I was shocked and disappointed to read that anyone is celebrating DARE
after all the damage it has done to young people ("DARE celebrates 10
years at KB" in the May 4 Tahoe World).

Studies on DARE consistently show it is a failure. So dismal is the
DARE record, the U.S. Department of Education refuses to include DARE
on its list of programs whose effectiveness is proven.

Not only is DARE a failure, it is an expensive failure. The real cost
of DARE is hidden from the public. DARE costs about $5 a student,
which covers each 5th grader's DARE workbook, T-shirt and ruler. But
police time adds another $20-$50 per student, depending on the
department and the number of classes. Nationally, DARE officers are
paid twice as much as teachers, for a job that requires far less
education - or risk.

DARE also takes up valuable students' time, which may even be an even
bigger reason to junk DARE. Fifth- and sixth-graders need math,
science and reading. While they might need the skills to resist drugs,
they don't need a program shown to have no lasting effect on drug use.

As precious as class time is in a 180-day school year, pulling
students out of math to listen to DARE officers hardly makes sense.

Steve Kubby,
Olympic Valley, Ca.