Cocaine Addiction
When it comes to the subject of cocaine addiction, I can tell you
firsthand, about the devastation it causes. Living in the “Ghost Town”
neighborhood of Venice Beach, California, I see the effects of cocaine
addiction on a daily basis. On my street alone, I see “crackheads” argue
and fight over $2 hits of rock, lost souls wandering the streets 24/7,
looking on the ground even, for their next hit of “crack”. Dealers stand
around waiting for the inevitable next customer, and I ask myself if
there will ever be an an end to the plague of “crack”.
With an estimated 5-6 million cocaine addicts in the United States
alone, the effects of cocaine addiction, and the force of its grip are
obvious. The effects of cocaine addiction are horrible, and soul
shattering. Even with the pain and suffering, both mental, and physical,
caused by cocaine addiction, the intense cravings related to cocaine
addiction keeps the user coming back for more, regardless of the
destructive results. Crackheads and other victims of cocaine addiction
have been known to sell, and do, just about anything for another hit.
With an estimated 50,000 people trying coke for the first time every
day, cocaine addiction will probably not be going away any time soon.
The use of cocaine is considered by some to be hip, glamorous and a
symbol of success, an accessory to a jet-setting lifestyle of wealth and
excess. While in the ghettos, cocaine is seen as just another way to
escape the harshness of poverty, whether through the lucrative act of
dealing, or the painkilling effects of it’s ingestion. The use of
cocaine and cocaine addiction are not exclusive to any specific group,
cocaine knows no social, racial or gender boundaries, it is an equal
opportunity destroyer.
The distribution and sale of cocaine is a bloody, multi-billion dollar
business. Large, well organized “Cartels” ( the majority of which are
based in South America) produce, and smuggle thousands of tons of this
deadly drug into the United States every year. The cocaine is then
distributed throughout the country via the cartel’s, or another gangs
network, for sales on the street. With the flow of cocaine entering the
country still remaining at a high volume, and the wealth to be gained
through it’s sale, cocaine, and cocaine addiction will remain a problem,
and my neighborhood will continue to be known as “Ghost Town”
