DRUG ABUSE: A FIGHT WE CAN WIN

"Maybe we're going to win this thing," Salem police Chief Robert St. Pierre
said yesterday.

He was commenting on the crowd of 1,200 that packed Salem High's auditorium
the previous night to learn more about the OxyContin and heroin epidemic
that has been taking an increasingly heavy toll on the region's youth. For
as he and the other speakers noted repeatedly during the almost 3-hour
program, caring parents constitute the most important weapon in the fight
against substance abuse. They, along with their children, came in droves
Monday night to hear Joel Levine, son of Salem's superintendent of schools,
talk about his battle with OxyContin addiction.

They also heard the various health and law enforcement professionals warn
of the inevitable consequences of such behavior, which one noted can be
summed up by "the three D's" - death, detoxification or detention.
Obviously, people are taking the problem seriously. Bravo. District
Attorney Jonathan Blodgett, who recalled attending similar forums that drew
only a handful of parents, was clearly overwhelmed by the turnout and
pledged to redouble his efforts to keep our children safe. Meanwhile, that
same evening in Danvers, members of that town's School Committee took time
to urge parents to educate themselves about the drug problem and talk about
the steps educators might take to help. Committee Chairwoman Jean McCartin
made a great point: The learning process must begin at home - in
conversations between parent and child.

Sgt. Donald Decker of the Marblehead Police Department, a regional expert
in drug prevention strategies, told the Salem forum that abnormal behavior
is one indicator of drug use, and there's no one more qualified to
determine whether a teen's actions or appearance are out character than
his or her own parent. The willingness of those in Salem to confront the
problem is indeed encouraging. But the fight against the peddlers of
illegal drugs won't be won at a single forum. There's too much money to be
made and too many temptations out there requiring the constant vigilance of
parents, police, teachers and others in the community.

But as St. Pierre noted, the fact that so many were willing to give up a
night in front of the TV to come and listen to what Levine and others had
to say constitutes a promising start.

The reward in terms of lives saved and futures preserved is incalculable.
But it was put into poignant perspective for many Monday night by the
embrace between father - school Superintendent Herbert Levine - and son
Joel, and the latter's plaintive assessment of his difficult journey to
recovery: "I have my life back."