News (Media Awareness Project) - CN AB: PUB LTE: How Alberta Should Respond To Meth |
Title: | CN AB: PUB LTE: How Alberta Should Respond To Meth |
Published On: | 2005-04-20 |
Source: | Taber Times, The (CN AB) |
Fetched On: | 2008-01-16 15:05:06 |
HOW ALBERTA SHOULD RESPOND TO METH
EDITOR:
How should Alberta respond to the growing use of methamphetamine? Here in
the United States, New York City chose the zero tolerance approach during
the crack epidemic of the eighties.
Meanwhile, Washington, DC Mayor Marion Barry was smoking crack and
America's capital had the highest per capita murder rate in the country.
Yet crack use declined in both cities simultaneously. The decline was not
due to a slick anti-drug advertising campaign or the passage of mandatory
minimum sentencing laws. Simply put, the younger generation saw firsthand
what crack was doing to their older siblings and decided for themselves
that crack was bad news.
This is not to say nothing can be done about methamphetamine. Access to
drug treatment is critical for the current generation of users. In order to
protect future generations from hard drugs like meth, policymakers need to
adopt the Canadian Senate's common sense proposal to tax and regulate
marijuana. As long as marijuana distribution remains in the hands of
organized crime, consumers will continue to come into contact with
addictive drugs like meth.
This "gateway" is the direct result of a fundamentally flawed policy. Drug
policy reform may send the wrong message to children, but I like to think
the children are more important than the message.
The following U.S. Department of Justice research brief confirms my claims
regarding the spontaneous decline of crack cocaine:
http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles1/nij/187490.txt
ROBERT SHARPE, MPA
Policy Analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy
EDITOR:
How should Alberta respond to the growing use of methamphetamine? Here in
the United States, New York City chose the zero tolerance approach during
the crack epidemic of the eighties.
Meanwhile, Washington, DC Mayor Marion Barry was smoking crack and
America's capital had the highest per capita murder rate in the country.
Yet crack use declined in both cities simultaneously. The decline was not
due to a slick anti-drug advertising campaign or the passage of mandatory
minimum sentencing laws. Simply put, the younger generation saw firsthand
what crack was doing to their older siblings and decided for themselves
that crack was bad news.
This is not to say nothing can be done about methamphetamine. Access to
drug treatment is critical for the current generation of users. In order to
protect future generations from hard drugs like meth, policymakers need to
adopt the Canadian Senate's common sense proposal to tax and regulate
marijuana. As long as marijuana distribution remains in the hands of
organized crime, consumers will continue to come into contact with
addictive drugs like meth.
This "gateway" is the direct result of a fundamentally flawed policy. Drug
policy reform may send the wrong message to children, but I like to think
the children are more important than the message.
The following U.S. Department of Justice research brief confirms my claims
regarding the spontaneous decline of crack cocaine:
http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles1/nij/187490.txt
ROBERT SHARPE, MPA
Policy Analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy
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