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DRUG WAR BACKLASH

The expansion of the drug war gravy train described in your Sept.  4 article is tantamount to a taxpayer-funded price support for organized crime ( Community, "Ice show," HW ).  Attempts to limit the supply of illegal drugs while demand remains constant only increase the profitability of drug trafficking.  In terms of addictive drugs like meth, a spike in street prices leads desperate addicts to increase criminal activity to feed desperate habits.

The drug war doesn't fight crime, it fuels crime.  With alcohol prohibition repealed, liquor bootleggers no longer gun each other down in drive-by shootings, nor do consumers go blind drinking unregulated bathtub gin.  While U.S.  politicians ignore the historical precedent, European countries are embracing harm reduction, a public-health alternative based on the principle that both drug abuse and drug prohibition have the potential to cause harm.

Examples of harm reduction include needle exchange programs to stop the spread of HIV among intravenous drug users, marijuana regulation aimed at separating the hard and soft drug markets, and treatment alternatives that do not require incarceration as a prerequisite.

Unfortunately, fear of appearing "soft on crime" compels many U.S.  politicians to support a failed drug war that ultimately subsidizes organized crime.

Robert Sharpe, Drug Policy Alliance, Washington, D.C.