Douglas Happy About 'Traffic' Debate

LOS ANGELES (AP) â€” Michael Douglas says he's glad law enforcement officials have praised his new film ``Traffic,'' even though it questions the effectiveness of the drug war. <br><br>``Everyone

Wednesday, December 27th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) â€” Michael Douglas says he's glad law enforcement officials have praised his new film ``Traffic,'' even though it questions the effectiveness of the drug war.

``Everyone who sees the movie comes out of it with a different reaction,'' Douglas said. ``We screened it for the DEA and U.S. Customs, and they're happy with it, believing it shows how tough their job is. Other people see it and think the message is that the war on drugs is futile.

``That's why I like it. The movie has the courage to raise issues.''

In the film, directed by Steven Soderbergh, Douglas plays a presidentially appointed anti-drug czar who discovers his daughter is an addict.

Douglas has had his own struggle with alcohol addiction and went into rehabilitation in 1990. His son Cameron was arrested last year for cocaine possession.

``It can happen to anybody, not just the dysfunctional family or the liberal family,'' Douglas said in an interview published Sunday in the Daily News of Los Angeles.