From: American Anti-Prohibition League <[aal 01] at [teleport.com]>
Newsgroups: or.politics,talk.politics.drugs,alt.hemp.politics
Subject: Drug War vet for "DRUG PEACE!"
Date: Tue, 7 Nov 1995 13:06:46 -0800


                     AMERICAN ANTI-PROHIBITION LEAGUE
              3125 SE Belmont Street, Portland, Ore., 97214
    voice: 503-235-4524, fax: 503-234-1330, e-mail: [aal 01] at [teleport.com]

    The following appeared today - 11/7/95 - in the "Letters" section 
    of the Oregonian newspaper, published daily in Portland, Oregon.

                        A 19-YEAR DRUG-WAR VETERAN
                       CHANGES VIEW ON LEGALIZATION

      To the Editor: The opinions expressed on the legalization of 
    drugs (Oct. 17) sound good, but they are not realistic.

      As a recovering addict (more than 19 years clean) and as a drug 
    and alcohol counselor in schools, treatment centers and prisons, I 
    have been close to the issues raised in these two commentaries.  
    Until recently, I would have been ready to fight anyone who would 
    suggest legalization, but today I advocate controlled 
    legalization.

      The argument for not legalizing drugs has always been that 
    making them more available would increase usage.  I agreed 
    wholeheartedly, but that argument is dead.  Any child can tell you 
    where to acquire drugs.  Our streets and schoolyards have become 
    drugstores.

      I propose the following: Research the possibility of creating 
    (treatment centers) away from neighborhoods.  (At relatively low 
    cost), this could cut drug-related crime significantly.  If an 
    addict smuggled drugs outside this facility, we could always lock 
    him up.

      Lastly, such a program would give society access and therefore 
    some controls over addicts and their families.  Drug-affected 
    babies, abused and neglected children, over dose and the operation 
    of dangerous ... [last line of column was illegible] ... Attorney 
    Michael Schrunk correctly pointed out, seriously impact the health 
    of our communities and need to be addressed.

      I have painfully concluded that society will never allocate the 
    money needed to help people feel good within themselves by 
    providing jobs, treatment, housing and the like.  So there will 
    always be a market for drugs.  We need to control this escalating 
    problem, and our efforts to date have not worked.


                            MICHAEL C. NIELSEN
                            Milwaukie [Oregon]
                                   ***


                     *** DRUG WAR, or DRUG PEACE? ***