CONFRONTING METH PROBLEM

Local People Want To Learn More About Methamphetamines.

Methamphetamine production and abuse are not things that happen "someplace
else." They are occurring right here in Clarksville-Montgomery County, and
this matter must be addressed by all levels of society.

It's encouraging, then, to see that a group of local Christians is
confronting meth head-on with an educational workshop on Saturday. The
workshop will be at Hilldale United Methodist Church and led by Cumberland
City Police Officer James Crow, who is certified as a meth lab technician
through the Drug Enforcement Administration and is a member of the
Clandestine Lab Response Team.

Unfortunately, meth is a drug that doesn't take someone with the smarts of
a rocket scientist to produce. Labs can be set up in kitchens. Cold and
allergy tablets containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine - which are now
more difficult to obtain in large quantities in Tennessee - are mixed with
common household and farm products.

If consuming these drugs weren't dangerous enough, the homemade labs can
explode. Meth production releases dangerous chemicals that are especially
harmful for children to inhale. Toxic waste also is a by-product.

Meanwhile, those who consume meth are taking serious risks with their
health and even their lives. While meth can provide someone with a
sustained burst of energy for several days, the effect has a price. It
causes paranoia, violent behavior, skin sores and teeth that rot.

The next fiscal budget presented by Bush administration would sharply cut
funding for anti-meth programs across the country. Lawmakers should not go
along with the president's proposals. Our anti-drug task forces need the
funding to continue the fight against what in some states has become an
epidemic.

Meanwhile, here in Clarksville, we will also continue the fight with all
the tools available at our disposal.