U.S. DRUG LEGALIZATION AN UNNECESSARY SURRENDER

Texas Gov. George W. Bush isn't the only political leader who has leaped
into the debate over drug use in this country.

About 70 miles west of Amarillo, in New Mexico, Gov. Gary Johnson has
entered the fray with both feet, engaging Clinton administration officials
in a discussion over whether the nation's drug policies are working. The
Clinton folks say it is. Johnson says it isn't.

They're both right.

They're both wrong.

Drug czar Barry McCaffrey, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who needs no
lecture on the value of committing resources to battle, has released a
study showing that drug use among young Americans has declined 13 percent
since 1985; moreover, cocaine use has dropped 70 percent during that time.

That proves the nation's battle against illicit drugs is working, says
McCaffrey.

Not so fast, says Johnson.

He counters that law enforcement cannot imprison virtually an entire nation
simply for using illegal substances.

The nation's mandatory sentences are too harsh, says Johnson - who admits
to using cocaine as a college student.

He agrees with McCaffrey's strategic aim of reducing drug use, to a certain
extent.

"I believe you can't lock up the nation to do it," added Johnson.

The 46-year-old Johnson, by the way, says he's been clean and sober since
his early 20s.

Johnson is using a bit of hyperbole to make a broader point, which is that
tougher drug laws by themselves aren't doing the job.

He's right.

However, that doesn't mean the nation should cease prosecuting those who
consume illegal drugs and subject themselves and their families - indeed,
their progeny - to lives of misery.

Johnson and McCaffrey both should give a little in this growing dispute
over the nation's drug policy.

There should be ample room for some sort of compromise.

McCaffrey ought to welcome the debate put forward by a responsible state
leader such as Gov. Johnson. McCaffrey's staff, instead, has accused
Johnson - who said that certain drug use might not be criminal - of
becoming "the poster child for drug legalization."

Such name-calling doesn't advance the cause of reasonable debate over a
serious national health and law enforcement issue.

And make no mistake about it: Drug abuse should be a huge concern both for
health professionals as well as police officers.

Johnson, for his part, ought to rethink his view that legalizing certain
drugs is an answer in and of itself.

It is not.

Why give drug abusers license to feed their habit and subject themselves
and their families to the misery that illicit drugs can bring to them?

The human cost - not to mention the financial cost - simply is too great.

The nation's war on drugs is a unique problem with many facets that require
more than a single solution.

Law enforcement must play a role. So must education.

Same for treatment and rehabilitation programs.

It isn't just a matter for the police.

Nor should society legalize drugs as a sign of surrender against the drug
merchants who are poisoning - and killing - our youth.

The battle against illicit drug use must continue along many fronts, not
just along two highly visible fault lines.