DOING NOTHING ABOUT DRUGS IS PART OF PROBLEM

Editor, The News:

Kudos to the Abbotsford school board for its sniffer dog decision.
Good to see a little grit around here.

Darryl Marko's Nov. 27 letter ('School board's leap toward fascism')
is absolutely ludicrous.

And, for the record, on this one the B.C. Civil Liberties Association
is way out there, too.

Here's a shocker for you.

We have a serious drug problem happening here. This is 2004, not the
1930s, and we are not living on Walton's Mountain with Pa and John Boy
solving our problems.

We have grow-ops flourishing in every neighborhood. We have rampant
drug-associated crime. We have kids on drugs, junkies on drugs; just
far too many messed up lives.

Have you had your car stolen or busted into lately? Had a break-in
lately or something stolen from your yard or shed?

Has your granny had her purse snatched or your grandpa thumped for his
wallet lately?

Have a look around.

Our judicial system won't hand out punishment or penalties that
actually act as deterrent.

Our good police catch 'em, the courts let them go: "Let them
rehabilitate in the communities."

Yeah right, in my stolen car on the way to another community and a
break and enter.

Singapore's caning and the Washington and California three strike rule
hold a lot of validity, and would cut down a lot of crime.

Marko, speaks boldly against this decision, yet neither he nor the
BCCLA offer an alternate solution to this drug menace in our schools.

So I say put up or shut up, because burying our heads in the sand is
not an option at this point.

Fascist state? Harumph!

Are these fascists with their dogs that sniff for bombs or dope at our
airports or borders or other points of entry into our country? What
about the rights and privacy of those travelers or their "self image"?

There's another travesty of civil liberties, another cause to rally
around.

If we are fascist, the U.S. must be a Nazi state. They, however,
actually say no to drugs.

We just wink at them.

Perhaps you are not aware of the damaged families and wasted lives
that drug usage is responsible for.

Ever been to the eastside in Vancouver? What if someone was selling
your kid dope at school?

Would a little affirmation, a hug and a pizza for the dealer solve
everything?

We have provided "caring, supportive environments" for the kids, but
something isn't working, something is rotten and this insidious,
crippling, growing, drug problem must be dealt with head-on.

Doing nothing is also part of the problem!

Perhaps Marko belongs to the Marijuana party, along with our esteemed,
headline-loving Tim Felger, who used to put his signage on elementary
school fences because of "his rights and freedoms".

Classy guy.

Bottom line - if one does not want hassles with sniffing dogs at one's
locker, one shouldn't bring drugs to school.

It's that simple.

Bill Gerber

Abbotsford