LEGALIZE DRUGS

Editor -- In the real world, drug prohibition abdicates market control to
criminals and corrupted officials. Prohibition laws control, suppress and
regulate very little, unless you think chasing street level dealers from
one neighborhood to another accomplishes something. Prohibition has not
succeeded in attaining any of its original goals.

The solution to most of our ``drug problems'' is to legalize drugs for
adult use and license the dealers and manufacturers. Legalization won't
eliminate drugs, but it will eliminate all the problems associated with an
illegal black market. A licensing scheme similar to that used for alcohol
would put the criminals out of business overnight. Bootleggers couldn't
compete in the legal alcohol market after repeal and neither will the drug
cartels be able to compete against licensed drug dealers regulated by the
state.

With legalization, drug use by children could be reduced considerably
because licensed dealers won't risk their businesses selling to minors.
With prohibition, children are totally vulnerable to drugs, because black
market dealers have nothing to lose by selling to all comers. A legal
market restricted to adults would greatly reduce drug use among the young,
exactly the same way repeal stopped the epidemic of child drinking that
went on during alcohol prohibition.

The prohibitionists get excited by the word ``legalization,'' but it really
means returning some measure of control and regulation to society. It's
time to abandon drug prohibition and regulate the drug market.

REDFORD GIVENS
San Francisco