Pubdate: Mon, 06 Nov 2000
Source: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
Copyright: 2000 Austin American-Statesman
Contact:  P. O. Box 670 Austin, Texas 78767
Fax: 512-445-3679
Website: http://www.austin360.com/statesman/editions/today/
Author: Carl Johnson

FAILED WAR

I am writing in response to the Oct. 8 article, "Facing the music.''

The true message in this article is that the government's insane "war on 
drugs'' has created an opportunity for all people wanting out of poverty or 
with ambition to take the most profitable route to where they want to go. 
Laws, punishment, preaching values, etc., won't stop this from happening.

The "Drug War'' has created problems where no problems or at least 
minuscule problems existed before. Prohibition did the same. Will we never 
learn?

Most of these people, like the young man in the article, would never become 
criminals if this market did not exist.

Let's legalize drugs now and reap the rewards such as less police 
corruption, reduced prison population and reduced court cases, fewer police 
required, less property forfeiture, less invasion of privacy, less loss of 
freedoms, money to rehabilitate drug addicts and more.

CARL JOHNSON
Dale
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