SCHOOL DRUG SEARCHES WON'T STOP DRUG ABUSE

To the editor,

Regarding your Dec. 15 editorial:

Rutherford County's police-state approach to substance abuse will make
for an interesting class discussion when the Bill of Rights is
covered, but it won't likely impact rates of drug use. The steady rise
in drug-sniffing dogs in schools, warrantless police searches, and
random drug testing have led to a loss of civil liberties in America,
while failing miserably at preventing drug use.

Based on findings that criminal records are inappropriate as health
interventions and ineffective as deterrents, a majority of European
Union countries have decriminalized marijuana. Despite marijuana
prohibition and perhaps because of forbidden fruit appeal, lifetime
use of marijuana is higher in the United States than any European country.

The drug war threatens the integrity of a country founded on the
concept of limited government. It's not possible to wage a moralistic
war against consensual vices unless privacy is eliminated, along with
the Constitution. The United States now has the highest incarceration
rate in the world, with drug offenses accounting for the majority of
federal incarcerations. America can either be a free country or a
"drug-free" country, but not both.

A comparative analysis of U.S. vs. European rates of drug use can be
found at: http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/espad_pr.pdf

MTF is funded with U.S. government grants United Nations
stats: http://www.unodc.org/unodc/global_illicit_drug_trends.html

Robert Sharpe, MPA

Policy Analyst,

Common Sense for Drug Policy, www.csdp.org

Arlington, Va.