Pubdate: Fri, 25 Jan 2002
Source: Mobile Register (AL)
Copyright: 2002 Mobile Register.
Contact:  http://www.al.com/mobile/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/269
Author: George Krietemeyer

ILLEGAL DRUGS TIED TO OTHER CRIMES

The article Of drugs and death, published in the Mobile Register on 
Jan. 14, clearly shows the extent of the illegal drug problem in the 
Mobile area. Over 50 percent of the homicides and an even higher 
percentage of robberies, burglaries and other crimes are related to 
illegal drugs in one way or another.

Our local police and law enforcement personnel do the best they can 
to apprehend and detain the perpetrators of these crimes. This has 
been going on for over 30 years -- we call it the war on drugs.

The sad fact is that law enforcement cannot win this war. There 
aren't enough of them to complete the mission. Our military can't 
keep the drugs from being smuggled into the country. Over 14 million 
Americans break our laws by using illegal drugs. Some of them are 
clergy, some of them are doctors or lawyers, and lots of them are 
children.

A recent study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance 
Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University reported that 60 percent of 
America's high school students are attending schools where drugs are 
used, kept and sold.

The report goes on to state that the most troubling indictment is 
that the widespread availability of drugs in schools is due to the 
malignant neglect of parents, teachers, administrators and students 
themselves.

Isn't it time to address this problem in our schools? There are 
drug-free schools in our community. Let's find out what they are 
doing to help their children. Let's have PTAs and school boards 
discuss our local problems openly and honestly to find methods of 
deterring drug use that are acceptable to parents.

The recently passed education bill provides increased federal funding 
for things such as testing students for illegal drug use, locker 
searches, counseling services and the like. Let's take full advantage 
of these resources and make our schools drug free.

GEORGE KRIETEMEYER
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MAP posted-by: Josh