OKLAHOMA'S EXPERIENCE VALUABLE IN METH FIGHT

Keeping the ingredients of meth behind the pharmacy counters is a better
solution than the nonsolution of building more prisons.

Oklahoma learned the hard way that the so-called tough-on-drugs
policies don't work, and they are very expensive. Largely because of
its tough-on-drugs policies, Oklahoma had the fourth highest rate for
incarcerations.

Largely because of our war on drugs policies, the United States has
been transformed into the most incarcerated nation in the history of
human civilization. Even though we have fewer than 5 percent of the
world's population, we have more than 25 percent of the world's prisoners.

In other words, one out of every four prisoners in the world is locked
in an American jail or prison. What message does this send to the rest
of the world?

Kirk Muse

Mesa, Ariz.