FUNGUS AMONG US

Another Bad Anti-Drug Plan

The United States keeps coming up with strange ways to spend money to
fight the drug problem in Colombia. The latest is to infest the coca
plants and poppies -- the raw materials for cocaine and heroin -- with
a deadly fungus.

This latest idea -- along with others that include spending $1.3
billion for helicopters and anti-drug training programs -- only
diverts attention from the real problem: illegal drug consumption in
the United States.

No matter how many helicopters, anti-drug commandoes or weird fungi
the United States sics on Colombia, the coca and poppy farmers will
find a way to grow them because that is where the money is. Poor
farmers in South America are more concerned with making a living. If
they are burned out one place, they will move to another. If a fungus
kills their crop, they will find a plant that is resistant to the fungus.

Already the environmental effects of the fungus, Fusarium oxysporum,
have concerned environmentalists and many scientists. Even Colombian
government officials have expressed concern over its effects on the
land and people.

But all in all, the fungus attack is merely a bad idea. The only way
to stop the flow of illegal drugs into this country is to reduce the
demand.

The fungus funds would be better spent on prevention, treatment and
rehabilitation programs in the United States. Reduce the demand and
the coca and poppy farmers in Colombia will find another way to make a
living -- maybe a legal one. But forget the fungus.