Press On: Can we win the addiction war?
Several times since the first of this year I have focused this column on some of the issues that have caused or are causing America to be off-track. Sadly, there is no shortage of topics to focus on when dealing with the subject of what is wrong with the country we love.
One of the most damaging factors in this country during the past 50 years has been the growth in the sale and usage of illegal drugs. In 1971 President Richard M. Nixon said, “If we cannot destroy the drug menace, then it will destroy us.” Like many who lived through the Nixon years, we came to the conclusion that we couldn”t believe everything he said. I believe he got this right, though.
It”s not that people weren”t using addictive, mind-altering, pleasure-giving, pain-relieving illegal drugs prior to the 1970s; they certainly were. History tells us that people have sought escape or pleasure through drugs throughout recorded time. Obviously, man has turned to alcohol and tobacco for centuries.
But, there is no doubt that the explosion of illegal drug abuse and addiction came to America in the 1960s and ?70s, and has only continued to get worse. Over the past decade one of the major problems involving drugs has been the sale of strong prescription medications for illegal use. That is what triggered me to write about this subject this week. There has been a rash of area pharmacy hold-ups lately, in which the robber demanded OxyContin painkiller pills. They are worth large amounts of money when selling to illegal drug users and have caused many overdose deaths during the past 10 years.
Personally, I just don”t get why illegal drug usage is so widespread in America. I was surprised to learn recently that approximately two-thirds of the entire world”s illegal drug consumption takes place in the United States. What does that say about our society?
When you count the cost in human lives it paints a sobering picture. Lou Dobbs made the comment in his book “Independents Day” that, “The war on drugs has cost more American lives than our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war on terror, and the Vietnam War combined.” Also, consider that, in our federal prisons, more than half of everyone incarcerated is there because of drug offenses.
In addition to the human tragedy involved in our country”s battle with drugs, there is also a dollar cost related to it. It is currently estimated that drug addiction expenses in the United States are at $180 billion per year. These costs include health care, loss of on-the-job productivity and the effects of drug-related crime.
The scariest statistic is that in the United States about 8,000 people a day are trying illegal drugs for the first time in their life. Most of these people are younger than the age of 18 and more than half are female. Some may not like what they try and never use it again. Sadly, we know that many will become addicted and have problems the rest of their life, which may not be very long.
I doubt if there is a reader of this column who can”t name a member of their immediate or extended family who hasn”t dealt with a serious drug problem during the last 10 to 20 years. The problem is that pervasive and it is only getting worse.
America”s problem with drugs is depressing because I don”t know if we, as a society, have the strength and determination to make a change.
Gary Dickson is the editor and publisher of the Record-Bee. Call him at 263-5636, ext. 24. E-mail him at gdickson@record-bee.com.
