WHY I JUST SAID NO TO SALVIA

"That's peer pressure," said my son.

No, that's journalism, or at least one school of it.

And it took me a couple of hours to figure out what to
do.

Agreeing to write a news story about salvia was a no-brainer. It's
news. It's my job to report news. The fact it was designated a Page
One story didn't hurt either.

The dilemma came when colleagues suggested I try the legal, but
potentially hallucinogenic, substance.

I tried a few stores I thought might carry it in some form, and was
pretty relieved when I couldn't find any. Problem solved? Well, no. I
could try a little harder, drive a little farther or order it off the
Internet. After all, columnists are supposed to do this kind of thing.

I've taken the controls of a small plane, shot the civilian equivalent
of an M-16, ridden around with undercover police officers, accompanied
the Air National Guard on a mid-air refueling exercise, walked through
downtown Framingham alone at night, all in the name of getting a
firsthand experience to share with readers.

Why draw the line at trying salvia?

It's not as if I haven't polluted my body with cigarettes for the
better part of 50-plus years. It's not as if I'm completely unfamiliar
with the concept of self-medicating.

My drug of choice is white wine. When it comes to pharmaceuticals, my
beliefs are about three steps short of Christian Science.

I'll take antibiotics if a doctor is convinced I have an infection. If
I have a bad cold, I'll take medicine to make myself less offensive to
others.

I have no desire to treat problems with pills pushed on peppy TV ads
that include potential side effects like bleeding from the ears,
driving while asleep and tuberculosis. I have no desire to alter my
consciousness with drugs I can't control.

I also didn't want to explain to my 13-year-old how this was something
I can do because it's my job, but he can't because it's wrong.

Justin was on my mind a lot while I was deciding what to include in a
news story on salvia.

Does writing about a drug, particularly one that's still relatively
obscure, put something in a young mind that wouldn't have been there
otherwise?

What about naming the Web sites that sell salvia? Is that just drawing
a map for a kid, or is it a piece of information a parent could use?

Up until a few days ago, I would have assumed salviadragon.com was
some sort of computer game site. If a parent sees that name on the
list of recent visits, or purplestickysalvia.com, there might be
reason for concern.

Should I mention there are videos of kids taking salvia "trips" on
YouTube? Or have preteens figured that out already?

Many of the people I talked to for the story had similar
qualms.

At Framingham State College, about half of the dozen students I
interviewed had never heard of the stuff. A few others only learned of
its existence when it became the subject of news stories because
legislators are looking to outlaw it.

Would I just add to the problem?

"To some extent, it seems the media tends to portray salvia as this
huge threat to our youth," said Daniel Siebert, who runs a Web site
dedicated to the plant, but it's media attention that "creates a
desire to seek it out."

As a somewhat responsible parent, that's exactly what I don't want to
do. I don't want any kid surfing the Web and ordering some hopped-up
version of a plant even Siebert said can produce "strange and weird"
feelings.

"I don't think (reporters) have given it a fair look," he said. "It's
something that produces a deep state of inward awareness."

Would trying it for myself and reporting on the effects constitute a
fair look?

Probably not, said Siebert, because the effects vary widely depending
on the individual's state of mind and the potency of the drug.

I could get "a tool for meditation," or, thanks to salvia sellers who
up the chemical content, I could get the product with "a danger of
(users) hurting themselves in a highly altered state."

Not something I want to do.

Not something I'd want a child to do.

"It's a matter of raising awareness," said Ashland Police Sgt. Greg
Fawkes, and parents need to be aware of what's out there.

That's my job.

Trying a drug, even a legal one, is not.

Even when a peer tells me I'm wrong.