They say that every dollar spent on addiction treatment and prevention yields a 7 dollar societal dividend. Hey – you gotta' spend money to make money right…

Or maybe not – as the Bush administration must like money, yet once again they have cut total spending on addiction treatment and prevention programs; shaving an additional few hundred million or so from the 2009 budget. They must have a master plan - those crafty buggers. They must know something we don't!

Here are some of the highlights:

• SAMHSA, the main recipient of federal funding, will receive 70 million less in 2009 than in 2008.
• The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment will lose 63 million.
• The Center for Substance Abuse and Prevention will lose 36 million.
• The Center for Mental Health Services will limp on, short 126 million.
• The Safe and Drug Free Schools Program will lose 194.8 million in 2009 (but how important are safe and drug free schools anyway?)

It's not all bad though; the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse will actually see a funding increase in 2009 – that's right, an extra four hundred thousand dollars…

Well, it seems crazy to me – but when you consider that spending on drug related law enforcement has increased a whopping 57% during the last 8 years (treatment is up 3% - a below inflationary increase) I guess they've just decided on going ahead with Plan B…throwing EVERYONE in jail!

Americans now jail 1 in 100 - A record high, in any country, and at any time.