DON'T LEGALIZE DRUGS

Kirk Muse (in his April 28 letter, "License illegal drugs,") wants us
to believe that all of today's drug problems stem from a 1914 law
making certain psychoactive and addictive drugs illegal. So? What's
the point? As society changes, so do laws.

Mind-altering and addictive drugs are a huge problem, not because
they are illegal but because many are dangerous and users create
enormous social problems.

The United States has only about 5 percent of the world's population
but our citizens consume more than 60 percent of the world's supply
of illicit drugs. Most of the people in our prisons today committed
crimes while under the influence of drugs, and most of these crimes
were crimes of violence.

Muse insists that we are filling our prisons with individuals whose
only crime was drug use. This is blatantly untrue. There are many,
many non-violent crimes for which individuals end up incarcerated ...
think "Martha Stewart," for starters.

Few drug users seek treatment unless it is court-mandated, and
repeated failure is the norm. A high percentage of users are
unemployed or underemployed but their medical needs are far in excess
of the non-drug-using public, which ends up paying the tab.
Reduction, not legalization, is the answer.

Sandra S. Bennett

La Center