Americans have forgotten about the other war that this country is fighting.  It is not the war in Afghanistan.  It is the "War on Drugs."

An estimated $19 BILLION is budgeted for this fiscal year, while it is estimated that drugs have tied up our legal system and law enforcement agencies to the tune of $50 BILLION.

More than 1 million people are currently incarcerated in connection with nonviolent drug offenses.  That is around 60 percent of the prison population.  When President Nixon started this unwinnable battle in 1972, there were 285,750 drug offenders in prison.  The estimated cost of housing a prisoner for a year stands around $30,000.  There are currently more illegal substances in the United States than ever, and there is no end in sight.

What if our governments' policies were redirected? What if, instead of fighting a "War on Drugs," we would fund a "War on Poverty?" With all that money being wasted on an endless fight and ridiculous lies ( marijuana is funding terrorism/marijuana is equally as bad as methamphetamines ), why don't we instead fund community centers and job centers in order to bring up these poorer neighborhoods and give them opportunities to get out of the vicious cycles, where drugs is all they know.  Imagine what that money could do for poorer Americans!

Education is the key to our next generation thriving in an increasingly global economy, and the billions could really help the terrible situation of our public education system.

In addition to building up our less fortunate, we could provide top-of-the-line treatment centers for those who are addicted to hard drugs and wish to better themselves.

I will not get into why certain drugs are illegal, but I will leave with a few parting facts.  In 2002, about 450,000 people died from abuse of tobacco, and 150,000 were alcohol-related.  About 100,000 people actually died because of prescription drugs! Only 10,000 deaths occurred as results from cocaine and heroin overdoses, while there was none tallied because of marijuana!

Reggie Pulliam student/waiter

Baton Rouge