REGARDING YOUTH IN 'GOVERNMENT'

It could be that students in the county high schools have a better grasp of
the problem of drug abuse on campus than their parents and perhaps even law
enforcement authorities. That conclusion could be drawn as a result of the
discussions that took place last week when students took over as county
supervisors in a mock exercise as part of Youth in Government Day.

The students didn't concern themselves with water supply, the environment,
growth or taxes, issues that generally challenge the judgments of their
elected counterparts.

The chief issue before them was whether to require mandatory drug testing of
high school athletes.

The proposal squeaked by on a 3-to-2 vote, and some of the comments might
well be worth the attention of their elders.

For instance, one suggestion was that drug testing be applied to all
students in all extracurricular activities, not just those in athletics.
How's that for a democratic approach to the problem?

But those in opposition argued that doing so would be a violation of Fourth
Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure. There might be a
budding lawyer or two among the mock supervisors.

All in all, we liked the way the students went about their deliberations -
seriously.

On a possibly related subject, a word or two about Gov. Gray Davis' proposal
to require community service for all students at state colleges and
universities - "as a condition of graduation."

The idea may well come under the heading of "too much big brotherism," but
we'll know better when - and if - Davis tries to get the program established.

The governor didn't help matters when he admitted he hadn't fully thought
out the idea and apparently hadn't even mentioned it to administrators at
the state compuses.

If he's serious about the proposal, he should have seen to it that the trial
balloon had enough air in it to keep it afloat.