Pubdate: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 Source: Capital Times, The (WI) Copyright: 2001 The Capital Times Contact: http://www.thecapitaltimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/73 Author: Jon Hain STROLLING GROUP COULD CUT DOWN ON DRUG TRAFFIC The article about Mayor Bauman's walking tour of the Bram's Addition neighborhood was quite thought provoking. Of particular interest were comments by Sister Mary Ellen Lewis, who works for St. Martin House and is a member of the South Madison Anti-Drug Coalition. She said, "If a group like us strolled down here every night, there soon wouldn't be any drug trafficking going on." Sounds like a great solution. Imagine the money we could save on law enforcement; not to mention the extra level of safety for our police and our neighborhoods. And, we could get some exercise and re-establish connections with our neighbors. Sister Mary Ellen Lewis' comments come at a crucial time. As our society comes to terms with the failure of the drug war we will need more innovative solutions like this to get a handle on what is now a completely unregulated and dangerous black market for illegal drugs. Let's hope the Mayor was listening. Jon Hain, Madison - --- MAP posted-by: Doc-Hawk