E for Ecstasy by Nicholas Saunders
Appendix 1: Reference Section

25 Laing on Ecstasy by Peter Naysmith International Journal on Drug Policy 1/3.

Laing had taken MDMA at Esalen in 1984 where the drug was being used in couple counselling before it was made illegal.

When the drug was banned Laing said: "What scientists have always been looking for, as Arthur Koestler suggested, is a drug which is not a tranquilliser, an upper or downer, but a stabiliser, just a help to keep one's balance throughout the day. The Californian scientist who synthesised MDMA in the seventies, Dr. Alexander Shulgin, thought he had found such a drug. All I can say is that within the context of its use, among very responsible professionals and therapists in America, all direct reports, including my own, were positive."

"It's my opinion that government agencies, instead of slapping a total ban on this drug should explore it like they do others . . . There's definitely a place for it. It's a pity to see it being cut out like that." Asked to explain why is there a need for drugs such as Ecstasy, he said: "Most of us live within a sort of crypto-delusional structure as to our needs; we haven't quite got it right about love and loving and what other people feel about us . . . which is part of the popularity of this drug. It changes your feeling. But this can also be a danger . . . Under its influence it would be unwise to make [important] decisions there and then . . . as it would over a bottle of whisky."