BILL CLINTON is the last person you d expect to be lauded by women s groups, but that s exactly what s happened as a result of him championing the Hillary J. Farias Date Rape Prevention Act.
Just signed into American law, the Act addresses Gamma Hydroxybutrate s use as a rape drug by putting it in the same legal category as heroin and cocaine. From now on, anybody convicted of administering it to an unknowing person can be jailed for up to 20 years.
The President is rather less of a hero in club circles where Liquid E, as it s euphemistically known, has become almost as popular as the solidified version.
On this side of the Atlantic, GHB is best-known for its leurve-making properties with bottles going for a tenner a pop in Soho s seedier sex shops. While they technically need a pharmacist s licence to sell it, the fact that GHB possession isn t illegal means that the Police rarely if ever take action.
Hot Press attempts to determine its status here resulted in this rather bizarre conversation with a member of the Garda National Drugs Unit.

HOT PRESS: Hello, I m trying to find out if Gamma Hydroxybutrate is illegal in Ireland.
NDU PERSON: Gamma Hydroxy . . . I ve not heard of that one. Hang on, I ll just check. (Places hand over phone) There s a fella here from Hot Press wanting to know about Gamma something-or-rather. Yup . . . okay . . . right. (Hand taken away from phone). We ve just had a look and, yes, it is a controlled substance
Have you ever come across it yourself?
No, I can t say I have.
Gamma Hydroxybutrate is available in Ireland, although in what quantities it s impossible to guage.
It s nowhere near as big as poppers but, yeah, we do have people wanting to buy it, reveals the owner of a Dublin adult shop. Normally we say it s illegal and leave it at that, but if it s somebody we know we suggest that they have a surf around on the net.
Having decided that Great Highland Bagpipes in Kilberry wasn t quite what we were looking for, we found a UK company, Vital Chemistry, who promise to deliver pharmaceutical GHB anywhere in Europe within ten days. Prices range from #12 for a 10g starter pack to #199 for a 300g stockpile.
10 grams would give you two or three decent hits, says a 24-year-old Irish user, Robbie. I ve ordered GHB from the net eight or nine times now, and never had any problems with customs. Not only that, but I had a bottle discovered in my luggage coming through Dublin Airport recently, and nobody batted an eyelid.
GHB was first synthesised in France 30 years ago, so while it might be a recent addition to the party scene, it s certainly not a new drug. As well as helping people to large it up, it s been used as a general anaesthetic and treatment for narcolepsy.
Taken in small doses, it produces a relaxed and euphoric state similar in some respects to alcohol, and in others to MDMA. The comparisons to E are ironic, however, as the two are on opposite ends of the pharmacological spectrum MDMA is classed as an amphetamine, while GHB is a sedative/hypnotic.
At higher doses, or mixed with drink, it can cause extreme drowsiness which is why it s been bracketed with Rohypnol and Ketamine as a rape drug.
The difference between the dose needed to create euphoria and that resulting in unconsciousness is very small, states the British Medical Council. Rohypnol or Roofies has had most of the limelight as the date-rape drug of choice, but the incidence of GHB being used as such are on the rise. When added to a drink, it s salty taste is masked.
Worse still, with Gamma Hydroxybutrate only staying in the system for 12 hours, it s impossible to detect unless a rape victim goes straight to a doctor for blood or urine tests.
Another substance that s been in the news for the wrong reasons this month is Amyl Nitrate or poppers .
In a warning to Viagra users, Roger Kirby of the British Association of Urological Surgeons says: If it is taken with any drug containing nitric oxide such as poppers it could be extremely hazardous. This is because the potentially lethal combination can lead to a decline in blood pressure that could cause a heart attack or stroke.
For the time being, though, Amyl Nitrate remains legal and is widely available in Irish adult shops for #6 a bottle. It s use as a sex aid by gay men high doses relax the sphincter brings with it another set of concerns.
Poppers are an immune suppressant, so people with HIV and with health problems should be careful, points out Mick Quinlan of the Gay Man s Health Project. There is a risk of death if the liquid is ingested, and also it can cause damage to the nose if it gets in.
All drugs affect judgement so people should be careful and have safe sex.
Away from the sexual arena, Amyl Nitrate and its chemical cousin, Butylnitrate, have joined Vick s Vapor Rub as an essential rave accessory. Unfortunately for hedonists, the extra oomph they give E is offset by the mother of all headaches which follows.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about poppers is, like magic mushrooms, they re legal but have only been tried by 16% of 16 to 29-year-olds. Hardly the statistics that drug epidemics are made of.