Pubdate: Sun, 28 Mar 1999 Source: Herald, The (WA) Copyright: 1999 The Daily Herald Co. Contact: http://www.heraldnet.com/ Section: Opinion Note: receives few of these. This is a story in one newspaper's opinion section taken from another newspaper. The News-Sun has a website at http://www.activedayton.com/partners/sns/ and a discussion forum at http://www.activedayton.com/news/forums_chat/ as well as an email contact for the editor at OTHER VIEWS Springfield (Ohio) News-Sun, March 23, on drugs: Like most other states, Ohio has emphasized punishment as a means of dealing with the drug epidemic. Lawmakers have mandated long sentences for people who sell or use drugs, and for those who commit other crimes to support drug habits. As a result, the state has spent hundreds of millions of dollars building the cells needed to house an ever-increasing prison population. Ohio must turn around its spending priorities in dealing with drug abuse. It cannot and should not abandon the fight against drug crimes, but that effort should be reorganizes. Prison cells ought to be reserved for the kingpins and other dealers who are getting rich off the suffering of others. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake