AH YES, ARKANSAS

So it seems some dumbass is (allegedly) cooking Meth in a funeral home in Walnut Ridge. Across from the Sheriffs office. A shout out to the Ladies in the Southland! Read the story here. Love y'all in WR!

*UPDATE*
There are times in my blog that I target Arkansas, and perhaps I appear to be unfair. I am not. However, there are precious souls in Arkansas, loved ones, that I do not want to offend in any way. As this is a blog and not a thesis paper let me continue in my colloquial language.

Methamphetamine is not exclusive to Arkansas. It is easily produced in Arkansas because of the rural nature of the state. Many other states are the same way, and present the same opportunities as the state of Arkansas to produce and abuse Meth.

According to the DEA website, Tennessee had 539 meth lab "incidents" to Arkansas' 240. Missouri had a whopping 1,189 (dea, state, and local), meth lab incidents in 2008, says the DEA site. More numbers, Oklahoma had 89, Washington had 122 (dea, state, and local.) Clearly, Arkansas does not have the market cornered with regards to Meth.

Which brings me to this. Meth is kinda funny. It's sorta like booze when it gets out of control. It will lead you into some interesting situations, and will leave you wondering what happened.

For all of the problems Methamphetamine causes, I believe alcohol causes as many or more. Alcohol is far more prevalent. Methamphetamine alone is just alone; it is just sitting there. Just like alcohol. It is when it is picked up, used and abused it becomes a problem. I do not believe meth addiction is any more insidious than alcohol addiction. Addiction is addiction, and should be treated as such.

As time goes by, more and more I fail to see the significance of the wholesale lock up of a large segment of Americas population. To see the complete destruction of families as a result of a social problem is no longer acceptable to me. Drug addiction is a social problem, not a criminal one, and should be treated as such. Imagine how much money could be saved by takng all of those drug task force guys and putting them to work helping rebuild our communities and actually making a difference! We could seriously learn from Europe.

America is quite quick to be "tough on crime" and ready to lock up or shoot the "bad guy." Admittedly, it seems to be easier to lock away and forget, as opposed to providing treatment, education, and solutions. The research is clear: it costs more to incarcerate than treat and educate. Solutions are out there, we just have to be willing, as a society, to utilize the resources we have. (See cost of Iraq War on the right side of the blog.)

We have to be willing to invest in our people and treat those who have addiction problems as people; worthy of respect and dignity. Hell, I was raised in the back seat of a Mercedes, with Barb and Stan, lawyer and doctor, and they NEVER went anywhere for a prolonged period without their bottle of Cutty Sark. They didn't think they were alcoholics, we all knew better.

Let me reiterate. We have to invest in the people. We desperately need a National Health System. People are in dire need, it is time to stand up and look to one another for support and strength. When one is in bondage, we all are.

Peace and strength, together we can affect change.

Love Y'all
Mike