Page 6
Weekender
Thursday, April 17, 1980
O
From page 1
But by the 1960s, the effects and dangers of cocaine
were linked inextricably with those of heroin,
according to High Times Encyclopedia of Recreational
Drugs, and its infamous reputation had made penalties
for its possession or trafficking second in severity only
to drugs such as LSD and heroin.
Today, those penalties still exist, and a dealer could
get a stiffer punishment for selling coke than he would
for selling PCP or speed. But cocaine's reputation has
become much more respectable than it was when it
was seen as a sister-drug to heroin. Despite prices of a
$100 a gram, an amount of powder that fits in the palm
of one's hand and that a heavy user could conceivably
finish in one sitting, the jet set of Hollywood, business
professionals and even students are using it. It has
become the Perrier of the drug world. It is chic.
At first, cocaine's popularity seems hard to
understand. Despite its exorbitant cost, when cocaine
is snorted or tooted (the term more genteel users
prefer), its effects last only about half an hour, says Jeff
Witkin, a behavioral pharmacologist at the University.
And when it is used moderately, those effects are
subtle.
Cocaine comes from the coca leaves of trees
indigenous to Peru and Bolivia. Indians in the area
have chewed the leaves for centuries to relieve fatigue
and hunger. The leaves are processed into the white
crystalline form known as cocaine in Columbia and
much of America's cocaine supply is smuggled from
there into Florida. From Florida, it comes to North
Carolina, usually through airports, says Cuyler
Windham, the State Bureau of Investigation assistant
director in charge of drug investigations.
Although cocaine can be and is used as a local
anesthetic in some ear, nose and throat surgeries, it is
The white crystalline powder is becoming
America's fastest-growing fad in drug use
and experts continue to differ in opinions
about the benefits and detriments of coke
most commonly known for its central nervous system
stimulant actions, Witkin says.
"It increases talkativeness, brings relief from fatigue
and a decrease in appetite and almost invariably gives a
feeling of elation," he says.
One local user who estimates he has spent between
$1,000 and $2,000 in the last few years on cocaine
swears its cost is worth the money. He describes coke's
effects more succinctly: "It just makes you feel
fantastic."
A recent government survey on
drug abuse estimated that 20
percent of young adults (aged 18
25) in the United States had tried
coke.
A recent government survey on drug abuse
estimated that 20 percent of young adults (aged 18-25)
in the United States had tried coke. It stated that about
4 percent of older adults (aged 26-54) had used coke.
Wmdham says cocaine use in the last two or three years
definitely has increased, and SBI agents are finding it is
a drug that can be acquired fairly easily.
The prevalence of cocaine users in the Chapel Hill
area is hard to estimate. Those who do indulge are
obviously reluctant to stand up and be counted. But
Chapel Hill police officer Ben Callahan says he knows
cocaine use in this area too, is increasing.
George Hoffman, owner of George's Cheep Joint, a
drug paraphernalia shop on Franklin Street, says most
of the coke users he knows are middle-class business
people, between the ages of 24 and 50. He has noticed
that the variety of paraphernalia on the market for
cocaine use has increased greatly in the last few years.
He carries tiny spoons which can be used to hold
cocaine for inhaling, and kits that include vials to hold
cocaine, straws to inhale it and tiny blades to cut it to a
fine powder. He also sells strainers used to sift cocaine
until it is fine, scales which are capable of weighing as
little as one-hundredth of a gram and mirrors on which I
fine lines of cocaine can be drawn and inhaled, j
Because cocaine is so expensive, it is frequently put on j
mirrors on each flake of powder can be seen clearly. I
ut Hoffman says many coke users make do with '
paraphernalia that can be found in thp h
the amount of Roods he sells is no indiratinn nf
amount of coke usace in Chanel Hill "Mmt
people just use a slab of glass and a rolled up dollar
bill," he says.
One senior Carolina student who both uses and
deals-cocaine says business professionals are only a
part of the strata of area cocaine users. "Students do it
too," he says. "I even know a couple of professors who
do it." He explains that he sells cocaine only to make
enough money to get his own coke free. "I can buy
seven grams for $500. 1 sell five grams for $100 each and
get two free. I'm what you'd call a casual dealer. I don't
R
the
That precious powder
'Doses of .05-.10 gram (provide) exhiliration
and lasting euphoria. . .This result is enjoyed
without any of the unpleasant aftereffects that
follow exhiliration brought about by alcohol
Sigmund Freud, 1884
'Cocaine for horses an' not for men. Theysay it
will kill you but they don't say when
Huddie Ledbetter, 'Take
a Whiff on Me 1976
I - i
V
i
' like to think of cocaine as the thinking man's
Dristan
Wavy Gravy
'Driving that trainHigh on cocaineCasey
Jones you'd betterWatch your speed
Grateful Dead Dead,
'Casey Jones'
Pure cocaine shows crystalline structure of drug.
DTHMatt Cooper I