Pubdate: Tue, 29 Apr 2003
Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB)
Copyright: 2003, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  http://www.fyiedmonton.com/htdocs/edmsun.shtml
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/135
Author: Kirk Muse
Note: Parenthetical remark by the Sun editor, headline by newshawk
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03/n599/a07.html

END THE CRIMINALIZATION OF MARIJUANA

RE: "MARIJUANA touted as 'gateway drug,'" April 28.

I agree that marijuana is sometimes a gateway to hard drugs like cocaine, 
meth or heroin.

However, it's because of the policy of marijuana criminalization, not the 
marijuana itself.

If coffee were criminalized, it would become a gateway to hard drugs 
because it would only be sold by criminals. Actually, it makes more sense 
to criminalize coffee because you can die from consuming too much coffee, 
but not marijuana - 65 cups of coffee per day is lethal.

Marijuana sellers often sell other drugs and offer free samples of the hard 
drugs to their marijuana customers. Thus the gateway effect. End the 
criminalization of marijuana and you close the gateway to hard drugs.

Kirk Muse,

Mesa, Arizona

(I dunno. People start drinking brewed coffee and then they're into
lattes and espressos - the hard stuff.) 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake