Any members have a large issue with this in your town or state?. I am told the county where in has huge epidemic. What has me questioning that being knowing pretty much zero about the stuff. For the very small rual town it is. A very large amount of the population here is grossley obease. ( Not me a few extra lbs but managable).With such an epdicmic would you not expect the population to at lower weight levels.Again not well versed on Meth but I assume its an "Upper " Ps sorry Moderators this should have be in Lounge section

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Spin The Wheel

That was So 2010 is real problem is opioids

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Yes this place is that far back woods and times lol. We moved here last year way smaller county and down size Came from larger county ( central Florida on coast for 45 plus years) Central is and was huge even in 2010 a pill mill problem. We downsized and went rual I dont miss the traffic in central

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Spin The Wheel

The state itself probably does but as for counties nothing around here. Seems to be a rural problem.

There have been a two or three meth labs busted over the years within a 20 mile radius but all those were more entrepreneurs than users. You know, attempting to start their own home base business.

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If you see an anhydrous ammonia tanker parked outside your neighbors house with hoses running into the house, probably should give the sheriff a call.

Lots of meth here, enough to share. Heroin is quickly taking over, though . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

When I was workin meth labs and hazmat cleanup of same...


Had enough of them catch fire that all the vol fireman carried sidearms.


I lodged this one cat for manufacturing meth, it was his sixth arrest
and he hadn't been to court for the first arrest.


Meth, oxycontin, hydros, and a bunch of weed.....We got it all.


.

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

Sitting in circut court today.If their problem is not meth it's heroin or oxy pills.Quite often it's all plus weed.What is a real shame is so many of the females are pregnant.A lot of damaged babies in the special needs units in hospitals in this part of the county.

Meth and prescription meds have taken a back seat to heroin in my area. They are still around, but far from the primary thing I see.

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BT
EGO VOLUNTAS HAUD OBEDIO

It's all opioids up here in the northeast, and it's a MAJOR epidemic. Hell, 2 local OD deaths last night. Knew the first name and face of one of them. Some of my kitchen staff knew the other, or both. I'm an executive chef and it's rampant in this labor force. Have had 3 former employees die in last 5 years. Everyone knows someone who has. It's completely out of control. People dropping like flies. I have 2 GOOD employees on prescribed treatment meds for the addiction in my kitchen right now! They start with experimentation with oxy's, get hooked quick, move up to heroin, get some heroin cut with fetynol, OD, die. It's a death sentence.

Most everybody has enacted laws restricting pseudoephedrine purchases to the point of forcing out the average home chemist. We're back to where we were in the early 90's, with most meth coming from large labs in Mexico via the cartels . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

It, meth, sometimes comes north as meth oil, (ready to be salt'd out), concealed as bottles of Tequila w/ta worm.

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

Used to be I could cook meth in my sleep I'd done so many cases. Some of the convenience stores noticed large sales of Coleman Camp fuel, matches, flares and cold medicine and put all the ingredients together on the same shelf! Kansas ramped up the penalties for manufacture and now most of our meth comes from Mexico. Still tons of weed around as well as K-2 and various other synthetics. Opioids are on the rise too. Not much crack around anymore thankfully, at least in my backwoods area.

In Memphis it's heroin, meth, crack, Oxycontin, Lortabs, adderall, doggie downers, heck you can get killed for rolling a seven at the wrong time or just looking at someone the wrong way.

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LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

I look at meth as just another form of Darwinism.

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So many S&W's, so few funds!!

I'd ask what percentage of the population is a huge epidemic? Obesity is a bigger epidemic than most drugs everywhere, so weighing the population is probably not a good way to get a feel for the number of the users of drugs which are prone to make the user thin. Here in Houston there are all types of illicit drugs being used. Last year there was a major apartment fire about a half mile from me. Something like 40 apartments were lost. It happened shortly after lunchtime. The first word about the cause that I got was that a lady was cooking. She was not paying attention and a fire got out of hand. Three months later I was told she was cooking meth.

Here in Kalifornia we can only give tickets to drug offenders. Get caught shooting heroin on the street, oops get a ticket... Drugs are a major problem here and just getting worse. Every city and county is infested with drug abusers, makers and sellers. The state government encourages it and the locals are completely overwhelmed.

Local Sheriff cleaned up the meth here.....now he is fighting pills and heroin. OD deaths up 300% from 2014. Be thankful that you have what you have. That you were raised how you were raised. And that you can speak with great folks here on this forum. Be encouraged and clean up your little corner of the world...carry your firearm, set a good example and be aware but fearless! God will do the rest.

Meth has been a huge problem here for years. We don't see meth labs, though. Most of what we see is manufactured in Mexico, smuggled across the border in massive quantities, and distributed throughout the US. We also see lots of heroin, some cocaine and even some LSD once in a while. We are, of course, awash in marijuana that comes from Colorado. We also get "huffers" from time to time. We had one guy huffing computer keyboard cleaner while he was driving down the street the other day. He passed out, crossed four lanes of traffic and went through the front end of a motorcycle shop. Great stuff. I can't even count the number of ways people have to screw themselves up these days.

We have all of the bad stuff here. A sad situation.

The drug problem in this country is horrendous. Go to an AA or NA meeting and see the young people struggling to get clean and stay clean.

I'm sorry but dealing drugs should carry a life sentence with no possibility of parole, instead of the past administration's innumerable pardons.

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Join the NRA today

Meth has taken a back seat to heroin here, as it has in most medium-to-large cities, The heroin is often cut with fentanyl, which makes it far more likely to produce fatal overdoes.

Our OD rate here is scary enough to have made the national news a while back.

On the other hand, the 58-year-old daughter of a friend of mine died a year ago of complications from smoking meth when she lived in New Orleans. It hasn't gone away, just slipped down the popularity scale.

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Oh well, what the hell.

I worked with a tweaker when I worked as a deliveryman for a photo developing house in Chicago in the '70s during highschool and college. That was the first time I'd heard the word "tweaker", from one of the other drivers, describing him.

He got fixated on one of the girls who worked in the back and started harassing her. Some of us pulled him aside and offered him an elevator ride... one way... down... minus the elevator.

Sadly, the only thing going for some people in these tiny towns are liquor, sex, and meth. It's to pass the time in these boring places. This has been reported to me by several users. I think it has more to do with a disjointed youth.

Meth is evil. I learned too late that my daughter was addicted to it. It has cost her her health and cost me close to half my retirement funds and I will probably out live her. Make no mistake, meth is evil and those that deal in it are supporting an evil agenda.

Heroin laced with Fentanyl has caused multiple deaths here in my area
over the past year .. people don't know what they're buying and the pushers are cutting the stuff with anything they can buy or steal to put in it ..

there are 2 areas near me that seem to draw those sorts .. and police were busting a lab every couple of months .. a couple because of fires or explosions where they were cooking the stuff .. its where we would never suspect it would be ..

Around here we got it all. Heroin is coming on strong though. Keep finding needles on the property at work. Going to fence it off.

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Life Is A Gift. Defend it!

I can get anything just by walking down the street. Prescription, meth, opioids. If you've got the money.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Without going into detail......amen

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

My Kingdom for a Quaalude.

I guess people will take what's around to get their kicks. I've seen it all.

And it all sucks.

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Dum vivo cano

Several years ago I remember reading Tennessee being honored as #4 in the nation for seized meth labs . Though I don't think it's quite as popular as it was. Endless news stories over the years, including before and after pics of meth users. Stunning to see a pic of a beautiful vibrant looking young lady turn into an aged diseased looking homeless hooker in a short period of time. No end to the sad stories and family tragedies.

And in my experience, 90-95% of it is a choice.

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Un-Reconstructed Southerner

We have some meth around here, but heroin is the drug of choice these days. When I started on the job 20 years ago cocaine/crack was the bulk of the drug business, but it's a distant third to heroin and pills now. You can get heroin for $7 a hit around here. Most agencies here now have Narcan to try and save overdose victims. Our local PD just had a guy who needed multiple doses of Narcan to recover from a massive heroin overdose.

As far a prescription drugs, they are just about as bad as heroin. A few years back a girl on a cocktail of prescription drugs drove head on into my brothers truck. Took most of an hour to cut him out, but he was in one piece thanks to his F150. I was at the scene when the Trooper searching the other car walked up with an armload of pills bottles from the car. Different names on every bottle.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

It is possible that it's a choice the first time, but not always. after the first use, there are many issues associated with abuse, addiction, recovery, and sobriety. It's very easy for someone who has never faced those demons to say "Just Say No . . . "

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

WE have it all in Oregon - worse in some areas such as where I live (central) but its everywhere. Around here its a LOT of counter culture types - from moderately weird up to WAY over the top. Our recently voted in legal recreational marijuana use is only making it worse.

I would agree with most of that.

I didn't elaborate on what my experience has been. Don't assume I'm speaking from a particular side of the badge.

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Un-Reconstructed Southerner

Well, if you agree with most of that, then you know that 90-95% isn't a choice. And don't assume that I am either . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

lololololol.......ok

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Un-Reconstructed Southerner

Here in the Upper Peninsula We have meth, heroin, and pain pills. alcohol. Here When heroin is cheap and really available meth use declines, but with oxy and heroin we have more then enough problems. Here meth is a locally made, there are several found or busted a month all over the U.P.

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Carpriver.

Meth use is still high here, in my business I see a lot of users and sadly some are former friends of mine. Actual meth labs are way down from what they were 8-10 years ago, back then averaged finding about one lab per week here locally. It comes up the I35 corridor now. I personally found the discarded remains of a lab when I was walking my dog in a wooded area of a state park.

The book "Methland: The Death & Life of a Small American Town" was written about an Iowa town that is very similar to the local area here.
(excluding the resort area) Lost Union meatpacking industries for example.

Heroin is the problem here now.

Meth used to be but I think the chemicals to make it became controlled and hard to get.

I used to ride the bus from work to a rural area where I live. Dealers were traveling on the bus to my last stop, selling to the kids and going back to the city on the next bus. Cops finally caught on and stopped it.

Recently the metro county close to me tried to increase the property taxes just to combat the heroin problem. Things must be getting pretty bad over there.

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That's just somebody talkin.

Once it has you it is hard to escape for most of the users I have known. Lots of really big money so I think that it will only spread more. Not sure if there is a solution but major efforts are needed to find one.

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Hue 68 noli me tangere

we still hear of the occasional meth lab taken down but by far the biggest issue here (seems across this land of ours) is heroin and opiates in general. I live in a nice little 'burb near our state's capital and was aware of several OD's over the years of young adults our daughter knew. But after spending time in the local PD citizen academy my eyes were opened to how deep it really ran.

What may surprise the avg person who thinks it cant happen in their "safe little corner of the world" is that's exactly where it can take place. It can start with some prescription pain meds for a bit too long and it can grow from there. I feel for the families who deal with addiction and loss (i had it in my family growing up) and to those officers and others who try to treat and save those who need it.

Thanks for all the info.What is hard for me to wrap mind around the small rual town here . Is very low income being no industry here. ( doubt alot here could function in indursty) Not a lot of stores or retail jobs. Its about 30 to 60 min drive north or south to find stores and real restaurants.With it being that way how are those finding the money for drugs here ?

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Spin The Wheel

+1000
that's why I call it "devil dope"
the addictive nature of it must be tremendous and the aftereffects of where it leads its victims is unreal as to what they'll do and what it does to them.
Being retired LE, I've seen all too well and I hate it.

Substance abuse is in every town, community, and county in the country. People will always find self destructive ways to entertain themselves. Unfortunately now, many choose ingesting mind-numbing substances and sitting in front of the TV. I'd much rather have neighbors who are heroin junkies than meth monsters. Their house might catch fire, but it won't likely explode.
I will step on some toes here, and say if you're an addict, that's your fault and nobody elses. You have a human mind with human WILL. Use it! No fight that needs to be won, comes easily. If your neighborhood is infested then do something about it. Take pictures, post on social media, tell police, tell schools, tell your politicians. If we tolerate evil, then we are evil.

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Wayne
Torn & Frayed

Based on my experience owning rental property near a small town in Colorado

1. Stealing the copper wire from center pivot sprinkler systems or other sources and selling it for scrap. Actually had a guy electrocuted trying to steal wire from a hot line.
2. Stealing anything not red hot or nailed down and selling it for cents on the dollar.
3. Dealing/reselling meth or opioids or prescription drugs.
4. Forging prescriptions for opioid drugs and selling either the prescriptions or the drugs thusly obtained.
5. Breaking into storage facilities on rural farms/ranches and stealing the contents. See #2.
6. Unfortunately using benefits intended to benefit low income individuals/families (food stamps, etc.) converted by sale to cash as cents on the dollar.

I agree with other posters that heroin has replaced both meth and prescription opioids because the street price is much lower. I know a young man who spent three years in prison because he moved from pain killers after a serious sports injury to street opioids to heroin.

I note that many have grouped marijuana with the opioids and meth. IMHO, marijuana or extracts therefrom can be used in a variety of medical situations as a non addictive substitute for big pharma options to manage pain or PTSD.

They find money through a number of different ways, some legit, some illegal.

I think the biggest one that no one talks about is that their families give them money for food/shelter/kids and it goes towards the addiction. You'd be surprised how much people will give their loved ones before, or if ever, they finally cut them off.

You also kind of need to have experience with an addict to understand how manipulative they can be in order to get a fix. I've known a couple of people who worked at their job really hard, for long hours, to "help" their boyfriends or girlfriends, who just used them as an ATM machine. I've seen families get scammed over and over by their own relative.

Finally, there are addicts who manage to keep it together and remain functional with a job, or those who haven't completely lost everything yet, and selling these addicts their drugs is a likely source of revenue for other addicts. One of those "my friend has a friend who can hook you up" type networks.

Add to this all sorts of other illegal activity and you'd be amazed how much you can come up with, even in relatively small, poor, rural towns.

Being from rural America, I've seen the process far too much. I offer no easy solutions.

Pockets of high meth use are often low income rural areas. As I mentioned in my previous post usage here came on the heels of the loss of the decent paying jobs in the meat packing industry.
As far as cost, compared to other drugs, meth is cheap. In rural areas, make your own and share. Or steal, or trade "personal favors" for it. The want/need for meth can turn anyone into a criminal.

Meth must be some really good stuff.
I have an employee who was a meth head. Luckily he was busted early and had a supportive network of family and friends that got him clean and sober.
He said that after the first time all he wanted was more but never really got the same high as the first time but was still chasing it. I just can't understand it.
We don't see any meth labs around here much anymore. Occasional people trying to cook for their own use.
Pill mills are a thing. Some have been shut down in nearby towns. Locally we have a P. D. that does a really good job and the S.O. also.
I will have to check on other drug uses but I think pills are the big thing now.
I thank God, so far, none of my children have had a problem with drugs.

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Some men, you just can't reach