The Red and Black

Issue date: 3/17/09 Section: Opinions

NICK PANETTA

During alcohol prohibition, which lasted from 1920 to 1933, the U.S. saw a tripling of alcohol-related deaths and the rise of organized crime. A federal review by the Wickersham Commission of 1930 documented an increase in use of distilled liquors and rampant abuse by minors.

Amateur distilling operations often created dangerous, methanol-containing products; corruption of public officials was rife; taxpayer-funded court and prison systems struggled to meet a crushing demand.

Alcohol prohibition, once known as the "Noble Experiment," ended with many former advocates convinced the effects of the ban were more harmful than alcohol.

Prohibition of marijuana, which remains intact, also has been harmful. In fact, more than 50 major government-sponsored studies have denounced marijuana prohibition.

In 1961, the Joint Committee of the American Bar Association and the American Medical Association on Narcotic Drugs conducted a major, combined study of drug policy. These experts note prohibition is based on the misconception that marijuana itself is responsible for criminal behavior.

They contend, rather, that high prices in the illicit market are the primary stimulus for drug-related crime. That illicit market is a direct result of marijuana prohibition.

The AMA and ABA emphatically warn that the U.S. must adopt a different approach to marijuana control.

The Consumers Union Report on Licit and Illicit Drugs, one of the most comprehensive drug policy studies ever performed, was published in 1972. This report recommends the immediate repeal of all federal laws governing the growing, processing, transportation, sale, possession and use of marijuana. Suggesting taxation and regulation as more productive in solving potential abuse-related problems, the report explains that tax proceeds would be devoted primarily to credible drug abuse prevention and education programs, as well as research.

Audio recordings from the 1972 Nixon White House demonstrate how President Nixon, infuriated with the conclusions of previous studies, contrived a commission to support his own prohibitionist agenda.

In the tapes, Nixon makes it clear he wants a report that supports his views and bolsters policies perceived to be "tough on crime." Comprised of scholars selected by Nixon, the U.S. National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse spent more than a year studying numerous aspects of marijuana.

When Nixon learned the Commission deemed prohibition to be a failed policy, and even outlined a detailed plan for decriminalization, he refused to read it. Proclaiming, "We need all out war on all fronts," Nixon instead initiated the "War on Drugs."

Economically, this "war" has been a nightmare for taxpayers, costing billions of dollars per year. With the U.S. domestic marijuana crop conservatively valued at $35.8 billion dollars annually, marijuana is easily our nation's top cash crop - generating billions of dollars more than corn and wheat combined.

Under prohibition, federal and state governments fail to benefit from this lucrative industry, and instead allow gangs and cartels to prosper.

In an open letter to Congress, 500 prominent economists, including three Nobel Laureates, support the legalization of marijuana. Citing a report by Harvard University Professor Jeffrey A. Miron, The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition, these economists assert that legalization "would save $7.7 billion per year in state and federal expenditures on prohibition enforcement, and produce tax revenues of at least $2.4 billion annually."

The letter goes on to insist, "If marijuana were taxed similarly to alcohol or tobacco, it might generate as much as $6.2 billion annually."

Society must understand drug abuse is a serious reality with which every American should be concerned. However, for decades public policy analysts have deemed our marijuana prohibition to be a contributing factor to problems associated with drug abuse, rather than a mitigating force.

Just as it failed to control alcohol, prohibition is failing to control marijuana. The scientific majority has determined we can safely decriminalize marijuana; it is time for a change of policy.

- Nick Panetta is the public relations director for UGA NORML.

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