The new pseudoephedrine controls, in effect in many states, are yet another example of our of control government.
I went to CVS tonight to get a prescription. I noticed that Sudafed, Advil Cold and Sinus, and many other medicines were behind the pharmacy counter. I asked my pharmacist, Mr. Vu, if this was a new law. He said that it was. Pharmacists are required to verify ID and have the customer sign a log if that customer is purchasing any product with pseudoephedrine.
Pseudoephedine, along with several other chemicals, can be made into methamphetamine. The whole USA is afraid of this new "meth problem." First of all, if people want to use speed, it's their own issue, not mine. Secondly, why should I be inconvenienced buying cold medicine just because someone wants to get high? It is now illegal (a federal law) to possess more than 3 packages of pseudoephedrine containing products at one time. This is complete BS. What if you have 10 children (a rare, but possible circumstance) and they all have a cold? Worse yet, a medication such as Advil Cold and Sinus has ibuprofen and pseudoephedrine. You cannot make meth out of this because the other chemical will fuck with the rest of the process.
My pharmacist proposed a very clear scenario. If someone wants to cook up some meth, they can have their friends, their brothers, sisters, etc. go to CVS and buy the meth. The whole group can then move on to Walgreens, Rite Aid, and have enough Sudafed to make a whole lotta speed.
For all of you non-believers who are still reading my story, consider this. At the very most, 35% of Meth is made in the USA. The rest is from Mexico. There are 3 things that can happen with these stupid laws. Either:
1. Meth production in the United States drops, the price goes up by a bit.
2. The Mexicans start producing a lot more Meth and the price remains stable or drops.
3. The American Meth producers find something else to use instead of pseudoephedrine. Pseudoephedrine remains behind the counter, and the government never admits fault by repealing a law that does nothing.
Meanwhile, taxpayers have to pay for the 100 or so people (per state) that verify all of the pharmacy logs, enter this information into a computer, and enforce the law.
Mr. Vu said that soon enough he'll have a log for aspirin sales.
Bottom line: let's get the government out of the drug regulation business, whether is aspirin, pseudoephedrine, marijuana, cocaine, or methamphetamine. Let people make their own choices, eliminate the bullshit.
5 comments:
I completely agree. I too went to CVS pharmacy here in Houston, and I had to sign a log after showing my ID. The lady could obviously tell I was sick.
I completely agree with you. I think this is another stupid law passed. People can make Meth with other chemicals too. People will still make Meth and kkep buying Sudafed. They'll just buy it themselves or have someone else buy it. Our government really does suck and wants to control everyone. The hell with the FDA; they're a bunch of crooks. This country is becoming a big joke. I suggest to you and everyone else that you all buy imported goods/medicines. It's one way to show your dislike for what's going on in the USA (or Jokeland of America).
if people want to use speed, it's their own issue, not mine.
While I am no fan of the war on drugs. The production and consumption of meth is a public concern.
First, A by product of cooking meth is toxic waste. Millions are spent each year to clean up former labs.
Second, meth addition leads to other criminal behavior. A self-interested person should want to reduce meth addition because of the negative criminal consequences.
Third, meth is much more addictive than other illegal drugs, such as pot or LSD. People who have a chemical addition to meth are not able to rationally act in their own self interest. If you care about the welfare of other humans, you would want to discourage meth use and help those who are addicted. I have had friends with drug problems and meth was by far the most harmful. Increasing the relative cost of meth to other drugs would be beneficial.
they can have their friends, their brothers, sisters, etc. go to CVS and buy the meth. The whole group can then move on to Walgreen's, Rite Aid . . .
This is a ridiculous argument for several reasons:
If you had a friend who made meth, you would not purchase pseudoephedrine for them. You could be convicted and sentenced as if you had produced the meth yourself. You would also be guilty for conspiracy to produce meth, as well as violation of and conspiracy to violate the pseudoephedrine controls.
The second problem with your scheme is that many more people would know about the meth production, increasing the likelihood of being caught.
The third problem, is that those "100 or so people (per state) that verify all of the pharmacy logs" might notice a pattern.
Good thing you are not a criminal, you wouldn't last long.
"1. Meth production in the United States drops, the price goes up by a bit."
This is the most likely outcome. This is the goal of the legislation. As the price of using meth goes up, demand goes down.
"2. The Mexicans start producing a lot more Meth and the price remains stable or drops."
A higher price may encourage more imports and limit the meth price increase do to the new pseudoephedrine controls, it would not completely eliminate a price increase.
"3. The American Meth producers find something else to use instead of pseudoephedrine."
Whatever the "something else" is, will be more costly to get (otherwise it would be used now). Thus price would still go up and demand would go down.
It is reasonable to believe that requiring people to sign a log to purchase pseudoephedrine is not worth the marginal reduction in meth use, but you overstated your case.
It is true, a bi-product of meth production is highly toxic. Wouldn't it be better to legalize the substance so it could be made under sanitary lab conditions instead of having amateurs attempt the production?
Meth "leading to other criminal behavior" is an argument that's been applied to many other drugs. Usually the cause is that the drug is illegal and therefore some 90% more expensive due to the black market premium.
Many meth manufacturers do it not by themselves but in a quasi-organized structure, whether it be a "family" operation or gang related. These people have the numbers to be able to purchase large amounts of pseudoephedrine without letting more people in on the scheme.
Lastly, I most likely overestimated the number of people checking the logs. A government (that is much larger and powerful than the state governments) who cannot notice 19 foreigners training to fly planes into our buildings while some of them are living here on expired visas are doubtful to notice a pattern in the logs.
This whole idea is bullshit!
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