Adriel Hampton is running for U.S. Congress in the 2009 special election for California’s 10th District.
I‰m asking for concerned citizens of every stripe to help me devise a strong anti-Drug War policy statement for my Congressional campaign. I‰ve given it a brief jumping off point over at MixedInk, a collaborative writing technology that I‰d like to see used more in government.
‹When elected to Congress, I will immediately move to legalize and regulate the sale of marijuana. Tacit legalization through state-by-state decriminalization and ‹medical cannabisŠ (as tested in California since 1996) has proven a disastrous failure. Our prisons are dangerous and overcrowded, non-violent criminals who could easily be rehabilitated languish under harsh minimum sentences, and Mexican cartels and urban gangsters flourish. Prohibition of marijuana, like alcohol before it, has proved foolish and far too costly. Legalization would not only reduce drug-related violence, it would create funds for increased mental health funding and counseling for those who find themselves dependent on the drug.Š