TREATMENT, NOT PRISONS, ANSWER TO METH CRISIS

Editor, The Auburn Plainsman:

How should Alabama respond to the growing use of methamphetamine?
During the crack epidemic of the 80s, New York City chose the zero
tolerance approach, opting to arrest and prosecute as many users as
possible.

Meanwhile, Washington, D.C. 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. 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 meth. Access to drug
treatment is critical for the current generation of meth users.
Diverting resources away from prisons and into cost-effective
treatment would save both tax dollars and lives. Students who want to
help reform harmful drug laws should contact Students for Sensible
Drug Policy at www.ssdp.org.

Robert Sharpe

Common Sense for Drug Policy