Pubdate: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 Source: Amarillo Globe-News (TX) Copyright: 2002 Amarillo Globe-News Contact: http://amarillonet.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/13 Author: Robert Sharpe Schools Seem Headed In Opposite Direction In his June 12 column, Brent Biles highlights a fundamental flaw in school drug testing. Simply put, drug testing might compel users of relatively harmless marijuana to switch to harder drugs to avoid testing positive. Despite a short-lived high, marijuana is the only drug that stays in the human body long enough to make urinalysis a deterrent. Marijuana's organic metabolites are fat-soluble and can linger for days. Synthetic drugs are water-soluble and exit the body quickly. A student who takes Ecstasy, cocaine or meth on Friday night likely will test clean on Monday morning. If you think students don't know this, think again. Anyone capable of running a search on the Internet can find out how to thwart a drug test. The importance of parental involvement in reducing drug use cannot be overstated. School-based extracurricular activities also have been shown to reduce drug use. They keep kids busy during the hours they're most prone to getting into trouble. Forcing students to undergo degrading drug tests as a prerequisite will only discourage such activities. The most commonly abused drug and the one most associated with violence is almost impossible to detect with urinalysis. That drug is alcohol, and it takes far more lives every year than all illegal drugs combined. Instead of wasting money on counterproductive drug tests, schools should invest in reality-based drug education. Robert Sharpe Program Officer Drug Policy Alliance Washington, D.C. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom