ACCESS TO TREATMENT CRITICAL FOR METH USERS

How should North County respond to illicit methamphetamine use
("Responding to the meth epidemic: More treatment, less hype,"
Community Forum, Aug. 11)?

During the crack epidemic of the 1980s, New York City chose the
zero-tolerance approach, opting to arrest and incarcerate as many
offenders 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 brothers and sisters 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.

ROBERT SHARPE

MPA policy analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy Washington, D.C.