Drug users "can obtain whatever they want (online) with more ease than in the conventional illicit street market," according to International Narcotics Control Board (INCB). That includes everything from bongs and seeds to growing instructions to marijuana itself.

The INCB and the European Union urged governments to crack down on online drug sales, but experts say that's easier said than done. Officials from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) estimate that there are up to 400 varieties of marijuana seeds alone for sale on the Internet. "Despite the federal government's efforts [in the U.S.], seeds pour in," NORMAL chief Alan St. Pierre said, adding that the small size and lack of odor make the seeds hard to detect in the mail. "It's very unlikely that they will be intercepted," he said.

A spokesperson for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) said that many parents don't realize how available the drug and related items are online. "Even parents who do realize that marijuana is a serious problem still think ... their teens are going to be exposed to marijuana from a shady character in the street -- not on the computer, possibly sitting a few feet away from them," said ONDCP's Tom Riley. "It's a serious problem that this is on the Internet."

Although the DEA and the U.S. Postal Service seized 8 tons of drugs sent in the mail and arrested 1,724 people suspected of sending drugs in the mail, DEA spokesperson Rusty Payne acknowledged the difficulty of preventing drug sales on the Internet. "Because of the magnitude and growth of the Internet, this is something that's difficult for the DEA to enforce," he said.

Part of the problem is that sites selling marijuana and other drugs are often located in nations like the Netherlands, which have more liberal drug laws than the U.S. One Canadian marijuana activist claims to have sold 4 million marijuana seeds through his website.

"We can't go into Mexico and arrest somebody," said the DEA spokesperson. "Again, it's really difficult to enforce."

"People who sell drugs are obviously violating the law and obviously engage in this activity because they think they can get away with it," said Robert DeMuro, a spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Investigations Service. "Can they for a while? Yes. Can they forever? No."

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Posted by Jack on 15 Jul 08 10:40 PM EDT

Seriously, marijuana is not the problem that some people make it out to be. if you would only stop to take the time to realize this, you could be putting more effort into getting rid of drugs that actually cause harm to people and society. i think its sad that people really believe this is a problem. as far as im concerned marijuana should be lagalized; this way you could concentrate on the real problems plaguing the nation.

Posted by ian on 30 Nov 08 02:21 PM EST

I think that people should be allowed to grow a small amount for personal use, say 2/3 plants. This would free up hundreds of man hours for the police but more importantly take millions of dollers out of drug dealers hands. it would also stop people being offered other stronger drugs when pot isn't available. Cracking down on people who smoke pot just won't work, you just have to look at prohibition to work that one out. Also if say an average smoker spends between 50-100 dollers at a drug dealer there not spending that money on taxable goods and with the state of western ecconomies they could do with the money from that. In Britain we get 15 billion pounds from the tax on tobacco, Maybe the government should start selling it!

Posted by Dwayne Polidori on 25 Feb 09 02:42 PM EST

Ian & Jack I agree 100% Now If Washington would only open their eyes! We could be out of this deficit In no time.

Posted by Tommy on 25 Feb 09 10:25 PM EST

Ian and Jack: apparently, marijuana affects ability to spell, as well as other thinking processes. So what do we tell the teen pot smokers whose brains are still developing, knowing that THC receptors are located in the brain?

Posted by Brinna Nanda on 26 Feb 09 10:35 PM EST

Apparently, opposition to cannabis impairs one's ability to engage in reasoned arguments. CB receptors are located in the brain, and many other parts of the body because cannabinoids are useful to the body.

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