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DRUG POLICY WASTES TAXES

Not only should medical marijuana be made available to patients in need, but adult recreational use should be regulated.  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 illegal drugs while demand remains constant only increase the profitability of drug trafficking.  For addictive drugs like methamphetamine, 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 hard drugs like cocaine.  This "gateway" is the direct result of a fundamentally flawed policy.

Given that marijuana is arguably safer than alcohol - the plant has never been shown to cause an overdose death - it makes no sense to waste tax dollars on failed policies that finance organized crime and facilitate hard drug use.  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

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, D.C.