Pubdate: Thu, 11 Apr 2002 Source: Asheville Citizen-Times (NC) Copyright: 2002 Asheville Citizen-Times Contact: http://www.citizen-times.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/863 Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n661/a08.html?10730 Author: Keith C. Courtland Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) DRUG TESTING BRINGS UP MANY ISSUES, QUESTIONS A recent letter writer suggests there are "consequences" if we fail to do drug testing. However your reader fails to acknowledge the "consequences" if we do conduct testing. What do we do with those who test positive? Who do we administer those tests to? When do we administer the tests? Do we do them randomly or only when someone gets into trouble. Random testing is very expensive and if we do it only when someone gets into "trouble" who is going to define the "trouble" that gets a drug test? Random drug testing could create more harm than good (including the expense). We could discover that numerous "good" students would test positive for drugs. I'm not proud of this but I'm a former drug user (marijuana) and yet I was consistently on the honor roll in high school and through college. I then served my country in the U.S. Navy. I hate to think what road I might have ended up on if I had been caught and placed in some sort of "remedial program" or worse yet, suspended. So let's review all the possible consequences to otherwise "good" students should we choose drug testing. Keith C. Courtland, Candler - --- MAP posted-by: Jackl