Meth abuse is once again in the news in with authorities telling reporters that it is costing Georgia billions of dollars.
According to the Georgia Meth Project methamphetamine abuse is costing Georgia billions of dollars a year. The Georgia Meth Project was formed to combat the rising problem in the state. According to the group 43 percent of federal convictions in Georgia are meth related.
Reports show that expenses are due to law enforcement, family and social services, and lost productivity. While some reports include treatment in the cost, there is a lack of resources to provided treatment to meth users in Georgia.
Meth addiction is horrible enough; the lifestyle that results for it is even more disturbing than the effects of the drug on the body and mind. Meth addict often live in dilapidated, dangerous conditions, many times without power and with small children around them.
In a disturbing development the DEA has begun cutting funds for meth lab cleanup and in Georgia law enforcement official are concerned that they may go broke trying to clean up the meth labs in the state. Georgia is one of the few states which have seen a spike in methamphetamine labs. Some of the labs are known as “super labs” because they are set up to produces tons of meth each year.
While the cost for a normal lab cleanup may only be $1500.00 per lab , super labs can run into the tens of thousands.
Because of the huge spike in meth use in Georgia the Georgia Meth Project has begun a series of public service announcements to help educate the public on just how dangerous meth really is. Treatment centers in Georgia like Narconon are beginning to see an increase in admissions and law enforment official are concerned about connections with drug cartels across the border.
According to the Georgia Meth Project’s Web site, the project is “a large‐scale prevention program aimed at reducing meth use through public service messaging, public policy and community outreach. Central to the program is a research‐based marketing campaign that graphically communicates the risks of meth use.
Meth obviously isn’t OK at all. The police say so and God forbid if your child should get caught with it. It is stronger and more penetrable, so the damage comes faster and is easier to see, but on the other hand, why are prescriptions written for children that can have such awful side effects? They aren’t being written for life threatening diseases.
It’s pretty darn obvious that this illegal drug is really bad and has to be done away with. The violence of the cartels that sell meth would be reason enough to do away with meth, let alone the receding jaw lines and stone dead expression of some of those people featured in the ads. After watching the public service announcements, one wonders why anyone would take the risk of breaking the law to take something so awful. Most public should be getting the point that meth abusers are definitely on the wrong side of sensibility.
