RESPONSE TO THE 'LEGALIZATION OF MARIJUANA'

Dear Editor,

A recent article ("Face Off: Should Marijuana be Legalized? No," Sept.
19) examining marijuana legalization failed to consider the reality of
the current situation, which is that despite 70 years of government
propaganda and billions of taxpayer dollars wasted this year alone
combating conduct that millions of Americans engage in, we are losing
the war on marijuana.

Notwithstanding Mr. McLaurine's reliance on arguments such as the
gateway theory, a supposition that has been repeatedly debunked by
scientific studies in recent years, to make his point, he does leave
readers with some good advice: Do your own research on the issue and
come to your own conclusions.

On that note, here's some numbers to consider. In 2007, police
arrested a record 872,720 people for marijuana offenses. Almost 90
percent of those arrests (775,138) were for possession only.

This means one American is arrested every 40 seconds for marijuana
possession; not for growing marijuana, not for a marijuana-related
DUI, not for giving marijuana to a minor, but for simply having
marijuana on their person, or even worse, in the privacy of their home.

A marijuana violation can strip students of financial aid, prohibit
loving and capable adults from adopting a child, block access to
public housing and make it impossible to secure employment.

When the harms associated with the laws governing a drug do more harm
than the drug itself, it's time to rethink our policies and change
those laws.

Nathan Miller, Washington D.C.

Nathan Miller is a Kentucky native, a attorney and legislative analyst
for the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C., and a graduate
of the University of Louisville's Louis D. Brandeis School of Law.