Dutch ban psychedelic mushrooms

[ClickFanatic]

Thanks to a media hype about a few drug tourists in Amsterdam killing themselves after a bad combination of drugs involving psychedelic mushrooms, some goon in our government decided to fuel the fire a bit by making these mushrooms illegal.

The proposed alternative to a ban was to enforce stronger regulations on the sale of mushrooms (a mandatory 3 days to consider a purchase if it's the first time, more advice about the usage and effects of the drug, just to name a few). This was supported by many drug/health experts and organisations, but ignored by the Minister of Health, Welfare and Sports.
However, now the stuff is going to become illegal, it will be more difficult to regulate (smartshops versus street dealers, go figure) and there will be less or even no advice on the usage.
This is completely against the tried and tested drug policy that the Netherlands is so well-known for.

Ironically, the Minister based his decision on a report on the health risks of psychedelic mushrooms. He should have taken a look at a report on the health risks of alcohol, for example, or maybe one on running of the stairs backwards with your eyes closed (okay, that last one wasn't serious). I can tell you that the mushroom is nothing compared to those.
He's obviously not going to ban alcohol. We all know what happened when the US tried that. The same logic applies to other drugs as well.

As you may have noticed, I am not really happy about the ban. Just to clarify, I don't use (and never have used) psychedelic mushrooms myself. I am just really annoyed by the fact that some moral crusader fails to see the essence of a problem.

Anyway, I'm afraid we're going to see a great deal of news reports about mushroom-incidents the coming months.
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[RohitMalhotra]

Drug abuse is despite repeated interventions one of the biggest problems facing all countries.

It stirkes all and it strike the young and the gullible

The very fact that the curiousity factor and the instinct addiction makes it even more dangerous ..

Surprisingly it isnt only the poor who fall victim to this addiction the rich are as affected with addiction if not more ..

Drugs being banned and being made illeagle makes them more expensive hence more lucarative hence an easy way to make money ..
one may argue why not just let its charm be lost by making it available over the counter and follow it by a aggresive education campaign against drug abbuse .. but the negative effects of the drugs are too darrastic to let this happen as the weaker


I guess and effective policing policy and a education programme againgst drugs educating our youth against the cons of drug abuse is the only solution to fight against the evil monster
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[marinaroz]

You mean those mushrooms actually were legal in your country before? I don't know whether it's smart or not to make drugs illegal, but the public definitely needs to be made aware of their danger.
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[ClickFanatic]

[Duck]

The mandatory wait time seems like a much better idea. If they're going to go the way of banning drugs altogether, why only ban mushrooms? I would predict that abuse of shrooms will become a greater problem than abuse of other drugs pretty soon.
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[ClickFanatic]

[Duck]

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[ClickFanatic]

[SE13]

Just in reply to the above post, there was some talk on the television here in The United Kingdom, about the closure of the coffee shops in The Netherlands, and in particular in Amsterdam. While I am not aware of how true the stories may or may not have been, this would surely be a backward step...? Not that I am or ever have been a drug user, but keeping the tolerance levels, and keeping everything clean is surely the better option, as opposed to allowing street dealers to mix in all manner of I don't know what, make huge profits, and con the public into the bargain.

But then this story was also linked with the potential closure of some of the window shops in The Red Light Area, which I also found quite bizarre. The mere fact that the window shops are allowed reduces sexual crime to an almost negligant figure compared with with neighbours in other European Countries.

Whether or not these stories are actually true can only be answered by any Dutch reading this post, and I would appreciate an update, especially as it is in excess of ten years since I last visited your beautiful Country.... And possibly, in fact almost definitely the only place I would consider leaving England for.

Just for a laugh to those reading, I did not actually realise that jay-walking was a crime in The Netherlands was actually an offence, until I landed myself a thirty guilder fine in Eindhoven in about 1990...
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[pharmer4]

As a profesional who deals with drugs every day, I actually commend the Dutch methods.

It is plain to see that making these drugs available in a manner that is socially acceptable, clean, pure, and separated from other crimes, certainly affects the crime and poverty of your country.

That being said, I think it would be extremely difficult to implement that policy in most other countries, becuase the drug problems in most other countries are so entrenched.

I think banning psychadelics like shrooms is moronic if other items are still available. The three day waiting period seems sensible, so long as people don't get it on day three, then fly home still smashed . . . .

I am interested, though, is there a professional requirement for selling narcotics in the Netherlands - are there people like pharmacists who do it, or is it just any dude who opens a shop and finds a supplier?

On the subject of "watering down" weed, I agree this would be a huge problem. Firstly, the most common adulterant is tobacco, which has much worse health ramifications than maijuana.

Secondly, when it is sold elicitly, it is commonly laced with other drugs such as PCP (angel dust - a halucinogen), crack, and even heroin. The reason for putting these more expensive drugs in there? because they are highly addictive, and once hooked, you have a "loyal" customer. That kind of thing does not happen when sale of drugs is licit.
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[ClickFanatic]

SE13, a while ago, several coffeeshops in Rotterdam had to shut down, because the city council did not want any shops near schools. The fact that coffeeshops are simply tolerated, makes them relatively easy to shut down. However, it does not happen a lot, for as far as I know, because shops hardly cause trouble.

pharmer4, I am not sure if one requires a license in order to open a coffeeshop or smartshop. I believe you do need approval from the city council, though (at least, I think it would be a smart thing to do).
I don't think it was previously necessary to have a license for selling psychedelic mushrooms. However, the mayor of Amsterdam suggested the idea of creating such a license (this was part of the alternative solution to banning that I was talking about earlier in this thread).
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[SE13]

I am aware of the legalities of drugs in The Netherlands, and that it is only tolerance, which for me, makes The Netherlands far more advanced than the rest of Europe. I also appreciate that coffe shops near to schools would be a bad thing. But general closure would be a real shame, as per my points, and that of others in previous posts.

Forgive me, as I am no expert in this field, but the stuff the street people sell here is like a brown block which users set light to, and crumble down. In the coffee shops in The Netherlands, I recall sort of green stuff put into roll-up style cigarettes. Can I presume that the stuff being sold here, as a Class C drug I might add, is somehow lesser in purity, and more laced than that of the coffee shops in The Netherlands?
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[ClickFanatic]

[pharmer4]

real hashish is pure resin - the stuff SE13 is a combination of low-grade resin and the poor quality crap left over after harvesting the leaves.

Basically, weed is the leaves and heads of the sativa, hashish is pure resin form the sativa when the flowers are in bloom, and the block mentioned above is all the left-overs.
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