WAR ON DRUGS WILL HAVE UNWELCOME FALLOUT

Cynthia Tucker's column poignantly illustrates the tragic costs of the War
on Drugs ("War on Drugs' twin casualties are two too many," @issue, Aug. 4).

Tucker wisely counsels that the United States turn away from this
destructive "war" and focus on real threats, such as terrorism.
Unfortunately, such advice is likely to go unheeded, because the Bush
administration seems bent on linking the War on Terrorism to the War on Drugs.

The Bush administration's continued attempts to link the War on Drugs with
the War on Terrorism will overflow our prisons with even more nonviolent
offenders, exacerbate racial injustices, erode our civil liberties and lead
us into ill-advised foreign military interventions.

KEVIN DELUCA Athens