(Re: “Heading into uncharted territory,” Weed Between the Lines, May 16.) The people of Colorado are way ahead of the politicians in Washington, D.C.
The days when our federal government can get away with confusing the drug war’s collateral damage with a comparatively harmless plant are coming to an end.
If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize drug cartels, prohibition is a 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 failure. The United States has 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.
If the Obama administration won’t lead reform efforts, they can at least stay out of the way.
Not just in Colorado, but throughout the nation, it’s time to stop the arrests and tax legal marijuana.
Robert Sharpe, Common Sense for Drug Policy/Washington, D.C.
