Cornhuskers vs. Sage Smokers

Last week Nebraska's legislature voted unanimously to ban Salvia divinorum (a.k.a. "diviner's sage"), the psychedelic herb that's all the rage among YouTube exhibitionists and drug warriors so hysterical that they make the DEA look calm and rational. Henceforth possession of the plant or extracts of it will be punishable by up to five years in prison, and selling it will get you up to 20 years. By The Drug War Chronicle's count, a total of 10 states have banned salvia since 2004, when Delaware got the ball rolling. Three more states—Ohio (where a ban takes effect in April), Kentucky (where a ban was unanimously approved by the state House on Tuesday), and South Dakota (where a ban declaring a salvia "emergency" passed the House two weeks ago and got the nod from a Senate committee this week)—are on the verge of joining the list. In Louisiana and Tennessee, salvia is legal only when it's not intended for human consumption. In Maine and California, salvia is legal only for adults.

Previous Reason coverage of the salvia panic here.