Today’s Marijuana Report: UW researchers Katherine Beckett and Steve Herbert find:

1) Despite recent increases in marijuana arrests, the price of marijuana has dropped; its average potency has increased; it has become more readily available; and marijuana use rates have often increased during the decade of increasing arrests. It thus appears that the goals of marijuana prohibition have not been achieved.

2) Marijuana prohibition may … negatively impact society as a whole.

3) There is no evidence that the decriminalization of marijuana by certain states or the deprioritization of marijuana enforcement in Seattle and other municipalities caused an increase in marijuana use or related problems.

"Spending billions of dollars arresting, prosecuting and jailing adults for marijuana use has now been demonstrated to be completely ineffective at achieving any of the government’s goals of marijuana prohibition," says Alison Holcomb, drug policy director of the ACLU of Washington, which sponsored the research. "Specifically, the price of marijuana has dropped and the average potency has increased," she says. "Meanwhile, it had become more readily available and use rates have often increased at the same time we have escalated enforcement." The whole report is in this handy .pdf.

Which Fringe Issue: Is more popular than conservative leaders?

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One Way to Fail a Drug Test: Vitamin Water.

Some Country for Old Men: Mexico gives out Viagra to guys over 60.