Letter: Control of drug in wrong hands

Friday, Dec. 1, 2000 | 10:57 a.m.

The alleged need for further studies is nothing more than a ruse perpetrated by entrenched interests riding the drug war gravy train.

Not only should medical marijuana be made available to patients in need, but adult recreational use should be regulated as well.

The reason for this is simple: leaving the distribution of popular recreational drugs in the hands of organized crime puts children at great risk. Unlike legitimate businesses that sell liquor, illegal drug dealers working the black market do not ID for age, but they do push profitable, addictive drugs like heroin when given the chance.

As counterintuitive as it may seem, replacing marijuana prohibition with regulation would do a better job protecting children from drugs than the failed drug war. As for medical marijuana, doctors should be the ones deciding what is best for their patients, not government bureaucrats.

ROBERT SHARPE

Program Officer, The Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation, Washington, D.C.

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