Pubdate: Wed, 02 Dec 2009
Source: Knoxville News-Sentinel (TN)
Copyright: 2009 The Knoxville News-Sentinel Co.
Contact:  http://www.knoxnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/226
Author: Joey Comer

END PROHIBITION OF MARIJUANA

Thank you for printing Froma Harrop's Oct. 27 column  "America's best
idea meets one of the worst."

The headline refers to illegal pot plants being found  in America's
national parks -- plants that should be  growing safely in backyards
rather than destroying our  beautiful national parks.

She mentioned several key points such as Mexican drug  cartels,
increased pot potency, medical marijuana  dispensaries, tax revenue,
farmers, public favor for  legalization, and the political nonsense
stopping it  from happening.

I'm sure she didn't forget to mention all the other  related issues to
pot prohibition. There are just too  many of them.

I would have liked to have seen being imprisoned  mentioned or that no
one has ever died from an  overdose.

The fact that medical marijuana patients are often, if  not always,
required to have medical identification  cards, as well as for growers
or caretakers is  absolutely absurd.

I have never heard of medical ID cards for any other  prescribed drug.
Most prescription pain pills are  easily more dangerous, abused and
powerful than pot.

I'm not saying we should require patients using  prescription pills to
have ID cards, either. The very  idea of putting a person's identity
on a card that also  says they have prescribed drugs is a horrible
idea. Who  does that protect? It only makes them into potential
targets for criminals.

There are so many reasons why ending pot prohibition  could lead to a
better, happier America, yet no  evidence that keeping it illegal is
helping anyone or  anything.

Millions of Americans, and billions more around the  world, enjoy
using Cannabis.

The war on drugs only exacerbates the problem, as it  did with alcohol
prohibition. Ending the pot  prohibition isn't enough to end needless
suffering, but  it's a good start.

Joey Comer

Loudon 
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