TIME TO DECLARE PEACE IN THE FAILED DRUG WAR

Thank you for raising awareness of the life-saving potential of drug
treatment with your Dec. 26 article on Beckley's Mother Program. A study
conducted by the RAND Corporation found that every dollar invested in
substance abuse treatment saves taxpayers $7.46 in societal costs.

There is far more at stake than tax dollars. The drug war is not the
promoter of family values that some would have us believe.

Children of inmates are at risk of educational failure, joblessness,
addiction and delinquency. Not only do the children lose out, but society
as a whole does too. Incarcerating non-violent drug offenders along side
hardened criminals is the equivalent of providing them with a
taxpayer-funded education in criminal behavior.

Turning drug users into unemployable ex-cons is a senseless waste of tax
dollars. It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin
treating all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health
problem it is. Destroying the futures and families of citizens who make
unhealthy choices doesn't benefit anyone.

Robert Sharpe

Program Officer

Drug Policy Alliance

Washington, D.C.