Pubdate: Sat, 25 Sep 2010
Source: Union, The (Grass Valley, CA)
Copyright: 2010 Charley Hooper
Contact: http://apps.theunion.com/utils/forms/lettertoeditor/
Website: http://www.theunion.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/957
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v10/n726/a10.html
Author: Charley Hooper

SHERIFF'S MARIJUANA ARGUMENT

Keith Royal used his starfish analogy to show how the drug war, even 
though it's a losing venture, is somehow making a positive 
difference. He then used the word illegal six times in one sentence 
to show us his disgust for growers of marijuana.

However, Royal has missed the most important point: Marijuana and 
alcohol are simply drugs and, if anything, alcohol is the more 
dangerous of the two. It is the drug laws which separate them.

Make beer and wine illegal and you'll have the same problems we have 
today with marijuana. We don't have to speculate; this country did 
make alcohol illegal during Prohibition and it was a miserable 
failure. The murder rate went up 70 percent during Prohibition and 
then returned to normal afterward.

Prohibition drove alcohol underground, fostered police corruption and 
funneled great fortunes to gangsters. I guess we don't learn our 
lessons because this is exactly what is happening with marijuana 
today. Look across the border to Mexico with its daily drug war 
casualties to see how bad it might get here. Unless ... unless we 
read our history and finally learn our lesson.

Charley Hooper

Grass Valley 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake