I heard about a woman getting busted for mixing up ingredients today in a Wal-mart a few miles from my home. The story irritated me. The reporter was so high and mighty while reporting the details. And the one witness she interviewed made harsh judgments about the woman, saying things like, “If you’re broke get a job…” Blah, blah, blah. Um, has she noticed the job market lately? How is a minimum wage job going to support a ?

I’m not condoning her behavior, by any means, and she should be held accountable. However, I understand why some people may do things like this. Cooking meth does not automatically make someone a horrible person or just another tweeker. It makes them desperate; desperate for , a high, or power, etc. Oftentimes, especially with the economy in the toilet, the and charity doesn’t come through. There are people out there, down on their luck, no job, no , with kids to feed and bills to cover.

Common Scenario: Unemployment runs out or was denied, car breaks down, you can’t find a job, you can’t get a loan, no savings left, and there is no one to help you get back on your feet. There are just hungry kids who you would do anything for because you them with your entire being. You need money fast, you got a lawyer to pay, a final cut off notice for electric, eviction notice, and Christmas to pay for, among other things. The food stamps ran out and there is another week and a half until you get more. A deadbeat dad that doesn’t help support your kids. You can’t stand the thought of your children in a shelter, group home, or foster home. You can sell your body or you can get into the drug business… What do you do?

Drugs are a problem, but they are a subset of a much bigger issue; . If is reduced, drug crimes will diminish as well. There are bad people in the drug business, but few are actually kingpins or enforcers. It is mostly single-mother, mules aka middlemen that keep it going along with the rich and not-so-rich addicts funding it.

I am not a single-mother or a meth cook, but I grew up in the ghetto and I’m familiar with that element. I was the oldest of three kids. My mother worked two jobs, got food stamps and we lived in a section 8 home, after she left her abusive, alcoholic husband. She only had a high school diploma and couldn’t get a job outside of the restaurant industry. Despite receiving some aid, she couldn’t make ends meet and resorted to selling marijuana to supplement her income. Did this make her a bad mother or bad person? No, it just made her poor and desperate. I resent many choices my mother made, but selling marijuana is not one of them. She did what she had to so she could support her children.

I’m sick of judgmental, holier-than-thou, people passing judgment on others, but never bothering to judge themselves. On a personal level, I hate meth. Meth ruins lives, but it is a symptom of bigger problems. If we start tackling those bigger issues then the drug problem will diminish. The has been a resounding failure, as was … it’s time to find another way to fix this problem.

As Einstein so eloquently said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

On this day..