TRUTH IS BEST DEFENSE AGAINST DRUG ABUSE

The July 27 editorial regarding the rise in emergency room visits for drug
abuse certainly underlines the need for more effective drug prevention
education. The question must be asked: Do we have a situation where one
drug of choice is being replaced with another? How do the "pro-drug"
commercials that are seen each day by teenagers fit into the picture? Pills
for depression - pills to stop smoking - pills to control appetites. Then
there are commercials for pills that don't really even state what they are
for - just that you should ask your doctor if it might be right for you.
The message is very clear: Got a problem? Take a pill.

As the chairman for the Drug-Free Marshals anti-drug crusade in the
Midwest, I believe in validating kids for their ability to recognize the
truth when they hear it. But first, they have to be given the truth, which
is just what a program called Narconon does. Supported by the Church of
Scientology and based on the drug rehabilitation technology developed by L.
Ron Hubbard, the Narconon drug education program discourages drug use
simply by telling the truth about the long- and short-term effects of drugs
on the mind, and by going over the mechanics of how these effects occur.

The program also goes into exactly what drugs are made of and how they are
developed. Have you ever looked at the fact that alcohol is actually a
byproduct of rotten food? Give them the truth, and keep it simple - they
will recognize it.

The Rev. Susan Strozewski
Church of Scientology
Chicago