Heroine is appealing to the rural youth of America. Many say this is due to boredom, lack of education and recent accessibility of the drug. Vermont is just a short distance to two major cities; Boston and New York which gives a direct line to any markets we may think don’t exist in a place like rural Vermont. When in fact, there has been a shocking increase in the use of heroin and other hard drugs used by kids in rural places (Heroin Moves to the Country). A video from CBS News explained not only has there been more than double increase in users but there has been an extreme increase in female users and white users as well. The increase in users has a direct correlation to crime. The dependency and extreme addiction at this fueled by heroine breads tense situations between dealers and their clients (Fed up with Heroin, Vermont Town Fights Back). These …show more content…
As a city it struggled for many years in all respects. It is thought that in 2012 the city hit rock bottom when a star athlete was killed but a driver who had been using drugs. The struggle was seen with landlords and the vacancy of homes allowing dealers to move in and monopolize the city spaces (Davis). Generations of families suffer from this addiction, parents instilling in their children the acceptance that there is no other way of life. Rutland as a city grappled with this issue for many years until they began to take action and see results, Rutland is at the forefront of change. The drug treatment center that has been open since 2013 is one huge contribution they have made to fight drug addiction (Fed up with Heroin, Vermont Town Fights Back). Governor Peter Shumlin spent his last month’s state of the state address reporting on the heroin situation with police sergeant Matt Prouty commenting on the reality of what he sees on the street (Craig). The city has put in place “Project Vision” to gather continuing support in fighting this
Recent reforms can curb the opioid epidemic. Yes, health care professionals have realized the complex problem and they now understand the problem and what needs to be done. According to CQ Researcher, “Experts see some progress in the fight against opioid painkiller abuse. After peaking in 2012, the number of prescriptions written for opioids declined 12 percent between 2013 and 2015, according to IMS Health, a market research company. Symphony Health Solutions, a data company that studies the pharmaceutical industry, found an 18 percent drop in that period.”
Ellen Hopkins’ Crank is an epic poem geared toward warning young people of the various consequences of using dangerous drugs. However important its message, it provides a single story, a stereotypical tale influenced by pop culture about addiction and the people it affects. In the poem, the heroine, Kristina Snow, gets addicted to methamphetamines, otherwise known as “crank”. Her life takes a downward turn that includes pregnancy and dropping out of school. The poem depicts just one experience with drug abuse and links it to what is perceived to be the most likely thing to happen if you get addicted to drugs, providing a false single story for the young people it targets.
Lot of people who are drug addict have become homeless. All together leads to poverty and increase in the crime rate. As I have mentioned earlier that I used to visit my friend 's smoke shop, there is a medical shore near which sales marijuana. to reach my friend 's store I have to pass by this medical store. I have
These drugs, especially if they were “crazily accessible”(51) should have been taken away by the government. It is indeed impossible to take away all the drugs in a community, but it was impossible for the government to have no knowledge of the issue, thus they should have worked harder to prohibit or lessen drug usage. Plus, it was so addictive that “A pregnant mother sold her body to get another hit”(51). This drives home the point that drugs are detrimental to one’s mentality and health. A mother, responsible for another life on top of hers, is willing to sell her body for drugs.
Underlying Causes: The increase in the sale of opioids is considered to be the root of the opioid crisis, as the drugs have been proven to be highly addictive. An addiction to prescriptive opioids, however, can lead to an addiction to synthetic, illegal opioids, such as heroine or fentanyl, which are less expensive and easier to acquire. In fact, in their journal article, “Associations of nonmedical pain reliever use and initiation of heroin use in the United States” Pradip Muhuri and associates discovered that “the recent (12 months preceding interview) heroin incidence rate was 19 times higher among those who reported prior nonmedical prescription pain reliever (NMPR) use than among those who did not (0.39 vs. 0.02 percent)” (Muhuri et. al). In other words, abusing prescription opioids significantly raises the chances of abusing illicit drugs, such as heroin.
Opioid Epidemic in the United States The opioid crisis has risen over the years here in America. The addiction to painkillers has caused many drug overdoses across America. According to the Vox," In 2015, more than 52,000 people have died from drug overdoses from linked to opioids such as Percocet, heroin, Oxycontin or even fentanyl. This problem did not become an overnight health crisis, but it has become quickly known in America. Expanding our drug treatment centers across America would provide the support to those who are addicted to drugs.
Some areas in the United States face higher rates of crime and drug abuse. This contributes to the prevalence of health disparities within different communities. In order to eliminate or decrease the distinct difference between areas that are at higher health risks than others one must begin to understand why they exist. Some areas have higher drug abuse rates than others due to factors such as poor education, poverty, unemployment rates, and lack of community involvement. These things play a major role in whether or not a young adult is going to start the use of drugs or drinking alcohol.
They attributed a lack of use to “fear of becoming addicted, experiencing adverse health affects, being arrested and the strong disapproval of friends and family (Hall and Weier 2). Zinberg’s theory of setting can be applied to this study because physical and emotional location impacts the likelihood of drug use. The use of heroin was more prevalent in Vietnam because it was normalized within society and was used as a means to get by. However, heroin use was less prevalent in the United States because of the hostile and negative setting that exists within the United States. It has been criminalized and demonized by American lawmakers as a drug that produces addiction
The article starts off with a story of a young girl with a promising future that was escalated downward into a fatal result due to heroin. Her name was Courtney and her parents revealed her dark secret at her funeral “their bright, beautiful daughter… had overdosed at her boyfriend’s grandmother’s house.” The family of Courtney have taken many steps to raise awareness on heroin and reduce the amount of deaths and enhance the amount of treatment to help the abusers. People like her father have devoted their time to help as much as they can “I work with 100 people every day — parents, people in recovery, addicts — who are doing everything we can to save these
When looking at a scholarly journal or other form of report pertaining to controlled substances, the theme is usually pretty clear; “drugs are bad, people that do drugs are bad, and it’s only getting worse.” Moore challenges this theme by breaking the mold in his article, “The Other Opioid Crisis” by implementing several rhetorical devices to add a more human aspect to the not so black-and-white issue. “The Other Opioid Crisis” is an article that goes into the ethics and the arguments regarding those who are in need of opioids and their stories, alongside other ethical issues they may face. By providing stories of patients, Moore states his opinion which is backed strongly by the pains, both mentally and physically, that opioid prescribed patients face. In these stories he not only provides a detailed account of their struggles, he uses strong language to appeal to the pathos of the reader on a subject that may not be easy for many to sympathize with.
In his article, “Toward a Policy on Drugs,” Elliot Currie discusses “the magnitude and severity of our drug crisis” (para. 21), and how “no other country has anything resembling the American drug problem” (para. 21). The best way to describe America’s drug problem is that it is a hole continuously digs itself deeper. America’s drug issues were likely comparable to other country’s at one point in time, but today it can be blamed on the “street cultures” (para. 21) that continue to use and spread the use of illegal drugs. These street cultures transcend the common stereotype of drug users, such as low income communities in cities or welfare recipients, and can be found in every economic class and location. They are groups of people who have
The continuous use of narcotics results in addiction, and financial struggles due to the costly upkeep. “Financial problems are one of the major side effects of drug and substance abuse” (Buaggett, 2015). Addicts cannot adequately take an active role in the economic activities, as the use of drugs inhibits the abilities of the users to earn a daily living. Due to the instability of finances, this would result in selling personal belongings to continue funding the substance of choice, and depending on the addicts living situation, this could lead to losing their house or being removed from their current housing. While being under the influence, an addicts voice of reason is jeopardized, resulting in criminal activities which raise the chances of being apprehended by the law enforcers, as well as, heavy fines are imposed.
When people take these synthetic heroin pills, they do not feel as though it is a drug addiction as much as it is a way for them to deal with pain, over-stimulation, and as a tranquilizer. Today, we are currently facing an epidemic with drug addiction and continuously trying to solve the problem with a war on drugs. “The U.S. spends about $51 billion a year enforcing the war on drugs, and arrests nearly 1.5 million people for drug violations, according to Drug Policy Alliance, a drug policy reform group” (Ferner). Since the United States spends so much money on this epidemic, the numbers should start to go down, but it is instead doing the opposite. It is easy to figure out the numbers through doctors, “Increases in prescription drug misuse over the last
Therefore, those continually exposed to drug use will begin to see this as the normative behavior, accepting and adopting it for themselves. There is a direct correlation between the amount of exposure and the prevalence of deviant behavior. The realization of this correlation is part of what is leading the push for changes in drug laws. People are beginning to realize that while confining a drug user to jail does punish the drug user, it also forces them to observe and socialize with other deviants, not just other drug users, thereby exposing them to new and perhaps worse deviant behaviors for them to assimilate.
Two other theories are discussed in chapter 12 regarding drugs and crime: drug enslavement theory and general deviance syndrome theory. The book states that according to drug enslavement theory, “Drug users are forced into a life of crime because they cannot afford to pay for their drug habits unless they use crime to get money for their next fix” (Thio, 2013, pg. 311). The book states that according to general deviance syndrome theory, “The high correlation between drug use and crime does not mean that drug use causes crime because most drug users with a criminal record have committed crime before using drugs” (Thio, 2013, pg. 311). Both theories suggest that using drugs and committing crimes are related. Therefore, if marijuana use is legalized, the assumption can be made that there would essentially be some kind of decline in crime in regard to marijuana charges.