THE WAR ON CRYSTAL METH

"Rot!" That's how a local provincial court judge described dangerous,
drug-induced behaviour.

Judge Jim Mitchell wasn't mincing words when he pointed a finger at a
20-year-old and sent him to prison for four years last September after the
drug-clouded idiot aimed a loaded sawed-off shotgun at people and demanded
money to buy more drugs, specifically crystal meth.

Mitchell, who came to Red Deer as a Crown prosecutor in the 1970s, was
ticked after hearing about Ryan John Stromberg's gunplay. Those stories are
from the big cities. Yet, "here we find this sort of rot creeping into our
. . . town. It's frightening in the extreme," said Mitchell.

Stromberg was winding down from a four-day binge on mind-altering drugs
that would drive any person over the edge - including methamphetamine, or
crystal meth. He needed another fix, so he pointed that shotgun at on Aug.
12, 2004, and demanded money.

Amazingly, Stromberg's lawyer said her client was merely strolling along
the park trails all night when he found the gun in some bushes.

"Come again?" responded an astonished Mitchell. "I just feel that's
extremely difficult to believe."

Crystal meth, which is cheap and easy to find, has taken over the streets
of Red Deer, fuelling an alarming rise in violent crimes.

Hardly a day goes by in Red Deer courts when one doesn't hear about someone
spinning out of control for yet another fix.

Crystal meth ranks second behind alcohol as the most destructive poison on
today's streets, says the local AADAC office.

We have been blindsided by a monster - a substance so out of control that
the federal government last week upped its maximum sentence of 10 years to
life in prison for those caught in extreme cases of possessing,
manufacturing or selling the substance.

Federal Justice Minister Irwin Cotler said society must recognize the
corrosive, poisonous nature of this drug and how it destroys lives.

The tougher sentences are a starting point. The appeal courts have been
given a directive.

Cotler said he is sending a message to judges, dealers and users.

Crystal meth has finally been recognized as a national problem. The
horrific destruction it leaves demands immediate attention. The courts must
now reflect that sentiment. It is paramount.

Yes, cocaine and heroin are also bad. But laws are in place to deal with
those substances.

The frightening reality of crystal meth is any kid can get it - just as
easy as buying a pack of smokes or a six-pack of beer. Ask the police. When
a man who's been struggling with a meth addiction staggers out of an
apartment and falls dead on Ross Street in Red Deer from a bullet wound,
one has to start asking questions.

When some kid lies bleeding in a back alley from a stab wound, more
questions must be asked.

When the latest person arrested for an armed robbery is a juvenile strung
out on meth, one would hope somebody is finally getting the message.

"I've got a gun. I'll shoot you," Stromberg said to one of his victims.

That's the price of life these days on the streets.

Realistically, will tougher laws end this mess? Hardly.

"Addiction is ultimately about people's pain and dealing with that pain,"
said Mark Townsend, who works with the Portland Hotel Society in Vancouver,
which reaches out to those in such pain.

Still waters run deep and tougher laws don't properly address that depth.

But until the magic solution is found, gambling with lives cannot be
tolerated at the expense of some strung-out individual.

Rick Zemanek is an Advocate editor.