BLACK TO BE COMMENDED FOR MARIJUANA COMMENTS

Arthur Black is to be commended for raising awareness of the ugly
truth behind marijuana prohibition. If health outcomes determined
drug laws instead of cultural norms, marijuana would be legal. Early
20th century warnings that marijuana inspires homicidal rages in
dark-skinned minorities have been counterproductive. White North
Americans did not even begin to smoke marijuana until government
bureaucracies began funding reefer madness propaganda.

Unlike alcohol, marijuana has never been shown to cause an overdose
death, nor does it share the addictive properties of tobacco.
Marijuana may be relatively harmless, but marijuana prohibition is
deadly. As long as organized crime controls marijuana distribution,
consumers will continue to come into contact with addictive drugs
like cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin. This "gateway" is a direct
result of marijuana prohibition.

Robert Sharpe, MPA

Policy Analyst

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, DC