Date: Tue, 24 Aug 1999
Subject: G.W. Bush’s Problem Represents Opportunity For Reformers
DrugSense FOCUS Alert #121 August 24. 1999
Bush’s Problem Represents Opportunity for Reformers
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DrugSense FOCUS Alert #121 August 24. 1999 Bush’s Problem Represents
Opportunity for Reformers
U.S. presidential candidate George W. Bush has been taking heat from
the press in recent days over his refusal to flatly confirm or deny
whether he has ever used illegal drugs. Whether individual reformers
support Bush or another candidate in the presidential race, this issue
offers a great opportunity for us to get our message out.
With the Bush controversy, we can play both sides of the field.
Reformers have a chance to promote drug law change regardless of how
someone suggests Bush should respond.
When someone says Bush should just admit the truth, we can agree and
point out:
1. Bush’s hypocrisy for supporting zero tolerance for everyone else
even though it appears he was fortunate enough to avoid serious punishment.
2. The fact that drug use is overblown as a personal failing – here is
this guy who allegedly did use illegal drugs, but not only is he a
popular governor, he’s running for president.
When other people say Bush should refuse to elaborate, we can agree
and say:
1. Drug use is a personal matter, while noting that it’s a shame GWB
doesn’t hold that standard for everyone else.
2. The consequences for drug use allegations are too severe, and while
taking a lot of heat from the press is hardly equal to having property
confiscated, as a country we really need to analyze our priorities and
criteria for judging other people.
Whatever position someone takes, we can suggest they are correct and
that they must agree drug policy reform is in order. On the other
hand, the professional drug warriors (with the exception of Bush’s
presidential opponents) have been wise to stay fairly quiet on this
issue, since the whole episode illustrates the complete moral and
intellectual bankruptcy of American drug policy.
The story has been covered everywhere, so we have a wide variety of
targets. Please write a letter to your local newspaper or any of
several newspapers across the nation to show that any way you slice
the Bush-drug question, it’s a wake-up call for drug policy reform.
Thanks for your effort and support.
WRITE A LETTER TODAY
It’s not what others do it’s what YOU do
*
PLEASE SEND US A COPY OF YOUR LETTER OR TELL US WHAT YOU DID ( Letter,
Phone, fax etc.)
Please post a copy your letter or report your action to the MAPTalk
list if you are subscribed, or by E-mailing a copy directly to
MGreer@mapinc.org Your letter will then be forwarded to the list with
so others can learn from your efforts and be motivated to follow suit
This is VERY IMPORTANT as it is the only way we have of gauging our
impact and effectiveness.
CONTACT INFO
We are doing this Focus Alert a bit differently. There are a wide
assortment of articles on the Bush dilemma (57 at this writing).Pick
any you like they have all been sorted for you at:
http://www.mapinc.org/bush.htm
Then write an LTE to that paper using the Email address provided on
the article.
Alternately since nearly every newspaper in the country has done at
least one article on this topic you can look up your local or favorite
papers Email address(es) at our media Email web page
http://www.mapinc.org/resource/email.htm
then send your letter to as many as you like.
NOTE: If sending your LTE to multiple papers send a separate copy to
each one. CC’s or BCC’s are not looked on with favor in the print
media and you will lower your chances of publication significantly if
you fail to follow this procedure.
SAMPLE LETTER
Due to the diverse ways to approach this topic we decided to leave
this Focus Alert wide open without a sample LTE and let your
imagination be your guide as to what you want to cover.
Here we have posted some ideas (Duplicates of the ones
above)
When someone says Bush should just admit the truth, we can agree and
point out:
1. Bush’s hypocrisy for supporting zero tolerance for everyone else
even though it appears he was fortunate enough to avoid serious punishment.
2. The fact that drug use is overblown as a personal failing – here is
this guy who allegedly did use illegal drugs, but not only is he a
popular governor, he’s running for president.
When other people say Bush should refuse to elaborate, we can agree
and say:
1. Drug use is a personal matter, while noting that it’s a shame GWB
doesn’t hold that standard for everyone else.
2. The consequences for drug use allegations are too severe, and while
taking a lot of heat from the press is hardly equal to having property
confiscated, as a country we really need to analyze our priorities and
criteria for judging other people.
Whatever position someone takes, we can suggest they are correct and
that they must agree drug policy reform is in order. On the other
hand, the professional drug warriors (with the exception of Bush’s
presidential opponents) have been wise to stay fairly quiet on this
issue, since the whole episode illustrates the complete moral and
intellectual bankruptcy of American drug policy.
The story has been covered everywhere, so we have a wide variety of
targets. Please write a letter to your local newspaper or any of
several newspapers across the nation to show that any way you slice
the Bush-drug question, it’s a wake-up call for drug policy reform.
IMPORTANT: Always include your address and telephone
number
—————————————————————————-
ADDITIONAL INFO to help you in your letter writing
efforts
3 Tips for Letter Writers http://www.mapinc.org/3tips.htm
Letter Writers Style Guide http://www.mapinc.org/style.htm
Prepared by Stephen Young – http://home.att.net/~theyoungfamily Focus
Alert Specialist