In a small town it is hard to get anything accomplished fast. That being said I would like to applaud the small town of Andrews for (in my opinion) taking a giant step towards protecting its citizens. Recently the town adopted an emergency ordinance banning the sale, possession, and use of products known as bath salts and spice. While "spice" refers to a potpourri substance being used like synthetic Marijuana the bath salts are much more dangerous. For those unfamiliar with these substances please allow me to give you a crash course. These salts are being sold at local convinced stores and head shops all over the state and can be utterly devastating to those who use them. The way they are getting by the drug laws is that on the packet it says "not for human consumption" which bypasses many of our countries drug laws. I was told by our chief of police that the best thing to compare them to is a mix of cocaine and Methamphetamine. In our county we have had over 15 people hospitalized and 1 fatality in the past MONTH. The effects of these products (sold under too many names to list) are a spike in blood pressure, sleeplessness, a spike in body temperature (to the point of kidney failure), hallucinations and extreme violent behavior. Many doctors have compared the effects to taking a large dose of PCP. These symptoms can last for days after taking the drug and some cases have had side effects lasting much longer! Now after this description can anyone give me a good reason why they are legal in South Carolina? From my understanding they are illegal in 28 states already and they have swept through the country like a plague. The scariest part to me is the fact that I am just hearing about it and that many local businesses are selling this stuff KNOWING what its being used for and what it can do. When you couple the effects with its availability and the fact that as of now the "salts" don't show up on any drug test what you end up with is the potential for a massive death toll. If you would like more info on the "bath salts" epidemic I would suggest googling the term, the NY times had a great piece describing the current situation.
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