SPOILS OF THE DRUG WAR

THE article by Craig Reinarman and Harry G. Levine (Perspective, March
1) was a superb review of the origins of the `war on drugs'' and
presented a chilling analysis of both the rapid rate of growth of the
battle and its spiraling costs.

Unfortunately they only touched lightly on just who is being rewarded
by maintaining and expanding this war. The mileage to the politician
running for re-election is only a small part of this picture.

The U.S. State Department can (and does) use it as a leverage for
influencing the politics of other countries. The Defense Department
can (and does) use it as a military excuse for requesting funds using
the argument of national security. Law enforcement agencies, at the
federal, state and local levels, can (and do) use it both as a reason
for demanding increased power (to fight crime) and as a source of
revenue (through seizure and forfeiture procedures).

Many corporations benefit from this war, from the prison construction
industry to the manufacturers of expensive instruments required for
urine testing in the work place as well as in the expanding justice
system. And all of the growth industries mean increased employment,
jobs that would be lost if the war were to end.

A more subtle reward is to those who stand to gain from the frightened
common man who is convinced that the drug ``monster'' is a threat to
him and can justify the relinquishment of some of his civil freedoms
in the name of controlling it. The erosion of our constitutional
rights with the excuse of ``eliminating'' this social problem is a
direction that this country cannot continue to take.