CANNABIS PROHIBITION

Conservationists have every right to be outraged about the harm to the
environment that results from marijuana growth.

I share their anger, but my anger is directed at federal legislators
who refuse to do little more than throw recreational hikers and arrest
warrants at a chaotic marijuana policy that rewards growers while
trashing the environment on Mount Diablo.

Love it, hate it or show indifference about marijuana policy in the
United States, but know this: Marijuana is not the problem.

Prohibition is the problem: It artificially inflates the price of
marijuana, making it worth its weight in gold. And just like strip
miners on American Indian land, drug war profiteers will continue
raping the environment because prohibition makes doing so very profitable.

After all, Al Capone is not remembered for his hard drinking; his
infamy results from the fact that he turned alcohol prohibition into
gold and he did not care who or what got in his way.

Conversely, the majority of marijuana users and growers share the
outrage expressed by conservationists. In fact, users and nonusers
have turned their outrage into action; most are on a safe hike at
Common Sense for Drug Policy at www.csdp.org and discovering
meaningful solutions.

John Wilson

Lafayette