Vermont's Drug Infestation : The War On Heroin

Vermont is in a war that has the potential to change how the state lives from day to day. Fortunately they are on the move to stop the flood of Heroin coming into their state before it too late. This is interesting in that there are many in the media, and else where, calling to end the drug war by police and others. They say if you are in a hole and don't know how to get out, stop digging.

This analogy does have some merit seeing how the flood of drugs across our boarders seems to be unabated if not getting worse. Just as the answer to stopping people from wanting drugs more money and more police, and this is not just those that are already hooked, but all the new users waiting in line to participate begs some new ideas. It hasn't gone unnoticed as well that the talking heads haven't put forward any solution of their own.

The article in the Weekly Standard "Down and Out in Vermont, Heroin in the hills" depicts certain cities in the state fighting this disease and how they approach the problem. What caught my eye was a statement from the author as the possible reasons the state is struggling with this infestation of heroin.

The author stated, " - Vermont's modern vision of itself (is) a progressive outpost of tolerance and initiative, where the values of the community and environment precede those of the individual". This lays bear one of the fundamental problems that Vermont, and other states that have developed a similar creeds of progressivism over the years, will have to come to grips with if they truly want to transform their communities from ones of rampant crime to one of responsible acceptance of the rule of law.

This I believe can only come from the people deciding their own fates. If the people can decide that what has gone before does not work and changes must take place to solve their problems, there is hope for the future. If the challenge for change is to great and complacency rules the day, all will be lost.