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I read in your paper that Gov. Murphy J. "Mike" Foster
wants to drug test welfare recipients, state employees and
elected officials.

I assume he means illegal drugs. Why don't we test for
nicotine?

It's an addictive drug responsible for thousands of
deaths every year, not to mention the related medical
costs. Alcohol is an addictive drug responsible for
thousands of deaths every year and does as much to promote
the destruction of our social fabric as any illegal drug.
Shouldn't we do something about these people's use of
tobacco and alcohol?

I read that 35 percent of Americans are obese, also that
there are 300,000 deaths every year related to obesity. I
would suspect that some of the people to be drug tested are
obese. They are abusing food. Shouldn't they be required
to attend Overeaters Anonymous meetings, lose weight, start
exercising, get healthy and shape up?

I also read that the average child in this country will
watch 18,000 hours of television by the time he or she is
18 years old. The average male watches four hours of
television every day. They are watching way too much TV;
shouldn't they be doing something more beneficial for
themselves?

There are way too many overweight people sitting around
smoking cigarettes, drinking beer and watching television
all day. Can't we do something about this?

I wonder sometimes how much interference by government
in people's personal lives we are willing to accept in this
socalled " War on Drugs. " This is a very slippery
slope. An old Arab proverb states that once a camel gets
his nose in the tent, it is only a matter of time before
the entire camel is in the tent.

Ignorance is the greatest killer in the world. There is
nothing that can take the place of knowledge.
Knowledgeable and educated people make better choices in
life. Yet building prisons is a growth industry in
America. That tells me that we are living in the problem
and not the solution. After all, I read that 70 percent of
all prisoners are arrested again only three years after
release. That tells me prisons aren't working. In America
today we have 1,630,000 people in prison and jail.

Americans tend to want fast solutions to problems. The
situation we have with drugs in this country is not an
overnight affair, and the solution will not be an overnight
affair. Our children need to be informed and told the
truth about drugs at a very early age today.

This starts at home. Then again home is where the
overweight, cigarettesmoking, beerdrinking, TVwatching,
cocaineabusing and marijuanasmoking parents are. Hmm,
let me think about this some more. I think I have a clue
now. Jimmy Ray Wheat

10643 Cal Road

Baton Rouge