Pubdate: Sun, 09 Jan 2005
Source: Lake City Reporter (FL)
Copyright: 2005sLake City Reporter
Contact: http://www.lakecityreporter.com/letter/
Website: http://www.lakecityreporter.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1712

DRUG ABUSE DESTROYS LIVES

In today's society, drug abuse and the problems associated with the 
epidemic surround our daily lives.People slip into the gutter with drugs. 
They become addicted. The foreign substance changes lives. It owns those 
who fall under the evil spell of illegal drug use.

It leads to crime and other misfortune.

We all have heard the news, but there are many stories out there, many 
different perspectives on the topic of "drug abuse" that seldom are exposed.

Today we hope to shed additional light on this dark subject.

 From the perspective of the addict, to law enforcement, to the judicial 
view on handling the problems that arise from drugs in North Florida, 
including treatment, we hope to have the topic covered.

We don't have all the answers and neither did anyone we interviewed for the 
series of stories.

Drug abuse everywhere costs money. The problem only begins when the junkie 
greases the palm of the pusher at the point of the initial drug sale. For 
too long, we've all looked at this as a back-alley problem, but the dark 
seediness of the drug world is all around us now.

It affects perfect families, popular individuals and those more reclusive. 
It steals normal lives and kills them.

We know drug abuse is a massive problem that needs tackling on many 
different angles. We know it will take a unified effort to make a dent in 
this ongoing nightmare.

It will take all of us to make a difference and to curtail this plague of 
modern society.
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MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman