Pubdate: Thu, 26 Feb 1998 Source: St. Petersburg Times (FL) Copyright: 1998 St. Petersburg Times Contact: http://www.sptimes.com/ Forum: http://www.sptimes.com/Interact.html Author: Ghada Nadia Chmeissani, Tampa LET'S RETHINK OUR APPROACH TO THE DRUG PROBLEM There are certain activities that most people believe are immoral and detrimental to society. Drug use is one of them. Our current drug policy encourages putting first-time drug offenders behind bars, as well as increasing law enforcement ill the hopes of combatting the drug problem. As thinking citizens, and before we agree with the drug policy, we should ask ourselves the following questions: Is putting drug offenders behind bars a good approach in fighting the drug problem? And is it necessary to increase law enforcement in order to fight illegal drugs? On a national level, overcrowded courts and overpopulated prisons are the most pressing problems caused by the failed drug policy. A large number of prisoners are drug offenders convicted of non-violent crimes. How many times have we heard that a violent offender is not serving a full term because of prison overpopulation? Not only are we Putting the wrong people behind bars when we lock up drug offenders, but we are spending an exorbitant amount of money in the process. It makes more sense to spend this money on preventing drugs from becoming a problem in the first place. The bottom line is this: Most of the crime associated with drug abuse and trafficking is not caused by users who are under the influence and lose control, nor by poverty-stricken communities. It is rather motivated by profit-seeking drug dealers. If drug dealers are the problem, then why not stop them head on? We can start by imposing a less punitive approach to drug use and possession. This can be followed by helping drug abusers and placing them in rehabilitation facilities, not Prisons. Finally, we can provide monetary and educational boosts to needy communities, rather than policing, which is usually associated with fear and mistrust of "the system." These measures will not only justify spending taxpayers'money, but will also ensure that our citizens won't have to resort to drug trafficking to earn a living. There's a fundamental gap in our legal system when the laws created to combat a perceived immoral behavior are inflicting greater harm on society than the behavior itself.