POT ROAST

The Drug Enforcement Administration sees the tragic reality of drug
use every day, and it is a reality that leaves no doubt that drugs
are illegal--and must remain so-- because they are dangerous, leaving
only addiction and ruined lives in their wake. This year's drug
control budget is $12 billion, and we are balancing prevention,
treatment, and targeted enforcement against traffickers, and the
return on our investment is significant. We've seen an 18 percent
drop in teens' use of marijuana, because, unlike Mr. Cartwright,
teens are learning the consequences of this drug. Marijuana has been
shown to cause cognitive impairment, including distorted perception
and memory loss. What's more, the potency of marijuana has increased
since the seventies. It is a far more powerful drug now than the one
that seems to be stoking Mr. Cartwright's nostalgia, and it is
claiming more victims, with more teens in treatment each year for
marijuana dependence than for alcohol and all other illegal drugs
combined. In addition to its harm, marijuana has no proven medicinal
benefits--a conclusion reached not by Washington "politicians" but by
the major voices in the medical community. The American Medical
Association, the American Glaucoma Society, the American Academy of
Ophthalmology, and the American Cancer Society have all rejected
marijuana as medicine.

The fight against drugs and the ignorance that fuels drug abuse
continues. America is winning, because we have too much sense, and
too much at stake, to lose.

James Craig, Special Agent-in-Charge, Houston Field Division

Gary Olenkiewicz, Special Agent-in-Charge, Dallas Field Division

Alfredo Ortega, Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge, El Paso Field Division

Drug Enforcement Administration