A recent story in the Asheville Citizen-Times recalled how a North Carolina sheriff went on a beer and pizza run for a local drug task force that was busy taking down a marijuana cultivation site. Of course the excuses came pouring out smoother than a frosty cold beer:

The team had spent the day searching the house and they were waiting for a truck to arrive so that they could pack up the marijuana growing equipment. They worked three more hours after dinner loading the truck in what the sheriff called “tropical” heat created by the lamps used in the pot growing operation...

None of the officers were in uniform that day and all were working in an undercover capacity, he said.

Ah, the cops were undercover and none were in uniforms. I guess that makes it okay for public officials to drink on the job. Or, for that matter, private citizens to go undercover as police officers and use marijuana...

Of course a reader's letter criticizing this stellar logic followed suit:

Regarding the story, “Clay sheriff makes beer run for drug officers,” (AC-T, March 3): So, the Clay County Sheriff buys and distributes alcoholic beverages to his drug warriors while on duty. What kind of message does that send to the kids out there?

While no human being has ever overdosed from pot and statistics show that alcohol is far more damaging in every regard than cannabis, we see police swilling beers while destroying a garden that produced plants created by God and called “good” by Him (see Genesis in the Bible).

Did those deputies drive after drinking alcohol on the job? I can hardly think of a more telling comparison than this: Beer-swilling cops congratulating each other for taking down a harmless pot garden meant for adult consumption; if that isn’t a case study in hypocrisy and insane policy, what is?

The Clay cops point out with their actions the idiocy of the current drug laws and the insanity of prohibition. If cops can use harmful drugs while on the job, why can’t a cancer or chronic pain patient use cannabis without fear of alcohol-fueled cops storming in their homes?

There is no excuse for promoting alcohol consumption on the job, especially when guns and driving are involved.

Rich Moore, Franklin