The Montana Standard’s online comment community reacted strongly to the announcement that the Montana Meth Project http://www.montanameth.org/ was pulling one of its billboards after complaints the image was too sexually graphic and disturbing for general consumption.
Some members of the Laurel-based Montana Family Coalition, a state-wide Christian and family group, complained the image depicted the rape of a young woman by an older man. “Just the crudeness of it,” Jeff Laszloffy, coalition president, told Standard State Bureau reporter Jennifer McKee. “The people I spoke with, a lot of them had younger children and they didn’t want to have to explain that to a younger child.” The billboard, titled “15 Bucks,” suggests that a teenaged girl agreed to sex for money to feed her meth habit. The slogan reads: “15 bucks for sex isn’t normal. But on meth it is.” By and large, the reader reaction was that the billboard should remain up and parents should recognize any questions that arise as golden opportunities to reinforce the message that this drug leads to unthinkable behavior and should be avoided at all costs.
We agree. The ugly reality portrayed is just that — reality — and ignoring it will do nothing to help it go away. Exposing the horrific consequences of meth use has been a hugely successful deterrent these past three years, leading to a 45-percent decline in teen meth use and a 72-percent decline in adult meth use. The more pointed the message, the better its chances of making a lasting impression.
By Roberta Stauffer
Full Story: http://www.mtstandard.com/articles/2008/05/09/opinion_top/20080509_opinion_top.txt