THE TIME HAS COME TO REEVALUATE DRUG POLICY

Re: "The left's gloating is tacky, misguided" by Jonah Goldberg (syndicated
column, Oct. 18).

I can get past Jonah Goldberg's rationalization that being a hypocrite is
sometimes OK, particularly when it's Rush Limbaugh who doesn't practice
what he preaches. He's dead wrong, however, to imply that those of us who
favor a more sensible drug policy are saying, "Go ahead, take lots and lots
of drugs. It's your own business."

In reality, proponents of decriminalization say, "Don't take drugs. Drugs
are bad. Drugs can ruin your life. If you must do drugs, please do them in
the privacy of your own home. If you drive under the influence of drugs,
you should be arrested and jailed. If you sell or give drugs to minors, you
should be arrested and jailed for many, many years."

Proponents of decriminalization see that our country has spent 30 years and
hundreds of billions of dollars on the drug war with utterly nothing to
show for it except the largest prison population per capita in the world.
Drugs are as readily available as ever.

There are many reasons why alcohol prohibition didn't work in the 1920s and
many reasons why it can't work for other substances now. Isn't it time to
reevaluate our nation's drug policy?

MITCH COVINGTON, mitch@bugware.com