COMMENTS ON DRUG STRATEGY

Stephen S. Rosenfeld's comments on drug strategy offered little
comfort to me. While Mr. Rosenfeld is correct to describe the
inability of punitive policies to end drug problems, his hope that
treatment will serve as a magic bullet in the drug war is misguided.

No doubt treatment is less expensive than incarceration, and it may be
more effective in addressing drug problems, but that's a long stretch
from being a solution. As addiction researchers such as Stanton Peele
have pointed out for years, more people stop drug use on their own
than through treatment programs. And while it's true that the federal
drug budget has favored interdiction over treatment and prevention,
the amount of money being spent on treatment has still risen
dramatically in recent years.

Mr. Rosenfeld and others may see treatment research only in a positive
context, but there can be a dark side. Let us not forget that
psychiatry was used as a weapon against those who disagreed with state
policies in the former Soviet Union. Will it also be used against
those who don't respect the U.S. government determinations about which
drugs are "good" (such as alcohol) and which drugs are "bad" (such as
marijuana)?

STEPHEN YOUNG
Roselle, Ill.