Pubdate: Fri, 2 Jan 2009
Source: DrugSense Weekly (DSW)
Website: http://www.drugsense.org

LETTER OF THE WEEK

DRUG PROHIBITION ISN'T WORKING, EITHER

By Lennice Werth

Editor, Times-Dispatch:

Thank you for your article on alcohol prohibition, including the 
observation that it was "a tremendous failure."

Nothing has changed in human nature since the 1930s. As the historian 
pointed out, "the distribution of liquor was turned over to a whole 
group of criminal entrepreneurs." And while the premise of our 
current drug war is that we must be protected from dangerous 
substances, drugs are sold, unregulated, by this criminal class to 
its extreme enrichment.  The ensuing game of cops, robbers, and 
snitches is painful to watch.

Nobody thinks this is working, yet our political leaders offer only 
longer prison sentences. We have 5 percent of the world's population 
and 25 percent of its prisoners. So many men and women are in prison 
that their children are stressing our foster-care system. When they 
get out, their opportunities to get on the right track are blocked by 
laws that bar them from receiving help such as housing and education 
aid.  In this regard, the stigma of a drug offender is worse than 
that of a murderer or thief, as they are eligible for such benefits.

Today, illegal drugs are cheap and easily available, even though we 
spend millions -- maybe billions -- on our current failed 
prohibition, and we have alienated our allies in South America due to 
the drug war.

Why can't we figure out how to have a better policy even with the 
vivid historical example of alcohol prohibition?

Tobacco is a very additive substance, yet we are having great success 
discouraging use without putting anyone in prison.

Regulation is an option under which we could require that folks 
buying drugs would be asked to prove that they are adults. We could 
identify those with the most severe problems and gently guide them 
toward treatment.  Regulation is the answer we found for alcohol. It 
is not perfect, but it would be a tremendous improvement over the 
violent, adversarial, and terribly harmful policy of drug prohibition.

Lennice Werth

Crewe

Pubdate: Mon, 15 Dec 2008

Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA)
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