HALE TO MAKE STAND ON MARIJUANA LAWS

The war on marijuana goes back to 1914 when El Paso passed an
ordinance allowing police to arrest any Mexican by saying they had
marijuana in their pockets.

The "reefer madness" that swept across the country owes its existence
to Henry Anslinger, the first drug czar, who used the testimony of a
veterinarian appearing before congress to say that marijuana was
dangerous.

Stephen Hale, a fair and experienced, former prosecutor is running
for district attorney of Galveston.

Hale thinks these lies have gone on for far too long. Hale thinks we
should not prosecute misdemeanor marijuana cases, saying, "we're not
the Taliban. Our country is supposed to be a country of tolerance,
not intolerance."

Hale will visit the New York Times Drug Policy Forum at
www.nytimes.com, March 5 at 7 p.m. central.

His thoughts will join those of prior guests like Gov. Gary Johnson,
Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman and dozens of others.

Dean Becker
Houston