This is our 5th installment on Celebrities and Drug use. Do you agree with Republican presidential nominee Rick Santorum who thinks that celebrities such as Whitney Houston are "the royalty of America" and set a bad example by their deaths by drug use?
While I have preached for years about how celebrities should not be role models, the fact of the matter is they are. Like it or not, celebrity behavior is scrutinized and followed by far too many.
Chaka Khan
One of Houston’s closest friends was R&B legend Chaka Khan. A frequenter with Houston and her ex-husband, Bobby Brown, Khan’s fondest memories of her pal are getting high.
But Chaka is a success story. Unlike her friend, she was able to get help and has been sober for many years.
With the non-stop coverage of Houston's death and also Michael Jackson's drug overdose death in 2009, it's easy to forget that there are more survival stories than tragedies among celebrity addicts.
Steven Tyler
American Idol judge Steven Tyler is another rock star/celebrity who came close to kicking the bucket due to drugs.
The 63-year-old said that after 40 years, and lots of rehab, they've managed to make it into their 60s; they're still rocking, about to tour the U.S., about to make another album. Maybe age does make some people wiser. He is proud of his sobriety and certainly does not want to model bad behavior anymore.
Two more celebrity success stories for our blog series. Hopefully, these two will remain sober and continue efforts to keep kids off drugs. They might want to start recommending 15 hour drug education classes while they are at it!