The Biennial of the Americas Festival in Denver closed with a symposium designed to goose the interest of delegates last Thursday evening called “Legalization: The Next phase in the War on Drugs?” Gov. John Hickenlooper was joined by former Chilean President Ricardo Lagos; Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse; and moderator Tina Brown, former editor at Vanity Fair and The New Yorker. Arguing in favor of legalization was Ethan Nadelmann, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, and speaking against was Kevin Sabet of Smart Approaches to Marijuana.

Nadelmann was a ball-of-fire proselytizer for relaxed national drug policies aimed at rejecting what he termed the “failed prohibitionist policy of the past 60 years.” He congratulated Colorado for having taken the lead by legalizing marijuana. “You’ve made it possible for our politicians to come out of the closet,” he said. “The venal forces of capitalism are now at work. This is a revolution that will be hard to reverse.” Taking a swipe at the United States and its habit of jailing non-fiolent drug offenders, Nadelmann complimented the European Union for deciding to treat addiction as a health issue rather than a criminal habit.

Sabet, who has advised the last three presidents on drug policy, pointed out that the marijuana of the ’60s has just 2-3 percent active THC, compared to as much as 10 times that amount in today’s weed. He warned against a growing marijuana industry that is likely to follow the same path worn by Big Tobacco. “The industry targeted the young, the poor, the black and the stupid,” he warned. While agreeing the War on Drugs has failed miserably, he objected to the “false dichotomy of legalization or prohibition.” Although the audience was clearly with Nadelmann, Sabet suggested freezing any further policy experimentation until a thorough clinical and laboratory analysis can be completed.

Brown launched the panel discussion with a question to Lagos, who revealed the cultural differences that prevail in the Americas. From a continent where politicians frequently speak for two and three uninterrupted hours, Lagos pulled out his cue cards and launched into an argument framed around the statement, “Just say maybe!” He pointed to five decades of failure battling drugs and the emergence of a multi-billion dollar narco-trafficking industry that controls the prices paid to producers as well as those charged to users.

Hickenlooper reported that Colorado had mostly learned “what not to do,” although he acknowledged there was no observable “widespread social decay, at least not yet.” In terms of surprises, he added, “Regulated producers and retailers have proven a responsible industry. They show up wearing suits and ties. Perhaps our only surprise has been edibles.”

Volkow criticized public policy for “stigmatizing users, when drugs provide a way out of despair for many Americans. If you live with no hope, no job, no sense of purpose, then drugs offer an escape.” She also raised concerns about rewiring brain development in teens but acknowledged that abuse, poverty and stress produce similarly undesirable results. Regular use of marijuana has been found to inhibit the endogenous and natural production of cannabinoids in the brain. For 7-16 percent of users, this leads to dependence and addiction to THC. Nonetheless, she expressed support for relaxing current policies. Brown mentioned visiting a retail shop earlier in the day and marveled at how attractive the products looked. “If I hadn’t been scheduled for this symposium tonight, it would have been tempting,” she said to laughter.

Lagos compared Colorado’s retail approach with Uruguay, where the government operates state stores much as some states still do the U. S. “How do we defeat the black markets?” he asked. “Drugs are so expensive that users often become micro-dealers, who then protect the real dealers. The cartels merely provide transportation.” He pointed out that major syndicates are better armed and better organized than local police. “This is difficult to address on a national level. It will require a global response,” he said. Without pointing a finger directly at his hosts, Lagos made it clear that drugs flow towards money and guns, which cartels then move back into Latin America. Just say maybe, indeed. Meanwhile, it appears the repeal of criminalization may be under way. Next up, according to Hickenlooper, will be the ability to provide banking services. “A billion-dollar-a-year cash business is an invitation for corruption and fraud,” he lamented.

– Miller Hudson is a public affairs consultant and a former state legislator. He can be reached at mnhwriter@msn.com

Photo by Jennifer Goodland