[speaker001:] do you feel about the issue of uh random or spot drug testing
[speaker002:] well I'm I'm for it based upon my experience uh in taking uh drug tests my uh my past experience in the military
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] plus uh my current occupation working uh for a defense contractor here in Massachusetts uh I feel that it's uh there is some opinions whereas the uh uh people of the mind that uh it's a right to privacy that you know it's a it's a bodily function involved and that um um people should have a right to protect themselves and so forth but I don't agree I think that um it's important particularly for some jobs and some jog occupations job occupations that um people can be screened for uh should be screens for uh for drugs through uh drug testing
[speaker001:] yeah I I tend to believe that that it's it's important for those jobs where uh where the the person has the safety of other people uh in their own hands or within their control then I think it should be mandatory
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] you know the the airline industry the transportation industry um you know the uh
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] the defense and military you know any any application like that I think it should be mandatory
[speaker002:] yeah so I think we're in agreement that that uh uh that it's a good uh it's a good idea in some circumstances the one reservation I have though in that from my experience I've taken many urinalysis many drug tests
[speaker001:] right um-hum
[speaker002:] some of them random some of them um scheduled uh and every time you take one of those tests you know when you're submitting a sample
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] there's always in the back of your mind well how are you know people conducting the test the labs that are performing the test how adequate uh are those facilities and uh is is always it is it always a chance I know that what they call um the I think it's called the chain of custody
[speaker001:] right
[speaker002:] of the uh the specimens themselves I know in the military in the military particularly they there's a they go to great lengths at protecting the samples before they get to the labs
[speaker001:] um-hum right
[speaker002:] but my concern is and I think that that that what needs to be further investigated is the uh the standardization and to have some hundred percent insurance that the test that's given uh the the the lab that performs the uh the analysis is uh validated in some way you know some standardization because I've heard some horror stories
[speaker001:] right
[speaker002:] you know
[speaker001:] yeah you you you know you can easily envision the one one mistake could you know ruin a a career that couldn't be uh you know couldn't be resurrected
[speaker002:] Sixty Minutes did an article on this whole subject subject a few uh a few years ago and there was a Air Force Captain who uh you know took the test and it came up positive and the guy swore on a stack of bibles
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] now in the military for a for a staff staff NCO which is a a noncommissioned officer but it's a certain rank above I don't know if you're familiar with military military rank structure
[speaker001:] no
[speaker002:] it's a it's a high level of enlisted personnel and officers for those people who show up positive on one drug test they're immediately discharged
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] now for certain ranks and below like sergeant and below if you're found positive or come up dirty in a drug on a on a drug test
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] you can be reduced in rank forfeit your pay or if it's a repeat repeat offense uh offense
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] then they can discharge you but there's this Army this this Air Force Captain he swore up and down that he didn't do anything
[speaker001:] right
[speaker002:] and they went back and you know few months later to try to investigate the lab and the sample that he had given was destroyed
[speaker001:] yeah right
[speaker002:] so I I think you got to be careful with stuff like that that's that's my only concern about the whole issue I think
[speaker001:] huh yeah definitely yeah I don't really feel like you know for any any of the just routine jobs that people should be subject to that kind of invasion of privacy
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] um only for the only for the ones where it's critical
[speaker002:] um-hum uh yeah because there's a big thing in in the in the here on the east coast the Boston Police Department uh the Policemen's Association took the uh the Boston Police Department to court because they were uh trying to institute drug tests for the cops here in Boston
[speaker001:] right right
[speaker002:] and um they won the Police Department the the Police Association won  and it it was a right to privacy type deal that they approached it and the courts agreed
[speaker001:] yeah I I guess I would feel that the you know police  uh that the police should be one of those public uh safety issues where you know mandatory drug testing where it would be favorable
[speaker002:] yeah oh yeah definitely well you know the thing is is in all these transportation accidents this
[speaker001:] uh