letters.

The Straight Dope

It was refreshing to see how you dealt with drugs ("New Highs, New Risks," 5/8/00). "Smoking the Pain Away" was pioneering in that it showed both sides. Your chart of effects and risks was very informative, and I'm glad to see recognition that alcohol is still the big killer as well as the most-abused substance. I'm sick of hearing news reports saying that MDMA (ecstasy) will bring about the apocalypse when alcohol, a legal drug, is doing the most damage to society. There is no logic behind legalization of one but not the other.

PHILIP RAPOPORT

Houston, Tex.

The story of Samantha Reid left me heartbroken, and scared too. A close friend told me that he wanted to try the drug ecstasy. After I read your article, I had him read it too. The look on his face when he read it was a look I will never forget. Now he knows what can happen with drugs like GHB and MDMA, and I know that I won't be losing one of my best friends to that new generation of drugs that promised a safe high. Thanks!

JENNA BROWN

Albertville, Minn.

Because of your article, I decided to do a little research on my own. I found I could get recipes for making drugs from the Internet. I also found that one ecstasy pill, which costs 20 cents to make, can be sold for $20 on the street. Our towns are still infested with the contagious disease of drug use. Our problem is that we do not seek out the teens who have succumbed to this disease, but wait for them to come to us. We should be taking more action in banning these products from our schools and towns.

DANA ALBANESE

Anacortes, Wash.

I was shocked at how stupid those guys were who killed Samantha Reid. How could they play around with another person's life?

ELLIE TECOSKY-FELDMAN

Narberth, Pa.

A Loaded Cartoon?

The cartoon ("Drawing on the News," 4/10/00) in which the NRA man says of the girl, "Tsk! If only she'd had a gun she could have defended herself" was in poor taste. Showing the little girl on the ground the way you did was sick. You should apologize to the family of Kayla Rolland.

TOM ADCOCK

Ortonville, Mich.

It is not entertaining to show a young girl dead and then make a joke out of it.

ARNOLD HERNANDEZ, JUSTIN DAVIS, AND MRS. BROWYN RACK'S 5TH-PERIOD U.S. HISTORY CLASS

Houston, Tex.

I was deeply offended. It's not the NRA's fault that...