METH IS A NIGHTMARE THAT WON'T GO AWAY

In common lore, cocaine in powder form is for celebrities and elites,
in rock form it's for the inner-city poor while homemade crystal
methamphetamine is the narcotic of choice for the pickup truck crowd.

Based on arrest patterns here during the year, there's more than a
little truth to the lore.

Meth is insidious. There are no multinational meth cartels. There are
only recipes - chemical processes, sometimes explosive, to refine the
drug in almost any kitchen. Addiction is immediate, strong and
destructive. Meth-heads will do anything to get the drug, which means
most robberies and burglaries can be traced to this poison.

The week before Christmas, six Warren County residents were arrested
on methamphetamine charges. Not too long before that, a meth lab was
found in one of Vicksburg's oldest residential areas. Neighbors said
they had absolutely no idea what was going on in the home of the
young family next door. District Attorney Ricky Smith could have
entire grand jury sessions devoted to nothing else.

There have been attempts to control or limit access to the
ingredients needed for the meth recipe.

Indeed, after state law was changed and merchants started keeping
records of who was buying what, Sheriff Martin Pace said there was an
ebb in new meth cases. Supplies were being shipped in, mostly from
Mexico, he said.

But lately there's been a resurgence in "home-cooking." For now, it
appears Pace and other authorities are doing their dead-level best to
find and arrest meth makers and dealers. Until people awaken to the
pain and destruction they are causing, this effort will have to continue.

Meth is a nightmare that shows no intention of going away.