Alcohol linked to drunken rampage

War on Drugs™ propaganda has hit a low point in the deep South. There's an article in the Southland Times headlined Ecstacy linked to drunken rampage.

Last weekend some teenagers attended an unsupervised 18th birthday party at Alexandra's Ice Inline clubrooms. The party got off to an auspicious early start when the 18-year-old hosting the party was taken away by an ambulance when he was so intoxicated he couldn't be woken up. Later in the evening, some teenagers started trashing the building, including ripping a basin off a toilet wall, smashing a fire alarm, ripping a phone off a wall and punching holes in walls. Some partygoers who tried to stop the vandalism had bottles thrown at them. The police arrived, closed down the party, whereupon large groups of partygoers made their way down to the pie-cart, leaving a trail of destruction. (This is commonplace behaviour in Alexandra.)

And the ecstasy connection? Three drunk Dunstan High School pupils who were at the party said that two partygoers had taken ecstasy. Senior Sergeant Mike Cook said, "I'm sure it [something more than cannabis] was there," even though police had no evidence beyond hearsay.

And the ecstasy connection? Well, ecstasy produces intensely pleasurable effects – including an enhanced sense of self-confidence and energy, as well as feelings of peacefulness, love, and empathy (users experience feelings of closeness with others, a desire for touch, and facilitation of interpersonal relationships). So, er...

The ecstasy connection? It was mentioned by the Southland Times in an article about a drunken teenage rampage. (Well, something called "ecstacy" was - you need to learn to spell, guys, as well as learn some basic facts about the drugs you try to demonise.)