cannabis fun club

Drug cops declare war on painted marijuana

 

The image of cannabis leaves may soon disappear from advertising brochures of mobile phone companies offering trendy screensavers for mobile phones. T-shirts with images of seven-leaf clover and songs about "glitches" have already been banned. This is how the Federal Service for the Control of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (FSN) of the Russian Federation fights marijuana propaganda. How necessary is this war on symbols? What effect can it have if "hard" drugs continue to flow into the country in hundreds of kilograms?

Sadly, in the cycle of commodity-market relations, drugs already act as a commodity and are subject to all existing market laws. There is demand for "dope", there is supply, dealers, sellers, buyers. Any product can envy drugs in terms of profitability and sales volumes. But they, just like regular toothpaste, need advertising. Naturally, no one will allow a TV commercial or a billboard in the city center calling for "getting high and forgetting". According to FSN experts, drug dealers have found another, no less effective way: to influence the mass, mainly teenage, consciousness.

Under-the-counter shortages

T-shirts, lighters, and removable panels for mobile phones have recently become accessories of a certain youth subculture. It has become fashionable to show off in a T-shirt with a picture of a hemp seven-leaf clover or to take a phone out of your pocket that exudes the smell of marijuana, albeit synthetic. Sellers rejoiced - the goods were well bought by teenagers. However, at the end of last year, the Federal Service of the Russian Federation for the Control of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances began a real hunt for such goods. Drug police officers began confiscating products with images of marijuana all over the country. The fined traders were told that such a business is nothing more than "dissemination of illegal drug propaganda." By the way, the most serious sanction provided for by the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation - a fine of up to 400 minimum wages, confiscation of advertising products, equipment - is threatened for this very act. Sellers responded immediately. Illegal advertising products are now being sold under the counter.

In order to make a "test purchase" of a mobile accessory, the Novye Izvestia correspondent walked up and down the capital's "Gorbushkin Dvor". The panel with the fragrant picture was nowhere to be seen. "Flora" was presented on the shelves only in the form of harmless roses and daisies. An hour later, she got lucky. A beardless teenager pointed his finger at the assortment presented with displeasure and asked for "something more cheerful". The salesgirl giggled and took the panel out of the "reserves".

"Don't you know that selling such goods is prohibited?" I asked.

“What should I do? What sells well will always sell. The main thing is that you don’t get caught,” the trader answered.

"Nonsense" on the Internet

The Federal Tax Service's activity in removing the advertising "seven-flowered flower" from sale has caused a mixed reaction in society and has given rise to an army of dissatisfied people. The main complaints are "why all of a sudden?" After all, before the appearance of the Federal Drug Control Service, despite the existence of legislation prohibiting illegal propaganda of drugs, offenders were rarely held accountable.

Potential consumers were bombarded with buckets of pro-drug information every day: how to make it, where to buy it. Newspapers, magazines, and television still enticingly describe the state of drug intoxication, and give advice on criminal conspiracy - how to hide drugs to avoid responsibility. There are about 600 pro-drug sites on the Internet, and some of them have specific offers for making deals on their pages.

"Communication channels influence the formation of mass consciousness, the emergence of a subculture," says Boris Tselinsky, Head of the Department of Interdepartmental Cooperation in the Sphere of Prevention of the Federal Security Service. "The simplest example of such influence: intrusive, aggressive beer advertising has led to young people walking around with bottles. The same thing with drugs. You can confiscate as many batches of drugs as you like, catch drug dealers. It's like plugging a small leak with your finger when a stream is gushing nearby. You need to influence both demand and supply."

In the 7 months since the operation began, administrative sanctions have been applied in forty cases. For those held accountable, FSN officers have become the main offenders. Although drug police officers only record the fact of sale of illegal advertising goods. Whether the products are propaganda of drugs is determined by both full-time and outside experts - philologists (inscriptions, texts), psychologists (images), art historians (films, clips). The decision to confiscate the goods and the measure of administrative punishment is made by the court. However, in the absolute majority of cases, the court agrees with the FSN officers.

In "development" - Decl

Almost no one dares to openly promote hard drugs. And is it necessary, if heroin already makes up the most significant part of drugs imported into Russia? The advertisement of life on a high is provided by plant "dope".

The FSN Directorates for the Ulyanovsk Region and Moscow have uncovered facts of the sale of a book containing open advertising for the use of cannabis preparations. The author described the plant as a panacea for many diseases, and gave specific examples of "miraculous" healing. The entire print run was confiscated.

In the Leningrad and Bryansk regions, two companies were brought to administrative responsibility for selling Czech vodka Cannabis (in Latin, this is the name of wild hemp). The bottle label stated that the drink was infused with hemp and therefore "greatly intoxicating." An examination showed that there were no intoxicating substances in the vodka. The manufacturer was thus pursuing commercial interests.

In Yaroslavl, a magazine with an electronic application of a computer game was sold in retail. The developers of the economic strategy suggested trying on "the difficult career of a drug dealer."

Now the famous rapper Decl has found himself in "circulation". In his video for the song Legalise, the rap artist raises the issue of marijuana legalization.

Even leading Russian mobile phone companies do not hesitate to sell subscribers electronic screensavers for their phone screens via SMS messages that clearly promote drugs. "NI" sent inquiries on this matter to the press services of the two largest mobile phone operators - OJSC "VimpelCom" and OJSC "Mobile TeleSystems". No response, no greeting.

But the head of the Department of Interdepartmental Cooperation in the Sphere of Prevention of the Federal Tax Service, Boris Tselinsky, told me that he had recently had a serious conversation with one of the managers of Mobile TeleSystems OJSC and sent the company an explanatory and warning letter. MTS firmly promised to remove the prohibited images from sale.

"This is just cool"

An unpleasant chill runs down your spine from the fact that the younger generation reads such books, listens to such songs and plays the games described above. But is there a direct connection between the "seven-leaf" T-shirt and the first "joint" smoked? Most of the young people interviewed by "NI" who wear "drug propaganda" do not look like drug addicts. Most often, the only explanation for the purpose of the purchase was the capacious slang word "cool!"

"The purchase and use of such goods is one of the forms of shocking behavior that is part of youth culture," says Olga Makhovskaya, a senior researcher at the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. "It is not at all necessary that a teenager who puts on a T-shirt with an inscription calling for the legalization of marijuana is using the drug himself. In this way, he is simply trying to attract the attention of others. But this does not mean that the problem of illegal drug propaganda should be treated as insignificant. This is cheap and, most importantly, effective advertising, since youth culture is a mass phenomenon. Of course, it is necessary to remove such goods from sale. Temptation teases and beckons. Some children and teenagers may be "lured." But it will be bad if drug police get too carried away with the fight against Decl. Their main task is to fight the large-scale distribution of drugs in Russia."

In the center of Moscow there is a store selling clothing made from hemp. On the labels and some items of clothing is the same seven-leaf clover. But it is completely legal. The image of the plant only informs the consumer that it is made from hemp. "We consulted with lawyers," the store's director Dmitry told NI. "Everything is within the law. So far, we have not had any problems with law enforcement agencies."

Everything is fine, everything is decorous and legal. But on the counter next to the cigarettes without tobacco (filled with dried herbs) there are sticks for fumigating premises. The name is "Opium".

The regulars of the outlet are the same teenagers. What will a teenager choose? The store manager throws up his hands.

 

New news