BETTER DRUG EDUCATION

The Dec. 10 Fence Post question concerning drug testing of high
school students provides ample food for thought about the state of
our educational system.

The problem of drugs in school has not been solved by the "war on
drugs" and "just say no" campaigns. Mandatory testing clearly
violates the Bill of Rights and would be very difficult to reconcile
with lessons pertaining to that document. Yet, voluntary testing
opens up a new can of worms - that of being considered guilty simply
by virtue of refusing the test. What hasn't been explored nearly
enough are methods currently used to educate kids on drugs and
alcohol. Various programs have taken the tack that the "scared
straight" method is the best way to go - paint a picture so horrible
of the consequences that kids will be too scared to try drugs. This
works until a kid reaches the age of 12 or 13 and observes for
himself that, contrary to what he was led to believe, people don't
necessarily die or become totally debilitated as result of drug use -
at least not right away. So he begins to feel he was lied to.

A better solution is to really give them the truth about drugs, which
is what a program called Narconon does. Supported by the Church of
Scientology and based on drug rehabilitation technology developed by
L. Ron Hubbard, Narconon drug education programs discourage use by
telling the truth about the long- and short-term effect of drugs on
the mind, and by showing the mechanics of how those effects occur.
The program also goes into exactly what drugs are made of and how
they are developed. Have you ever looked at the fact that alcohol is
actually a byproduct of rotten food?

I believe in validating kids for their ability to recognize the truth
when they hear it. Our job is to make that truth available to them.
More information on Narconon drug education can be found on the
Internet at www.narconon.org.

Susan Strozewski

Church of Scientology

Chicago