BROADEN STRATEGY FOR THE DRUG WAR

U.S. Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey is in San Antonio today to rally the forces
on the front lines of the drug war, and to discuss a new report on 22
HighIntensity DrugTrafficking Areas one of them being South Texas.

While the report is a bit discouraging (see McCaffrey's piece on the next
page), the drug czar had encouraging words when he unveiled the report
Wednesday at a Washington news conference.

"The strategy section demonstrates that HIDTA partnerships of federal,
state and local antidrug officials are tremendously effective in
confronting the serious drug threat outlined in the report,'' he said.

A game plan is vital. So is having law enforcement agencies using the same
plan.

The good people on the right side of this drug war cannot be faulted.

However, the announced strategy does represent a continuation of the
brushfire approach to this war. While necessary, it is a catchas
catchcan approach. The porous 2,000mile U.S.Mexico border is almost
indefensible.

As McCaffrey is fully aware, the drug war needs a threepronged approach,
including border enforcement, plus a fourth column.

U.S. demand must be curtailed. American recreational drug users have to
realize that their drug dollars pay for the murder, violence and corruption
on the border.

More cooperation and perhaps U.S. aid is necessary to bring Latin
American governments under a common umbrella and to persuade their farmers
to grow crops other than cocoa, marijuana and heroin poppies.

Finally, ordinary people from the user nations and the supplier nations
must also be involved. That is you, the eyes and ears that supply the
information to bust the growers, the drug processors, the traffickers and
the unthinking recreational drug users.