Don't Do Drugs, European Kids—They'll Eat Out Your Wallet

Brian Doherty | December 5, 2006

Quite literally. In what could function as the most effective and scary bit of antidrug  propaganda ever, if true, according to a "spokesman for the forensic unit of the Rhineland Palatinate police," snorting meth through your 50 euro notes can cause them to crumble away to uselessness.

Comments

|12.5.06 @ 12:36PM|#

That's why I prefer rolled coin.

Thanks, I'll be here all week.

|12.5.06 @ 12:47PM|#

It's sad to see all that money go up their noses.

Tip your waitresses!

|12.5.06 @ 12:55PM|#

How is a woman like crystal meth? They'll deteriate your brain AND your wallet.

Hello? Is this thing on?

|12.5.06 @ 1:17PM|#

Is this something that was planned for, or an unforseen issue?

Also, does the German gov't want to have their currency falling apart to encourage consumer spending since you'd need to spend it quickly, or consumer saving since if you deposit it in the bank, it's the bank's problem once it leaves your hands?

I would think it's a bad thing to have your paper currency disintegrating so quickly, but I'm not an economist or currency expert, so I don't know for sure.

Aside from all the obvious jokes, anybody here care to help me out?

Warren|12.5.06 @ 1:40PM|#

Just as I suspected. The Euro is unstable. [rimshot]

These are the jokes folks.

|12.5.06 @ 1:57PM|#

So meth decreases inflation? Very interesting.

NoName|12.5.06 @ 2:36PM|#

Some German police forces are now advising consumers to use gloves whenever dealing with cash - and to spend as quickly as possible.
This statement lends credence to Lowdog's assumption.

I have many issues with this article though. Firstly, the primary acid used is HCL, not H2SO4. Secondly, part of the manufacturing process is washing the crystals with either acetone or denatured alcohol. Lastly, even if sulfuric acid was used and left on the crystals, dilute H2SO4 does not react vigorously with paper or other organics. I suppose it could happen, but I just ain't seeing it.

|12.5.06 @ 2:49PM|#

But what a great idea! Folding money that dissolves in the presence of coke, crack, meth, etc. We know that only drug dealers keep or use large amounts of cash, and what better way to get at those reserves!

Whoever thought this one up was a friggin genuis! What the HELL was he smoking? Pass it around!

|12.5.06 @ 3:28PM|#

I'm with NoName, I think this is bullshit. Among other things, what exactly is the right dimensions for taking the drug? That makes a grand total of no sense. I would assume you can roll any note into a cylinder. According to these guys the notes are all about the same size anyway. Anything to perpetuate the hysteria.

|12.5.06 @ 3:34PM|#

I can see where using a 50 Euro note, like a Benji here, would be seen as a status symbol. To think that one bill is better than another and any better than a plastic straw is bunk.

|12.5.06 @ 3:50PM|#

It's not just 50 Euro notes. This was in Der Spiegel last month, but there was no connection to meth made at the time (link in German). It's not really a big deal: I live in Rheinland-Pfalz and I haven't heard anything about it. I can definitely see the folks here doing meth, however. If you want to get an idea of what the folks are like here, picture your stereotypical hillbillies from Kentucky or West Virginia.

|12.5.06 @ 3:55PM|#

Another link, with a photo of a damaged 20. Here they mention meth.

|12.5.06 @ 3:57PM|#

Kwix

I think that different denomination Euro notes are different sizes. Fifties are just the right size apparently.

Quote from article:

"The €50 note is said to be of the right dimensions for taking the drug and as a result these notes have become the first casualties."

|12.5.06 @ 3:57PM|#

I mean, here they mention meth but they not that it's not confirmed that that is indeed the cause of the damage to the bills.

|12.5.06 @ 6:15PM|#

Jeebus, you don't put the drugs on the bill and then funnel them into your nose, you roll up the friggin' bill and snort the intoxicant up your nose. You don't have to use any form of currency to do that, really, so it doesn't matter what bill it is.

Not that I would know anything about it.

|12.6.06 @ 9:43AM|#

This has to be a fake news article.

Can I point out that if residue from Polish meth can cause a Euro to fall apart, people might experience a little discomfort snorting it up their noses? As for the bank notes, can you imagine what would happen if some hot sauce spilled on one?? (There's enough vinegar in hot sauce to polish copper) Apparently it would dissolve into mush right in front of your eyes!

This sounds a lot like the sensationalist claims that "meth contains hydrochloric acid and drain cleaner!" Both are simply used to alter the pH of the chemical mixtures, and are administered literally a drop at a time. Last time I checked, snorting Drano doesn't pack much of a buzz...

...And from personal observation, meth users are more likely to use smaller bills to snort, because they actually BUY their meth with the $50.