Pubdate: Sun, 29 Sep 2002 Source: Knoxville News-Sentinel (TN) Copyright: 2002 The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co. Contact: http://www.knoxnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/226 Author: Robert Sharpe WAR ON DRUGS NEEDS MORE AMMUNITION Editor, the News-Sentinel: The arrest of the director of the 10th Judicial Drug Task Force on cocaine charges is just one of many examples of institutional corruption engendered by the drug war. This corruption stretches from coast to coast and reaches the highest levels. The high-profile Los Angeles Police Department Rampart scandal involved anti-drug officers selling drugs and framing gang members. A former commander of U.S. anti-drug operations in Colombia was found guilty of laundering the profits of his wife's heroin smuggling operation. Entire countries have been destabilized due to the corrupting influence of the illegal drug trade. Like alcohol prohibition in the 1920s, the drug war is causing tremendous societal harm while failing miserably at preventing use. Drug laws fuel organized crime and violence, which is then used to justify increased drug-war spending. It's time to end this madness and start treating all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem it is. While U.S. politicians ignore drug war's historical precedent in alcohol prohibition, European countries are embracing harm reduction, a public health alternative to never-ending drug war. Harm reduction is based on the principle that both drug abuse and prohibition can cause harm. Examples of harm reduction include needle exchange programs to stop the spread of HIV, marijuana regulation aimed at separating the hard and soft drug markets, and treatment alternatives that do not require incarceration as a prerequisite. Unfortunately, fear of appearing soft on crime compels many U.S. politicians to support a punitive drug war that ultimately subsidizes organized crime. Robert Sharpe Program Officer, Drug Policy Alliance Washington, D.C. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens