Publication date: April 4, 2000
Document type: Editorial
Author: Mike Jenkinson
Six teens who took the mind-altering drug ecstasy collapsed during an all night dance party - called a "rave" - on the weekend. It’s thought that a strobe light show contributed to the seizures they had.
And other ravers The Sun spoke to admitted that drug use and drug overdoses are not uncommon at raves.
Naturally, these disturbing stories have the usual suspects concerned. Edmonton Mayor Bill Smith, who has attended several raves as a learning experience, says he is going to raise safety issues with the fire department.
Edmonton city councillor Robert Noce, who had already brought up questions about raves with his fellow Northlands board directors earlier this year, plans to bring the issue up again. He’s worried that next time. the consequences may be worse.
Their inclination to want to do something in the face of such unnerving stones like these is natural. But get past the immediacy of the event, and this is really a case of the more things changing, the more things stay the same.
Because there's nothing new about kids and young adults taking mind-altering drugs during huge parties. Just the names of the drugs change. It used to be LSD. Now it’s ecstasy - the “hug drug” which causes feelings of euphoria, but can also cause epileptic fits, panic attacks, psychosis, liver failure, hepatitis and heart problems.
Nor is there anything new about kids dropping out of mainstream society and forming their own subculture. The all-night raves, with their music and lights have been likened to a sort of religious or spiritual ritual for party-goers.
The raves do seem to bring a sense of belonging to those who attend. One of the girls at the rave on the weekend told the paper that many of the rave-goers there have no families, and the other people at the raves are their families.
That might be slightly exaggerated, but given that experienced ravers complain about 14-year-olds taking too many drugs at the parties, it does make us wonder where the parents are, and if they know or care what their kids are doing.
None of this is to say we should be casually dismissing the stories which came out of this weekend's rave. Nor are we advocating that the city council simply turn a blind eye to any illegal activities which go on at these events.
But let’s not kid ourselves into thinking that somehow we’ll stop kids from starting their own subculture and taking illegal mood-altering drugs by having city council pass a bylaw.
Those are problems too deeply rooted in the mysteries of the human condition to be tackled by city council.
And other ravers The Sun spoke to admitted that drug use and drug overdoses are not uncommon at raves.
Naturally, these disturbing stories have the usual suspects concerned. Edmonton Mayor Bill Smith, who has attended several raves as a learning experience, says he is going to raise safety issues with the fire department.
Edmonton city councillor Robert Noce, who had already brought up questions about raves with his fellow Northlands board directors earlier this year, plans to bring the issue up again. He’s worried that next time. the consequences may be worse.
Their inclination to want to do something in the face of such unnerving stones like these is natural. But get past the immediacy of the event, and this is really a case of the more things changing, the more things stay the same.
Because there's nothing new about kids and young adults taking mind-altering drugs during huge parties. Just the names of the drugs change. It used to be LSD. Now it’s ecstasy - the “hug drug” which causes feelings of euphoria, but can also cause epileptic fits, panic attacks, psychosis, liver failure, hepatitis and heart problems.
Nor is there anything new about kids dropping out of mainstream society and forming their own subculture. The all-night raves, with their music and lights have been likened to a sort of religious or spiritual ritual for party-goers.
The raves do seem to bring a sense of belonging to those who attend. One of the girls at the rave on the weekend told the paper that many of the rave-goers there have no families, and the other people at the raves are their families.
That might be slightly exaggerated, but given that experienced ravers complain about 14-year-olds taking too many drugs at the parties, it does make us wonder where the parents are, and if they know or care what their kids are doing.
None of this is to say we should be casually dismissing the stories which came out of this weekend's rave. Nor are we advocating that the city council simply turn a blind eye to any illegal activities which go on at these events.
But let’s not kid ourselves into thinking that somehow we’ll stop kids from starting their own subculture and taking illegal mood-altering drugs by having city council pass a bylaw.
Those are problems too deeply rooted in the mysteries of the human condition to be tackled by city council.
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