HIGH COURT NEEDS BONG HIT

In response to "Free Speech 4 Jesus," June 27: The Supreme Court
should take a cue from the nonsensical banner that inspired their
recent decision limiting student free speech. It might do them some
good to take a few bong hits for Jesus. Before sacrificing any more
civil liberties at the altar of the drug war, they should ask
themselves, what would Jesus do? Would Jesus persecute, incarcerate
and deny forgiveness to nonviolent drug offenders? Zero tolerance is
un-Christian. Morally, the drug war is wrong, and on a practical
level, the drug war is a complete failure.

According to FBI stats, there were 786,545 marijuana arrests in 2005,
the vast majority for simple possession. America is one of the few
Western countries that punishes citizens who prefer marijuana to
martinis, yet lifetime use of marijuana is higher in the U.S. than any
European country. Thanks to the war on some drugs, the "land of the
free" now has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Yet the
drug war has failed to keep drugs out of prisons, much less schools.
This is not a policy worthy of constitutional exemptions. The Supreme
Court should prioritize protecting civil liberties over perpetuating
the drug war.

Robert Sharpe

Policy analyst

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, D.C.