Sacramento News & Review, 22 Nov 2012 – Re "Marijuana is legal!" by Ngaio Bealum (SN&R The 420, November 15): The voters of Colorado and Washington state have made it clear that the federal government can no longer get away with confusing the drug war’s tremendous collateral damage with a comparatively harmless plant. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize violent drug cartels, prohibition is a success. The drug war distorts supply-and-demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to deter use, prohibition is a failure. The United States has double the rate of use as the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available. The criminalization of Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis has no basis in science. The war on marijuana consumers is a failed cultural inquisition, not a public-health campaign. It’s time for politicians to catch up with the people and end marijuana prohibition.
posted on November 24, 2012 by
