Sober up our kids by raising taxes on 'alcopop' beverages

From the Modesto Bee Community Opinion Page. In my youth we did Gallo White Port with lemon juice from lemons that we picked from the neighborhood trees and squeezed ourselves. For the sophisticate, we served up shoplifted sloe gin mixed with 7-Up. Then Boone's Farm and other juicified wines arrived. Mostly, though, we became drunks the same way our fathers and uncles had — on beer.
Today, alcohol corporations bombard our kids with a host of exotic beverages, given rock 'n' roll names with seductive-looking labels, at exorbitant prices. Today, boys are selectively seduced by rounds of alcoholic elixirs and girls are bewitched by brews and potions that promise endless excitement.
On May 7, the state Assembly will consider Assembly Bills 345, by Lori Saldaña, D-San Diego, and 346 by Jim Beall Jr., D-San Jose, which would establish that "girlie drinks," "alcopop," "cheerleader drinks," "starter drinks," "energy drinks," "Jell-O shots," "mists," etc., will be classified as malt liquor.
These are pop names for alcoholic beverages designed and marketed for entry-level drinkers, code for underage drinkers, especially girls. This legislation would remove alcopops from 15,000 convenience stores and reclassify them to a higher-taxed liquor category and, in turn, up their prices. The expectation is that they would be priced out of the youth market. Additionally, the higher tax classification might generate revenue, as much as $54 million, that could be directed to alcohol abuse treatment for youth.
The bills are part of a strategy against the liquor corporations that, like the tobacco giants, purposely target underage drinkers. Apparently, the logic is to hook kids early and establish their purchasing loyalty even if it means bad health, alcoholism, maiming or death for some. About 20percent (11 million) of America's alcohol consumers are underage.
The legislation is defense against an onslaught of sweetened, prettified alcoholic drinks. They're pimped under labels using fruit juice and cool jargon as a cover for their alcoholic character. They even contain "natural additives" such as ginseng and caffeine to make them appear like soft drinks.
Girlie drinks attract 12- to 14-year-olds more than 25- to 30-year-olds by a rate of 76 percent to 36 percent, according to national research done in 2004. The packaging for these drinks is designed with the underage drinker in mind, and labeling of alcohol content is purposely vague and difficult to read. Even the placement of these products in stores is done so that consumers have difficulty distinguishing them from soft drinks. Advertising is geared toward underage drinkers, using technology popular with youth, such as text messaging, music videos and stylish clothing with liquor logos.
Recently the Stanislaus County Children's Council was presented the opportunity to support passage of AB 345 and AB 346. Lee Honoré Means, executive director of Girl Scouts Muir Trail Council, serves on the Children's Council. Means proposed that the council send correspondence to seven San Joaquin Valley legislators, encouraging them to support these bills. The council did.

DEA: Flavored meth use on the rise

From USA Today. Reports of candy-flavored methamphetamine are emerging around the nation, stirring concern among police and abuse prevention experts that drug dealers are marketing the drug to younger people. Among the new flavors are strawberry, known as "Strawberry Quick," chocolate, cola and other sodas, Robertson said. One agent reported a red methamphetamine that had been marketed as a powdered form of an energy drink, he said

HBO Addiction

From HBO. The Addiction Project is produced by HBO in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Visit the website to view the documentry online.

New tool to fight teenage drinking

From the Modesto Bee. Modesto adults who let minors drink alcohol at private parties can be punished with up to $1,500 in new fines under an ordinance the City Council approved Tuesday night.

Police drafted the measure to help officers crack down on teenage binge drinking, which health officials say often occurs in the home.

Besides the fines, people who break the ordinance could face misdemeanor criminal charges.

"I'm glad that we finally have a tool so we can discourage this type of activity in the venues where underage drinking occurs," said Modesto police Detective Mike Hicks, who developed the law over the past few months.

The measure allows officers to punish party givers in ways that state laws do not by lowering the threshold for evidence that police must collect to build cases against adults who allow minors access to alcohol.

Under the city ordinance, officers can assume party hosts know when they let minors drink. It requires hosts to take steps to block minors from getting alcohol, such as by checking identification.

Under state law, officers would have to prove that adults knowingly provided alcohol to an underage person. Hicks said that often requires seeing the suspect hand a drink to someone younger than 21 or finding witnesses to identify those who give alcohol to minors.

Neighboring cities likely will face votes on similar measures soon. Linda Jue, coordinator for a Stanislaus County program that surveys teens about alcohol use, said she is preparing to take it to the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors and the Turlock City Council.

Read the complete story at ModBee.com

Social host ordinance will help plug keggers

From the Modesto Bee.

Several recent events should be a community wake-up to the extent and seriousness of underage drinking:

The death of a 19-year-old Modestan last weekend believed to be the result of alcohol poisoning. He had been drinking rum, celebrating a planned move to Colorado.

Charges pending against a Grayson woman accused of hosting parties for teens — and having sexual relations with two boys.

The police investigation of a Beyer High dad who allegedly bought kegs of beer for his 17-year-old son's party with friends.

Tuesday, the Modesto City Council will consider a Police Department proposal for a city ordinance that would fine people for hosting underage drinking parties. The timing is not coincidental. Authorities would like to have the law in place before the graduation season and end-of-the-school parties.

Many parents and other adults have developed a relaxed attitude about teenage drinking — that it's inevitable, that it's better than drugs, that it's something everyone does at that age.

Parents know their teens are drinking, suggests one 18-year-old, but they don't want to ask about it. Many teens don't consider their own drinking a problem because they only drink on weekends and don't drink alone.

But studies suggest binge drinking is frighteningly common. Just last week, the U.S. surgeon general spoke on the issue. "Too many Americans consider underage drinking a rite of passage to adulthood," said Dr. Kenneth Moritsugu. "Research shows that young people who start drinking before the age of 15 are five times more likely to have alcohol-related problems later in life. New research also indicates that alcohol may harm the developing adolescent brain."

Of particular concern locally and nationally is binge drinking — teens who consume four or five drinks within an hour or two. Some teens think nothing of it, not realizing they end up too impaired to drive and possibly put themselves at risk of alcohol poisoning.

Under the proposed Modesto ordinance, adults who host or permit gatherings at which minors are allowed to drink could be fined $500. The penalties would increase to $1,000 for the second and $1,500 for the third offense within 12 months. The ordinance is modeled after one used in other areas of California. The ordinance specifically excludes family gatherings.

A social host ordinance won't cure underage drinking, but it's one step to deter it. Adults who abet and condone something that is illegal and unhealthy should face some consequences.

The Modesto council will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the basement of Tenth Street Place. The meeting is televised live on Comcast Channel 7.

Acting Surgeon General Issues National Call to Action on Underage Drinking

A Press Release from the U.S. Surgeon General's Office. In its first Call to Action against underage drinking, the U.S. Surgeon General's Office appealed today to Americans to do more to stop America's 11 million current underage drinkers from using alcohol, and to keep other young people from starting. Read more here.

Alcohol suspected in death at going-away party for teen

From the Modesto Bee. A 19-year-old Modesto man was found dead Sunday morning after friends say he drank nearly a pint of potent rum at a going-away party for him the night before.

Modesto police are investigating Sid Skibinski-Gonzales' death to determine whether to file criminal charges against adults at the party who were old enough to purchase alcohol, Sgt. Craig Gundlach said.

The coroner has not determined the official cause of death, said Gundlach, but police said they believe the young man died of alcohol poisoning.

Adults are in danger of dying from alcohol poisoning when their blood alcohol is 0.30 percent to 0.40 percent, which is four and five times higher than the level at which a person is considered too intoxicated to drive.

Young people who are binge drinking run a higher risk of alcohol poisoning because their bodies have not built up a tolerance for alcohol, said Madelyn Schlaepfer, associate director of Stanislaus County Behavioral Health and Recovery Services.

Skibinski-Gonzales was getting ready to move with his family this week to Cortez, Colo. He had plans to attend college and study architecture and communications in Boulder. He wanted to pursue a career in music.

Saturday, he attended a goodbye party early in the day with cousins, his grandmother and other family members.

"He had a lot of enthusiasm and he had a really big heart," said his cousin Victoria Jackson, 22, of Modesto. "He was very helpful for his mom. He was the man of the house." Read more here.

Stanislaus County Alcohol and Drug Prevention Plan Problem Statements

Click the link below to view the "Problem Identification" Power Point presented to the Prevention Partnership.

Stanislaus County
5-Year Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Plan
Problem Statements

Prevention Tactics

How Communities Adopt Change

"No single policy or program measure will be effective. Rather, a broad mix of initiatives is required, with the interventions varying according to the circumstances of each country"–WHO (1999). What in the World Works? International Consultation on Tobacco and Youth.

A Comprehensive Community Approach to Methamphetamine Prevention

Methamphetamine can feel like a "larger than life" issue and trying to address the problem can feel even more overwhelming. That is why it is so important to approach the problem from a variety of fronts and with an arsenal of tactics. As with any good prevention effort, the approach must be comprehensive.

Underage Binge Drinking: A Community’s Problem, A Community’s Solution

September, 2002 marked the beginning of a new year for students of the elite high school in upstate New York known for its elevated test scores and affluent population. Like many other high schools across the nation, Scarsdale hosted its homecoming dance one Friday night that fall. Like many other high school students across the nation, Scarsdale students celebrated their homecoming by showing up to their school dance drunk.

The IOM Model: A Tool for Prevention Planning and Implementation

In recent years, prevention planners and policy makers have focused increasingly on identifying populations with differing prevention needs. Greater focus on diverse population needs will help meet multiple policy and planning objectives by better aligning need and services, and supporting more efficient allocation of resources. Importantly, it will also strengthen implementation and use of evaluation and evidence-based practice.

State Incentive Grant Survey Findings

Recent Modesto Bee news stories and editorials have highlighted the 2005 State Incentive Grant survey findings. Below is a link to a summary report of those findings.

Behavioral Health and Recovery Services
State Incentive Grant
Intervention Evaluation Report
September 2006
Harold Stanislaw, Ph.D.
Jamie McCreary, Ph.D.

"A Madness Called Meth:" The original series

From the Modesto Bee. A few years ago, a thin woman walked through the front doors of the Stanislaus County coroner's office in Modesto. She probably was in her 30s, but her wrinkled skin and gaunt appearance made her look far older; she was the unmistakable embodiment of methamphetamine life. Read more here.

Wreck points up proposal to punish adults

From the Modesto Bee. The Patterson car wreck that injured a dozen teens after they drank alcohol allegedly offered by an adult at a house party last week underscores a common theme in efforts to limit underage alcohol use:
Most Stanislaus County high school students who drink alcohol say they get alcohol from their homes. One in four say parents knowingly provide alcohol to minors, according to a 2005 survey. Read more here.

Police: Father bought beer for teen party

From the Modesto Bee. Authorities traced alcohol found at a teenage party in Hughson to a father suspected of buying kegs of beer for his 17-year-old son, Modesto police reported Friday. Read more here.

On the road with the Party Patrol

From the Modesto Bee. Up to 90 high school students are spending their Saturday night partying in a big workshop near Hughson, out in the country where they figure no one will notice. Most probably have told their parents they are going to a friend's grandparents' house for a birthday party. And that's sort of true, because the girl whose grandparents own the property and two classmates are celebrating their 18th birthdays. But the grandparents aren't around, and it's doubtful the kids really 'fessed up that they were going to a kegger, even though some of the kids apparently kicked in money to buy the beer.
Apparently at least one parent was complicit in all this. It's learned later that he purchased the kegs and helped load them into the back of a vehicle to be driven to the party by a minor.
These kids come from several Modesto high schools and include all ethnic groups, though most are white. A number are athletes. They are the kind we label "good kids." Read more here.

Adults who help teens drink

From the Modesto Bee. Stanislaus County is back in the media spotlight, this time because a Grayson mother allegedly bought alcohol for teens and had sex with two teenage boys. The latter is the element that has people talking and TV cameras rolling.
The frustrating thing about this sensational case is it diverts attention from a pervasive social problem — the growing number of adults who condone and even host underage drinking parties. Read more here.

CHP reports rise in holiday arrests

From the Modesto Bee. In the Modesto area, DUI arrests jumped to 26 this year from 16 last year. DUI arrests more than doubled to 19 in the Merced area this year, according to the CHP.

The trend of more arrests was seen statewide during the CHP's maximum-enforcement period this New Year's weekend. The CHP reported 1,481 DUI arrests this year, compared with 1,145 last year.

As part of its enforcement effort, the CHP had warned that it would look for drunken drivers and arrest those with blood alcohol levels over the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

There were fewer fatalities reported during the holiday: 28 people were killed in crashes within the CHP's jurisdiction, compared with 34 last year.

CHP officials credited the decline in deaths to the officers who worked the holiday weekend, increased public awareness and motorists who reported drunken drivers by calling 911, as directed by electronic highway signs.

Read the complete story here.

Poll Shows Parents Afraid to Talk

From the The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. The White House is urging parents to sharpen their conversation skills and monitor their teen's activities, after a new poll shows that most parents have difficulty getting through to their teens about important subjects, especially drug use. According to a new survey by VitalSmarts, most parents of teens indicate that they are even afraid to talk to their teens about everyday issues...Read the complete story here.

More

Crucial Conversation Resources

Crucial Conversations Conference Call: Parents, Teens, And Drug Use

Crucial Conversations Open Letter

Abuse of prescription drugs by teens on the rise

From the Parents: The Anti-Drug. There is good news to report to parents today! This year’s Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey shows that teen drug use has declined by 23 percent since 2001 for 8th, 10th, and 12th graders combined.

These declines are due in large part to YOUR efforts as parents. You’ve been monitoring your teens’ activities, taking the time to speak with them, listening to and answering their questions, and that work is paying off.

A parent’s work is never done though and despite the encouraging news, there is an area of growing concern. Abuse of prescription drugs by teens has been on the rise and parents need to be aware of the potential dangers of these drugs if they are abused.

Read the complete story here.

Teens try cough medicine for a high

Even middle schoolers are abusing the drugs with alarming effects.

From the LA Times. Teenagers' use of over-the-counter cold and cough medicines to get a cheap high — a practice known as "robotripping" — is rising 50% a year and becoming one of the fastest-growing drug abuse (Recent news) problems in California and around the country, according to a study released Monday.Since 1999, teen abuse of Coricidin pills, Robitussin syrup and other common medications has risen 10-fold, data from the California Poison Control System show. The widely available and inexpensive medicines are growing in popularity while use of illegal drugs such as Ecstasy, LSD and the date rape drug GHB have dropped, according to the report."Hey, Mom and Dad, pay attention," said Marilyn MacDougall, executive director of the Orange County Sheriff Department's drug abuse prevention program. "Over-the-counter medicines are the upcoming way your kids are going to abuse drugs." Read more here.

Give a teen alcohol, get fined

From the Modesto Bee. Officials (Including BHRS Prevention Services) propose charging adults $500 for first offense. Hosting a party where teenagers drink alcohol could become costly under a proposed law three Modesto City Council members advanced Monday. The law is aimed at making it easier for police to punish adults who provide booze to minors. It allows officers to break up private parties and levy minimum fines of $500 against adults who let teens drink.

Read the complete story here.