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Report on Drug Use
Smart girls decide for themselves™.
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Although the war on drugs seems to have taken a backseat to the war on terror (at least in the US), the battle is still going on. We wanted to know if you've witnessed substance abuse among your friends or family, or if you've taken drugs yourself. A total of 537 people--508 girls, 19 boys, and 10 others who didn't specify their gender--took our survey on drug use. The largest number was 13-year-olds, but people from 6 to over 22 years old weighed in. The respondents also come from a variety of backgrounds, regions, and living situations.
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Research has shown that strong family support and supervision, high self-esteem, and well-developed social skills are among the factors that characterize young people who do not use drugs. We wanted to know more about your background to see if your experiences support that fact.
With whom do you live?
~Mom and dad: 398
~Mom only: 94
~Dad only: 13
~By myself: 10
~Another relative: 9
~Significant other: 5
~Adoptive parents: 4
~Two mothers: 2
~Two fathers: 2
Of course, these results alone don't tell the whole story. For example, someone living with both her mom and dad could very well have less family support than another person who is just living with his dad.
I am involved in extracurricular activities.
~Strongly agree: 138
~Agree: 166
~Neutral: 125
~Disagree: 54
~Strongly disagree: 44
Are you involved in any sort of religion?
~No: 159
~No, but I want to be: 24
~Somewhat: 199
~Very much involved: 133
~Yes, but I don't want to be: 13
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| What kind of grades do you make in school? |
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D.A.R.E. is probably the most well-known drug education/prevention school program in the US. Others include Project ALERT and McGruff's Drug Prevention and Child Protection. The debate on the effectiveness of such programs has been ongoing and the recent increase in the number of US schools implementing, or at least considering, random drug testing among students seems to show that they think more needs to be done. When we asked if your school has a drug prevention program, 208 said yes, 127 said no, and 192 weren't sure.
Because it's so commonplace, it's sometimes easy to forget that nicotine (found in cigarettes and tobacco) does indeed fit the definition of a drug. What may be even less well known is that in its purest form, it can be used as an insecticide. Ew! We asked you if you considered cigarettes/tobacco drugs. 190 of you strongly agreed, 153 agreed, 83 were neutral, 61 disagreed, and 44 strongly disagreed.
I remember some fairly cheesy anti-drug Public Service Announcements from when I was growing up that my friends and I used to laugh at, but some made a pretty big impact. We wanted to know if you think these types of commercials are effective. 64 strongly agreed, 108 agreed, 198 were neutral, 75 disagreed, and 70 strongly disagreed.
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| Drug use is a problem among people my age. |
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There is some disagreement as to how large an impact a teenager's friends have on his/her decision to use drugs. Whatever you believe, though, there is no doubt that they do have some influence. After all, you sometimes spend more time with them than you do with your own family! That's one of the reasons why we wanted to know about the level of drug use among your friends.
How many of your friends use drugs?
~None: 219
~One: 48
~Some: 131
~Most: 58
~All: 15
~I'm not sure: 55
My friends affect whether I use drugs or not.
~Strongly agree: 94
~Agree: 117
~Neutral: 115
~Disagree: 91
~Strongly disagree: 96
Have you and your friends ever discussed the topic of drug use?
~Regularly: 86
~A few times: 217
~Once: 107
~Never: 112
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| Which drugs have your friends used? |
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count | percent |
friendsdrugs
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| alcohol |
209 | 15.31 |
| cocaine |
100 | 7.33 |
| ecstasy |
80 | 5.86 |
| heroin |
51 | 3.74 |
| inhalants |
66 | 4.84 |
| marijuana |
188 | 13.77 |
| lsd |
58 | 4.25 |
| methamph |
36 | 2.64 |
| nicotine |
156 | 11.43 |
| pcp |
25 | 1.83 |
| prescrip |
98 | 7.18 |
| steroids |
44 | 3.22 |
| notsure |
74 | 5.42 |
| none |
164 | 12.01 |
| ketamine |
2 | 0.15 |
| multiple |
3 | 0.22 |
| other |
11 | 0.81 |
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We've learned about your friends, but what about your family? Witnessing a member of the family taking drugs might make someone think that such behavior is acceptable. And if the person using drugs is your parent, he/she may be less able to take care of you properly, which could lead to a whole bunch of problems that make life at home difficult.
How many members of your family use drugs?
~None: 217
~One: 76
~Some: 120
~Most: 32
~All: 13
~Not sure: 71
My family affects whether I use drugs or not.
~Strongly agree: 172
~Agree: 135
~Neutral: 93
~Disagree: 60
~Strongly disagree: 60
Have you and your family ever discussed the topic of drug use?
~Regularly: 72
~A few times: 227
~Once: 87
~Never: 131
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| Which drugs have your family members used? |
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count | percent |
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famwhichdrugs
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| alcohol |
337 | 25.43 |
| cocaine |
56 | 4.23 |
| ecstasy |
47 | 3.55 |
| heroin |
35 | 2.64 |
| inhalants |
36 | 2.72 |
| marijuana |
149 | 11.25 |
| lsd |
36 | 2.72 |
| methamp |
32 | 2.42 |
| nicotine |
217 | 16.38 |
| pcp |
18 | 1.36 |
| prescrip |
159 | 12 |
| steroids |
31 | 2.34 |
| notsure |
61 | 4.6 |
| none |
97 | 7.32 |
| multiple |
2 | 0.15 |
| ketamine |
1 | 0.08 |
| other |
11 | 0.83 |
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We were pleased to see that so many of you don't use drugs and hope that those who do find help.
Have you ever used drugs?
~Yes: 153
~Yes, but I didn't want to: 15
~No: 346
~No, but I want to: 10
What is the number one reason why you use drugs?
~Peer pressure: 22
~Loneliness: 7
~Boredom: 22
~Depression: 24
~To fit in: 6
~To rebel: 6
~I don't use drugs: 375
~Other: 52
How often do you use drugs?
~Once: 59
~A few times: 56
~Weekly: 11
~2-5 times/wk: 25
~6-10 times/wk: 5
~More than 10 times/wk: 23
~I don't use drugs: 358
How does drug use affect your life?
~Makes it better: 46
~I'm not sure: 76
~Makes it worse: 9
~I don't use drugs: 390
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| Which drugs have you used? |
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count | percent |
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youwhichdrugs
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| alcohol |
152 | 16.67 |
| cocaine |
30 | 3.29 |
| ecstasy |
32 | 3.51 |
| heroin |
19 | 2.08 |
| inhalants |
33 | 3.62 |
| marijuana |
93 | 10.2 |
| lsd |
23 | 2.52 |
| methamph |
24 | 2.63 |
| nicotine |
92 | 10.09 |
| pcp |
16 | 1.75 |
| prescrip |
81 | 8.88 |
| steroids |
15 | 1.64 |
| none |
291 | 31.91 |
| ketamine |
1 | 0.11 |
| multiple |
1 | 0.11 |
| other |
9 | 0.99 |
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Do you think that the government is doing enough to fight drugs? What else could be done?
There's no easy answer to this question, so we were very impressed by your thoughtful responses. Most agreed that governments aren't doing enough, but had different opinions about how to improve things. Some were rather pessimistic ("No. Nothing can be done. Drugs will never be put out of this country or any other country. Ever") while others were determined to take action themselves ("The government should have a crack-down on selling drugs and cigarettes to minors. A shop near me sells fags to 13 year olds, and they fully know how old the girls are. I think it's ridiculous and I'm going to report them"). Some suggested that all drugs be banned while others went in the complete opposite direction by saying that drugs should be legalized. We don't know what the right answer is--or if there even is one--but after reading your responses, we have hope that your generation will find a way to make the situation better.
~They should stop trying to use morals and values to fight drugs. Make programs available for those who want to quit and the resources to help people use drugs safely. And they need to focus more on harder drugs instead of marijuana. Also, they need to get information out on alcohol and that it IS a drug.
~No, not really. But whatever they do, drug users don't take it seriously. I say the government should check cars, schools and other public places for drug users and dealers.
~Yeah, they are doing well. They need to look at hard drugs more rather than focusing on alcohol and nicotine.
~No, I don't think they are doing a good enough job. You can still easily buy cigarettes and alcohol quite easily. If it's so bad, then why don't they just ban it completely instead of trying to prevent the use of it?
~Well, at my school they used to have lockers, but they took them out because people were hiding drugs and alcohol in them. Now everyone's backpacks have to be searched twice a month. I think this is a very good idea because it encourages kids not to bring drugs to school.
~The government is doing a good job of preventing drug use. Now, it's up to the person whether or not to use them.
~I don't because the government needs to hire more officers who do stuff because where I live, I have seen kids use drugs and smoke and I tried both of those because I wanted to fit in. Okay so back on that topic you were asking about, I think the government should have a drug prevention program in each school and after I take this survey I am going to the school committee and talking to them about having a drug prevention program because I guess the government can do that.
~No I'm 13 and know several drug dealers because they're my cousins. So what does that tell you about our great country? The police in my town know about them, but are too lazy to deal with the paperwork!!!
~No, but fighting against drugs is pointless. The more you fight, the more teenagers are going to use drugs as an outlet to rebel. I'm not siding with the argument that drugs should be legalized but I don't think cracking down on them anymore will really help.
~I think that it should completely ban smoking and have restrictions on alcohol. I have had alcohol a few times, but thanks to my friend, I'm not having it again. Nicotine is a drug, and is dangerous, and should be made illegal; except the petty government doesn't want to lose money. Idiots!
~I think that if people who have had bad experiences with drugs and their effects came in to talk to us at school more, that would be really effective. This happened at my last school and it really hit the message home.
~Ummm....I don't really know what they are doing, so how do I know if it's enough?
~I'm not really sure. So many innocent people, innocent aside from the fact that they use drugs, are arrested and it's probably a hassle trying to take care of all those people. But I think people should use drugs on their own terms. I think people would learn better by really seeing what drugs can do to them than by just seeing Public Service Announcements.
~No, but there is not a lot else they can do! Our society is going only into a bottomless pit. There are probably 5th graders doing drugs by now.
~I don't think anything else should be done. I believe that taking drugs is a personal choice and therefore they shouldn't be illegal. The government should make sure schools teach children about the dangers of drugs and put an age limit on them, but other than that, they should not interfere. The government should not be able to tell you what to put into your own body.
~I'm not up-to-date with government actions so I don't know what they're doing about drug use--if anything. But, I would be careful about who my friends are, never leave my drink unattended at a party and I would tell myself that drugs are just a false feeling of security, comfort or happiness. They damage more than they help people. However, drugs are effective and necessary in legal medical procedures and treatments. They do not cure loneliness, depression (unless prescribed by a physician), sadness or other emotional difficulties (unless prescribed by a physician).
~I think they should legalize marijuana because 1) it can be used for medicinal purposes 2) there would be no need for illegal grow-ops 3) the police can spend their time catching rapists and murders instead of kids having a good time and 4) the weed would be clean (i.e. no hidden mixes of hash).
~Drugs aren't really the main issue out there today. At my school, we learn all about drugs in health class and special programs. I already know I will never, ever use drugs - I've seen horrific changes people go through in health class. Not everyone is aware of this, however. Spreading awareness is always good, throughout the media especially.
~I think that no matter what they do, drugs will not go away. There will always be homemade drugs.
~No. Here in Malta, the problem is that alcohol is sold to anyone although it's not allowed to teens under 18 years of age. If I go and ask for a bottle of beer or anything which is alcoholic, bars give me cigarettes also!! I think those barmen who are found selling alcohol to teens under age must be given a huge fine because we are the future generation and if nothing is done to prevent an alcoholic and drug addicted generation, we'll be ruined!
~I don't think that the government is doing enough to fight drugs. The governments around the world could work together to ban the chemicals and plants used to make drugs.
~They do too much. The government should be concentrating not on the drugs themselves, but on the bankers and corrupt businessmen who provide and launder drug funds.
~No, they are letting tobacco companies and drug companies put commercials on TV encouraging drug use even though they have some commercials discouraging the use.
~I don't know, but they do hardly anything!
~NO. The government isn't doing anything. They aren't watching out for careless parents who don't even notice what kids are doing these days. Our government is horrible at prohibiting drug use.
~I think the more they make them illegal and talk about the dangers, the more people want to try them 'cause teens want to try stuff. I think they should set up more rehabilitation centres and ways to help people get off drugs. If they use campaigns showing druggies who are ruined--already teenagers like us, that would have a bigger effect.
~Legalize drugs, and have them government-regulated. That way if you DO use drugs, you're getting safe stuff. The thing is that if someone wants to get drugs, they will. Why not make sure that what they're getting into is as safe as it can be? (Plus, more government revenue....)
~The government can't really help us to stop using drugs. Some kids do it just to disobey their parents so they won't care if the government says not to. Personally, about 80%of the commercials make me want to do drugs/smoke. There are some commercials that make not want to, though like "I Am My Anti-Drug." The best way not to do drugs is to have parents that are there for you, that don't try to make you not do drugs but tell you that "it's your life but you shouldn't do that." And if you do, they'll still love you.
~The government should try and help people on the streets. Help them get off drugs and back to healthy lives. But I also think that we, as a community, need to fight drug use. The government states the obvious; that drugs are bad for you. But now it's up to us, the people. We need to say "no" to drugs. WE need to make them unpopular.
~No. Bush needs to start a department against drugs and smoking. Do you know that 1 in 3 kids who smokes dies prematurely? That, not trips to Texas, is what he should be focusing on.
~No, I don't think people know or care what they are doing right now. People don't take the time to research a drug before they give in to peer pressure and do it. I think it needs to be less of a hush-hush topic and more open in schools and homes. If people are always told not to talk about drugs or don't know about them, they like the rebelliousness of it. When it is openly discussed, people aren't as tempted I think.
~I don't think enough can ever be done. People need to recognize drugs and alcohol for the monsters that they are. When my state was voting whether or not to legalize marijuana, there was a story in the paper saying a teenager had murdered his stepmother. Afterward, he told the police that he was "too stoned" on marijuana to remember anything. And some people wanted to legalize it!
~I don't think the Australian government is doing enough to fight drugs. I think there should be more drugs talks in schools and a better emphasis on education.
~No, I do not think the government is doing enough to fight drugs because to this day plenty of people in my family are using drugs and are getting really sick. I am scared that someone I really care about will end up dieing from an overdose of drugs. The government should care more about this issue.
~There are a lot of examples itself in our country. I think that the government has done a great job. It has advertisements on the consequences of taking drugs. They also should have talks on drugs and what will happen if they were caught by the authorities.
~I think kids will try drugs no matter what as it is part of their rebellion because the country, as a whole, has such relaxed morals now that children are allowed the chance to make such decisions as whether to take drugs or not. These opportunities weren't present when my parents were children.
~I think that the ads that they put out are stupid because all the people who use drugs are just out there getting stoned and not bothering to watch TV. If you want to get the druggies to stop getting totally wasted, then use examples. Show examples of people who died from drug use. Show what it can do to you. If you have to, then get graphic because drug use is a much bigger problem than we think!
~Ultimately it's about personal freedom. People should be allowed to do what they want as long as they aren't harming anyone else. If someone wants to use drugs, it isn't really a problem unless they are harming others by doing so. I think secondhand smoke does more harm than having someone around you using cocaine. I wouldn't have a problem with the decriminalization of marijuana. It doesn't make sense to me that people can use alcohol and smoke cigarettes and doing so is legal but smoking marijuana is illegal. There are no benefits from smoking cigarettes. There are benefits from smoking marijuana and studies have shown that it can be of medicinal benefit. I don't see smoking a joint all that differently from drinking a few beers.
~I think they need to get through to younger people that you are who you are and drugs aren't going to make you any different, so what if cool people like you for a bit? The novelty will soon wear off once they get caught by the police. Drugs don't help you in any way. If anything, they make you look pathetic and stupid.
~I wish there was a way to make people realize that drugs don't solve problems, they only make things worse. Drugs will not make you a better athlete, a better student, a better son/daughter, a better friend, or a better person. They cause fights, abuse, crying, pain, loneliness, and death. People need to realize that drugs cause a bad situation to become worse. The government is doing a lot to try to get that message across as well as cracking down on drug dealers, but people still do it. They don't care if they're screwing up their lives or hurting the people close to them. The government can't do anything about its citizens' stupid actions, but they can do something about the ignorance about drug use. In school, drugs are talked about so much already that they couldn't talk about it anymore if they tried. The only thing I think the government could do is crack down on the negative influences of music and television that glamorizes drugs. Rappers rap about drinking all night and smoking crack while 12 year old girls from the suburbs listen and buy their CDs. Millions of people worship drug abusers in the music industry only because that is what's "hot." The government should do something about THAT, rather than contradicting themselves by putting an anti-drug commercial after a 50 Cent music video.
~I don't f****** care. My life is s*** and drugs make it worse but it puts you on a high and I can't screw myself up anymore so why try and get better?
~No, they are not. They have a no-drug rule for students at most schools and most of the time you have teachers that are doing it in the room and giving it out. If they could step up, be the adults, wake up, and look around, there is a lot that can be done.
~No, they are not doing all that they CAN do but they are doing an O.K. job. I have D.A.R.E at my school, you know, D.A.R.E to resist drugs and violence and they do their job, but they could do better. But I strongly disagree on advertising beer commercials on television. It is NOT a very good example for little children, or for even grown-ups! Drugs are what are messing up the United States and Canada, today!
~No, but I don't know how much more they can do. I mean they're already illegal and it's not stopping the use of them. I think maybe harsher punishment for users that are caught. But the thing is, not every user is caught.
~I think that the drug prevention program where I am is very minimal. We had it like 2 or 3 different days in middle school and that was it. I think that since the government isn't doing enough, I have to make up that lack. I and one of my friends who recently quit try to get other people we know who still do drugs to stop. The anti-drug campaign is really effective, but I don't think that it actually reaches the people who do drugs.
~I don't think the government is doing enough to fight drugs. I think they need better enforcement of the drug laws and that the drug laws for everyone should be the same. I think they should really stress the rehabilitation of drug abusers and focus less on the jail time or fines.
~I think that the government does not have too much control over drugs because even if they are against the law, people will still go against the law and sell them and use them. There is not really any way for the government to help stop the use of drugs, but I think that they could spend a little bit of money on teaching kids what it will do to you. If kids learn to say no to drugs when they are very young, they will probably stay like that all of their lives.
~More punishment for drug users, target areas with a lot of drug use and patrol them. Provide more ready and easy information about drugs (not pamphlets, drug users won't read them...something they would see and care about), survey specific areas.
~I think they are doing alright. But sometimes they make them sound more good than bad. They make them sound curious and like you want to try them just to see what they are like
~No, they need to tell us that drugs are bad. Which they do, but then they stop there. They don't tell us why. It's like putting a treat in front of a dog and telling him not to eat. It takes a very obedient dog to listen to that. Also, the government doesn't give enough help to people using drugs who want to quit. Also, drugs are like the only industry in Colombia. The U.N. needs to find a replacement for cocaine, otherwise, like any other industry, the drug community will grow. Tell me not to use drugs all you want, but please tell me why. Teenagers are normal human beings who only want respect and answers. Our generation has the power to stop this epidemic, but we need everyone's help. Please help us!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~No. I think cigarettes should be classed as a drug because they have very similar effects. There should be more awareness and more people, instead of looking down their noses at people who take drugs, should try and help.
~I think that the government should completely ban drugs from our country. How do people expect other people to stop using drugs when this world won't put an end to it? It's only putting the lives of people in danger. I think that people need to stop giving in just to look cool in front of their friends. It's destroying their bodies!
~No, they have these really dorky ads discouraging drugs that make using drugs look even more cool because not using them looks dorky and kid-ish on ads meant to discourage them.
~No. I don't think that they are doing enough to better the community of drug abusing teens, including me. Because, personally, I use them more because I know that there is a very low risk that I'm not going to get caught. I think that if the community had more things for teens to do there would be a lower percentage of us doing such drugs.
~No and nothing should be done. It's the person's own fault if they f*** up their life by using drugs. It was their bad choice, so why should everybody else be affected by it?
~You can't do anything about them. If a person gets high because of taking a drug, it's their own fault. We shouldn't make their choices. They live their own life, and as you can see, they chose to kill themselves by doing drugs. All I can say is that, it's our fault (if we take drugs), or the person that takes drugs, because, once you've taken even a small amount, you can't go back and say "I don't take drugs."
~I think that all kids know and groan at the phrase "Don't ever do drugs", but so many of them do because I think that we are not explaining why we shouldn't. One of my schoolteachers told us not to do them and why and now I won't do them again because I am an exercise type and why would I want drugs in my life when I have that? I have learned from my experience that drugs are not cool, nor do they make you feel good. Nothing good can come from them except for maybe a couple hours of feeling good. So don't ever "just try them" to see what they're like. To answer your question, the government needs to explain to kids my age and teens that drugs are dangerous and that they can kill you if you use them once even to "just try them". Don't ever do them!!!!
~Yes, because they have strong punishmentsmaybe too strong, though, because you can get more years for doing drugs then if you rape someone, which is kind of backwards.
~No, I do not. I know that if they set a ban on drugs, it would not help because people could still gain access to drugs through smuggling, foreign travel, private stores of drugs and other ways. As we have also seen from the past, with prohibition of alcohol, a ban would not last long and people could still find a way to use the banned substances. I think that the way to help fight drugs is to have some effective programs that teach people the dangers of drugs, and really get the point across. They should find a way to simulate the effects of drugs and use that to teach people how drugs can really harm you. I think that people are more easily convinced about something when they actually see it, not just when they hear about it.
~Yes, the government has done enough to fight drugs. In my opinion, the programs do little. Maybe even encourage drugs. There is not much the government can do to stop drugs.
~They could be a little smarter in catching someone. I even know cops who do drugs.
~I think the government is doing the best they can to fight drugs. I do not know what else they could do.
~They're doing all they can. It's up to the people to fight them, not the government.
~No. The Chinese Government isn't doing anything and I think they should even if it's just one measly poster or commercial.
~I believe that there will never be a way to stop drug abuse, short of following everyone with a video camera every single moment of every single day. However, people could make alcohol and cigarettes harder to get (i.e. sell less of the products). Also, TV commercials that "gross people out" turn them off to drugs, alcohol, and smoking as far as I've seen.
~For a start, every town in every state should have a drug/tobacco prevention agency that also helps mentally ill, depressed, or crazy people. There should also be absolutely ZERO drugs on display in stores (i.e. no cigarette posters, no pills on the counters, etc.).
~I strongly agree. Most commercials for teens talk about drugs and how it affects family. I think they could improve it by having rappers talk about the situation. Because most songs are about getting high and how it makes them feel so good. They should be rapping about positive things.
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with us!
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are not scientific because the pollsters cannot randomly select the
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