Thursday, August 21, 2008
walking away
i find it no coincidence that the song stuck in my head as i sit here the night before this exam called "walk away". to be honest part of me wants to. if only walking away could give me back the hours spent studying and preparing. unfortunately it cant, so i'm stuck here, whiling away the hours until that fateful noon exam. lets see how things go. i think i'll be fine. at least thats what i keep telling myself. one of these days it will all get better. its like that strokes song that says, "I'm working so I won't have to try so hard/Tables they turn sometimes." the funny thing is that the next line is "Someday I ain't wastin' no more time." very fitting, given my history. music is very therapeutic on nights like this. so is revising physics formulas. I think its now time for the latter.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
METH
Recently I've been learning a lot about METH. METH is a really interesting drug. It resembles the chemical structure of dopamine and stimulates the brain to release excess amounts of dopamine, which is what causes the associated feelings of euphoria. In terms of drug use it is one of the fastest growing drugs in America. This due in part to the fact that it does not have to be imported. METH can be made fairly easily from a list of readily available, legal ingredients.
Although it induces an unrivaled state of euphoria (due to its ability to release more than ten times the amount of dopamine released by cocaine use), the negative affects of METH are staggering. Smokers get "METH mouth", a condition in which the teeth and soft tissues of the mouth are literally rotted away by the harsh acids and other chemicals in METH. Snorters suffer similar damage to the soft tissues that come in direct contact with the drug. Injectors have high incidence of AIDS, and preliminary studies indicate that METH use exacerbates and accelerates the progression of AIDS. Also, in recent times it appears that METH users are prone to getting a more virulent, difficult to treat, form of AIDS.
Given all this information, the question remains why is METH use increasing so rapidly? Especially among younger kids? Studies have shown that METH binging during adolescence can speed the progression of degenerative brain diseases like Parkinson's later on in life. Given the events of recent years involving the increase of school shootings and child-initiated violence, I find it no coincidence that the popularity of a drug that artificially induces a state of euphoria is extremely popular among American youth. This appears to be a symptom of a deeper societal problem regarding our youth. Something is terribly wrong with the kids of today. For some reason there is a deep repression of emotions and an inability to constructively address them. This manifests itself in various forms, one of which is increased METH use.
Recently I was talking to a friend who thinks a large element of the solution to this problem lies in the cessation of the supply of the drug. Unfortunately, basic economic theory tells us that as long as there is a demand there will always be a supply. And when you're dealing with a substance that can be "cooked" so easily from readily available materials, it is impossible to control the available supply. "So what do you think we should do?" he asked me. The problem with that is to be honest, I don't know. My initial instinct was to say education, but we have all been through DARE programs and know their ineffectiveness at preventing drug use. Telling a bunch of kids that drugs are bad won't keep them from using any more than saying no stops a toddler from continuously dropping a toy. Maybe education would be more effective if it were more clinical. But the concern with that would lie in the appropriateness of exposing children to the harsher realities of life, such as the physical and long term effects of drug use. Personally I think if kids in the 8th grade are our fastest growing population of increased METH use, then they are old enough to see the gruesome effects of the drug in a controlled classroom setting. Unfortunately the thought that "My kids wouldn't do that, so they don't need to be traumatized by this information" prevails among many parents.
So where does the solution lie? In answer to this question I would again like to reiterate that METH use is a symptom of a deeper problem. Focusing on treating the symptom is at best a short term solution. As long as the children of our society suffer the inability to adequately feel happy on their own, without the abuse of stimulants, this will continue to be a problem. I don't know where the grand solution lies, and I don't believe that there is one magic answer to solve such a deep, complex, societal problem. In the mean time symptomatic treatments may be the best we can do. The one thing I do know for sure, though, is that the millions of tax dollars spent to target and incarcerate the people who supply METH would be better spent on research into a real, sustainable solution to the problem.
Useful links:
http://www.nida.nih.gov/Testimony/4-21-05Testimony.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9oIQ7hvo-I
Although it induces an unrivaled state of euphoria (due to its ability to release more than ten times the amount of dopamine released by cocaine use), the negative affects of METH are staggering. Smokers get "METH mouth", a condition in which the teeth and soft tissues of the mouth are literally rotted away by the harsh acids and other chemicals in METH. Snorters suffer similar damage to the soft tissues that come in direct contact with the drug. Injectors have high incidence of AIDS, and preliminary studies indicate that METH use exacerbates and accelerates the progression of AIDS. Also, in recent times it appears that METH users are prone to getting a more virulent, difficult to treat, form of AIDS.
Given all this information, the question remains why is METH use increasing so rapidly? Especially among younger kids? Studies have shown that METH binging during adolescence can speed the progression of degenerative brain diseases like Parkinson's later on in life. Given the events of recent years involving the increase of school shootings and child-initiated violence, I find it no coincidence that the popularity of a drug that artificially induces a state of euphoria is extremely popular among American youth. This appears to be a symptom of a deeper societal problem regarding our youth. Something is terribly wrong with the kids of today. For some reason there is a deep repression of emotions and an inability to constructively address them. This manifests itself in various forms, one of which is increased METH use.
Recently I was talking to a friend who thinks a large element of the solution to this problem lies in the cessation of the supply of the drug. Unfortunately, basic economic theory tells us that as long as there is a demand there will always be a supply. And when you're dealing with a substance that can be "cooked" so easily from readily available materials, it is impossible to control the available supply. "So what do you think we should do?" he asked me. The problem with that is to be honest, I don't know. My initial instinct was to say education, but we have all been through DARE programs and know their ineffectiveness at preventing drug use. Telling a bunch of kids that drugs are bad won't keep them from using any more than saying no stops a toddler from continuously dropping a toy. Maybe education would be more effective if it were more clinical. But the concern with that would lie in the appropriateness of exposing children to the harsher realities of life, such as the physical and long term effects of drug use. Personally I think if kids in the 8th grade are our fastest growing population of increased METH use, then they are old enough to see the gruesome effects of the drug in a controlled classroom setting. Unfortunately the thought that "My kids wouldn't do that, so they don't need to be traumatized by this information" prevails among many parents.
So where does the solution lie? In answer to this question I would again like to reiterate that METH use is a symptom of a deeper problem. Focusing on treating the symptom is at best a short term solution. As long as the children of our society suffer the inability to adequately feel happy on their own, without the abuse of stimulants, this will continue to be a problem. I don't know where the grand solution lies, and I don't believe that there is one magic answer to solve such a deep, complex, societal problem. In the mean time symptomatic treatments may be the best we can do. The one thing I do know for sure, though, is that the millions of tax dollars spent to target and incarcerate the people who supply METH would be better spent on research into a real, sustainable solution to the problem.
Useful links:
http://www.nida.nih.gov/Testimony/4-21-05Testimony.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9oIQ7hvo-I
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