Not only should medical marijuana be made available to patients in need, but adult recreational use should be regulated. Drug policies modeled after alcohol prohibition have given rise to a youth-oriented black market. Illegal drug dealers don't ID for age, but they do recruit minors immune to adult sentences. So much for protecting the children. Throwing more money at the drug problem is no solution. Attempts to limit supply while demand remains constant only increase the profitability of drug trafficking. For addictive drugs like heroin, a spike in street prices leads desperate addicts to increase criminal activity to feed desperate habits. The drug war doesn't fight crime, it fuels crime. [continues 108 words]
Montpelier -- Rep. Sylvia Kennedy, R-Chelsea, tried to stop him. The White House tried to stop him. But Gov. James Douglas turned down both and let the highly controversial medical marijuana bill become law this week. Was it a tough decision? "Very difficult," said press secretary Jason Gibbs. He paused. "Very difficult," he said again. Rep. Kennedy notwithstanding, the toughest opposition Douglas faced was from President George W. Bush's administration, which is of more than passing interest because Douglas is Bush's reelection campaign manager in Vermont. John Walters, the so-called "drug czar" whose office of National Drug Control Policy is in the White House itself, tried twice to talk Douglas out of his decision. [continues 1317 words]
