I am scared of heroin. I am scared that it will grab hold of my kids, and I won’t be able to stop it. And, I am even more scared that there are very few adults that possess the ability to discuss what to do about the heroin problem without being judgmental ass hats.
Bring up the heroin epidemic that is plaguing many parts of the country, and you are likely to get three different responses.
First, there are the, “Let the junkies die. They choose to live that way.” People.
Next, there are the, “It’s the insurance companies pushing pills to get them addicted to make money on the drugs they sell to help them get clean.”
And lastly there are the, it’s a disease/not a disease debaters.
Rarely you will find someone who is willing to sit down and try to figure out ways to get the drugs out of town.
Conversations always lead to panic provoked stupidity or a political battle about being too soft or being too harsh on drug abusers.
I get all the theories about the prescribing prescription pills leading to the cause of the problem. And, to some degree, I even think figuring out why the problem exists is important.
But, how in the hell are we supposed to find proactive ways to get heroin out from within our kids’ reach if every time we broach the subject, it becomes a fear induced rant about drug abusers?
A typical conversation about getting rid of drugs goes like this.
Facilitator: We have a drug problem here in our city, and we are looking for ways to clean up the community. Does anyone have any ideas or experience with this subject?
Guest 1: I’ll tell you what; it’s their parent’s fault. They should have beat their asses more as kids.
Here’s my logical interpretation to using this rant as a springboard to a solution. Build a time machine, and violently beat every child who has ever made a wrong choice that has led to serious consequences.
Can dumbass #1 please leave the meeting?
Next?
Guest 2: I am sick of hearing it’s an illness. Shoot them all, and that will solve the problem.
Again, my logical interpretation. Let’s form a militia and go hunting for people who likely hate themselves, and who are struggling to deal with their life. That is what I want to teach my kids. If you make a mistake, the people in your community will shoot you.
Dumbass #2, get the fuck out!
Moving on.
Guest 3: It’s the damn insurance companies pushing pain pills on people, so they get hooked. They want them addicted so that they need Suboxone to get clean.
My response to this. “Can anyone call Erin Brockovich? We have another big company poisoning our community members.”
Come on people, get a clue.
Unless you can keep the idiots out of the think tanks, there’s never going to be a discussion that helps communities battle their drug problems. It’s the same cycle. Keyboard and armchair vigilantes vent their opinions about the abusers, not the problem; no new thinking is shared, and in the alley two blocks over there’s a teenager who overdosed getting Narcan.
It makes no fucking sense to bitch about the problem. It exists. How do we fix it? What can we do? Why won’t it go away?
The closest I got to an educated dialogue surrounding the issue of cleaning up the town was with a woman running for mayor. She believed that they cycle started with prison.
We send drug abusers to prison to get them clean. But, prisons have no real rehab to teach addicts the necessary coping skills to deal with the problem. So, when users do come out of jail, with a big black mark on their record, they have no way of dealing with the pressure.
So, no job, no income, no coping skills, and they end up right back where they were before they went in. Time wasted in prison, and money wasted on housing an addict for a few months.
The town then turns into the perfect market place built on the law of supply and demand. Where’s there’s a demand there needs to be a supply.
But even this is just an answer as to why the problem is there. It offers no ideas for getting rid of it.
If we want to battle the war on drugs so that our kids are safe from a lifetime of addiction, people first need to pull their heads outta their asses and work towards a solution. Complaining is just hidden apathy, and apathy only makes problems worse.
Emily Erson -I am a full-time teacher, mother, driver of children, cooker of dinner, washer of laundry, sayer of bad words and hockey mom extraordinaire. I am not afraid to speak my mind, even if that means dropping a few old fashion hashtags, $#!&. In my free time –like that exists–I blog in order to vent the frustration that comes with raising 3 kids. My mantra, blogging and swearing are better than a drinking problem. Follow me on Twitter https://twitter.com/onthejobmom12 Like me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/onthejobmom/ Read My Blog https://www.onthejobmom.com/
4 Comments
Here’s the thing about jail/prison — it’s a profit center. Even if the facility itself isn’t technically for-profit, Someone is making big money on phone calls and spending accounts. Granted, not as much as they used to for phone calls, but still at least 20 cents per minute plus a connection fee, plus the surcharge to add money to the calling account. Adding money to inmate spending accounts costs at least $6 to add up to $50, then you have the inflated prices (2x-3x retail) for the commissary items. These fees are typically paid by the people in society that can least afford them.
No one who’s invested in these businesses gives a single crap about stopping heroin addiction, or looking at drug addiction from a holistic perspective. That would reduce demand for their products.
How do I know this? My son is addicted to heroin, has been for nearly 10 years, and is currently incarcerated. The sad thing is I pay these fees to keep him in ramen noodles and phone money and I sleep better at night knowing he’s in jail.
I don’t know how to fix it. I just know that you’re right about the dumbasses. It’s why I talk about his addiction openly. It’s not just “lowlife” “scum” “other people.” It’s everybody. Odds are everyone knows someone affected by heroin addiction. We can’t afford to be dumbasses about this – we are only hurting ourselves.
I love that you said that. In my town, the heroin is run out of a hotel. Instead of investing energy into shutting down the hotel, people sit at their keyboards and bitch about it and the people there. Here’s an idea, join the people actively looking for a solution. This drug is crazy, it knows no boundaries and ANYONE can easily become a victim.
It takes talking openly without judging. And it’s annoying that people can’t see that.
A-freakin-Men.
Thank you for this. Please believe me when I say you aren’t alone. I really do believe we have to change the narrative surrounding drugs and addiction. We’ve spent over 40 years on a war that will never be won. We’ve wasted billions of dollars trying this “law and order” solution and it’s failed.
I look to countries who have chosen to be progressive in addressing drug problems, and the same thing comes up over and over: harm reduction. Portugal, Switzerland, the Netherlands – they’ve all drastically reduced their numbers of active addicts by decriminalizing drugs and implementing harm reduction tactics like safe injection sites, state-supported heroin administration, syringe exchange, and community outreach. When people aren’t judged or morally denigrated as addicts, and they are then exposed to people who offer them better options (treatment, rehab, job programs, housing, nutrition), addicts can become productive members of society. It starts with one positive change and then grows. I’ve seen it happen to people and it’s amazing.
I really wish this was the direction our country was heading, but sadly, it isn’t.
Get active locally. Promote harm reduction.