IN DRUG WAR, DECLARE PEACE, BEGIN TREATMENT

Thank you for making the case for drug treatment in your June 2
editorial.

A study conducted by the RAND Corporation found that every additional
dollar invested in substance abuse treatment saves taxpayers $7.48 in
societal costs. There is far more at stake than tax dollars.

The drug war is not the promoter of family values that some would have
us believe.

Children of inmates are at risk of educational failure, joblessness,
addiction and delinquency. Not only do the children lose out, but
society as a whole does too. Incarcerating non-violent drug offenders
alongside hardened criminals is the equivalent of providing them with
a taxpayer-funded education in anti-social behavior.

Turning drug users into unemployable ex-cons is a senseless waste of
tax dollars.

It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin treating
all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem
it is. Destroying the futures and families of citizens who make
unhealthy choices doesn't benefit anyone.

Drug abuse is bad, but the drug war is worse.

ROBERT SHARPE

Washington, D.C.

June 9, 2006 The writer is a policy analyst for Common Sense for Drug
Policy.