48% High School Seniors Admit to Using Drugs

[Greenday]

As I was sitting in my Forensic Chem class tonight, our teacher pointed something scary out to us. 48% of high school seniors admitted to using drugs. Admitted. Which means since some people who probably do drugs but lied, said they didn't so the % is probably even higher.

I'm just curious as to what you guys think about it. Some people don't think people should do any drugs. Some people think all drugs should be legal. So I just want to hear what you guys think about how many people are using drugs at early ages. Is this scary information? Is it no big deal? What, if anything, should be done about this?

[anriana]

According to those surveys my friends and I use pot/heroic/meth/coke/etc every single day!

[the_std]

I don't see any problem with trying them, especially pot, as it's rarely, if ever, addictive as long as it's just straight pot. And trying it doesn't mean you do it again. People trying new things, as long as they accept the consequences of trying them, really isn't a big deal.

I wonder how many of those 48% go on to be addicts.

[Sylvia727]

When the definition of drugs includes alcohol, then yeah. I don't see it as scary, but a simple confimation of what I saw every day in high school. What is the scary is the people who say, "hnah hnah hnah, those damn kids," instead of trying to figure why the students try drugs. I saw my classmates' parents making the same basic mistakes over and over again. They yelled, threatened, disrespected, invaded the privacy, and in short treated their high schoolers like elementary schoolers. Of the teenagers who felt their parents couldn't understand them, some were just being angsty teens, but some were right. Their parents were incapable of understanding, because they were treating a young adult as a child, and expecting the student to react like a child. Some of my classmates even felt as if they were in a war with their parents.

Honestly, I'm surprised this figure is only 48%. I would have bet that much more than half of high school seniors tried drugs.

[Rapscallion]

Hmm - how many claimed to take drugs just to look cool?

Rapscallion

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

Hmm - how many claimed to take drugs just to look cool?

Rapscallion

I was just about to bring that up.

I have another question. Is this based on actual evidence/admission of drug use, or is this based on one of those stupid checklists that state "if your child does this then he's probably on drugs"?

If you applied those checklists to me I show up as a chain-smoking, meth-head who is 30 seconds from blowing up a bus load of nuns.

[Boozy]

Hmm - how many claimed to take drugs just to look cool?

About the same number of virgins who claim to have had sex on other surveys.

Those anonymous self-reporting questionnaires are a complete joke. I took one on sexual activity when I was 14, along with the rest of my class. Most of us lied. We all exaggerated.

Why? We were 14 years old, completely immature, and liked the idea of seriously frigging up a government study.

Besides, if alcohol is included, then the whole statistic is even more misleading. I was allowed a glass of wine with dinner at home during family meals when I was in high school. My teenage brother used to have a beer with my dad after a long day's work on the farm. I'm sure many people had situations like that. It can hardly be considered risky drug use.

[Greenday]

Alcohol is not included. Neither are prescription drugs.

And it's one of those questionnaires given to the students themselves. I remember taking one a couple years ago when I was graduating.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't include "I tried something". I think it's more about regular usage.

Honestly, from what I've seen in high school, I'm not surprised. In fact, I think my school had more people who did drugs than not. And that's in middle class suburbia. And a lot of those kids didn't just use weed either.

[Giggle Goose]

Drugs were a HUGE problem in my high school. It was mostly the popular kids that started out drinking and smoking pot; but then a lot of them used cocaine, meth, etc. Somehow they still managed to function.

I don't know if it's the pressure to look "cool" or the academic, social and work stress that a lot of high school kids are under. It's definitely harder to be a high schooler than it was in my parent's generation. That being said; I agree with those who say the number wasn't higher.

[Shangri-laschild]

If it just asked "have you done drugs" then that could be either regular or one time. The percent of people saying they have but actually haven't probably at least make up for the percentage of people who say they havent' but have. Outside of how I feel about regular drug use, I guess someone having tried it once in high school and then decided it wasn't for them doesn't bug me too much. I never actually tried drugs but I know plenty of people who have.

Also if I were to state how many of my high school friends were drug users, the list would be high. If I were to state how many of them were serious drug users instead of just "I smoke pot sometimes" That list would shorten a lot.

[Flyndaran]

...
Also if I were to state how many of my high school friends were drug users, the list would be high. If I were to state how many of them were serious drug users instead of just "I smoke pot sometimes" That list would shorten a lot.

I was the first person my girlfriend ever met that hadn't ever tried illegal substances in high school.
Heck I still haven't ever seen marijuana in person. The fact that my two closest relatives found out, through non use methods, that they were allergic to it may have something to do with it.

[Slytovhand]

I think it's scary.

Mostly because, as unfortunate as it is true, it sometimes does only take 1 bad trip, and you don't have your life any more. Some people do have incredibly bad reactions to them - and it won't be in an atmosphere where there will be someone who is totally with it enough to do anything that needs to be done. If something bad goes down, who is going to call for the police or an ambulance. (and yes, I have been in that sort of situation! Panic was everywhere).

No drug is 100% safe - and yes, I am including prescription here as well...

For me, it comes back to something similar to the gun control debate. yeah, let it be legal and all when people will take 100% responsibiliy... but until then, play things safe, and let people live.

As to the survey - yep - a lot of kids lie on those surveys - because they don't mean anything to them. I mean, if you don't expect them to be responsible when it comes to what they throw down their throats or inhale, then why would you expect them to be responsible for taking a survey seriously???

But, in saying that, I do admit that drugs of all sorts are a hell of a lot more readily available now than back in my school days, so I wouldn't be overly surprised about such a high percentage.

[Shangri-laschild]

For me, it comes back to something similar to the gun control debate. yeah, let it be legal and all when people will take 100% responsibiliy... but until then, play things safe, and let people live.

This is where I actually do agree that that argument is crap (I sort of agree with it in a more complex version when it comes to gun control but that's a different thread ) There is no assurance that you can take drugs and have no harmful effects. Some drugs may be hailed as being less harmful or not addicting, but to enough people they are.

[Sylvia727]

Caffeine is a drug. And I'm actually addicted to it. If I miss my coffee, I get really cranky and have a bad headache later in the day. I also feel drowsy and thick-headed. I suffer withdrawal. Just because something is a "drug" doesn't mean it's automatically a danger to the population. Some people might have bad reactions to certain drugs...some people have bad reactions to milk.

The part of the "ban all drugs!" arguments that some radicals (not necessarily anyone here) make that I have a problem with is simply, "Whatever happened to personal responsibility?"

[Slytovhand]

Hmmm... Sylvia... nice point.

So I decided to google - define: drug to see what we're talking about. Should we go with...

"In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Drúedain are a fictional race of Men which were counted amongst the Edain. They were also know as Drûgin (singular being Drug), Woses, Wild Men of the Woods and Púkel-men. "

Probably not - but I was amused, so I thought I'd share it..

Anyway....

Unfortunately - there are slightly different definitions - and the 'slight' is significant. Here's Wiki...
[quote\]
drug (plural drugs)

(pharmacology) A substance used to treat an illness, relieve a symptom, or modify a chemical process in the body for a specific purpose.
(pharmacology) A substance, often addictive, which affects the central nervous system.
A chemical or substance, not necessarily for medical purposes, which alters the way the mind or body works.
A substance, especially one which is illegal, ingested for recreational use. [/quote]

So - shall we go with psychotropic drugs only? (after all - penicillin is a drug, and ppl can be allergic to it as well).

I should point out my actual stance. I am very much for personal responsibility. I also think that social drugs (ie - speed, ice, coke, H, E etc) should be banned.. for the time being. I do also use (on very rare occasions) a drug that is illegal in this country. Does this seem hypcritical? Probably. Why? Because I use it in a way that is 'responsible' by only 'using' it in my home, and I do not go anywhere (physically) while under it's influence. It has also been studied and is not addictive, and does not have negative long term (nor short term) side-effects. And lastly, I use it for 'religious' purposes - it helps me get into shamanic trance - and that's the only reason I use it.

Because 'personal responsibility' is on the same level as 'common sense' - yep - ban them - or at least limit availability and make people responsible - and make it completely legally enforceable.


Slyt