Pubdate: Thu, 23 Sep 1999 Source: Ogdensburg Journal (NY) Copyright: 1999 St Lawrence County Newspapers Corp. Address: P.O. Box 409, Ogdensburg, New York 13669 Fax: (315) 393-5108 Author: Jim Reagen, Editor NOTE: Accepts LTEs by mail or FAX only! Also: The ReconsiDer website is at: http://www.reconsider.org/ And: We are reposting this editorial because we have been informed that this newspaper, and it's Sunday edition - Ogdensburg Advance News, are among the very rare newspapers which do not accept LTEs by email. Our newshawk asks that LTE writers who emailed the newspapers about this editorial please resend them by FAX or mail. Thank you! WHO IS DANGEROUS? Canton Legislator Peter FitzRandolph's remark earlier this week, asking whether the alleged crack dealers, coke dealers and other drug dealers arrested in recent weeks are "actually dangerous," raises questions of its own. We like Mr. FitzRandolph, who usually is one of the county legislature's more thoughtful representatives. But his comments did more that raise a few eyebrows this week. Mr. FitzRandolph might do well to spend a day at Rose Hill Drug Treatment Center in Massena where he could talk to some of the 15 and 16 year old addicts whose kidneys and other organs are already suffering the effects of their addictions caused by the poisons sold to them by the people who Mr. FitsRandolph thinks may be "technically" violating the law. He might also want to visit the Massena state police substation where he could examine the grenade launcher and silencers found in an arsenal seized at the home of an accused drug dealer. Mr. FitzRandolph appears to be suffering under the illussion that St.Lawrence County's durg trade is controlled by the kind of idealistic college kids he studied with back when he was in the college. The drug trade has changed from the days when college kids sold a little reefer to each other in their dorm room. The marijuana itself has undergone dramatic changes in its THC levels thanks to the wonders of modern plant breeding. At $1000 a plant, marijuana has become big business. And the growning popularity of cocaine and crack cocaine has already caused its own share of problems. As we've pointed out repeatedly over the past few years, nearly every armed robbery committed in St.Lawrence County over the past several years has been committed by people who were trying to raise money to finance their cocaine habits. Mr FitzRandolph should go ask a few store clerks who have had rifles and shotguns stuck in their faces whether they think the dealers whose business it is to addict their customers pose any "danger" to society. As anyone in law enforcement could tell Mr. FitzRandolph if he bothered to ask, most of the thefts from cars and many of the burglaries being committed are the work of addicts who need money to finance their "technical" violations of the law. Most of the county's detectives could also advise Mr. FitzRandolph that a growing number of gun thefts in St. Lawrence County are being committed by addicts who trade the guns for drugs. That's a trend that even the most obtuse politician ought to be worried about-drug dealers with assault rifles, grenade launchers and silencers. We don't wish to belabor our point here, but even politicians have a responsibility to take a hard look at what's occurring in St.Lawrence County's underworld of narcotics trafficking. It's fine for ReconsiDer and other drug legalization groups to offer their opinions about the theoretical benefits fo legalization in a Libertarian world. We can recall thinking the same way back in the 1970's. But after the smoke clears, let's look at the facts. Legalization of drugs means legalizing narcotics. As any medical practitioner can tell you, most drugs are given under a doctor's supervision for a simple reason. Used the wrong way, in the wrong amounts, for any lenght of time, and they will cause a host of problems that can range from addictions to organ damage and sometimes even death. Legalization groups can make all the faulty comparisons they wish to make, but the reality is simpple. A few recreational drinks a day won't kill you. Prolonged use of many narcotics will. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake