Editorial: Meth: No stranger to small town America

The past several issues of the Whitehall Ledger have included feature articles about the meth problem in the state of Montana. The series was written by students at the University of Montana School of Journalism, and paints a frightening picture of the nationwide epidemic.

As a publisher, I felt it was important to run these articles to let residents learn a little bit more about the problem. Unfortunately, small town America is not immune to meth and it is a problem in Whitehall, Boulder, and every other town or city in Montana. What is really scary about the meth problem is that Whitehall sits on Interstate 90 where meth is transported on a daily basis. It is frightening to think about just how many drugs are transported on an Interstate in the United States every hour.

I’m hoping that with these articles that not only will people learn more about the problem, but it can also help assist someone who has a family member dealing with a drug addiction, or what to do if they believe someone in their neighborhood is either dealing or manufacturing meth.

Meth addiction has torn apart families and ruined lives. I’m sure a lot of people who read this editorial will at least know someone who is addicted of knows somebody whose family is dealing with the problem.

As a community, it is vitally important to recognize there is a problem and work together to find a way to fix it.

Our local law enforcement works hard on this issue, but they also need help from the public to let them know if something doesn’t seem right.

Every small town is going to have some sort of a drug problem, but that doesn’t mean we have to accept or sit idly by while it gets out of control.

These articles are our way of trying to get word out on the meth problem.

JHS