Posted by
Rich on Saturday, February 16, 2008 8:59:37 AM
The face of dead drug abuser Heath Ledger, actor, millionaire, Hollywood idol, father, and husband.
It is sad to read a local editorial from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune titled, "
Florida's example for the world".
The editorial is focused on smoking and fighting the evil tobacco
industry. I wish the media would spend as much time talking about the
greater threat and human suffering caused by
illegal and now prescription drugs.
What
would happen if in this editorial you substituted the words "illegal
drugs" for the word "tobacco"? What if we spent the $58 million in
Florida on an anti-drug ad campaign. What if the World Health
Organization would do more studies about the death, crime and
destruction caused by the trafficking, sale and use of illegal and now
prescription drugs.
What if we considered that it takes decades
to die from the effects of smoking but seconds to die from a deadly mix
of heroin, cocaine and prescription drugs?
What if we considered
the fact that tobacco does not cause criminal activity, fund vicious
gangs that murder innocent children, fund drug cartels that
assassinate politicians and the police, and fund terror organizations like
Al Qaeda and the Taliban?
What if we and the UN spent more money
stopping rather than studying the human suffering caused by illegal
drugs. What if we took the focus off tobacco and really focused on the
families destroyed, youth addicted, mothers on cocaine and heroine
whose children are born drug addicts, death toll from illegal and now
prescription drug abuse and crime caused by illegal drugs?
What
if we outlawed the glorification of drug use in Hollywood movies, in
our society and by our children? What if we made our businesses, our
homes, our beaches, our neighborhoods, our schools and ourselves drug
free rather than smoke free?
What if?