FIGHT DRUG WAR AT HOME, TOO

Drug traffickers in Colombia supply 90% of the cocaine and most of the
heroin that enters the United States. That means Americans have a
legitimate - make that urgent - interest in seeing that these traffickers
are put out of business. But is a huge package of military aid to the
Colombian government the most effective way to achieve that objective?

Congress and the administration apparently think so, which is why they have
backed a $1.3 billion military aid program. It's part of a larger effort,
joined by Europeans and international agencies, to destroy drug crops, root
out traffickers and rebuild the Colombian criminal justice system.

There is no doubt that things such as crop eradication have an essential
place in the war against drugs. But even if every Colombian drug kingpin
could be put out of business tomorrow, the narcotics trade would not be
eliminated for long. As long as drug users are ready, willing and able to
pay, somebody will be ready to supply it - if not in Colombia, then
somewhere else.

By far, the best way to destroy the drug cartel is to destroy - or at least
limit - the demand for its products. When people don't want drugs, there is
no incentive to produce them. Military aid to fight drug trafficking has its
place, but we wish some of that $1.3 billion could have been diverted to
drug treatment and drug education programs here in the U.S.