MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION WOULD EASE PROBLEMS

Regarding Jon Beydler's thoughtful July 16th op-ed, the drug war is
largely a war on marijuana smokers. In 2008, there were 847,863
marijuana arrests in the U.S., almost 90 percent for simple
possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off
police, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend
enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana
to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not
necessarily lower rates of use.

The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands, where
marijuana is legally available. Decriminalization is a long overdue
step in the right direction. Taxing and regulating marijuana would
render the drug war obsolete. As long as organized crime controls
distribution, marijuana consumers will come into contact with sellers
of hard drugs like cocaine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct
result of marijuana prohibition.

Robert Sharpe, MPA, Arlington, Va.

Policy analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy