Pubdate: Fri, 02 Jan 2015
Source: Oklahoman, The (OK)
Copyright: 2015 The Oklahoma Publishing Co.
Contact: http://www.newsok.com/voices/guidelines
Website: http://newsok.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/318
Author: Tom Roeder, The Gazette (COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.)

POT LEGALIZATION HASN'T INCREASED USE BY TROOPS

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Fewer soldiers are testing positive for 
marijuana in two states where recreational use of the drug is legal, 
an Army study of the issue obtained by The Gazette has found.

The change in Washington and Colorado, where legal pot is available 
near large Army bases, is small. But it's the reverse of what 
military leaders said would happen in Colorado Springs with marijuana 
legalization.

"With one minor exception, the data is trending downwards, though it 
remains relatively flat and the changes are statistically 
insignificant," Army spokesman Lt. Col. Justin Platt wrote in an 
email from the Pentagon.

In Colorado, the rate of positive drug tests for marijuana dropped to 
0.47 percent in the fiscal year that ended in Oct. 1. That is down 
from 0.79 percent in the same time period two years earlier, before 
recreational pot was legal. The number of positive marijuana tests at 
Fort Carson dropped to 422 from 725 over that span.

Army brass said the drop is more of a sign of how the Army is 
handling legal pot than soldiers being suddenly less likely to smoke marijuana.

"That's a sign of good leadership," said Army Gen. Chuck Jacoby, the 
top ranking soldier in the Pikes Peak region who stepped down Dec. 15 
as commander of U.S. Northern Command.

Signs remind of federal law

The same downward trend was evident at Joint Base Lewis McChord in 
Tacoma, Wash. - the largest Army base in a state that also legalized 
recreational marijuana. There, the rate of positive drug tests for 
marijuana dropped over two years to 0.46 percent from 0.54 percent - 
a reduction of 131 positive tests.

While civilians took up the newly legal vice in Washington and 
Colorado, the Defense Department has redoubled efforts to get pot out 
of the ranks. Signs at the gates of military bases in the Pikes Peak 
region emphasize that marijuana possession remains a federal crime 
and soldiers caught smoking grass face harsh punishment under the 
Uniform Code of Military Justice.

"Use of illegal drugs is inconsistent with Army values and not 
tolerated in our ranks," Platt wrote. "Importantly, the vast majority 
of our soldiers are drug free, and are serving our country honorably, 
upholding the values the Army expects and our nation demands."

A court-martial conviction for pot use can bring up to two years behind bars.

Military leaders, including Fort Carson boss Maj. Gen Paul LaCamera, 
leaned on local officials to keep recreational marijuana sales away 
from bases, leading to recreational sales bans in Colorado Springs, 
Fountain and other communities.

"It goes against good order and discipline," LaCamera said.

However, legal weed is easy to obtain, with retailers as handy as 
Manitou Springs and Pueblo.

Lessons from Vietnam War

Fort Carson's top enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. David Clark, 
said junior leaders across the post - sergeants and lieutenants - 
have heard stories about the drug-riddled troops that came home from 
the Vietnam War and have worked to keep drugs out of the ranks.

Jacoby joined the Army in the 1970s and says the services aren't 
willing to return to the dark days of heavy drug use in uniform. He 
supports local laws, he said, but that stops at the gates of the base.

"It would be a huge mistake for us to change our standards and to 
allow for that to be part of soldiering again," Jacoby said. "And as 
a parent I'm horrified by the idea, the accessibility and having that 
pushed on my sons. It's on me to make sure that we have those conversations."

Allies in war on drugs

Another fear for Jacoby, whose command reached into Mexico where drug 
factions fight each other, is that legal pot in the U.S. sends a bad 
message to allies who joined America's war on drugs.

"I work with Mexico right now but I've had extensive experience 
throughout Latin America to include Colombia, other countries in 
Central America," Jacoby said. "We have twisted their arms back and 
pushed them and compelled them to support our counter-drug efforts. 
And they are astounded by what they see as a trend towards legalization."

Soldiers in Washington and Colorado, though, are apparently shunning 
legal pot. Clark said his soldiers, hardened by more than a decade of 
war, understand that being in uniform means adhering to a higher 
standard than civilians.

"As trusted professionals, is that the right thing to do?" Clark 
said. "We owe our nation a force they can depend on."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom