SENSIBLE DRUG LAWS

To the editor:

Responding to last Saturday's editorial - "Jail problems press county for
answers".

The article said; A federal consultant to the community corrections task
force has made his recommendation. The recommendation being not to
immediately build either a new jail or new community corrections center -
but to reach consensus on what the community's criminal justice philosophy
should be.

Unfortunately, they are not turning to the community to help define that
consensus. The article said all the judges, the police and other law
enforcement officials met to organize a commission to define the philosophy.

First of all, we have to be realistic and acknowledge in many instances the
people we have elected to represent us are not passing laws that represent
the will of a majority of people.

When we have a nation with multiple drug companies manufacturing enough
different kinds of drugs to fill large manuals found in doctors' offices
and these drugs are found in medicine cabinets and purses and table tops in
almost every home in the nation then it is a bit ludicrous to be filling up
our jails with people who use and sell a handfull of certain drugs the
government may not be able to control and tax the way they would like. This
in no way means we condone stealing or causing grave physical harm or death
or murder that can be associated with drugs. We need a more sensible and
realistic approach to getting a handle on the nation's drug situation as a
whole, not just so-called illegal drugs.

R. Nelson Pedersen, Ellettsville