Pubdate: Tue, 27 Dec 2005 Source: Daily Home, The (Talladega, AL) Copyright: 2005 Consolidated Publishing Contact: http://www.dailyhome.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1632 Note: also listed as contact Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) METHAMPHETAMINES: WAR ON DRUGS HITS HOME When news of arrests for people using and producing methamphetamines started appearing in headlines in the rural South a few years ago, most people dismissed it as just another addition to a long list of illegal drugs. But, today, nothing could be further from the truth. Methamphetamines have become a problem of epidemic proportions that crosses all social, economic and ethnic boundaries. The drug is taxing law enforcement, the justice system and social services -- almost to the breaking point. Meth is highly addictive, easy to produce with readily available chemicals and carries horrific health consequences. Those familiar with this growing problem say they are seeing not just individual lives ruined, but entire families, from teen children to grandparents, addicted. Over the next few days, The Daily Home will take a look at every angle of the problem, from the addicts to the court system and the efforts under way to stem the tide of meth abuse in Alabama. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D