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Posted on 06/04/2005 6:06:50 PM PDT by Wolfie
Drug Czar Favors Testing Teens
If school boards institute random drug testing in the public schools, the use of illegal drugs among teens would be sharply reduced, said John Walters, the director of National Drug Control Policy.
President Bush's drug czar has called for catching alcohol and drug abuse early in the teen population, particularly by instituting random drug testing.
Random drug screening is an effective measure that local school boards should consider adopting, said John Walters, addressing the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors on Friday in Bal Harbour.
"[Random drug testing in public high schools] would dramatically change the face of substance abuse immediately," Walters said. Such a policy has been effective in the workforce and the military, he said.
"The question is: Why not apply this to young people?"
While public schools have free rein to conduct random drug tests at the high-school level, only two counties in Florida have opted to do so: Polk and Marion.
In 1998, then Miami-Dade School Board member Renier Diaz de la Portilla tried to launch a drug-testing pilot program in schools, but that effort failed.
"We haven't discussed that recently," said John Schuster, a spokesman for Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
Diaz de la Portilla's move would have paid for testing 5,000 high school students whose parents requested the tests.
But the School Board passed a watered-down version of the program, which required consent from the students.
Walters said it's "common sense" to focus on young people, who are more likely to experiment with drugs or alcohol.
Instead of seeing the tests as a punishment to the students, testing should be viewed as a "public tool," he said.
"I think this is a new area," Walters said. "There has been a lot of misunderstanding about drug testing in schools," he said, adding that he wants to spark school board-level discussion about testing and not push for a federal mandate.
Oh, I bet he'll get around to that.
I think his new title should be Drug Fuehrer.
Okay, but make sure you test teachers too.
SURELY teachers' unions would support that, no? Why on earth NOT?!?
Screw that. Test the Drug Czar.
Drug Czar Favors Testing Teens
Stay the hell off my kids your blatant misuse of government power and free cheese has ruined my boys leave my others alone you bunch of red tape money hungering creeps !
More proof the WOD is a war on the Constitution IMHO.
Hell, test the politicians too. After all, if we're serious about combatting drug abuse the most noble among us must set a good example, non?
The pattern by which governments erode rights is to start with a subset of the population that garner little sympathy. Flood the popular media with images of ignorant and promiscuous teens fueled by hormones and rap music. Every other story is about youths and drugs. Get middle america to resent them and demand a solution. Then drop the ax. Goodbye America. It was fun.
That's my responsibility as a parent. If they want to test people for drugs, let them set a good example and start with politicians and other public servants first.
Why stop there, lets test everyone twice a month. We could help form hundreds of thousands of jobs, living off the hard work of the taxpayers. Papers please!
This will never happen.
Tie it to highway funds, and its a done deal.
Shucks, why not start at the pre-school level? Sheesh.
Drogeführer NDCP John Walters, you mean like that? It's interesting to note that the acronym for the nazi party is NSDAP(Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei). Just a peculiar observation.
Damn youre right, Hope they dont figure that out.
Why don't we start by testing Congress? That should stir things up a little.
every day
LOL! - you're on a roll!
Where'd that wind up? Christ, I think that they've got it now to where it's illegal to smoke in your own house in some places.
These statists are pushing their agenda by indoctrinating kids into accepting the notion that it's O.K. for the government to tell you to piss into a jar on demand. Once the kids think it's a-ok to do this without any probably cause whatsover, you're less than a generation away from some really evil stuff IMO.
In the name of full disclosure: If someone were to strap me down (because that's the only way this will happen) and extract a blood or urine sample from me, the only thing they'll find are traces of ibupropen (advil), and caffeine levels that would kill a medium-sized elephant.
I insist that all journalists, who report on this drug testing, also be drug tested.
The crazy thing is, if you posted this on DU, you'd get substantially the same reaction you're getting here. It's maybe the ONE thing both sides agree on. So I have to ask, where's the constituency for this drug war BS?
Because by 2008 there will be a large number of annoyed new voters wanting payback on this "public tool" and will then vote for Hillary.
You put your finger on it:
Bush is losing core voters. Not solving immigration. Making good taxpayers bend over for the TSA anal probe, and now their children forced to pee in a jar for the government to test.
Woo hoo! THAT will make you crawl across broken glass to vote Republican, eh?
There's a simpler way to protect kids against other people's drug-dealing kids: Abolish government schools.
is this another one of those chain smoking drug czars?
I'm all for it. If adopted, the use of government schools would be sharply reduced.
What you said!
Paging Ron Kuby....Paging Ron Kuby... the VRWC needs your help to protect our kids!
"So I have to ask, where's the constituency for this drug war BS?"
Er, that would be the dirty politicians as my Irish Grandma termed them.
I'm certain the "All Dopers Should Be Hung And If You Don't Agree You Are A Morally Vacant LIBERALterian!" crowd will mosey on by shortly.
I must confess,the title of Drug Fuehrer has a certain ring to it.
"Conservatives" can scare me, and sometimes even more than "liberals". And I fancy myself a proud conservative.
Maybe we don't want to be to big a party. Maybe you have to dilute the values too much to attract everyone to join.
People talk about the founding fathers and their intent when it suits their purpose. I cannot imagine that our founding fathers would want this in any way shape or form.
And what is the next logical step? I am not sure. Why not test everyone? And once you test positive, that is proof that you have broken the law. You are a criminal. Doesn't that mean fines, confiscation of private property and jail time? How could it not? You would be a criminal if you tested positive.
What happened to the party of smaller government?
some more nonsense by your likeminded thinkers.
If these gestapo wannabees would shut down the border to illegal aliens, the use of illegal drugs among teens would be sharply reduced, says the average grade schooled American citizen...
Why not schools? Don't the taxpayers have a right to see that their hard-earned money is well spent on educating sober and drug free students?
You don't want to be tested? Fine. Then stop sucking the public teat and find a private school that doesn't test. Or homeschool. There are options.
Actually, I agree with you. and in cities and along the highways we should have drug testing centers and pick folks out at random. In the future we will be able to monitor blood content when folks walk by a screen. Great stuff.
If they test Warner for alcohol VA can relieve itself of a problem.
teachers dont even have time to do drugs , what with all the sex with students and all...
but we always want to go after the kids because they don't vote and don't seem to have any rights ....
but question whether a 85 yro should still be driving and its like blasphemy....
let's do until the middle aged and the old what we do to the young....and then see how we like it.....
Ping
If the taxpayers had any rights vis-a-vis public schools, they'd have the right to decline to finance them. Taxpayer rights have nothing to do with Walters' proposal. And districts can already have a testing program if they want, but few do, so there's no evidence taxpayers are interested in testing.
I have a better idea. Why don't we just slap a taser collar to every chidl when it begins to toddle around that sends an alarm signal to a governmental agency when their thoughts or actions are out of sync with governmental approved behaviors so they can be appripriately disciplined and their thinking redirected into government approved channels? < /sarcasm >
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From now on, that is how I will refer to the government head of Drug Propaganda....Drug Fuhrer
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