Legalization would reduce teen pot smoking

Someone I used to know who grew up in Mississippi, and was a teenager when the state finally ended alcohol prohibition in 1966, said that during prohibition, "if you could reach the bar and lay your money down, you were old enough to drink." Since it was illegal to sell alcohol to anyone, bootleggers didn't care how old their customers were - and neither do drug dealers today. Once alcohol was legalized and regulated, bars and taverns stood to lose their licenses if they sold to minors. Suddenly, children couldn't buy alcohol anymore. The same thing would undoubtedly happen if pot were legal.

As long as marijuana is a black-market commodity, it will remain out of control. Legalizing and regulating cannabis is the key to curbing teen use.