MISPLACED PRIORITIES?

I can't help but wonder if Jeb Bush may be having second thoughts
about cutting out the support for addiction programs from the state
budget. The programs were just stopped at all the work-release
facilities, and the state has also stopped helping to pay for people
who are in outside programs.

Of course, the governor's daughter can well afford treatment -- if not
she, then he can pay for it. Pity the poor people who cannot. Too bad
if you don't have coverage or funds, because non-recovery means recidivism.

EDWARD DUFF,
Kissimmee

TONE DOWN RHETORIC

I don't think anyone is going to argue that Noelle Bush or the state
of Florida would be best served by giving Noelle the maximum penalty
of five years in prison for prescription fraud.

Fear of criminal sanctions forces many problem drug users to suffer in
silence. Toning down the tough-on-drugs rhetoric would encourage the
type of honest discussion necessary to facilitate cost-effective drug
treatment.

The option of treatment instead of incarceration would do more than
save taxpayers money. Prisons transmit violent habits and values
rather than reduce them. Most non-violent drug offenders are
eventually released, with dismal job prospects due to criminal
records. Turning recreational drug users into career criminals is a
senseless waste of tax dollars.

At present there is a glaring double standard in place. Alcohol and
tobacco are by far the deadliest recreational drugs, yet the
government does not go out of its way to destroy the lives of drinkers
and smokers. Imagine if every alcoholic were thrown into jail and
given a permanent criminal record. How many lives would be destroyed?
How many families would be torn apart? How many tax dollars would be
wasted turning potentially productive members of society into hardened
criminals?

ROBERT SHARPE,
Program Officer,
Drug Policy Alliance,
Washington, D.C.

FUTILE WAR

Each year, politicians spend billions on the "war on drugs." Yet,
according to Mike Thomas' Thursday column, the Department of
Corrections, under Jeb Bush, has approved budget cuts that will slash
drug-treatment programs for inmates. Clearly it's time for a new
approach. The Zogby poll of last December shows two-thirds of the
people support "Cannabis Clubs" for medical marijuana, and 60 percent
oppose arresting pot smokers. These stats show the people, not the
politicians, are much more in tune with the rest of the world.
Recently, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and other countries have
decriminalized marijuana possession.

Twenty-nine percent of inmates in Florida prisons are incarcerated for
non-violent drug use. Why not start addiction clinics for other drugs
- -- similar to methadone-maintenance clinics? Here, drug addicts/users
could get their needs met under supervision, while reducing prison
populations and taxpayer liability. Drug use is an illness, not a
crime in itself.

DAVID W. HOLLE,
Orlando