Zilos

Why would a teenager go out on the street to buy drugs when he can simply go to the medicine cabinet and raid his parents’ legal stash?

We've all heard and read the stories of rampant drug use in the United States. If you watch the news you may sometimes believe that there is a drug dealer on every corner. We've been inundated with scary tales of abuse of newer street drugs amongst young adults, such as, ecstasy and oxycodine and, of course, old reliables, such as, cocaine, heroin and marijuana. Yes, illicit drugs have been and will continue to be a major problem in this country for generations to come, but, has anyone paid attention to the proliferation of prescription drugs?

It seems to me that if one wants to get high all they have to do is go to the family medicine cabinet. After all, it is the drug companies that have taken on the role of the neighborhood drug dealer. Over the years, from time to time, we have heard the argument to legalize marijuana, cocaine and other illegal street drugs. Apparently, the drug companies have taken that discussion very seriously. Over the past few years pharmaceutical companies have decided that they could increase sales dramatically by going straight to the user. That's right, why market only to the doctors when you can sell directly to the general public?

What makes it even better is that the insurance companies, for the most part, foot the bill. A prescription that may cost in excess of $100 can be had for a co-payment of five bucks. How can you go wrong? Have you opened a magazine lately? Better yet, have you watched television, whether during daytime, primetime or late night hours? If you have then you have witnessed the emergence of legalized drug dealing. Damn near every third commercial on TV is for some kind of prescription drug. Can't sleep? Try Ambien and sleep restfully through the night. Kids appear to be hyperactive? Have no fear Ritalin is here. Think you may be depressed? Ask your doctor for Prozac or Zoloft and you'll be as good as new.

Guys, having trouble performing? No problem, there's a variety of drugs for you – Viagra, Levitra and Cialis just to name three. But, please be careful, if the erection lasts more than four hours you must see your doctor. If you were to count the number of erectile dysfunction ads on TV you would think that women were really suffering. Are there that many of us out there that can't get it going?

We haven't even begun to touch on the painkillers being pushed on the consumer. Of course we don't hear about Vioxx anymore. That's because, after five years of telling us it was the greatest pill since aspirin, Merck was forced to take it off the market because it appears to cause heart attacks. What's the big deal? You may get a heart attack, but, it will be less painful! Celebrex, a heavily marketed cure-all is also being scrutinized and may follow Vioxx off the pharmacist's shelf.

The aforementioned drugs are the ones that you need a prescription for. Let's not forget about the over-the-counter meds being pushed on us everyday. Doctors are being besieged by patient demands for the drugs they are seeing advertised all over the airwaves and in print. Evidently, there are no limits to the money these drug companies are willing to spend to get the average person to insist that their physician write them a prescription.

And don't think that there isn't doctor shopping going on as well. Your doc won't prescribe, well, then, we'll just have to try another one. Now, do we really think that our teenage kids aren't raiding the medicine cabinet? Why not? They see the same commercials that we do. Good enough for Mom and Dad then it must be good enough for them. Why go out on the street to obtain illegal drugs when they can simply raid their parents legal stash?

These drug companies know damn well that just as many people are using Viagra that don't need it as the number of those that do. This newspaper did an extensive story some months back on young adults in their twenties and even younger using Viagra to enhance their sexual experiences. We have become a society dependent on prescription drugs, in large part, due to the reckless marketing by drug companies hell-bent on driving profits and stock prices as high as they can go. The hypocrisy in all this is mind-boggling when you realize that these same companies that are making junkies out of responsible people are supposed to be looking out for our well-being. We can't buy drugs in Canada because they may not be safe but we allow our American drug companies to act completely irresponsibly in their efforts to make as much money as possible.

Don't be surprised when you see the stories on 20/20 or Dateline NBC in the years and months to come. These stories won't have to be all that lurid with details of street dealers and thugs selling drugs to our kids. No, these stories will focus squarely on what's in our own homes. The drugs will be right there in plain view next to the tooth paste and the Tylenol.

Then, of course, the drug companies will do just what the tobacco companies have done. They'll pretend to be good corporate citizens with all the appropriate public service announcements telling us to beware of the effects of the products they push on us everyday. This will happen after the drug companies have pocketed so much money that the lawsuits won't put a dent in it. So the next time you think your children are going out on the street to get drugs, think again. They are probably just hitting the medicine cabinet. It's a lot easier.

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yorkshiremen

fair comment...

.:.evergreen.:.

Good Article. However, the font itself is rather small. I had to squint my eyes.

QuestionMark

ppl when posting please check your font size... i went blind while reading this article...

AlucardOrange3

"The drugs will be right there in plain view next to the tooth paste and the Tylenol."

Well yea, except that Tylenol IS a drug (acetaminophen) and it definitely kills a few thousand people each year. But hey, at least it doesn't get you high! After all, it's the good feelings you get from drugs that are the problem, not any physical damage you might suffer. Besides, Silly Rabbit, drug production, marketing, and sales are for corporations!

AO3

P.S. Other than that, excellent article

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"When a true genius appears in the world, you shall know him by this sign; that all the dunces are in confederacy against him." Jonathan Swift

SinsemilaStreet

You should see the stuff in our medicine cabinet!

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"...marijuana is one of the safest, therapeutically active substances known to man." ~DEA Law Judge Francis Young

"Don't do drugs because if you do drugs you'll go to prison, and drugs are really expensive in prison." ~John Hardwick

Terrryluvs420

Grrrrrr... I hate pills, allmost as much as i hate powder.



I will agree with the staement that kids today have easier access to far better drugs than what i could get growing up.