In case you were unaware, the stated purpose behind marijuana prohibition is to decrease marijuana use; or at least keep it the same. But the fact is that despite over 800,000 arrests a year for marijuana offenses in The United States, use continues to go up.

This morning officials from the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced the release of the latest results of the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Marijuana use is up again this year, while alcohol use declined.

“Once again, the federal government is trying to blame attempts to reform our marijuana laws for increases in use, completely ignoring the facts that arresting people for marijuana is obviously not stopping anyone from using it and that education, not arrest, is responsible for decreases in alcohol use over the past year,” said Morgan Fox, communications manager for the Marijuana Policy Project. “If we treat marijuana as a public health issue and stop wasting resources arresting adults for using something that is demonstrably safer than alcohol, we might be able to see the same effects. It is unfortunate that the Obama administration and ONDCP Director Gil Kerlikowske adamantly refuse to consider rational policy alternatives that don’t involve criminal penalties.”

“If we are realistic as a society about the risks of marijuana use compared to other drugs, and about the effectiveness of education and treatment instead of arrest and incarceration, we can do a much better job at decreasing abuse and addiction,“ Fox continued. “Mr. Kerlikowske has consistently stated that we cannot arrest our way out of this problem, so why do we keep trying?”

Sadly, most federal officials are well aware that marijuana prohibition does not work when it comes to its stated goal, and the only reason it continues is that many people are making good money from it. Powerful people. People with good connections and the pull to keep a plant illegal.

It’s a long and daunting road to climb, but freedom has always come against long odds.

- Joe Klare

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