living in melbourne for the last 3 years i observed from my experiences in the rave scene that ice is especially popular with the younger kids just getting into drugs and going out, the older crowd tend to scorn ice. To say that ice has become a substitute for pills is incorrect as ice is more expensive and significantly different in effect, i have observed that ice is used in a number of ways, in coordination with pills throughout the night, solely on its own by some people fond of dancing all night without stopping, and (by most people i observed) functionally almost as a means to kill the come down from pills in the early morning so the user is be able to function normally the day after raving without being scattered, OR inorder to reenergize them for a morning 'recovery' club. If anything, ice has become a complementary product to drugs like e, rather than a substitute for it. As for its addictive qualities and current ice problems in melbourne which predominate the news, i personally find it very hard to think that the drug on its own is responsible, ive tried lots of ice in melbourne over the last year and as great as some of it is i can confirm that even the best stuff i have ever had does not compare to the kind of ice readilly available in asia, where im from, which is of a ridiculous level of purity much more harder on ure body(i have experienced weight loss of up to 4 kgs simply from sitting down and smoking less than 120mg of asian ice), and harder on ure mind(instant psychotic behavior manifesting, e.g talking to myself and constantly rechecking things, addictive cravings), i think a person would have to smoke over a gram of good melbourne ice to him/her self in one sitting to even get to that stage. now most recreational users dont use that much nor could afford it, usually buying a point for themselves or even to share. The main danger of ice here is not so much the drug but the attractive way in which its administered usually with a crack pipe, now starring down a crack pipe periodically throughout the night for 'burns' could indeed invoke psychological longings to relive the entire experience, from the way the ice first melts, to the first deep hit of smoke, to the process of cleaning recrystalised ice off the top of the pipe and down the stem, this is indeed where the danger lies, even so, i know no body in the rave scene who uses ice and lets this habbit go further than the weekend. Of course there must be exceptions,.. I dont think generally it is ruining the lives of a lot of people who use it recreationally when out on the weekend, still that is not to say that regular weekend use is a good thing for them psychologically and physically in the long run, no of course. BUT it does not constitute a proper addiction or dependancy, nor do i believe most people doing ice on the weekends are gonna evolve into addicts. the ice isnt strong enough, yes smoking the crack pipe is a very attractive proces but if ure gonna be a real idiot with ice u have to have something wrong with u in the first place, psychological weakness to certain highs, an addictive personality(no different from someone who becomes dependant on the sensation of being stoned on weed).. i love the intensity of ice, i know this about myself and thus limit my use to once a month, other users should practice more self honesty if they feel ice is going out of control and stay away from it if they cant handle it and are craving more and more once the weekends over and the ice is all gone. unlike crazy asian ice, i think the quality of melbournes ice is just right, if treated with respect and used sensibly it can be the most amazing sensation.
this is just my take on the situation from limited observation of recreational ice users in melbourne mainly orientated around the rave scene. im not defending this drug, it like many drugs can be totally fucked, but there are some who keep it under control and dont deserve the negative stereotype associated with a meth user.