How long has this been going on? 70 years? How many millions of nonviolent offenders have been imprisoned? how many unnecessary deaths due to the black market created by laws prohibiting drugs? how many billions of dollars? and now, the biggy, how many Americans still use, in spite of the laws, illegal drugs everyday? The war on drugs feeds the military industrial complex. it institutionalizes racism and demonizes lower classes and minorities who naturally gravitate to the black market as a way to make a lot of money quick and easy. Drug abuse is a spiritual problem, which cannot be solved by laws. Police are required by quotas to pursue drug users, and I believe this is an insult to the profession. Felons are branded for life and cannot vote. I, members of my family, friends, are all criminals because of our personal choices. marijuana is a gateway drug only in that it requires young users to become familiar with the black market. Drugs, legal and illegal, are being abused by tens of millions of Americans everyday - again, this is a spiritual problem, to be worked out in communities and families, not in the courts! Many illegal drugs have their beginnings in government funded research laboratories. Many have medicinal and spiritual uses that are ignored because the substances are branded 'illegal'. Kids are curious, but the subject is taboo, so they have to find out for themselves. a black market gives a poor education. It is rare that I find an open minded, intelligent person who disagrees with the above. I KNOW that this issue is important to generations of americans, and it gets no attention, because the drug war is so ingrained in the policy of our country that it has become an accepted part of our society. A twisted and wrongheaded part of our country. The longer it goes on the worse it gets.