Pubdate: Thu, 31 May 2012 Source: Los Angeles Times (CA) Copyright: 2012 Los Angeles Times Contact: http://www.latimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248 Author: William D. Robinson ENDING THE DEADLY DRUG WAR How many more deaths must we endure before we take the only logical step to end the drug wars once and for all? The solution may not be pretty, but it is practical. Instead of useless attempts at interdiction, we should buy all the drugs available from the cartels in exchange for legalizing the production of them. Cut out the middle man - and ultimately the users - by taking all the drugs off the market legally. The drug producers make their profits, and we save billions. The drug lords are in it for the money, and if we make it cheaper and easier for them to make their profits, we would probably be able to take most of the drug supply off the market. Everyone is a winner, including the addicts. William D. Robinson San Clemente - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom