income from heroin trafficking activities. Because their heroin trafficking activities had been the focus of international law enforcement efforts, their cash flow was impacted. Methamphetamine has low production costs, easily obtained precursor chemicals, and a simple production process. The UWSA often co-locates its methamphetamine- and heroin-processing laboratories. The UWSA finds methamphetamine production to be very lucrative, as it provides large amounts of cash from the huge Thai drug market.
The UWSA produces methamphetamine tablets embossed with the “WY” and “99” logos. Originally, these logos represented the high quality of the methamphetamine tablets. However, over the past several years, other drug trafficking groups have been counterfeiting these logos for their own tablets.
Most of the methamphetamine tablets produced in Burma are shipped overland to Thailand, with some shipments passing through Laos. Large shipments of the tablets are caravanned into northern Thailand by soldiers of the UWSA or local “hill tribe” people, to be trucked to locations throughout Thailand. These shipments are then handled by various brokers conducting deals with a variety of local distributors. The remainder of the tablets are shipped by various maritime-and aviation-smuggling methods to international drug consumption markets. Burma-produced tablets have been seized in Australia, Brunei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan (Republic of China), and Vietnam.
There have also been shipments of methamphetamine tablets to ethnic Hmong and Yao individuals in the Sacramento, California, area. However, the amount of Burma-produced tablets being shipped to the United States is currently unknown. There is also no reliable seizure data on Burma-produced tablets entering the United States.
Crystal Methamphetamine (a.k.a. “Ice,” “Shabu”)
China is the primary producer of ice in Asia and the Pacific Rim. Smaller quantities of ice are produced in the Philippines, Taiwan, and South Korea. The Chinese Government has no estimates on the scale of either methamphetamine production or consumption within its borders. However, Chinese officials consider ice to be one of the country’s most significant drug abuse problems, second only to heroin abuse. China has the largest consumer market for ice. Other consumer markets for ice include Australia, Brunei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, the Marianas Islands, and the United States (specifically Guam and Hawaii).
The ability to manufacture multikilogram quantities of ice in China is a result of the easy availability of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Most ice-producing laboratories are located in the provinces along the eastern and southeastern coastal areas, with limited production occurring in the inland areas. Chinese authorities report that some Chinese drug trafficking organizations use different sites for different stages of the production process. Chinese law enforcement authorities also report that most of the ice labs are small and highly mobile.
Ice, produced in China, is shipped to other nations by a variety of methods including containerized cargo, small freighter, or fishing vessels that travel in international waters. Several seaports in southern and southeastern China serve as transit points for ice leaving by containerized cargo. Ice is not normally transported by air cargo or air courier; however, some quantities have been known to enter Japan by courier.
Outlook
The methamphetamine production, trafficking, and abuse situation in the Asian and the Pacific Rim Regions is unlikely to change in the near future. The Government of Thailand has long considered Burmese methamphetamine production to be Thailand’s number-one national security threat. Chinese officials now consider crystal methamphetamine to be among the country’s most significant drug abuse problems, ranking it second only to heroin abuse. Given the current methamphetamine situations in both countries, it is doubtful that either government will change its view on this threat anytime soon.
The UWSA and other drug trafficking organizations have found methamphetamine production to be attractive for a variety of reasons, specifically the high return of profit on their investment. As a result, these groups will likely expand their methamphetamine production and trafficking activities to maintain their financial base.
This report was prepared by the Europe, Asia, Africa Strategic Intelligence Unit of the Office of Strategic Intelligence. This report reflects information received through July 2003.
World: Bombs and Speed Kill in Afghanistan – August 2002 Bombs and Speed Kill in Afghanistan
By alternet.org - August 7, 2002
Copyright: alternet.org
Here's one anti-drug advertising campaign you'll never see:
Scene One -- Bombs exploding on the mountainsides of Afghanistan. Narrator: "This is the bombing of Afghanistan."
Scene Two -- U.S. bombs hitting several Afghan villages. Dead men, women and children litter the streets. Narrator: "This is the bombing of Afghanistan, on drugs."
Have you wondered why there have been so many botched bombing missions in Afghanistan, resulting in an, as of yet, undetermined number of civilian casualties? Were you surprised when a U.S. Air Force pilot dropped a 500-lb laser-guided bomb and killed four Canadian members of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in mid April? Are you aware that bombing continues?
Two recent reports from the Vancouver Sun and the Toronto Star may shed some light on these questions.
In early June, the Vancouver Sun reported: "Pilots from the U.S. fighter squadron that mistakenly bombed Canadian troops in Afghanistan had told their commanders shortly before the fatal accident that they were exhausted and needed more rest between missions."
At least one F-16 pilot "complained that requirements for crew rest were not being observed and that many of the pilots were overtired." He was told that "further questions about crew rest would not be looked on favorably by the wing command." Instead of complaining, "pilots were advised to speak to a flight surgeon about so-called 'go/no pills'-amphetamines used to help stay awake on long missions, and sedatives to help sleep."
No magic carpet ride
In a more detailed early-August piece in the Toronto Star, William Walker reported that "U.S. jet fighter pilots, responsible for at least 10 deadly 'friendly fire' accidents in the Afghanistan war, have regularly been given amphetamines to fly longer hours." Walker reports that after the extended missions, pilots return to base and are given "sedatives by air force doctors to help them sleep." Then, "often less than 12 hours later," they are sent on their next mission
The Toronto Star found the names of the "exact drugs pilots are given and how they're taken" in a 24-page document produced by the Top Gun fighter training school and the Naval Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory in Pensacola, Florida. According to a spokesperson for the U.S. Air Force Surgeon-General's Office in Washington, "pilots are given the stimulant Dexedrine, generically known as dextroamphetamine, to stay alert during combat missions in Afghanistan."
"Pilots refer to Dexedrine as 'go-pills.' The sleeping pills they are given, called Ambien (zolpidem) and Restoril (temazepam), are referred to as 'no-go pills.' "When fatigue could be expected to degrade air crew performance, they are given Dexedrine in 10 mg doses," air force spokeswoman Betty-Anne Mauger told The Star.
According to the Star, "medical literature indicates that amphetamines can have severe side effects. The worst is called 'amphetamine psychosis.' It causes hallucinations as well as paranoid delusions. 'Dexedrine also leads a person to build a tolerance level for the drug and when higher doses are offered, anything at that level develops addictive tendencies among those who continue to use it regularly,' said Dr. Joyce A. Walsleben, director of the Sleep Disorder Centre at the New York University School of Medicine. 'The threat of abuse and addiction is definitely higher with Dexedrine.'"
More on the side effects of amphetamine use comes from Drugwar.com which sites a note from Russ Kick's website, the Memory Hole: "Although this Naval publication repeatedly lists the side effects of amphetamine use, it never mentions tremor, nervousness, anxiety, and dizziness (listed at WebMD) or overstimulation, dysphoria, tics, diarrhea, and Tourette's syndrome (listed at RxList), not to mention the rare occurrences of psychosis and hallucinations. In fact, WebMD warns: 'Use caution when driving, operating machinery, or performing other hazardous activities. Dextroamphetamine may cause dizziness, blurred vision, or restlessness, and it may hide the symptoms of extreme tiredness.'"
Was this potentially addicting combination of uppers and downers in part responsible for the faulty judgment that may have led to the deaths of the Canadians? "Better bombing through chemistry," was the way John Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org, a Washington-area defense policy think-tank, phrased it for the Toronto Star. "This was certainly one of my first thoughts after the Canadian "friendly"-fire accident. The initial depiction made it seem as if the pilot was behaving in an unusually aggressive fashion."
Pilots in the sky with ...
According to the Star, Illinois Air National Guard Maj. Harry Schmidt was piloting the F-16 supersonic fighter that dropped the bomb. Maj. William Umbach was flying with him in another F-16 that night. "I don't know the answer," Schmidt's lawyer, Charles Gittins, told the Star, when asked whether Dexedrine was involved. "I never asked my pilot if he was medicated. But it's quite common. He's on vacation now, so I'll check with him about it when he gets back."
How widespread is drug use in the Air Force? Is it officially sanctioned? According to Pike, "The aviation community and the Air Force community certainly don't like to talk about so-called 'performance enhancing' drugs," he said. The Toronto Star: "There have been reports that Schmidt and his fellow pilots-originally deployed to patrol the U.S.-enforced no-fly zone over southern Iraq from an American base in Kuwait-had complained of fatigue since they were also ordered to fly combat missions over Afghanistan. Gittins said he was not aware of such complaints.
They "had to fly for three hours to arrive at the combat zone. An F-16 mission to Afghanistan from Kuwait routinely takes nine hours including three hours over the target area plus the trip back. Pilots also attend pre-flight briefings and debriefings after they return."
Mauger, the Air Force spokeswoman, said that "Dexedrine is commonly used by pilots on missions of more than eight hours' duration, or when pilots get less than the recommended 12 hours' rest between missions, as was the case for the pilots on double duty from the Kuwait air base.
The Top Gun document, entitled "Performance Maintenance During Continuous Flight Operations," reports that "in an anonymous survey among pilots who flew in Desert Storm, the 1991 Persian Gulf War, 60 percent said they used Dexedrine. In units that saw the most frequent combat missions, usage was as high as 96 percent." During the Persian Gulf War pills were 5mg each (in contrast to today's 10mg pills).
According to the Top Gun report, "pilots are allowed to 'self-regulate' the amounts of Dexedrine they take. They carry the pills in the single-person cockpit of their F-16s and take them as they wish. As one unidentified Desert Storm squadron commander said of his pilots in the document: 'You must give them guidelines and then let them self-regulate. If you can't trust them with the medication then you can't trust them with a 50 million dollar airplane to try and go kill someone.'"
Retired Col. Richard Graham of Plano, Texas, who logged 4,600 hours of flight time in the U.S. Air Force, including 210 combat missions in Vietnam, said pilots in that war routinely took Dexedrine. The Air Force approved its use in 1960. "We would be tested for uppers and downers and if we tolerated them okay, we went forward," he said in an interview. As long as nobody is abusing it, I think it's okay. "I'm not a big fan of anybody taking medication in the flight business, but sometimes situations call for it in combat. I never had any bad effects from it and it served me well."
This is the president's "war on terrorism." This is the president's "war on terrorism" on drugs!
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