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bas weaker pedigree, and a more negative history than it deserves, given its minimal potential for harm. fdloreover, successful periodic campaigns designed to eliminate this "evil" herb, serve to steer 4he user toward more dangerous substances. tarinspoon and Hedblom (195) note what might have influenced American society in the 1930s to greet the arrival of amphetamines as medical marvels while simultaneously condemning the "killer weed": While marijuana was being brought to the..public's attention as a menace capable of wreaking great havoc, amphetam.Ines were introduced and promoted as perhaps the earliest technology-derived drug to provide "better living through chemistry. " Amphetamines were products of modem technology; they came from the laboratories of great corporations, and, in the days before the growth of consumer skepticism, this lent Phem legitirryacy; unlike the dangerous foreign weed, Phey seemed to have reliable, sale, known properties. And, of course, they had the backing of medical authority (Grinspoon and 1°ledb/om, 1975:283). Findings presented in Chapter Seven on the social consequences of ice in Honolulu demonstrated that the latest version of the American campaign against marijuana continues to have the same unfortunate consequences. Amon Pacific Islander groups pre-existing drug use practices set the stage for the 9 introduction of ice into Hawaii. ~ariier studies have documented the role of alcohol in relation to indigenous intoxicating beverages ('awe), 4he eradication of 4hose traditional beverages, and the simultaneous promo$ion of western types of alcohol beverages, and institution of native specific alcohol control regulations (Keaulana and llVhitney, 1990). On the surface, native Hawaiians and other Asian Pacific Island residents in Hawai': accepted this substitution. However, there is a possibility that eradication of traditional alcoholic intoxicants was quietly replaced by 'pakodolo grown by "local" residents in family yards and fields. As government authorities began the campaign to eradicate marijuana in the i9f30s, a smokable drug known as "beta" from the traditional home of Island Filipir;os, bean td ~ €~~d in place of the increasingly rare and expensive pakololo. However, beta was not a tdition~! ~ intoxicant like 'awe or pakololo, it was a stimulant. As our interview data demonstrate in Chapter Seven, its popularization and widespread use had a number of unintended and harmful consequences for individuals as well as whole communities. Although the prevalence of ice use is not decreasing, there is a growing awareness among users that this is a dangerous substance, and a common realization that it is a poor substitute for pakalolo. C. HIV• High Pisk Sex and IV Meth Use As we discussed in Chapter Seven, the many of our respondents reported engaging in high risk sex activities due to their meth use. This was particularly true among gay and bi-sexual respondents, especially in San Francisco where meth as long been viewed as an adjunct to sex. j This tends more to be the case among gay respondents in a!! three sites. . Mforeover, in this study,' we found that many of these high risk behaviors are crossing boundaries into other social worlds. In San Francisco, for example, the club and• Dave scenes have become a nexus for a wide array of user types, ranging from straight suburban 163 ~