SCARE TACTICS DON'T DETER TEEN DRUG USE

Ray Gagner's criticisms of the Drug Policy Alliance and its safety first,
reality-based drug education policies are all wrong (Letters, Dec. 6). It is
not the DPA that is promoting dangerous policies, but the current drug
prevention regime of scare tactics and misinformation that are dangerous to
our kids. Young people know that marijuana is not heroin and experimentation
doesn't inevitably lead to addiction. Shoving "drugs are bad" propaganda
down their throats only erodes their trust in authority and the education
system.

Gagner is wrong on another account, too. Marsha Rosenbaum's approach does
not suggest that using ice or crack is ever "safe," but gives youths the
tools they need to minimize harmful consequences if they try intoxicating
substances. Studies show that more than 50 percent of high school seniors
have tried some illicit drug, despite the efforts of the prevention
industry.

Our school systems should welcome new ideas and critiques of old ones where
drug education is concerned. "Drug free" schools are a pipe dream. We need
to give our kids the information they need to get back on track when they
make dangerous missteps.

Spike Bradford