BRADLEY R. GITZ writes a weekly column for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and on July 25, 2002, his thoughts turned to drug legalization. Observing that Great Britain and Canada are considering decriminalizing marijuana, Gitz applauded and launched into an argument for legalizing mary jane here in the States. Gitz, a take-no-prisoners libertarian would like to go a good way further, too, saying, “Even those in favor of the decriminalization of marijuana tend to preface their arguments with the assertion that so-called hard drugs should remain forbidden. But on what logical basis? That they are ‘bad’ for us?”

It wasn’t the first time Gitz shilled for reefer. In January, he wrote that drugs are “more often than not, and when used in moderation, no more harmful than a bottle of Miller Lite.” And in November 1999, he helpfully reported that “many responsible citizens still use [marijuana] regularly . . .”