Politics of Food: How Big Ag, Big Pharma Drove the Meth Epidemic
In 2004 an encounter with a methamphetamine addict enlightened me to the devastating impact the drug holds on those that use it. In reaction to a shaky personal relationship with a boyfriend, we co-signed a car loan for a family member to help her keep her job at an area retailer. She seemed to be inspired by the work for the national retail outlet, rising to a manager position and receiving a wage sufficient to keep her in an apartment.
Early signs appeared that made us question the relationship -- more than one physical attack by her boyfriend, frequently moving to different apartments, loss of the good-paying job. One occurrence resulted in his breaking into our home in search for his girlfriend and their newborn baby. His threatening behavior caused my daughters to hide in the corner of the basement, while my wife talked him out of the house and waiting for police to arrive. Another early sign -- during attendance at a concert at Sandstone Ampitheatre in Kansas I remember him walking several paces behind our group angry that "everyone was looking at his girlfriend." Later he threatened to fight strangers in different rows as he watched from several rows behind. He was out of his head.
She refused treatment at area women's shelters and mental health facilities despite her later unstable, self-damaging behavior. In sum: she gave up her job, her health, and, most of all, a young son.
Nick Reding's Methland: The death and life of an American small town 2009 book reported on the stories of several meth users, as well as, the impact of the lives and towns through legal and medical practitioners. As the book shows, it's easy to blame individual meth users and traffickers for the choices they make and the destruction to families and communities. The book is especially relevant for those of us living in the Midwest, more specifically in Missouri and Iowa, where the spotlight of national news media shone: it's a fascinating report on the science and sociology of methamphetamine use.
But the book takes an amazing trail by outlining three major players in the meth epidemic to hit the U.S.: Big Agriculture, Big Pharma, and the Mexican drug trade. He lays it out plain: pharmaceutical companies opposed anti-meth bills for 30 years, allowing the illegal meth drug manufacturing to morph from mom-and-pop operations to large-scale labs.
The book chronicles the demise of Oelwein, Iowa, like many small and rural towns in the U.S., starting in the 1980's through the 2000's. One could say the cause of the town's demise is due to the drug trafficking and use in the community, but Reding makes a case that the consolidation of Big Agriculture companies -- Cargill, Archer Midland-Daniels, others -- changed small farming and communities, for instance, by reducing wages for good-paying union meatpacking jobs by a third.
This left space for meth use as a "vocational" drug, as opposed to a recreational drug, meaning workers increasingly used the drug to maintain the long, difficult work hours in low-paying jobs.
In a word, meth or substance abuse is not the cause of the downfalls of small towns, but a symptom of their condition.
The loss of state revenue forced governments to layoff social workers, thus taking rehabilitation options from addicts.
Early signs appeared that made us question the relationship -- more than one physical attack by her boyfriend, frequently moving to different apartments, loss of the good-paying job. One occurrence resulted in his breaking into our home in search for his girlfriend and their newborn baby. His threatening behavior caused my daughters to hide in the corner of the basement, while my wife talked him out of the house and waiting for police to arrive. Another early sign -- during attendance at a concert at Sandstone Ampitheatre in Kansas I remember him walking several paces behind our group angry that "everyone was looking at his girlfriend." Later he threatened to fight strangers in different rows as he watched from several rows behind. He was out of his head.
She refused treatment at area women's shelters and mental health facilities despite her later unstable, self-damaging behavior. In sum: she gave up her job, her health, and, most of all, a young son.
Meth: An American Drug
But the book takes an amazing trail by outlining three major players in the meth epidemic to hit the U.S.: Big Agriculture, Big Pharma, and the Mexican drug trade. He lays it out plain: pharmaceutical companies opposed anti-meth bills for 30 years, allowing the illegal meth drug manufacturing to morph from mom-and-pop operations to large-scale labs.
The book chronicles the demise of Oelwein, Iowa, like many small and rural towns in the U.S., starting in the 1980's through the 2000's. One could say the cause of the town's demise is due to the drug trafficking and use in the community, but Reding makes a case that the consolidation of Big Agriculture companies -- Cargill, Archer Midland-Daniels, others -- changed small farming and communities, for instance, by reducing wages for good-paying union meatpacking jobs by a third.
This left space for meth use as a "vocational" drug, as opposed to a recreational drug, meaning workers increasingly used the drug to maintain the long, difficult work hours in low-paying jobs.
In a word, meth or substance abuse is not the cause of the downfalls of small towns, but a symptom of their condition.
The loss of state revenue forced governments to layoff social workers, thus taking rehabilitation options from addicts.
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