[Cathryn Crawford]

Sooooo...question.

What do you think about Ecstacy? I know a few people who use it, some regularly. They don't give an unbiased view.

What do ya'll think?

[Arkinsaw]

What do ya'll think?

I think that it has killed several people, mostly young people, who were under the impression that it was a 'safe' drug. It is not the worst drug out there, but its a LOT more dangerous than marijuana even though a lot of young folks think of it in the same category.

[jmc813]

I've never tried it myself. A girl I know with used to use it quite a bit and, despite still smoking a lot of pot to this day, she will absolutely never use ecstacy again.

Her reasoning is that when you use it, it's the best feeling and mood you've ever had. However, the more you use it, the bigger your tolerance gets, and it becomes quite depressing to realize that you will probably never be as happy sober as you were when you first started using X.

[jayef]

Regular use of ecstasy is not a good idea. Most responsible users enjoy it more and regulate its potential harm through monthly or quarterly (better) use. There are also ways to mitigate the negative effects of ecstasy. Knowing how it works is key to responsible use.

[Squawk 8888]

The problem is not that ecstasy is inhererenty dangerous, it's the stuff being sold as ecstacy. Like all illegal drugs, it really is caveat emptor. My own take is that most drugs are not illegal because they're dangerous, they're dangerous because they're illegal.

The biggest hazard of ecstacy is that it shuts down the body's cooling process so there is high risk of hyperthermia, which in Toronto was the cause of most ecstacy-related deaths during a wave of such incidents a few years back. Non-stop dancing, poor ventillation and lack of available water were all cited when those deaths were investigated (most raves here were underground, often held in unsuitable facilities). The deaths stopped when the city made it easier to operate all-ages rave parties legally and the police were ordered to crack down on the raves being held in unsafe venues.

[Squawk 8888]

There's a terrific article about MDMA (Ecstacy) at http://www.reason.com/0201/fe.js.sex.shtml