ROBERT SHARPE HAS HIS 1,000TH LETTER TO THE EDITOR PUBLISHED

Robert started writing LTEs, and was already the top LTE writer,
while a college student and president of an SSDP chapter. His first
letter, published 19 November 1999, is archived here
http://www.mapinc.org/letters/1999/11/lte105.html

Undoubtedly we have missed dozens of his published letters which
simply didn't get newshawked, or appeared in newspapers that do not
post Letters to the Editor on line.

Yes, he sends out several times more letters than are printed. But
he has been able to accomplish this impressive record with only
about an hour's effort each day. His tips for letter writers which
tells much about how he does it - solid advice for success - is
online at http://www.mapinc.org/resource/tips.htm

We estimate that Robert's contribution to reform, through writing
letters, would cost about a million dollars if the same space had
been purchased as advertising. We can't outspend the ONDCP
advertising budget, but we can, with your help - one letter at a
time - insure that the public is aware that there is more to the
story than the ONDCP tells us in their ads.

Please read through some of Robert's superb letters - borrow ideas
for your own letters. The thousand are archived at
http://www.mapinc.org/writers/Robert+Sharpe

Below is Robert's 1000th published letter:

Pubdate: Wed, 28 May 2003

Source: Macon Telegraph (GA)

Author: Robert Sharpe

Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03/n717/a07.html

TREATMENT OPTIONS TURN POLITICAL

Charles Richardson makes a strong case for drug courts in his May 11
column. For non-violent offenders with chronic substance abuse
problems, drug treatment is a cost-effective alternative to
incarceration. Unfortunately, drug courts are being misused for
political purposes.

Record numbers of Americans arrested for marijuana possession have
been forced into treatment by the criminal justice system. The
resulting distortion of treatment statistics is then used by drug
czar John Walters to make the claim that marijuana is "addictive."

Zero tolerance drug laws do not distinguish between occasional use
and chronic abuse. The coercion of Americans who prefer marijuana to
martinis into taxpayer-funded treatment centers says a lot about
U.S. government priorities, but absolutely nothing about the
relative harms of marijuana.

For an objective take on marijuana, look to Canada. In the words of
Sen. Pierre Claude Nolin, "Scientific evidence overwhelmingly
indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than alcohol
and should be treated not as a criminal issue but as a social and
public health issue."

The following U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration reports verify my claims regarding government
coercion:

http://www.samhsa.gov/oas/2k2/YouthMJtx/YouthMJtx.pdf

Treatment Episodes Data
http://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/teds98/tbl_4_4.htm *Note the criminal
justice referral column.

For more information on the Canadian Senate report: http://juror.ca/

The drug czar's deceptive anti-marijuana campaign can be verified
at: http://www.theantidrug.com/

Robert Sharpe