Kevin J.Volpe

In the following viewpoint, Kevin J. Volpe asserts that people who smoke marijuana are far more likely to try highly addictive drugs such as cocaine. According to Volpe, marijuana is the mechanism by which people are introduced to hard drugs. At the time this viewpoint was written, Volpe was a research assistant at the National Defense Council Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia, and a student at Duke University.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What percentage of people who use marijuana by age 18 move on to use cocaine, as cited by Volpe?
2. According to the author, what are the detrimental health effects of marijuana use?
3. In Volpe’s opinion, what measures should the United States government take to combat drugs"

The war on drugs has unwittingly been shifted away from marijuana because...