WE ALL LOSE WITH WEED BAN

Re: "Officials push for fake weed ban -- Though legal, synthetic
marijuana's easy availability to minors carries serious risks,"
Monday news story.

Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, is drafting a bill to make yet
another herb -- synthetic marijuana -- illegal, even though she
doesn't know whether the illegal status will keep teens from buying
or using it. She said, "They're going to do what they're going to do.
It'll be on the list of illegal drugs. They'll have to make a
decision as to whether they'd like to follow the law."

Undoubtedly, some teens' immature, still developing brains will
decide not to follow the law. Having synthetic marijuana on the list
of illegal drugs means we can punish them for their foolishness by
arresting them. For those able to afford the best legal
representation, that will be an expensive nuisance. If their families
are poor, arrest will be followed by a criminal record, being barred
from receiving student aid and effectively blocked from getting a
good job ever in their lives. In this scenario, we all lose.

Suzanne Wills, Drug Policy Forum of Texas, Dallas