DRUGS AND SENSE

I write regarding Bill Kaufmann's "Total reform key to war on drugs,"
(Aug 17). I have to stand and applaud Kaufmann for his courage to
write the truth. Sadly, with so many years of reefer madness and
outright lies, there is a real nasty stigma attached to cannabis. As
for the other drugs, the only real workable solution is regulation.
Just like alcohol and cigarettes. There is no way to stop some people
from taking mind-altering substances, no matter how harmful the
results can be to themselves, let alone adding the increased harms
provided by prohibition into that equation. Harm reduction with
truthful education -- the real, cold hard truths only -- regulation
and treatment will set us free of a lot of current
prohibition-related problems.

Keith Fagin

(The current war on drugs is clearly not working.)