Here’s a very interetsing article written by Dennis Romero of LA Weekly. It illustrates the increasing number of problems arising from the rave-scene here in California. What bothers me the most is reading about the usage of ecstasy amongst high school students. I have been there before and I fully understand the attractiveness of rave-culture, but it seems like there is a lot more drug-abuse and misguidance going on with this generation of party goers. It is obvious to detect if you ever attend one of these events; increasing instances of violence and cuddle-puddles leads me to believe this scene is headed in the wrong direction. I am very curious to see how local politicians and interest groups react to the ever growing popularity of these events. Although this article only touches on the surface of EDM events, it is pretty comprehensive with regards to the chain of events which occurred in 2010. Read on below…

When 15-year-old Sasha Rodriguez died from an Ecstasy overdose in June, her mother was in disbelief. “I was supposed to be planning her sweet 16 party,” she told a television reporter. How could the teen possibly have died after joining a throng of 80,000 cheering young concertgoers at a rave sanctioned by some of Los Angeles’ top elected leaders?

One of Sasha’s friends told the Weekly she took only one pill before attending the Electric Daisy Carnival, held in June at the publicly owned Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. While baffled friends and family tried to grasp her death, attributed by the L.A. County Coroner to “complications of ischemic encephalopathy” due to MDMA intoxication — in short, vital oxygen deprivation — a curious phenomenon emerged among young rave participants: They went online to discuss their views that their favorite drug, Ecstasy, or MDMA, couldn’t be to blame.

In one online rave discussion group, called Plurlife, a reader named Maler wrote, “Someone sold her bunk shit.”

Another commenter, General Rowdy, explained, “Trust me on this she chugged a liter of water while being dehydrated that put her whole system out of whack which resulted in her falling down and hitting her head which then resulted in people walking over her.”

Twenty years after the first American raves were organized in California, bringing young people a bright new paradigm outside rock & roll rebellion and hip-hop bravado, L.A. politicians have endorsed supersized versions of the parties. But the huge, uncontrollable crowds have led to an increasing number of deaths and hospitalizations.

As the events have grown from small, illicit — but usually safe — warehouse affairs to massive, officially approved, commercial experiences, mayhem has followed in Los Angeles, but not in the nation’s other largest cities.

Raves in New York’s Central Park and Miami’s Bayfront Park don’t send nearly as many young people to the hospital. The Bay Area’s deadly experience at the Cow Palace last spring led local authorities to ban megaraves. Continue reading →