CORNER BROOK - Drug addiction is not just a problem for the person who is hooked. The entire community has a responsibility to take action to deal with the widespread impacts such a negative lifestyle can have.

That's the impetus behind a community alliance based in St. John's that is trying to not just talk about the issue, but take concrete steps towards helping people at risk of drug addiction.

Some members of that alliance talked about what they are doing during a panel discussion Thursday morning as part of the Community-University Expo 2013 happening at Grenfell Campus, Memorial University in Corner Brook this week.

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RCMP speculates the difficulty in detecting them in workplace tests could be behind their popularity

The rise in popularity of synthetic drugs in the province is the top concern for an RCMP officer tasked with drug and organized crime awareness. The rise in popularity of synthetic drugs in the province is the top concern for an RCMP officer tasked with drug and organized crime awareness.

And those drugs include a variety of the highly addictive substance known as bath salts.

"Absolutely, because there is not enough known about some of them," said Sgt. Stephen Conohan, the RCMP provincial co-ordinator for drugs and organized crime awareness, and the lead instructor on clandestine drug labs. "Minute quantities can cause very adverse reactions."

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Town joins growing list of communities battling intravenous drug use

The town of Torbay is attempting to lock illicit drug use out of its community one area at a time.

As a result of discarded needles being found in the watershed area at North Pond, the town has erected a sign informing the public that in a few weeks the area will be gated and secured.

Deputy Mayor Geoff Gallant says he's not gullible enough to believe it doesn't happen in Torbay, but until it was brought to council's attention in May he wasn't aware needles were being disposed of in public areas.

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A group of Marystown area parents, about 60-70 in all, attended a public meeting at the Little Bay Heritage Centre Saturday called by the 'Stand Against Drugs on the Burin Peninsula Committee'.

Spokesperson Ruby Hoskins, who chaired the meeting, asked those present to sign three petitions, in an effort to battle what the committee believes is a growing issue with drugs and drug abuse throughout the peninsula.

Mrs. Hoskins told the meeting "The RCMP say drugs are readily accessible in Marystown."

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Drug-testing policies becoming the norm

Second in a two-part series

At 3 p.m. on a weekday, a bar on George Street is nearly empty. A bartender idly wipes the counter while a patron leans against it, nursing a beer.

He looks nervous, eyes darting towards two other patrons sitting in the back.

"I'm not telling you my name," he says. "And you don't need to know where I work."

With that, he nods.

"Yeah, coke's there," he says. "I've seen it, or guys come in and they were doing it the night before."

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'It used to be weed. Now it's coke and pills,' St. John's cabbie says

Part 1 in a two-part series

The best part about waking up in the morning for Ron is that he doesn't have to call his dealer anymore.

He starts his mornings now with reflection instead of drugs, but he's aware that could change any day.

Ron is an addict, even though he's been clean for a decade. "I'm my biggest problem," he says matter-of-factly.

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A while ago, Younger Boy informed us that there is a drug problem at his school.

This, in a junior high.

"What!" I said. "Are you having problems getting drugs?"

We had a good laugh, and then the discussion turned serious.

I repeated what we've told the boys many times before, that when someone asks if they want to buy drugs, the proper response is, "No thanks."

The president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of School Councils wants police officers to have more involvement and presence in schools. As a parent, I say, no thanks.

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Election Fever Is Contagious in Colorado

It's our 20th wedding anniversary this month and we're celebrating it in Mile High Colorado, home of Celestial Seasonings tea, Crocs shoes, and now legalized marijuana.

When we booked the trip, I forgot the nation would be gripped with election fever. At the local convenience store you could vote with your coffee cup and order an Obama double-double or a Romney latte. Imagine if, next election, Tim Hortons offered Newfoundlanders the option of buying Harper coffee? How many cups do you think they'd sell?

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Nearly half of Newfoundland and Labrador residents support the legalization of marijuana, according to a new survey from Corporate Research Associates (CRA), while a quarter of the population supports the legalization of brothels.

The latest polls, released June 14, show that men, younger residents, and those in the highest income bracket support the legalization of marijuana.

The CRA poll shows 47 per cent support, with 44 per cent opposing legalization, and nine per cent being undecided.

Those numbers are similar to Atlantic Canada totals, with this province showing the second highest support for legalization after Nova Scotia.

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Why Advocates Say Marijuana Should Be Legalized

In his Torbay home, Mike Dawe slides open an end-table drawer, pulls out a Mason jar and rolls a joint.

There are no additives like tobacco. The marijuana - weed or pot as it is most commonly called - is grown by Dawe with an ardent dedication to craftsmanship.

As Dawe, a rail-thin man who stands an inch shy of seven feet, takes The Telegram on a tour of the basement of the house he rents, he apologizes, saying the current plants are not his best crop.

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On Thursday morning, news broke that Port aux Basques RCMP had seized a large quantity of marijuana and ecstasy from a house in Port aux Basques.

The story posted to The Gulf News website went slightly viral, at least in local terms, gathering over four thousand hits in a few hours. Few stories get that many hits in a week.

It shows the interest and the concern people have in our community about illicit drugs.

It's no secret that many in our society see marijuana as a relatively harmless recreation drug. Even some of those leaving comments on our web story said marijuana needs to be legalized while criticizing those who sell ecstasy. The federal Liberals passed a motion to legalize pot at their recent convention.

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Meet David Shea and you might notice the skin on his face and hands is taut and pale. It's not for lack of time spent outdoors, but because of an uncommon condition known as scleroderma - a chronic systemic autoimmune disease, mainly of the skin.

Up to 40,000 Canadians have the disease, which can make life very uncomfortable.

That's why the Grand Falls-Windsor native, who now lives in Halifax, promotes the use of medical marijuana to the public as well as to health professionals - not as a way to get high, but as a safe drug that can alleviate the symptoms of various diseases.

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A St. John's man had $1,500 of medical marijuana confiscated when he went to pick up a package at Purolator and was met by the RCMP instead.

Richard Oakley, who tested positive for HIV 25 years ago, moved back to the province from British Columbia three months ago to be near family.

He told The Telegram he received the first package since coming home without a problem from his designated grower in B.C.

But last week he kept trying to claim his second delivery of marijuana and marijuana-laced chocolates and Purolator told him to come back Monday. That's when he was met with the RCMP officer.

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Their kids need help and they're not going to wait for it anymore.

On May 28, The Telegram published a story titled "New drugs hit schools," describing issues around illegal drug use at the junior high and high school level. It was focused on the Northeast Avalon, but prompted response from parents and community group leaders in other parts of the province.

They said youth in their areas are not immune to addictions. The difference outside the Northeast Avalon, they said, is the same level of addictions services are not available to them.

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Illegal drugs flood Labrador West

An increase in wealth has increased another serious problem in Labrador West. Illegal drugs are flooding the community and the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary has an uphill battle.

"We're into an economic boom here, so it's a lot of money flowing around," said RNC Cons. Bill Fitzgerald. "With the boom, you get the good and the bad, and unfortunately the drugs are a part of the negative side of it."

Cocaine choice

He said there's a wide array of drugs out there from ecstasy to speed to marijuana, but cocaine seems to be the drug of choice.

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"Everything secret degenerates, even the administration of justice; nothing is safe that does not show how it can bear discussion and publicity."

- - John Emerich Edward Acton (1834-1902), English historian

When crime rates are dropping, what's a prime minister to do?

Why, introduce new "tough on crime" legislation, of course. Legislation that will see more inmates double-bunked and serving longer sentences and put more pressure on courts and correctional institutions.

How much will all this cost?

Well, it depends on who you ask, and when.

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One of the unsettling facts of life is that people often shift quickly between the feeling they have plenty of time, to the heartbreaking reality they have too little.

Consider this: A boy was out playing with his neighbourhood friends. He is about two years older than most of them, sort of like a bigger brother really.

They are playing with the kind of happiness that only comes in the first few days of summer break; the time when your body still feels like it should be in school. Your mind does a mental double take every 20 minutes or so reminding you that summer is really and truly here and no, you are not supposed to be doing anything else.

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Editor;

Junk food will kill many times more Canadians this year than all illegal drugs combined.

Drugs aren't the problem. Drugs do not possess magical powers that force people to do things.

It is our ridiculous, racist, arbitrary and wildly counterproductive prohibition laws causing the problems. And that is not an 'opinion', as this article was; it is backed by a century of science, history and common sense.

We live in a culture that glamorizes sex, fun, danger, thrills, law scoffing, risk-taking, rule breaking, power, wealth-acquisition and authority resisting. We advertise booze, fast cars, fast food, violent movies and video games and drugs of all kinds right on TV.

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Dear Editor,

The photos submitted to the news agencies by RCMP in St. Anthony were completely misleading and at odds with all principles of good community policing.

The police clearly targeted an innocent and good man, disrupted the lives of his family and defamed his business. This is a clear case of police projected over sensationalism caused to support their botched and ridiculous tear/raid on an innocent local man. Lyndon Hodge is a solitary northern Newfoundland man, known all his life by members of his community. He has been living a near Spartan but hardworking life in the community. He is running a decent business with the support of his family in northern Newfoundland.

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Parents attending a DARE graduation ceremony at Donald C. Jamieson Academy in Burin last week received a reminder from police.

The message was that they, too, must be extra vigilant in the effort to protect their children against the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

Students from Anita Piercey's and Margaret Ann Cleal's two Grade 6 classes were rewarded June 14 for the successful completion of the DARE - 'Drug Abuse Resistance Education' - program, instructed by Cst. Mike Martel of the RCMP's Burin Customs and Excise Section, with certificates and a party at the school.

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