REGULATION REQUIRED

Naperville Police Sgt. Ray McGury is right to be concerned that kids
are getting more dangerous drugs that are sold as ecstasy. Just as
during Prohibition, lives are being lost to dangerous substances
because of the shortsighted morality of prohibitionists. Drugs always
have been and always will be a part of human culture. It's essential
that we treat the situation realistically and create policies that
increase the safety of the substances people use.

Alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than most prohibited
substances, but at least we have access to these substances in known
purity and dosage, and make treatment available to those who have a
problem with them. It is not only counterproductive but also very
dangerous to push substances underground and stigmatize users and
abusers as criminals rather than what they are: ordinary people who
choose different drugs from the mainstream.

Jeff Flanagan, Hinsdale