END THE BLACK MARKET

RE: 'Our marijuana laws still in the dark ages' (Aug. 4). Kudos to
The Hamilton Spectator for an excellent editorial. Not only should
medical marijuana be made available to those in need, but adult
recreational use should be regulated as well.

The reason is simple: leaving the distribution of popular
recreational drugs in the hands of organized crime puts children at
great risk. Unlike legitimate businesses that sell liquor, illegal
drug dealers do not check IDs for age, but they do push profitable,
addictive drugs like heroin when given the chance. Sensible
regulation is desperately needed to undermine the thriving black
market.

Marijuana is the most popular illicit drug. Unlike alcohol, which
kills thousands annually, marijuana has never been shown to cause an
overdose death. Marijuana may be relatively harmless, but marijuana
prohibition is deadly. Although there is nothing inherent in
marijuana that compels users to try harder drugs, its black market
status puts youth in contact with criminals who push them.

Current drug policy is a gateway policy. As counterintuitive as it
may seem, replacing marijuana prohibition with regulation would do a
better job protecting children from drugs than the failed drug war.

- -- Robert Sharpe, Program Officer,

The Lindesmith Center Drug Policy Foundation,

Washington, D.C.