Speeding toward disaster
Like other communities across the country, Thousand Oaks has become threatened by methamphetamine use. The danger is real.

What is it about methamphetamine that makes it so attractive to users? The answer is easy. It's cheap, easy to obtain, easy to make at home and makes the user feel superhuman. Once meth gets into the bloodstream it creates a false sense of power. Someone on speed loses all sense of time. They no longer feel exhausted or depressed--everything seems bright and shiny. A "meth head" can stay up for days without sleep, "accomplishing" many tasks that, without the drug, would seem boring or mundane. With speed, even the moldy grout in the shower seems like a task that would be fun to undertake. Imagine that.

What's really happening to the user is horrifying. The heart, gums and teeth all deteriorate. Sadly, the euphoria from the drug prevents the user from caring.

Addicts will inject, snort, smoke or stick meth in their cheeks--any way they can deliver the drug is fine. Some users are so desperate they will even insert methamphetamine through a suppository.

Still think meth isn't a serious problem? Go online and look up the effects of the drug on dental patients. The photos make ol' tobacco-chewing Billy Bob's mouth look pristine by comparison.

But there's more. Meth use also causes mental fatigue, depression, rage, hallucinations and, eventually, death.

The phrase "speed kills" has been used on buttons and bumper stickers for more than 40 years. The people who spread this message know what they're talking about. It's the truth.

If you smell unusual chemicals in the air around your neighborhood, call the police. The odor could easily be the toxic fumes escaping from a hidden meth lab in someone's home.

Educate your family and friends about the poisonous effects of this insidious drug. Spread the word now. Otherwise, the meth contagion will continue to destroy everything in its wake.