Drug Dealers

Drug dealers used to be on all the corners of the "bad neighborhoods" so finding them was not that hard. There are still drug dealers in these locations, though, they have branched out into the middle class and upscale arenas as well. In these scenarios, drug dealers don't stand on the street corners in the suburbs or fling open their black cashmere coats in front of the big corporate entrances on Wall Street.

But, whether you go to Watts or Wall Street or your dear Aunt Ginny's house to slip her a few extra bucks for some extra Vicodin she has left over, its really all the same. People who sell the drugs are the dealers and people who buy the drugs are the users. To some people, the more upscale it seems, the more palatable it becomes. But, addiction is addiction no matter what the scale.

Some neighborhood and church programs try to combat drug dealers on the streets with neighborhood watch programs and religious marches. This has been effective in taking back some neighborhoods, though critics argue that this only pushes the dealers into new neighborhoods.

Others try to take on the big drug dealers who move massive amounts of illegal substances into the country by any means possible. The War on Drugs combined with the Just Say No campaign has still yet to curb this country's appetite for mood altering substances.

Drug busts in some countries, can mean the most severe of penalties, even death. For those moving drugs into the U. S. however, the penalties are not as severe and the payoff can make simple drug dealers into millionaires so the allure is certainly there.

Like all other human frailties, drugs is no different. A drug dealer may live in your home, be your neighbor, your doctor, your priest or your best friend. Most people like to look at the world with a set of rose-colored glasses since this makes them feel safer. Statistically speaking, though, there are people in your own neighborhood, not a stone's throw from you with severe human problems. This may even be you, a family member or friend. Some people think that acknowledging this reality is too scary so they tend to turn a blind eye.

The less we turn a blind eye, though, the more we can help ourselves, our families, and our neighbors in overcoming their problems. Drug addiction is not the only problem, but it is so prevalent that there's a dealer near you, closer than you think.