LETTER

Want independence?  A reply . . .

 

When letter writer Joseph Golding referred to risk-seeking teens as trying to attain (life) "independence" through experimenting with drugs, didn’t he consider that this might possibly create (drug) "dependence" instead? Has he not read the newspapers about all the addicted young people living desperate and pain-filled lives? Or even dying? As a 35-year veteran caseworker for the Ottawa Social Services Department, I know this firsthand.

Young people may want to do risky things, but why choose drugs? Why not play Russian roulette? Seriously, why not take up skiing, parachuting or auto racing? There’s instruction and learning/gaining control as one masters these risks. What learning goes into choosing the red or yellow pill from the medicine cabinet? The adrenaline released when racing certainly exceeds being doped up.

If Mr Golding has children at home, I would be very nervous if I were him when they reach their teen years. If he uses his own drug experiences as a example of how to achieve independence, he is setting them up for failure -- unless he plans to convince them to "not do as he did". If action thrills are not their thing, how about school debating, public speaking, or performing in live theatre! Advocating for drugs is not a responsible pursuit.

Steve d'Eça
Aylmer