It is nice to see Mr. Kerlikowski take an open minded approach to the drug problem that exists in our communities. Incarceration is a breeding ground for recidivism, especially for non-violent drug offenders. When is it ever helpful to disengage from our fellow man and separate him or her from our life experience.The non-violent drug offender is systematicaly forced to go underground and disengage from society and not participate solely out of fear. When did fear supercede love? When did avoidance replace empathy? There must be a better solution to drug and alcohol problems than incarceration. Thank goodness someone is in office that can think out of the box and speak the truth without fear of dogmatic reprisal.

We are releasing murderers, rapists and thieves from prison to make room in the prisons for small time drug offenders and DUI's. When a small time drug offender graduates from the University of crime, he enrolled as a drug addict, but graduates as a murderer, rapist and/or a thief. I watch the vicious treatment of small time corner crack dealers, and the stars of COPS celebrate when the find a $2 rock in a 13 year old's mouth. Often their are 20 cops in the sting. WHY DON'T THEY PUT THOSE 20 COPS TO WORK CHASING THEY GUY SELLING TO THE KIDS?????? Show me the big busts! Send those criminals who take advantage of the addicts to support their criminality to prison. Treat the addicts and turn them into good cops!Most of the addicts score the same on rehabilitation testing as do cops, once they are clean!

Having worked as Law Enforcement Officer for fifteen years, ambushed and now treating addicts I feel very positive having a Drug Zar whom has actually been in the trenches with Treatment Providers and knows exactly where we need to focus our attention as a community with love and care for the second most important commandments. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. Lets support Kerikowski!

i agree that we should stop going after nonviolent drug users including drunk drivers. until they kill they are nonviolent!

I have to disagree with jrzshor about drunk driver's being non-violent "until they kill." Every time someone itoxicates themself to the point where they cannot function properly behind the wheel of a vehicle, they are potentially causing harm to everyone that comes within their path as they drive impaired. The statistics for how many times the average driver who finally receives a DUI has drove impaired before they "got caught" is staggering. I do agree that these people need treatment rather than prison, yet less than 3% of alcoholics and drug users actually, voluntarily seek treatment. Why do we outlaw drinking and driving, yet allow bars to have parking lots? Doesn't make sense.

Why don't all of you open your homes and show love to the helpless addict. Oh that's why you have locks on your doors, because the addict is the one robbing you. One half of one percent of individuals are incarcerated for simple use. The majority of individuals with drug charges in prison, have plead to a lesser drug charge than the origional crime they committed. Giving an addict love before they understand consequences keeps the addict loaded and in their addiction. In my 19 years in AOD Treatment, Law enforcement has been a partner in the process, just like prevention and communities changing the enviroment of their nieghborhoods that promote drug use.

Any body that buys illegal drugs is a law breaker and they know it. The money they spend on drugs is supporting criminal gangs that control the drug trade.These gangs are violent dangerous killers that have no respect for anybody.They kill men women children and police officers.If a person has a drug problem that is their own fault if they get busted they must pay the penalty.Drug takers should go for treatment on their own to get off drugs because they are destroying their own lives.If they do not then they must pay for their crimes.

"We are releasing murderers, rapists and thieves from prison to make room in the prisons for small time drug offenders and DUI's." This is absolute rubbish. DUI offenders do NOT go to prison, unless they're repeat offenders or they kill or maim someone else in a crash. Small time drug offenders DO NOT go to prison. Drug dealers and violent felons who plead-down to drug possession DO go to prison. From the RAND Corporation: "Most people imprisoned for low-level drug convictions in California and Arizona made plea bargains to avoid tougher charges, have criminal records, were involved with hard drugs such as cocaine and heroin, or were arrested possessing substantial quantities of drugs..." Google "Just Cause or Just Because." REPEAT: NO ONE GOES TO PRISON FOR LOW-LEVEL NON-VIOLENT DRUG CRIMES. That is a flat-out lie perpetrated by those who want all drugs legalized, no matter what the cost.

Our government doesn't learn, prohibition didn't work, it just increased crime, and violence, so they do the same thing with drugs, and expect different results, the classic sign of insanity. And, they've been stuck on stupid for too long, someone give Washington a clue, because they'll never get it.

"WHY DON'T THEY PUT THOSE 20 COPS TO WORK CHASING THEY GUY SELLING TO THE KIDS??????" Dave, the cops ARE working on finding the guy selling to the kids. But it doesn't make a good TV show. You need to interact more with your local police department's narcotics officers, and stop basing your world vision on what you see on "Cops." As for "vicious treatment of small time corner crack dealers," I'm curious to know how crack dealers, the people who sell drugs directly to young children...well, how should they be treated? Oh, no, they were chased down the street, put in handcuffs, and take to jail..and released within 48 hours, to sell more drugs. Vicious, indeed. When someone exploits YOUR child by selling drugs to them, and creating an addiction, you want the dealer locked up, the dealer's supplier locked up, and anyone who had anything to do with it locked up. Spare us your indignation. We have zero tolerance for criminal activity.

Joebanana, perhaps you should read the newspaper once in a while, or just the article at the top of this page. This discussion is about the best use of our resources to reduce demand, treat addicts, and interdict drug supplies. By the way, Prohibition did result in the reducing the per-capita consumption of alcohol by 30 to 50 percent, depending on which study you read. Some speculated that we had become a nation of drunks, which was a bad thing. Now, our per capita consumption has reached similar levels. We have a better handle on identifying the problem; a minority of drinkers consume the majority of alcohol, and cause the majority of problems. Dealing with that minority (whether they're using alcohol or other drugs) involves preventing addition, treating addiction, and reducing or regulating the supply of the drug, depending on whether it's a illegal or a legal drug. Our government DID learn. Mr. Obama's people did the math...legalizing street drugs doesn't solve any problems, and burdens all of us with the tragic and expensive outcomes of increased usage. To argue otherwise is indeed "stuck on stupid."

I'm a hard working tax paying US citizen and I vote.I'm so sick and tired of marijuana prohibition and all the billions of tax dollars waisted on waging a lost war on the American people.Keep all the deadly drugs illegal,like cocaine,heroin and meth illegal and I'm all for stiffening the penalties for manufacturing and selling these drugs because they kill people.Marijuana is humanly impossible to overdose on,and that is a medical fact.Check with the Beureau of vital statistics and see if I'm wrong.I pay taxes and I vote and I will vote to legalize marijuana.

Regulation is law and order. Prohibition is a free for all. It's so simple. You cannot moderate or regulate what you prohibit.

Brinna, you said it so well. When will we learn from our history? Prohibition does not work. Why do so many ignore the fact that we already have legalized drugs?Nicotine, alcohol, and prescription drugs are legalized drugs. I am a recovering alcohol/addict hoping and praying that I will see legalization in my lifetime. I believe legalization will greatly reduce drug trafficking and allow for needed regulation--regulation is so much preferred to the "war on drugs"--what we are doing is not working---legilization will work--look at the difference between prohibition of alcohol to legalization of alcohol--

Although our culture may not be ready to accept the ending of drug prohibition, for our democracy to remain true to its founders' vision, it MUST eventually end. It has become an unholy alliance between law enforcement and the illegal drug handlers. This design is by proxy. Many good citizens confuse moral choices with legal rights. The distinction always lies in the question of enforcement. When the enforcement of a law pits one citizen's livelihood against another one's freedom, we have to ask whose interests are being served. If the regulatory control of all drugs were a statutory requirement under FDA jurisdiction, then the public as a whole would be actively served. Present laws position "homespun" stimulant, narcotic and ethnobotanic drugs as Schedule I substances requiring police oversight [DEA]. There's the rub. What is by definition a public health concern becomes food for the criminal justice system to feed off of. It is nothing short of pure, white-bread genius! It is so simple......when you follow the money.

The posts by Rob H and Dwayne P say it all. Users do not like to read reasoned items about drugs and law enforcement.Those who say prohibition didn't work have never looked into this properly. It did work - it took many years for the rates of alcohol misuse to reach the levels just pre-prohibition and alcohol related illnesses dropped dramatically. Legalise drugs and their use will escalate -just look at the figures for those other two drugs - tobacoo and alcohol and you will see that. By the way will those who want them legalised sell to anyone ? Including 12-14 year olds ? If not the dealers will.....

Hmmm! There are numerous laws (both God & man-made) that prohibit murder, but we still have murders. For those who rationalize with their tired "prohibition failed" argument, maybe we should declare our prohibition against murder ineffective and do away with those laws as well. That's some way to determine a response to a social/cultural problem ........ we can't "solve" something so we decide to acquiesce. With that reasoning we might as well give up on arresting and prosecuting drunk drivers because there will always be some among us who choose to violate those laws and endanger others!

this occured 2 me recently, if the government legalized pot retroactively, there would be a multi billion dollar savings in the prison/jail housing costs alone. Add the revenue from legal sales and it'd be groovie!~ Timothy :o)