With three murders in less than 30 days in a town of just over 32,000 people, and six heroin overdose deaths since February (not to mention the disheartening numbers on heroin and meth addicts), I want to see a return to the past.
A time when the youth were out fishing, hiking, skiing, hunting, playing and exploring our wonderful town, instead of falling into addiction. A time where those in their 20’s were striving for greatness instead of the next high. With the recent loss of life we can no longer pretend the problem doesn’t exist. We can no longer be passive bystanders but must take action because this affects us all. No one is left unharmed by the violence and addiction of others; it creates ripples like stones cast into a pond, affecting all of us to some extent and causing sadness throughout our community.
As Confucius once said, “The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” This is how we are going to find resolutions to these growing problems. We need to get involved as a whole by assisting those with addictions instead of looking down on their choices. We need to rationalize with people who are troubled before they make a decision they’ll regret.
Let’s rebuild Juneau, starting with small stones until we have revitalized our foundation to allow Juneau’s youth to flourish once again.
Riley Moser,
Juneau