Prohibition Fails Again: Banned 'Spice' (Fake Pot) Makes a Sneaky Comeback, Reactionary Lawmakers Can't Even Prosecute Dealers

Amid a media frenzy preying on Reefer-Madness-like anecdotes of bad synthetic drug experiences, legislators across the country banned many drugs they knew little about. Now, months after dozens of states forbade synthetic marijuana and bath salts (meth-like uppers), and just weeks after the House voted overwhelmingly to criminalize more than 40 chemicals found in these drugs, the Washington Post reports "Spice [fake pot] is back."  Back with a vengeance: the laws prohibitionists put into place are not only ineffective, but backfiring: They are creating new drugs and making it difficult even to arrest the very criminals the legislation created.  

According to the Post, 

 Spice manufacturers, who spray herbs with compounds that mimic the active ingredient in marijuana, have altered their recipes just enough to skirt the bans and are again openly marketing spice in stores and on the Web. Some users report that the new generation of products could be more potent than the original formulas, which have sickened hundreds nationwide and been linked to deaths.

So, fake pot is still available. What's more, enforcing the law by prosecuting the drug's dealers has proven difficult, exemplifying poor planning on behalf of lawmakers. READ MORE