FAILED DRUG WAR GOES ON

So, drug use among teens is up again. Sad - isn't it? - the war on drugs is
still failing.

Imagine for a moment what America would be like if all that money and effort
were instead applied to a war on crime. Instead of punishing drug use, we
could punish murder, rape, child abuse - even crimes such as vandalism and
petty theft. Can you imagine reporting the loss of your car's tape deck, and
the police having the time to investigate it and arrest the thief? We could
live in a virtually crime-free environment.

But, no - we'll continue spending billions of dollars hoping to prevent
people from doing something stupid to themselves.

W.H. Payne, Wichita Falls, via e-mail