Pubdate: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 Source: Houston Chronicle (TX) Copyright: 2014 Houston Chronicle Publishing Company Division, Hearst Newspaper Contact: http://www.chron.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/198 Author: Robert Sharpe Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v14/n636/a01.html MAKE MARIJUANA SENSE Regarding "End prohibition" (Page B6, Saturday), thank you for calling for an end to marijuana prohibition in your editorial. Mexican drug cartels are no doubt thrilled with our federal government's insistence that marijuana remain illegal. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize violent drug cartels, prohibition is a grand success. The drug war distorts supply-and-demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. If the goal is to deter use, marijuana prohibition is a catastrophic failure. The United States has almost double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands where marijuana is legal. The criminalization of Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis has no basis in science. The war on marijuana consumers is a failed cultural inquisition, not an evidence-based public health campaign. It's time to stop the pointless arrests and instead allow states to legally tax and regulate marijuana sales. Robert Sharpe, Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy, Washington, D.C. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom