UNWINNABLE DRUG WAR

Congratulations to Steve Chapman for his take on the unwinnable drug
war, stalemated for the past 80 years. In so saying, he is in good
company, including Walter Cronkite, a spokesman for the cause of
sending more productively the billions we waste in the so-called "war
on drugs" that we keep losing.

Worse, as Chapman points out, we damage the locales south of the
border where the drugs originate and contribute to political
disruption and mayhem there.

By abandoning our fantasies, as Chapman puts it, and ending the
existing profitability born of illegality, we could end drug traffic
and help balance national and local budgets as well.

Are our leaders listening? Are they willing to buck the tough-on-crime
crowd that is quite willing (on alleged morality grounds) to pursue
the fool's errand called "the war on drugs"?

Especially in these critical economic times, let us hope
so.

Ted Manuel, Chicago