GO, POT GUY

Ryan Davidson is to be commended for his one-man crusade against
cannabis prohibition (BW, News, "Cannabis Crusader," March 6, 2008).
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.

The first marijuana laws were enacted in response to Mexican
immigration during the early 1900s, despite opposition from the
American Medical Association. Dire warnings that marijuana inspires
homicidal rages have been counterproductive at best.

By raiding voter-approved medical marijuana providers in California,
the very same U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration that claims illicit
drug use funds terrorism is forcing cancer and AIDS patients into the
hands of street dealers. Apparently, marijuana prohibition is more
important than protecting the country from terrorism.

Robert Sharpe,

policy analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy,

Washington, D.C.