Five U.S. Air Force cadets expelled for using synthetic drug that mimics marijuana

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Five U.S. Air Force cadets expelled for using “spice”

By Reuters
Saturday, January 29th, 2011 -- 12:51 pm

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/air-force-cadets-expelled-spice/

DENVER (Reuters) - Five U.S. Air Force Academy cadets have been expelled and another 25 are under investigation for using the drug "spice," a synthetic substance that mimics the effects of marijuana, academy officials said on Friday.

The announcement by the academy, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, comes days after the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, expelled seven midshipmen for the use of spice.

In a news release, Air Force officials did not provide details on the gender or class the expelled cadets belonged to, saying just that the five cadets were "separated" from the academy and the investigation is ongoing.

Spice, also known as K2, and other synthetic marijuana products are marketed and sold as incense, according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers.

[Cid_B]

1. Barracks lawyers failed em...

Nah, man... They can't touch you. It's totally legal dude!

Yeah right...

[Dennis Donovan]

2. Is K2 a scam?

:shrug:

[Shandris]

3. From what I hear it's pretty damn authentic. I haven't had a chance...

...to try any myself. My local city had to pass an ordinance to make it illegal because at present, there are no actual drug laws against it. Where my dad lives they sell it in the convenience stores right beside Swisher Sweets, so I may try it there when I go for his Super Bowl party. The Military can do just about anything it wants, though, so those Cadets probably should have known better. The UCMJ != Constitutional freedoms and all that.

[sofa king]

7. I had an opportunity to evaluate it.

For a few shining months here in Virginia, it was "legal" enough to be sold in gas stations. So one day I bought a 3-gram packet for $20 and brought it home.

Within a few minutes I was, well, high as hell. My girlfriend said I instantly turned into an annoying, mindless schoolboy. I was frankly amazed, because the effect was almost indistinguishable from very, very powerful marijuana. If there was any side effect, it was a little bit of twitchiness. Three grams went a very long way. There were no aftereffects. I didn't steal my neighbor's TV to buy more. I didn't jump straight to crack. That's pretty much it.

But under the influence of that evil drug, I instantly went onto Democratic Underground and started irresponsibly commenting about things I barely know about.

In other words, little changed.

[Dennis Donovan]

8. sold!

[sofa king]

9. Wait, no!

As cool as it was, what it is now is a felony waiting to happen. I'm pretty sure you're taking a bigger legal risk with that stuff than you would with real pot--but you'd better wait for a lawyer in your state to tell you that for sure.

More than that, I have no idea what that crap was that I smoked. Apparently, the active ingredient is a powder that can be sprinkled over anything, including belly button lint and dingleberries, and it will work if you smoke it. All you know for sure is that you're smoking the least expensive flammable substance that East Asia can provide.

[Dennis Donovan]

13. Moot point - they won't ship to NY...

Oh well...

[elocs]

4. "DEA bans K2, other 'fake pot' products":

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-11-24-k2-ban-dea_N.htm

Updated 11/30/2010 1:03 PM |

By Donna Leinwand, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The DEA used its emergency powers Wednesday to ban K2 and other "fake pot" products that mimic the effects of marijuana.

The action by the Drug Enforcement Administration makes it illegal to possess or sell the five chemicals used to make the products for at least one year. The agency and the Department of Health and Human Services will determine whether the chemicals should be permanently added to the federal list of controlled substances considered unsafe, highly abused and without medical use.


The herbal blends coated with synthetic chemicals are marketed under brands such as Spice, Red X Dawn and K2. They are usually sold as packets of incense or potpourri at convenience stores, herbal and spiritual shops and online. The packets can sell for as much as $35 an ounce and have become popular as a legal alternative to marijuana among teenagers and college students.

The chemicals are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for human consumption, the DEA said in its federal notice.

The key word for these cadets is illegal.

[The Straight Story]

5. Good. Stop them now, next you know they might smoke in bars or bingo halls. Holy shit,...

Can you imagine if they progressed from that drug up to cigs and booze? They might hang out with like minded people and do things like smoke and drink together - good god, I cannot imagine how terrible that would be.

Stop this crap now before they do worse.... :evilgrin:

[NuclearDem]

6. Oh for the love of

I always found the military's drug policy ridiculous.

[Jackpine Radical]

10. I always thought the military hated pot because

so many potheads turn non-aggressive when they're stoned. That, and it was a good excuse to bust dissidents in the ranks, most of whom seemed to have at least a passing acquaintance with Mary Jane.

[NuclearDem]

11. Drugs are apparently "not compatible with the military lifestyle"

As I remember from the briefings.

As long as someone was able to show up at work when they needed to and did their job, I never had a problem if they drank, smoked tobacco, or smoked anything else.

[bemildred]

12. That is a very funny statement, really.

Being sane and drug free is what is inconsistent with war.

[Jackpine Radical]

14. I don't know what it's like now, but in my era ('60's),

we were mostly all drunk as much as possible.

[cherokeeprogressive]

15. If these idiots couldn't restrain their need to get high until after they graduated from the

Air Force Academy, they need to be gone.

Come on... is the meme "I should be able to get high wherever I want, whenever I want, no matter what"? They were fucking Air Force Cadets who couldn't resist the temptation to get high until their free education (not only that, they get PAID to attend) was over.

Good riddance.

This comes from a pot smoker.