policy, police measures to control drugs are indicated, rather than public health
measures to defend society against drug harm. The imperatives for our society
are that we must redefine the public purpose from drug controlto the defense of
health and welfare from drug harm;Drug policymust replace drug control
policy;and reliance must shift from criminal justice to public health measures.

My purpose in this pamphlet is to explain both why and how this policy
conversion must take place. From one citizen to another, you are invited to help
make it happen.

Apologies and Acknowledgements

In the course of my work on interposition, I have had the benefit of the
critical opinions and encouragement of perhaps fifty individuals, many of whom
are expert in one or another of the specialties that divide the drug policy area. A
point of commonality in their criticism has been that my presentation should be
shorter and clearer, so I have worked hard at making it shorter and clearer--as it
has grown longer.

There is another side to the length problem. Regrettably, even among
experts within the same specialty, there is disagreement on the facts of their
specialty, how the facts are related, and what the proper policy implications are.
Consequently, while one critic advises that less space be given to a "self evident"
point, another advises "further substantiation is needed." On the theory that it is
better to buttress than to leave a rampart weak, I have been more inclined to add
than subtract. I regret that this solution may condemn some readers to episodes
of boredom.

Some readers may be irritated by my occasional use of the word "only" in a
way that indicates the exclusion of other possibilities. When an automotive
engineer says that an engine will work "only" if the diameter of the piston is
smaller than that of a cylinder, he or she is specifying an essential precondition
that exists in his or her head only because it exists in the real world. Similarly,
where I provide specifications for control of the drug crime epidemic, I do so
without will or preference on my own part. In every case, I write as a policy
analyst--describing necessities that arrise from the social realities identified in the
etiology of the drug/crime epidemic. I hope that the relevant mechanisms of
social necessity are clearly enough delineated in the text that the reader will
readily recognize them.

My emotional reaction to all criticism is one of unmitigated gratitude to all
who have been willing to share their thoughts and beliefs with me. I know that
in countless ways this work is better than I could possibly have made it without
this help. I have been especially touched by the many readers who have
encouraged me to "keep at it", because, however wrong on one detail or another,
I am "onto something important."

For thoughtful substantive criticism, probing questions, good suggestions,
and for generous sharing of information, I am especially indebted to David F.
Duncan, Dr. P.H., C.A.S., the chairman of the alcohol and drugs section of the