DRUG USERS AND PRISON

I think that there is something basically wrong with sending "users" to
prison. Are these people truly criminals? Does an out-of-control heroin
addict need to be punished for his or her actions?

My answer is a decisive "No." Outlawing the use of drugs does not preclude
any sort of drug use. It does, however, cause thousands of young people to
be categorized as criminals, which means that they must tap into an
underground network of dealers and pay inflated prices for drugs that are
unregulated and, by the nature of the means they are obtained, inherently
unsafe.

I am not saying that heroin and cocaine should be available at CVS. I am
saying that people addicted to these drugs should be able to receive help
and detox without the ominous threat of six months to 20 years of prison
time hanging over their heads.

Marijuana, I think, is an entirely different matter from "hard drugs." I
think that marijuana should be regulated much like cigarettes -- 18 or
older to legally obtain the product. Some people assert that it is not
possible to drive safely stoned, which is, for some people, true. I don't
think this is grounds for a prohibition of the product, but grounds for
tighter regulation therein. (Personally, I would be much more frightened of
a drunk driver than a stoned driver.)

In short, the "War on Drugs" is a war against innocent youth and longtime
addicts, and, first and formost, a war against personal freedoms and
independent, private choices.

SARAH HARPER, Sullivan's Island