Pubdate: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 Source: Decatur Daily (AL) Copyright: 2001 The Decatur Daily Contact: http://www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/index.shtml Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/696 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/dare.htm (D.A.R.E.) D.A.R.E. TO KEEP THE MESSAGE COMING Every now and then we hear of some study saying that the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program isn't working. The nation's youths are still experimenting with drugs and sometimes getting hooked with tragic consequences. A look at any police blotter is evidence the drug trade is still active. Authorities have long said drugs are the impetus for most crime. Drugs are still around nearly 20 years after the 17-week D.A.R.E. program was started in Los Angeles in 1983. So if this is the yardstick by which we measure the program's effectiveness, then we suppose there are those around who would say it's a dismal failure. But what if there had been no D.A.R.E.? There is no way to measure how many youngsters never smoked their first joint, smoked their first rock of crack or drank themselves comatose because they remembered the lessons they learned in D.A.R.E. But these are things we do know: D.A.R.E. may be the first and only positive contact some children have with a police officer. It may be the first time they are in an environment where they can talk about peer pressure and any other thing that may be eating at them without fear of reprisal. That time may never come again. For now, we call on educators and on government officials who control the purse strings to D.A.R.E. to keep the message coming. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth