FUNDING FUTILITY

ROSELLE - The cartoon illustrating the Clinton administration's
spinelessness on the issue of needle exchanges (Editorial Page, April
24) was excellent.

Drug prohibitionists who demanded scientific evidence that the
programs reduce HIV transmissions without increasing drug use got what
they asked for, but it wasn't good enough. That's because the drug war
is based on mindless blind faith, not rationality.

It makes perfect sense to fund the needle exchanges from an economic,
scientific and humanitarian perspective. From those same perspectives,
it would make a lot more sense if there were to be a ban on federal
funding for drug prohibition enforcement until drug warriors can prove
scientifically that these policies decrease drug abuse without
increasing other types of harm to society.

Based on current information, prohibitionists would be scrounging up
their own funding until they finally realized the futility and
devastation of their crusade.

Stephen Young