Ashcroft's Escalation Of The Drug War Won't Help PLEASE COPY AND DISTRIBUTE DrugSense FOCUS Alert #198 Tuesday Feb. 13, 2001 Recently on the Larry King Alive show on CNN the new U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said, "Well, I want to escalate the war on drugs. I want to renew it, relaunch it if you will." Of course, if he had been paying attention, he would know that every administration since Reagan's has escalated the war on drugs. Ironically, Ashcroft's comments came just as the Chicago Sun-Times finished excerpting journalist Dan Gardner's excellent series from the Ottawa Citizen on the devastation and futility of the drug war (see http://www.mapinc.org/gardner.htm). A Sun-Times editorial (below) noted the discrepancy. Please write a letter to the Sun-Times or other media outlets listed below where Ashcroft's statements were publicized to say drug problems can only be addressed by moving away from the drug war, not embracing it more closely. WRITE A LETTER TODAY It's not what others do it's what YOU do PLEASE SEND US A COPY OF YOUR LETTER OR TELL US WHAT YOU DID (Letter, Phone, fax etc.) Please post a copy your letter or report your action to the sent letter list () if you are subscribed, or by E-mailing a copy directly to Your letter will then be forwarded to the list with so others can learn from your efforts and be motivated to follow suit This is VERY IMPORTANT as it is the only way we have of gauging our impact and effectiveness. CONTACT INFO: Source: Chicago Sun-Times (IL) Contact: NOTE: Your letter can also be sent directly to Larry King Live by visiting http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/larry.king.live/ Scroll to the bottom left of this web page and click on "Send In" under the "Email the Producer" headline. EXTRA CREDIT Some other newspapers have printed or editorialized on Ashcroft's call for a renewed drug war. Please send a letter to them to tell them how terrible Ashcroft's idea is. US: A BRIGHT AND SHINING LIE URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n240/a09.html Pubdate: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO) Contact: US: Relaxed Ashcroft Outlines Priorities On `Larry King' URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n233/a02.html Pubdate: Feb. 10 Source: Kansas City Star (MO) Contact: US: Ashcroft Outlines Top Three Priorities URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n230/a01.html Pubdate: Thu, 08 Feb 2001 Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA) Contact: US: VIOLENCE, TEEN DRUG USE ARE ASHCROFT PRIORITIES URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n228/a04.html Pubdate: Thu, 08 Feb 2001 Source: Washington Post (DC) Contact: ARTICLE US IL: Editorial: Frontline Report - We're Still Losing URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n250/a05.html Newshawk: Sledhead Pubdate: Sun, 11 Feb 2001 Source: Chicago Sun-Times (IL) Copyright: 2001 The Sun-Times Co. Contact: Address: 401 N. Wabash, Chicago IL 60611 Feedback: http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html Website: http://www.suntimes.com/ FRONTLINE REPORT: WE'RE STILL LOSING In the movie "Traffic," Michael Douglas, portraying the new national drug czar, is met with stares and shrugs when he urges aides to "think outside the box." He has seen the tens of thousands of cars that enter California daily from Tijuana, Mexico. He has been told that only a fraction of the drugs being smuggled through this point are intercepted by authorities. "Let's have some new ideas, now," implores the impatient Douglas character. But there is no courage among his staff to acknowledge that victory is not at hand in this war on drugs. In real life, we know that our approach to controlling illicit drugs--primarily through interdiction and punishment--has failed. Drugs still are readily available to people who want them--though at a cost that prompts too many users to commit crimes to obtain the money to buy drugs. Nearly a half-million people are behind bars for drug-related crimes--a tenfold increase since 1980. Yet, a typical teenager finds it easier to buy marijuana than a six-pack of beer. For the last six weeks, the Sunday Sun-Times has published excerpts from a special report examining the war on drugs. Ottawa Citizen editorial writer Dan Gardner paints a picture of a well-intentioned effort--to keep Americans drug-free--that has spawned a host of unwanted consequences, including fomentation of a $400 billion criminal industry, violence in some of our poorest communities and official corruption. In an interview on CNN last week, Attorney General John Ashcroft listed "reinvigorating the war on drugs" as one of his top priorities. If that means devoting more resources solely to intercepting drugs, his plan has been invalidated. More encouraging are President Bush's remarks that indicate a willingness to re-examine certain aspects of the drug war. He has noted that minimum sentencing for first-time users "may not be the best way to occupy jail space and/or heal people from their disease." Bush also said that authorizing medical use of marijuana should be a decision for states, not the federal government. If these are hints that the Bush administration will treat drugs as a health problem rather than primarily a crime problem, they are welcomed. Today's installment in Gardner's series (Pages 34-35) focuses on "harm reduction": the idea that drug use has always existed, and always will, and how do we reduce its harmful effects on society. Some European nations have, in effect, decriminalized possession of small amounts. More dramatic approaches include setting up ways for addicts to safely ingest drugs. In the United States, we are far from government-run "safe injection sites," but the European experience is intriguing if not compelling. Certainly, dropping mandatory prison for first-time nonviolent offenders would be a good start, as would stronger efforts to redirect drug users into treatment. Bush has not yet appointed a drug czar, but a positive sign would be naming someone who is well-versed in the health aspects of drug abuse. As Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, the Clinton administration's drug czar, has said, "America can't arrest our way out of the drug problem." There is increasing criticism of our war on drugs--criticism offered up by reasonable people motivated by a desire to reduce the unintended consequences. Bush has acknowledged this divergence of views, and he should establish a national commission to examine the arguments. Let's have some new ideas. Because stares and shrugs just aren't going to cut it. SAMPLE LETTER Editor: Recently on the Larry King Alive show on CNN our new Attorney General John Ashcroft said, "Well, I want to escalate the war on drugs. I want to renew it, relaunch it if you will." In 1972 when President Nixon launched the war on drugs, the federal budget for the drug war was approximately 101 million dollars. This year the federal budget for the drug war will be more than 19.2 billion dollars. More than a 190 fold increase. What have we received for our so-called investment? Nothing positive. In what used to be the land of the free, we now incarcerate more of our people than any other country on the planet. With less than 5% of the world's population, the United States now has more than 25% of the world's prisoners. Thanks to the drug war. Thanks to the drug war, many of our individual rights guaranteed by the U. S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, have been effectively nullified. Thanks to the drug war, more than 700,000 Americans were arrested last year for possession of marijuana. Marijuana is a natural herb that has never been documented to kill a single person. Yet the drug war is what our Attorney General John Ashcroft wants to intensify. Obviously, the drug war is not working. Obviously, we need to do something different. Best regards, Kirk Muse IMPORTANT: Always include your address and telephone number Please note: If you choose to use this letter as a model please modify it at least somewhat so that the paper does not receive numerous copies of the same letter and so that the original author receives credit for his/her work. ADDITIONAL INFO to help you in your letter writing efforts 3 Tips for Letter Writers http://www.mapinc.org/3tips.htm Letter Writers Style Guide http://www.mapinc.org/style.htm TO SUBSCRIBE, DONATE, VOLUNTEER TO HELP, OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL SEE http://www.drugsense.org/hurry.htm TO UNSUBSCRIBE SEE http://www.drugsense.org/unsub.htm Prepared by Kirk Muse - http://www.drugwarinfo.com and Stephen Young - http://home.att.net/~theyoungfamily Focus Alert Specialist

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