Monies 'Wasted' On DARE Program

Although I am not a resident, I like Lake Tahoe and plan to visit in July. I
have been reading about the Kubby trial and the Placer County drug warriors.
I just have to comment on the ignorance of those that support the DARE
program.

Study after study shows this program, based on outright lies and half
truths, does more harm than good. Like the drug war itself, DARE is a
money-making machine for the drug bureaucrats and whether the results are
good or bad is irrelevant.

If the money wasted on DARE was used to honestly educate young people or to
provide some basic treatment programs (not jails), the money would be well
spent. DARE is like any well-entrenched, corrupt bureaucracy, they refuse to
openly debate their practices and demonize those that dare to challenge
their scam.

Dan Scupin, Destin, Fla.

DARE Program Misses The Point?

The article "DARE celebrates 10 years at KB" in the May 4 edition of the
Tahoe World implies that DARE isn't as effective as it should be. Educating
children about drugs should really be part of their biology and chemistry
lessons. Law enforcement sees a small part of the picture of drug use.

In the article, Deputy Russ Potts said, "When we're out there, we deal with
problems that are 80 to 90 percent alcohol and drug related." These problems
are related to emotional illness. Alcohol and drug abuse is a symptom of
emotional problems.

Oversimplifying the issues doesn't help children deal with their emotions.
Adults use drugs for medical reasons all the time. Telling children to
snitch on their parents if they use certain medicines isn't right.

Arthur Livermore, director, Falcon Cove Biology Laboratory, Arch Cape, Ore.

DARE Is A 'Failure,' Says Reader

I was shocked and disappointed to read that anyone is celebrating DARE after
all the damage it has done to young people ("DARE celebrates 10 years at KB"
in the May 4 Tahoe World).

Studies on DARE consistently show it is a failure. So dismal is the DARE
record, the U.S. Department of Education refuses to include DARE on its list
of programs whose effectiveness is proven.

Not only is DARE a failure, it is an expensive failure. The real cost of
DARE is hidden from the public. DARE costs about $5 a student, which covers
each 5th grader's DARE workbook, T-shirt and ruler. But police time adds
another $20-$50 per student, depending on the department and the number of
classes. Nationally, DARE officers are paid twice as much as teachers, for a
job that requires far less education - or risk.

DARE also takes up valuable students' time, which may even be an even bigger
reason to junk DARE. Fifth- and sixth-graders need math, science and
reading. While they might need the skills to resist drugs, they don't need a
program shown to have no lasting effect on drug use.

As precious as class time is in a 180-day school year, pulling students out
of math to listen to DARE officers hardly makes sense.

Steve Kubby, Olympic Valley, Ca.