Whereas anti-drug policy acts on multiply levels, the drug trade thrives. Methamphetamine, the drug that is now considered one of the most abusive hard drugs in the world, has many romantic, intriguing names: glass, crystal meth, speed. The documentary “The Meth Epidemic” examines its prosperous march across the streets of America. Cristal epidemic began in the late 60s as a vogue among West Coast motorcycle gangs and rapidly widespread; its cultural influence might be traced already in the 80s. For example, the movie Slumber Party Massacre from 1982 contains a dialogue in a group of high school students. A guy asks girls from his school if they have all they need for the party, like “pot, booze, crystal meth…” (The Slumber Party Massacre). Meth drug crucially influences their user’s brains, withering human physical and psychical powers. Though the crystal drug is considered more abusive than cocaine and heroin, few efforts are made to pull off this problem; or, at least, there is no excuse to do less than one’s best within the bounds of the meth enforcement program.
The Meth Epidemic documentary tells the story of anti-meth struggle failure. In fact, there is no successful policy against any kind of abuse until business interests are involved. There was an attempt to restrain the meth epidemic in the middle 80s when the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration proposed registering customers’ personal information the nd limiting the maximum amount of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine purchasing. Still, the leisures led to the decline in pharmaceutical companies’ profits. Representatives of the pharmaceutical industry insisted, that DEA agents overreacted and interpreted their proposal as almost “uncivilized”.
The White House and Congress made the “right” choice and released cold medication from the Drug Enforcement Administration regulatory proposal (Frontline – The Meth Epidemic). The second DEA attempt to control meth usage dealt with the source of drug ingredients. Only a few competent laboratories may produce such complicated chemicals as ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Thereby, it would not be so hard to track them. Still, as Washington policy was mostly directed against cocaine and heroin production this attempt also failed for bureaucratic reasons. There was a tangible anti-meth achievement after 1994 when a large, illicit load of ephedrine was found on a plane that flew from India to Mexico. When the ephedrine export to the Mexican cartel ceased the meth quality along with its users started to decline (Frontline – The Meth Epidemic). Still, as The Meth Epidemic says, this breathing space is only temporary.
As methamphetamine locks the part of the brain that is in charge of dopamine generating meth users gradually lose the ability to feel pleasure from anything except more doses of crystal drugs. In fact, meth changes the way human brains function. In fact, it is a miracle that some people give up meth usage. In fact, many films present drug consumption as an ordinary act. Though the majority of movies do not promote it, often speak about meth, cocaine, heroin, etc. The same is with fiction. Many authors, directors, the businessman will do everything to please the public and earn money. Scandalous scenes attract attention indeed and the fact that the forbidden fruit is the sweetest is frequently used. In fact, no efficient enforcement against meth is possible, until our own imagination play against us in a suit with business concerns. The nature of any industry is not built on philanthropy; these two notions contradict one another. Thereby, the first and the main place to pull of the meth is the human mind.
Works Cited
The Slumber Party Massacre. Dir. Amy Holden Jones. Perf. Michele Michaels, Robin Stille, Michael Villella, Debra Deliso, Andree Honore, and Gina Smika. New World Pictures, 1982. Film.
Frontline – The Meth Epidemic. Dir. Brent E. Huffman, and Katerina Monemvassitis. Perf. Will Lyman, Arun Rath, Peter Haydu, Martin Smith, and Charles Linshaw. PBS, 2006. Film.