In an effort to educate young people about the dangers of drug abuse, the Hannibal Police Department participates in the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program in conjunction with local schools. This week, fifth-graders at Oakwood Elementary School, Holy Family School and Veterans Elementary were honored at DARE graduation ceremonies. These students, along with their cohorts at Mark Twain Elementary, Eugene Field Elementary, Stowell Elementary and St. John Lutheran schools, have been participating in an awareness program that hopefully will help them make sensible decisions and resist peer pressure as they approach their teen years. [continues 158 words]
Jack Cole To Speak To Rotary After three decades of fueling the U.S. war on drugs with over half a trillion tax dollars and increasingly punitive policies, illicit drugs are easier to get, cheaper, and more potent than they ever were. The prison population has quadrupled and has made building prisons this nation's fastest growing industry, with 2 million incarcerated - more per capita than any country in the world. Meanwhile people are dying in the streets and drug barons grow richer than ever before. [continues 298 words]
Many people purchase the over-the-counter medications containing pseudoephedrine for legitimate reasons. The decongestant can help those with colds or allergies. Unfortunately, the medicine is also a favorite among those with more sinister purposes - it's a key ingredient in making methamphetamine. Missouri has battled a meth problem for some time and it's a difficult fight. The common ingredients can be cooked to create a highly addictive drug, which has been the bane of law enforcement agencies across the country and right here in our own community. [continues 186 words]
