Pubdate: Wed, 22 Oct 2003
Source: Tallahassee Democrat (FL)
Copyright: 2003 Tallahassee Democrat.
Contact:  http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/444
Author: Mitch Covington

THE TIME HAS COME TO REEVALUATE DRUG POLICY

Re: "The left's gloating is tacky, misguided" by Jonah Goldberg (syndicated 
column, Oct. 18).

I can get past Jonah Goldberg's rationalization that being a hypocrite is 
sometimes OK, particularly when it's Rush Limbaugh who doesn't practice 
what he preaches. He's dead wrong, however, to imply that those of us who 
favor a more sensible drug policy are saying, "Go ahead, take lots and lots 
of drugs. It's your own business."

In reality, proponents of decriminalization say, "Don't take drugs. Drugs 
are bad. Drugs can ruin your life. If you must do drugs, please do them in 
the privacy of your own home. If you drive under the influence of drugs, 
you should be arrested and jailed. If you sell or give drugs to minors, you 
should be arrested and jailed for many, many years."

Proponents of decriminalization see that our country has spent 30 years and 
hundreds of billions of dollars on the drug war with utterly nothing to 
show for it except the largest prison population per capita in the world. 
Drugs are as readily available as ever.

There are many reasons why alcohol prohibition didn't work in the 1920s and 
many reasons why it can't work for other substances now. Isn't it time to 
reevaluate our nation's drug policy?

MITCH COVINGTON,  ---
MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens