WHY SUPPORT THE DRUG TRADE?

Re: Cocaine Indirectly Killed Cpl. Arnal, letter to the editor, July 23.

While letter-writer Douglas Martin's feelings about the death of
Corporal James Arnal may be heartfelt, he clearly knows nothing about
the drug trade. For starters, the Taliban's opium trade supplies
Canadian heroin addicts, not cocaine abusers. Heroin is derived from
opium, cocaine is made from the coca plant.

While I have no fealty for heroin addicts (or "cokeheads"), I'm more
disturbed by Canadian municipalities creating safe injection sites for
heroin addicts. In effect, Canadian governments are supporting the
illicit trade that puts Canadian soldiers in harm's way in
Afghanistan.

Mike Woods

Toronto