Whoonga - A new addictive drug.
February 1, 2011 5:31 PM Subscribe
A new wrinkle in the world of HIV and AIDS. Whoonga is a new variation on smoked drugs, combining all sorts of nasty chemicals including detergent powder and rat poison. The most tragic ingredient is crushed up antiretroviral drugs distributed free to HIV sufferers. Primarily a drug in South Africa's slums, it offers a cheap high and is highly addictive.
This post was deleted for the following reason: This isn't going over so well and could probably benefit from some better sourcing if there's gonna be a post about it. -- cortex
Fox News, the Daily Mail, and an Al-Jazeera blog post that links to a suspicious looking non-profit website with little more than a donation link?
I smell bullshit. No, wait, that's Jenkem.
posted by zamboni at 5:40 PM on February 1, 2011 [3 favorites]
I smell bullshit. No, wait, that's Jenkem.
posted by zamboni at 5:40 PM on February 1, 2011 [3 favorites]
I don't buy it. This totally sounds like "you won't believe what teenagers are doing these days!" stories that news organizations drum up from time to time on slow news days.
Are there any actual legitimate sources, other than the circular set of references to the al Jazeera blog?
posted by zug at 5:42 PM on February 1, 2011
Are there any actual legitimate sources, other than the circular set of references to the al Jazeera blog?
posted by zug at 5:42 PM on February 1, 2011
So, um, dealers are cutting heroin with cheaper substances?
Is that all?
posted by Sys Rq at 5:42 PM on February 1, 2011
Is that all?
posted by Sys Rq at 5:42 PM on February 1, 2011
(It also seems like the implicit moral of the story is, "...and that's why cheap/free AIDS drugs are a bad idea." That's a pretty fucked up message.)
posted by Sys Rq at 5:44 PM on February 1, 2011
posted by Sys Rq at 5:44 PM on February 1, 2011
The active to lethal dose on some of the drugs could be done on some of them. But how do you have both of them on a single axis and compare it to dependence potential? Isn't that total bullshit?
posted by Splunge at 5:44 PM on February 1, 2011
posted by Splunge at 5:44 PM on February 1, 2011
Three news articles, and none of them ask how ARVs could possibly get you high, or what the active ingredient would be. They just keep reporting the rumours and bullshit, and add to the misinformation out there. Actually, this post isn't helping either.
From the Fox article:
However, the country's Treatment Action Campaign, an AIDS lobbying group, has described the belief that the drugs have recreational value as a "myth."
"We are not even convinced that whoonga contains ARVs. The dealers just say it does," group spokeswoman Caroline Nenguke said.
Classic "report both sides" even though one of them is unsubstantiated.
From the Wikipedia article:
According to some experts of the South African Police Service and drug rehabiliation centers whoonga is essentially just a rebranding of older heroin based drugs like sugars:[4]
“The media has made a fuss about the new drug on the streets, panicking people and worrying the government. But it’s not new,” the SAPS’s Colonel Jay Naicker said.
“The drug dealers add all sorts of stuff to the heroin, the primary ingredient, just to increase the mass of the drug when it’s sold and make the heroin go further. A lot of the stuff has no effect and users have no idea what’s going in,” said a member of the police’s Organised Crime Unit.[4]
posted by Pruitt-Igoe at 5:45 PM on February 1, 2011
From the Fox article:
However, the country's Treatment Action Campaign, an AIDS lobbying group, has described the belief that the drugs have recreational value as a "myth."
"We are not even convinced that whoonga contains ARVs. The dealers just say it does," group spokeswoman Caroline Nenguke said.
Classic "report both sides" even though one of them is unsubstantiated.
From the Wikipedia article:
According to some experts of the South African Police Service and drug rehabiliation centers whoonga is essentially just a rebranding of older heroin based drugs like sugars:[4]
“The media has made a fuss about the new drug on the streets, panicking people and worrying the government. But it’s not new,” the SAPS’s Colonel Jay Naicker said.
“The drug dealers add all sorts of stuff to the heroin, the primary ingredient, just to increase the mass of the drug when it’s sold and make the heroin go further. A lot of the stuff has no effect and users have no idea what’s going in,” said a member of the police’s Organised Crime Unit.[4]
posted by Pruitt-Igoe at 5:45 PM on February 1, 2011
Whelp I guess we better cut off the floodgates of aid to Africa then.
posted by 2bucksplus at 5:51 PM on February 1, 2011
posted by 2bucksplus at 5:51 PM on February 1, 2011
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posted by Splunge at 5:38 PM on February 1, 2011