I Get High With A little Help…
In the
60’s the most popular drugs were hallucinogens, the most popular being
LSD. Hallucinogenic drugs were popular
in the 60’s because the user experienced a trip in which colors swirled and
were “heard and” sound was seen and felt.
Often users experienced the “Superman Complex” in which he or she would
leap from an open
window
or off the tops of buildings. The
senses were so dulled by many hallucinogens that users would often do very
harmful things to the selves or others, not realizing what they were
doing. Some of these “events” are mere
urban legend, like that baby sitter who cocked the baby while on acid, while
others are based on fact, such as the multiple “accidental” suicides committed
by people on LSD.
Another extremely popular drug during the 60’s was marijuana. Also known as Pot, Grass, Weed, and many other aliases, marijuana is not considered by many to be a hallucinogen. Marijuana is made from the dried leaves and flowering stalks of the hemp plant. It can be smoked (in pipes or cigarettes) and it can be mixed with foods and drinks. People often confuse marijuana with it’s cousin made from the same plant; hashish. Marijuana has different effects on different people; for some the experience can be pleasant; for others horrifying. Marijuana has been used for centuries and is illegal in many countries, though decriminalization and legalization laws are trying to be passed everywhere.
LSD, lysergic acid diethylamide, is a drug, which is
made from a fungus that occurs 
naturally
on rye and wheat. Besides being the
most popular hallucinogen in the 60’s LSD has also been thought to be
responsible for the Salem Witch Hunts.
Arthur Stoll and Albert Hoffmann created LSD, or ACID. LSD can have very pleasant or frightening
effects on a user. LSD is illegal.
Other hallucinogenic drugs include mescaline, made from the
peyote cactus. Mescaline has very
similar effects to that of LSD.
Psilocybin, a drug made from certain types of mushrooms, also has
similar attributes of LSD. All of these
drugs cause the user to experience a trip, the length and intensity of
which varies from drug to drug and person to person. Different people have different experiences. All of the afore mentioned drugs are illegal
to grow, produce, sell, buy or posses.
Drug links:
http://www.lib.virginia.edu/sepccol/exhibits/sixties/drugs.html