E-bay opium addict

[Jacko]

Nice article, thought provoking comments from readers too...

http://alternet.org/drugreporter/21673/ ... 1086#c1106

From what I've been able to gather from a couple folks I'd gotten to know over the net, over the years who got strung out on this material, the tea due to its long duration of action (somewhat like oxycontin) becomes more addictive, quicker and the withdrawl from it more difficult than the more well known "hard" narcotics like morphine and heroine.  

Used as a very infrequent medicine though a ground caps thrown in simmering water with a little lemon juice, dried mint and grated ginger can do wonders for a hammering hangover.

[byrooon]

...

[solaritea]

So I picked up the local "independent weekly" paper today and boy was I surprised to see this article in it.  First I thought he was just addicted to Ebay and was doing a play on words with deQuincy's novel.  But no, he was spilling the beans about what is probably the best "drug secret" out there.  
I read it in the Chico (CA) News and Review (www.newsreview.com) published 4/14/05.  It appears the article originally appeared in the Reno News and Review on 4/7/05.  I anxiously await next weeks issue of the Sacramento News and Review to see if they continue to print this article in all of their papers.  I may be mistaken, but I believe the only ebay'er busted for his sales of pods was operating out of Sacramento.
I sent in a letter to to the editor of the Chico News&Review regarding this article and at least one other local tea drinker will also respond.  It seems to me that this was downright irresponsible to publish this article in a town with 70.000+ college students.  The local papers have had several articles on deaths and OD's from opiates lately and now they're giving a few thousand kids a source for illicit drugs.  I bet the ebay dealers are doing great business with their overpriced pods in the last few weeks.  There was also an article in the local paper about the local narcotics task force - the task force stated that opium was expected to be the next major drug in the area.  Perhaps this article was meant to help kick off the opium boom.  (Insert paranoid fantasies about the US supporting Afghan opium here)
I can only speculate on the author's purpose for writing this article, but all reasons that I can think of are rather selfish.  If he wants to quit, he needs to quit.  He shouldn't need his supplier to be arrested.  If he's trying to stop others from following his path, there was no need to mention the ebay source.  If he wants the pod sales policed, he could have contacted law enforcement privately, again without giving out the source to thousands of people who will dive right in and blend up a hundred pods in a smoothie (Hell, if he did 200 I should be able to eat 100 pods!).  Whatever, I'm rambling - goodnight

[JRL]

solaratea, welcome home!

I hope anyone selling pods or any gray area materials on Ebay is prepared for federal agents kicking in their door and handcuffing their girls to a chair. Hope they have a great liar and don't mind federal incarceration.

This happened!! Be forwarned!!