Subject:      Still GOING!...POPi/Shiva/Rave 
Date:         1996/01/02

This is a review of an article called 'Built for Speed' by Todd C. Roberts
which is at hyperreal.

It is not a particularly flattering review, but I hope Todd is not too
offended that I have made some cracks at his expense,  but he makes some
GLARING blunders in his chemical information which are inadvertantly
similar to partyLine drugPropaganda ala standard mediaSpew.  These are what
prompted my response, I didn't intend to tackle the whole issue of
Speed/drugs and their effect on counter-culture, generational
expression/creativity, and the collective search for an emerging voice.  I
just sort of got carried away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~THE GOOD OLD DAYS revised edition~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
...............................................................................

> Bikers have been historically blamed for introducing [Meth] into the
> psychedelic '60s, subsequently bringing down a whole Summer of Love with
> violence and angst.

Not by anyone who was all there.
I lived in the Bay Area for many years, have quite a few friends  in SF,
Berkeley and Oakland who grew up surrounded by the 60's, shifts in the
American perception, actual political resistance, LSD unleashed, art/music
eruption, and finally the hippyTourist influx aka 'Summer of Love'.
I will share with you their perspective on the Summer of Love, as they have
told it to me.
SF BAY AREA: Mid 60's:
 There were a lot of cool scenes going on everywhere, new ideas and
approaches, stuff to do, people doing some original art/music and some
fighting the good fight against the gov't, very busy, constructive,
creative groups of people, very loosely connected,  yet mutually
inspirational....oh, yeah... and some GOOD ACID which seems to instill a
sense of doubt in established worldView, which can lead to new modes of
thought and expression in the proper enviornment.  The Northern CA urban
enviornment was, for many reasons, fertile ground for new thinking.

WHEN the MediaCircus came to 'cover the story', they were avoided by anyone
who was already busy, but they were gleefully conned and goofed on by local
pranksters, and longWinded sideWays exhibitionists, who were NOT going to
give these suckers an even break or a straight story....they'd never get it
right anyway.  MediaDorks proceeded to report wonderous, conflicting,
spontaneous mindFucks and brainTeasers to the 'folks back East', and
triggered a horrendous influx of teenage transcient population in '67, who
trampled the fragile revolutionary social enviornment as it faded, wreaked
havoc, panicked already confused cops, drew State heat, got reamed and
fleeced by local business/landlords in bigCity fashion, fired up the
competition for crumbs at the desperation level, having forgotten their
wallet in the rush to escape materialism, and just basically went nuts
blowing their collective mind on the good attitude and even better acid
produced by locals, having a hell of a ride,  for a few months or a year,
then it was back East or MidWest, off to college, onward to work... sorry
about the mess... butIwas REALLY FUCKED UP!!!

Some local MotorCycling blue-class tattooed whiteBoys from the EastBay, and
the Mission, got fat on their pre-existing marijuana trade boom, pill and
powder sales...  Demand was high...  Heat was on...   Money was green...
They were there first.

SOOOOOOOOO, 30 years of distorting a myth will yeild about equal measure of
historical perspective to a nebulous tale of Paradise Not Found.

Can you hitchike to paradise from the Middle Amerikan 60's with a soft
thumb and a road map...?  how can you tell if it has been stolen by the
Grinch?

There certainly was a brief American Renaissance centered in the mid-60's
Bay Area, but the light moves on, and the inspiration was REAL, the hot
thinkers, revolutionaries and artists had set about the life's work of
transforming their visions into reality and by '67 they had left Haight St
and Telegraph Ave to fight killer traffic on the hard roads of the American
Assimilation.

What was the Summer of Love...?  A real mindblower for the folks who grew
up in Centerville... AND the popularized consumer/tourist stage at the end
of an interesting time.

What ended the Summer of Love...bikers? drugs? Autumn? Who Cares?
It was just OVER... all successful movements in the pluralistic American
landscape end with assimillation they are CONSUMED, resistance is
futile!... many things have never been the same, some folks never left,
but the Summer ofLove was a suicide run... not even a Summer of Love could
survive a Summer of Love

  Vintage drugWar propaganda from this era, especially *Speed*Kills!!*
rhetoric is always fun to revive and mislead, and if you can throw in some
Evil Shadow Biker Threat lurking in the Dark Side of flowerStomping pinkBoy
paranoia...it's much more a creature feature than trying to unStuff boring
tales of Chromosome damage and flying Linkletters.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ALL ABOUT SPEED is it built yet?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
...............................................................................

BUILT FOR SPEED continues to retell the untold story again, here are some
'details' on Meth

>It is still legally produced in the U.S. under the trade name Desoxyn.

RIGHT

> Most often prescribed for weight loss,

RHONG!!
You're gonna have to do better than gain 200 extra lbs to extract a
prescription for Methamphetamine from the Medikal Priesthood.  Not even the
Mexican Drs are selling those.

>Over the counter ephedrine, or "white crosses," has taken the place of
>pharmaceutical amphetamine as an easy-to-get alternative.

"white crosses" refer to a type of pharmaceutical Methamphetamine no longer
produced...  There were alot of bootleg "white crosses" around into the
late 70's which were usually amphetamine and sometimes Meth.
Mini-thins and other OTC l-ephedrine tablets were intentionally produced as
'white cross' lookalikes.  Massive quantities of Ephedrine Mini-thins are
sold OTC, but NOT as an alternative to amphetamine.... I would explain
this, but it's a big secret!

> What is often misunderstood is the relationship between speed and crystal
>meth.

POPeye had no idea of the depth of this confusion until he read the following:

> The common reference to speed in the rave scene is the methamphetamine salt
> (HCl powder), whereas "crystal" usually refers to the free-base form of
> methamphetamine.

POPi has only been to one RAVE which sort of meandered tenatively at the
Berekeley Marina some years ago...  He is not an expert on RaveSpeak...
Nevertheless, no matter who you party with, what kind of music stirs you,
or whatEVER blows your skirt up... You can NOT petition the LORD with
prayer... or stabilize, metabolize, crystallize the freebase of
Methamphetamine...

The free-base form of Meth is a viscous, corrosive, oily substance... it is
unstable, does not readily metabolize in bioSystems, and there is no market
for it...  It is best described as an 'intermediate'

Alot of methUsers, especially out West, smoke it...they are smoking the HCl
salt, NOT the freebase, you wouldn't want to try smoking the freebase, or
diesel fuel, or inhale bus exhaust either.

> Another form "Ice," a higher-grade, purer form of crystal meth is smoked...

RHONG!!!
Ice is a completely different chemical all together.
ICE=  4-methylaminorex, U4Euh, etc. This substance has recently been the
subject of   comprehensive Eleusian research and report at ADC for anyone
interested.  Other information is detailed in several documents at
hyperreal as well.

>, a single hit creates a high that lasts for hours

better not cough!

> and several hits can wire a user for days.

hmmmmm, these must be 'metric days'... or there could be some confusion
over the definition of 'several'.. if one were to continue to take several
hits every  6 to 8hrs,  one could stay wired all the way to the bottom of
the bag, and that could take several standard Earth days depending on
bagDensity.

> However, its high price prevents it from taking hold. A gram of "ice"
>commands
> about $5,000 on the street.

WHOOOAAAAA, why didn't somebody say something beFORE!!!!  BREAK OUT THE
GLASS!!!  No, forget it, go out and buy ALL NEW SHIT!!! Move over Bill
Gates...  Crank up the FUME HOOD !!!!  Get the Dexatrim people on line.
Call Mercedes Benz... Dig out E's CyaBromo FAQ.....SOMEBODY get me a
Heritage Softail and and I want a BIG Screen Computer with GIGABYTE RAM!!!!
Just CHARGE IT, we're puttin' it all on ICE!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A TANGENT ON TANGENTS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
...............................................................................

You never know when someone in hip boots, keeping a straight font, may take
a shortCut through SighBur Space onto the great American Plane of
conjecture, leaving a few suspicious piles of info that thump onto the
deck, sounding just about right:

> What is often misunderstood is the relationship between speed and crystal
>meth.

When this happens, I suppose we must ask ourselves, on what theorhetical
landscape has this 'cluster' been deposited, in what atmospheric context
are we to inhale it?

Which SCI is it, anyway?

SCI-ENCE:  If you want to hang with the hard-core 'Academigos', they insist
on data being rendered in the appropriate techno-speak and be provable,
quantifiable, and repeatable, or at least FOOTnoted.

SCI-CHOLOGY:  Offers much more latitude to the researcher/writer... One can
more easily start with a conclusion and work backwards, or begin with the
data, then research the various interdisciplinary schools, translate to the
suitable vernacular, and stretch toward the desired conclusion... However,
acceptability of the results depends less on the work and more on the
weight of the author.  While charisma and salesmanship are a plus, stature
and tenure are the real determiners of acceptance... One must also stay
abreast of fashionable trends and internal politics if he wishes to express
the facts accurately.

SCI-ENTOLOGY:  In it's primary sense as a model of interpreting reality,
before it was co-opted by posed-modern, pulp-religions, the Jetsons, (his
son) Elroy Hubburd, and a bewildered flock of investors.   The information
need only correspond to  academic disciplines  in so much as they are
understood by the researcher. SCIENTOLOGICAL findings and data are
therefore emitted as quantum in self-contained thought packets which
utilize the Interactive worldView Protocol. Certain findings or discoveries
may even require their own operating systems as they cannot be made to run
on existing platforms. Referred to as Sci-fi by some, but is generally more
lucrative.

SCI-CHOTIC:  Is absolute in it's subjectivity. Information is gathered and
organized in such a way that is incomprehensible unless one is actually
experiencing it in its full ambiguity.  All theoretical constructs are
fluid and temporal.

But I digress, I believe we were attempting to unravel one of the ancient
mysteries....

> What is often misunderstood is the relationship between speed and crystal
>meth.

For this we shall access the Hi-Speed Zen Oracle, which replies:

"All Crystal Meth is Speed, but not all Speed is Crystal Meth."

that should cover it...

If not:

SPEED... strong stimulants that are NOT cocaine... ususally amphetamine,
but also including Preludin (Phenmetrazine),  Prolintane, etc... a long
list of synthetic stimulants that could be begged, borrowed, stolen from
the Konspiracy or synthesized at great peril and some difficulty in reeking
druglabs.


----------------------------------------------------
Still GOING!....POPi/Shiva/Rave 12-26-95    Part 2/2
----------------------------------------------------


METHamphetamine is the "SPEED of choice" for most users... it is the
longest acting amphetamine and has the fewest annoying side-effects for
most people.
AKA: N,a-Dimethylbenzeneethanamine, Methedrine(TM),Desoxyphedrine.
AKA: Crank, Crystal, Crystal Meth, Water, Meth, goFast, Zip

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~APPLES, ORANGES, PC's, and MAC's~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
...............................................................................
"Built for Speed" goes on to compare Meth with drugs that are considerably
more active, and addresses the addiction factor

> methamphetamine, (popular for its availability and price) has somehow
> replaced MDMA and LSD as the perfect rave drug.

the charactar of the scene must be changing for people to accept METH as a
substitute for acid and X... something ELSE is going on, these drugs are
NOT interchangable

> A prominent opinion during the aftermath of the Los Angeles Summer of Love
> was that speed killed the rave scene.

Another Summer of Love trashed by speed, it IS possible for trends to wind
down on their own... it's an entropy thing

> One major misconception is the link between methamphetamine and ecstasy
> [MDMA]. Ecstasy does not necessarily contain speed, yet both contain the
> methamphetamine structure. While both have addictive potential, speed,
> because of its dopamine ties, is much more profoundly addicting.

This is misleading and over-generalized

> Ecstasy has a definite link to the rave scene. In some places it is
> synonymous. Speed too has been linked to the rave scene -- some say it
> was the death of the ideal.

> Other users bring up the fact that MDMA also has an addiction factor,
> that many only attribute to meth. "I like speed just fine," says Benboy.
> "But I have seen many speed freaks go...

> revalent discussion between users on either side of the methamphetamine
> argument involves addiction.

METH IS ADDICTIVE, everyone agrees on that in psycho-pharmo-socio-SCI

> "Drugs that don't have a major effect on dopamine generally aren't
>'addictive'
> in the same way -- Marijuana, MDMA, LSD, psilocybin, etc.

Many will disagree, but I would say pot is somewhat habit-forming, the
other three aren't, and there may be something to this dopamine theory, but
why resort to difficult hypotheses for a straightforward addiction
discussion

> Misinformation sometimes is more dangerous than no information

exactly my point

> While meth (or any drug) is an inert substance

not if it's made correctly..!!  Perhaps 'innanimate' is the word he was
looking for

> that we cannot attribute blame to

but we could be more critical with better information

> by its nature it has raised the question "Are we really built for speed?"
> It seems that the human body, while naturally resilient to much
>self-inflicted
> abuse, may not be a reliable container for the soul at high speeds.

Lest it spill out and spread Soul all over the place

> Methamphetamine may have the ability to chemically fuel the ride, physically
> it may just prove the limitations for human society.

WOW...that would be an interesting study...choose your SCI.

Mr.Roberts tiptoes around his criticism of Meth too quietly, he never makes
the obvious point that METH is simply a powerful stimulant, whereas MDMA,
LSD, etc. are far more psycoactive and complex in their effects... this
complexity and depth are why these drugs are sought after. Whether or not
you prefer altered states, everyone seems to agree that the more colorful
drugs are quite moving...  for good or bad, you can't help coming away from
a heavy dose with a whole different point of view.  People who promote CNS
travel say that these chemicals offer just what the modern man needs to
tune perspective. A large group of people sharing such an experience is
going to be more than a party... people are going to behave quite
differently toward each other than a straight crowd or a bunch of drunks
and speedFreaks... if all goes well,  hopefully the folks are going to walk
away with something more than just memory and a hangover, something unique
and remarkable, a new way of seeing... a fucking SCENE even, a Summer of
WHOA!... Once you've been there, you know the place... you don't ALWAYS
have to take the drug to go back....

When people start doing speed, they are not looking for this experience,
they are just looking to be high on speed

Psychedelic drugs are not addictive because of TOLERANCE... If yesterday
you did a serious dose of MDMA, Mescaline, something with higher brain
function or psychedelic activity, you are not going to get off again today,
unless you REALLY up the dose...   These drugs act more as agents that
stimulate the release of chemicals already in your system, which in turn
produce the desired effect.  So until your body replenishes it's own store
of these 'local chemicals', repeated dosing has drastically reduced
effects.   METH being a simple STIMULANT does not have such pronounced
TOLERANCE limitations, all your body really needs for more tweaking, is
more METH...ie it's effect is more direct or 'primary'.  Since a
recuperation time is inherent in drugs with higher level activity, but NOT
continued METH consumption, NATURALLY the latter is going to lead to more
abuse, sleep deprivation, and compulsive behavior, like addiction.

If some Raver did some X yesterday, then switches to METH today, to keep
the run alive,  it should be obvious that this individual is already
beginning to act like an drugAddict before the speed even sucks him in, he
is already someone who is 'on a roll' and blowing off straight time to stay
fucked up... Once you get rolling on speed, the compulsion to stay high
gets even stronger.

Any 'scene' whose central focus is to gather, and do mass injestion of a
drug of choice, then party.... is going to burn out, blend in, mutate or
decay... it's just not enough to hold a culture together... that's what '67
was in the Haight, a big trip fest.... prior to that was a revolution of
ideas from a whole spectrum of sources out of an unusually vibrant
community of intellectuals, students from top Universities, an historically
active community in politics (which were volatile), and a density of talent
amoung artists/musicians/performers and finally the LSD.   When 'the scene'
became just a trip fest,  when the focus, the energy, and the talk was
about drugs, it was over. No matter WHAT DRUG is available to the crowd, A
vibrant flow of NEW ideas and people and views and applications and heart
is the only thing that will keep your RAVE, or any other movement from
becoming a tweakMeet or a bland rendition of the original, staged for the
benefit of NewRave Consumers to experience the ritual.

If you look around and see a bunch of dis-interested, self-centered,
clueless speedfreaks at your RAVE scene,  obviously your RAVE is not Raving
like it used to, the NewRavers just don't get it....they act like a bunch
of .....tourists, welcome to the Past, my friend.

 Speed didn't turn your Tiger into Butter.... nope.....

 a bunch of clueless, Amerikan consumerUnits, lurking for sex, tweaked on
crank is the NORMAL STATE of the 'party scene' and has been since the 50's
(read 'On the Road'-Kerouac)

 We speedFreaks are the background noise over which the various scenes and
movements are layered, we're always there, just beneath the surface of
Cleaver's Amerika, all the way out to the raving edges, like I said,
Todd....you quoted ME...we don't change that much, the members of our
twisted little RollCall come and go, some of your friends, maybe?  But the
point is,  if your Scene is just a bunch of US, it's not a scene, it's a
memory, we don't Scene much in CrankTown, we just hang out and see what
falls off the edge.

But  we were here all along, you just didn't notice because there was a
Scene,  something a helluva lot more interesting than us, if we suddenly
stand out, its because times change, the difference between your fashions
and your substance begin to show as one is forgotten, the other goes
mainStream.  But niether raises enough interest to  obscure the
speedFreak's pervasive, buzzy, funny-smelling underCurrent... it's not our
fault

>From a large urban warehouse conversion,
somewhere in Amerika
POPeye



You will be assimilated
    Resistance is FUTILE!
         So set one hell of an example
                For the kids


Do the Slag !


