Time to separate the words "illegal" and "drugs"

I wrote a letter (below) to the Wall Street Journal today after it had the courage to print opposing viewpoints prominently in its "Weekend Journal" section today titled: "Drugs: To legalize or not."

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Steven Duke’s column on the necessity of legalizing drugs is spot-on – outside of its glaring omission of the primary reason for legalizing drugs: human beings have a natural right as rational animals to ingest anything they wish.

All of us who do or did drugs (as I did as a youth) know that you can acquire any drug any time, usually within minutes or hours of the desire. The only thing that ever changes is price, which, like all commodities, depends upon availability and demand. Each and every American knows somebody in his or her circle of friends who sells at least small amounts of drugs – whether that American may be cognizant of that fact or not.

But it is underground and it is lethal to many, as Mr. Duke says. Let’s bring it above-ground to the light of day and stop burying police officers and others below ground in a futile attempt at regulating human behavior.

I commend the WSJ for having the courage to bring this subject up in a major, public way. Now, let’s start talking rationally.