GETTING THE FACTS IN WAR ON DRUGS

Scene and Heard is a weekly column written by Victoria and area
teens. Megan Hilderley is a 17-year-old Frances Kelsey student who
describes herself as an avid reader, writer, rambler, and all-around
average person.

Most kids don't, so you shouldn't.

I've seen too many people who are so consumed by drugs that I am no
longer talking to them, I'm talking to "it." Their faces conform to
the drug's false feelings, and I start to wonder how someone can be
stolen like that. I wonder how I can just watch someone become lost
inside themselves and I can't even stop it. I wonder why they have
fallen down the path that ends in rehab and sidewalks. I wonder who
has influenced them. I wonder which (if any) facts haven't been told
to them and I wonder what choices future generations will make.

There's a war going on that's being fought in the house of every
child in Canada. Although this war involves no weapons, the outcome
might still result in death.

It's a war on drugs.

The only tools available are the facts, which can be ignored. But
luckily enough, all the pressure does not rest on the parent. There
are organizations to help in this war, programs that hit teens with
the facts at an age when they are very susceptible to this sort of
information -- early enough in life, when there is a slim chance that
they have had the chance to try drugs. These organizations use many
different techniques to steer children in the right directions,
teaching them ways to say no to drugs, teaching them how to avoid
drugs in general and teaching them most of the facts they need to
realize the damage drugs can do to you.

Now don't get me wrong, I think that this is exactly what we need to
help stop wrong decisions from being made and this takes a great deal
of stress away from the parents. But something we must consider is
the way these facts are being spread, and how they are being altered
and the manner they are told in.

The fact is, most teenagers have tried, or continue to "try" drugs,
at most high schools on Vancouver Island. And instead of stating
that, certain drug organizations are telling you kids that "Most kids
don't." It appears most teenagers in my area have tried drugs. Not
just the so called "wrong crowd" that these drug organizations warn
your children about.

In some ways, "Most kids don't," is a good approach, because it
states that most teenagers are smart enough to stay away from that
sort of thing. But shouldn't we be teaching the youth of this
community to make their own decisions? Wouldn't it be better to be
honest and say, yes, a very high percentage of today's teenage
population has tried drugs, but that doesn't mean you have to, too!
Doesn't every parent want their child to have the guts to go out and
make their own decisions? Haven't you said to your child at one point
or another, "If everyone else decided to jump off a bridge would you
do the same?" Haven't you tried to give your kids the tools to make
their own choices, their own right choices?

By teaching children that most kids don't, we are teaching them to
mould to society. Instead of conforming, they should be building
their own path.

Give your kids the facts and the right to a choice, and you'll
probably be impressed by the decisions they make and proud that they
made these without the influence of others.

Are you interested in writing for Scene and Heard? If you are between
16 and 18, and in high school, send us 100 words telling us why we
should pick you and what you think people your age want to read
about. Include a sample of your writing.

E-mail to features@tc.canwest.com (put Scene and Heard in the subject
line), fax to 380-5353 or mail to 2621 Douglas St., V8T 4M2.