I remain appreciative that Steve (a.k.a. Min T. Phresh) the lead singer for the local band Large Mammal spent some time with us at the beginning of the show.  Steve’s insights from his brother’s death from an overdose last year was another reminder of how the silent epidemic has reached all parts of our communities in this country.  Steve’s comments of decriminalization of the illegal drugs was an issue the radio show has not discussed and I hope Steve was the catalyst for still another facet of the discussion on drugs this country so much needs.

As for Connecticut, it appears the citizens of that state are losing their minds along with their neighboring state of Rhode Island (see 3/22 blog).  I suppose it should be expected from a state that has Yankee Doodle Dandy as its state song and harbors the makers of OxyContin within its borders.  In particular, the Hartford Courant recently had an editorial quoting a “Harvard study”.   Harvard has become the symbol of how morally defunct the medical schools and faculty have become at accepting “drug company money”.   Extrapolating from the Harvard study, The Courant stated that the state of Connecticut could save millions of dollars by stopping the chase of marijuana users.  While the radio show accepts some merit in the argument, the article in the Courant does not mention prevention, treatment, school programs, and education as part of the solution to the growing drug problems in our country. The Courant also had no comment on the over 200,000 emergency room visits in 2004 that included marijuana.  Since the introduction of OxyContin from the inner borders of Connecticut in late 1995, the deaths and addictions for the opioid related drugs has ballooned.  Shame on the Hartford Courant for such a myopic view for a solution.