In the world of FAKE REEFER MADNESS, Georgia Governor, Sonny Perdue signed a bill on Monday to outlaw the use and sales of synthetic marijuana, the most common brands, “K2″ or “Spice”. HB 1309 places fake marijuana on a Schedule 1 controlled substances list right along side Heroin and the natural plant it tries to emulate, marijuana. The Bill had bi-partisan support and is targeting the substance that is sold as an herb coated with a synthetic chemical that can get a user high when smoked. It is marketed as an incense and can also be purchased on line in the same quantities as marijuana with an eighth costing about $45 dollars. Each package comes with a warning sticker, “Not for Human Consumption”.

The compound was created by an organic chemist, John W. Huffman in the mid-1990′s to mimic the effects of cannabis on the brain to study cannabinoid receptors. The actual substance that is being banned, JWH-018 bears his initials. Huffman has since come out to plead with people that the substance may be toxic and should defiantly not be used for recreational purposes. Georga joins a handful of other states that have recently banned the substance, and about six more are considering a ban. The Military has banned use for soldiers and the drug has been banned in Europe for a few years. It is produced in Korea and China and distributed worldwide.

A  USA Today article cited several cities and the states of  Kansas, Alabama and Kentucky that have already outlawed the drug.   Missouri and Tennessee have passed bans that will take effect unless vetoed by their governors and Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, New Jersey and New York are considering bills to outlaw the drug.