We've Got Mail

A LOOK BACK AT THE YEAR'S BEST LETTERS

We usually get the call about once a week. "I sent a letter to the paper
three weeks ago," says the disgruntled voice on the other end of the line.
"Why didn't you publish it?"

No, we don't pick favorites when it comes to our Letters section, we
patiently explain. We just get so darned many letters that we can't publish
them all at once!

Say what you will about our readers, one thing is for sure: Many of them
know how to wield a mighty pen.

Boulder Weekly would like to take some credit for the abundance of
correspondence that floods our office. After all, we try our best to fill
our pages with stories and viewpoints that are decidedly different than the
blase, hand-holding regurgitation you find in most news outlets these days.
We strive to cover the issues in ways that will make our readers sit up and
notice, in ways that they will remember the next day or next week or even
next year. We want to get our readers' blood boiling both in support of, as
well as in opposition to, the ideas we cover with such passion each and
every week.

But we'd be remiss to suggest that Boulder Weekly's content is the only
reason our mailbox is always filled with letters to the editor; it's also
due in large part to Boulder's personality. Maybe there's something in the
water, but taking a stand on issues seems to be the national pastime around
these parts. So whether our readers love or hate what we are doing in this
little office off South Broadway, you can be sure they are going to let us
know it.

And let us know they do, writing thousands of letters each year. We
appreciate each and every one of them. The letters of praise remind us that
our late nights and endless hours really are appreciated and encourage us
to keep fighting the good fight. The letters of criticism stoke the fires
of our ambition, pushing us to make the paper even better.

So in honor of all the readers who've spoken out about what they find
between the covers of this 10-year-old experiment in alternative
journalism, here is our second annual celebration of the most interesting
correspondence we've received over the past year.

We hope you enjoy the Letters edition. Whether you do or you don't, feel
free to let us know drop us a letter!

[Note: Only the two letters from the DRUGS section, one of a number of
categories, are provided below]

DRUGS

Boulder is all about drugs. No, we don't mean that there's a lot of puffin'
going on around here (wink, wink); we're referring to the fact that
community members tend to take hard stances on the War on Drugs–many
staunchly against it. So when Boulder Weekly publishes a story on drugs,
you can be sure the next several issues will be chock full of letters
debating how best to deal with the nation's dependence on mother's little
helpers. Here's a sampling of the grade-A stuff we like to roll into our
papers.

RAVE ACT ABUSE

Apparently the DEA is using the RAVE Act to target political groups that
they don't like. (Re: "Don't Say We Didn't Warn You," In case you missed
it, June 21.) Drug use occurs everyday at concerts and other events around
the country. It is a miscarriage of justice that the DEA would use the law
to only target events that advocate for changes in drug policy.

It's abhorrent that American taxpayers' money is being used to stifle free
speech and political activity. Regardless, the RAVE Act does nothing to
reduce the harms associated with substance abuse. It only puts youth at
greater danger by holding event organizers negligent for adopting effective
harm reduction techniques, like providing water or "chill out" rooms where
dancers can relax.

The RAVE Act should be repealed immediately, and the DEA's budget should be
reduced by the amount it spent on this political charade.

Tom Angell/Board of Directors, Students for Sensible Drug Policy

END THE DRUG WAR

I agree that it's time for Americans to make ending the War on Drugs and
the nation's high incarceration rate political priorities. We are supposed
to be the "Land of the Free" but have more of our citizens behind bars than
any other country in the world.

Last year, a federal report showed the growth in prison population would
cost the federal government and states (taxpayers) about $40 billion a
year. Experts attribute this to mandatory minimum sentences for drug
offenders. Believe it or not, many of them would never hurt a fly, and some
may be suffering from an addiction.

It's time to stop treating nonviolent individuals like violent criminals
and start treating the sick with compassion.

Sandy Cote/via Internet