Of course, in Dallas they mix heroin with Tylenol Cold and call it Cheese. It's sold as a cheap fun thrill and it kills. It has really devastated some of the jr. high's in Dallas.
I'm glad they are trying to stop this from spreading to other areas. I still want to buy Tylenol Cold over the counter. Of course that is not the only reason. Keeping kids safe is still #1.
Drug czar lauds Dallas' fight against 'cheese'
Federal official visits area, meets with local task force
12:00 AM CDT on Thursday, August 2, 2007
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning News
tdhobbs@dallasnews.com
President Bush's drug czar praised Dallas leaders Wednesday for fighting "cheese" heroin use among youths – a move he said is vital to preventing its spread to other parts of the country.
"That's one of the reasons we're trying to watch this closely," John Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, said during a news conference Wednesday at Dallas Independent School District headquarters.
Mr. Walters spoke after receiving a briefing from the Cheese Heroin Task Force. DISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa, Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and some parents whose children died of cheese were among those who attended the briefing, which was closed to the public.
Mr. Walters said the community's effort to come together to fight cheese is impressive. The mix of black tar heroin and crushed nighttime cold tablets has been blamed for the deaths of 23 area teens since January 2005.
"I came here to hear from those who are working against this terrible phenomenon," Mr. Walters said.
Cheese surfaced in five northwest Dallas schools this past school year. The drug, which sells for as little as $2 a hit, has greatly concerned health-care providers, law enforcement and school district officials because of its accessibility and addictiveness. It has been known to be used by kids as young as 10.
Mr. Walters said he is working with Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, to add money to a national media campaign to address cheese.
Mr. Walters also announced Wednesday that six Texas school districts, including Ennis, will receive new federal grants, totaling $1.67 million, to help fund random student drug testing. He said such testing could be used as a public health tool to deter students from using illegal drugs and help with early intervention.
The Ennis district, about 40 miles south of Dallas, will receive $148,566 over three years. Other districts receiving grant money are Bloomington, Friendswood, Ganado, La Porte and Mission Consolidated school district.
Ennis Superintendent Eddie Dunn said his school board recently voted to do random drug testing.
"It seems to me as adults we should be champions of hope; illegal drugs kill hope, and we can't let that happen," Dr. Dunn said during the news conference.
Mr. Walters acknowledged that random drug testing is controversial.
Some opponents have said it violates students' civil rights. But Mr. Walters said students who test positive in random tests cannot be punished.
The Dallas school district is using a federal grant for a voluntary drug testing program that requires parental permission. The students don't know when they will be tested.
Linda Yater, DISD's executive director for student services, said that 12,580 students in sixth grade and up were tested last year, and that 97 percent were drug-free.
The No. 1 drug students tested positive for was marijuana, followed by methamphetamine and then heroin.
Michelle Hemm, director at Phoenix Academy of Dallas, a 32-bed private, residential treatment center, said she hopes the attention to cheese will help get funding for residential care for people hooked on the drug.
"I'm hopeful that ... the powers that be will look at Dallas," she said. "The fact that people have rallied behind this is great."
Hi Everyone!
It is sometimes even harder to get a physician to believe you.
SoWal friends. I don't really want to change to lunch, but we'll see. My Doctor says I need to stop at 5:00 p.m. and start my evening of rest.
Okay everyone who knows how hard it is to stop at 5:00 in the afternoon raise your hand. 
I thought so!!!!
