REASONABLE ALTERNATIVES

Rep. Ron Stephens, a Republican from Troy, checked himself into the Betty
Ford Clinic the other day because he was addicted to drugs.

The reaction of his fellow House Republicans has been nothing short of
amazing. They've expressed sincere concern about his well-being, and have
pitched in to make sure his district continues to be served. They
immediately volunteered to carry his legislation and attend his committee
meetings, even though they are already being run ragged by an overloaded
committee schedule. They've proven they are his friends as well as his
colleagues.

Their reaction is even more interesting when you consider how anti-drug the
House Republican caucus is. Some of them are pushing a series of stringent
anti-drug bills this spring. They've even backed a bill that would make it
a crime to post information about marijuana on the Internet.

Rep. Stephens is a pharmacist, and the Department of Professional
Regulation claims that it knew about his problem. It's possible he could
face disciplinary action upon his return.

In the meantime, though, his colleagues' behavior is absolutely correct.
Compassion, empathy and assistance. There's no talk about Stephens being a
"moral failure," as people like conservative nanny Bill Bennett refer to
drug users. There have been no demands for Stephens' imprisonment, or for
his ouster from the House, or for get-tough laws on drug-addicted
pharmacists. Compassion, empathy, assistance.

Perhaps all the members of the General Assembly can learn from this
experience. If Rep. Stephens needs our understanding, then why not other
drug users? If there are no calls for his imprisonment and ouster, no
demands to reduce the rights of everyone in order to punish a minority for
harming themselves, no cynical dismissal of his attempt to seek treatment,
then why impose those failed "solutions" on the rest of the population?

This is the second hard lesson about the War on Drugs that the House
Republicans have experienced in the past few months. Rep. I. Ron Lawfer, a
Republican from Stockton, tried to move legislation that would allow the
University of Illinois to plant a small field of industrial hemp to study
whether Illinois farmers could make money off the crop.

The reaction was swift and fierce. Anti-drug groups and police denounced
the legislation as a step towards legalization of marijuana. The harsh
reaction took Lawfer and his colleagues by surprise. They considered
themselves loyal soldiers in the War on Drugs. But now they were being
equated with a bunch of California hippies.

Industrial hemp has very little THC - the ingredient that makes pot smokers
high. You'd have to smoke a whole field to catch a buzz, but by then you'd
probably be too sick to notice.

"Thousands of years ago, people started selecting hemp for its fiber
production or its drug producing capacity. Over that time, the plant has
evolved to be almost two separate plants. We're obviously most interested
in fiber production and these varieties have almost no drug-related
derivative," said Don Briskin, University of Illinois Professor of plant
physiology. Briskin is the guy who wants to do the U of I hemp research.

The uses for hemp are many and varied. Plastics, fiber, paper and a ton of
other stuff can be manufactured with the product. Put the crop into a
rotation with soybeans and corn and many weeds are strangled out of
existence, plus it can reduce the populations of harmful insects.

The university planned to grow the crop behind two barbed wire-topped
fences. Security would not have been an issue.

Lawfer continued pushing his bill despite the cries of outrage from
anti-drug warriors. The bill fell a few votes short of passage last fall,
but he brought it back to the floor in January and the bill wound up on the
governor's desk.

Governor Ryan vetoed the bill, claiming concern that the legislature didn't
provide enough safeguards. In the meantime, the General Assembly has
learned some valuable lessons, mainly that common sense is a rare commodity
in the War on Drugs these days.

The strident anti-drug lobby would toss Rep. Stephens out on his ear, even
though his colleagues instinctively realize that what he needs right now is
their help and compassion.

And they've seen how the hysteria against drugs can block practical
legislation which could eventually help struggling farmers make ends meet.

Maybe they're finally turning a corner. Most of the energy behind the War
on Drugs comes from an irrational fear of the unknown. The more legislators
see the damage that this fear can do, the more likely it is that they'll
look for reasonable alternatives.

Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter. He
can be reached at www.capitolfax.com.