Pubdate: Thu, 30 Mar 2006 Source: News & Reporter (SC) Copyright: 2006 Chester News & Reporter Contact: http://www.onlinechester.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1790 Author: Kirk Muse Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v06.n333.a01.html CZECH EXAMPLE MAKES ONE WONDER ABOUT DRUG POLICY To the Editor: I'm writing about Harvey Neiblum's thoughtful column: "Should marijuana be a legalized drug?" (March 17). For those who say no, my question is why do they want marijuana to remain completely un-regulated, un-taxed and controlled by criminals? Only legal products of any kind can be regulated, taxed and controlled by any government. It seems to me that in order to properly evaluate our nation's drug policies, we need to compare and contrast our drug policies with those of another nation with dramatically different drug policies. I suggest that we use the Czech Republic for our comparison. In the Czech Republic, citizens can legally use, possess, grow, or purchase small quantities of marijuana. In the United States, many otherwise law abiding citizens are locked in prison cages for possessing, growing or selling various amounts of marijuana. Many are locked away for several decades or even in some cases, life in prison without the possibility of parole. The Czech overall drug arrest rate is 1 per 100,000 population. The United States' overall drug arrest rate is 585 per 100,000 population. The Czech robbery rate is 2 per 100,000 population. The U.S. robbery rate is 145.9 per 100,000 population, according to the FBI. According to our drug war cheerleaders, tolerant marijuana laws cause people to use other, much more dangerous drugs like meth and heroin. Obviously, this doesn't happen in the Czech Republic. Why not? Could it be that when people can legally obtain marijuana at an affordable price, they tend not to use or desire any other recreational drugs? Could it be that marijuana legalization actually creates a roadblock to hard drug use - not a gateway? Kirk Muse Mesa, AZ - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin