Pubdate: Fri, 17 Jun 2011
Source: Houston Chronicle (TX)
Copyright: 2011 Houston Chronicle Publishing Company Division, Hearst Newspaper
Contact:  http://www.chron.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/198
Author: Dick Russell

RECALLING HISTORY

The quote from the Global Commission on Drug Policy states the 
obvious solution quite well, i.e., that governments must end the 
criminalization, marginalization and stigmatization of people who use 
drugs but who do no harm to others.

There was no way to fight a successful war on drugs, just as there 
was no way the constitutional amendment on prohibition of alcohol 
could be successful.

Now is the time for the U.S. to decriminalize drugs, just as we 
decriminalized alcohol in 1933 through repeal of Prohibition.

It is somewhat odd that Congress felt empowered to criminalize 
selected drugs, but it took a constitutional amendment to criminalize 
alcohol. One wonders if that mind-set would also try to control or 
criminalize other harmful substances such as tobacco or high-sugar soft drinks.

How far do such elements in our government and society think they can 
go in "protecting" us from ourselves and still be consistent with the 
individual freedoms ensured by our Constitution?

Dick Russell, Houston
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom