U.S. MUST UPDATE ITS DRUG POLICIES

Regarding the story, "Mexico's new drug use law worries U.S.
police":

Mexico has done the right thing. After years of frustration in
dealing with its drug war, it took a first step that should be
emulated by other countries, including ours. With an exploding prison
population and uncontrolled violence from drug-related activity,
decriminalization of small amounts of drugs for personal use is a
controversial, but needed move for Mexico. The new law will also
offer treatment instead of incarceration for people caught with small
amounts of drugs.

Now, some in U.S. law enforcement are complaining about this because
Mexico has gone against the outdated and ineffective U.S. drug
policy, which is premised on strict drug prohibition, which is know
to be a complete failure. Some 775,000 Americans are arrested each
year for possessing marijuana alone, which places an enormous and
needless financial burden on taxpayers.

I applaud Mexico and other Latin American countries for leading the
way to finding innovative solutions to solving the problems
associated with the war on drugs.

Anthony Papa

New York City