Pubdate: Mon, 11 Jun 2012
Source: Daily Telegram, The (Adrain, MI)
Copyright: 2012 GateHouse Media, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.lenconnect.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1556

K2, SYNTHETIC DRUGS ARE BAD FOR YOU, BUT LAWFARE IS NOT THE BEST RESPONSE

ADRIAN, Mich. - First, let's be perfectly clear: K2, Spice and other
synthetic marijuana items often sold at gas stations and convenience
stores should not be sold and should not be ingested. As stories in
the Telegram show, these chemical substances can cause illness,
addiction and, in some cases, death.

The word needs to be spread among people of all ages. Residents should
thank stores that do not sell these products, and they should use
their power as consumers to encourage stores that do sell them to stop
immediately.

People should also recall the example of "bathtub gin." That was the
name given to substitute alcohol drinks made when the government
imposed prohibition on grain alcohol and beer. Made with wood alcohol
and similarly harmful substances, "bathtub gin" killed thousands and
blinded many more. Of course it was banned, but that didn't solve the
problem; it just pushed it underground.

K2 and other synthetic marijuana products are a very similar problem.
With a misguided federal war on marijuana, chemical alternatives are
popping up.

The Lenawee County criminal justice committee is set to vote Wednesday
on an eminent danger order from the Lenawee County Health Department
banning such substances. Officials debated Thursday whether to
criminalize possession or just sale of the products, and whether
penalties should include fines and jail time.

However, as Detective Lt. Robert Sinclair from OMNI told the Tecumseh
Rotary, the problem with prosecuting these compounds is that slightly
adjusting the formula produces a perfectly legal substance, although -
again - one that people should neither ingest nor sell. (Also, the
packages are typically labeled "not for human consumption.")

We agree that ingesting these products is foolish and potentially
dangerous. Yet, in banning their sale, officials must be careful not
to begin another drug war. While the intentions of these officials are
good, there's no guarantee later officials might not enforce the ban
in arbitrary ways. Should we ban paints and glues and canned air
because people huff them?

This also applies to state officials who are considering similar laws,
and which might make the county ban a moot point. Naturally, the
problem of synthetic marijuana could be solved entirely if federal
officials including the president and Congress would end the war on
marijuana. That prohibition has created a bloody, expensive and
contradictory patchwork of laws across America.

People need to take responsibility as citizens to spread the word and
discourage stores from stocking useless products that can harm people.
County officials have the right intentions, and we wouldn't be sorry
to see a ban.

However, commissioners must be careful not to repeat the mistakes of
the war on marijuana or the war on alcohol. We don't know what a
"bathtub gin" substitute for K2 or Spice might be, and we hope we'll
never find out.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt