Coke and Angel Dust

Federal and local authorities last week reported disturbing increases in the use of a dangerous new street drug called PCP and unexpected side effects in one of the oldest of highs--cocaine. A summary of the findings:

PCP. To chemists, it is known as phencyclidine hydrochloride, but youngsters on this latest and fastest-spreading high know it as "angel dust," "rocket fuel" and "goon." The substance packs such an unpredictable wallop that the user may lapse into a coma, hallucinate or bristle with hostility. In California and elsewhere, use of the drug --especially among teen-agers--has reached epidemic proportions. It accounts for 10% of all drug-overdose cases in some Los Angeles hospitals. San Francisco authorities suspect that at least five murders in the past year involved users of the compound. First developed in the 1950s by Parke, Davis & Co. as an anesthetic, PCP produced such extreme reactions during trials that the drug was quickly shelved--although it is now sometimes used legally as an animal tranquilizer. The substance is cheaper than cocaine or heroin and nearly as available as marijuana in many major cities. The drug's ingredients are not only widely known but easy to assemble in basement labs. Equally important, the drug stirs a reaction within minutes. Hence it has become what one California official calls an instant macho symbol: "If you can take it and survive, it is evidence that you are a real man."

COCAINE. Though exact figures are hard to pin down, more and more people apparently are getting a kick out of this extract of the South American coca leaf. Long known as the "society high." cocaine is now being used by everyone from affluent suburbanites to drug-savvy ghetto kids. The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that almost 8 million Americans have tried cocaine at least once, usually by sniffing it in a powdery form ("snorting"). Cocaine's proponents, who included Freud, swear by the drug, insisting that it produces a sense of euphoria, increases sexual sensations, reduces fatigue and stimulates creative powers. Nonsense, says the Federal Government. Heavy use of cocaine can cause such side effects as sleeplessness, anxiety, hallucinations and even death. Cocaine also creates a strong psychological dependence, if not a direct physical addiction. While he endorses the relaxation of stiff penalties for smoking pot, NIDA Director Dr. Robert DuPont opposes any easing of the legal restrictions on what he regards as a far more dangerous trip. Insists DuPont: "Cocaine is not like marijuana."

As for that drug, NIDA estimates that some 36 million Americans have now tried pot. By far the largest concentration of users is in the 18-to-25 age bracket; 53% of those surveyed said they had smoked marijuana at least once. Says NIDA: "Despite significant attempts to discourage marijuana use, cannabis is more than a fad and may well prove to be an enduring cultural pattern in the U.S." Other than suggesting that smoking pot might cause lung damage. NIDA ducks the issue of whether the drug poses a serious, long-term health hazard, explaining that the question requires further study. But the agency does note that marijuana upsets psychomotor coordination, as does alcohol. Indeed, as marijuana use increases, so presumably will the number of marijuana-related highway accidents. A study of 300 fatal car crashes in the Boston area has already shown that 16% of the involved drivers were apparently under the influence of marijuana (alcohol was involved in 30% of the accidents). For this reason, NIDA is planning to develop a simple marijuana-detection test, similar to those used for alcohol, so that police can quickly determine whether a motorist is too "high" to drive.

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