A GANGBUSTER JOB

Last Friday's takedown of an Asian drug gang needed 300 cops from
Edmonton, Red Deer, Calgary and the Alberta and B.C. RCMP staging 40
simultaneous raids. They arrested and charged 57 individuals.

All we can say is, well done.

We have nothing but glowing admiration for the police officers who put
their lives on the line Friday to clean up some of the drug filth
polluting our province. And we are incredibly thankful that none of
the officers involved lost their lives during the dramatic takedowns,
a dozen of which were considered high-risk.

We're not the only ones impressed with this operation. The various
police forces involved were showered with praise over the weekend by
their counterparts in Winnipeg and Seattle - cities dealing with their
own gang violence.

And there's no doubt the highly successful raids will bring a feeling
of relief to Edmontonians, who have been concerned since experiencing
a spate of gang-related violence in August.

Certainly, it's a well-earned feather in the cap of the Edmonton
police force, which has been enduring some criticism for its apparent
laissez-faire attitude towards Asian gangs, particularly when measured
beside its much closer watch of the Hells Angels.

On that score, the raids were successful on two fronts. Not only did
they give a skeptical public some concrete assurance that the cops do
take the gang problem seriously, the police net also reportedly
scooped up three gang leaders.

Police Chief John Lindsay wouldn't be specific about that, but he did
admit they picked up some "major players" as well as "worker bees" in
the raids.

Even so, no one, not even the police, will admit that last Friday's
actions will have the Asian drug gangs packing up and leaving town.
Obviously, they will regroup, hire more "worker bees," as Lindsay
would say, and install a new leadership.

And there's another, far more socially destructive reason why last
week's busts will merely buy us time.

The cops can only do so much to deal with the supply side of the drug
equation. Busting drug gangs does nothing to address the demand side.

For every gang member arrested and charged last Friday there are
dozens, if not hundreds, of customers who will be looking for another
cocaine supplier for their next fix. Put simply, without a demand for
illegal drugs, there would be no suppliers.

Even so, it's nice to know there are fewer suppliers on the streets
today. Good job, everyone.