TUESDAY, A NEW TOOL TO COMBAT ECSTASY EPIDEMIC

When Michelle C. was 15 years old, she discovered something that made
her feel great for a few hours. When she took Ecstasy, Michelle had no
inhibitions. She was never scared or embarrassed to do anything. She had
none of the uneasy moments that usually
punctuate adolescence.

She also, it turned out, had no control. She wanted to feel that way all
the time. She began to steal from her parents and cut classes to get
high.

More than a year and a half later, Michelle is in recovery. She is
learning about self-respect and about how to feel good about herself
without taking drugs.

Michelle is lucky. She got help. But many young people don't. They hurt
themselves, their families and, eventually, their futures. Too often,
they end their futures.

Beginning Tuesday, those young people may have one more law in place to
protect them. Starting on that date, drug smugglers banking on the
Ecstasy of easy money will risk the agony of long-term incarceration.

In March, the United States Sentencing Commission enhanced penalties for
crimes involving Ecstasy and other club drugs. This long-overdue move
was mandated by last year's Ecstasy Anti-Proliferation Act, which I
introduced after learning about the deaths of several young Floridians
who had taken the drug.

This was a crucial move against what has become a deadly epidemic across
the country. But the battle literally for the hearts and minds of
America's young people is far from over. The most intransigent enemy is
the persistent myth that Ecstasy is safe.

Ecstasy abuse has skyrocketed since it was added to the list of Schedule
I controlled substances in 1985. Use has doubled since 1995, according
to a survey by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. Ecstasy seizures
by U.S. Customs officials have increased 430 percent since 1997.

Research has linked Ecstasy to brain damage and depression, heart attack
and stroke.

Until now, federal sentencing guidelines for Ecstasy were hopelessly
outdated. As a result, Ecstasy has been a very valuable commodity for
smugglers.

Production costs and the risk of long-term incarceration were low, while
retail prices are high.

Every drug is compared to marijuana. Under the old sentencing guidelines
one gram of Ecstasy was equivalent to only 35 grams of marijuana; while,
one gram of methamphetamine was equivalent to two kilograms of
marijuana. A recent Customs Service operation seized nearly 650,000
Ecstasy tablets with an estimated street value of $19.5 million.

The new, tougher sentencing guidelines, which go into effect on Tuesday,
nearly triple penalties for Ecstasy-related crimes. The new guidelines
are aimed at punishing profiteers, not young people who make a bad
choice. Overall, the new guidelines boost the average penalty for
Ecstasy trafficking from 25 months to 60 months. In the past, possession
of 800 Ecstasy pills carried an 18-month sentence. The new guidelines
increase that to five years. The Sentencing Commission did an exemplary
job crafting a punishment to fit the crime.

The second part of the battle is to reach those people, many of them
young teenagers, and get them the information they need to make healthy
choices about what they put into their bodies.

Last year, we took a major step. The Ecstasy Anti-Proliferation Act
authorized $10 million for grants and programs to educate Americans
about the dangers of Ecstasy use. This year our challenge is ensuring
that money is actually appropriated and gets to the agencies and
organizations that are best equipped to reach those at risk for Ecstasy
use.

This won't be easy. It will take coordination between parents and law
enforcement. It will take hard work, and it will take constant vigilance
to make the reality of drug use as pervasive as the myth. Young people
are learning about Ecstasy from a highly influential group -- their
peers. At a recent hearing on the Ecstasy epidemic, members of the
Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control heard from several
young people who are in recovery after sliding into dependence on
Ecstasy. They learned about the drug from friends, who told them it
would make them feel good. No one told them it could kill.

The Internet is rife with chat rooms in which teens swap glowing stories
about their Ecstasy experiences and assure each other it's perfectly
safe.

We can't stop young people from communicating with each other, nor do we
want to. But we can add several pounds of truth to what they know about
Ecstasy.