Pubdate: Sun, 27 Nov 2005
Source: Bradenton Herald (FL)
Copyright: 2005 Bradenton Herald
Contact:  http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/58
Author: James A. Jones, Jr.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)

ANTI-DRUG MESSAGE NOT JUST FOR KIDS

Just before Thanksgiving, Principal Janet Kerley sent letters home to 
parents of Haile Middle School students. She told them a few kids 
were selling marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms on campus.

She explained that several of the kids were arrested and a number of 
others face disciplinary action. She said there is zero tolerance for 
drugs on campus.

Kerley asked parents to discuss this issue with their kids.

In that spirit, it's worth posing the question to the wider Manatee 
County community.

Hasn't the message been clear enough?

Drug abuse is illegal, it's risky and it ruins lives.

How widespread is the problem? Is it just a few kids at one middle 
school or is the same thing happening on other campuses?

Who is putting illegal drugs into the hands of children?

And with all the evidence available to them, why would kids make such 
a bad decision?

It's nearly as perplexing as why bright young people light up their 
first cigarette. All the scientific studies of the past 40 years 
tells us it leads to addiction and lung cancer.

It's as puzzling as why people have unprotected sex in the age of AIDS.

May I suggest that if there weren't plenty of adult misbehavior in 
society to mimic - as well as a ready supply of illicit narcotics - 
that what happened at Haile wouldn't have occurred.

Forget the steroid use among superstar athletes. Just consider: One, 
there's too much drug abuse among adults locally and two, too many 
adults look the other way when they see illegal activity.

Experimentation with drugs is a trap-door to unforeseen misery, and a 
detour away from much of what is wonderful about life.

If you're reading this, I'm likely preaching to the choir. You also 
read the police news each day and you know about the drug arrests, 
the arrests for prostitution and the murders committed by drug-addled minds.

No, every drug abuser doesn't become a home invader, a street thug or 
a $20 hooker.

But drug abusers can vouch for the fact that bad lifestyle choices 
may limit their ability to make a living legally. Many businesses, 
including The Herald, require passing a drug test as a condition of 
employment. No matter how smart or qualified that person may be, a 
trace of illegal drugs in the urine is a career stopper.

Enough users become addicted that their lives are stunted. They break 
the hearts of those who love them the most. Even loved ones come to 
fear the abuser, to lose trust in them.

Will the user's cravings for drugs drive them to steal from their own 
families? Will it drive them to commit acts of violence against their 
own family?

If there is not zero tolerance for drug abuse in the adult world, how 
are we going to prevent the next generation from repeating the 
mistakes of this one?

James A. Jones Jr.

East Word
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman