From time to time the issue of how to handle the drug problem springs up in national media here in Norway. Questions like whether we should hand out drugs to addicted, whether to provide indoor organized guidance and equipment for the addicted, or the possibility of legalization of certain drugs pops up about every second year. We hear terrible stories of what the users have to cope with on a daily basis just to survive – just to get enough money for the next shot. After a while, however, the media’s attention turns. They become tired of the issue, and move on to the next hot topic, normally something involving celebrities or sex, preferrably combined. Everyone forgets about the drug victims, and nothing happens.
Forskning.no, a Norwegian website publishing new local and international science research recently had an article about how many drug-related deaths Norway has had the last ten years. I nearly fell off my chair when I read the article.