TAKING THE LEAP

I'm writing about Marsha V. Hammond's thoughtful column "Am I my
brother's keeper?" [Commentary, Feb. 21].

Unfortunately, the common-sense solution to Ashville's crime and drug
problem lies in Washington, D.C.-not Asheville or any other city or
town in the United States.

Since the vast majority of all of our violent crime and property
crime is caused by not drugs themselves, but rather our
drug-prohibition policies, the common-sense solution is to
re-legalize all of our now illegal drugs. Then the drugs can be sold
in legal, regulated and licensed business establishments.

Then drug dealers as we know them today will disappear for economic
reasons. Then our so-called "drug-related crime" will be in our
past-not our future.

Most people currently employed in law enforcement are against
re-legalization of our now illegal drugs. That's because we would
need far fewer law-enforcement personnel if all drugs were re-legalized.

However, there is one organization made up of law-enforcement
personnel who favor the re-legalization of all drugs despite the fact
that it's against their own economic self-interest to do so. That
organization is called L.E.A.P. (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition).

L.E.A.P. now has over 6,500 members and supporters. Most are current
or former law-enforcement personnel, judges and prosecutors who have
first-hand experience that our so-called war on drugs is
counterproductive and not winnable.

I suggest the readers visit the L.E.A.P. Web site at: http://www.leap.cc.

Then arrange for a speaker from L.E.A.P. to give an informative and
entertaining talk about our current and past drug policies to any
organization or group. Most will arrive at the L.E.A.P. talk
skeptical-most will leave convinced. Convinced that we must make
major changes to our nation's drug policies.

- - Kirk Muse

Mesa, Ariz.