This news item was originally published in The Forward newspaper and at forward.com and appears here through the courtesy and with the permission of The Forward.
New York City, NY – There has been a rash of sitings of Israeli gas masks showing up at stores all along St. Marks Place. These war time treasures are not being sold to protect New Yorkers from Chemical and Biological attacks. They are here to help you get high.
Israel distributes Shalon Chemical Industries Ltd., 4A1 gas masks to it civilian population in the advent of a chemical, biological or nuclear attack. The masks that are being sold in New York City have had their protective filter removed and a plastic bong attachment added to the end of it.
While the gas mask bongs are technically illegal, New York City has a very liberal law in place which says that State prosecutors must prove that any type of smoking device is intended to be used to consume illegal drugs. This is a very high bar to pass as all the head shops in New York City have large signs up saying their products are intended for tobacco use only.
The gas mask bong is a step above a typical bong for marijuana smokers as it encloses the smoker’s face and does not allow any air in besides what the user purposefully allows in and the pot smoke. One head shop clerk suggested that the 2007 movie “Knocked Up,” which featured a gas mask bong, likely contributed to their recent popularity.
Rick Cusick, associate publisher of the marijuana-themed magazine High Times commented,
“It’s kind of a step above a bong. It makes for a slam dunk kind of thing.”
