Editorial: Say no to legal high

Just because something is legal doesn't make it right.

I'm referring to the latest legal high on the market "Crack", which is being touted as a "recreational supplement".

What it is in fact is an excuse to take part in something that's potentially very dangerous.

We reported yesterday that Crack is now being sold in Rotorua stores, including dairies. It's not clear how old you have to be to buy the substance, but some Rotorua stores tell us it is their policy to ensure the buyer is 18.

The biggest concern about this product is the fact it can be smoked in a glass pipe or snorted up the user's nose. This is the first smokable and snortable product on the market - which is the same method by which illegal substances such as crack cocaine and methamphetamine are consumed.

It's also not cheap. It costs $75 for 200mg.

When I was a child, I used to go to the dairy and buy Space Man candy sticks. They were white sticks with a red end and looked just like cigarettes. I used to prance around (when mum and dad weren't looking) holding my "cigarette" thinking I looked really cool. In my early teens I took up smoking real cigarettes (a habit I've thankfully now kicked).

Imagine if youngsters got their hands on Crack in local dairies and did the same thing? What's stopping them? It's legal.

I had a conversation at the weekend with a potential supplier of Crack. She said the distributor was very keen for her to stock it but she refused because her gut feeling was it wasn't right.

Good on her. I challenge other Rotorua stockists to do the same.