Nature's Most Wanted
Have you seen these botanicals?
by Brian Ballard Quass, the Drug War Philosopher
May 24, 2022
#1 Erythroxylum coca
UNLAWFUL PROVIDER OF CLARITY, GIVING HUMAN BEINGS MENTAL POWERS THAT GOD NEVER INTENDED
ALIASES: Coke -- and a variety of snarky pejorative epithets like 'blow'
FAMILY: Erythroxylaceae
LOCATION: Last seen on the eastern slopes of the Andes
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#2 Papaver somniferum
PROVIDER OF FORBIDDEN CREATIVITY THROUGH THE UNLAWFUL CREATION OF METAPHORICALLY INSTRUCTIVE DREAM IMAGERY
ALIASES: Opium poppy
FAMILY: Erythroxylaceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Eastern Mediterranean, but sightings have also been reported in North Africa and Eurasia.
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#3 Psilocybin cubensis
UNLAWFUL IMPROVEMENT OF HUMAN MIND, FIRST DEGREE THREAT TO LIQUOR INDUSTRY AND MODERN PSYCHIATRY
ALIASES: Golden Teacher, Golden Halos, Cubes, Gold Caps, Shrooms, Stropharia cubensis, Mayan name: "k'aizalaj Okox"
FAMILY: Hymenogastraceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Cuba, Southwestern USA, Northern South America, Pacific Islands, Australia
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#4 Psilocybin semilanceata
UNLAWFUL SPIRITUAL BENEFITS, POTENTIAL THREAT TO ESTABLISHED RELIGIONS
ALIASES: Liberty Caps, Panaeolus semilanceatus, Phrygian Caps, Mongui, St. John's Mushroom
FAMILY: Strophariaceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Europe, North or South America, Asia, Australia, or New Zealand
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#5 Psilocybin ovoideocystidiata
UNLAWFUL LAUGHTER MAKING, POTENTIAL THREAT TO GOD AND COUNTRY
ALIASES: Ovoids
FAMILY: Hymenogastraceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Eastern US, especially Ohio and West Virginia, but appears to be on the move. Reported sightings made in western USA and Europe.
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#6 Psilocybin azurescens
UNLAWFUL THOUGHT GENERATOR, POTENTIAL THREAT TO CONSUMERISM AND MATERIALISM
ALIASES: Flying Saucers, Blue Runners, Blue Angels, Azzies
FAMILY: Hymenogastraceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Pacific Northwest, especially Oregon and Washington state.
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#7 Psilocybin cyanescens
UNLAWFUL PROVIDER OF MENTAL FLEXIBILITY, THREAT OF GROWING NEW BRAIN CELLS IN USER
ALIASES: Blue Meanie, Wavy Cap, Wakefield, Cyan, Blue Halo, Gold Tops, Copper Tops
FAMILY: Hymenogastraceae
LOCATION: Last seen in coastal US western states. Occasional reports of sightings in Europe.
#8 Amanita muscaria
SUSPECTED OF CAUSING PLEASANT DREAMS AND INSPIRING USERS WITH NOVEL MENTAL VISTAS
ALIASES: Fly Agaric, Fly Amanita
FAMILY: Amanitaceae
LOCATION: This shroom is constantly on the move. Reported sightings span the globe, in North America, Mexico, Central America, Asia, Europe and Australia
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#9 Banisteriopsis caapi and psychotria viridis
THREAT TO CHRISTIANITY, SUSPECTED OF PROMOTING ILLEGAL SELF-INSIGHT
ALIASES: Ayahuasca, La Purga
FAMILY: Malpighiaceae
LOCATION: Last seen in South America
#10 Lophophora williamsii
THREAT TO MATERIALISM, SUSPECTED OF INSPIRING CROSS-CULTURAL DREAM IMAGES
ALIASES: Peyote, Nahuatl peyōtl, Caterpillar Cocoon
FAMILY: Cactaceae
LOCATION: Last seen in Mexico and Southwestern Texas
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Notes:
1: The Truth About Opium by William H. Brereton DWP (up)
Ten Tweets
against the hateful war on US
By reading "Drug Warriors and Their Prey," I begin to understand why I encounter a wall of silence when I write to authors and professors on the subject of "drugs." The mere fact that the drug war inspires such self-censorship should be grounds for its immediate termination.
In Mexico, the same substance can be considered a "drug" or a "med," depending on where you are in the country. It's just another absurd result of the absurd policy of drug prohibition.
"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies." -- Groucho Marx
Prohibitionists have blood on their hands. People do not naturally die in the tens of thousands from opioid use, notwithstanding the lies of 19th-century missionaries in China. It takes bad drug policy to accomplish that.
There are endless ways that psychoactive drugs could be creatively combined to combat addiction and a million other things. But the drug warrior says that we have to study each in isolation, and then only for treating one single board-certified condition.
We need a scheduling system for psychoactive drugs as much as we need a scheduling system for sports activities: i.e. NOT AT ALL. Some sports are VERY dangerous, but we do not outlaw them because we know that there are benefits both to sports and to freedom in general.
There is more hope in dope than there is in the psychiatric pill mill.
Drug prohibition is not a victimless crime.
Saying "Fentanyl kills" is philosophically equivalent to saying "Fire bad!" Both statements are attempts to make us fear dangerous substances rather than to learn how to use them as safely as possible for human benefit.
If Americans cannot handle the truth about drugs, then there is something wrong with Americans, not with drugs.
Click here to see All Tweets against the hateful War on Us
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Copyright 2025, Brian Ballard Quass
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