CARDED BY YOUR DRUG DEALER?

As graduates of D.A.R.E. drug education in the fifth grade, we each
have the responsibility to give our feedback to politicians and
parents who in turn have the responsibility to better educate their
children.

Since President Bush vetoed the recent children's health insurance
plan, I have to doubt his commitment to children's health.

President Bush continues to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on
D.A.R.E., while both the General Accounting Office of the U.S.
government and the National Academy of Science have determined
D.A.R.E. ineffective. We must overcome our inability to replace
D.A.R.E. with effective, science-based drug education.

I remember being taught that marijuana is a very harmful "gateway
drug" and, if offered, to "Just Say No." Abstinence-only drug
education reduces important necessary discussion to a catch phrase.
Children younger than fifth grade are easily able to Google for the
facts about marijuana and see for themselves that they have been lied
to. Also, drug education must be truthful in their ranking of the
harmfulness of drugs, and our nation's drug policy should reflect
that.

I am normally carded for my age upon entering an ABC store. If
policymakers and parents were serious about keeping marijuana away
from children, they should at least stop trusting black market drug
dealers to check IDs and move to regulate the sale of marijuana.

Kris Reinertson,

senior, political science and sociology