NEW EFFORT NEEDED TO COMBAT ILLICIT DRUGS

Think America is winning the war against drugs? Think again -- and
this time forget the rhetoric.

Simply look at the price list. A scarcity of drugs produces high
prices all the way through the pipeline and on the street. More than
enough drugs result in lower prices. In America, the prices of cocaine
and heroin have fallen to record lows and the drugs remain widely --
and easily -- available, federal officials report. Ironically, the low
prices and easy availability are being reported at the same time that
the White House drug control policy director is insisting that
progress is being made against drug use in the United States.
Appearing before a House Appropriations subcommittee, policy director
Barry McCaffrey had a hard time making things connect. For example, he
told lawmakers that drug use and drug-related crime among young people
declined during the past year.

Then he said that heroin has become more popular among young people
and says methamphetamines have a ``serious potential nationally to
become the next 'crack' cocaine epidemic.'' ...

The report estimated that there were 454 metric tons of cocaine
shipped to the United States in 1998, up from 396 metric tons a year
earlier. A metric ton is 2,205 pounds. Marijuana remained the most
readily available illegal drug. Prices ranged from $400 to $1,000 per
pound in the Southwest to between $700 and $2,000 per pound in the
Midwest and Northeast. ... McCaffrey issued a grim warning about a
fairly new illicit drug. Methamphetamine is ``one of the most
dangerous substances America has ever confronted,'' he said. The
report estimated that 4.7 million people in the U.S. have tried this
drug and its use is spreading. ... Short of rhetoric, this report
becomes almost a cry for help. Illicit drug use has become the single
most destructive force in this country's history.

The way we have tried to deal with this problem hasn't worked. It
isn't working now.

There will have to be a new way, a new effort.