TO THE EDITOR:

The drug problem in Tennessee as well as nation-wide doesn't seem to be
going away although the federal government spends countless millions of
dollars each year on the war on drugs.

The following information was released by a congressional committee in
1972. March 22, 2002, marked the 30th anniversary of the release of one of
the most ground-breaking reports in the history of American drug policy.

Thirty years ago, a Congressionally created commission called the National
Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse, whose members were appointed by
then-President Richard Nixon, completed the most comprehensive review ever
undertaken regarding marijuana and public policy.

Their report, entitled "Marijuana: A Signal of Misunderstanding," boldly
proclaimed that "neither the marihuana user nor the drug itself can be said
to constitute a danger to public safety," and recommended Congress and
state legislatures eliminate all penalties for the private possession and
use of marijuana and for the casual distribution of marijuana for personal use.

Although largely ignored by President Nixon and Congress at the time, the
recommendations of the commission had a major impact on state marijuana laws.

Based on the Marijuana Commission report, 11 states decriminalized minor
marijuana offenses during the 1970s. By 1977, even the president of the
United States was convinced, as then-President Jimmy Carter - citing the
Marijuana Commission - told Congress: "Penalties against drug use should
not be more damaging to the individual than the use of the drug itself.
Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against possession of marijuana
in private for personal use."

That recommendation was good public policy when it was made, and it remains
valid today. And the American public is increasingly in agreement that we
should stop arresting responsible marijuana smokers.

A December 2001 nationwide Zogby poll commissioned by the NORML

Foundation found that 61 percent of likely voters oppose arresting and
jailing marijuana smokers; only 33 percent favor current policies.

The public understands the difference between marijuana and more dangerous
drugs, and they don't want to waste $25,000,000 per year to lock up
nonviolent marijuana smokers.

Although I do not personally advocate the use of any illegal substances, I
do take great offence to the wasting of tax dollars to lock up marijuana
offenders. This money could be much better utilized for violent sex
offenders and murderers.

Dan Bray

Spring Hill