7 ms·

And this means we're going to have an easier time buying the stuff that works...right? ...right?

gwern 3y ago
You will have an easier time inasmuch as you will no longer think, as almost everyone did, that your purchase of phenylephrine is adequate. The hardest pseudoephedrine to buy is the one you don't think you need.
- dartos 3y ago
  This is a difficult comment to parse
  - Waterluvian 3y ago
    People blissfully treated with placebos because the stuff that actually worked can be kind of hardcore. My (I’ve learned: unpopular) opinion is that not everything is a cosmic wrongness that demands a 1Hr Photo of a fix. It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages.
    - jen20 3y ago
      > It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages. Spot the person with no children and no job responsibilities!
      - Waterluvian 3y ago
        (Has a four and a six year old)
      - TeMPOraL 3y ago
        Thought the same thing. I've always been a "better living through chemistry" kind of person, but having kids pushed me straight into "find what pill makes it go away, and take it" as default response, because ain't anyone have time to deal with bullshit like a cold, especially when the rest of the family is down with it again, third time this month.
    - maxerickson 3y ago
      Pseudoephedrine makes me feel fairly off, but it's really great for nasal congestion to last like 2 days less if that is the price (in addition to 20 cents for the pill or whatever it is).
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
tptacek 3y ago
It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind that you obtain by constructing horrible hazmat labs in garages, mobile homes, and apartments.
- s3p 3y ago
  This isn't a very constructive response. OP wants it to be easier to buy decongestants, as do I.
- Mountain_Skies 3y ago
  It's a minor annoyance but I only need to buy a pack once a year, so the extra time required isn't bad. The downside is that you have to go when the pharmacy is open and in some places those hours can be quite limited, especially for those who work standard business hours. If you need to buy it regularly, it might become a hassle. When I bought it, my receipt showed the total amount I had bought in the past thirty days (which was also the amount I was buying that day). For my use, the monthly allowed amount is far far beyond what I'd ever use but I could see some people with really bad sinus issues needing more. Perhaps in that situation a doctor could write them a prescription for more than the standard limit.
- qclibre22 3y ago
  I think he might have meant this : "Codeine is a widely used analgesic, that is available for sale in pharmacies over the counter (OTC) in a number of countries including the UK, South Africa, Ireland, France and Australia." [0] [0] https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/25048/#:~:text=Codeine%20is%20a%20widely%20used,%2C%20Ireland%2C%20France%20and%20Australia https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/25048/#:~:text=Codeine%20is%2....
  - skyyler 3y ago
    Codeine treats coughs. Sudafed treats sinus congestion. Different drugs with different uses.
jrockway 3y ago
Never! We're still fighting a war on drugs, and it's crucial that the government know the names of all allergy sufferers. If people could have as much Sudafed as they wanted then... they might be able to smell all of the marijuana smoke outside, which would make the war on drugs look ineffective. We mustn't have that. (8 people will reply to me saying that people buy pseudoephedrine and make meth badly and blow up their chemistry lab, killing their neighbors. I'm sure that's happened, but if we want to reduce the number of people that die every year, the truck that delivers the stuff probably has a higher body count. But cars good, drugs bad. I've lived in this country long enough to know how it works.)
sixothree 3y ago
No. But the sad joke is you can buy 20 guns without presenting your license or having the state tell you no. But if you got a sinus headache? You’re a dangerous individual. You gotta get registered and in the system so we can track you.
- vGPU 3y ago
  > Under federal law, federally licensed gun dealers, importers and manufacturers must run background checks for sales to an unlicensed buyer. Specifically, a potential purchaser must show identification, complete a federal document known as a Form 4473, and pass a National Instant Criminal Background Check System check. Any licensed firearm dealer MUST run a background check at ALL times. Stop your misinformation.
  - sixothree 3y ago
    Serious question. Did you do a background check for every gun you own? Most people simply don't.
  - clipsy 3y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_show_loophole https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_show_loophole
    - vGPU 3y ago
      If the seller is a licensed firearm dealer, they are required to run a background check, no matter whether they’re at a gun show or not. Whereas if you’re purchasing in a private sale, you don’t have to be at a gun show. I can walk over to my neighbor’s house right now and purchase his gun without showing him my ID This is fearmongering and sensationalism.
  - wl 3y ago
    I assume GP is talking about face-to-face private sales, which doesn’t require any background check on the federal level and in many states. In some states, you can go on Armslist and buy 20 guns without having to show an ID. And worse, running a background check isn’t even an option in most states unless you pay an FFL to intermediate the sale.
ipaddr 3y ago
Vitamin C and rest? They will still carry that

You will have an easier time inasmuch as you will no longer think, as almost everyone did, that your purchase of phenylephrine is adequate. The hardest pseudoephedrine to buy is the one you don't think you need.

dartos 3y ago
This is a difficult comment to parse
- Waterluvian 3y ago
  People blissfully treated with placebos because the stuff that actually worked can be kind of hardcore. My (I’ve learned: unpopular) opinion is that not everything is a cosmic wrongness that demands a 1Hr Photo of a fix. It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages.
  - jen20 3y ago
    > It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages. Spot the person with no children and no job responsibilities!
    - Waterluvian 3y ago
      (Has a four and a six year old)
    - TeMPOraL 3y ago
      Thought the same thing. I've always been a "better living through chemistry" kind of person, but having kids pushed me straight into "find what pill makes it go away, and take it" as default response, because ain't anyone have time to deal with bullshit like a cold, especially when the rest of the family is down with it again, third time this month.
  - maxerickson 3y ago
    Pseudoephedrine makes me feel fairly off, but it's really great for nasal congestion to last like 2 days less if that is the price (in addition to 20 cents for the pill or whatever it is).
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]

tptacek 3y ago

It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind that you obtain by constructing horrible hazmat labs in garages, mobile homes, and apartments.

s3p 3y ago
This isn't a very constructive response. OP wants it to be easier to buy decongestants, as do I.
Mountain_Skies 3y ago
It's a minor annoyance but I only need to buy a pack once a year, so the extra time required isn't bad. The downside is that you have to go when the pharmacy is open and in some places those hours can be quite limited, especially for those who work standard business hours. If you need to buy it regularly, it might become a hassle. When I bought it, my receipt showed the total amount I had bought in the past thirty days (which was also the amount I was buying that day). For my use, the monthly allowed amount is far far beyond what I'd ever use but I could see some people with really bad sinus issues needing more. Perhaps in that situation a doctor could write them a prescription for more than the standard limit.
qclibre22 3y ago
I think he might have meant this : "Codeine is a widely used analgesic, that is available for sale in pharmacies over the counter (OTC) in a number of countries including the UK, South Africa, Ireland, France and Australia." [0] [0] https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/25048/#:~:text=Codeine%20is%20a%20widely%20used,%2C%20Ireland%2C%20France%20and%20Australia https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/25048/#:~:text=Codeine%20is%2....
- skyyler 3y ago
  Codeine treats coughs. Sudafed treats sinus congestion. Different drugs with different uses.

jrockway 3y ago

Never! We're still fighting a war on drugs, and it's crucial that the government know the names of all allergy sufferers. If people could have as much Sudafed as they wanted then... they might be able to smell all of the marijuana smoke outside, which would make the war on drugs look ineffective. We mustn't have that. (8 people will reply to me saying that people buy pseudoephedrine and make meth badly and blow up their chemistry lab, killing their neighbors. I'm sure that's happened, but if we want to reduce the number of people that die every year, the truck that delivers the stuff probably has a higher body count. But cars good, drugs bad. I've lived in this country long enough to know how it works.)

sixothree 3y ago

No. But the sad joke is you can buy 20 guns without presenting your license or having the state tell you no. But if you got a sinus headache? You’re a dangerous individual. You gotta get registered and in the system so we can track you.

vGPU 3y ago
> Under federal law, federally licensed gun dealers, importers and manufacturers must run background checks for sales to an unlicensed buyer. Specifically, a potential purchaser must show identification, complete a federal document known as a Form 4473, and pass a National Instant Criminal Background Check System check. Any licensed firearm dealer MUST run a background check at ALL times. Stop your misinformation.
- sixothree 3y ago
  Serious question. Did you do a background check for every gun you own? Most people simply don't.
- clipsy 3y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_show_loophole https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_show_loophole
  - vGPU 3y ago
    If the seller is a licensed firearm dealer, they are required to run a background check, no matter whether they’re at a gun show or not. Whereas if you’re purchasing in a private sale, you don’t have to be at a gun show. I can walk over to my neighbor’s house right now and purchase his gun without showing him my ID This is fearmongering and sensationalism.
- wl 3y ago
  I assume GP is talking about face-to-face private sales, which doesn’t require any background check on the federal level and in many states. In some states, you can go on Armslist and buy 20 guns without having to show an ID. And worse, running a background check isn’t even an option in most states unless you pay an FFL to intermediate the sale.

ipaddr 3y ago

Vitamin C and rest? They will still carry that