Letters to the editor | July 15

Every strategy undertaken to ensure communities live harmoniously, and go about daily routines in safety, is to be lauded (Dob in a drug dealer campaign, QA, 8 July, p.2). Drugs have been identified as an impediment to individual quality of life, community's smooth functioning and unity. They come in all forms, imposing varying levels of impairment, from analgesics (colloquially, pain killers), anti-psychotics, anxiolytics, antidepressants, antihypertensives, nicotine and alcohol. All the former come under various drug act schedules, the latter two, are self-prescribed, and administered. Since the beginning of time humans have imbibed drugs for personal effects, for group ceremonial events or to reinforce conviviality and communality on special occasions. Delphic oracles are thought to have pronounced their prophecies while under drug influence. Andean Indians still chew coca leaves for stimulant qualities. Betel is chewed extensively in the Pacific.

Academics question adoption of a hard line on drugs. Richard Nixon (1971) instituted the US "war on drugs", which was followed through by Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No", when her husband ascended the presidency. From 1980 drug offending prison populations grew from 50,000 to 400,000 and now to 500,000! Societal opportunity costs of incarceration means depriving hospitals, schools and community infrastructure of essential funding, had, perhaps, more appropriate strategies been adopted. Crime Stoppers, Brian Roach, is stating an obvious fact in identifying drug use as "whole of government" issue, requiring carefully thought through strategies addressing health, education, employment, housing, rather than knee jerk, attention-grabbing headlines. Compassion, humanity and understanding must supplant punishment.

- Albert M. White, Queanbeyan

Rubbish in the river

It seems that the recent heavy rain and flooding of the Queanbeyan River has resulted in a huge amount of rubbish being deposited along the river bank and in the undergrowth beside the river. This is particularly evident below the weir and the Morisset St Bridge and it gets worse as the river winds pass the Queanbeyan Cemetery and up towards the Railway Bridge. The amount of plastic and other debris embedded in the wash off is staggering. It would seem that whatever filters/controls are in place to prevent general litter getting into the river in extreme weather have failed and the rising water has actually collected rubbish en route? As much of this plastic disintegrates if will end up on the river bed affecting the fish and other native animals like the platypus that most of us want to protect. Maybe a community effort will be required to remove all this plastic before summer when the heat will accelerate its decomposition into the riverbed or does it sit their till Clean Up Australia Day?

- Helen Jennings, Queanbeyan