NATION'S WAR ON DRUGS NEEDS MAJOR OVERHAUL

The war on drugs this country has been waging for years is a colossal
failure. It has done nothing to decrease the availability of drugs,
and it has provided a very lucrative business opportunity for
organized crime. It has also corrupted our law enforcement and
criminal-justice system. Drug cartels have so much money and power
that they can easily afford to bribe or kill law-enforcement
officials. Our jails are full of people whose only crime was to seek
intoxication.

Prohibition has never worked. Many human beings have always sought
the pleasures of intoxication, and many always will. Prohibition made
Al Capone and his buddies rich, and it is now making drug cartels
richer and more powerful than governments.

The drug business, like all business, is governed by the laws of
supply and demand. If the supply of a desirable commodity is
restricted, the profits go up. Prohibition cannot solve our drug
problems. Drug abuse, including tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine,
etc., is a public health problem. We cannot stop people from using
these substances, but we can reduce the damage they cause with
accurate information and access to good treatment.

Ken Knight

Greensboro