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A Shocking Revelation!!!

T

Toumbido

Bluelighter
Joined
Feb 26, 2001
Messages
788
Location
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Well, I don't know about you guys, but after reading the ever-informative MX free tabloid in Melbourne this morning, I am throwing away my test kit! It says EXPERTS, people!
(taken from MX, Monday March 19, 2001)
ECSTASY TEST KIT UNSAFE: EXPERTS
Mike Bruce
Ecstasy testing kits were unreliable and fraught with health and legal risks, according to Human Services Department drug experts.
Health Minister John Thwaites asked the department to investigate after MX revealed last month that a new ecstasy testing kit developed in Melbourne could detect the potentially lethal amphetamine PMA and the anaesthetic ketamine.
Recent tests of pills sold locally as ecstasy have shown dangerousfillers such as ketamine, speed, the date-rape drug Rohypnol and PMA, which has been linked to 10 deaths in Australia. But the department said the new kit was not effective at detecting adulterated ecstasy. It claimed they were unreliable and could miss the presence of other drugs, such as heroin or cocaine. The report said: "Given the issue that home-made tabletsare rarely 'pure' ecstasy and often have no ecstasy at all, then the kits are of limited value beyond establishing that some ecstasy is present."
The response contrasts with the Bracks Government's stance of minimising harm which last year almost led to the establishment of an injecting facility for heroin addicts.
The department report also criticised the kits because they could make testers liable if a false reading led to death or injury.
Testers could also be guilty of possession as someone assisting in the taking of the drug.
A spokeswoman for Mr Thwaites said the minister would remain cautious about the Melbourne kits until the National Drug Advisory Committee finished preparing a more detailed report.
I just don't know what to say...
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"Rock over London, rock on Chicago!" - Wesley Willis
[This message has been edited by Toumbido (edited 19 March 2001).]
 
I think that this follows a trend by the media in general to overstate the risks associated with e. I dream of an unbiased and well-informed media (although, it will never happen).
Nick
 
The article is right in some respects. The testers are unreliable and give uncertain results -- when compared with gas chromatography for example.
But...
they are a fucking lot better at telling you what's in a pill than anyone's sense of taste/ smell/ magic/ alchemy/ dealers-word-of-honour...
(insert information about likelihood of a pill containing dangerous amounts of heroin/cocaine here).
BigTrancer
smile.gif

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Load universe into cannon. Aim at brain. Shoot.
 
I prefer the small amount of information the kits provide me than no information at all about what I'm taking.
I think thats what the kits are all about.
just my $0.02.
 
look for our response in todays MX. it was rushed, of course, so im not completely happy with it. we are asking for a sit-down discussion with the state government to go over these issues...
 
If they would allow us to have our pills properly tested by a lab then we wouldn't need these pill testers, but as everyone has said, until then having a tester is better than nothing...
The testers won't very clearly show if there are adulterants in a pill if there is also a larger amount of mdma, but if we make sure that people are aware of this when the testers are sold and promoted, then they would not be giving people a false sense of security...
There is also the point that without the testers how are people to know when there is no mdma in a pill? Take it to find out?
It's awesome that we have people who are concerned and knowledgeable enough about these issues to do something about it... Thumbs up to JB and all the others who are trying to do something.
[This message has been edited by Tarsarlan (edited 19 March 2001).]
 
...my god, what a heap of shite
"Ecstasy testing kits were unreliable and fraught with health and legal risks". Hmmmm no, the Ecstasy is fraught with danger, not the test kits, if anything they _reduce_ the danger! As far as legal risks go, thats like saying carrying an unused pipe is a legal risk, and I think if someone was charged for posessing a test kit there would be quite a big case to get a conviction.
"such as heroin and cocaine..." give up you idiots! no-one who uses the kits beleives you, stop scare mongering!!
"they could make testers liable if a false reading led to death or injury". Take a little look on the packaging and read the *&!#ing disclaimer, clearly stating that the test kit only tells you what is present in majority, and does not test for everything! I give up, these guys are idiots...
What possible motive do they have to get the test kits banned? do they think this will reduce the number of people using ecstasy? 99% of people that use the test kits are experienced pill takers, thats how they found out about the kits, and they aren't going to stop taking pills because they can't test them, they just have to take more risks, gee thats clever, lets increase the risk so more people die, very clever!
so which way will they go? Harm minimisation or the head in the sand approach? time will tell...
 
Mr E More - I think the legal problems posed by testing kits do not relate to posession or use of the drug (unless the pill is tested by another party), the real issue is that a positive test result for the presence of MDMA could amount to a representation as to the pills safety - and no amount of disclaimer clauses can really avoid this. If someone is teetering over the edge as to whether to take a pill or not, gets a positive result, and hence decides to take the pill and then dies or is adversely affected, then where the tester was the clinching factor in that persons use of the drug - you're going to have problems.
Even though it is clear that testing is a positive thing it is not foolproof and its extremely dangerous to suggest otherwise. Not least of all beacuse of the legal implications.
 
Lets look at the real issue here,
How many of you would go back to popping to find out if the pill had MDXX in it?I wouldnt and thats what there after...bringing the scared factor back in. THANKGOD 4 THE TESTER. The tester really does give you more confidence to pop and thats really what they want to stop.You know how it goes media is full of shit and only the narrow minded cant see through.Fair enough as you guys have said they have a point with inacurate testing for smaller amounts of other drugs,however its mdxx we are after anything else that shows up we should take as a bonus.
Bitch aka Just_Say_No
 
Kid A - If the result is positive for the presence of mdxx, all the test is saying is there is some mdxx present and possibly/probably a whole lot of other stuff chucked in too. If they choose to ignore the disclaimer or misinterpret the results, then they are the ones at fault...
What do you mean foolproof? Absolutely no one has ever said the test kit is foolproof!!! It sounds like you've been listening to too many media reports...
Maybe they want to convince themselves it will be ok to take a certain pill, and so twist what the test kit is saying into what they want to hear?
Or perhaps have no real idea about the risks involved with taking pills, and will find themselves in trouble for taking stupid risks anyway...
Even just having the kits around tells kids that as far as pills are concerned they're not "all good" so think about what you drop...
 
Chaoscat - I appreciate what you're saying, But from a legal perspective it's never that simple!. We live in a society where the politics of blame dominate the legal world. The concept of personal responsibility is rapidly decreasing. A disclaimer on a drug testing kit is not likely to matter to a conservative judge - from their perspective the tester, with its purple/black test result, would have practically shoved the pill down that person's throat. Whether the cause of death/injury was some bunk/dangerous ingredient which went undetected or whether it was simply a problem relating to MDMA itself ie - water retention, the law will look at the part the pill tester played. You can't simply tell a judge or someones parents that it was 'their own fault' - rightly or wrongly they will want answers and they will want to blame. And they will point the finger at the pill testers and the person providing the pill testers, and the closest person with the deepest pockets and say your pill tester induced my son/daughter to take drugs.
This is the reality of the situation. It is also largely legally untested (pardon the pun)
I think what is important is not to dismiss the concerns raised in these articles through a reactionary and dismissive response. It inhibits the 'informed' discourse of drug discussion and issues relating thereto.
It is easy to dismiss the views of the media, but don't forget that these are largely the views of the community and therefore the view of our legal system.
 
You believe that the views of comix like MX reflect the views the of majority of the public? I think it is more of a lowest common denominator paper with a reading age of 10 years old. They want to you think in the same broadstrokes that their marketing works within.
Bluelight, testing kits and increased education make drug taking safer not safe. There is no such thing as safe substance use, even when your chosen substance is legal/de-criminalised. You might well test two pills - one tests negative the other tests black. The former you know to be bunk and you dispose of it responsibly (ie you do not sell it on, you flush it away). The latter you believe to contain MDMA, so you take it but still use the critical faculties gained through education and knowledge. You then feel this pill has been cut with another substance which is a lesser constituent (the tester reveals the major constituent only). If the effects are unpleasant or unwanted then the idea is to stop taking that pill; a single dose is highly unlikely to be dangerous. A testing kit is a single part of an individuals overall harm reduction strategy - disregarding it is unwise.
The vast majority of the worlds problems could be solved through education. Newspapers like MX are creating problems through polarisation of arguments and promotion of discord - the lifeblood of popular journalism.
 
Information is knowledge. Knowing if a pill contains a PMA or K is a hell of a lot better than not knowing.
"Ecstasy testing kits were unreliable and fraught with health and legal risks, according to Human Services Department drug experts". Yeah, well what about the crappy bretho tests and radar detectors that the cops use!!!!
 
scaremongering about heroin and cocaine in pills?!?!? if there were coke in my pills (in a decent amount mind U) I wouldn't complain, i'd put it straight up my nose. hmmm sounds like a very good idea
smile.gif

Synth
 
The best argument against Ecstacy pill Test kits I ever hear is 'they do not tell the user how much mdma is present'
I mean it's an INDICATOR solution, not a broad analysis, if the test kit goes black to indicate MDMA then starts bubbling pink polka dots with green stripes theres possibly a problem, but its still served its purpose and its for the user to decide where to take it from there.
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Niques Wisdom
- Don't ever try your best, it's the first step to failure.
-It is far better to be pissed off than pissed on.
-If someones life is in danger, do not help them, this will almost always bring you to the same fate.
 
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