Pubdate: Tue, 08 Mar 2011
Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser (HI)
Copyright: 2011 Star Advertiser
Contact: 
http://www.staradvertiser.com/info/Star-Advertiser_Letter_to_the_Editor.html
Website: http://www.staradvertiser.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5154
Author: Richard S. Miller
Note: Richard S Miller is a retired University of Hawaii Law 
Professor and former law dean. The views expressed here are his own 
and do not necessarily reflect those of the UH or the law school.

LET'S BE SMART ABOUT HOW WE REGULATE MARIJUANA

Throughout the United States, the purchase, sale, possession and use 
of tobacco by adults are not crimes except in some public places in 
some states. And, in most of the United States, the adult purchase, 
sale, possession or use of alcohol is not a crime except in some 
public places or special situations.

However, as to tobacco and alcohol, the Center for Disease Control 
(CDC) has reported: "Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of 
death in the United States ...

."More deaths are caused each year by tobacco use than by all deaths 
from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), illegal drug use, alcohol 
use, motor vehicle injuries, suicides, and murders combined. .. 
Cigarette smoking causes about one of every five deaths in the United 
States each year."

And on alcohol: "According to the Alcohol-Related Disease Impact 
tool, from 2001-2005, there were approximately 79,000 deaths annually 
attributable to excessive alcohol use ... the third-leading 
lifestyle-related cause of death for people in the United States each year."

In contrast, in Hawaii, possession of any amount of marijuana, except 
by those who are certified as having a "debilitating condition" under 
our medical marijuana law or their "caregivers'" is a crime, with 
potentially serious consequences, including fine or imprisonment and 
for young people the possible loss of vital federal education loans, 
good jobs, and/or admission to good colleges or jobs.

While the CDC states that marijuana may not be good for you, there is 
virtually no convincing evidence that marijuana causes large numbers 
of deaths or injuries. However, there is growing evidence that 
marijuana is beneficial in treating serious conditions and that its 
risks are far fewer than alcohol and tobacco.

There are very good reasons for not imposing criminal prohibitions on 
tobacco and alcohol: We long ago learned the perils of prohibiting 
substances that many people enjoy. Alcohol prohibition began in 1920, 
when the 18th Amendment went into effect, and ended in 1933 with its 
repeal. When Prohibition ended some supporters openly admitted its failure.

Today, similar horrors may be observed in the U.S. and murderous 
consequences in Mexico. On the mainland and in Hawaii, where 
marijuana use has been prohibited, there is little evidence of 
significant decline in usage and there has been little or no 
regulation to protect or taxation to educate vulnerable users.

So just how dumb are we? Very dumb! In the middle of an economic 
disaster we are wasting public money enforcing the marijuana laws 
when, to protect our citizens with debilitating conditions and to 
avoid unjustifiable discrimination against marijuana users, we could 
tax and regulate marijuana as we do with tobacco and alcohol.

Studies by economists Lawrence Boyd, University of Hawaii West Oahu, 
and Jeffrey Miron, senior lecturer on economics, Harvard University, 
indicate that we could be earning millions in revenues. Then we could 
afford the intelligent kind of educational and other programs that 
led to huge decreases in personal tobacco use and that reduce the 
incidence of very dangerous alcohol abuse.

There are now four marijuana bills in our Legislature and they should 
be passed: SB 1460, which makes possession of an ounce or less a 
civil violation with fine, not a crime; SB 58, which corrects defects 
in the medical marijuana program; SB 175, which moves the program 
from the Department of Public Safety, which has done its damnedest to 
obstruct the program, to the Department of Health, where it belongs; 
and SB 1458, which regulates, taxes and controls the marketing of 
medical marijuana.

Now is the time. Let's be smart.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom