TOUGH U.S. MARIJUANA LAWS HAVE PROVED A FLOP

Columnist John Martin of the University College of the Fraser Valley
warns readers not to fall for the "tough penalties don't deter" myth.

He claims marijuana grow-ops aren't a problem in Washington state
because of mandatory minimum prison sentences.

But the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration lists Washington among
the leading U.S. states for indoor grow-ops.

Mandatory minimums have given the former land of the free the dubious
distinction of the highest incarceration rate in the world. But they
haven't stopped marijuana grow-ops.

Consumers aren't deterred by zero-tolerance either.

Based on findings that criminal records are inappropriate as health
interventions and ineffective as deterrents, 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 any
European country.

Perhaps Mr. Martin should rethink that myth.

Robert Sharpe,

Arlington, Va.