Monks Jazz Club
He Should Have Smoked Pot Rather Than Drinking
RECEIVED Fri., June 15, 2007
Dear Editor,
Apparently Mr. Rich Newman had a few too many drinks [“Postmarks,” June 15]. If he's so sick of other folks' "political opinions, artistic notions" etc., perhaps he should move to North Korea. Using his line of reasoning, the only justification he, or anyone else, needs to do (or not do) something is the legality of it. As for being "strung out" on marijuana, that is far less likely than people becoming "strung out" on tobacco or alcohol. Marijuana is not physically addictive, and according the the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is less addictive than both tobacco and alcohol. By the way, the U.S. government did make alcohol illegal in 1920, lasting for 13 years. The prohibition of alcohol was repealed because it caused much more harm to our society than the regulated use of it. All of the good Mr. Newman claims could come from pouring our effort into social problems is just a diversion from the real issue: the government's "War on Drugs,” which by its own admission has been a miserable failure. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the federal government spends nearly $20 billion, and local/state governments spend roughly the same, totaling $40 billion yearly. Meanwhile, according to the FBI, almost 50% of all drug arrests are for marijuana (800,000 marijuana arrests in 2005). So you can conservatively estimate that per year, our federal/state/local governments spend $15 billion to $20 billion enforcing marijuana prohibition. This doesn't count the man-hours law enforcement wastes enforcing marijuana laws. At least two officers are needed to prepare the paperwork and process the defendant every time a marijuana arrest occurs. Assume just two hours per officer per arrest, and that tops 3 million man hours. Those hours could better be used for violent/dangerous crime. And the government recently reported that marijuana is now the top cash crop! Plus the U.S. has the highest prison population rate in the world; 738 per 100,000 of the population (source, International Centre for Prison Studies). And, according to the American Corrections Association, the average daily cost per prison inmate per day in the U.S. in 2005 was $67.55, or almost $17 million per day to imprison drug offenders, totaling $6.18 billion per year. What good could these billions of dollars do for social programs? Adults should have the right to choose to use marijuana instead of alcohol or tobacco. The American Medical Association says alcohol/tobacco kills more than half a million Americans yearly, and marijuana kills none.
Apparently Mr. Rich Newman had a few too many drinks [“Postmarks,” June 15]. If he's so sick of other folks' "political opinions, artistic notions" etc., perhaps he should move to North Korea. Using his line of reasoning, the only justification he, or anyone else, needs to do (or not do) something is the legality of it. As for being "strung out" on marijuana, that is far less likely than people becoming "strung out" on tobacco or alcohol. Marijuana is not physically addictive, and according the the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is less addictive than both tobacco and alcohol. By the way, the U.S. government did make alcohol illegal in 1920, lasting for 13 years. The prohibition of alcohol was repealed because it caused much more harm to our society than the regulated use of it. All of the good Mr. Newman claims could come from pouring our effort into social problems is just a diversion from the real issue: the government's "War on Drugs,” which by its own admission has been a miserable failure. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the federal government spends nearly $20 billion, and local/state governments spend roughly the same, totaling $40 billion yearly. Meanwhile, according to the FBI, almost 50% of all drug arrests are for marijuana (800,000 marijuana arrests in 2005). So you can conservatively estimate that per year, our federal/state/local governments spend $15 billion to $20 billion enforcing marijuana prohibition. This doesn't count the man-hours law enforcement wastes enforcing marijuana laws. At least two officers are needed to prepare the paperwork and process the defendant every time a marijuana arrest occurs. Assume just two hours per officer per arrest, and that tops 3 million man hours. Those hours could better be used for violent/dangerous crime. And the government recently reported that marijuana is now the top cash crop! Plus the U.S. has the highest prison population rate in the world; 738 per 100,000 of the population (source, International Centre for Prison Studies). And, according to the American Corrections Association, the average daily cost per prison inmate per day in the U.S. in 2005 was $67.55, or almost $17 million per day to imprison drug offenders, totaling $6.18 billion per year. What good could these billions of dollars do for social programs? Adults should have the right to choose to use marijuana instead of alcohol or tobacco. The American Medical Association says alcohol/tobacco kills more than half a million Americans yearly, and marijuana kills none.
Josh Schimberg
Director, Texas NORML
Director, Texas NORML
