Khat plants

[agrid]

So late last night someone is bashing on my fence and my dog is going nuts. Turns out its the 40 year old neighbour flipping out about someone using a pipe to get into his backyard. He was pretty agitated so I tried to calm him down. I reckon he had smoked a bit too much weed and was on "monster watch". Anyway it turns out that some Somalians had arrived in a taxi and knocked on his door asking about a tree. He told them to go away and later found a pipe laying up against his fence which he reckon they were using to get into his backyard. Why they wouldn't just jump his fence I don't know. He wanted me to come inside and look more closely but I didn't feel like getting stabbed last night so I told him I would prefer to talk in the street. He went on about calling the cops and how I wouldn't be happy if black people were trying to climb in my backyard and so on.

Then I remembered. About 5 years ago an old lady lived on her own and there was always skinny black guys hanging around. Naturally I just assumed she was rooting them but then one day they were knocking on her door and seemed a little excited. So I went over to make sure she was ok and she said the boys had just come to collect some leaves off her tree. This went on for a few years until she sold the place and some wealthy guy with a beautiful black mustang moved in, built a huge extension and chopped down the tree. I suggested to the nutter that they Siomalians had simply come to the wrong place but he would have nothing of it.

Anyway with nothing better to do at work today I read about the Khat Plant: Law enforcement and khat: An analysis of current issues | Australian Policy Online
Interesting that they mentioned that there are "several" viable plants in Perth so it seems these plants are rare but highly sought after.

[chew]

This has been reported in the press over the last year or so. The influx of North African immigrants has bought it to the surface.

Some friends had a rental in the eighties with a Datura bush hanging over the fence after some disastrous experimentation they decided to not touch it anymore.

[g0zer]

^cathinone (psychoactive chemical in khat)



^L-Norpseudoephedrine (psychoactive chemical in khat)

both are amphetamine analogs



^amphetamine

Erowid Khat (Catha edulis) Vault : Khat chemistry notes from "Psychopharmacology of Herbal Medicine", by Marcello Spinella

Cathinone decreases firing of substantia nigra neurons, similar to amphetamine. Animal discrimination of cathinone is dependent on dopamine release, but is independent of 5-HT3 modulation or CA2+ inlux through L-type channels (Schechter 1992. High doses of cathinone result in depletion of dopamine and also have neurotoxic effecs on dopamine neurons (Wagener et al 1982). In contrast, long-term administration of cathinone does not deplete norepinephrine or serotonin (Wagner et al 1982). Cathinone and cathine may also have monoamine oxidase inhibition effects (Nencini et al 1984).

doesnt sound like a good plant choice for a backyard, unless you want to invite speed freaks looking for a cheap alternative climbing over your fence at night

[shan]

A mate in the hills had the same problem, he ended up cutting the tree down
He had mobs of them creeping around his block

[Wedge]

Yep heard of this in a few places, especially Noranda area. Groups of blokes walking around jumping fences to see what plants people had in their backyard. Heard of a few trees go missing in the middle of the night.

[Manyak]

Yep. Went to a Muslim school in Kewdale. A khat plant was located between the school & Oats St train station. School had to talk to the owners when all the Somalians kept rocking up high!

[alpha]

We chopped our mates Khat tree/plant down after we chased two guys eating the leaves off the tree. Cops recommended to chop it down if we didn't want them returning.

[Para045]

Look like this?

[Nine]

Datura

Had a bad, bad, bad experience on that evil shit once. Only ever once. *shakes head*

[agrid]

I came home this afternoon and parked the bike to check out for odd trees. The neighbor came out with a mop for self defense and said he was relieved to see it was only me. Turns out earlier today he found three Somalians in his backyard pull leaves off the tree next door. I took a sample of the leaves and it looks like Khat to me. Maybe they were a popular tree in North Perth 30 years ago or something. We are trying to locate our mutual neighbour to see if he is happy for us to chop down his tree.

[=Stevo=]

A few years ago my (then) 88 year old grandmother had one of the Khat trees towards the back corner of her front yard in Mount Claremont, right next to her bedroom window.

She kept scaring away all of the guys picking leaves, but one day they wouldn't disappear when she told them to go, so she went back inside and grabbed her ancient shotgun, stood out on the front porch and told them to get lost. (I'm fairly sure she was the inspiration for Gran Torino aha).

30 mins later the police are around having a very kind chat about how you aren't allowed to threaten people with guns anymore, or own an unregistered one, or just keep it next to the bed with the ammo in the bedside drawer, and that this may be a record age for gun crime - especially in the Western Suburbs.

The tree got chopped down, the gun was decommissioned and returned to her and there was never another sighting of guys picking leaves.

[g0zer]

Datura

i only recently heard about scopolamine after watching a documentary from colombia- its arguably one of the most dangerous drugs in the world is not a recreational at all.

its primary use is to poison people. street gangs in south america spike drinks or even just blow the dust in your face, take control and rob you then leave you to often die from overdose.

In 2008, Vice News aired an episode called Colombian Devil's Breath recounting the use of scopolamine by Colombian criminals as a suggestion drug. The two-part investigation contains multiple first-hand accounts of its use.[27]

Scopolamine is used criminally as a date rape drug and as an aid to robbery,[28] the most common act being the clandestine drugging of a victim's drink.[28]

Per the United States State Department (March 4, 2012): "One common and particularly dangerous method that criminals use in order to rob a victim is through the use of drugs. The most common has been scopolamine. Unofficial estimates put the number of annual scopolamine incidents in Colombia at approximately 50,000. Scopolamine can render a victim unconscious for 24 hours or more. In large doses, it can cause respiratory failure and death. It is most often administered in liquid or powder form in foods and beverages. The majority of these incidents occur in night clubs and bars, and usually men, perceived to be wealthy, are targeted by young, attractive women. To avoid becoming a victim of scopolamine, one should never accept food or beverages offered by strangers or new acquaintances or leave food or beverages unattended. Victims of scopolamine or other drugs should seek immediate medical attention."[29]

[Dragunov-21]

Datura. Not why even once?

I'm inclined to put it up there with petrol-sniffing in terms of shit that I can't understand.

i only recently heard about scopolamine after watching a documentary from colombia- its arguably one of the most dangerous drugs in the world is not a recreational at all.

It's a deliriant. There are plenty of people who have taken it recreationally. Interestingly, most people I've spoken to who've taken it don't advise anyone else to. A neighbour of mine used to take it occasionally. Motherfucker ended up running around the building naked and screaming.

[Scoundrel]

Look like this?

I guess that's what you would see if you were tripping off your dial on the shit.

[g0zer]