Pinkham: Panic in Needle Exchange Park

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Pinkham: Panic in Needle Exchange ParkBy Gene Pinkham/ A Little to the Right, PleaseFriday, June 30, 2006 "God help Bobby and Helen. They're in love in Needle Park." That was the tagline from the 1971 movie that launched the career of Al Pacino. The movie was, "a stark portrayal of life among a group of heroin addicts who hang out in Needle Park in New York City."

Pacino, who plays "Bobby" is a small time hustler and addict who hooks up with homeless girl "Helen," played by Kitty Winn. She becomes addicted also, and life goes downhill, leading to a series of betrayals. Pacino goes on to play Micheal Corleone and achieve superstar status. Real heroin addicts?...not so good. The moral to this story is that Heroin Chic is a lie. The life of an addict is a downward spiral that ultimately ends in death. Whether a slow or quick one is the question. And of course, the betrayals along the way.

The most recent betrayal of intravenous drug users exists in the form of the bill to permit over-the-counter sales of hypodermic needles to anyone 18 or older without a prescription. Pity the poor diabetes sufferer who will now endure the indignity of the pharmacist who will disseminate literature as to how they can seek help for their addiction, as the drug addict and the patient will be equal in the eye of the pharmacy.

This bill removes the stigma of intravenous drug use under the guise of attempting to stop the spread of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C. It also removes the word "injectable" from drug laws. But the use of a clean needle one time does nothing to stop the sharing of needles among injection-drug-users. As any substance abuse program will tell its clients, the first thing that happens to a person who: drinks a beer, smokes marijuana or uses an injectable drug is the loss of the ability to make decisions. All of these substances impair the ability to reason.

Proponents of the bill such as Sen. Tolman, D-Watertown, states incredulously that this is not about enabling drug addicts. Sen. Fargo, D-Lincoln, adds that "people who are addicted are going to use drugs anyway - and we need to provide better provisions for them to stop using drugs. Clean needles don't encourage drug use, it doesn't encourage crime, it just makes sense." I played drums in bands for 25 years, Ms. Fargo. Try naming your band "Free Beer" and see if the club owner thinks that that is common sense.

As we learned from the movie "Panic in Needle Park," the junkie will do anything to get his or her next fix. We can also learn this from police blotters. What we can also learn from junkies is that they cannot be trusted.

The Official Journal of the International AIDS Society published its opinion on the wisdom of removing the pharmacy regulations a structural constraints that communities can place on pharmacies. The journal lamented that state laws presented a barrier that impeded the availability of syringes.

It celebrated that in the state of Connecticut, after restrictive syringe laws were changed, that the sale of syringes increased in drug infested areas. This was reported by the drug users themselves and could be corroborated by pharmacies. The sharing of syringes was also reported to have decreased. This was also reported by the drug users themselves. Is this what is referred to as expert testimony?

The only gubernatorial candidate opposing the Clean Needles Bill is Lt. Governor Kerry Healy. Mitt Romney has already promised to veto the bill which must go through the Senate and House one more time. Romney added that there is no system for the safe deposit of the used and thus newly contaminated needles which will gather around the trash cans outside drug stores like they were losing scratch tickets. Assuming of course that the user dropped it before heading towards euphoria and sharing it. Indeed, how will the workers at the city yards know when they are collecting hazardous materials from the receptacles at the parks where children are supposed to be playing?

Senate minority leader Lees is on record opposing the bill on the grounds that it sends that wrong message. One that would say, "we know what you are doing is illegal, but here's a clean needle to do it with." Exactly, and contrary to what Fargo believes, intravenous drug use is still a crime. For now, anyway.

This bill also helps to further erode the sense of responsibility that fades with every feel good piece of legislation that gets passed and especially highlights the previous failure of the Needle Exchange Program. Proponents of the bill have promised that it will pass with a veto proof margin. Well so did proponents of the bill that would have granted in-state tuition for illegal aliens.

That promise lasted until the phone lines on Beacon Hill burned with the righteous indignation of the citizens of the commonwealth displaying what real common sense means when you don't live in an ivory tower. But the citizenry aren't paying as much attention to what goes on up on Beacon Hill when the Fourth of July rolls around.

"God help Bobby and Helen."

Gene Pinkham is a Malden resident. He can be reached at malden@....

http://www2.townonline.com/malden/opinion/view.bg?articleid=528047