Malden, MA

I spend a lot of time here in Malden.  It's one of those cities that would probably be called a suburb by some, being that there are some solidly middle class homes around and the school system is pretty decent.  However, the "nicer" neighborhoods are bordered by apartment complexes and rail lines and there are plenty of run down tenements that have been turned into crack houses and the like.  It amazes me that people come from places where they never see drugs and drug dealers doing drug dealer shit.  That they have lived such sheltered lives that they don't really even know what, say, cocaine is and the mention of it frightens and creeps them out.  They don't want to know!!  As time passes and drugs become a bigger and bigger part of American culture (due to the prison populations they create, the homes they destroy, and the people they get killed [either directly or indirectly]) it becomes irresponsible, I think, for parents to shelter their children from the reality of them and what goes on around them.

I think for a long time parents believed that making drugs a foreign, scary thing and giving kids as little information about them as possible would keep their kids away.  This shows that they didn't remember what it is like to be young.  Kids like to mess around with the unknown and go on adventures and, finally, defy their parents expectations.

I remember when I was in 5th grade we did the "D.A.R.E." program.  The only thing I remember about it, to be completely honest, is when they showed us this sample display of what all the drugs and related drug paraphernalia looked like (probably retrieved from some evidence locker).  Or maybe they were just really convincing fakes placed in a plastic case.  Or maybe they were unconvincing fakes, I was in fifth grade, I had no idea what I was looking at.  

At any rate, at they end they make you sign a contract saying that you will stay away from the evils of drugs and all that and resist your friends using them as well.  I think it's kind of exploiting kids to make them sign such a contract after you've given them little, and shitty, information about what they're swearing off.  Making a 5th grader commit to anything for life seems kind of unrealistic also.

I don't recall that they talked about how deadly alcohol is in this class.

Anyway.  I'm not sure where I was going with this.  Oh yeah.

Drugs (I'm mostly talking about hard drugs) are deadly and should not be toyed with.  It's a rare person who toys with them and is then able to walk away and learn the lesson without having destroyed their life.  

If, say, you were to meet such a person, you should take their advice.  Some things are not meant to be known or experienced.  Some feelings should not be felt.  The phrase "everything in moderation" should not be applied to some things because some things can not be used moderately.

If you do choose to avoid drugs entirely, a good decision, don't let yourself become self-righteous towards people who did not make the same decision for one reason or another.  Don't treat people who weren't able to make the same decision like they are less than you or not worthy of your attention or respect.  Don't go out of your way to be ignorant to their plight just because you don't share it.  This is not just about drugs.  It's about respect.

And that's it for today.