ENABLING ADDICTS MISGUIDED

Usually I agree with Sun editorials, but not "Drug prohibition
doesn't work" Aug. 28.). Jeremy Loome's call for legalization of hard
drugs and continuation of the addict enabling program called "harm
reduction" is misguided. Legalization means the government will
become your heroin and cocaine dealer. It is not only an unseemly
role for any government, it will inevitably corrupt government, which
becomes addicted to the money to be made from the drug addicts it
supplies. It will also greatly increase use of those drugs. Loome
claims less than 2% of the population has a problem with hard drugs.
I suggest that would become 10% or more if heroin and cocaine were
freely available at your neighbourhood government cocaine store. The
only way to cure a junkie is to separate him from the drugs. Jail
does that, or it would if the jails were properly run. Enabling and
encouraging addictive drug use is foolish and destructive.

Brian Purdy

(It's a controversial topic.)