Pubdate: Thu, 24 Apr 2008 Source: Daily Aztec, The (San Diego State, CA Edu) Copyright: 2008 The Daily Aztec Contact: http://www.thedailyaztec.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1420 Author: Randolph Hencken SHUTTING DOWN THE SMOKE SHOPS ON EL CAJON IS A BAD POLICY In the April 9 article "CACC wants bong sales to end," Lisa Silverman of Mid-City Community Action Network asserted that shutting down head shops would reduce youth drug use. She said, "By reducing the easy access to drug paraphernalia we can help to eliminate drug use in the young adult population." Her comment is reflective of an ideology that is based on fallacious reasoning and serves to perpetuate failed policies for dealing with illicit drug use. It is clearly a nonsequitur to claim that banning the sale of bongs will help to eliminate youth drug use. Take a look at Hawaii, where the state has outlawed the sale of drug paraphernalia. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in 2005 the national average for past month youth drug use was about 10.3 percent, and it was slightly higher than Hawaiian's 10.8 percent. There is not a valid or significant correlation between the banning of paraphernalia and a decline in youth drug use. It is also important to take into account that medical marijuana is legal in the state of California. Voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 215, the law that allows anyone with a doctor's recommendation the right to use marijuana. It seems reasonable then to allow local businesses to sell items that can be used legally by numerous San Diegans. We don't outlaw the sale of flasks and beer bongs just because people under 21 are not allowed to drink alcohol. San Diego State student and College Area Community Council board member, Daniel Osztreicher, suggested in the article that removing the smoke shops would help curb illegal activity and clean up the image of El Cajon Boulevard. This notion also has a major shortcoming - there is much more property damage and violent crime as a result of alcohol-induced behaviors than there are as a result of marijuana use. The typical marijuana user is subdued and tries to avoid criminal activity that would increase the likelihood of him or her having contact with law enforcement. So why isn't CACC trying to shut down all of the liquor stores, bars and grocery markets that sell alcohol on El Cajon Boulevard? I would like to remind Silverman, Osztreicher, CACC and readers of The Daily Aztec that our nation is founded on the fundamental principals of liberty. The laws that prohibit drug use by adults are in direct opposition to our individual freedom. Last year, more than 800,000 Americans were arrested for possession - and we are supposed to be the land of the free? What an adult does with his or her body ought not to be a crime so long as he or she does not harm someone else. Shutting down the smoke shops on El Cajon Boulevard is a bad policy, just like drug prohibition is a failed policy. Randolph Hencken communication graduate student - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin