Pubdate: Sat, 12 May 2012 Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA) Copyright: 2012 Worcester Telegram & Gazette Contact: http://www.telegram.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/509 Author: Robert Sharpe Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v12/n255/a01.html WAR ON DRUGS INFRINGES ON FREEDOMS This is regarding an article stating: "The financial incentives created by civil asset forfeiture laws create a dangerous precedent" (Telegram & Gazette, May 1). Police can confiscate cars, cash and homes without bothering to charge owners with a crime. Vague allegations of drug trafficking don't justify turning protectors of the peace into financial predators. The drug war threatens the integrity of a country founded on the concept of limited government. Police searches on public transit, drug-sniffing dogs in schools, and random drug testing have led to a loss of civil liberties, while failing miserably at preventing drug use. Despite marijuana prohibition and perhaps because of forbidden-fruit appeal, lifetime use of marijuana is higher in the United States than in any European country, a majority of which have decriminalized marijuana. The U.S. now has the highest incarceration rate in the world, in large part due to the war on some drugs. This is big government at its worst. It's not possible to wage a moralistic war against consensual vices unless privacy is completely eliminated, along with the Constitution. America can be a free country or a "drug-free" country, but not both. ROBERT SHARPE Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy Washington, D.C. - --- MAP posted-by: Matt