Pubdate: Mon, 18 Jan 2016
Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA)
Copyright: 2016 Chico Enterprise-Record
Contact:  http://www.chicoer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/861
Note: Letters from newspaper's circulation area receive publishing priority
Author: Garry Cooper

YOUTH PROGRAMS ARE BEST KIND OF DRUG PREVENTION

Does this make sense to you?

You don't keep drugs away from kids, you keep kids away from drugs. 
Drugs are here to stay and only when we accept this premise can we 
begin to address the epidemic plaguing our society. About 55 percent 
of our prison inmates are in for drug offenses and when combined with 
the related burglary, theft, murder, and other crimes related to drug 
use, this number could be as high as 80 percent.

We can make huge changes to our youth and our society by developing 
and implementing programs after school and on weekends that draw our 
youth to them by fitting the interest of nearly every one of them. 
Guitar lessons, art, wood carving, dog training, every sport, free 
movies and everything you can imagine to attract our youth. By 
drawing them to these activities, we remove them from "hanging out" 
and doing nothing with others. We implement year-round school.

The biggest hindrance to this plan is that the police/prison industry 
has written policies in every one of their union organizations to 
oppose "any and all changes to current drug policy." Their unions are 
the most well-funded and powerful in the nation and their very 
livelihood depends on maintaining the status quo of the proven failed 
policy of keeping drugs away from kids instead of kids away from drugs.

We don't take prevention seriously and just deal with the 
after-the-fact symptoms. Our drug policies should focus on good for 
society, not police unions.

- - Garry Cooper, Durham
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom