DRUG DEALING IS AN EASY, SELFISH ANSWER

NEW BEDFORD - It appears that the drug issue has finally hit the
mainstream New Bedford. The internal cancer that eats New Bedford's
heart and soul is being addressed in a very serious manner.

Drugs ended up in communities like ours for very intentional reasons,
in my mind. Where profit and greed, with as little work as possible,
runs through the fabric of many portions of our society, is it a
wonder that this problem has gotten so large in a community like ours?
It put a firm grip on the stressed, hard-working family and has
contributed to one tragic death after another. We now have the
influence of the federal "drug czar" in our community, and have
trained "specialists." If New Bedford has a major obstacle to
overcome, it is overcoming itself and the apathy that is perpetuated
through our drug culture.

Drug dealing reminds me of the tobacco industry: Both rationalize
their actions; both know the potential impact to the addicted
individual and the families of that individual, including the
children. We've seen 14-year-olds murdered, related to drug
distribution; we see officials and law enforcers make drugs work for
them at the expense of others; we've seen children come out addicted
to a drug that they never made a decision to take. Hopefully, if
somebody reading did not think this through, maybe this might be a
start.

Lack of direction, fear, greed, the only life they know -- all are
common explanations. When a child realizes that education is too
challenging, or they feel that it is not suitable for their well-being
for whatever reason, they like many other Americans want lots of
money, and fast.

There is now a backup plan for quitting school for many youths: Don't
reach for goals to be something to be proud of. Don't reach for
long-term investments for yourself and family. Make quick, easy money
with no responsibility toward others: Sell drugs. Sure you might take
a couple of lives, a couple of kids might die here and there, but,
hey, we all die sometime, right? Don't worry about anybody else,
because nobody's ever worried about you, so take care of yourself, let
those addicts live or die as they choose. They wanted it anyhow.

And oh, by the way, you may spend the rest of your life in and out of
prison, losing your freedom to the judicial system, and you may even
lose some of your friends and family. But it's OK. You've got money,
you're surviving and you're taking care of you.

While many critics and "leaders" speak about our conditions from a
distance, these opinions are based on life. My only intent is to cause
all of us to think a little more about where we are and where we are
going as individuals, as families and as a community.

For some reason, the term "survival" comes up all the time with poison
distributors. It's scary that many of our young people consider
selling narcotics to be survival. Maybe it comes from short-term
thinking. A lot of us have the tendency to think only of the "right
here, right now." Survival is long-term; it requires a long-term plan.
Survival means sacrifice. Drug dealing is based on day-to-day
transactions; you could lose your freedom at any moment. Is this
long-term? Without long-term vision, it becomes easy to get caught up
in the quick benefits of selling narcotics. Survival is shelter, food
and clothing. Surviving is being there for your children. We may want
to reconsider thinking that selling poison is really survival.

The concept of fast money with as little work as possible transcends
race, class and culture. Some may call it human nature to want but not
put work into those wants. In New Bedford where our mentalities are
often stifled and economic conditions are tough, it is easy for the
young adult already surrounded by the drug culture to find it alluring.

It is my hope that some young adults think of the larger picture, the
fact that they, trying to escape strife, are only perpetuating it, if
not on themselves than on others. It is my hope that some might see
the future of narcotics distribution, and, if not seeing what it does
to others, at least what it can do to you and the future that you
might have had.

I've seen way too many young adults go to jail and too many young
people die, and the dependence that drugs creates, as if we aren't
sometimes dependent enough. Hard-core narcotic drugs need to be
discussed openly. In a democracy, voices must be heard for it to work.

Some may feel this is an assault on the average, everyday kid forced
to make a hustle. It isn't. It's about young men and young women who
have potential to be great but who fall for the "carrot in front of
the donkey" and jeopardize their entire future and the lives of others
due to lack of vision. This small essay is an attempt to give a little
vision, because I know that in a tunnel-vision society, it can be
difficult, but not impossible, to think big.

Ross Grace Jr. lives in New Bedford.