Pubdate: Sun, 14 Feb 2010 Source: East Valley Tribune (AZ) Copyright: 2010 East Valley Tribune. Contact: http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/page/letter_to_the_editor Website: http://www.eastvalleytribune.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2708 Author: Kirk Muse Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v10/n128/a06.html D. A. R. E. FIGHTING LOSING BATTLE I'm writing about Dave Parson's commentary on DARE (Tribune, Feb 14, 2010. Common sense tells us that prohibiting a product should substantially reduce the use of the product that's prohibited. Actually, prohibition tends to substantially increase the desire for the product that's prohibited. Before marijuana was criminalized in the U. S. the vast majority of Americans had never heard of marijuana. Now everybody in the U. S. knows what marijuana is and the U. S. government estimates that at least 100 million Americans have used it. About half of all high school students will use marijuana before they graduate. People want what they are told they cannot have--especially children. The lure of the "forbidden fruit" is very powerful. KIRK MUSE Mesa - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D