'DRUG' LABEL SHOULD BE MORE ACCURATE

THE EDITOR:

Re: 'Police back off drug theory,' Times, Jan. 16

While it is admirable that the police want to be more accurate in labelling
certain deaths as "drug related," it would be even more accurate if they
were to label such deaths as "drug prohibition related," unless the deaths
are directly related to the consumption of a drug, legal or illegal. Of
course, if the police were to label such deaths properly, it would quickly
become obvious that most "drug-related" deaths involved alcohol, and most of
the others were related to the counterproductive laws, supported by the
police bureaucracy and politicians like Paul Martin, Randy White and Rich
Coleman.

Richard Cowan,

Vancouver