170 lines
7.6 KiB
Plaintext
170 lines
7.6 KiB
Plaintext
>>>---> PCP <---<<<
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Angel Dust, Killer Weed, supergrass, crystal cyclone,
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elephant tranquilizer, hog, PeaCe Pill...PCP. It's a drug
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with many names. And a bad name.
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It's unpredictable and unpleasant, and yet, people use
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it to get high.
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The first time I tried PCP, I black out. My
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friends tried to help me, but I kept falling and
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hitting my head. I couldn't even talk to ask them
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what happened. I was confused. That's what the
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dust does to you. It was really bad. I got
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scared.
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--a 13-year-old girl from Chicago
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Before the drug first caught on in San Francisco in
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1967, advance publicity touted PCP's effects as falling
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somewhere between those of marihuana and LSD. But many
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early PCP experimenters soon rejected it as a bad drug after
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experiencing some of its frightening effects.
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In spite of its bad name, however, PCP is increasingly
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seen on the street today. It's cheap and available and
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often masquerades as other popular street drugs. PCP is
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most often sold as THC (marihuana's active ingredient), a
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drug which is rarely seen on the street. Many users take
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PCP without knowing what they're taking. But, for some, PCP
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is a drug of choice.
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* IT'S FOR ANIMALS, NOT FOR PEOPLE
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--------------------------------
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Phencyclidine, or PCP, was first synthesized about 20
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years ago. It was intended to be used as an anesthetic
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agent in human surgery. But, PCP produced unwanted and
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unpleasant side effects, and experimental studies with hu-
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mans were soon discontinued. Today, its only legal to use
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is in veterinary medicine.
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In spite of this restriction, PCP is easy to get on the
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street. That's because it's so easy to make. Using readily
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available chemicals, bootleg laboratories all over the coun-
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try are turning out the drug and making an attractive pro-
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fit.
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IT'S A VERSATILE DRUG
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---------------------
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PCP comes in different forms--as a powder, as a tablet,
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or as a capsule in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes.
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It can be taken in different ways--it can be smoked, snort-
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ed, swallowed, or injected.
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Smoking a joint made of parsley or marihuana sprinkled
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with PCP powder is by far the most popular method. Users
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find they can control PCP's effects better that way. But
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smoking too much can cause trouble.
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I smoked so much PCP, and it was very potent. It
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wasn't supposed to be that potent. I kept
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smoking, even until I passed out...When I woke up,
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I thought I could walk, but I couldn't feel myself
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walking. My brain felt just like jelly.
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--a 17-year-old girl from Beverly Hills
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Taking the drug in its tablet, capsule, or pure powder
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form usually means getting even larger doses of PCP than
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from smoking it. But it's not easy to tell how much PCP is
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in a joint or a pill or a capsule. So often the effects are
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not at all what the user expects.
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AND IT'S POTENT
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---------------
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PCP is a powerful drug even in small quantities. But,
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as with all psychoactive (mind-altering) drugs, effects vary
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depending on how much is taken, how it's taken, and who's
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taking it.
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Users often have trouble describing how they feel when
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they smoke PCP. Most users agree that it's different from
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other drugs. They say it feels like they're in another
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world--a fantasy world which is sometimes pleasant, some-
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times not. When the high wears off, users often feel mildly
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depressed, irritable, and alienated from their surroundings.
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Larger amounts of the drug can effect users differ-
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ently. They may appear confused and agitated, but at the
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same time they will have a blank, staring expression on
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their faces. They may look drunk because they're so unco-
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ordinated that they have trouble walking. Their speech is
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often confused, and their vision may be distorted. Think-
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ing, remembering, and making decisions can be very
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difficult.
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Some users may be violent and aggressive, while others
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may be silent, withdrawn, and difficult to communicate with.
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With even higher doses of PCP, users can go into a
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stupor or coma which might last for a few days or several
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weeks. And massive PCP overdoses can kill.
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THERE ARE OTHER DANGERS
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-----------------------
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More PCP users die from accidents caused by the strange
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behavior the drug produces in them than from the actual
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chemical effect of the drug itself. People on PCP have
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drowned in shallow water because they are so disoriented
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they can't tell which way is up. Others have had auto
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accidents, fallen off of roofs and out of windows because of
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the drug's intoxicating effects. Some have died in fires
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because PCP made them insensitive to the pain of burning and
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so confused and disoriented that they couldn't escape from
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the flames.
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PCP can produce violent behavior even in people not
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ordinarily prone to such behavior. These users have been
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known to assault other people or to injure themselves.
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Sometimes the result is murder or suicide.
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IT CAN HAVE LONG-TERM EFFECTS
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-----------------------------
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Many users who take PCP regularly experience disturban-
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ces in memory, judgment, concentration, and perception long
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after they have stopped taking the drug.
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In addition, these long-term users are subject to re-
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curring bouts of anxiety and depression. Sporadic outbreaks
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of violent behavior are common. In some people, PCP-induced
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psychoses (serious mental disorders) have been reported.
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SO WHY DO PEOPLE USE IT?
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------------------------
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For one thing many novice drug users don't know what
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they're using. Sometimes dealers will cut more expensive
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drugs with PCP to increase profits. So often people who
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think they're getting THC, mescaline, or cocaine are really
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buying PCP.
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Some people take PCP because their friends are taking
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it. Some take it because they aren't familiar with its
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risks, or else don't believe the bad things they've heard
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about the drug. And some who know about PCP's dangers take
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it anyway just to prove they can handle it. Some people,
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however, enjoy the effects PCP has on the and take it by
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choice. The sense of oblivion, numbness, and unreality, and
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PCP's peculiar distortion of sensation--no matter how un-
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pleasant for most people--are appealing to them. And even
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some users who have had bad experiences with PCP keep on
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taking it.
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MAYBE YOU CAN HELP
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------------------
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You may know someone who is having trouble with PCP or
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some other drug. You may be able to help by referring the
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person to a local drug abuse program that can provide the
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kind of treatment he or she needs.
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In a drug abuse emergency, you should seek help at a
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drug crisis center or a hospital emergency room. If you
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know what drug was taken, tell the emergency treatment
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staff. It will help them to quickly decide on the proper
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treatment.
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Also, a person in trouble with drugs needs all the
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support and understanding you can give. And that's another
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way you can really help.
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For more information on PCP or other drugs, write to:
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National Clearinghouse for Drug Abuse Information
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Room 10A-56, Parklawn Building
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5600 Fishers Lane
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Rockville, Maryland 20857
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* Due to the unstable properties of PCP it has now been
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discontinued for veterinary use.
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...a safer community through citizen involvement...
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=BRYAN POLICE DEPARTMENT=
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--CRIMEBYTE BBS
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(409) 779-2936
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(Bryan, Texas)
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