KEEP CRACK PIPES OFF STORE COUNTERS

One west Rock Island convenience store is out of the crack pipe
business for a while and we thank Rock Island police and Rock Island
Alderman Terry Brooks for that.

We don't expect that seizure of a couple dozen glass tubes will have
any impact in the war on drugs. But it takes moxie for an alderman to
get outraged and for police to effectively follow up.

Brooks was among the citizens complaining that glass tubes with tiny
fake flowers being sold at a Quick Shop at 2030 11th St., were
intended for drug use, not as novelty gifts. Open the tube, throw out
the flower, add a bit of steel wool (also sold at the store) and
you've got a ready-made crack pipe.

The flowery tubes have been present on dozens and dozens of
convenience store check-out counters.

How many readers can say they've received such a gift? Apparently
none, unless you're smoking crack.

Rock Island police took Brooks' complaint, investigated and told the
Daily Dispatch in Moline they had enough evidence to suggest the
store owners knew what the tubes were being used for.

Two Moline men n Rami Fahmi Qattoum, 27, of 3602 35th St., and Mahdi
A. Qattoum, 34, of 4833 50th Ave. n now face drug paraphernalia charges.

It'll be a tough prosecution.

Virtually any non-flammable tube can be used to smoke crack. Hardware
stores are loaded with potential crack pipes. Difference is, hardware
stores don't package them as useless trinkets and place them on the
register as encouragement.

Q-C convenience store owners might say they didn't know. Now they do.

And if the prosecution falls through, we suspect store owners are as
likely to respond to something just as powerful: Market force.

Check your neighborhood convenience store for these rose-filled
vials. If they're stocked, let the owners know you don't appreciate
seeing crack pipes in the store where you choose to shop.

If you don't see them, tell the owners, "thanks."