More pot, less crime: drug laws at home and abroad.

• Author: Sullum, Jacob
• Position: Citings - Brief article

IN 2006 the Bush administration pressured Mexican President Vicente Fox into withdrawing his support from a bill that would have decriminalized drug possession. So far the Obama administration, which is headed by a man who once expressed sympathy for decriminalizing marijuana, has not objected to a similar bill that the Mexican legislature quietly passed this year. Fox's successor, Felipe Calderon, is expected to sign it.

Under the bill, people caught with small amounts of illegal drugs intended for "personal and immediate use"--up to five grams of marijuana, 500 milligrams of cocaine, 40 milligrams of methamphetamine, or 50 milligrams of heroin--will not be prosecuted. Instead they will be encouraged, but not required, to enter a treatment program.

Across the border, meanwhile, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has introduced the Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults Act, which would eliminate federal criminal penalties for the possession of up to three and a half ounces of marijuana or the nonprofit transfer of up to an ounce. Frank's possession limit is 20 times as generous as the...