LIMBAUGH, BUSH CASES SHOW HOW DRUG WAR FAILED

How is it that Rush Limbaugh's drug problem has inspired the Florida GOP to
expand big government by calling for a state database that monitors
doctor-patient relationships ("Pill woes land Limbaugh in capitol debate,"
Jan. 8)? Why didn't the GOP make the case for invading privacy after Noelle
Bush's well-publicized prescription fraud case?

Clearly, I'm not the only one who sympathizes with the Bush family's
troubles with substance abuse. That being said, Gov. Bush's opposition to
the state's short-lived "treatment instead of incarceration" ballot
initiative effort was hypocritical, to say the least.

I don't think anyone is going to argue that Rush Limbaugh or Noelle Bush
would benefit from a lengthy mandatory minimum prison sentence. If drug
treatment works for them, why not apply the same standard to less
influential Americans? Incarcerating nonviolent drug offenders alongside
hardened criminals is the equivalent of providing them with a
taxpayer-financed education in antisocial behavior. Turning drug users into
unemployable ex-cons is a senseless waste of tax dollars.

It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin treating all
substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem it is.

ROBERT SHARPE, MPA

Policy Analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy, Washington