Recently laws were passed in California and Arizona that legalized the use of medical marijuana. The federal government immediately responded with the threat that whatever voters may have decided, it would still use every power within its means to prosecute users of medical marijuana. So, the inevitable question is, why would the federal government do this? Shouldn’t voters have the right to decide what the law will be? Isn’t that kind of the point of a democracy?

There’s a simple reason why the federal government responded so violently to the medical marijuana laws. Put simply, it couldn’t afford to let them stand.

Drug cartels and the heavier drugs like cocaine and heroin get all of the publicity, but 75 percent of all drug-related arrests are for simple possession, usually for marijuana. Nationally, over 50 percent of all trials are for drug-related offenses.

The laws passed in California and Arizona are so dangerous to the War on Drugs because it is largely a war against marijuana use. Cocaine and heroin are glamorous and make the news, but marijuana is the reality of drug use in this country. Every year, 35 to 40 million Americans use marijuana. That’s close to one out of every five Americans. There are a lot of drug-crazed criminals running around, huh?

For 50 years, there has been a campaign to demonize marijuana, but it has met with little success. Lies can only be pushed so far. Marijuana does not cause physical addiction, nor does it have any permanent effect on memory or intelligence. It’s true it’s not the best thing you can do for your lungs, but neither is smoking tobacco, which kills 400,000 Americans a year. Tobacco is legal.

The only argument drug warriors have been able to produce against marijuana is that it is a “gateway” drug. It would be a compliment to call this argument asinine. Most people have taken a drink before trying marijuana. Why isn’t alcohol demonized as a “gateway” to marijuana use and all of the perils that lie beyond? Furthermore, alcohol kills thousands every year, and is often the cause of violence and domestic abuse. This is not a problem with marijuana.

Whatever your attitude may be toward marijuana, it should be clear by now that the War on Drugs is a smoke and mirrors game. The American people are the suckers, and the cost is very high. The federal government cannot allow the legalization of medical marijuana because it might cause its whole house of cards to fall. People might realize it is the War on Drugs, not drugs themselves, that is ruining our country.

Approximately 58 percent of all federal prisoners are serving time for drug-related offenses. Imprisoning the measly 3 percent of drug offenders who actually get caught costs the country an excess of $100 billion a year. Remember, most of this money is to lock up users of marijuana.

The United States has the highest percentage of its population in prison of almost any country in the world. At this rate, our country will soon be divided into two classes, free citizens and inmates. And the quickest way to create a real criminal is to send him or her to prison. A pot smoker who goes to jail for five years will emerge with all of the skills of a professional criminal. He will also have lots of new friends.

Of course, most of those in prison for drug offenses are African-Americans. Blacks and whites participate equally in the drug trade, but over 70 percent of those serving time for drug-related offenses are black. Beyond this obvious racism, the War on Drugs gives the police an excuse to send heavily armed thugs into the inner cities to engage in random searches and violence.

The reason why intelligent people from both the left and right have spoken out against the War on Drugs is that it is turning our country into a police state. Drug laws let the police search anyone for any reason. They let the police seize property without due process. The Drug War has made a mockery of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments. Furthermore, the War on Drugs has inflated the price of drugs so much that dealers can buy heavy weaponry, which provides an excuse for the police to arm themselves to the teeth.

The War on Drugs is a war against the American people. There’s a reason why liberals and conservatives alike have called for an end to the drug war. America is faced with a simple choice. We can continue this war. We can build more prisons, hire more cops, and turn our country into a Nazi shopping mall. Or, we can just say no. Come on, take a stand. Just say no to the War on Drugs. Ever see your brain with a bullet through it?

Brian Johnson is a junior in English and philosophy from Amarillo, Texas.