It seems that despite the best efforts of Oregon policy makers and law enforcement, methamphetamine (meth) abuse continues to ravage the Beaver State. Recent media coverage, including an Oregonian special report, has unveiled a newer, darker side of the Oregon drug scene: Mexican drug cartels trafficking meth into our state. In the past, they were on the fringe; more meth was produced locally. That has changed. They are now the dominant supplier. And the meth problem has become less predictable, more expensive, harder to spot and generally more violent. The infiltration of drug cartels is the logical outcome of the state's steady decline in local meth production. Since 2005, Oregon, along with surrounding Washington and California, began to see a drastic drop in the number of meth labs busted in the state. The vast majority of Oregon's decline in meth production took place prior to the passage of any prescription law. The fallacy of the Oregon experience has lived on long enough. It is time for policymakers across the country to understand that Oregon's prescription law for pseudoephedrine has failed to achieve its goals. Meanwhile, honest Oregonians who simply want to buy effective cold medicine over the counter have been forced to suffer due to tight restrictions on their personal freedoms.
www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/10/guest...river
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