Letters to the editor for Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017

War on cannabis is a futile pursuit

We keep hearing, ad nauseam, about the opposition by Mr. Farmer, Mr. Hartman, Ms. Aldean and others to the full legalization of cannabis. According to their accounts, it will cause mass mayhem, infiltration by drug cartels, cause economic turmoil, and ruin the city’s reputation. Please just stop this nonsense. “Reefer Madness” was not a documentary, and none of the government anti-weed propaganda distributed over the past 40 years is in any sense accurate.

The prohibition on cannabis has failed in exactly the same way and for exactly the same reasons as alcohol prohibition. It is time to recognize that since it cannot be stopped, it must be legalized and regulated. That is the only real option with a substance that is not harmful and has substantial public demand.

What is not recognized by the opponents of cannabis is that all of the problems listed are caused by the prohibition, not the drug. The crimes, the ever increasing potency, the violence against law enforcement, and nearly everything else only happen because of the prohibition. Legalization either eliminates or greatly reduces every one of those problems.

Just admit it, the “war on drugs,” at least as it relates to cannabis, was a complete failure, and posed (and still poses in some areas) a dire threat to our civil rights. Legalizing and regulating the manufacture, distribution, and use of cannabis will increase our freedoms and free up resources to fight real crimes.

Jeff Fine

Carson City