"No Thanks I am Good"

I would like you to meet Harlan. Harlan was a 31-year-old man and had no history of using street drugs. If he were offered drugs he would say, "No thanks I am good". One night he and two of his friends thought they would experiment and decided to try ecstasy.  Sadly, the ecstasy was laced with fentanyl. The paramedics were able to revive Harlan's friends with Narcan, but Harlan didn't respond. A heartbeat was restored but his brain had been without oxygen for over 30 mins. For the next three days, Harlan was supported to live. The decision was then made to discontinue his life support and Harlan's life will live on as an organ donor. That decision to experiment caused Harlan's death. 

During the three days that Harlan was in the hospital, his dad, Joseph took to the media to speak out about drugs being laced with opioids and the dangers of that.  

I am not sure why this story is of such interest to me, other than my heart went out to this dad. He is using his grief for a cause. He can't bring his son back, but maybe he can spare others from suffering the loss that he has had to endure.  

Since Harlan's death, his dad has been passionate and well-spoken about his son getting drugs that were laced with fentanyl. He is using the media as a platform to get "Harlan's Law" passed in legislation. This law will make the person criminally liable if they give someone drugs causing them to overdose. His Dad believes that overdose deaths are being swept under the rug. Joseph wants tougher sentencing for people that are dealing, and he would like to see the province go in the direction of mandatory treatment plans for people who suffer from addiction and are not able to make decisions for themselves. Joseph did not take his son off the hook. He acknowledged that he made a bad choice that night, but he didn't choose to get a lethal drug. 

I feel Harlan's Dad is on to something. Drug dealers or those that provide drugs, need to be more accountable. There seems to be little accountability in life anymore. I can't imagine the job of trying to be in Law enforcement and manage the drug world. If there is no supply, the demand would be less. Seems very simple to write. I feel that lacing of drugs with more powerful drugs is not to cause an overdose, it is to get that person addicted. I agree with Harlan's Dad let's make people more accountable. 

I have to admit my knowledge is very limited it the worldwide use of drugs. What makes sense to me is that there seems to be a pyramid of drug use.  The one most familiar is the user, which for me is on the bottom.  Then there is the next level or what I want to refer to as the drug dealer.  Above the dealer is the supplier.  At the very top is the person that makes the drug. 

I just wrote a blog on something I know very little about, street drugs. The one thing I do know is that there is a huge drug problem, everywhere. If we all banded together, could we help in some way?  Harlan's Dad has given people a line to use, "No thanks, I am good", I hope that young adults are empowered to use it.