Pubdate: Wed, 16 Aug 2000 Source: Victoria Times Colonist (CN BC) Contact: Wed, 16 Aug 2000 Author: Ken Lane, Canadian Communities Against Substance Abuse Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1143/a10.htm http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1136/a09.htm http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1136/a08.htm MARIJUANA LETTERS TAKE THE WRONG PATH Three Aug 8. letters deal with the question of legalizing marijuana: * David Ovans ("Defending Interests") suggests it's a conspiracy of "the establishment," citing big corporate and public sector interests as the driving forces behind marijuana laws. Marijuana is illegal due to its negative impact. The American Psychiatric Association lists a number of harmful mental effects caused by marijuana, such as impaired judgment, sensation of slowed time, impaired motor co-ordination, memory deficit, delirium, delusions, disorientation, hallucinations, panic attacks, and paranoia. Symptoms of mania, depression and schizophrenia are worsened. * Matthew Elrod ("Cannabis Issues") quotes the judges in Ontario as saying that marijuana is not addictive. Wrong. It is a physically addictive substance, so those comments are proof positive that experts in law are no experts in science. Light marijuana users may recover in six months to a year. Heavy users have taken as long as three years to clean the fat-soluble drugs from their systems, although 100 per cent recovery is often not possible. * Chuck Beyer suggests that Canadian drug laws should be decided by a majority vote ("A Clear Majority"). To quote from American child and adolescent neuro-psychiatrist Dr. Robert C Gilkeson: "The toxic properties of chemical molecules and their cellular damage are not a matter of opinion or debate ... We cannot vote for or against the `toxicity' of a drug. How much a drug impairs cell structure or chemical function is neither subject to nor governed by congressional committee, public referendum, or federal constitution. ... Chemically, marijuana is a far more dangerous drug than most of the scientifically ignorant media and North American consumer have been duped into believing." Ken Lane, founding member, Canadian Communities Against Substance Abuse, Victoria - --- MAP posted-by: Eric Ernst