MISPLACED PRIORITIES

Re "Disgust" (From the Edge, by Anthony Peyton Porter, June 2):

The Butte County Board of Supervisors' support for marijuana
prohibition is misguided.

In 2009, there were 858,405 marijuana arrests in the United States,
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 over martinis.

The U.S. has higher rates of marijuana use than the Netherlands,
where marijuana is legally available. 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 methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin.
This "gateway" is a direct result of marijuana prohibition.

Robert Sharpe, MPA Common Sense for Drug Policy Washington, D.C.