SHOWING METH'S UGLY EFFECTS

Television viewers in Hawaii are being jarred by a flourish of
public-service warnings about the danger of methamphetamine. The
worthy campaign will be successful if it makes gains experienced in
Montana, where the inaugural program has drastically reduced the use
of meth as a major crime problem.

Use of crystal meth reached a peak in Hawaii in 2005 and declined in
the next two years. No figures are available from last year, when the
Hawaii Meth Project launched its first campaign patterned after the
Montana blitz. However, crystal meth used in the workplace dropped 33
percent from the first quarter of 2007 to the second quarter of 2008,
according to Karl Espaldon, the state's drug-control liaison.

A continuing downturn is far from guaranteed. Maui police officer Ken
Doyle told the Maui News that the economic recession is increasing
the drug trade. "As people lose their jobs, times are going to be
tough," he said. "People are going to do things they wouldn't normally do."

Montana's meth abuse per capita went from fifth-highest in the
country in 2005 to 39th-highest last year, as teenage meth use
declined by 45 percent and adult use dropped by 62 percent. If the
progress continues, said Mike McGrath, that state's attorney general,
"Methamphetamine will have changed from a crisis to a manageable problem."

Like Montana's campaign, the Hawaii effort consists of messages via
television, radio, newspapers and the Internet. Statewide education
and outreach programs also are planned, said Cindy Adams, the Hawaii
project's executive director. The program has expanded to include
Arizona, Illinois, Idaho, Wyoming and Colorado.

The Hawaii project has released results of a new survey taken in
March and April showing that one in five teens and one in three
adults in the state report that meth is readily available. One in 10
teens and one in five young adults report they have close friends who use meth.

In addition, 30 percent of Hawaii's teens believe that trying meth
carries no risk, according to the survey. The project's 30-second TV
spots drive home the reality that it can be quickly addictive. Young
people in the ads portray experiencing mental and physical
deterioration after promising to try meth only once.

"This survey clearly demonstrates our young people are dangerously
unaware of the risks posed by meth use," said Dr. Kevin Kunz,
president of the American Board of Addiction Medicine. He cited the
survey's finding that 41 percent of Hawaii teens would not give
friends a "hard time" if they used meth and 40 percent have not tried
to dissuade their friends from using it.

Television viewers in Hawaii are being jarred by a flourish of
public-service warnings about the danger of methamphetamine. The
worthy campaign will be successful if it makes gains experienced in
Montana, where the inaugural program has drastically reduced the use
of meth as a major crime problem.

Use of crystal meth reached a peak in Hawaii in 2005 and declined in
the next two years. No figures are available from last year, when the
Hawaii Meth Project launched its first campaign patterned after the
Montana blitz. However, crystal meth used in the workplace dropped 33
percent from the first quarter of 2007 to the second quarter of 2008,
according to Karl Espaldon, the state's drug-control liaison.

A continuing downturn is far from guaranteed. Maui police officer Ken
Doyle told the Maui News that the economic recession is increasing
the drug trade. "As people lose their jobs, times are going to be
tough," he said. "People are going to do things they wouldn't normally do."

Montana's meth abuse per capita went from fifth-highest in the
country in 2005 to 39th-highest last year, as teenage meth use
declined by 45 percent and adult use dropped by 62 percent. If the
progress continues, said Mike McGrath, that state's attorney general,
"Methamphetamine will have changed from a crisis to a manageable problem."

Like Montana's campaign, the Hawaii effort consists of messages via
television, radio, newspapers and the Internet. Statewide education
and outreach programs also are planned, said Cindy Adams, the Hawaii
project's executive director. The program has expanded to include
Arizona, Illinois, Idaho, Wyoming and Colorado.

The Hawaii project has released results of a new survey taken in
March and April showing that one in five teens and one in three
adults in the state report that meth is readily available. One in 10
teens and one in five young adults report they have close friends who use meth.

In addition, 30 percent of Hawaii's teens believe that trying meth
carries no risk, according to the survey. The project's 30-second TV
spots drive home the reality that it can be quickly addictive. Young
people in the ads portray experiencing mental and physical
deterioration after promising to try meth only once.

"This survey clearly demonstrates our young people are dangerously
unaware of the risks posed by meth use," said Dr. Kevin Kunz,
president of the American Board of Addiction Medicine. He cited the
survey's finding that 41 percent of Hawaii teens would not give
friends a "hard time" if they used meth and 40 percent have not tried
to dissuade their friends from using it.