SAVE LIVES; MAKE MARIJUANA LEGAL

It's discouraging and revealing that Tad Trueblood (Is Mexico really
collapsing? from Jan. 29) doesn't ask how today's prohibition is
similar to the original prohibition with alcohol, with all its
violence, gang activity, deadly bath-tub tainted concoctions, police
and political corruption etc.

The original prohibition's biggest achievement was to escalate
undesirable consequences with very little good to show and now the
sequel is even worse on an international scale. At the very least it's
time to re-legalize the relatively safe, socially acceptable,
God-given plant cannabis (marijuana), bringing credible drug law
reform and putting the gangs out of business, adding stability and
utilizing the additional tax money for the good of North America.

Murder rates decreased for 10 years after ending the original
prohibition, and there's reason to believe ending the sequel will have
the same results.

Stan White

Dillon, Colo.