The Corvallis Gazette-Times of 1 April 1996 reported that the federal Drug Enforcement Administration estimates that 2.4 million American children are taking prescribed Ritalin. Ritalin is prescribed for children diagnosed as "inattentive, impulsive, or hyperactive'' and therefore claimed to have "Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)'' or "Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)'' depending on the presence of the third "symptom.'' Russell Barkley, billed as a leading ADHD researcher, is quoted as saying, "I've seen it work, time and again. It's not a miracle drug, but it can make the difference between whether kids stay in school or not.''
If I were forced to endure participation in most public schools and their attached social environment, I hope that I, too, would be rational enough to develop an impulsive, hyperactive attention deficit in self defense. Children are essentially being forced into "school'' environments that are alien to ordinary human nature and then being givenpsychoactive drugs to keep them there.
The Wall Street Journal of 28 March 1995, p A14, reports that there has been a sharp increase in precollege students at elite private schools who are diagnosed as "learning disabled.'' It turns out that payment of $1,000 buys a "learning disabled'' certificate which allows the holder to spend 50% longer working the timed Scholastic Aptitude Test for college entrance (4 1/2 hours vs. the usual 3 hours).
This year 30,000 "learning disabled'' students will take the test -up from 18,000 in 1991. Also, new "recentered'' SAT scoring automatically raises their scores about 100 points compared with students of previous years, and calculators now help those who never learned to multiply. Perhaps scores should also be normalized to Ritalin dose.
Here in Josephine County, Oregon, in the backwoods of Oregon and 3,000 miles from Washington, the number people with goods-producing jobs is exceeded by the number of people employed by government. Two thirds of the government employees are in "local education.'' Apparently, Ritalin is essential to our economy.
