ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, September 3, 1996 TAG: 9609030120
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LEWIS R. SHECKLER
BOB DOLE is right. President Bill Clinton sabotaged the American war on drugs, and our youth are paying a terrible price. The media should be expressing much concern about this. Instead, they are covering it up and are assisting Clinton's cigarette smoke screen.
Between 1992 and 1995, the number of children ages 12-17 using illegal drugs doubled. Between 1992 and 1995, youngsters' monthly use of marijuana rose 105 percent and monthly hallucinogenic drug use jumped 183 percent. In only one year, from 1994 to 1995, hallucinogenic drug use by minors rose 54 percent, and cocaine use skyrocketed an incredible 166 percent. We are facing a national disaster!
President Clinton has earned much of the blame because he undermined our nation's war on drug abuse. He took the drug war out of the National Security Council's top priorities. It is now only 29 of 29. He slashed the drug czar's office personnel by 83 percent. (They were partially restored by congressional mandate.) And he cut military anti-drug efforts, including 1,000 military positions used for anti-drug activities.
President Clinton took other actions that undoubtedly contributed to increased drug abuse. He reduced mandatory minimum sentences for drug traffickers, and he sliced funds from drug treatment and prevention programs. During his first-year budget, he recommended cuts in drug education and enforcement. He eliminated 355 agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency and 102 personnel from the Justice Department's task force on organized crime and drug-law enforcement.
These actions are bad, but he did more. He cut the Coast Guard's drug interdiction budget by $14.6 million. He appointed a U.S. surgeon general who encouraged Americans to consider legalizing illegal drugs. Perhaps worst of all, President Clinton went on MTV, watched by millions of American youth, and said that if he had it to do over again, he would inhale.
We should demand answers to three questions:
Why don't the media require accountability for teens' skyrocketing drug abuse?
Why do the media show little interest in this national disaster?
And why don't they demand that every candidate for president present his plan of action to fight teen drug abuse?
Lewis R. Sheckler of Radford is a retired Radford University professor.
LENGTH: Short : 49 linesby CNB