DRUG CZAR SAYS WAR ON DRUGS IS WORKING

Craig Yaldoo, Michigan's drug czar, spoke Wednesday at a luncheon given by
the Warren, Center Line, Sterling Heights Chamber of Commerce. If you want
to pick a fight with Craig Yaldoo, simply suggest the war on drugs is a
failure.

"There's this idea or notion that we've lost the war on drugs, that it's
not worth fighting," said Yaldoo, Michigan's drug czar. "(People ask), 'How
can I support a strategy that hasn't been able to eliminate drugs from our
schools, our workplaces, our communities?'

"Statistics don't support that assertion," Yaldoo continued.
"Overwhelmingly, we have less drug users. Schools are safe and kids are not
turning to drugs."

Yaldoo, whose formal title is director of the Office of Drug Control
Policy, spoke Wednesday at a luncheon given by the Warren, Center Line,
Sterling Heights Chamber of Commerce.

He conceded "there's always going to be drugs out there," but he offered
some facts and figures to support his contention that drug enforcement and
prevention efforts are not wasted, particularly in Macomb County.

A study conducted by the Michigan Department of Community Health measured
drug abuse "risk and prevention" factors in Michigan counties, Yaldoo said.
Macomb County ranked 18th out of 83. Livingston was No. 1 and Wayne County
No. 83.

Moreover, recent surveys indicate drug use among younger children --
eighth-graders in particular -- has declined in recent years.

"Macomb County has ... many things to talk about in terms of the war on
drugs," Yaldoo said. "Many good things.

"Macomb County is going in the right direction. Whatever we're doing, we're
doing it right."

Still, Yaldoo said, much work remains to be done.

Ten percent of Macomb's population -- about 77,000 people -- require
treatment for substance abuse. Nearly half of those are alcohol abusers.

"It's a fight that's never going to stop," he said.

While Yaldoo lauded law enforcement, schools and other agencies for drug
abuse prevention efforts, he challenged those organizations to take a cue
from corporations and be willing to "reorganize and reshape" the way they
do business.

"That's what keeps them alive," he said. "It's about challenging the
process; giving people the tools and resources to enable them to act."

Specifically, he cited the need for improved coordination and collaboration
of drug abuse prevention efforts. "There are a lot of programs out there,"
he said. "How do we bring them together?"

Yaldoo, a resident of Grosse Pointe Farms, also praised organizations
dedicated to drug abuse prevention, like the Macomb County Prevention
Coalition, as examples of "exactly what we need on a local level."

"Coalitions have been on the front lines," he said. "They've gotten off the
bench and into the game."

Lucy Smith, student assistance coordinator for the Macomb Intermediate
School District, said acknowledgement from the state's drug czar of local
prevention efforts serves to "re-energize" those who make those efforts.

"It's important for a state official to recognize what we're doing," she
said. "Some things are working."