No wonder everyone wants it

Via Slog and Rolling Stone, what the Keystone Pipeline will bring to America:

Despite all the money in town – or maybe because of it – Fort McMurray has plenty of problems. Figures from 2007 show the city had 215 percent more drug offences, 117 percent more impaired drivers, and 89 percent more assaults than the provincial average. I've seen enough during my short time here to know that booze, blow and bar fights remain common. It's easy to spot the company trucks as they sit in parking lots outside bars for hours every night; I wasn't on the job for a full week before my first coworker was fired for alleged DWI.

Most people go out to bullshit, drink beer and watch hockey – but the combination of alcohol and amped-up testosterone can be toxic. Some of the younger guys (and, yes, a few of the older ones, too) like to fight, so bumping into the wrong person or looking at someone the wrong way can be all it takes to send fists flying.

Cocaine isn't hard to find – all you have to do is walk into a bar and ask, "Where I can get some coke?" and someone will likely have the answer. There's no need to whisper in this town; you might as well be asking "Where's the rest room?" or "Who's playing tonight?"

You don't even need to go inside to get your fix. Drugs are readily available on the sidewalk at one rather notorious convenience store, and dealers sit in their vehicles outside grocery stores and tire shops in the middle of the afternoon.

Most oil sands jobs require pre-employment drug testing, so detox kits are readily available for those who need to, you know, study for the test. But every oil company has a different policy: Some let you use previous test results if you're coming directly from another job, while others are more diligent, and insist new hires take a fresh one. You're essentially good to go (and free to do whatever you want in the little time you have off) after your initial test, unless your employer requires re-tests every so often. I myself never did take a drug test, but I was one of the few who managed to slip through the cracks.