Pubdate: Wed, 28 Dec 2011
Source: Issaquah Press (WA)
Copyright: 2011 Issaquah Press
Contact:  http://www.issaquahpress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5255
Author: Robert Sharpe
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n711/a03.html

Marijuana

FIGHT TO KEEP DRUG ILLEGAL IS TRUE GATEWAY TO MORE CRIME

Regarding your Dec. 13 editorial, not only should medical marijuana 
be made available to patients in need, but also adult recreational 
use should be legally 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.

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 heroin, 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 a never-ending drug war. As long as 
marijuana distribution is controlled by organized crime, consumers 
will continue to come into contact with hard drugs like 
methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct 
result of marijuana prohibition.

Robert Sharpe

Policy Analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy, www.csdp.org
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