Should we be congratulating pot smokers and jailing drinkers? A new book will make the argument that marijuana is a far safer recreational substance than alcohol, and that our national policies should be adjusted to reflect that.

Chelsea Green Publishing in White River Junction plans a July 27 release for "Marijuana Is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?"

It promises to compare and contrast the relative harms of the two substances — both on personal health and community safety — and examine the laws and social practices that steer people toward alcohol. The authors offer a primer on the cannabis plant and its effects on the user, "debunk the government's most frequently cited marijuana myths," says the publisher.

Indeed, the book is designed not just to inform but to, you might say, light a fire under potential pro-marijuana activists. It lays out "talking points" that advocates of marijuana-law reform can use on friends, family, colleagues and elected officials. Its authors represent three organizations dedicated solely to marijuana policy reform: the Marijuana Policy Project, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation.

Those last two go by the acronyms NORML and SAFER.

We're waiting for a group to lay claim to the name DUDE.