Flathead Beacon | Drug Testing Debate Fraught With Legal, Moral Questions

Comments on: Drug Testing Debate Fraught With Legal, Moral Questions

By JD on 04-30-08

Then they shouldn’t test the students to determine if they qualify to be in special activities. They should test ALL students to see if they qualify to be in public school and have a future worth investing in.
The comment about we’ll “be surprised how many students test positive” says it all.
Failing to suppress, identify, and treat drug use in high school is irresponsible.

By Test Teachers First on 04-30-08

Let’s be fair and start at the top by testing school administrators and teachers to see if they “have a future worth investing in.” (sic)

By Parenting on 04-30-08

Yeah, what about randomly testing the parents… so many times drug use starts at home…

By Roark on 04-30-08

The question that needs to be asked, but isn’t, is why is the state involved with education at all?-education is not the proper sphere of government whose very nature requires that it be an enforcer.

By JD on 04-30-08

Excellent! Let’s test EVERYONE. Can I be first?
Once the druggies are identified they’ll get the help they need.
The whole “Drug Free America” thing is doomed if certain people or groups of people are excused from cooperating.
Thanks for making me aware of this, I hadn’t thought about that before. The article had channelled me into thinking that drug use was a problem in schools. It is far beyond that.
Let’s test EVERYONE.

By j davis on 05-01-08

Have any of you people heard of the 4th and 5th amendments? More unnecessary government intrusion into our lives.

By JD on 05-01-08

There is a war against drugs going on. Please tell us which side you support. And offer up any suggestions on how to win it. Make a stand!

By Lawless Cops on 05-01-08

It’s a phony “war on drugs”. With property seizure, the “war” became unconstitutional. When they break and enter without warrant or with a faulty warrant, citizens may excercise their Second Ammendment rights to evict the trespassers. This is one of the reasons the Second Ammendment was created and ratified.
These fake cops are just pissed off that the cash cow dried up since the feds cut their budget. Get a real job.

By j davis on 05-01-08

The ‘war on drugs’ has morphed into a war on civil liberties. Para military raids have killed many innocent people. People have had their property seized for minuscule amounts of marijuana. Medical marijuana clinics have been raided by violent sociopaths with badges. Drug testing is nothing short of a violation of the 4th amendment not to mention the right to privacy. Of course there will always be self righteous twits that think they know whats best for all of us and are willing to use coercion to impose their neo fascistic outlook on the rest of us. Under no circumstances would I allow my child to be forced to pee in a cup!

By JD on 05-01-08

Right, the war isn’t being fought correctly. They could be a little nicer about it. Maybe just save the SWAT team tactics for the drug dealers, and go a little easier on the users. Instead of jail and fines, maybe some probation and dry out.
So, j, if your child had been or is pressured to play with drugs, would you know about it? Would you want to know about it? And then are you gonna do something about it? What are you gonna do? Unfortunately, your attitude might get mistaken as one that okays drug use. Which could be, or become drug abuse, and can escalate into all kinds of fun things that society gets to deal with.
I think I’d want to know. I don’t think anybody is gonna be scarred from the experience of providing a urine sample. It could result in their life being saved. I might not even know your kids, but I want their lives to be good ones.

By .45cal for fake cops on 05-02-08

If the war on drugs was so great, why do we read in the papers about the botched raids that kill grandmothers and terrorize folks because they can’t even read the address correctly?
Defend your rights, carry and be prepared to use it.

By j davis on 05-02-08

JD,
I am in no way advocating the use of drugs by young people. I think the job of testing belongs to the parents not the school. Having to pee in a cup to prove ones innocence sends the wrong message. Being tested without cause is not the way to go. Its bad enough some employers subject their employees to this humiliating experience. Most drug tests only snag pot smokers, probably the most inoffensive bunch of otherwise law abiding people around. Those who use hard drugs are less likely to get caught because these drugs do not show up after say 36-48 hours. Also students can be denied student loans for drug offenses. You can be a rapist, robber, or murderer, and still get a student loan but get caught smoking a joint and kiss that loan goodbye. Where do these intrusions into our private lives end??

By Anonymous on 05-02-08

Drugs are a problem in the schools, that appears to be a fact.

The question is what should we do about it? Drug testing is an invasion of privacy. It will discouraging at risk kids from participating in programs with positive focus. The question is not “Drug testing vs Do Nothing”, the question is: “How do we effect change to prevent drug use?”

I do not know the answer to this question. But some research into alternative solutions might be in order. Has the Kalispell STAND (Students Taking a New Direction) program been effective? Are there other alternatives to helping kids make good choices rather than the choice of drugs?

Drug testing is a bandaid to the problem. To fix this will require a community response that helps kids choose healthier options.

By JD on 05-02-08

Personally I feel marijuana is no worse to society than alcohol. But I can’t work with a drunk, nor somebody who is stoned. Sorry. I don’t want to be on the same highway as somebody who is impaired. I don’t want to be on the same racetrack as someone whose judgement and reactions might be hindered. My life depends on it. So does yours.
I don’t want all drug users jailed. I want them helped. After they splatter me is too late as far as I’m concerned, but you might not care. After you’re splattered you won’t care, but I will.
I just want the war fought in an effective way that works for everybody.

By Anonymous on 05-03-08

How about parents, teachers and kids working together? Community meetings and more involvement from the parents? If people took the time out of their day to know what is going on in their children’s lives there wouldn’t be a drug problem. Random testing of civilians is unconstitutional. It will simply cause the kids to quit the school programs instead.

By ml on 05-13-08

We are in the process of meeting as a community. The superintendent has asked us to get together as a community and come up with some ideas. What some of you don’t realize is that we all believe there is a problem, some of us just want more effective solutions than simply drug testing. We are NOT soft on drugs - we just want a more comprehensive solution that empowers the kids and teaches them about honor and making intelligent choices.

By JD on 05-14-08

I guess where we are on this, is that some of us would not want to be tested, nor want our children tested for drug use.
It’s more important to demand our constitutional rights than to protect our society from the kind of insanity that didn’t even exist when the constitution was written. Thusly we are doomed.