TAXPAYERS ARE THE VICTIMS

Re: "Drug war - This crime isn't victimless," Letters, Sept. 3.

Louis Polito lists several crimes that he links to drug trafficking in an
effort to prove that drug use is not a victimless crime. He mentions the
killing of police officers, strained relations between countries, and the
billions of dollars spent to police drug trafficking. He even neglected to
add the corruption of public officials and the turf wars fought by drug
gangs as other major public concerns.

However, Mr. Polito fails to realize a simple truth - none of these crimes
would be happening in the first place if drugs were decriminalized. To put
it another way, it is because we treat drugs as a moral failing instead of
as a public health problem that causes the crimes to happen.

Mr. Polito was correct on one observation. The only real crime being
committed here is the billions of our tax dollars being wasted to try and
police drug trafficking.

BRIAN KERSHEN, Addison