[beedogs]

It always annoys me how drugs are blamed by the news outlets whenever ignorant people use them irresponsibly. (Is it a news item when someone drives their car recklessly and injures themselves? Almost never, unless they're of some notoriety.)

[electromagnetic]

I grew up in the UK, the media loved sensationalizing a drug death. 1 pretty white girl dies from water toxicity while on ecstacy (AKA not a drug overdose, a death due to lack of information on safe usage), whilst organizations like MADD are fighting like crazy to reduce the daily manslaughter caused by people knowingly and irresponsibly using alcohol.

When one of the big scandals was going on I remember there was an advert on TV warning against binge drinking. The advert was this girl saying how her and her friend were out at a club, her friend was staggering about so they went back to her apartment because she was closest. They laid on the bed and went to sleep, she woke up the next morning and her friend was ice cold. Dead, choked on her vomit in her sleep. The UK has almost 9000 deaths a year related to alcohol.

The UK in 2011 had 6 deaths where ecstacy was a possible contributing factor. Drugscope is an interesting if skewed view.

http://www.drugscope.org.uk/resources/faqs/faqpages/how-many...

[collyw]

I also read before that the majority of "ecstasy deaths" are actually a cocktail of substances.

[easy_rider]

There is a huge problem currently with xtc-pills containing PMMA[1] in Europe. Also a lot of the deaths are during festival peak season. Overheating and as often a response drinking too much can cause critical health issues. This just shows how providing free tests at party's, more honest and thorough education etc can safe lives.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Para-Methoxy-N-methylamphetamin...