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Libertarian
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Bill to punish Selling of Salvia
#4362944 - 07/02/05 11:50 AM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
State Targets Tripped-Out Herb The Quest To Ban Salvia It's available at stores across Long Island. It is a known hallucinogen. And it is totally legal?for now. Salvia, a member of the mint family, has, up till now, flown under the radar of law enforcement. But it has just been targeted by the New York State Legislature.
The state Senate last week passed a bill proposed by Sen. John Flanagan (R-Smithtown) to create a fine of $500 for selling Salvia.
"This is an interim measure to raise awareness of the drug and allow law enforcement and science to continue further study before we engage in full criminalization," Flanagan says. A similar bill pending in the state Assembly would make possession of the herb a crime, but one punishable with only a $50 fine.
Narcotics detectives in Nassau and Suffolk counties have little information on the substance, authorities say. A spokesperson for the New York office of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says since Salvia isn't a controlled substance, they're not looking for it. However, no official felt sufficiently knowledgeable about Salvia, short for Salvia divinorum ("Salvia of the seers"), to comment.
Sam Naderi owns Funtazia, a head shop in East Meadow. He says he's been selling the product?at $20 to $60 per gram?to a growing clientele for about three years.
"I figured sooner or later somebody would make a stink about it," Naderi says.
He hadn't heard of the proposed ban, but hopes the state will give warning if it passes. "I wouldn't put it past them to completely criminalize it, then come down here and fine us," he says. "Hopefully, it won't pass."
Salvia distributors, such as Florida-based Club 13, say the herb is intended to be used for meditation or as incense. Still, there is little information about it, and scientists don't know how it works because they haven't studied it. Novice horticulturists needn't worry, though: The species of Salvia that gets you high is distinct from the flowering plant or culinary garden sage many grow in their yards.
Salvia is indigenous to Mexico and is not a controlled substance, according to the DEA, although the agency does list it as a "drug of concern." The psychoactive ingredient is Salvinorin A. The Food and Drug Administration classifies it as one of its "new drugs," because the agency lacks evidence that it is recognized as safe.
"It is a drug that produces hallucinations similar to those experienced by LSD, and is readily available and legally for sale on the Internet," Flanagan says. Multiple Nassau and Suffolk retailers have Salvia readily in stock. "This drug is rapidly increasing in popularity among recreational drug users, especially among young adults and adolescents," Flanagan says, noting that it appears to be most prevalent on college campuses.
Salvia divinorum is sold at varying intensities, and smoking as little as one-sixth of a gram can cause intoxication, depending on potency and personal tolerance. The herb, which smells like tea and looks like marijuana, has effects that can last from five minutes to as much as three hours, according to Club 13.
The Assembly bill includes information about high doses that reportedly have made users "get up and lunge around the room, falling over furniture, babbling incomprehensible nonsense and knocking their heads into walls." Our tester, however, found that a low dose mostly just induced about two minutes of intense giggling. Fun, but not $50 fun.
Several states unsuccessfully attempted to ban Salvia in the last three years, but the measures failed because the drug is not chemically related to any illegal substances, Club 13 officials say. Missouri does have a law that prohibits sale to minors. Congress failed to pass a nationwide ban on the herb last year, but it has been banned in other countries, such as Australia, Denmark and Italy.
Brian Del Re, president of Club 13, says a ban on the drug "just takes another choice away from Americans in pursuit of liberty."
While Salvia retailers statewide may be concerned about their merchandise being so close to illegal, at least they can enjoy the uptick of sales now that proposals to ban it are putting the herb in the spotlight.
Edited by Libertarian (07/02/05 12:51 PM)
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StrandedVoyager
The People's Champ
Registered: 12/09/04
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Re: Bill to punish possession of Salvia [Re: Libertarian]
#4363018 - 07/02/05 12:30 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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God damn this worthless country.
-------------------- Hi My god... it's full of stars...
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CaptainH13
Scum
Registered: 10/29/04
Posts: 10,287
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Re: Bill to punish possession of Salvia [Re: StrandedVoyager]
#4363052 - 07/02/05 12:45 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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son of a goddamn bitch......
i hate this fucking world....
they say"it's ok gardners" like they gonna fcking die if someone touches a plant....
NOT right now......
--------------------
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WhiteRabbitt
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Libertarian]
#4363121 - 07/02/05 01:17 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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it's criminalization is inevitable. No surprises here.
-------------------- You gotta jump and swing up to hit me in the knees.
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freddurgan
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: WhiteRabbitt]
#4363234 - 07/02/05 01:53 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Yeah it's 100% inevitable. No surprise here either.
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Vex
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: freddurgan]
#4363249 - 07/02/05 01:59 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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they sell it next to the whippets and wizard smoke at every head shop/novelty shop around. It was of course inevitable because of the people that run these stores circulating it around to every idiot with a fake ID. It shouldnt be sold like it's some innocent little drug so at least it's not in these stores anymore. It should not be illegal though.
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WhiteRabbitt
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Vex]
#4363286 - 07/02/05 02:13 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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its a shitty drug anyways
-------------------- You gotta jump and swing up to hit me in the knees.
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KahSol
Deffinatelystill aStranger.
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Libertarian]
#4363713 - 07/02/05 04:30 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
"It is a drug that produces hallucinations similar to those experienced by LSD, and is readily available and legally for sale on the Internet,"
They always mention LSD with hallucinagens. They rarely ever mention psilocybin or shrooms to compare it to.
No big loss though, the illegal psycadelics are cheaper and better.
-------------------- I was strolling through the park one day... On a very merry month of May.. When I was taken by surprise! By a pair of Cube-ee Psi's! In the merry merry month of May!
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Grav
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: KahSol]
#4363767 - 07/02/05 04:47 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Now it will be even more popular.
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Ravus
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Libertarian]
#4363831 - 07/02/05 05:10 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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I'd say we might still have a year or two before the feds and DEA move to make it Schedule I, but neverthless I recommend people start stocking up if they like it, because the vendors might be pressured over time to take it off their stores and websites.
-------------------- So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.
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Redstorm
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: WhiteRabbitt]
#4363905 - 07/02/05 05:34 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
WhiteRabbitt said: its a shitty drug anyways
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Libertarian
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Redstorm]
#4363940 - 07/02/05 05:40 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
No big loss though, the illegal psycadelics are cheaper and better.
Wasn't every psycadelic legal at some point?
Quote:
I'd say we might still have a year or two before the feds and DEA move to make it Schedule I, but neverthless I recommend people start stocking up if they like it, because the vendors might be pressured over time to take it off their stores and websites.
This is why there need to be more policies like Iamshaman, simply don't sell it for human consumption and don't reply to anything to do with it.
Quote:
its a shitty drug anyways
There is still the matter of principal, surely any trip to erowid will show it matters to someone. While it is not a party drug, the very fact is if they could ever schedule salvia, then everything else is fair game. And we will be left with such mind expanding substances as $5 a pack cigs and cheap booze.
Any sort of scheduling is years away, but it won't be too hard, if pressure is applied, there is no unity amongst users of substances offline, save for a few organizations. And the likes of Soros, and a few otehr millinonaires, who make some leeway, but putting drug issues on ballots is ridiculous, as america rarely, if ever, makes sensible democratic decisions, it must be forced from the courts.
Edited by Libertarian (07/02/05 05:41 PM)
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Ravus
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: WhiteRabbitt]
#4363972 - 07/02/05 05:47 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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It's not as pleasant as LSD, but it's still interesting. I wouldn't call it "shitty" by any means, even if not's a euphoric technicolor experience.
-------------------- So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.
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Libertarian
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Ravus]
#4364004 - 07/02/05 06:00 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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I would like to see a study on it, but anecdotal evidence suggest it is so powerful, a sizeable chunk, if not most, users don't do it a 2nd time.
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Ravus
Not an EggshellWalker
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Libertarian]
#4364073 - 07/02/05 06:23 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Not sure about that. A lot of people I've talked to don't like it, but they still do it if it's presented to them.
Personally, I've done it quite a few times, and it's so radically alien and dysphoric that I can't compare it to any traditional drugs like LSD. It's interesting, but there's no way I could abuse it.
Though if it becomes Schedule I, that'd mean it has a high potential for abuse. Ironic, eh?
-------------------- So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.
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Zero7a1
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Ravus]
#4364258 - 07/02/05 07:35 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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I just feel like someone is horribly bitchslapping me every time i do, and i just feel all like steel inside... cold, and unfeeling steel. Yet it feels so cold... and it hurts!
-------------------- What?
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BCBudJohn
Foolhardy
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Grav]
#4364386 - 07/02/05 08:19 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
Grav said: Now it will be even more popular.
So true. This will be even more proof at how prohibition will fail.
On another note, hopefully this will force some insight and research on the drug.
-------------------- Peace John
Edited by BCBudJohn (07/02/05 08:24 PM)
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Baby_Hitler
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: WhiteRabbitt]
#4364468 - 07/02/05 08:56 PM (18 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
WhiteRabbitt said: its a shitty drug anyways
It's a shitty drug, but a great entheogen.
Not for Hippie-dippie wannabe's.
-------------------- This space for rent
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S8N
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Re: Bill to punish Selling of Salvia [Re: Baby_Hitler]
#4847977 - 10/24/05 10:24 PM (18 years, 5 months ago) |
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id lable it euphoric technicolor style, but it only lasts 2 seconds. its a shitty drug........ its ok ill just restock the head shops with AMANITA!!!! that will teach them government fuckers!
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