PROXY DRUG WAR

Few Americans can be pleased that President Clinton, besides spending
billions in taxpayer money on frivolous goodwill jaunts oversees, with
entourages reaching into the hundreds, just gave $1.3 billion to Colombia.

Colombia is one of our Southern neighbors which keeps its economy
afloat by exporting unlawful drugs to the U.S. The U.S. money is
supposed to be used to fight narco-terrorists and clean up Colombian
government corruption.

Many critics of the program say, with some justification, that Clinton
is pouring good money after bad. The Colombian government, with U.S.
aid, has been battling the drug traffickers for years without any
perceptible results.

Yet Colombia can't be blamed for that. The first rule of capitalism is
if there's a demand, someone will fill it. Colombia's coca farmers and
cocaine distributors are only responding to Americans' demand for
illegal drugs.

Before we rant against giving Colombia billions to fight the narco
trade, we ought to realize that if there were no demand for drugs in
this country there'd be no call to send billions to the Colombian
government - which is actually a proxy fighting a bloody narco war
there that might otherwise be fought here.