When
Candy Becomes Deadly:
A New Nightmare For Parents
One of my favorite songs is Louis Armstrong's classic, "What a Wonderful World."
As each year passes, our world seems to be less and less wonderful. After receiving the following email, I told Good News Tucson Publisher, Jacqueline McAbee that we are living in a scary world. This email, confirmed as authentic from the urban legends website, www.snopes.com, explains that candy-flavored meth is being marketed to our children.
"There is a very scary thing going on in the schools right now that all need to be aware of. There is a type of crystal meth going around that looks like strawberry poprocks. It smells like strawberry also and it is being handed out to kids in school yards in AR. I'm sure it will make its way around the country if it hasn't already.
"Kids are ingesting this thinking that it is candy and being rushed off to the E.R… Please instruct your children to not accept candy that looks like this even from a friend and to take any that they may have to a teacher, principal, etc…
"That is what they are calling strawberry meth or strawberry quick."
This threat is true, and poses a true danger to our children. Just type "candy meth" in your internet browser and you can read news articles about the spread of this epidemic all across the nation.
"Children are clearly the main target victims in our country," said John Sainz, 27 year veteran of the Tucson Police Department, assigned to Division East Patrol. Although Sainz has only heard of one instance involving candy-flavored meth, he said, "Meth now comes in many forms, and the drug problems in TUSD at the middle school and high school levels are incredibly high. It's estimated that 25% of middle school and high school students are in possession while at school."
The
New Target: Elementary Children
The
new problem, however, is that candy meth is being targeted to elementary
children.
What's the point in pushing drugs to elementary school kids who have no
money? Why would drug dealers want to get kids hooked on meth?
"It's not about getting paid actual money, but what they can get the kids to steal," said January Harrison, a recovered meth addict. Harrison, who is dedicated to using her story to help others find freedom from meth, said, "These kids will steal jewelry, prescription medication, or the last two checks from their parents' checkbooks in order to pay to get more."
Simply stated, drug dealers want your children addicted to drugs, and they are willing to exploit children by offering them candy…what every child loves. Let's let our children know about this before it is widespread in Southern Arizona.
What
You Can Do
1. Talk
to your kids. You may think that your child is wise enough to reject candy-flavored
meth, but it's not a matter of wisdom. With all the different types of candy
out there, how's a child to know what he's being offered? Like it or not,
we must talk to our kids about this new drug, make them aware that it can
kill them, and tell them to reject any candy that is not familiar to them.
2. Refuse to think, "My child won't ever be offered this new drug." Drug dealers are everywhere. In fact, they may be the older siblings of the children that your kids hang around.
3. Know where your kids are playing. Know who they're with, where they're at, and when they're coming home.
4. Pray. Pray God's protection over your family. Pray that your children will make good choices based on the values that you have instilled upon them.
Editor, Good News Tucson Magazine
© 2008 Good News Tucson™
