Money really is the 'root of all evil,' isn't it? ...

From Wikipedia: "Money is the root of all evil" is misattributed to Jesus Christ (actually stated as "the love of money" by Paul the Apostle in his letter to Timothy the Apostle: 1 Timothy 6:10)

OK, let's say the love of money is the root of all evil is more accurate. But sometimes the evil begins with an attempt at survival or from getting caught up in events beyond one's control. Was stealing that loaf of bread evil or did it make Jean Valjean evil?

Yet we have created an absurd 'war on drugs' where we encourage the very thing we claim we want to stop. And it will never stop until we remove the huge financial incentives involved in dealing in illicit drugs. In my opinion, we can only begin to correct the damage we have dome by removing money's corrupting influence and reversing the 'war' approach to this social problem. An approach more along the lines of the way we deal with alcohol would be my suggestion.

Large pot grow found south of Flagstaff by LARRY HENDRICKS, Assistant City Editor, Monday, July 21, 2008

Authorities raided a marijuana growing operation about 25 miles south of Flagstaff last week and seized more than 4,000 plants with an estimated value of $1.5 million.

No arrests were made. According to information from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, officers from several local, state and federal agencies descended on the grow Wednesday. It was located in the Coconino National Forest at the bottom of Woods Canyon, which is about two miles south of Schnebly Hill Road and near the Fox Ranch Road exit.

Two hikers had stumbled onto the grow on July 7 and contacted the Metro anti-narcotics task force.

...

If we hadn't made war on drugs such big business with the potential of gigantic monetary rewards both to the criminal and the 'law' enforcement segments of our country (and other countries as well) the criminal element would not be destroying our national parks to grow marijuana (destroying the parks would be the sole province of the Bush gang instead). If we hadn't made war on drugs such a big business we might be able to focus on our fellow human beings who have addictions and begin to address these problems constructively. Warehousing addicts in prisons may provide jobs for low paid guards and much profit for private prison firms but it has a negative impact on our society. But, of course, the present day robber barons and religious fanatics like this medieval world they're creating.

[Note: this post was edited for spelling and sentence construction, not that it helps much.]