NARCOTICS: A CHALLENGE TO YOUTH

e [Music] how well do you know them Mr teacher you remember their names and you give them their grades but do you know them it's hard so many students seld them enough time hard to be a teacher even harder to be a good one because it doesn't stop with the grades does it the responsibility is much bigger than that what kind of adults will they turn out to be what kind of citizens part of that is up to you to the many problems you must deal with add another narcotics memo to all teachers in a in accordance with the educational code of our state instruction shall be given upon the nature of Narcotics and the effects upon the human system this will be discussed at the next faculty meeting the narcotic problem does it sound remote something from a world far from your classroom ah don't be too sure [Music] just one of them could make it your problem too would you know how to meet [Music] it most of us know so little about the narcotic danger surely it's time to find out [Music] the basic facts about drugs are readily available narcotic drugs and their characteristics the opiates Source the Opium poppy grown in the near East and Asia effect depressants they affect the nervous system and a portion of the brain reducing tension relieving pain and can produce Euphoria a sense of well-being from opium morphine is derived it has legitimate medical uses as an analgesic and for Sedation from morphine heroin is derived it is no longer used in medicine and its manufacturer or importation is forbidden by law it is a white or sometimes brownish powder taken by intravenous or subcutaneous injection it is the opiate currently preferred by most narcotic addicts the opiates are addicting heroin especially is quickly and severely addicting marijuana Source a weed Cannabis sativa the Indian hemp plant grown in temperate climates including some parts of the United States and much of Mexico effect a depressant however it produces an unpredictable drunkenness use of very little therapeutical value primarily a vice and a major part of illicit drug traffic strongly psychologically habituating it is usually found in cigarette form in the United States it is known by different names and used in different ways in many parts of the world cocaine Source the Coca plant grown in South America and Java effect a stimulant excites the system use very limited medical use as a local analgesic it is a snow- likee white powder used intravenously or sniffed and absorbed through through the mucus membranes a growing problem is the illegal use of dangerous drugs barbiturates and amphetamine the barbiturate is the so-called sleeping pill derived from barbituric Acid it is a hypnotic and acts as a depressant on the central nervous system it has various medical uses barbiturate intoxication is similar to that produced by alcohol the barbituate called goofballs and the excitant amphetamin often known by the slang name Benny's are being used indiscriminately in alarming [Music] quantities all right we know a few facts but what does it mean to us there are still many questions who becomes a drug addict what is he like where is he from who and and why in the first place it can be anyone from anywhere drug addiction can be found in all walks of life every part of town or the country no one can afford to be complacent about this problem it happens everywhere but it usually happens in the big cities New York Los Angeles Chicago big crowded cities often it happens in a poor or marginal area call it what you like slums underprivileged neighborhood but it happens everywhere it happened [Music] here what kind of a boy is he he's a boy with a problem and part of it starts here at [Music] home he doesn't know what's happening but something is going wrong deeply embedded are growing fears and feelings of hostility he has great difficulty in his relations with others even his own [Music] family he feels inadequate unworthy whatever the case he remains distant alone what these feelings may stem from will vary from Individual to individual but there is at least one common characteristic of the potential addict he has a problem that seems to overwhelm him and he can't take it he is easily frustrated emotionally immature whatever the problem stems from his family poverty sexual tensions feelings of inferiority whatever it is it seems to be too much for him a frustrated self-pitying child looking for someone or something to lean on we are beginning to see an image of the potential addict a tentative general image easily frustrated emotionally immature highly dependent on someone or something and he's headed for trouble a great many young narcotic addicts have been found to have delinquent records before they use drugs narcotic use is usually part of a pattern of trouble truancy gang activity vandalism [Music] thefts this is the common starting point with drugs the use of marijuana he's probably tried alcohol but this is a new kick marijuana intoxication is unpredictable like alcohol it brings forth forth a variety of reactions depending on the personality of the user it can act as a release of repression and restraint some users will be erratic some irritable some dulled and sluggish with juveniles reactions can be and often are extreme they call it tea pot grass weed reefers they all mean the same marijuana a weed that flourishes in [Music] ignorance after marijuana he'll look for even a bigger kick something new [Music] the something new is heroin it is usually a buddy a pal someone ironically called called his friend that carries the contagion the first fix of heroin his friend is a drug user himself a junkie that pushes to support his own habit by this time he might have also used the barbiturate and apetamin drugs goofballs and bennies they just serve as further steps leading here the outfit as it is called usually consists of an eye dropper and hypodermic needle a belt or a similar makeshift t and a bent spoon in which to dissolve the [Music] narcotic e [Music] the first fix May overwhelm him even make him sick but as the drug gains control he will find a perverse satisfaction even in the sickness [Music] and he'll be back he's turned on now now he thinks he has something to lean on his world is different now tension's gone violence subsided so he [Music] thinks the same world seems more endurable now for the first time in a long while he feels that he needs no one nothing ah but he is wrong he has an even greater need [Music] now he will use it again and again and as he becomes more and more dependent on the drug he will enter a you world a world of pushers pedlers Hypes a new breed of people to be dependent upon up to $5 for a cap of heroin two or three at a time then more $10 a day then 15 20 25 and more and where do you get this money for Narcotics you steal [Music] your dependency your overwhelming need demands that you steal and Rob at every opportunity [Music] [Music] the United States Senate committee reports that one half of Metropolitan crime and 1/4 of all reported crime is committed by narcotic addicts stealing to support their habits common crimes are shoplifting bad checks and burglary every form of [Music] leny it is all for Junk the narcotics to an addict that is all that matters nothing no one can rival the drug to the addict it is life itself pipes or junkies are not all the same there are similarities but many differences not just differences of race age background but different reasons for using narcotics different ways of meeting life of avoiding life to most of them the narcotics have been the big answer right from the beginning a crutch for their goes a wall to keep out reality it's a way out of life almost a slow suicide this is primary addiction to others however narcotics May dominate them now the drug is not an essential psychological crutch drug use is just a part of a pattern of fighting everybody and everything this is is symptomatic [Music] addiction and still others may not suffer from such internal strife but may be essentially normal healthy individuals who become involved with narcotics because of the pressure of their group or companions common among adolescents this is reactive addiction the majority of drug addicts in recent years are men but addiction has claimed thousands of women for a great many of them drug addiction leads to a degrading life of [Music] prostitution and we now know that though normally the reproductive capacity is hindered by narcotic use should the female addict have a child while addicted the child will be born addicted to the narcotic and require treatment to [Music] survive most all addicts have a future in common it is simply a matter of time before they are caught [Music] most all large metropolitan police forces employ narcotic details Specialists often working undercover who are trained to detect and apprehend those who traffic illegally in drugs although many addicts May remain undetected for years most are usually arrested Ed and most will be arrested on other than narcotic law violations but for crimes inspired by their desperate need for their drug the road that leads to drug addiction often ends here in the World Behind Bars physical dependence can be determined by the occurrence of withdrawal symptoms the abstinence syndrome the withdrawal period is a time of Agony for the addict Restless sleepless nights continual pains and cramps nausea diarrhea hallucinations too when he comes out of prison he has his freedom but for what the same streets Same Old Neighborhood he seems to be back where it all [Music] started he is free to make something of himself they told him when he left prison but what does he have an occupation a skill unlikely education probably not much friends sure mostly addicts what happened to him started here happened here same place same people now that he's back the tragic likelihood is that in a week a month maybe longer it will happen again soon he too will be pushed to support his habit and soon he will be arrested again quarantined so that he will not spread his addiction to others so very few narcotic addicts have been treated successfully in the past that it must be said that he may be condemned to this for the rest of his [Music] life such a waste of human life certainly man with all his knowledge can find some answer some way to salvage these young lives but wouldn't it be more sensible to prevent addiction if we could that's where you could play a big part Mr teacher education for some could be immunization there will be some problems all right tough questions that demand factual answers there are some aspects of the problem that will require great caution on your part when instructing adolescence remember don't exaggerate you don't have to the facts are on your side the facts are terrible enough it's quite a responsibility but it is part of your job and wherever you may teach your community counts on you need you will you be ready 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