Freevibe.com is the Web site for the nation's recent anti-drug campaign, where the subtle elegance of "This is your brain on drugs" has been replaced by "I blew up a building."
The site is so hip that I can't figure it out. Instead of pages for links, pictures, forums, etc. I have "Heads Up," "Shout Out" and "Hang Time." It takes 15 minutes of wading though Tiger Beat jargon to find the notorious commercials, the ones where a loaded gun on the desk would be perfectly safe if those kids weren't smoking marijuana.
Freevibe is also behind the "My Anti-Drug" campaign. On the site, you can submit your anti-drug of choice, although "being broke" or "not being able to find the hook-up" are not options.
Kids can choose their anti-drug from a list, or write their own. The current list ranges "4 wheeling" to "youth group." My personal favorites were "Carson Daly" and "Britney Spears."
I figure each anti-drug should be considered a recreational activity unto itself, and so I'm going to review some of the anti-drugs. What follows are some of the postings on
Sneakers
JSole's anti-drug is sneakers, as in... shoes.
"People that wear white sneakers are usually preppy. Hip-hop people stick to basketball sneakers, or whatever is hip at that moment. Skaters, of course, wear skater sneakers."
Good work, JSole, you've successfully learned to judge people based solely on appearance. Thank goodness that a raging drug addiction didn't keep you from that.
Shopping
Miastyle's anti-drug is shopping.
"Shopping is my Anti-Drug because it's how I find new ways to express myself. It's my passion, the thing that I love to do."
While Johnny Pothead is off supporting terrorism, Miastyle is pouring money into the economy because she is a good American.
Computers
"I'm on my computer all the time. I surf the web, hang with friends and chat, even research stuff for school." You see, ones&zeros (sic) uses computers and programming as his anti-drug. Here's another case where the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign is way out of sync with reality. Computers have nothing to do with this kids drug-free lifestyle. Not being popular is his anti-drug.
Blowing Bubbles
According to the online poll, this is the fourth most popular anti-drug, ranking just above "family." Okay, it's hard to be bitter and cynical about this. Blowing bubbles is fun, infinitely more important to me than the people who raised me and took care of me for the first 18 years of my life.
Ultimately, the best summation of Freevibe comes from its own Web site, at the point where they talk about the glorification of drugs in the media: "...If you want to be smart, independent and able to make your own decisions about your life, you gotta use your brain. All the time. So next time you see or hear messages -- in ads, TV shows, online, wherever -- think about it a little."
hello there & you too