17 April 2009

Meth...An East Coast Problem?


After viewing the PBS film about Meth and reading the accompanying articles - do you think that Meth is a problem that has reached the East Coast? If so, what can be done to stop the spread of the drug - if not what can be done to stop it from reaching the East Coast?

13 comments:

Toni said...

Like the packet said meth is spreading to the East Coast. In the movie the researcher displayed that though the meth epidemic started drastically in Oregon it is spreading from coast to coast as well as between different races as well. I think that officials need to make sure that the supply of the chemicals needed aren't able to get through in any way. At the same time, however, I do see how it is such a problem. We can't stop illegal immigrants from coming into our country, let alone chemical supplies that are much easier to ship. I think that if more people saw the PBS video they could see how harmful the effects of the drug are. Maybe there could be some way we could incorporate it it driving school to educate everyone about how devastating meth can be, but from a realistic viewpoint.

Katie said...

I believe that meth does affect a lot of people in the east. It is not a severe as the problems the west have, however that does not mean it should not be a major concern. I think that we should continue to regulate the selling and purchase of aphedrine. Personally, I don't mind being inconvienenced when I have a cold and truly need sudafed, if it means inhibiting the addiction for others to a certain degree. I think that we should continueto raise awarness about this drug and attempt to stop it from ruining so many lives.

Danielle Grecki said...

I think the problem of meth spreading from coast to coast is growing and the technology people are coming up with is as well, which in-turn escolates the problem. Eventhough the problem isn't as big on the east coast as the west, that doesn't mean if we dont find ways to regulate it, it wont grow even more. People are always finding new ways to smuggle things into the country, or finding ways to do things that are illegal. Drugs are a major problem across the globe and people do them for the sole purpose for being rebellious. No matter what we do the problem is always going to be there because people are always going to want to be rebellious no matter the risks they are taking. If a new law was passed that if caught with meth you will be put to death, yes, many people would stop but not everyone. Some people have the mindset that they can get away with anything and will continue to do so. Drinking and driving is the perfect example, people believe no matter how drunk they are they can beat the law and drive home and guess what, sooner or later a DUI will come your way. I think we are doing a lot to regulate it now but no matter what its never going to be completely stopped unless the products to make it are completely diminished. Its simple, rebels will always find a way and if you want something people are always going to find a way to get it.

Laura Udice said...

I believe that Meth is starting to become a problem that not only is harming the West Coast but the East Coast as well. It definatly is not as common of a problem as it is on the West Coast due to the fact that it is mostly produced on that side of the country. In order to prevent the spread of this drug, I think that the goverment should be doing more to limit the availability of the ingredients. People should not be able to obtain common cold remedies that contain these chemicals unless they are specifically given permission from a doctor. Although this is being done already in some cases, it is not a popular option due to the fact that it would take a great toll on the amount of money that these drug companies are recieving. The FDA should maybe be more considerate to people whose families are being affected by the abuse of this drug and limit what they make available to the public instead of strictly thinking for what would be good for business purposes.

Charnice C. said...

After seeing the PBS film about Meth and reading the accompanying articles about it, I do believe that it is a problem that has reached the East Coast. First of all the amount of people who are addicted to Meth is the total amount of people who are addicted to both heroin and cocaine combined and that is a problem in itself. As far as it reaching the East Coast it is definitely a problem because we have seen what is has done to the people who are addicted to it in the West Coast and the people in the East Coast are no different than the people in the West Coast so the same things could happen to them too. There are Meth addicts in the East Coast but not far as many than there are in the West Coast so that might be some peoples reasoning of saying that it is not a problem in the East Coast but a problem always starts out small and grows if it is not addressed properly so it could get out of hand. To stop the Meth problem from spreading the government has to go to extreme measures to really monitor who is purchasing the ingredients to make the drug and not take someone buying excessive amounts of the ingredients lightly and stick to the strict regulations on the drugs.

Alessandra said...

I think that meth does affect people on the east coast. Although the west does have it much worse, doesn't mean that there isn't a big problem over here. With cold and allergy medicines being restricted, it also restricts the ephedrine and pseudo ephedrine in the medicines to make the meth. This should be continued because it slows down the production of meth, and if it means less people addicted to the drug, it's all worth it.

Kayla C said...

I believe that the meth problem has reached the East Coast, but it still has not had the same impact it had on the East as it has to the West coast. The best thing that we can do to stop or slow down the meth problem to the East is recognize it as a problem and make sure that the law does things to help. When the meth was in the West coast they had a problem restricting the main chemical in meth, ephedrine and pseudoephedrine which can be bought at your local CVS. Some states have in someway restricts the sale of products that contain these chemicals but for this to be affective, I think that it needs to be band in all the U.S sates. The sates should also educate the children about the danger of this drug, as we do with other drugs such as heroin and cocaine. By making young people aware it may help prevent a new generation of meth addicts.

amanda said...

alothough not as detrimental, meth is a promblem in the east coast. the pbs film opened my eyes to how powerful this drug really is. I do believe the restrictions made on meths over the counter key ingredients is postively moving the meth epidemic in the right direction, but if one is addicted, they will do whatever they can in their power to get their "fix". In my opinion drug awareness, prevention, and the training in which police are undergoing is more effective than restriction the purchases of psuedo ephedrine products. although meth may also be a problem in the east coast i do not think it will ever reach the severity level of the west coast.

jmagalhaes said...

I believe that meth is in fact spreading to the East Coast. I think that since it is such a big problem in Oregon, it will spread to every state. Since it originated in our country itself, it will spread to the rest. In addition, the video we watched did state that the meth epidemic is spreading to all the states. Even though meth can change your life drastically, people are still willing to try it and become addicted. I think that there need to be stricter laws passed on the companies that produce meth for medication and things because people are getting ahold of it in a bad way. I also think that people should be educated on the effects that meth did. I don't think people really know the effects of it until they are actually scared of what they see. Making them watch a video like we saw in class could scare them. For example, watching the dramatic and disgusting change in their facial features could scare people enough into not trying meth and staying away from it. They could also relate to watching the part where the families and their children are torn apart from each other.

HarrisonScully said...

Well i feel that this meth problem is fueled by the drug companies do to there lack of restraint on there own drugs. So what if there makeing millions of dollors they can atleast make it alot harder for meth cooks to get there supplies. Also who cares if its an inconvience to the customer if it saves lives or even stops it from spreading more and more towards the east end of the united states that should be a sacrifice that should be made for everyone. If things keep going as they are then yes meth will reach the east coast of the U.S. and it wont be pretty. The movie showed how stubborn the drug companies really are and how tough it really is to make laws or even rules to stop the spread of meth but sooner or later people have to listen and if they dont it will be to late for us.

j.riordan25 said...

I think that meth is starting to become a problem in the east coast. It's not as much of a problem as it is on the west coast. I think meth will eventually be all over the U.S. What i think can be done to stop the spread of the drug is to have medicines containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine to be over the counter medicines. They should only be able to be bought when you go to the doctor and get a prescription. I think that we should recognize this as a problem and watch how much people get of these prescriptions.

bart.bednarczyk said...

Meth is a problem...and yea it is more of a problem in the East, but it's spreading...and there has to be something done to stop it. After watching that video in Mr. B's class I was really shocked to hear all of the statistics, and to see what it does to families. What really made me almost angry was what the young children have to go through when their parents smoke meth. I mean these people houses were a mess, and they were cooking meth right in the kitchen, exposing their kids to toxic fumes, and making their kids just have a horrible life. In the video it says that parents sometimes go on week long meth binges, and then little kids that are like 5 or 6 have to fend for themselves. That's really messed up. Meth has to be stopped, before it does reach even farther into our country. I think that the best solution would be is to make all the medicine with the drugs that are needed to cook meth prescription, and not over the counter. Also i think that the major plants that make the medicine should be watched very closely by our government and the DEA, so drug lords cant get these chemicals. Yea there is a bigger meth problem in the east, but it will reach the east sooner or later if it is not stopped, and that might be to late.

Stephen Vincent Lombardi said...

Meth is not an East Coast problem currently. It may be soon however,if people are not warned about the potential dangers of this highly addictive drug. The only way to solve the problem is to mass produce anti meth propaganda type of things. People need to see pictures of "meth mouth" and have a good chance of seeing or hearing a PSA on the television or the radio. Knowledge is power and it is our only weapon against a drug like meth.