Seattle police have been saying that the two folks who died of ODs this weekend were sniffing cocaine laced with fentanyl. And everyone I know who knows anything about hard drugs was baffled by that suggestion—there is no rational reason that anyone would lace cocaine (which is a relatively cheap stimulant) with fentanyl (which is a relatively expensive opiate). It just doesn’t make sense.
The cocaine constituency would reject it from the first toot at their dealer’s house. The F people don’t want to buy some weird mix. And there’s the pricing problem: F is way, way, way more expensive than cocaine. How would you mix the drugs properly, find a priceline, find a consumer group who specifically wanted F + cocaine, etc.?
As soon as I heard the story, I assumed that the cops and the reporter misunderstood it—some folks were on an unfortunate bender and sniffed some F and then sniffed some cocaine (or vice versa) and their bodies rebelled. But I didn’t want to call the dealers I know before noon. (Because that’s just rude.)
At any rate, here’s the word from people who know: the dead persons were speed-balling. There probably isn’t any coke laced with F or F laced with coke floating around. But there are some dead people who laced themselves with coke and F—and let that be a lesson to all of y’all. Do not speed-ball. It’s very bad for your heart and the hearts of people who love you.
I wondered about that. Seemed really odd (and stupid) to take a stimulant and an serious opiate at the same time. Didn’t realize about the economics, though.
Tragic and too bad but anyone doing either of those two drugs deserves what they get.
I enjoy my hard drugs from time to time but I’ve never understood the appeal of uppers and downers at the same time.
Back in the early 2000’s I knew a group of people who were basically meth and GHB addicts at the same time. It was really weird and strange. They’d smoke/inject a bunch of meth and then take a bunch of GHB to ‘sleep’ but what really happened was their brains went to sleep but their bodies didn’t and they basically twitched on the floor for 2 hours.
Incredibly disturbing.
@2 – Self-Righteous much?
@4
Yes, I am about this. I’m not a scumfuck junkie.
@2: So you’re saying that ninety-nine out of a hundred of them deserve feelings of euphoria?
There’s tainted cocaine in Washington that has caused TEN. People who bitch about the FDA should see what happens when there is no regulation.
Darwin always gets his man…
Thanks Brendan — I still don’t think it’s clear the woman didn’t tell SPD she thought the cocaine had been “laced” but I get distinction you and others have been drawing. The possible implications around “laced” could be a completely different scenario than if the word “mixed” were used instead.
If you want to get high smoke weed and get it from someone trustworthy. FYI, anyone that would sell the aforementioned two drugs is not trustworthy in any capacity.
Sure is Fox News in here.
People who do coke deserve the side effects and consequences that are tied with the risks that they assume every time they make the choice to ingest these substances.
You can get butthurt and defensive about it, but, um, yeah.
Your fault.
Cocaine always seems like so much more trouble than it’s worth to me. The effect of the high is to turn the user into an asshole and it seems to be the most fucked-with/tampered/laced/whathaveyou drug out there. Plus it contributes to the horrific slaughter of thousands in Mexico and Central America. What’s the appeal? Seriously, I’m not some moralistic prude or anything; I have just honestly never seen the upside.
@12
Why state it though? People who leave their doors unlocked can’t complain about stolen TVs and all that. We get it.
Were you scared no one can tell you’re an asshole?
It’s confirmed. Clock out and go home early.
“Do not speed-ball. It’s very bad for your heart and the hearts of people who love you.”
Uhhmm, you don’t need to speed-ball to hurt the hearts of people who love you. Doing coke alone does that just fine. Or heroin. Or even alcohol abuse. You may as well just say “doing drugs hurts the hearts of people who love you.”
Which begs the next question: Are two ODs from speed-balling in one weekend an abnormal occurrence or not?
If it is an abnormal occurrence than it’s quite possible that either the cocaine or fentanyl WAS laced (not mixed) with something.
Nice post. I was baffled too.
Who the hell would waste such a great opiate* on cutting coke?
* great if you’re already a serious opiate user, otherwise you will stop breathing and die if you touch fentanyl
Wow I just read the comments here… some bad posts…
@1 It’s actually really common to mix coke and opiates. You want the warmth/body-high from the opiates but the coke will keep you awake and able to do more than sit on the couch and stare into space.
@2 I totally agree! Anyone who makes the personal decision to do serious drugs without medical supervision deserves exactly what happens to them. However, that does not make drugs bad, nor does it make the people who use them bad.
All of these people (@5, @8, @12) have been brainwashed into thinking drugs are a criminal problem. It’s so obvious when you say such silly things. Drug addiction is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors. The day we stop treating drug addicts like criminals can’t come fast enough. But I have a feeling you folks are beyond help.
@17 who knows? My favorite piano player died on my birthday from a speedball in 1990. It’s an ancient combo and it probably kills people (or is the straw that breaks the drug-addicted camel’s back) all the time. Plus you have to realize the idea of lacing coke with fentanyl (or the other way around) is downright silly to anyone who knows these drugs.
It sounds like the only story here is some unfortunate drug users underestimated a drug they were using and died. Hate to say it, but we call that user error.
Don’t play with these drugs without doing your homework.
@19 Drug addiction is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors.
That’s a great excuse and total bullshit not backed up by anything. Most addicts of all stripes in this country are middle class whites.
sweet sweet straw man @16.
19: who said anything about criminal problem?
I spoke of the personal liabilities and consequences of doing cocaine on an individual level (12).
http://www.erowid.com
this website should be required viewing before ANY drugs are purchased
the fact that we have a completely uncivilized drug market is the ONLY reason this happens. If these people would have known the facts, been told by a real life brain thinker what happens in their body when they do these drugs and why their heart will more than likely stop before they get ‘high’ it could have easily prevented this tragedy. Instead we live in a world where every drug is a street drug, and every high is like playing Russian roulette. This is really better than giving these people the education they deserve? They’re clearly going to do the drugs with or without the approval of society, why do we act like our shunning helps? Another sacrifice for the drug war gods, another missed opportunity to be better.
@19 Drug addiction is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors.
LOL! Wait… let me try…
Gambling addiction is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors.
Criminal activity is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors.
Liberalism is a medical problem typically brought on by economic factors.
Cool! That’s fun!!!
Regardless of how one feels about hard drugs, one should trust who they buy from if they so choose to do them.
@20: More middle-class people may use drugs/alcohol than poor people, but there are more PROBLEM users in the lower-class than the middle.
@17: I think it would be strange for two complete strangers to have died in one weekend from the same combination. But these two knew each other and likely were taking exactly the same thing and in similar amounts. That’s a little less unusual. The fiance is lucky she didn’t die too. http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/T…
This is why I stick to moderate amounts of alcohol and caffeine, and not in conjunction. Neither of those will fuck you up from routine, moderate use (with the exception of mild caffeine dependency, which is fairly easy to kick.)
For those of us who just can’t take reality 24/7, go eat a pot brownie.