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FIGHT METH BY TAXING, REGULATING MARIJUANA

North Dakota's hazardous methamphetamine labs are reminiscent of the deadly exploding liquor stills that sprang up throughout the nation during alcohol prohibition.  Drug policies modeled after alcohol prohibition have given rise to a youth-oriented black market.  Illegal drug dealers don't ID for age, but they do recruit minors immune to adult sentences.  So much for protecting the children.

Throwing more money at the problem is no solution.  Attempts to limit the supply of drugs while demand remains constant only increase the profitability of drug trafficking.  For addictive drugs such as meth, a spike in street prices leads desperate addicts to increase criminal activity to feed desperate habits.  The drug war doesn't fight crime; it fuels crime.

Taxing and regulating marijuana, the most popular illicit drug, is a cost-effective alternative to never-ending drug war.  As long as marijuana distribution remains in the hands of organized crime, consumers will continue to come into contact with sellers of hard drugs such as meth.  This "gateway" is the direct result of a fundamentally flawed policy.

Given that marijuana is arguably safer than legal alcohol - the plant never has been shown to cause an overdose death - it makes no sense to waste tax dollars on failed policies that finance organized crime and facilitate the use of hard drugs.  Drug policy reform may send the wrong message to children, but I like to think the children are more important than the message.

Robert Sharpe Sharpe is a policy analyst for Common Sense for Drug Policy, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit.  The organization's Web site is www.csdp.org