Pubdate: Thu, 06 Oct 2005
Source: Hendersonville Times-News (NC)
Copyright: 2005 Hendersonville Newspaper Corporation
Contact:  http://www.hendersonvillenews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/793
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Author: Robert Sharpe

METH WILL FIZZLE AS HARM IS KNOWN

To The Editor: How should North Carolina respond to the growing use of
methamphetamine?

During the crack epidemic of the 1980s, New York City chose the
zero-tolerance approach, opting to arrest and prosecute as many
offenders as possible. Meanwhile, Washington Mayor Marion Barry was
smoking crack and America's capital had the highest per-capita murder
rate in the country. Yet crack use declined in both cities
simultaneously.

Simply put, the younger generation saw firsthand what crack was doing
to their older brothers and sisters and decided for themselves that
crack was bad news. This is not to say nothing can be done about
methamphetamine. Access to drug treatment is critical for the current
generation of meth users. Diverting resources away from prisons and
into cost-effective treatment would save both tax dollars and lives.

The following U.S. Department of Justice research brief confirms my
claims regarding the spontaneous decline of crack cocaine:
http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles1/nij/187490.txt

Robert Sharpe
Washington

Robert Sharpe is a policy analyst with the Common Sense for Drug
Policy. 
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MAP posted-by: Matt Elrod