THE WAY OUT

Moral Indignation Isn't A "War On Drugs"

Money matters. A poor wino drinks rotgut. A rich one drinks whatever
he pleases, in the comfort of his home, far from the averted eyes of
the public and the prying eyes of police and statisticians.

In Newfoundland, parents and law officers are distressed about the
popularity of gasoline-sniffing among teen-agers seeking a high
that's likely to remain cheap no matter what OPEC does.

They should be concerned.

So should we.

Gasoline-sniffing and its even more bizarre cousin, exhaust-sniffing,
are not unheard-of in this part of North America, either. It has much
to do with cost and availability, and very little to do with
geography.

Gasoline fumes aren't likely to become the drug of choice in a
society permeated with nominally 'controlled' substances such as
alcohol and so-called designer drugs. The issue, however, remains the
same. Do we respond by recoiling in disgust? Do we dump more and more
and more youthful users onto the prison system and the hospitals? Or
do we tenaciously cite the risks, promote and fund healthy
alternatives to substance abuse and provide avenues to recovery?

The rational answer is the same -- on both sides of the border.