Pubdate: Sun, 01 Apr 2007 Source: Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI) Copyright: 2007 Honolulu Star-Bulletin Contact: http://www.starbulletin.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/196 Author: Mel McKeague Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) DRUG TESTING STUDENTS IS UN-AMERICAN The proposal to randomly drug test public school students is asinine and dangerous. Fueled mostly by the media and under the guise of student and public safety, a paranoia and hysteria has been created. We are about to enter George Orwell's "1984" society, in which government has been allowed to intrude in all aspects of our personal lives. Why should we stop at drug testing students? Why not test those applying for driver's licenses, going to the doctor, shopping at the local supermarket? The public is in all these places, too. What? The safety of our licensing administrators, doctors and cashiers isn't as important as our students? Random testing, besides being costly and ineffective, is also un-American. Our Constitution provides for us to be safe from unreasonable searches of our homes and persons. Some will argue that the Supreme Court has supported random drug testing. But at one time the courts also supported the secondary class of women and people of color. Just because it's law doesn't mean it's right. And once a student tests positive, we do what -- counseling? Incarceration? Those cost money, too. I'd rather have my tax dollars spent on truant officers to keep kids in schools and to buy library books so that our students and their parents can read Orwell's "1984" and learn its message. Mel McKeague Ewa Beach - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman