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Pubdate: Wed, 13 Dec 2006 Source: Prince George Citizen (CN BC) Copyright: 2006 Prince George Citizen Contact: http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/350 Author: Frank Peebles, Citizen Staff ROOTS OF DRUG USE NOT TACKLED, SAYS EXPERT The legal system is failing to shield the public from the effects of drugs, so the RCMP is tackling the responsibility of prevention more than ever. That was the message from two of the Mounties' premier drug experts, who were in Prince George Tuesday to teach local officers more about how to spot different drugs, what affects they are having in the community, and how to reach out to empower people to say no to drugs. "Different drugs keep surfacing," said Sgt. Scott Rintoul, assistant provincial co-ordinator in the RCMP's drug and organized crime awareness service, saying the enforcement side of policing is always in detection and arrest mode. "What we are lacking is addressing the root causes of drug use. Alcohol, tobacco and marijuana are still the three worst challenges. If we could deal with those three, you'd have an effect on everything else." Cpl. Sharon Cooke is one of the province's Drug Awareness Officers (there are four in the North) and she told officers all the enforcement in the world was no substitute for doing the subliminal police work every officer can do: get involved with people. "Then, maybe we have a chance," she said. "It is possible to have the whole (drug culture) go down, but if we don't work on prevention with the community, it will be worse in 10 years and worse still in 50 years." According to studies, Cooke said, a list of 40 character/societal assets has been established that people can pick up as children. The more of them they have, statistics show, the less likely they are to engage in drug use later and the better they do in school. These assets are not based on ethnic or economic factors, but holistic, universal scenarios. Those studies show that each child needs at least four positive adult role models in their lives in order to diminish the chances of problem drug use later in life. She suggested it was part of a Mountie's mandate to try to be one of those positive role models. "It is not just us, only a few aspects of the drug issue are police-involved, it is businesses, schools, cultural groups, churches, all kinds of community involvement is needed. We all have to work together," she said. Rintoul gave the Mounties and policing volunteers at the event an education in the physiological symptoms of the five most prevalent chemical drugs (common names: ecstasy, MDA, crystal methamphetamine, GHB and ketamine), the long-term effects, use patterns, trafficking patterns, dose patterns, chemical makeup, and the latest lies drug dealers tell their clients about what they think they are putting into their bodies. All too often, Rintoul said, a party user or street user will ask for one thing but get a chemical cocktail instead. Drugs are more addictive, cheaper to buy, worse in their body and brain damage, and easier to manufacture than ever before, Rintoul said, so the surest way to turn back the flood is to deal with people before they are users. "Right now the barn door is wide open and no one is there to shut it," Rintoul said. "Harm reduction has a role, but it shouldn't be the front end. What is this community, right in Prince George doing so no one enters those gates? Parents are No. 1 in that regard, schools are secondary, then positive role models in their extracurricular lives comes next and they are especially important if those first two haven't been fulfilled. That's where we can play a big part." - --- MAP posted-by: Elaine