POPPY PROFUSION

Re: "Kill the poppies," Letter, May 3.

Instead of attempting to kill some of the Afghan poppies, (we will
never be able to kill
all of them) we should allow farmers all over the world to grow
poppies. This will make
the Afghan poppies almost worthless. Canada and the United States
should do what the
Swiss do regarding heroin addicts. In 1994, Switzerland started an
experimental program
to sell heroin addicts the drug at very low cost, even giving it to
the addicts who
couldn't afford it. In 2008, 68 per cent of the Swiss voted to make the program
permanent. Have Swiss heroin-addiction rates skyrocketed? No, they have fallen
dramatically. So has their overall crime rate.

Kirk Muse,

Mesa, Ariz.