Fifteen states and the District of Columbia allow marijuana usage in one form or another. Why is West Virginia so far behind?

West Virginia has a reputation of being a bunch of fat, laid-back hicks in the eyes of the nation. Everyone has heard at least one West Virginia joke. I, personally, do not see the humor in ridiculing the state I love and grew up in. Though we are one of the economically deprived, do we need to hear it repeatedly in the media or at parties?

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WINFIELD, W.Va. -- Questions linger over Putnam County Schools' new, costly, controversial and relatively rare policy to test middle and high school students for drugs by swabbing their saliva.

Some wonder if saliva tests are as effective as urine tests, which school board members had originally planned to implement but nixed in favor of the less-intrusive saliva swab. Experts, though, say saliva tests are just as foolproof as urine tests, if administered correctly.

"Lab-based oral fluid testing has been proven to be as good as urine testing for all the drugs," said Dr. Todd Simo, director of medical services for the drug-testing agency HireRight. "The positive rates between the two are almost exactly identical."

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- In Tuesday's U.S. election, several attempts to legalize marijuana fell short. By a margin of 3.8 million to 3.3 million, California voters declined to approve pot possession for recreational use. Arizona, Oregon and South Dakota rejected medical marijuana, but two Massachusetts districts gave tentative approval.

Regardless, it seems clear that public support is fading for America's police blitz that throws hundreds of thousands of young people into cells for smoking the wrong plant.

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Some Say the Mountain State Needs to Legalize Marijuana, but Others Fear Taking the Plunge.

The country remains in economic instability -- to the point some would say it is literally "going to pot."

Traditional forms of revenue from manufacturing and other economic sectors are down in West Virginia and throughout the country. Many states are finding themselves in the red. Jobs are scarce.

As the country continues to struggle with a $1 trillion budget deficit, other options are being explored to generate revenue. And those options include the legalization of marijuana for recreational use. California voters in November will decide whether to support Proposition 19, a state rule that would make recreational use of marijuana legal so the state can tax and regulate the drug as it does alcohol and tobacco.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The state Supreme Court has suspended the law license of a Jackson County lawyer, the state bar's Office of Disciplinary Counsel announced.

Jessica A. Sullivan, of Jackson County, was suspended by a court order on Sept. 9, according to the news release. Sullivan was arrested in July and charged with delivery of a controlled substance, possession of precursors with intent to manufacture methamphetamine, and conspiracy to commit a felony, the order states. The court instructed Chief Jackson Circuit Judge Thomas C. Evans III to appoint another attorney to handle Sullivan's cases.

Sullivan had previously been indicted by a Jackson County grand jury on drug-related charges in July 2009, October 2009, and June 2010, according to the order.

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A West Virginia University student organization is collecting signatures for a petition in support of legalizing marijuana in the country.

The Students for Sensible Drug Policy have joined in a movement across college campuses in support of Proposition 19, California's legalization measure being voted on in November.

Drew Stromberg, president of WVU's SSDP chapter, said his group has joined a challenge called, "Just Say Now Campus Challenge: Legalize Marijuana."

The aim of the challenge is to collect signatures in support of legalization of marijuana, Stromberg said.

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HUNTINGTON -- New U.S. Attorney R. Booth Goodwin pledged he will contribute and gather additional resources to help Huntington fight what he called an unfortunate reputation as the region's hub for drug trafficking.

Goodwin, confirmed as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia in May, praised area law enforcement, prosecutors and community leaders for making great strides in the battle thus far. Now he plans to join in the fight as a partner -- not a white knight - -- and make Huntington's drug problem the focus of his administration.

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The Cabell County Board of Education needs to educate itself on the downside of student drug testing. Student involvement in after-school activities like sports has been shown to reduce drug use. They keep kids busy during the hours they are most likely to get into trouble. Forcing students to undergo degrading urine tests as a prerequisite will only discourage participation in extracurricular programs.

Drug testing may also compel marijuana users to switch to more dangerous prescription narcotics to avoid testing positive. This is one of the reasons the American Academy of Pediatrics opposes student drug testing.

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The decades-long war on drugs in the U.S. continues while prisons are becoming overcrowded, the number of drug users is on the rise, and the dollars needed to sustain it are draining federal and state treasuries.

It is high time that the nation's drug policies be given a serious look.

The most recent data collected by the Office of National Drug Control Policy indicates that more than 20 million Americans were users of illicit drugs in 2008.

This statistic alone is a bit troubling, but it appears far worse if one considers that the number is up from 12 million users in 1992.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Since President Richard Nixon launched the "war on drugs" four decades ago, U.S. taxpayers have poured $1 trillion into the crusade that is largely a flop.

Narcotics are more rampant in America now than ever. Numerous drug murders and robberies happen daily. U.S. prisons and jails are bursting with 2.5 million inmates, mostly drug-related. America has the world's worst lockup rate, wrecking millions of families at horrible public cost. A recent roadside survey found that one-sixth of drivers tested positive for dope. Prescription pills are a rising menace.

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A new report on teen substance abuse begins with the ominous title of "A Day in the Life of American Adolescents."

True to its theme, the survey shows that drinking and drug use are a common occurrence for many young people in our country. The study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that on any given day in 2008, 563,000 adolescents used marijuana, nearly 37,000 used inhalants, 24,000 used hallucinogens, 16,000 used cocaine and 2,800 used heroin.

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California has the chance to become the first state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana this November, allowing Californians to possess up to an ounce or harvest their own garden of marijuana measuring up to 25 square feet.

According to a recent poll issued by SurveyUSA, 56 percent of Californians support the legalization of marijuana. Supporters collected nearly 700,000 signatures, far surpassing the 433,971 needed to petition for the bill.

The recent legislation is being spearheaded by Richard Lee, founder of Oaksterdam University in Oakland, America's first college dedicated to cannabis trade, which opened its doors in 2007.

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The rampant problem of prescription drug abuse is showing no signs of slowing down in the region. According to the "2009 Monitoring the Future" survey recently released by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the University of Michigan, the problem is now being further agitated by a growing number of youth who may be experimenting with prescription narcotics.

The study found slight decreases were reported in the use of cocaine and methamphetamine use among youth -- which is a certainly a positive. However, the report also found that marijuana use among adolescents increased gradually over the past two years after years of declining use; and past year rates of Vicodin and OxyContin abuse increased during the last five years among 10th graders and remained unchanged among 8th and 12th graders.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Each summer, West Virginia State Police helicopters search state hilltops, and tons of prime marijuana plants are seized and destroyed. Thus the state's most valuable agricultural crop -- which could provide enormous tax revenue -- is wasted.

Meanwhile, thousands of luckless young West Virginians sit in prison cells on "pot" charges, while taxpayers cough up millions for their keep. When the convicts eventually are released, they are partly unemployable and their lives are permanently marred.

This costly police-and-prison "war on pot" is somewhat a reprise of Prohibition, when America foolishly tried to stamp out alcohol. Prohibition created organized crime, causing bootleg murders and payoff corruption -- yet it failed absurdly.

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The Mountain State is seeking its first statewide strategy for countering the ravages of drug and alcohol addiction.

A new report released last week by state officials recommends spending $23.5 million a year in prevention, early intervention, treatment and recovery efforts.

The plan was requested by Gov. Joe Manchin, who is urging all communities across the Mountain State to get involved in the fight against drug and alcohol addiction.

The plan specifically seeks the creation of county prevention partnerships, or one group in each county, to devise local solutions and serve as a channel for state resources, according to an Associated Press report.

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CHARLESTON -- From initial police investigations all the way through parole, crimes linked to drug and alcohol use cost West Virginia nearly $333 million, according to a report released Thursday.

The report, compiled by the Prevention Resource Center for the Gov. Joe Manchin-appointed Partnership to Promote Community Well-Being, tracked costs in the criminal justice system from the 2005 fiscal year through the 2008 fiscal year.

The numbers show ballooning costs, with 11 of 12 entities from the courts to police agencies reporting higher costs in 2008 than in 2005. Based on those numbers, the report estimates West Virginia will be spending nearly $500 million on crimes linked to drugs and alcohol by the 2017 fiscal year.

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Becky Jordon Says The Kanawha County School System Doesn't Need A Prescription Drug-Related Death.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Becky Jordon says the Kanawha County school system doesn't need a prescription drug-related death.

Jordon, the school board president, is willing to allow drug dogs into county schools to sniff out students for prescription pills.

"We want the drugs out of the school," she said. "We don't need a fatality."

Students have grown wise to the tactics of teachers and principals, and hide prescription drugs in their pants, underpants and shoes, Jordon said.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A Charleston woman agreed in Kanawha Circuit Court Monday to a judge's suggestion that she have her fallopian tubes tied as part of her probation.

Jessica Michelle Butterworth, 21, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute marijuana on March 23. At her sentencing hearing, Judge L.D. Egnor suspended a one-to five-year prison sentence in favor of five years of probation.

Egnor, a retired Cabell County Circuit judge who has been hearing cases while Judge Paul Zakaib Jr. recovers from an illness, said he had made arrangements for Butterworth to have the sterilizing procedure free of charge.

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CHARLESTON -- It's on talk radio, the Internet and the Republican Party's priority list: so far, a GOP delegate's attention-grabbing drug testing bill is everywhere but before the Legislature.

Berkeley County lawmaker Craig Blair has been promising for over a week to introduce a bill requiring drug testing for people who receive food stamps, unemployment or "welfare," which could refer to several federal programs.

With a rollout that includes his own dedicated Web site, mentions in the press and the rare step of an endorsement from the state party's executive committee, the proposal has become like the Mothman of legislation -- everyone's talking about it, but not many people have actually seen it.

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Long Court Battle Coming

Obviously, no schoolteacher should show up for class reeking of whisky, or puffing cigarettes, or stoned on pot. As far as we know, none of these ills afflicts Kanawha County schools seriously.

But the school board is so obsessed by the possibility that a teacher might use dope that it is squandering a lot of taxpayer money on the hazard. So far, the board has spent $25,000 - the school taxes from perhaps 1,000 families - for lawyers defending the board's attempt to impose random drug testing on teachers.

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