DEA issues warning about fake Xanax laced with fentanyl, doesn't mention its culpabilty

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Originally published at: DEA issues warning about fake Xanax laced with fentanyl, doesn't mention its culpabilty | Boing Boing

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And yet, just like every other law enforcement scam, they will promote this new harm they’ve set up as further justification for their existence, budget and freedom from oversight.

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It would make more sense to replace the DEA with a Federal agency dedicated to treating drug addiction as a public health problem instead of a criminal problem, and leave climate change to a different agency (or group of agencies) entirely.

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I have prescriptions for both adderall and xanax, for actual real medical conditions. All their restrictions just make it a major pain in the ass for me to get my medication. When I tried to fill my adderall my CVS was out of stock. Usually you can go to another CVS that has it and they can pull up your prescription and fill it there, but no, they can’t do that for Adderall. The doctor would have to send in a whole new prescription to the other CVS. Literally how does that stop people from getting it illegally?

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If anything, the BS you have to go through for a Sch. II drug incentivizes black market procurement.

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So are they trying to smuggle fentanyl to look like xanax because it is more common and less likely to raise questions? Otherwise, why spike black market xanax with a narcotic?

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Yeah, that’s true!

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I think it’s just a cheap and easy-to-obtain drug that fucks you up

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But I assume they are selling them as Fentanyl - not a Xanax. The buyer should know, right?

Is this more of a warming not to take unknown drugs like Mia did in Pulp Fiction, thinking Heroin was Cocaine?

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That’s not a safe assumption to make. Lots of people selling drugs will claim what they’re selling is something safe and well known that people actually want, but instead give you something in a similar class hopefully diluted down to the right strength and/or a research chemical that resembles it.

If we really wanted to save lives we’d subject recreational drugs to pure food and drug regulations, put a bit of friction in front of them so people are less likely to try heroin on a dare, and lightly tax them. (Though honestly the savings from not having the drug war would probably be pretty substantial.)

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I am 100% on board with this. Let it be known there is inherent risk with recreational drug use, but that what you bought is XYZ with ABC purity, and in some cases dosage guides.

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Word. The first reason I try to steer people away from illicit substances is cops/legal risks. The second reason is adulterated and/or mislabeled substances are incredibly dangerous.

Also, if TPTB regulate the shit out of it then it becomes clinical and boring instead of illicit and edgy.

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I don’t know if that would actually make that much difference in usage. Legal pot certainly hasn’t made pot less popular.

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That is true, but having different strains with different cannabinoid compositions and different methods of delivery lends itself to branding opportunities. If we make the hard stuff completely generic and sterile, then we can hopefully make it less interesting to use while also making it less dangerous.

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In the city so callous, with two dead set eyes
With a mouth full of Xanax and a handful of time
They say what doesn’t kill you will just get you high
And what doesn’t kill you…

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This is the best thing I’ve read on the Internet all week.

The fact that that is not what they’re doing is all the proof you need that US policy is not rational- it’s just about picking good people and bad people, and punishing the latter.

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Fentanyl is incredibly, incredibly physically addictive. They add it to anything else they can get to create repeat customers, plain and simple. There’s a big market that will buy “Xanax” from them who won’t buy heroin, so this addicts that new customer base.

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It’s cheap and easy to synthesize and you only need a tiny amount to produce a narcotic effect.

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Shocked_Not_shocked.gif

surprise-surprise-surprise

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“You certainly don’t expect to hear this. It is totally out of character from what I know about the ethics and the way the police department has operated in my tenure there. Certainly a big surprise to all of us in law enforcement,” Shafer, the former narcotics unit boss said.

“Officers are not above the law. They are not immune to enforcement. So when our officers do wrong get caught we take appropriate action,” he said.

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