DATA INDICATES D.A.R.E. PROGRAM IS INEFFECTIVE

Stan White

Dillon, Co

Re: April 30 letter by Lt. Julie Harmon and Sgt. Debbie Haynes titled
'Rally to return funding to D.A.R.E. program.'

The writer fails to mention that studies done on D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse
Resistance Education), including government studies, show the program
is a failure. Money used for D.A.R.E. should be applied toward
programs that work. That includes any program that does not use the
services of the police department, which allows police to attack real
crime. Do the police want to help kids stay off drugs or create a job
market and job security?

Through the dictates of police, district attorneys, etc., America has
an unacceptable police state and prison complex, full of nonviolent
drug and cannabis plant users, that arguably waste our money, with
negligible results. This sequel to the original prohibition is an
embarrassing part of American history that must end. And we must
realize the police, through it's selfish addictions, want to continue
and escalate this farce and proven failure.

Parents Are Best Tool Against Child Drug Use

Robert Sharpe

Program officer,
Drug Policy Alliance
Washington, D.C.

Lt. Julie Harmon and Sgt. Debbie Haynes (April 30 letter to the
editor) ask if Louisiana Gov. Mike Foster's decision to eliminate
funding for the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program is a step
backward. Good intentions are no substitute for effective drug
education. Every independent, methodologically sound evaluation of
D.A.R.E. has found the program to be either ineffective or
counterproductive. The scare tactics used do more harm than good.
Students who realize they are being lied to about marijuana often
make the mistake of assuming harder drugs are relatively harmless as
well. This is a recipe for disaster. Drug education programs must be
reality-based or they may backfire.

The importance of parental involvement in reducing adolescent drug
use cannot be overstated. School-based extracurricular activities
also have been shown to reduce drug use by keeping kids busy during
the hours they're most prone to getting into trouble. In order for
drug education to be effective it has to be credible. The most
popular recreational drug and the one most often associated with
violent behavior is often overlooked. That drug is alcohol, and it
takes far more lives every year than all illegal drugs combined.