Crackdown might slow up labs, but laws won't work, meth cook says
By: GARY WARTH - Staff Writer | ∞
After 20 years of trying to combat methamphetamine production by restricting the chemicals used to create it, there are encouraging signs that the strategy has reduced the drug's use.
The number of domestic labs has decreased dramatically since the days consumers could buy unlimited amounts of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, crucial ingredients in methamphetamine, and the latest report on local adult and juvenile arrestees from 2006 found that people in custody said meth was harder to find and more expense.
However, methamphetamine producers have always bounced back from coordinated efforts to restrict the drug's precursors. At least one man with intimate knowledge of methamphetamine production thinks they will once again find a way around the restrictions against pseudoephedrine and ephedrine.
Responding to questions from the North County Times through e-mail from his home in Green Bay, Wis., Steve Preisler wrote that he doubts any legislation will completely eliminate methamphetamine because it can be created with ephedrine extracted from the plant ma huang. A Japanese chemist first extracted it in 1885.
"I used to be able to find tea bags of this herbal Chinese medicine for sale on the Internet," he wrote. "I can no longer find them by Googling 'ma huang,' but the plant and related species will easily grow wild virtually anywhere west of the Mississippi, and the seeds are available online by looking for ephedra seeds."
Preisler is the author of the underground best-seller "Secrets of Methamphetamine Manufacture," which he published in 1981 under his nom de plume "Uncle Fester."
"The plant takes a couple of years to grow to harvestable size, but since it is a perennial, it offers yearly harvests once established in the wild," he wrote about ma huang. "This is the alternative source I have been including in update sheets with my books for almost a year now. I think soon the entire West will have these little pine bushes growing."
Preisler also doesn't think much of the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act, which has placed Sudafed and other pseudoephedrine products behind the counter.
"The only effect of the Sudafed and ephedrine pill restrictions has been to hand a virtual monopoly for meth-cooking over to the Mexican Mafia," he wrote. "They don't buy pills a few at a time and extract them. They buy in bulk drums."
He also wrote that meth-makers may revert to making the drug with P2P, the chemical they used before switching to ephedrine around 1980, or just switch from meth and instead make amphetamine with the amino acid phenylalanine. Preisler wrote that there is no easy way of reducing the amino acid, but is confident that chemists will find a way, as they always have.
"I am sure clandestine research is actively addressing this problem," he wrote.
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So? wrote on Nov 25, 2007 4:33 AM:Pass a law to make buying drums illegal. Just pass more laws.
bye bye wrote on Nov 25, 2007 7:52 AM:People like Preisler are doing what they can to ruin people's lives for their own greed. Once caught, they should serve a life w/o parole sentence, the very 1st time, and not be allowed to profit in anyway from their crimes.
That's right. wrote on Nov 25, 2007 11:42 AM:Drop the hammer. The death penalty for anyone involved with meth. That should do it. Well, it will produce some deaths for those bloodthirsty folks. That would be progress to some.
Focus on the real threats..... wrote on Nov 25, 2007 12:45 PM:While meth and other drugs are certainly bad, the real kiiler is alcohol. Alcohol not only takes the lives of users, it also inflicts death and injury upon innocent people who happen to be in the vicinity of the user. It is addictive and widely available. Alcohol is involved in millions of car wrecks, assaults, suicides, household accidents, domestic violence, poisonings etc etc. each year. Yes I know there are those that will say "meth is unlike any other drug, it is sooooo addictive and harmful". To them, I say "look at the statistics, alcohol is the most harmful drug available to date." By the way, the National Survey of Households found that while many people have tried meth, only a handful get addicted to it. While one addict is too many, meth is hardly the boogeyman it is made out to be. Use your god-given reason and see the real danger ALCOHOL. During prohibition the data collecters of the time found that the ill effects of alcohol use and abuse (violence, illness) DROPPED by at least 25 percent. If we are going to ban harmful substances lets be sure to target those which cause the most harm. How about making any use of alcohol outside of the home illegal? How about a presumed intoxication limit of .01% B.A.C. for driving and just walking around? How about random breath tests by police at public events to nab offenders? I don't drink so none of the above would bother me in the least. I'm sure some alcholics would complain but they are the dangerous people that need to be removed from the streets anyway.
GFN wrote on Nov 25, 2007 2:09 PM:Focus more on stopping the usage and demand instead of the supply. Put the tweakers, with their sores, emaciated bodies, and toothless smiles, on the telly so we can all see the reality of this insidious drug. We can give them shortened jail sentences, or free treatment if they agree to do so.
to focus on the real threats... wrote on Nov 25, 2007 2:30 PM:i guess i could agree you have good ideas. but if you think about it, the percentage of drinkers that are alcoholics is far less than the percentage of meth users that are meth addicts. in other words, there are more people who drink alcohol at reasonable levels and are careful about their drinking than there are people who use meth wisely and reasonably. Alcoholism does take a big toll on individuals and families, but still there are others more who can drink and not get drunk, or can drink and don't drive. just because some people get addicted to pain killers, does that mean we should get rid of all pain killers and outlaw them? no. many more people know how to use them and do not abuse them, just like alcohol.
John P. wrote on Nov 25, 2007 2:41 PM:.01 blood alcohol level is too low . The bible says a glass of wine is good makes the face shine and makes the heart rejoice. The Jewish people of old and Christians would have one or two cups of wine with their meal . So BAC level of .01 is too low it is not even biblical. It is the abuse of alcohol that is the problem. The current laws are good , .08 B.A.C. is good. The problem is Drunks drinking too much . College kids, young ones and adults are drinking too much they think it is fun , cool , the in thing to do but getting Drunk is not cool. Drink only in moderation 'make the heart rejoice' enjoy fellowship with family or friends have a beer or a glass of wine just don't get Drunk . Self control in all things ! That is a true Christian. Or true religious person no matter what faith.
RE: Focus wrote on Nov 25, 2007 3:18 PM:Meth is certainly not a good thing. But the sheer amount of alcohol use in the USA means that there will be MANY MORE alcohol related problems than meth related problems. Meth, heroin, cocaine are all pikers in the bad drug department compared to the consistent and horrible tragedies caused by alcohol abuse. If drug abuse related deaths can be pictured as floors of a building, the building with the alcohol-related deaths would be as tall as the Empire state building while the building for meth related deaths would be a modest suburban office building. OxyContin related deaths would be a ranch style home. Interestingly, marijuana related deaths would be a tooth pick model. All drug abuse is sad, alcohol is widely accepted (just watch TV commercials) and so produces many more victims. I'm not scared of meth....the chances of me or mine being directly affected by it are small. I am scared of alcohol abuse. the chances of me being killed or injured by a drunk are much higher.
John wrote on Nov 25, 2007 6:02 PM:Hes called Uncle Fester because his Teeth are rotted out to the gums and festering. Speed kills.
John wrote on Nov 25, 2007 7:19 PM:Great-so now it's a DAMNED PLANT this stuff is originated from! When it's at this level, stopping it will be like trying to stop marijuana, or heroin!
Vista Man wrote on Nov 25, 2007 9:04 PM:The War on drugs is failing. Punish people for commiting crimes and punish hard. Don't punish the people that are using responsibly and keeping to their own business. If you're smoking meth, shame on you. If you're smoking meth and commit crimes you should first offense try rehab. Second offense shame on us but now you're going to prison!
fedup wrote on Nov 26, 2007 7:48 AM:force-feed the cooks, pushers, etc their poison when caught. that will put a dent in the production chain!
jb wrote on Nov 26, 2007 7:37 PM:The war on drugs is a farce. The biggest drug dealers in the world, are people that have passed thru the white house, and dare to use their influence to deflect the blame to people in positions not as fortunate as themselves. Drugs should be de criminalized, and all the people locked in prison, for unviolent drug crimes should be released, and our tax dollars not wasted on babysitting them, when that money could be spent on educational awareness. We should be more concerned with helping people, instead of locking them all up. Haven't we seen that this just doesn't work?
jack d wrote on Nov 27, 2007 2:24 PM:Alot of crimes are committed by drug addicts. For instance, murder, home invasion, car jacking, car theft, major felonies. Alot more are homeless and jobless. Don't forget diseases, that would need to be treated so an epidemic could be prevented. If this drug was decriminalized, then we would have more crime. We would also have a whole lot more homeless people everywhere, who would be doing whatever it took to get thier drugs. Maybe if many millions of homeless drug addicts where around, there would be little chance for this free nation to continue. How would we defend ourselves. We would basically have to support a bunch of losers. I think our politicians should get very tough on this issue and make it extremely undesirable to use drugs. Close the borders so the mexican mafia or any other enemy is rendered helpless.
you don't know the truth wrote on Mar 17, 2008 10:01 PM:there are people who make a million dollars a year on the meth trade. they helped the mexicans take over. they took the control out of the small time cooks hands so they could funnel this money into their pockets. research your facts and you will find that dope is all about control. the millionairs of the dope trade are investors on the wrong side of the law. there is big bucks there
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