DESTRUCTIVE DRUGS

Mom, dad -- it's a whole new ball of wax out there today.

At least so far as drug use is concerned.

But you're not listening, are you? That's what the experts say, anyway.

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America released sadly disturbing news
last week, indicating that parents today are more blasACopyright about
their youngsters' drug use than parents of previous generations. The
parents they surveyed, some 1,200 across the nation, see less risk in
drug experimentation among youngsters, and are less likely to speak to
their children about it.

The Partnership survey also indicates that barely half of these parents
would be upset if their children experimented with marijuana. But they
wouldn't have much knowledge about today's drug scene, either.

The survey indicated that most (89 percent) of these "consenting" parents
are not using drugs themselves. So do they know what they're being
so casual about? Probably not. And the illegal drug industry itself has
grown to mega-proportions. Innocent people die because of that, but our
kids -- and perhaps their parents too -- are glibly unaware of the impacts
of drug abuse on global economics. Their casual attitudes and dated
experience are a concern to the Partnership, trying to convince parents to
step into this decade in terms of drug abuse realities. Before looking the
other way, or making light of drug use by your kids, folks, consider the
facts: * Only 21 percent of parents report they believe their
child's friends have smoked marijuana.

The teens themselves report that 62 percent of their friends use the drug.
* Street knowledge -- questionably reliable at best -- is the prevailing
mode of communication. Only 3 in every 10 teens say they've learned a lot
about drug risks from their parents. * Less than one-fifth of the parents
surveyed believed their children had smoked marijuana.

The number of teens who report experimenting is closer to 40 percent.
Fortunately, that number is down from the previous year, according to the
Office of National Drug Control Policy.

If you'd like to learn more about the study, or the drugs out there in
your community, we suggest you explore this site on the
Internet: Partnership for Drug Free America, _http://www.drugfree.org_
(http://www.drugfree.org/) . You may not prevent your child from
experimenting. But you may have a better idea about who is doing what, and
a far better chance of monitoring behavior that can easily
become self-destructive.