“Methamphetamine is a highly addictive psychostimulant drug that can have horrifying side effects, but perhaps the most shocking thing about this drug is that the FDA and Big Business may be contributing to its spread in pursuit of profits. While dietary supplements containing ephedra were banned in 2003, when the FDA stated use of the herb presented ‘an unreasonable risk of illness or injury,’ pseudoephedrine-containing over-the-counter medicines from Big Pharma remain on the market. These products are used for far more than relieving sinus pressure, because a relatively simple (albeit very dangerous) refining process can turn sinus medicines into crystal methamphetamine. A further indicator of the FDA protecting Big Pharma interests is the fact that methamphetamine itself is prescribed as an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug under the brand name Desoxyn, although usually only as a last resort.” [editor’s note: Though the premise of some of this is suspect, at least to us libertarians, the argument follows through convincingly. - SAT] (02/27/07)