The Meth Singularity: Oklahoma Woman Tries to Cook Batch Inside Walmart

• It seems we’re always fighting the government just to maintain basic freedoms. Here we go again. Now we have an effort to restrict cold tablet sales to law abiding citizens in an effort to thwart meth labs. Various legislative bills will mandate going to the doctor to get cold tablets.  The Big 3, the police, some in the Assembly and Senate believe this will save the state money and solve our meth problems. Excellent! A bi-partisan effort to save Oklahoma from its meth problem and save the state some money. We applaud those efforts. From Kentucky’s fiscal note on a similar bill currently under consideration, “Although the exact amount of savings cannot be determined, the information reviewed above indicates that a conservative estimate of savings would be in the $12 to $20 million range.” Millions saved, perfect! But let’s examine the facts behind “solving the meth problem” and its impact on us, the law abiding citizens of Oklahoma. First, according to the U.S. Justice Department’s National Drug Intelligence Center’s 2011 threat assessment, Mexico is once again the “primary source of methamphetamine” in the U.S. That’s after Mexico banned the sale of all pseudoephedrine (PSE) in 2008. So a complete ban of PSE in Mexico produced the #1 threat of meth in the U.S. within two years. In fact, seizures of methamphetamine at the Laredo, TX customs district — the nation’s largest inland port — are on pace this fiscal year to surpass last year’s total by about 60 percent, reaching an expected total of about 1,650 pounds. Hmmm. Seems like the drug manufacturers are resilient. Well that’s Mexico, what about Oklahoma? In order to get around the restrictions on PSE sales, a new method to manufacture meth has been developed or more accurately an old method has been rediscovered.  The P2P method was popular in the 1970’s. There is no new chemistry here; in fact, most of it is almost 100 years old.  Sounds a bill can’t defeat a resourceful and knowledgeable illegal drug manufacturer. Certainly with the state saving millions, the Big 3’s good intentions are worth something. But let’s look at the new costs to Oklahoma. Instead of going to the corner pharmacy and buying $10 worth of cold tablets, you’ll have to go to the doctor. The new system will be to call your Doctor and make a priority appointment. Go to the appointment, lose 2 hours of work ($15/hr. = $30), pay a visit co-pay of $20 (insurance pays the balance of $150), drop off the prescription at pharmacy, and go back to work. After work pick up prescription, pay $5 co-pay (insurance picks up the now $15 balance) go home and take the medication. Total projected cost is $220. That’s a $210 premium! $210 multiplied by Oklahoma’s estimate of 1.5 million packages sold per year and you get $315,000,000. That’s over a quarter of a billion dollar cost shift. So let’s add this up. Mexico is the #1 meth manufacturer.  New manufacturing methods are getting around cold tablet bans. Oklahoman’s will absorb over a quarter of a billion dollars to save Oklahoma a maximum of $20 million. Only the Big 3 would call a complete ban good. “Government logic?” It’s not the medicine, it how it’s being misused. Duh. We’re glad Gov Fallin is trying to find a realistic and reasonable approach to this issue. In fact, Gov Fallin is wisely trying to find the middle ground here.  At least Gov Fallin realizes the citizens of Oklahoma don’t need to pay the  Fab 3’s quarter billion dollar vanity premium to solve the misuse of a legal drug.

• It seems we’re always fighting the government just to maintain basic freedoms. Here we go again. Now we have an effort to restrict cold tablet sales to law abiding citizens in an effort to thwart meth labs. Various legislative bills will mandate going to the doctor to get cold tablets.  The Big 3, the police, some in the Assembly and Senate believe this will save the state money and solve our meth problems. Excellent! A bi-partisan effort to save Oklahoma from its meth problem and save the state some money. We applaud those efforts. From Kentucky’s fiscal note on a similar bill currently under consideration, “Although the exact amount of savings cannot be determined, the information reviewed above indicates that a conservative estimate of savings would be in the $12 to $20 million range.” Millions saved, perfect! But let’s examine the facts behind “solving the meth problem” and its impact on us, the law abiding citizens of Oklahoma. First, according to the U.S. Justice Department’s National Drug Intelligence Center’s 2011 threat assessment, Mexico is once again the “primary source of methamphetamine” in the U.S.  That’s after Mexico banned the sale of all pseudoephedrine (PSE) in 2008. So a complete ban of PSE in Mexico produced the #1 threat of meth in the U.S. within two years. In fact, seizures of methamphetamine at the Laredo, TX customs district — the nation’s largest inland port — are on pace this fiscal year to surpass last year’s total by about 60 percent, reaching an expected total of about 1,650 pounds. Hmmm. Seems like the drug manufacturers are resilient. Well that’s Mexico, what about Oklahoma? In order to get around the restrictions on PSE sales, a new method to manufacture meth has been developed or more accurately an old method has been rediscovered.  The P2P method was popular in the 1970’s. There is no new chemistry here; in fact, most of it is almost 100 years old.  Sounds a bill can’t defeat a resourceful and knowledgeable illegal drug manufacturer. Certainly with the state saving millions, the Big 3’s good intentions are worth something. But let’s look at the new costs to Oklahoma. Instead of going to the corner pharmacy and buying $10 worth of cold tablets, you’ll have to go to the doctor. The new system will be to call your Doctor and make a priority appointment. Go to the appointment, lose 2 hours of work ($15/hr. = $30), pay a visit co-pay of $20 (insurance pays the balance of $150), drop off the prescription at pharmacy, and go back to work. After work pick up prescription, pay $5 co-pay (insurance picks up the now $15 balance) go home and take the medication. Total projected cost is $220. That’s a $210 premium! $210 multiplied by Oklahoma’s estimate of 1.5 million packages sold per year and you get $315,000,000. That’s over a quarter of a billion dollar cost shift. So let’s add this up. Mexico is the #1 meth manufacturer.  New manufacturing methods are getting around cold tablet bans. Oklahoman’s will absorb over a quarter of a billion dollars to save Oklahoma a maximum of $20 million. Only the Big 3 would call a complete ban good. “Government logic?” It’s not the medicine, it how it’s being misused. Duh. We’re glad Gov Fallin is trying to find a realistic and reasonable approach to this issue. In fact, Gov Fallin is wisely trying to find the middle ground here.  At least Gov Fallin realizes the citizens of Oklahoma don’t need to pay the  Fab 3’s quarter billion dollar vanity premium to solve the misuse of a legal drug.

• Nice Hogarth reference, John.  Thumbs up.

• CHUD Part II Cooking Human Underground Dwellers!

• That shit is NASTY. And so is meth!

• Wow, she is pretty hawt! I'd hit that. www.Total-Privacy dot US

• Walt from Breaking Bad would not approve.

• So is this recent Zombie craze is really foreshadowing the Meth Zombie Craze.

• Wow, Meth and Walmart, So Incredibly Glamorous!

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