ACCOUNTING FOR DRUG-CRIME COSTS

The Forum page argument (The hard choices we must face, Aug. 13 )
admonishing those of us who advocate the legal dispensing of hard
drugs is the same old recipe that got us into the mess we're in in the
first place -- a mixture of red herring and claptrap.

While the various factors set out are somewhat compelling in prompting
one to urge legalization, the unmentioned major factor is to remove
the need for the property crime that is overwhelming us all.

It follows that the figures, wherein the cost of drugs is compared to
the cost of alcohol and cigarettes, are invalid. You cannot calculate
the social cost of drugs without mentioning the cost of property crime
that supports the drug habit -- a figure that dwarfs all other costs
put together.

A hard smoker might be able to consume cigarettes to the tune of about
$15 a day; a hard drinker could be flat on the floor for about $30.
But a hard cocaine or heroin addict requires the support of $100 to
$600 a day, money that cannot be generated by legitimate means.

For the addict, the solution is simple -- the women turn to
prostitution and shoplifting, the men to break and enter, flooding our
city in a wave of property crime in which we are close to drowning.
For us, the solution could also be simple -- legally dispense the
drugs free or at cost price in a treatment centre.

No more need to break into your car or home, no more need to recruit
new addicts, no more profits for crime syndicates. But there are a lot
of people out there in positions of influence who just don't seem to
want it to happen.

George Pratt, Vancouver

Checked-by: Rich O'Grady