Merchants of Meth: How Big Pharma Keeps the Cooks in Business

Re:Merchants of Meth: How Big Pharma Keeps the Cooks in Busi... by rob05c on Monday September 30, 2013 @10:32PM (#6473684)

Pseudoephedrine is the most effective chemical we have to alleviate flu-like symptoms. The alternatives such as phenylephrine simply don't work.

I believe in cognitive liberty, but meth will mess you up. If I believed any drug should be illegal, meth would be at the top of the list. But illegalizing something for which we have no reasonable alternative is absurd.

Of course, making less destructive amphetamines legal so people don't feel the need for meth, that's just crazy talk.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenylephrine#Questions_about_e...

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Re:Merchants of Meth: How Big Pharma Keeps the Cooks in Busi... by ghouse on Monday September 30, 2013 @10:53PM (#6473748)

I don't think people are proposing making pseudoephedrine illegal. Just slightly more difficult to obtain.

It appears that the data supports that changing the drug's status has a positive impact on meth production. However, there was no data about how people in Oregon or Mississippi deal with their flu-like symptoms.

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Re:Merchants of Meth: How Big Pharma Keeps the Cooks in Busi... by rob05c on Monday September 30, 2013 @11:01PM (#6473779)

Right. But many people have neither the time nor money for prescriptions. Especially when OTC medicines claim to work. Especially in lower income states like Mississippi.

I grew up in rural blue-collar America. My father had health insurance through his work, but we seldom had the money for the co-pay to see a doctor. (anecdotal, I know)

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