Pubdate: Sun, 24 Jul 2005 Source: San Francisco Examiner (CA) Copyright: 2005 San Francisco Examiner Contact: http://www.examiner.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/389 Author: Bruce Mirken Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization) TAX, REGULATE MARIJUANA Ronald Fraser makes a number of worthwhile points about our government's fruitless war on marijuana ["Time for a marijuana sales tax," July 20]. In fact, the U.S. Department of Justice has effectively acknowledged that this war has failed. In its just-released "Drug Threat Assessment 2005," the department notes that despite the eradication of 3.5 million marijuana plants last year, it could find "no reports of a trend toward decreased availability" of marijuana anywhere in the country. "Indeed," the report continues, "reporting from some areas has suggested that marijuana is easier for youths to obtain than alcohol or cigarettes." That makes perfect sense, of course: Tobacco and alcohol merchants are licensed and regulated, and thus have an incentive to check identification and not sell to kids. Prohibition guarantees that marijuana dealers are completely unregulated and have no such incentive. Prohibition is a destructive failure. It is time to tax and regulate marijuana. Bruce Mirken Director of Communications Marijuana Policy Project Washington, D.C. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth