METH BILL LONG OVERDUE

Methamphetamine has ravaged our community and put severe strains on
local and state agencies. Meth has destroyed families, made parents
neglect and abandon their innocent babies and children. Meth has not
done anything positive for our community.

Finally, an anti-meth bill has been approved by the Senate and
attached to the U.S. Patriot Act, a centerpiece of the president's
war on terrorism. At last meth has been placed where it belongs, as
an immediate threat to our national security. This disease is eating
our society from within. By adding this legislation to the Patriot
Act we have escalated this cancer in American society from a petty
drug crime to its appropriate position as an act of domestic terrorism.

This legislation addresses domestic meth sales and the international
monitoring of one of the key ingredients in meth, pseudoephedrine. It
increases penalties against meth cooks and traffickers, and provides
more funding for state and local agencies dealing with this epidemic.
The thing I appreciate the most is the authorization for the "Meth
Hot Spots" grant programs. This program provides for federal
assistance to the endangered children and families affected by meth.

Tina Imdieke

Vancouver