WE'RE SUCKERS FOR WAR ON DRUGS

I'm writing about Bill Richardson's outstanding column: "What about
all the other drugs? (Opinion 2, April 18). The so-called war on
drugs is a huge industry and huge bureaucracy.

Victory in the drug war is not possible, nor is it the goal. Victory
in the drug war would mean that the drug war industry and bureaucracy
are out of business. There are basically two types of people who
support the so-called war on drugs:

* Those who make their livelihood from it. This includes politicians
and bureaucrats who are probably on the payroll of the drug cartels.
Al Capone had hundreds of politicians and prohibition officials on his payroll.

* And suckers -- taxpayers who have bought into the lies and
propaganda of the drug-war industry and bureaucracy. Suckers -- who
are willing to deny liberty and freedom to others but think that
their own liberty and freedom will never be in jeopardy. Suckers --
who believe that criminalizing a substance will make it go away.
Suckers -- who think that drug prohibition somehow protects children.

Suckers -- who think that giving criminals control of dangerous drugs
somehow protects children and our society.

Suckers -- who think that they live in a free country even though the
United States is the most incarcerated nation in the history of human
civilization.

KIRK MUSE

MESA