>Sender: >To: >X-Original-Message-ID: <003401bf182c$47eaa190$9acf69cf@pacbell.net> >From: "Peter McWilliams" >Subject: McFast&Loose on the loose >Date: Sat, 16 Oct 1999 16:15:05 -0700 >X-Mozilla-Status: 8001 >X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 > > >White Paper: General McCaffrey's History of Misinformation >by Kevin Zeese - Common Sense for Drug Policy > >The Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Barry >McCaffrey, has been known to play 'fast and loose' with the facts, >especially when it comes to the success of his National Drug Control >Strategy. This year General McCaffrey was publicly taken to task for >inaccurately portraying the impact of Netherland's drug policies, >needle exchange and medical marijuana by public health leaders, civil >rights advocates and reform advocates. > >While this White Paper details factually inaccurate statements, the >drug czar has been correct in calling for increased drug treatment and >methadone maintenance. Common Sense applauds him for dealing with these >issues based on the facts and is willing to work with ONDCP in >developing more effective drug control strategies. However, to have >meaningful dialogue, it is imperative that our public officials have an >accurate, fact-based discussion. > >Common Sense provides a free online factbook on the drug war, available >at: http://www.csdp.org/factbook/ and is available for comment at >703-354-5684. > >McCaffrey > >"Each year drug use exacts $110 billion in social costs, contributes to >52,000 drug-related deaths . . . ." Letter from Barry McCaffrey to >Governor Gary Johnson, September 16, 1999. > >"Each year, approximately 50,000 Americans die from drug-related >causes." Testimony of Barry R. McCaffrey Director, Office of National >Drug Control Policy, "Building a More Effective Safe and Drug-Free >Schools and Communities Program" Before the House Subcommittee on Early >Childhood, Youth and Families, August 3, 1999 > >The Facts > >The study Director McCaffrey used to estimate a $110 billion social >cost states that sixty percent (60%) of those costs are due to >drug-related law enforcement, incarceration and crime. These are the >costs created by our National Drug Control Strategy and our policy of >strict prohibition and incarceration. Only 3% of drug costs were from >victims of drug-related crime, and less than 40% of the $110 billion >social costs actually are due to the health impact of drugs. > >General McCaffrey's failure to fully disclose the elements of this >figure are just one example of how the ONDCP director seeks to distort >the public's perception of drug policy.Source: The Economic Costs of >Alcohol and Drug Abuse in the United States 1992.According to SAMHSA, >the federal government's premiere substance abuse agency, about 20,000 >people die each year from drug-related causes. > >"Drug-related" includes much more than deaths from drug overdoses: it >includes both illegal and illicit use of legal drugs, suicide, >homicide, motor vehicle injury, HIV, pneumonia, hepatitis, >endocarditis, infant deaths, and overdoses. Many of these deaths are >due to the illegality of the drugs involved. The 52,000 figure >McCaffrey refers to comes from "CSR Inc., unpublished research prepared >for ONDCP, 1999" which ONDCP has thus far refused to release for public >scrutiny. Considering that the SAMHSA figure of 20,000 already includes >deaths which are already only tenuously related to drug use, it is >difficult to accept that this number could be revised upward so >greatly. More importantly, if this data is not suitable for public >review, how can it be suitable for presentation as fact to Congress, >Governor Johnson, or journalists? > >McCaffrey > >"We're making progress in reducing illegal drug use and its >consequences." Letter from Barry McCaffrey to Governor Gary Johnson, >September 16, 1999. > >The Facts > >The only evidence of "success" comes from voluntary surveys conducted >by the federal government. Indeed, 20% of those selected for the >National Household Survey do not participate. Furthermore, the Survey >excludes all 1.8 million persons who are currently behind bars, many of >whom are imprisoned for drugs, but now do not show up on national >statistics. > >It is hard to tell how accurate the results are or what impact >increased drug war advertising has on survey responses. Second, >throughout most of the 1990s, these surveys have shown adolescent drug >use increasing (until last year when they showed a leveling off of >youth use). > >Third, the health and social consequences associated with drugs; >overdose deaths, mentions of drugs in hospital emergency rooms and >spread of disease, particularly AIDS, have worsened since 1978. Saying >that the nation has made progress on the consequences of drug use is >simply untrue. > >Similarly, the problems associated with the drug market; international >drug cartels, street gangs, police corruption and the purity of drugs >available have all worsened. For instance, the price of heroin has >fallen from $1,200 per pure gram to $317 per pure gram, while average >purity of street-level heroin has increased from less than 5% to 25% >since 1981. The price of cocaine is half of what it was in 1981 and the >average purity has risen from 40% to more than 70%. > >Declining prices and increasing purity are hard evidence of a >substantially increased supply of these drugs ­ this is not evidence of >a successful drug strategy.Sources: National Drug Control Strategy, >National Household Survey on Drug Abuse; Monitoring the Future Survey; >Annual Medical Examiner Data; Drug Abuse Warning Network. > >McCaffrey > >"In the view of the nation's scientific and medical community, >marijuana has a high potential for abuse and no generally accepted >therapeutic value." Barry McCaffrey, July 22, 1997. > >The Facts > >"Federal authorities should rescind their prohibition of the medicinal >use of marijuana for seriously ill patients and allow physicians to >decide which patients to treat." Editorial, New England Journal of >Medicine, January 30, 1997. > >McCaffrey > >"Marijuana is also a gateway drug." Barry McCaffrey, July 22, 1997. > >The Facts > >For every 112 marijuana users, there is only one regular user of >cocaine and less than one heroin addict. Source: U.S. Government, >National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1996. > >"There is no conclusive evidence that the drug effects of marijuana are >causally linked to the subsequent abuse of other illicit drugs." >Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson, Jr., and John A Benson, Jr. >(1999). Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. Division of >Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine. >Washington, DC: National Academy Press. > >McCaffrey > >"The murder rate in Holland is double that in the United States. That's >drugs." Barry McCaffrey, July 23, 1998. > >The Facts > >The Dutch homicide rate in 1995 was one-fourth that of the United >States (1.8 vs. 8.0). Source: FBI, Uniform Crime Reports and Dutch >Bureau of Statistics > >McCaffrey > >"The Dutch approach to drugs hasn't worked." Barry McCaffrey, July 23, >1998 > >The Facts > >All categories of drug use in Holland are lower than in the US. While >32.9% of people in the US have used marijuana, only 15.5% of people in >Holland have done so; 5.1% in the US have used marijuana in the last >month; only 2.5% in Holland have done so. For cocaine, 10.5% in the US >have tried it, compared to 2.1% in Holland, while .7% have used cocaine >in the last month in the US and .2% have done so in Holland.Sources: >National Household Survey 1997 SAMHSA, Office of applied studies >Washington DC.; M. Abraham, P. Cohen, M. De Winter: Licit and Illicit >drug use in the Netherlands, Center for Drug Research, University of >Amsterdam. > >McCaffrey > >"The jury is still out on Needle exchange." Barry McCaffrey, August 16, >1996 "These programs are magnets for all social ills, pulling in crime, >violence, addicts, prostitution, dealers, and gangs and driving out >hope and opportunity." Barry McCaffrey, April 24, 1998. > >The Facts > >"A meticulous scientific review has now proven that needle exchange >programs can reduce the transmission of HIV and save lives without >losing ground in the battle against illegal drugs." Donna Shalala, >Secretary of HHS April 20, 1998 > >Prepared by Common Sense for Drug Policy. >Contact Kevin B. Zeese, 703-354-5694 >http://www.csdp.org/ > > > > >================================================================ > >This message is sent to you because you are subscribed to > the mailing list . >To unsubscribe, E-mail to: