cannabisnews.com: Drug Czar Urges Parents to 'Talk Turkey' 










  Drug Czar Urges Parents to 'Talk Turkey' 

Posted by FoM on November 18, 1999 at 09:19:47 PT
By Associated Press 
Source: Boston Globe 

Barry R. McCaffrey, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, urges parents to take advantage of the long Thanksgiving weekend to talk to their children about drugs. 
Director McCaffrey encourages parents to think of Friday, Nov. 26, as ''Talk Turkey Day'' and cites research showing that youth whose parents talk with them about substance abuse are less likely to use drugs. ''The most important work in drug prevention takes place around the family dinner table,'' McCaffrey said. ''Despite what parents may think, teens and pre-teens do listen to their parents about difficult topics.'' Studies show that youth who learn from parents or caregivers about the risks of drugs are 36 percent less likely to smoke marijuana than youth who don't hear about drugs from their parents. In fact, most teens who have rejected marijuana credit their parents with this decision. Yet, nearly half the mothers and fathers in America mistakenly think they have very little influence over their teenagers' behavior in connection with alcohol and drugs. Part of the problem is denial. According to a 1997 survey conducted by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, 44 percent of teens reported using marijuana but only 21 percent of parents think their children use drugs. When parents talk to their children about drugs, Director McCaffrey recommends the following: 1. Be absolutely clear with your children that you don't want them to use drugs. Don't leave room for interpretation. Talk often -- more than once or twice a year -- about the dangers of drug and alcohol use. 2. Be a better listener. Ask -- and encourage -- questions. Solicit your child's input regarding family decisions. Showing a willingness to listen will make your child feel more comfortable about opening up to you. 3. Give honest answers. Don't make up what you don't know. If asked whether you've ever taken drugs, let them know what's important: that you don't want them using drugs. 4. Use TV reports, anti-drug commercials, and news or school discussions about drugs to help introduce the subject in a natural, unforced manner. 5. Don't react in a way that will cut off further discussion. If your child says things that challenge or shock you, respond with a calm discussion of why people use drugs and whether doing so is worth the risk. 6. Role-play with your child and practice ways to refuse drugs in different situations. Acknowledge how tough these moments can be. For more tips and ideas on how to ''talk turkey'' about drugs with their children, parents should visit www.theantidrug.com. This new web site is devoted exclusively to parents who want to learn how to talk with youth about illicit drugs. The site also allows parents to download or order English or Spanish brochures called ''Parenting Skills: 21 Tips and Ideas to Help You Make a Difference.'' The brochure can also be ordered by phone at 800-788-2800. America Online members also can visit the Parents' Drug Resource Center (AOL Keyword: Drug Help) and can guide their children to It's Your Life (AOL Keyword: Your Life). In 1997 with bipartisan support of the Congress and the President, ONDCP created the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign -- an effort designed to educate and empower all youth to reject illicit drugs. The Campaign relies on ads developed by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. In less than two years, the Campaign's messages have become ubiquitous in the lives of America's youth and their parents. From network television advertisements to school-based educational materials, from youth basketball backboards to Internet Web sites, and from cultural community festivals to sitcom story lines, the Campaign's messages reach Americans wherever they are: at work, play, school and home. Additional information can also be found at: http://www.mediacampaign.org Published: November 18, 1999U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770Related Article & Web Site:http://www.drugfreeamerica.org/White House Drug Czar Announces New Web Site - 11/02/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3521.shtml

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Comment #6 posted by one of us on April 03, 2001 at 12:51:22 PT

drugs
PINOCCHIO McCaffrey dont judge drugs if you havent tried them
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Comment #5 posted by Rainbow on November 18, 1999 at 17:33:23 PT

I remember this too

We laughed at the poster because it gave Used Car Salesmen a bad name :-).During this time I did not know enough to protest the War on Vietnam but now I have the energy to be an activist of sorts in the War on the People of the USA.If you are feeling energitic send a letter to Clinton.CheersRainbow
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Comment #4 posted by observer on November 18, 1999 at 15:54:25 PT

Pinocchio McCaffrey ...

For more on Barry McCaffery, see: Pinocchio McCaffrey http://www.csdp.org/ads/pinocchio.htm Has the Drug Czar Bought the Media for a Billion Dollars? http://www.csdp.org/ads/media.htm   
photo: Nixon and Elvis the Drug-Agent
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Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on November 18, 1999 at 15:01:21 PT

Tricky Dik, redux

I am old enough to remeber a poster that was very popular at the time of Watergate. It showed President Nixon in a jovial mood, extending his hand in friendship to someone. But the smile looked contrived, and given what was happening at the time (government officials lying through their teeth about nearly everything under the sun)the caption beneath the picture was truly apt.It went: WOULD YOU BUY A USED CAR FROM THIS MAN? I propose a new poster; MISTER McCaffrey with his mouth open, and a caption beneath it saying, WOULD YOU TAKE ADVICE ON HOW TO RAISE A CHILD FROM A PROFESSIONAL LIAR?
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Comment #2 posted by rainbow on November 18, 1999 at 12:11:56 PT

A letter to Clinton

I sen the following letter to Clinton (www.whitehouse.gov). I am really fedup with this turkey of a general.Dear BillI am getting pretty fed up with your Drug csar the general. he is now telling people how to raise their children and he has no credentials for doing this.First he wants us to tell our kids his truth and not a truth based on facts. This is really bad.Please this man is a total embarrassment to the USA. He has a whole dictionary of lies about social behavior, child psychology, Dutch criminal system to name a few.He is so arrogant that he was ousted from the Olympic Village.he is wasting 17 billion dollars a year. Now he has a campign to "Talk Turkey" to our children. Where in the world does he think he knows better than me. He is just a poor excuse for a leader in his position. Please do something about his mouth and speeches. I am really getting sick of his lack of intelligence and its reflection on the USA. Bill, they are laughing at us in England, Holland, Canada, and Australia to name a view. He is just a failure like the War on Drugs, which is really a War on the People of the USA.Drug use is a health issue not a criminal issueCheersTom 
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Comment #1 posted by Dave in Florida on November 18, 1999 at 10:56:58 PT

Oh Please !

> When parents talk to their children about drugs, Director > McCaffrey recommends the following: > 3. Give honest answers. Don't make up what you don't know. In other words, "Do as I say not as I do". > If asked whether you've ever taken drugs, let them know > what's important: that you don't want them using drugs. So Barry, you want me to lie to them, and make them really trust me.I think Barry should try this for himself. S P E A K  T H E  T R U T H ! !
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