The National Drugs Campaign…hmmm…

The Focus – September 6th, 2007 by Sarah

Is anyone else a little intrigued by the federal government’s latest initiative to discourage young people from using drugs? I don’t know if any of you have paid particular attention to the booklet you should have received in the mail by now, which outlines how parents should talk to their kids about drugs and the negative consequences of using, but in my opinion, it seems to go against the very nature of young people…I thought everyone knew that the more dangerous or forbidden something is made out to be, the keener we are to give it a crack. And that we don’t particularly like adults telling us what to do, especially when these adults are our parents, or tired right-wing politicians who are totally disconnected from what it is actually like to be a young person in today’s society. I realise that by saying ‘we’, I am making a huge generalisation, but since it’s ok for the government to generalise about young people and drug use, why can’t I?

As a young person, I find the angle adopted by the government in this situation fairly insulting, somewhat ridiculous and a fairly gigantic waste of money. It reminds me of some of the Sex Education classes I had at school (keeping in mind I attended a Catholic private school…shudder), where we were told that sex is bad, wrong, hideous, just don’t do it and you will be JUST FINE. Of course the majority of us did not take much notice of this advice and did what we wanted anyway, which is exactly why this National Drugs Campaign is just all wrong. Sure, scare tactics are all well and good and certainly do work on some people, but the majority of young people are simply going to do what they like anyway. To put it even more plainly, young people are not going to stop using drugs. We just aren’t. By we, I’m talking about young people in general, not including myself. I am not a drug user, and don’t plan to be. I have made that choice. But plenty of young people have not made that choice, so doesn’t it make more sense to educate them on how to use drugs as safely as possible, rather than telling them to stop something they have already started? I know, I know, arguably there is no real safe way of using drugs, but arguably there is no real guarantee that sex is safe either, or mountain climbing or driving a car, yet we are still at least taught how to perform these activities with as little risk as possible. Unless you attended a Catholic private school.

By the way, this isn’t an endorsement of drug use, more of a statement of ‘Get real!’ to the government and their silly ideas about young people and drugs.

So, to Little Johnny, get real I say!

Sarah

Share This

2 responses to “The National Drugs Campaign…hmmm…”

1. Kath (aka MillyMoo)

   September 7th, 2007 at 5:21 am

   I agree with you re the initiative not really working with teenagers, but when my eight year old daughter saw the advertisement on TV the other day (the ones with small children talking about their hopes and dreams along with images of teens affected by drugs) she was REALLY paying attention. In fact, she has since cried in the final scene where the boy who is telling us that he’d like to play for Australia is, as a teen, getting a bag zipped across his face.

   We HAVE kept and used the brochure but do know that it might shock her now but there will be virtually NOTHING we can do about the strenght of peer pressure when our little blondie reaches her teens. All we can really do is hope that our child has enough self-confidence to say ‘no’ and work out which of her friends are worth sticking with and which aren’t.

   My role, in this, I think, is to keep subtlely reminding her that she’s her own person and her health, sanity, friendships and safety are her first responsibility but that her father and I will always be there for her. Any time, any place, any situation. Fingers crossed for the future…..

2. Teri

   September 21st, 2007 at 5:33 am

   Yes, I agree with you. I am the mother of a 14 year old boy and he is still listening, but I am not nagging about it or making an issue of it because if he is anything like his Ma, then he will not listen to me. In fact,he might just go out and do what I don’t want him to do precisely because I don’t want him to do it.
   I am studying this media campaign for a course I am doing and after my initial reaction (same as yours, above) I started to think that maybe, though I was far too strictly brought up (Catholic private school and Italian parents),perhaps kids who have no discipline at all would benefit from chats with their parents. Maybe, if your parent talks sensibly to you about drugs, then even if you decide to rebel, you might feel you have someone to turn to if things go horribly wrong. A bit of a safety net. Just a thought. Maybe it is in the way parents talk to you about anything that makes the difference.

Leave a response