Anti-drug Message Is Dishonest, Empty

While the intent of the taxpayer-funded full-page ad "Truth --the
anti-drug" (Advertiser, Sept. 7) is laudable, the message is both
dishonest and empty.

The misleading data in the ad regarding the likelihood of drug usage
are taken from the questionable "studies" conducted by the Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse, the federally funded refuge for former
U.S. Secretary of Education Joseph Califano and his hirelings whose
methods and conclusions have been challenged by many, including the
Chronicle of Higher Education.

The message of the ad -- urging parents to talk to their children
about drugs -- is a positive one, but empty. What are parents to say?
"Just Say No"? We see how effective these quaint little messages have
been. Sadly, most parents, including those who may have used drugs,
know very little about them other than the mantras of the
prohibitionists.

Drug prohibition and most current anti-drug education are based on
ignorance of drugs. What is needed for both children and their
parents is honest information about drugs that will enable them to
make wise decisions. In spite of their billion-dollar media blitz,
such information has yet to come from the Office of National Drug
Control Policy and its subsidized prohibitionist organizations.

Donald M. Topping President Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii