It’s doubtless you’ve smelled weed or bubblegum nicotine in our bathrooms once or twice in your school career. Among the various ruins of stall doors and sinks you might chance upon a huddle of girls with plastic to their lips, cartridges and cottonmouth shared between them in friendship circles.
In recent years, drug awareness has become all the rage in the United States. School assemblies have become blaise affairs dedicated to the de rigeur message we’ve been hearing since the D. A. R. E. program attempted to take on teenage drug abuse, and spectacularly failed.
"Cartridges And Cottonmouth Shared Between Them In Friendship Circles."
Multiple studies, including one by the National Institute of Health, found these teen anti-drug campaigns “very ineffective” as well as “negligible, but good”. So what style of abstinence education will impact our students? What, if anything, can stop us from sucking in Spotify-certified formaldehyde? I sat down with Debbie Showalter to address this issue,
How many [vapes] do you think you’ve collected in your career?
Really not that many, because I think they’re easy to conceal, and easy to hide. Under 20 probably. Some of them look like markers, or highlighters, and they’re easy…It’s difficult to catch, unlike back in the day when you’d have to light a cigarette - vapes are easier to do on the sly.
Why do you think our generation is so hooked?
Well you know, they can’t market it to the youth, but I really think a lot of the flavored tobacco, a lot of the vape pens, are really geared towards the tastes of the younger generation, right? So the berry, the fruitiness, you don’t seem them taking the menthol ones, right? It’s the pretty colors and the shiny electronics and the little digital display, I think it’s appealing and easy, unfortunately.
Are there any legal consequences? A lot of these vapes are illegal to begin with, the flavors are illegal, so what happens?
Right, with the THC, all the vapes go to the resource officer and especially the vapes that test positive for THC take it to another level. And certainly when a student is found with a vape that turns into a conversation, but many times they’re so addicted at that point it’s difficult to rationalize at that moment and change patterns. We do have our NRVCS counselors that handle the education piece for addiction and drug use.
I’ve heard mention here and there about adding vape detectors to the bathrooms?
I’m not aware of any here at Blacksburg High School, now, Montgomery Central has them and then Christiansburg High School with their remodel will be getting them, but I’m not aware of anything here. I understand they’re expensive, and like anything, it’s not full proof. So what we try to do is be visible, popping into bathrooms, that’s how we check.
Overall, any final advice about vapes?
I would say, abstain. It’s hard for me to impose my values on other people, right, but I think we have the school rules that stand firm. What you decide to do at home is your business, but don’t bring that into school.
With that, the interview was concluded and I went back to my lunch table to discuss with the group. As soon as I said ‘abstain’ there were various snickers of amusement and flat-out laughter. This is the eternal struggle of the adult, good intentions vs. reality. It’s the reason why D. A. R. E. failed, and why the Juul company came into American Health classes claiming, “You shouldn’t vape because you’re too young…but vaping is totally safe.”
From here, the story changed. Soon after my dialogue with BHS head staff, they told me that in fact, we would be getting vape detectors. They went so far as to say there will be an official briefing, and that the detectors themselves will be highly protected against potential rip-off vandals. I nodded, but truthfully knew that if put to the test, students can surprise you with our anti-rule skills. No doubt students will begin blowing into their hoods, or worse, finding ways to rip the thing clean off.
However, my main concern is the potential for false positives. Any sort of aerosol, such as deodorants and certain hairsprays, have been known to set off vape detectors. Even certain fragrant perfumes have been documented as setting off the device. Further, it has been proven that smaller, more confined areas are more likely to incorrectly respond to outside stimuli. In other words, this could become a real problem if left unchecked.
"This Is The Eternal Struggle Of The Adult, Good Intentions vs. Reality."
Truth is, nothing will really stop our generation from vaping purely because of the dogmatic approach that companies have taken towards reframing the act as a lifestyle choice. In fact the vape was first created to help people quit cigarettes, until media corporations got involved and marketed to younger audiences than the founders had intended. In the end it’s a classic case of red button syndrome: if you tell us not to press the button, it’s all we’re going to do when your back is turned. So I’ll wrap this up with some facts instead of imposing one opinion or another.
Vaping is not smoke, and therefore is not as bad as cigarettes; vapes however do have greater boosts of nicotine. In fact, there’s been multiple studies that proved teens are vaping the ‘nicotine equivalent’ of two Marlboro packs a day. The cancer risks of repeated use are inconclusive, but many lung disease cases have been cited, including severe ICU hospitalizations and 68 deaths. So whether you vape or not, know the risks and make your bad choices in good company. But most of all, listen to Mrs. Showalter. What you decide to do at home is your own business, but don’t bring that into school.
Written by Thomas Repass
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