Pubdate: Tue, 22 Feb 2011
Source: Albany Herald, The (GA)
Copyright: 2011 The Albany Herald Publishing Company, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.albanyherald.net/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1747
Author: Walt Specht

LEGALIZING DRUGS WOULD EASE BURDENS

We can't continue to afford to keep all these folks in jail, and it 
really isn't too bright to release them into society without some 
changes. The change we need is to legalize simple drugs, just like 
beer and booze.

Make it cheap enough where they don't have to steal to get it, but 
put half the profits from it back into a fund for the medical 
attention the users might need in the future.

Think of the savings between policing, courts and prison. Plus, right 
now the justice system has been unable to slow down, let alone 
control drugs. The intercept rate can't be higher than 15 percent. So 
we turn a draining loss into a profit center. The DUI laws, public 
intoxication and theft laws will still be in place.

Maybe I don't like it, but to me it makes more sense to divert the 
profit from the drug cartels to our government.

Walt Specht, Leesburg
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart