INTERNET BECOMES OBSTACLE IN WAR ON DRUGS

The anti-drug campaign appears to be having an impact, but St. Louis County
Police have found a new obstacle in the fight to keep America's youth drug
free - the Internet.

Captain Tom Jackson, commander of the St. Louis County Police Bureau of
Drug Enforcement, joined the Gravois Township Republicans Wednesday evening
to discuss the illegal drug market that includes heroin, ecstasy, marijuana
and, of course, methamphetamine.

"Drug enforcement in St. Louis County tends to follow trends nationwide,"
Jackson said. "Drug use by youth is down nationwide."

The decline in drug use by America's youth is due in part to education,
Jackson said.

The education is called "demand reduction." With a big anti-drug and
anti-smoking campaign, Jackson said more teenagers have developed a
negative image of drugs by the time they are ready for high school.

But of course there are always exceptions.

"We have 30 million kids, under the age of 18, who are actively online,"
Jackson said. "To know about something they go to Google, type it in and boom."

While kids may certainly use the Internet as an effective research tool for
class assignments, Jackson said they often search for things they are
curious about, such as the drug ecstasy.

"Some of these websites are going to be for legitimate sources," Jackson
explained. "A lot of them are going to be from the manufacturers themselves."

Some websites may offer factual information about the effects the drug can
have, such as brain damage, but others market the drug saying it can be
safe to take if you're careful.

People can even purchase the drugs via the web, and Jackson said even if
the police intercept the package or the website it doesn't necessarily lead
to who is supplying the drug.

Ecstasy is the "drug of choice" among the over 18 crowd in St. Louis and
around the nation. Referred to as "E" "Ex" or the "hug drug", ecstasy is
marketed as a "safe drug."

Ecstasy creates chemically-induced happiness by increasing serotonin levels
in the brain. But what goes up must come down, and E has some dangerous
side effects.

"It interferes with the body's regulatory system," Jackson said.

He said an ecstasy overdose resembles heat stroke. The body's temperature
is high, the person is sweating profusely and dehydrated.

The operators of the clubs or parties where people can buy ecstasy take
advantage of the drug's effect.

"They'll turn the temperature up and in the back they'll have a cooling
room," Jackson said. "They'll charge to get into the cooling room."

Jackson added that at these parties water could go for $5 a glass. Also at
the clubs or parties, Jackson said there will be "health experts" to test
the drug before you take it.

"Of course, this is the supplier," he said. "He's working with the seller
hand and hand."

Next month, the Gravois Township Republicans will discuss the history of
the Middle East.