To the Editor: Re "New York State Is Set to Loosen Marijuana Laws" (front page, Jan. 5): Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's plan to seek the easing of the law to provide for the limited use of marijuana for medical purposes is a step in the right direction, but a more rational approach would be to follow Colorado's lead and decriminalize its use altogether. I do not use marijuana or have any desire to do so. However, I do imbibe alcohol, a far more invidious and destructive substance. The prohibition against the use of marijuana makes no more sense than the prohibition of alcohol use did almost a century ago. Bethel, Conn., Jan. 5, 2014 [end]
To mark its 35th anniversary, the U.S. magazine Foreign Policy recently asked a group of leading thinkers to identify which ideas, values, and institutions will disappear in the next 35 years. The Post has been printing the most intriguing responses. In today's seventh installment, Peter Schwartz says goodbye to the war on drugs. The war on drugs will soon be over. It won't have been won or lost, and we certainly won't have wiped out illicit drug use. People will still pursue their personal pleasures and uncontrollable addictions. No, the war on drugs will end because drugs as we know them today will be gone. [continues 532 words]
The war on drugs will soon be over. It won't have been won or lost, and we certainly won't have wiped out illicit drug use. People will still pursue their personal pleasures and uncontrollable addictions. No, the war on drugs will end because drugs as we know them today will be gone. The model drug of the future is already here in the form of crystal methamphetamine, a drug that is sweeping the United States and making inroads abroad. It's cheap and easy to make--little more than Sudafed doctored up with plant fertilizer. One hundred percent of the profit goes to the manufacturer; no intermediary or army of couriers is required. Made of locally acquired materials in the garage or basement, the drug's production is nearly impossible to stop. Only the stupid and incompetent get caught. [continues 452 words]
