SAYING NO TO POT ISN'T WORKING, SAYS ACTIVIST

Regarding columnist Jim Nelson's thoughtful Dec. 16 column, marijuana
eradication efforts are no doubt well-intended but ultimately
counterproductive. The drug war's distortion of immutable laws of
supply and demand causes big money to grow on little trees.

Canadian tax dollars are wasted on anti-drug strategies that only
make marijuana growing more profitable. In 2002, the Canadian senate
offered a common-sense alternative to prohibition when the Special
Committee on Illegal Drugs concluded that marijuana is relatively
benign, marijuana prohibition contributes to organized crime and law
enforcement efforts have little impact on patterns of use.

Consider the experience of Canada's southern neighbour, the former
land of the free and current record holder in citizens incarcerated.
Based on findings that criminal records are inappropriate as health
interventions, a majority of European Union countries have
decriminalized marijuana. Despite marijuana prohibition -- and
perhaps because of forbidden fruit appeal -- lifetime use of
marijuana is higher in the U.S. than in any European country. The
short-term health effects of marijuana are inconsequential compared
to the long-term effects of criminal records.

Canada should follow the lead of Europe and Just Say No to the
American inquisition.

Robert Sharpe, Arlington, Virginia, Common Sense for Drug Policy