Pubdate: Thu, 28 Feb 2002 Source: Salmon Arm Observer (CN BC) Copyright: 2002 Salmon Arm Observer Contact: http://www.saobserver.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1407 Authors: Daneen Allemang, Louisa Zazulak Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n317/a12.html KEEP FIGHTING DRUGS Is Chris Donald (Letter Observer Feb. 20) suggesting that because some children use marijuana it should be made easily available to them? Just because a large percentage of teens feel it is easy to obtain doesn't mean it should be an extracurricular activity at school. Is it being said that if they can buy and sell from their peers at school they'll be safer, that if we leave them alone they'll be better off? Rebellion may be expected with teens but should we accept this rebellion when it carries dangerous implications? Give your head a shake! Who says the lives of these teens will be ruined because they are being charged? Perhaps it might save one of them or save the life of someone else. Perhaps these young people are only participating in illegal action because they can, because nobody cares enough to stop them. As a parent of teens, I am glad that administration at SASS and the RCMP are making the effort. If one life is made better by these efforts then no expense is too great. We can't stop trying because we know they will just move on to another location. We must also move on, reach out, and let our youth know that we care and that there are better choices. Daneen Allemang - -------------------------------- I applaud the school administration who had the courage to call in the law in order to apprehend drug dealers who do not belong in schools or anywhere near schools. I would like to point out to the young man who objects to their arrest that the young people who were charged had already decided to ruin their lives when they took their little business to school. Schools are supported by a large part of our taxes for the sole purpose of educating our young people. I don't think the average taxpayer would be too pleased to have our schools turn into a publicly funded institution with dealers openly selling in the hallways or for our teachers to try and get a lesson across to a classroom full of spaced-out kids. It is a well-known fact that marijuana interferes with the learning process, recent studies find it is a greater risk factor for lung cancer and frequently leads to other, even more dangerous drugs. We must fight the drug trade at every opportunity to protect our young people and our medical system, which ultimately has to pick up the bills. Louisa Zazulak - --- MAP posted-by: Josh