MISPLACED STRATEGY IN THE DRUG WAR

The Bush administration wages a misguided campaign against cancer
patients using medical marijuana, as casualties increase on the meth front.

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy insists that
marijuana remains the most substantial drug threat to society. The
pronouncement proves yet again that when it comes to identifying the
correct enemy, the Bush administration misinterprets intelligence.

Those fighting the drug war from the trenches know the enemy well:
methamphetamine. And they know it is gaining ground. Meth has
continued its relentless march eastward, and has replaced the
prescription drug OxyContin as the biggest drug problem facing
Southwest Virginia. The highly addictive drug (once or twice is
enough to hook users) is cheap, relatively easy to concoct by mixing
a volatile batch of fertilizer and cold medicine, and its
availability is not solely dependent upon smugglers or the black market.

The White House should listen to states battling meth on the
frontline to formulate a comprehensive strategy.

The quick fix, readily prescribed by politicians, turns
over-the-counter cold remedies into controlled substances. By locking
up pseudoephedrine, one of the key ingredients in meth's recipe,
bathtub labs sink.

Oklahoma claims some success in shutting down meth labs by limiting
access to drugs like Sudafed and Nyquil.

And cold medicine manufacturers are slowly responding to the meth
threat by changing the formula to another active ingredient that
can't be cooked into meth.

That should help some. But as the National Association of Counties
points out in a recent study of the rise and spread of meth, the
problem isn't likely to go away unless the federal government changes tactics.

Funds for local law enforcement to fight illegal drugs have continued
to dry up as resources are diverted to homeland security. Treatment
and prevention programs have also suffered substantial losses.

The administration proposes slicing from next year's budget an
additional $804 million that would have been used to fund regional
drug fighting efforts.

If those cuts stand, meth will continue its relentless advance,
leaving municipalities to absorb the exorbitant costs of cleaning
dangerous labs, housing additional prisoners and caring for a rising
number of children falling into the care of the child welfare system.

More resources should be allocated not only to stop the spread and
manufacture of meth, but to treat addicts and prevent the next
generation of users.

That will require a comprehensive strategy and the deployment of
resources to carry it out.

Neither is likely to happen as long as the administration views
today's enemy in the drug war as a cancer victim growing marijuana on
the windowsill rather than the meth addict mixing a batch of pungent
chemicals that could blow up the neighborhood.