Colin Powell on Drugs

Can solve drug problem only by strengthening kids

Providing for our children has become the passion of my life because what I’ve seen over the last several years convinces me of the following truths: One, that if you want to solve our drug problem, you won’t do it by trying to cut off supply and arresting pushers on the street corners alone. It will only be solved when we place into the heart of every child growing up in America the moral strength never to fall for the destructive lure of drugs.

We will only solve and cure this plague of drugs is when we have given to each and every one of our children the strength to just say “No. Not me. I won’t do it. I’ve got too much to live for. I’ll never do drugs.” And that’s what we owe our children, to give them that strength to fight against the curse of drugs.

If you want young people to become contributing citizens and not convicts, then early in life we must give them the character and the confidence they need to succeed in this exciting new world that we are laying out before them.

Source: Speech at the Republican convention Jul 30, 2000

Assigned AWACS planes to fight drugs, despite opposition

On one occasion, I suggested that we remove our AWACS warning planes from Iceland and send them to look for drug-running aircraft in the Caribbean. The admiral in charge fought me tooth and nail. I pointed out that [there were no] Soviet bombers now approaching the US via Iceland. He was unpersuaded, so I just took the planes away without further argument and reassigned them to the drug beat. Source: My American Journey, by Colin Powell, p. 536 Jan 1, 1995

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