LEGALIZATION IS THE ANSWER

To the Editor:

Regarding your recent series on opiate addiction:

As grieving parents of a son who died at age 19 in 1993 after ingesting some
street heroin, may we offer our comments?

When America prohibited alcohol, thousands were poisoned by
adulterated black market booze. When alcohol was legalized again,
those incidents were drastically reduced.

Today, our children are dying because of adulterated black market
drugs. The carnage will end only when we come to our senses and allow
users once again to purchase clean, cheap, quality-tested drugs at
the corner store just as tobacco users do now.

Let's finish the job we started when we ended alcohol prohibition,
follow the principles enshrined in the Bill of Rights and legalize all
drugs.

Eleanor and Alan Randell

Victoria, B.C., Canada