COVER STORY - WHAT'S HE SMOKIN'?

More than a quarter-century ago, a Republican governor got national
notice when he signed a bill making his small western state the first
to decriminalize possession of marijuana.

Many people predicted that Tom McCall's pen would prod other states to
follow Oregon's lead in taking a serious look at the nation's drug
laws. For a while, it seemed they were right, as nearly a dozen states
passed similar laws during the '70s. Even President Jimmy Carter once
raised the notion of decriminalizing pot during a speech. But the
ascension of Ronald Reagan and the War on Drugs ended any momentum
that was building.

Over the past two decades, this nation has spent billions of dollars
locking up drug users, with no proof that it's had any effect on their
habits or made anyone safer.

To see the folly of the nation's drug laws, take a look at Damon
Stoudamire. The hometown star guard for the Trailblazers could face up
to 10 years in prison, not because he assaulted anyone, not because he
cheated on his taxes, but because some cops in Clackamas County found
a pound of pot in his former residence.

There's no way Stoudamire would do that much time, but don't expect
any serious politician in this state to wonder aloud whether locking
Stoudamire up at all would be good policy. Earlier this month, at a
gubernatorial debate sponsored by X-PAC, Republican Ron Saxton and
Dems Bev Stein, Jim Hill and Ted Kulongoski spent more than an hour
jostling to highlight their differences. Then, inevitably, an audience
member asked a question about the state's drug laws. Suddenly, they
raced for the identical patch of safe ground: "Oregon's existing laws
are sufficient...[blah, blah, blah]."

Luckily, one politician is taking on this issue--but he lives 1,400
miles away. This week, Portlanders have the chance to hear another
Republican governor from a small western state make the case for not
just decriminalizing marijuana, but legalizing it. Gary Johnson, the
governor of New Mexico, is will be speaking Thursday (details on page
21) about why it's time to admit the War on Drugs can't be won
following the current strategy.

To mark Johnson's visit, we're running an interview with him, in which
he recounts his own recreational drug use (you bet he inhaled) and
debunks several of the myths about drug abuse. We've also included a
story about what really happens when you get busted for drugs in
Oregon, as well as a rant from a guy who wants to legalize drugs for
far more selfish reasons. Jointly, these stories could bring new
meaning to President Bush's stirring call, "Let's roll!"