Pubdate: Wed, 15 Aug 2007
Source: Vancouver Courier (CN BC)
Copyright: 2007 Vancouver Courier
Contact:  http://www.vancourier.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/474
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n949/a02.html?75882
Author: Kirk Muse

ADDICTION PROBLEMS WON'T GO AWAY BUT LEGALIZING DRUGS WILL CUT CRIME

To the editor:

I'm writing about Bruce Symington's outstanding letter: "Drug 
crackdowns increase theft," Aug. 10.

If Canada and the U.S. legalized all our illegal drugs so that they 
could be sold by licensed and regulated businesses for pennies per 
dose, would this eliminate our drug problems? No.

However, doing so would dramatically reduce our crime rates and 
dramatically increase public safety.

Will we ever be able to eliminate our drug problems? No.

However, we can substantially reduce the harm caused by our illegal drugs.

Regulated and controlled drugs would be of known purity, known 
potency and known quality--which would make them much safer than 
today's black market drugs.

But what message would we send to children if we legalized all 
illegal drugs so they could be sold in licensed, regulated and taxed 
business establishments?

The same message we send to children today when we allow products 
such as alcohol and tobacco to be sold in licensed, regulated and 
taxed business establishments.

A free country's government cannot protect its adult citizens from 
themselves. A free country's government has no right to attempt to do so.

Kirk Muse,

Mesa, Arizona
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom