What is everyone's opinion of D.A.R.E.?

[kick-ass-bob]

My son just "graduated" from it, and some of the stuff they were told seemed quite interesting, shall we say.

Then I saw a reference to it in the marijuana thread.

What are your opinions on it?

(DARE is the Drug awareness program they do in elementary schools, if you are not aware)

[swag]

1. I love to see wasted kids wearing those shirts.

Other than that, I don't have an opinion, other than I always imagined that D.A.R.E. stood for "Drugs Are Really Excellent."

Best wishes to you and your son.

[aclog]

5. Yeah, I thought about wearing the stupid T-shirt

when I was high but I don't think I ever got one

I'm pretty sure I graduated from the program but now I'm not so sure. At least for me the program was stupid, although I do think that's where I became acquainted with the term "gateway drug"

Although thats really almost a back-door rationale to smoke weed since after all its not as bad as

I guess if it kept some other kid out of a lifetime of addiciton it was worth all those damn Take A Bite Out of Crime videos I had to sleep through. Bite me, Fred McGruff

[jakefrep]

47. I thought it was...

Donuts
Are
Real
Expensive

I mean, geez, it was plastered all over the sides of our local cop cars.

[HEyHEY]

59. I love to sell drugs to kids wearing those shirts

[anarch]

2. I have nothing on which to base an opinion...

What kind of interesting stuff are we talking about? Do they say that smoking a single joint can drive you crazy for life or something like that? That coke makes your testicles fall off? What?

[kick-ass-bob]

19. Interesting as in a lot of fear - with gang activity stuff.

Saying that all rap stars (Yes, ALL of them) are gang bangers, and wearing the wrong athletic clothing will get you killed. I assume this would somewhere, but the way it was presented (from my son's perspective, anyways) would make them scared to wear it just about anywhere.

And of course that marijuana is pure evil.

[grrl62]

32. they've been saying the same thing

since the mid-late 80's (when i graduated from D.A.R.E.). just scare tactics.


"watch out! gang/drug related deaths are real: people have been killed on <insert street name> for blinking their left eyes at approximately 2pm in the afternoon on alternate thursday. this is not a game."

:sarcasm:

[Ravenseye]

3. D.A.R.E doesn't work

http://www.druglibrary.org/think/~jnr/uicstud.htm

"A new study concludes that the program is not working and, in fact, may actually be hurting drug-abuse prevention efforts in some communities."

...

"Kids in the suburbs who were exposed to the D.A.R.E. program, who participated in D.A.R.E., actually had significantly higher levels of drug use than suburban kids who did not get the D.A.R.E. program, said Rosenbaum."

[graywarrior]

4. I'm only familiar with them from my hometown where either

everyone was a stoner, a drunk or a jock. I'm not sure what category they fell into.

[jane_pippin]

6. I find the graduation skits are amateur productions that seem

to beat the audience over the head with their message rather than approach the subject with the fine, subtle touch of a great dramatist. I mean, it's like the whole thing was put on by kids or something. :D

Really though, I hardly remember my DARE training. I remember there was a workbook, they told us smokes and beer were bad, peer pressure was worse, and if we were offered drugs--apparently you can't go two feet without being offered drugs once you leave elementary school--we were to use the "cold shoulder" method, or tell our would be corrupters that "I don't want to be a dope." Then I got a t-shirt for completing the program and never thought about it again except to make fun of it. I'm sure they asked us to sign some "I won't smoke or drink" pledge, or something to that effect. That worked. :eyes:

[seemunkee]

7. Stupid waste of school time

My kids went through it and thought it was a waste. They are both sXe but not because anything they learned in DARE. It's so shrill and full of nonsense that I doubt if it changes any kids behavior.

[Reverend_Smitty]

8. I had DARE in school about 12-13 years ago...

Even as a kid I still had my built-in bullshit detector working, it was a bunch of scare tactics and I distinctly remember the cop saying if you found any of this stuff in your home, you should contact the cops. I wonder how many kids called the cops on their parents. Still I don't think it kept me off drugs (I've never done a drug other than alcohol in my life) but then again it didn't drive me to drugs either. I personally don't think it works, but I'm ambivalent about the whole program

[realisticphish]

9. Monumental waste of time and money

It is one of the least effective anti-drug campaigns in existance. In fact, in several studies, children who completed dare were MORE likely to use drugs

[Midlodemocrat]

22. You are absolutely correct.

That statistics on its effectiveness are amazing. The program sucks.

[Squatch]

10. It just made me more curious about drugs

which led to my eventual partaking of said drugs.

[jobycom]

11. How would I know what everyone's opinion is? I don't know everyone.

And if I did, I wouldn't tell you. Although, you'd be one person of "everyone," I guess, so I could tell you your opinion, but you already...

Your question has giving me a headache. I'm going to ask my kid for some drugs to get over it.

[EstimatedProphet]

12. I think it trains kids to rat on their parents to earn stuff

I think it's a government snitch program. It's the kind of thing we always heard went on in the Evil Soviet Union, where kids turn their parents into the government to get a pair of jeans. What's the difference?

[Heidi]

13. "Narc out your Mom, Dad and neighbors for smoking pot!"

Really. I _loathe_ this program and consider it an _incredible_ waste of tax dollars. Parents should be teaching kids the pros and cons of drug use, rather than leaving such value judgments to people who have a vested interest in perpetuating the prison economy. :grr:

[jonnyblitz]

14. It's a program to get kids to turn their parents into the cops

so hide your weed GOOD if your kid fell for it. :P

[Initech]

15. It's government (especially GOP) propaganda

[LeftyMom]

16. We had it in school

I never did use illegal drugs (I do drink once in a blue moon and I smoked clove cigs for a while whne I was younger though) but that was because we have a lot of addicts in my family and I don't want to go there.

Really, I think the best way to scare kids away from drugs is to drag them to a 12 step meeting (something my mother did a lot) because I for one was willing to do whatever it took to never have to go to one of those snooze-a-thons again. Not that I'm not glad they're there for people who need them, but holy shit some of the people telling thier stories are boring.

I knew at the time we did DARE that a lot of the information was suspect, because my parents were grown up hippies who'd tried nearly all of that stuff at one time or another and they weren't crazy or criminal.

[Reverend_Smitty]

18. If listening to the stories about the stupid shit they did when...

they were younger, and the subsequent troubles it caused them isn't enough to keep you clean, I don't know what is.

My mom was a firm believer in the scare you with the "it could happen to you because it happened to me and almost killed me" school, and I tell you what, nothing works better than honesty in that department

[underpants]

17. Aside from the Narcing criticism the main criticism I have heard is that..

it basically serves as a familiarization class. This is pot this is what it does to you.... this is coke do it and you feel like this.....this is mushrooms (kids tend to get more interested at that point).....

The only thing they don't teach is what the fair market value is -now THAT would be a conservative angle they could thrown in improving the kids business acumen.

[mdmc]

24. good points underpants

I am for the decriminalization of all drugs and the legalization of herb. We need some way to protect our children, and adults, from the dangers of addiction.

If your kid has been through DARE, I would suggest you purchase a copy of Go Ask Alice. Don't give it to your kid or tell them to read it. They will find it if they need / want it.

Remember, the best thing that you can do as a parent to reduce addiction in your child is make "a big deal" of the first "bust" that you lay down on your kid (assuming, eventually, every kid gets caught drunk or high).

Teach your kids about the risks of addiction (DARE does this).
Teach your kids about self esteem and peer pressure.
Love.
Engage your child when you discover for the first time that they are "using".

Remember, no child has the right to get high. This statement helps parents that use drugs themselves to "lay down the law". You need to make sure that they are aware that counseling / treatment may be required if they continue using drugs. This "treatment" could be as much for their addiction as it can be for their self esteem, conduct disorder, lack of supervision... etc.

[WeRQ4U]

20. I think of it like I think of the Boy Scouts

I am an Eagle Scout and the Boy Scouts provided me with many opportunities to do things that a lot of my friends did not get a chance to do. That being said, I think they're policies on homosexuality and atheism are deplorable as did my father, who was also an Eagle Scout. I was raised differently and the views of the BSA didn't effect what I was taught to believe by my parents. I will recommend that my boy be in Scouts as well for the positive things it provides, and I will educate my son MYSELF about the things that I do not agree with.

I'm sure it has it's good and bad qualities and whatever you don't agree with, you can fix on your own.

[khashka]

21. I don't like it.

Narc on your parents!
Sure if Mommy is shooting up and nodding out with dinner on the stove and it goes up in flames. You need to get help.

But count how many glasses of wine Mommy has with dinner and tell the police? No I don't think so.

We do need a sane drug policy - but as things are, this ain't it.

Khash.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

23. As a teacher I have sat through many a DARE session

and I have a slightly different take on it.

First of all, most of the kids think it is really cool. It is definitely a fifth grade rite of passage. And we teachers really get a good idea of just who is going to f*** up middle school by watching who slumps in their chair and laughs the whole time. (if we hadn't already figured it out.) The kids love the T-shirts. The Teachers like the opportunity to get a cup of coffee and then come back and watch the FINE DARE instructor turn around and write on the blackboard. It's awesome when they drop the marker.

I feel we owe the kids information. If they choose not to use it, then hey, survival of the fittest. That is how I approach it with my students and my own kids. I say that in this life not everyone should survive to breed. Taking drugs early pretty much narrows your opportunities there. That really seems to work.

I have never heard a DARE officer instruct a kid to narc on anyone. They are told to report drugs if they find them. Not necessarily if they find them in a shoebox in the back of Daddy's closet. That has never been implied.

Anyone saying it is a narc out your parents nazi program hasn't read the curriculum or attended any sessions.

[realisticphish]

25. while i see your point

there are far less expensive ways to provide children with information about drugs. DARE costs a ridiculously large amount, and has almost no effectiveness as to its stated purpose. That's MY beef with it.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

29. I think you are probably right

but what about the buff instructors and the teachers? Damn, we need something to look forward to in the week!

But I could buy the T-shirts cheaper and xerox the stuff off the Internet. 'course I'd have to wear a gun to deliver it. More effective.

But DARE graduation is a good party. Parents bring in great eats. Can we still have the party?

[kick-ass-bob]

31. Our guy was a waay out of shape guy. Not so buff.

I think he is one of the leaders in the national DARE program, actually.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

34. Bummer

We've had three, all gorgeous. One man and two women.

[realisticphish]

33. my instructor was NOT in shape

and you teachers already HAVE a break... music, gym, etc. Music teachers don't get shit for breaks (ask my mother) :)

[TallahasseeGrannie]

35. I'm an art teacher

I AM the break for the other teachers.

Teacher breaks are mandated by contract in our district.

Too bad about your instructor. It ought to be a law. DARE instructors should be buff.

[realisticphish]

44. my aplogies

you're in the same boat as mom. and yes, breaks are mandated there, too. That doesn't mean they happen, though

[TallahasseeGrannie]

46. No, there are all sorts of ways to get around them.

[realisticphish]

51. mom

ends up doing lunch duty, bus duty, scheduling, and she fills in for the principal when he's not there. so, all together, she gets about 15 minutes a day as a break, and eventhen she's eating lunch while grading papers

[TallahasseeGrannie]

52. sounds very, very familiar.

[MissMillie]

26. It is well portrayed by that cartoon guy on South Park

"you shouldn't do drugs.... drugs are bad"

it glosses over important issues of addiction and substance abuse that should be addressed not only in the context of narcotics but also in the context of sex, shopping, gambling, food, etc.

[dolo amber]

27. D.A.R.E. is a gateway drug

They tell you all this horrible stuff about how if you smoke pot, you'll end up "addicted" and homeless. Then, despite their best efforts, you try pot. Hey! I'm not addicted and homeless! Wonder what else they told me that's wrong? Let's go mainline some crack and smoke some 'ludes and find out! :bounce:

(Disclaimer: This is not my personal testimony. :D)

[kick-ass-bob]

30. THAT is what worried me.

If they see one fallacy, then they might discount the whole thing. Did you see that my son thought ALL rap stars are in gangs?

And he was adamant about it.

[dolo amber]

36. Oh dear

Yeah, it's a pretty fine line to walk...I did my best to explain to my kid when she went through that that sometimes people emphasize the wrong points to make the right ones. (*cough*...Nancy Reagan:P)

[TallahasseeGrannie]

37. Actually in the curriculum

I am looking at right now they talk pretty truthfully about pot and addiction, that you aren't going to end up homeless from smoking pot. Maybe they have changed it since you had it.

[dolo amber]

39. The curriculum and the actual presenter are often

two distinct realities, unfortunately.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

40. I'm sure you are right there.

[XemaSab]

53. That's my big problem with it

I think equating all drugs is very bad.

Pot=Crack=Heroin=GHB=LSD=Meth is not a good lesson at all.

[Ariana Celeste]

57. pretty close to reality for me

just never got interested in crack, ;).

[jpgray]

28. If they had used Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel as the soundtrack

I might have paid more attention.

[HuskerDU]

38. I dare them to

tell the truth!

[fizzgig]

41. it was a waste of my time

my parents opted me out the second time i had to take it (was in a combined 5th/6th grade class when i was in 5th grade and in my district it was a 6th grade requirement)

my parents were always very honest with me about drugs and their experiences

i graduated from d.a.r.e. when i was 11, didn't do any drugs until i was 15, didn't drink until i was 21

the only drug i've done in my life is a bit of weed from time to time, i'm not homeless or crazy

it was all propaganda

[cynatnite]

42. It was okay, but the 'graduation' thing completely sucked n/t

[Oeditpus Rex]

43. This part of it's cool

This is on my city's web site:

UNFORTUNATELY DUE TO BUDGET RESTRAINTS, D.A.R.E. PROGRAM IS CURRENTLY NOT AVAILABLE. PLEASE CONTINUE TO CHECK FOR UPDATED INFORMATION ON WHEN THESE PROGRAMS WILL AGAIN BECOME AVAILABLE.

So it's "D.A.R.E. to keep kids off drugs — when we can afford it."

One of my ex's kids called it "Drugs. Are. Real. Expensive."

[ScreamingMeemie]

45. As a parent with a daughter who completed it...It's Crap.

I attended the program because we were invited to if we so wished. The officer in charge of the proceedings (that's what I'm going to call him) told the children that if they had questions or anything they had on their mind that they didn't want to share with the class they could place it in a box up on the table. And he would read them privately and try to answer them. Needless to say, that's how we ended up with CPS at our door. Of course the case was closed before it even opened and it was a child with a vendetta against my husband for not letting our daughter "hang out" with her and her 19 year old sister...

...Nicole didn't learn anything that we haven't already told her, and yes, they do encourage children to "rat" out their parents and their neighbors...whomever. That's what it is here and a big "HurraH" went up when the funding was cut. :hi:

[philosophie_en_rose]

48. Everything I know about drugs, I learned from DARE.

I think that the program has some good qualities (such as practicing how to resist peer pressure). However, the program I went through was so thorough that I could easily flip the knowledge into a how-to-recognize-a-dealer-and-buy-drugs course.

[JVS]

50. Oooohhhh teach me, teach me!

[patcox2]

49. Program to provide cops with access to high school nookie.

And train kids to be little snitches and turn their parents in.

[izzybeans]

54. It was an introduction to my future drug menu in high school.

Very informative.

[KamaAina]

55. Guess who developed D.A.R.E.? Daryl Gates. Yup, that Daryl Gates.

This is your brain on Daryl Gates. Any questions?

[ucmike]

56. seems like fear and mixed messages to me

i never had to sit through it, but my younger brothers and sisters did. in my brothers class the cop brought in a travelling display case of drugs and paraphenalia then demonstrated how each was used. more like drug education than drug resistance. i never understood how simulating a bong hit on a real bong would stop anyone from using drugs. it seemed to me that this approach would only desensitize kids to using drugs.

they also blurred the line between drugs and alcohol. my 5th grade brother went into uncontrolled crying and irrational panic because he saw me drinking a beer. he thought that anyone who drank a beer a was hopeless alcoholic and that my life was ruined. it took several hours of explanations to get him to realize otherwise.

[hobo_baggins]

58. I always thought it was the biggest joke in the world

we had to sit through those stupid videos that everyone laughed at, because theres no way a kid would act that way in real life without getting the shit kicked out of him and ridiculed for the rest of his childhood. And those t-shirts were god awful. Nobody I know ever took it seriously.

And on a related topic, I remember one time they brought in some underage pregnant girls to try to discourage us from having sex, and I just thought, wow, those chicks do it.

[we can do it]

60. Job Security for Overweight Cops? n/t