URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v15/n378/a10.html
Newshawk: http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm
Votes: 0
Pubdate: Fri, 10 Jul 2015
Source: Patriot-News, The (PA)
Copyright: 2015 The Patriot-News
Contact: http://www.pennlive.com/mailforms/patriotletters/
Website: http://www.pennlive.com/patriotnews/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1630
Author: Rochelle S. Cleaver
WE'RE LOSING THE WAR ON DRUGS - U.S. SHOULD LEGALIZE THEIR SALE AND
THEN TAX THEM
The number of people murdered in the drug war in the United States is
larger than the death toll of our military in Iraq and three times
greater than the death rate of our soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
Mexican drug cartels kill more people than ISIS and they proliferate
mainly in the United States - killing teens and adults indiscriminately.
The U.S. is on the verge of legalizing pot in many states. Why not
all? In fact, why not legalize the sale of all drugs and tax them?
The U.S. is losing the war on drugs. Terrorists are using drug
trafficking monies to fund their activities. Giving Afghanistan
millions of dollar each year to stop growing poppy is just going
toward making them cultivate and traffic more poppy, which becomes
cocaine and heroin. This money is funding the Taliban, ISIL,
al-Qaeda, Hezbollah, etc.
If drugs were legal, the U.S. could license industry to sell them and
then tax the profits. Some of the money could be used to rehabilitate
addicts, and some could be used for internal needs. Addiction would
be treated as a medical problem and not as a criminal problem. Jails
would be less crowded. It is cheaper to pay for rehabilitation than
it is to incarcerate someone for 10 or more years.
Alcohol and cigarettes were at one time illegal. This does not ensure
that they run rampant now. Should we criminalize glue-sniffing?
Stop the war on drugs, decriminalize them, and stop funding
terrorism, all with one swift blow.
ROCHELLE S. CLEAVER, Dillsburg
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom
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