TWO APPROACHES

The solution for Afghanistan is simple, but requires our leaders to
have the courage and intelligence to make the needed changes. The
solution is twofold:

* Allow Afghans to legally grow and sell cannabis. Afghan hash was
once well known as a top shelf product. The economic distortions
caused by the war on drugs makes it more profitable for them to
produce the most dangerous and addictive drugs.

* Purchase all the opiates they can grow, at market prices, in a
legal market for use to produce products to be sold in legal
regulated markets to any adults who want them, with the appropriate
warnings and dosage listed.

Simply purchasing the opium and destroying it would be a major step
forward and would cost much less than is currently spend trying to
eradicate the crop.

David Lane,

Santa Cruz, California