Thursday, March 29, 2007

YouTube Thursday: Meth is Bad

If you've ever wondered where I find my YouTube stuff, it's generally from Snarkfest or Digg. Today's came from Snarkfest.

I've known that meth was a bad problem in the US, particularly in rural areas. What I didn't know was that it was as bad as it was in Montana. According to Not Even Once:

* 52% of children in foster care are there due to Meth. Cost to the state: $12 million a year.
* 50% of adults in prison are there due to Meth-releated crime. Cost to the state: $45 million a year.
* 20% of adults in treatment are there for Meth addiction. Cost to the state: $12 million a year.

That's staggering to me. So, to try and combat this and to educate the public, Montana started the Not Even Once program. And a part of that were a series of commercials. The first series talked about the cost to a person him or herself. The second series is directed by Darren Aronofsky, the director of The Fountain that came out last year and Requiem for a Dream, that apparently is as unflinching a look at drug addiction as you will find in the movies. His focus on the cost to the people around the meth user.

Here are the 4 30-second videos he did.

Boyfriend.


Friends.


And the two that just make me want to weep each time I watch them.

Parents.


Mother.


I've got to say that my first reaction is to never ever let my kids out of my sight again. Ever.

My second reaction is the waste of life this causes. Maybe not in the sense of a war or natural disaster, but the conscious choice someone makes to do a drug as hardcore as meth. My mind just cannot wrap itself around that mindset. Is it boredom? Is it a bad homelife? Boyfriend dumping you? It just looks cool?

And what do the followers of Jesus have to say about this? What's our position?

Thankfully, drugs have never been a temptation for me. But I know that there is a possibility if not a certainty that Kinsey and Connor will be exposed to them. I hope Sheryl and I can instill enough self confidence and self worth in them to reject them.

I hope.

I pray.

3 comments:

mundiejc said...

I know a couple of people who have done it, just once. Luckily, they were some of the few that have the will power not to do something like that again... but they said, its literally the best feeling they've felt in their entire life. Its understandable why people would start, because what happens in those commercials, is a year or two down the line. Initially, it has many of the same effects as ADD meds do... you can focus on anything, you lose weight, you are completely happy, and have tons of energy. Thing is, that doesn't last long.

As a quasi libertarian, I wonder though, whether banning it is actually helping the problem. Banning it makes it more profitable, and its not something you can stop through law enforcement, because everything you need to make it can be bought at wal mart or similar stores.

I think the best way to counteract this threat to humanity is ads like these, or the ones that show actual meth users before and after.

Tiffany said...

Those hit really close to home. The "parents" one, especially. I had locked myself in my car, though, not our house. But yeah, hopefully somewhere there is at least one kid or two who will see those and remember them and think twice before ever starting down that path.

Phil said...

Tiff, I didn't think about your situation before I posted these. I hope things can get better.

And Justin, legalizing meth is one of the dumbest ideas I've ever heard. Most people who do it are IMMEDIATELY addicted. And most people don't have the will power to stop. That's why you have the situation in Montana that there is. Legalizing it isn't the answer.

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