Metro Times, 18 Jul 2012 – Re: Larry Gabriel’s Higher Ground column "Hep on hemp" (July 11), the United States is one of the few countries in the world that denies farmers the right to grow industrial hemp. Apparently drug war bureaucrats can’t tell the difference between a tall hemp stalk and a squat marijuana bush. Before passage of the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, few Americans had even heard of marijuana, despite widespread cultivation of industrial hemp. The first anti-marijuana laws were a racist reaction to Mexican immigration during the early 1900s. White Americans did not even begin to smoke pot until a soon-to-be entrenched federal bureaucracy began funding "reefer madness" propaganda. Decades later, marijuana use is now mainstream. Marijuana prohibition has been counterproductive at best.
US MI: PUB LTE: Legalize Hemp
Metro Times, 18 Jul 2012 – Re: Larry Gabriel’s Higher Ground column "Hep on hemp" (July 11), the United States is one of the few countries in the world that denies farmers the right to grow industrial hemp. Apparently drug war bureaucrats can’t tell the difference between a tall hemp stalk and a squat marijuana bush. Before passage of the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, few Americans had even heard of marijuana, despite widespread cultivation of industrial hemp. The first anti-marijuana laws were a racist reaction to Mexican immigration during the early 1900s. White Americans did not even begin to smoke pot until a soon-to-be entrenched federal bureaucracy began funding "reefer madness" propaganda. Decades later, marijuana use is now mainstream. Marijuana prohibition has been counterproductive at best.
US NJ: PUB LTE: Drug War Is Gateway To Drugs
The Record, 27 May 2012 – Regarding "Time to exhale" (Editorials, May 20): The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2010, there were 853,839 marijuana arrests in the United States, almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not lower rates of use.
US NJ: PUB LTE: Drug War Is Gateway To Drugs
The Record, 27 May 2012 – Regarding "Time to exhale" (Editorials, May 20): The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2010, there were 853,839 marijuana arrests in the United States, almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not lower rates of use.
US NJ: PUB LTE: Drug War Is Gateway To Drugs
The Record, 27 May 2012 – Regarding "Time to exhale" (Editorials, May 20): The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2010, there were 853,839 marijuana arrests in the United States, almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not lower rates of use.
US CA: Edu: PUB LTE: Marijuana Prohibition Is Not Conducive To
Daily Forty-Niner, 25 Oct 2010 – If health outcomes determined drug laws instead of cultural norms, marijuana would be legal. Unlike alcohol, marijuana has never been shown to cause an overdose death, nor does it share the addictive properties of tobacco. Like any drug, marijuana can be harmful if abused, but jail cells are inappropriate as health interventions and ineffective as deterrents. Marijuana prohibition has failed miserably as a deterrent. The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available to adults. The only clear winners are drug cartels and shameless tough-on-drugs politicians who have built careers confusing the drug war’s collateral damage with a relatively harmless plant.
US CO: PUB LTE: Changing Policies
The Steamboat Pilot & Today, 13 Oct 2010 – Regarding your Oct. 6 editorial ("Medical marijuana series aims to educate"), not only should medical marijuana be made available to patients in need, but adult recreational use should be 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. So much for protecting the children. 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.
US ME: PUB LTE: Marijuana and Prohibition
The Free Press, 07 Oct 2010 – The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2009, there were 858,405 marijuana arrests in the U.S., almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not necessarily lower rates of use. The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available. Decriminalization is a long overdue step in the right direction. Taxing and regulating marijuana would render the drug war obsolete. As long as organized crime controls distribution, marijuana consumers will come into contact with sellers of hard drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct result of marijuana prohibition.
US CA: PUB LTE: War On Pot
Pasadena Weekly, 07 Oct 2010 – The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2008, there were 847,863 marijuana arrests in the U.S., almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not necessarily lower rates of use. The US has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available. Decriminalization is a long overdue step in the right direction. Taxing and regulating marijuana would render the drug war obsolete. As long as organized crime controls distribution, marijuana consumers will come into contact with sellers of hard drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct result of marijuana prohibition.
US ME: PUB LTE: Response to Mac Deford’s 9/30 Column:
The Free Press, 07 Oct 2010 – The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2009, there were 858,405 marijuana arrests in the U.S., almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not necessarily lower rates of use. The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available. Decriminalization is a long overdue step in the right direction. Taxing and regulating marijuana would render the drug war obsolete. As long as organized crime controls distribution, marijuana consumers will come into contact with sellers of hard drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct result of marijuana prohibition.
