DAUGHTER OF PRIVILEGE?

It happened again. Yet another of the offspring within the Bush
family, the daughter of our governor this time, has been arrested
(Nation/World, Jan 30). Noelle Bush, age 24, was arrested for trying
to obtain prescription drugs fraudulently by posing as a doctor over
the phone. She was arrested when she went to pick up the prescription.

Interestingly, she was released after a very short period with
absolutely no bond. It must be quite a privilege to be a Bush
offspring. It comes with your own ``get out of jail free'' card.
Seems many Floridians would like to be adopted by the Bush family
with privileges like that.(

David Gaskins Clearwater

DRUG PROGRAMS

While it's unfortunate that the Bush family is experiencing the pain
of having a loved one addicted to drugs, I wonder how quickly Gov.
Bush would act to eliminate the drug programs in prisons, which have
proved their effectiveness for many people, if his daughter were at
the mercy of the court system. Should Noelle be processed through the
``system,'' she would be presented to drug court and then sentenced
to a program that would deal with her addiction. The problem is, the
program would have a waiting list and entry would be many months
away. What better luck! Infinity Software Development - which was
recently awarded an $8 million contract with the state - will be more
than happy, in the spirit of empathy, to hold her job for her! Now
that doesn't happen for the regular schmo out there looking for work.
I'm sure there are no displaced state workers in all of Tallahassee
looking for a job - any job.

Diane M. Drake, Temple Terrace

COPING WITH PILLS

My sympathy goes out to Gov. Jeb Bush and his family because of the
recent incident with his daughter. All the news reports mentioned how
many young people are now taking prescription drugs illegally. I
wonder how much TV and radio advertising by the drug companies has
influenced the way we look at using pills to cope with the ups and
downs of everyday life. According to the commercials, you should take
a pill to calm yourself down, lift your spirits or put yourself to
sleep. The message is that instead of learning to deal with common
stress and moods, we should medicate ourselves. Some ads don't even
tell you what the medication is for, just that you may need it.

Children don't need to be taught that there is a quick fix for
everything or that dulling your senses and numbing your feelings is
an appropriate way to handle ordinary problems. Since medications are
such a serious issue, they should be confined to doctors and patients
and not broadcast between sitcoms. The side effects that they are
required to mention should scare anyone away from taking them anyway.(

Laura Brinckerhoff, Riverview