LIFTING THE VEIL OF CLUB DRUG IGNORANCE

THE PATTERN is familiar: Perceptions change about recreational drugs
once thought of as benign, but it sometimes takes a tragedy to create
a great leap forward in the learning curve.

In Memphis, designer "club drugs" will be better understood because
two teenagers died Sunday and Monday, police said, after ingesting a
substance that had been sold to them as Ecstasy.

The incident should provoke honest discussions among parents and
their children throughout the community, so that the drug's potential
hazards are thoroughly understood. Ecstasy use among children as
young as 8th graders is said to be rising, as it moves from young
adults in the club scene and the rave culture to children not nearly
old enough to get through the nightclub door.

This week's victims were a boy from east Shelby County and a girl
from Corinth, Miss., both 17, who evidently didn't know each other.
They obtained a toxic substance in separate incidents, said witnesses
who spoke with police.

The manner in which both teenagers died illustrates one of the
problems with Ecstasy, or MDMA, or any of several other names it is
known by on the streets: Designer drugs are produced by amateurs in
home labs with no oversight or regulation. Buying what is sold as
Ecstasy could lead to ingesting, literally, anything.

In some cases, the potency of the drug also is unknown. Ecstasy
apparently has hallucinogenic qualities and can produce feelings of
warmth and tenderness. It's also a form of Russian roulette.

Its hazards are recognized in tougher new federal minimum sentencing
standards for possession with intent to distribute that are set to go
into effect next month.

Studies have shown that "X" and other designer club drugs can damage
parts of the brain critical to thought, memory and pleasure. More
immediate effects can include confusion, depression, paranoia and
anxiety, as well as nausea and blurred vision. It can be particularly
hazardous taken in conjunction with alcohol, which is often the
practice.

Similarly, cocaine has become much better understood since the
freewheeling '70s. Its potential effects - elevated heart rate and
blood pressure, violent behavior and paranoia - are well documented.
In its smoked form, known as crack, its addictive power has separated
families, ruined careers, and driven users to crime and violence that
would have been unthinkable before they formed the habit.

Even marijuana is now much better understood by once-frequent users
because of scientific studies that have revealed the role the active
ingredient THC may play in cancer, respiratory problems and immune
deficiencies.

These revelations illustrate the need for not only parents but also
school districts to make sure that youngsters who constantly must
make decisions about recreational drugs have the most credible,
accurate and unbiased information available.

The suggestion by Memphis Board of Education member Michael Hooks Jr.
that the Memphis City Schools do whatever they can to educate
children about drugs is timely and deserves consideration. Hooks was
speaking from family experience when he called for a review of the
school system's drug and alcohol intervention programs and
consideration of a student drug testing policy.

His father, Shelby County Commissioner Michael Hooks, acknowledged
his addiction to cocaine last month after he was cited for
misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia following a police
search of his office.

Involuntary drug testing of public school students, absent particular
cause for suspicion, is not likely to pass constitutional muster. But
enhanced education about drugs should be a part of the curriculum.

Children as well as adults can make better decisions about their
lives when they have more facts and fewer myths on the issue of
recreational drugs.