Use your voice and your vote to help maintain some level of freedom before the lethargic consumer attitude in the United States goes far enough that its citizens lose even more of their natural rights.

I am not saying people should use any drugs, illegal or legal, as my preference is having a few pints of stout now and then and most often simple sobriety, but I fully support the logical freedom that people should have the ability to choose what to do with their own bodies and minds, including what form of recreational intoxicants they use to relax, and marijuana is by far one of the least harmful, less harmful even than the more accepted and legal alcohol.

The media supports unfounded stereotypes and claims, claims that keep people ignorant of the truth, ignorant of what some of the best solutions are for the serious problems we face as a society. Decriminalization of drugs solves (or at least helps correct) some of these problems, probably more than most people would guess, and it is every individual's responsibility to educate themself on these issues and find the facts. What can decriminalizing drugs do for society? It can benefit medical technology, lower crime rates, especially violent crimes, free up space in our prisons for dangerous criminals, lower the amount of drug abuse, and lower the amount of use for both children and legal adults. With legalized drugs there can be purity laws to keep tainted drugs off the streets and out of the hands of the people you love, people who will be taking these drugs despite their illegality, people who harm no one but may die because a pusher cut his product with a harmful substance. One of the reasons teenagers do things is for a thrill, and for many teens drugs offer a tremendous thrill specifically because they are illegal and taboo. Not all teens like to break the rules, but it is a natural part of that period of a person's life. No matter what their parents tell them, whether it's cut your hair, tuck in your shirt, don't hang out with those people, or don't do drugs, teenagers rebel. Rebellion is a natural part of growing up, and when in this stage, it is crucial for a teen to question the wisdom of their elders, to doubt anything their parents wish to tell them, and with this doubt they experiment, whether it's driving the family car too fast without seatbelts, drinking beer, or smoking marijuana, they find it necessary to try everything they are told not to.

Prohibition of drugs not only lends temptation to a rebellious youth, but it also supports violent crime, gives violent criminals a means to support their actions and intimidate others, and gives otherwise law abiding citizens bad names with criminal labels. If you were to go into a prison classroom and take toll of the students in attendance, you would find that almost everyone attempting to gain an education were there on drug charges, with a couple of violent criminals who aren't paying any attention there just to reduce their sentences, with the result that those who care (drug offenders) having to serve out strict sentences, and violent criminals getting out early and living by your children just because they agreed to sleep through some classes. Besides what the inside of prisons can tell us, the streets themselves show a great deal. Gang related territory is bloodied and dangerous because of greed, greed for power and money. The two major additives in this gang territory are drugs and weapons. The weapons themselves are used to protect the drugs and the money gotten from the drugs. With the legalization of drugs, the black market aspect which pushers and killers thrive off would be all but eliminated. There would be nothing for the gangs to fight over, nothing to support their violent actions, and our cities could once again become places where people are not afraid to raise their families, not afraid walk around at night, not afraid that some stray bullet might kill their children because they can't afford to move to a safe neighborhood, all while their neighborhoods should already be safe. The police have not been able to keep these neighborhoods safe, if anything they can have an antagonizign affect on their inhabitants, especially those with guns who feel "the man" is repressing them, those who will open fire simply because they hate cops. Granted the police cannot ever solve the problems, since even if they managed to do so, there would be no need for their having so strong a presence, and once that need is gone, their forces would be cut. Minimizing police presence is an ideal state, one the founders of our country held in high esteem, once this prohibition on drugs is lifted and the black market on our streets is subdued. This minimization would save enormous amounts of wasted tax dollars American citizens pay, money that would be better spent insuring healthier and happier lives for everyone involved. Of course the police don't want to see this, it would mean many of them would have to find other means of employment, employment which didn't require carrying a gun. Although most police personnel have the best of intentions, it makes sense that to keep streets safer, we would want keep as many nervous, gun toting people off them, including both criminals and police. And isn't that what we all want anyway? Peaceful communities where we don't have to worry about our loved ones and ourselves getting injured or killed because of some war that is responsible for the problems it claims to fight?

Regardless of what laws are put into effect, people will always get what they want, whether it comes through legal channels or the black market, but making it go through the black market creates violence, both because enough people are willing to fight for what they want and because of people who are in it for money, and the people who want the money are not afraid to kill to insure they receive it. Repression creates contempt, and comtempt builds until it explodes, hurting not only the repressors but also the innocent individuals in its path.

Whether you wish to keep your family and friends safe from harm, lower the rate of children using drugs, benefit the medical sciences, or allow non-violent people the freedom to live their lives without being labeled criminals, ending the prohibition on drugs is the right thing to do. If you wish to see some statistics on how a tolerant attitude compares to that of a legally stringent one, take a look at how the Netherlands compares to other parts of the world.

I will attempt to update information and statistics as time allows, but as I am doing this simply because I support the cause, most of my time is devoted to living my own life and working to feed and clothe myself.