# Magic mushrooms = conspiracy to overthrow the government **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 10, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715 "2012-06-10T12:47:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CheeseDonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@CheeseDonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheeseDonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/1 "2012-06-10T12:47:38Z")
Can anyone explain the connection between the two? A co-worker of mine told me that a friend of his got busted with psilocybin mushrooms and was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government. I’ve also read online that getting caught with LSD will net you the same charge. Why? How does that work? ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/2 "2012-06-10T12:56:03Z")
Can you provide a cite for this? I have never heard of anything like this. IIRC mushrooms and LSD are Class III drugs, possession/use of which is a low grade felony. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/3 "2012-06-10T12:58:18Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > Can anyone explain the connection between the two? A co-worker of mine told me that a friend of his got busted with psilocybin mushrooms and was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government. I’ve also read online that getting caught with LSD will net you the same charge. Why? How does that work? Where did you read this online? Cite? ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/4 "2012-06-10T13:00:13Z")
I’ve never heard of such a thing, at least in the US. I do believe that one of the reasons that Treason was defined in the Constitution was to prevent the perceived misuse of British treason charges for all sorts of general naughty behavior that was only remotely connected with the survival of the government. ---
**Author:** ![CheeseDonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@CheeseDonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheeseDonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/5 "2012-06-10T13:01:52Z")
Well I can’t cite my co-worker, I just take his word for it. But for the LSD thing: > **[in any place is an lsd possession charged as attempting to overthrow the...](https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/12699638)** > > ? [http://summitpreventionalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Symptoms-of-Substance-Abuse.pdf](http://summitpreventionalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Symptoms-of-Substance-Abuse.pdf) > **[Could LSD be a hidden door that we are not wanted to walk through? - Page 3](https://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message22751/pg3)** > > Discussion about could LSD be a hidden door that we are not wanted to walk through? \[Page 3\] at the GodlikeProductions Conspiracy Forum. Our topics include Conspiracy Theory, Secret Societies, UFOs and more! [http://dmt.tribe.net/thread/80432b45-82bd-4d10-8d6c-479b1d75882f](http://dmt.tribe.net/thread/80432b45-82bd-4d10-8d6c-479b1d75882f) Search for the term “conspiracy” in those links to find what I’m talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/6 "2012-06-10T13:10:36Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > Well I can’t cite my co-worker, I just take his word for it. But for the LSD thing: > > [http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/12699638](http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/12699638) > [http://summitpreventionalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Symptoms-of-Substance-Abuse.pdf](http://summitpreventionalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Symptoms-of-Substance-Abuse.pdf) > [http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message22751/pg3](http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message22751/pg3) > [http://dmt.tribe.net/thread/80432b45-82bd-4d10-8d6c-479b1d75882f](http://dmt.tribe.net/thread/80432b45-82bd-4d10-8d6c-479b1d75882f) > > Search for the term “conspiracy” in those links to find what I’m talking about. I didn’t read all of those links but it seems like a bunch of kids referencing themselves and some Urban Legends they heard. ---
**Author:** ![CheeseDonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@CheeseDonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheeseDonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/7 "2012-06-10T13:13:01Z")
> [@Mr.Miskatonic](#): > > **I didn’t read all of those links** but it seems like a bunch of kids referencing themselves and some Urban Legends they heard. They even bring it up on Snopes: [http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get\_topic/f/35/t/001697/p/1.html](http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get_topic/f/35/t/001697/p/1.html) ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/8 "2012-06-10T13:21:06Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > They even bring it up on Snopes: > > [http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get\_topic/f/35/t/001697/p/1.html](http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get_topic/f/35/t/001697/p/1.html) They mention it **as a legend** and **in reference to LSD, not mushrooms.** Frankly, this is obviously idiotic and precisely the kind of thing I expect to hear from the kinds of people for whom marijuana use is a major cause of hour-long political rants. I hope you don’t take it very seriously; if you meet someone who does, ask them to cite specific cases and laws and share with the rest of us. (Or don’t; honestly, I wouldn’t blame you if you skipped out on the second through tenth parts of their paranoid rantings.) ---
**Author:** ![CheeseDonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@CheeseDonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheeseDonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/9 "2012-06-10T13:23:08Z")
Yes, I was citing what was said about LSD. Like I said above, my co-worker told me about a friend of his who was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government for possessing (or maybe it was growing) mushrooms. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/10 "2012-06-10T14:04:25Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > Well I can’t cite my co-worker, I just take his word for it. I think I have found the problem. ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/11 "2012-06-10T15:26:34Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Can you provide a cite for this? I have never heard of anything like this. IIRC mushrooms and LSD are Class III drugs, possession/use of which is a low grade felony. Is class different from schedule? I’m not sure what a CLASS III drug is, but for prescribing/DEA purposes, they are SCHEDULE I drugs. That is no legal medical use except research and a high abuse potential. ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/12 "2012-06-10T17:41:44Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Can you provide a cite for this? I have never heard of anything like this. IIRC mushrooms and LSD are Class III drugs, possession/use of which is a low grade felony. Wikipedia lists both as Schedule I. ---
**Author:** ![gunnergoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e95f7d/32.png) [@gunnergoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gunnergoz)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/13 "2012-06-10T17:49:28Z")
Sometimes the only thing exceeding human ignorance is the alacrity with which it is defended. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/14 "2012-06-10T22:58:42Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > Yes, I was citing what was said about LSD. Like I said above, my co-worker told me about a friend of his who was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government for possessing (or maybe it was growing) mushrooms. “I once heard of this guy whose girlfriend’s hair dressers’s boyfriend’s cousin…” See also: Shit, Full Of Not you, your co-worker. ---
**Author:** ![seaturtle99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@seaturtle99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seaturtle99)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/15 "2012-06-10T23:07:32Z")
> [@CheeseDonkey](#): > > Can anyone explain the connection between the two? A co-worker of mine told me that a friend of his got busted with psilocybin mushrooms and was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government. I’ve also read online that getting caught with LSD will net you the same charge. Why? How does that work? You are not called cheese donkey for nothing are you mate? ---
**Author:** ![David42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@David42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David42)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2012, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/16 "2012-06-10T23:48:51Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > They mention it **as a legend** and **in reference to LSD, not mushrooms.** > > Frankly, this is obviously idiotic and precisely the kind of thing I expect to hear from the kinds of people for whom marijuana use is a major cause of hour-long political rants. I hope you don’t take it very seriously; if you meet someone who does, ask them to cite specific cases and laws and share with the rest of us. (Or don’t; honestly, I wouldn’t blame you if you skipped out on the second through tenth parts of their paranoid rantings.) I could give an hour long talk about marijauna and politics and not leave the facts. What does that have to do with an urban legend? What’s the connection with an hour long political rant about marijuana? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/17 "2012-06-11T00:42:49Z")
> [@David42](#): > > I could give an hour long talk about marijauna and politics and not leave the facts. What does that have to do with an urban legend? What’s the connection with an hour long political rant about marijuana? Maybe it’s just my experience, but, when I hear an hour-long rant about marijuana and hemp, it’s entirely about how hemp is a Magical Miracle Crop and marijuana is a Wonder Drug and everything would be wonderful if it was all legal. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/18 "2012-06-11T04:21:12Z")
Of course it is–they make you grow bigger and stronger so you can take out the lizard overlords. Haven’t you seen [this documentary](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MVEI6yROes#t=11s)? ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/19 "2012-06-11T04:55:49Z")
> [@11811](#): > > Wikipedia lists both as Schedule I. > [@rsat3acr](#): > > Is class different from schedule? I’m not sure what a CLASS III drug is, but for prescribing/DEA purposes, they are SCHEDULE I drugs. That is no legal medical use except research and a high abuse potential. Ooops…yeah. :smack::smack: Double smackdown. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715/20 "2012-06-11T08:10:50Z")
> [@gunnergoz](#): > > Sometimes the only thing exceeding human ignorance is the alacrity with which it is defended. Good one! E.G. Chesterton? 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magic-mushrooms-conspiracy-to-overthrow-the-government/624715.md?page=2)