Pubdate: Sun, 12 Apr 1998 Source:Lexington Herald Leader http://www.kentuckyconnect.com/ Author: Melodi Cornett DRUG WAR HAS LED TO PRISONS BUILT AS PROFIT Jefferson George's March 4 article, "Counties see inmates as a source of income," brought home the practice of warehousing humans as a means of profit. Current policy is forcing our nation into a prison-dependent society, with an economy based more and more on prison building and staffing. The availability of big profits in the prison industry, combined with corruption in law enforcement and government, is jeopardizing our future as a free nation. Violent criminals are not the ones filling our jails and prisons beyond capacity. The drastic increase since the early 1980s is not because of a huge increase in violent crimes. The overcrowded jails and prisons nationwide are the result of the "war." This nation's "War on Drugs" is a war against the people. There are currently more people per capita incarcerated than at any other time in history. The United States imprisons more of its citizens than any other country in the world. Rights that have been protected since our nation's beginning are being thrown out in the name of the war. Prohibition creates huge organized crime rings and the violence that accompanies them. Keeping certain drugs illegal and controlled by the black market ensures big profits. The availability of easy money attracts the poor and uneducated, ensuring a steady stream of drug offenders. Is the fear of drugs worth losing our freedom over? Is that what we want for our children? This war is going to destroy our nation if we don't stop the madness.