HARSH DRUG LAWS COMPOUND PROBLEMS

Editor, Times-Dispatch: Regarding Richmond police official Evelyn
McGill's letter, "Poor Lifestyle Choices Damage Innocents":

Drug laws are not a lifestyle choice for young parents. They are one
for politicians. The illegal drug market is a result of unsuccessful
laws prohibiting things that are apparently irresistible.

Popular legal drugs such as coffee, chocolate, alcohol, and tobacco
are traded without incident. Drugs may be a bad lifestyle option for
many, but in no way do legal substances contribute to the number of
murders, as does a black market. By its very nature, the market for
an unlawful substance is lawless. Our leaders have abdicated
responsibility in this area rather than leading our culture to a
policy that properly regulates and restricts access to drugs.

The image of an innocent child left behind by a parent is more likely
to be the offspring of a prisoner. Nowhere on Earth are so many
fathers and mothers sent to jail. This is not to detract from the
children of murder victims, but to shed light on all the segments of
our society who bear some of the responsibility. We vote for
representatives who pander to us by promising to save us from the
dangers of illegal drugs while in fact multiplying the harms wrought
by them.

It is a quick fix for the political dilettantes of our day to be
tough on drugs. Just look at the current campaigns. Libertarian Gary
Reams, candidate for Lieutenant Governor, is the exception that
proves the rule. He says if you want reform of marijuana laws vote
for him - and I will.

Lennice Werth