Pubdate: Tue, 02 Apr 2002 Source: El Paso Times (TX) Copyright: 2002 El Paso Times Contact: http://www.elpasotimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/829 Author: Robert Sharpe Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) DRUG TESTING PLAN IS FLAWED In response to Ramnath Subramanian's March 28 column, "Testing students for drugs has its place," the U.S. Supreme Court will review an Oklahoma school district's drug-testing policy on constitutional grounds, but there are compelling health reasons to oppose drug testing. Student involvement in extracurricular activities has been shown to reduce drug use. In my opinion, forcing students to undergo degrading drug tests as a prerequisite will discourage such activities. Drug testing may also compel smokers of 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 weeks. Synthetic hard drugs are water-soluble and exit the body quickly. If you think students don't know this, think again. The most commonly abused drug and the one most closely associated with violent behavior is almost impossible to detect with urinalysis. That drug is alcohol, and I believe 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: Alex