RID COUNTIES OF METH ABUSE: REPORT IT

Methamphetamine causes staggering problems, and Courier and Copper Era
stories involving arrests because of this frightening drug are way too
common. You wouldn't expect meth to be so prevalent in Graham and Greenlee
counties.

Greenlee County Meth Task Force facilitator Debra Rudy recently wrote,
"Most people who love Greenlee County appreciate it because it's small,
friendly and about as rural as an area can be. We enjoy the elbow room and
having a vast outdoors as our back yard."

Rudy feels it's this scarcity of population that also attracts undesirable
characters that manufacture methamphetamines. "Because rural, Western folk
tend to adopt a 'live and let live' outlook, we may be tempted to ignore
signs of suspicious activity."

Rudy warned that you should not assume you are immune to the effects of
meth simply because your family has been un-touched by the drug.

"Children living in the squalid conditions common to meth-infected houses
are being exposed to toxins that they ingest or absorb, and they are often
malnourished because their parents do not want food when they are doing
meth; Mommy and Daddy don't care about anything but their next high.

"The children, neglected and abused, frequently become wards of the court.
Sadly, they are at high risk for eventually becoming users.

Meth users have increased medical costs and commit crimes to pay for their
habit. They contribute to the spread of infectious diseases, cause
automobile accidents, lose their jobs and destroy their families right
along with themselves. Everyone is affected."

The meth epidemic is swamping already overburdened social service agencies
nationwide as they attempt to find foster homes for children taken from
parents involved with the drug.

And the problems meth causes these children have never been encountered.
The New York Times recently reported, "It has become harder to attract and
keep foster parents because the children of methamphetamine arrive with so
many behavioral problems; they will not get into their beds at night
because they are so used to sleeping on the floor, and they resist toilet
training because they are used to wearing dirty diapers."

For the sake of our children, do not hesitate to contact law enforcement if
you suspect meth use in Graham and Greenlee counties.