Brad Pitt calls U.S. drug policy a charade

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13 (UPI) -- Actor Brad Pitt, speaking at a Los Angeles screening of a drug documentary he executive produced, called the U.S. drug war a "charade."

Pitt flew in from Europe to help promote director Eugene Jarecki's "The House I Live In," a film about U.S. drug policy.

"My drug days have long since passed," Pitt said at the Friday screening, "But I could probably land in any American city and within 24 hours find whatever you want. But we still support this charade called the drug war. We spent a trillion dollars over 40 years and a lot of people have lost their lives over it."

Jarecki compared the ban on drugs to Prohibition, The Hollywood Reporter said.

"Look at alcohol," Jarecki said. "After Prohibition we regrouped and said it was a bad idea what we're doing. Now we have a system where alcohol is illegal for children; the government profits off it; grown-ups can use it responsibly, which means if I go out in my car and kill someone it's manslaughter. But if I've been drinking, it's an aggravating prosecutorial factor. So why is it that drugs -- which are less damaging to public health than alcohol -- why is it we treat them more severely?"

"The subject has bugged me for a long time," Pitt said. "It's a backward strategy. It makes no sense and we keep going on the path like we're winning when it perpetuates more drugs being used."