END DRUG WAR

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- This is in response to "Drug war nets smaller
fish in city, At Daley's behest, U.S. shifts strategy in fight with
pushers" (Page 1, Feb. 25). This article exposed Mayor Richard M.
Daley's personal political motives for demanding a federal effort to
boost drug-arrest numbers. It is a window into what the drug war is
really all about: pushing personal careers and prejudice at the
expense of sound public policy.

We have just seen how a politically connected drug dealer convicted
of transporting 800 pounds of cocaine (for processing into crack)
bought a pardon from the Clinton administration while the small fry
in the case continue to languish in prison. Now we see the same
principle at work in order to pad arrest numbers in Chicago. The drug
war is a base evil that continually reveals itself to be a cancer in
our democracy. End it.