Feds tighten the net on dope smokers

Dope smokers who buy their drugs paraphernalia online are facing a crackdown from US authorities who have indicted 11 websites for selling articles such as bongs and pipes.

Attorney General John Ashcroft told reporters that the government would ask a US district court in Pittsburgh to point the sites to a webpage at the Drug Enforcement Administration explaining why they were taken offline.

Ashcroft said: "With the advent of the internet, the illegal drug paraphernalia industry has exploded. The drug paraphernalia business now thrives not only in small shops but is now accessible in anyone's home with a computer and internet access."

Denying the notion that people don't have to visit sites they don't want to, Ashcroft added: "Quite simply, the illegal drug paraphernalia industry has invaded the homes of families across the country without their knowledge."

The prosecutions, called Operation Pipe Dreams, represent the federal government's boldest attempt yet to shutter websites that sell drug paraphernalia. Under current federal law, that category includes any product that is "primarily intended" for use with illegal drugs.

The list of websites targeted in coordinated raids that took place on Monday includes PipesForYou.com, OmniLounge.com, ColorChangingGlass.com, 420now.com and PuffPipes.com.

As of Monday afternoon, many of the sites were still reachable. OmniLounge.com describes itself as a "one-stop head shop for a wide selection of water pipes and smoking accessories at great prices," and AHeadCase.com, which says it has two stores in southern California, sells water pipes and drug test kits.

Keith Stroup, director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said it was ridiculous for the Justice Department to be indicting bong sellers when the US is on high terror-alert status. "This latest enforcement initiative is primarily an expression of extremism of this particular attorney general," Stroup said.

Ashcroft "is a right-wing zealot. Now I'm not a fan of the Bush administration, but I have to think that President Bush and most of his serious advisers have far more serious work to focus on right now than whether someone's selling rolling papers."