Pubdate: Tue, 08 Nov 2005
Source: Collegiate Times (VA Tech,  Edu)
Copyright: 2005 Collegiate Times
Contact:  http://www.collegiatetimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/699
Author: Tiffany Parker, junior, psychology

ADULTS HAVE RIGHT TO PICK WHAT GOES IN THEIR BODIES

I was appalled by the ignorance in "U.S. not ready to puff the magic 
dragon" (CT, Nov. 4). First, comparing marijuana to heroin and other 
drugs is an unfair analogy. Heroin and other "hard drugs" are 
addictive, destroy lives and can also lead to death by overdose. Pot 
is none of these. Calling it a "gateway drug" is not completely true 
- -- other factors like the individual's environment, history, 
personality and even friends are also responsible for the "gateway 
effect" that many skeptics hide behind.

Just because marijuana is legal in Denver doesn't mean all hell will 
break loose, and the author should be ashamed for implying so. When a 
substance is made illegal, a black market is created for it. Look at 
prohibition: In the early 1900s, bootleggers supplied overpriced 
alcohol and contributed to a rise in organized crime. There were 
sides for and against prohibition, but our government wanted to give 
the people who drank responsibly a chance to do so without being 
punished. Why should marijuana be any different?

We should accept that not everyone agrees with smoking marijuana, but 
if those who choose to are responsible and not harming anyone, then 
what is the problem? We should legalize marijuana with limitations 
similar to alcohol (age requirement, consumption limit when driving, 
etc.). It should be sold in controlled locations -- eliminating the 
black market surrounding its current state.

There will be people who speculate marijuana's adverse effects, but 
let's face it: what someone puts in their own body is their business, 
and nobody else's, unless others are directly threatened (but that's 
what the limitations are for). We need to recognize everyone's 
personal freedoms and liberties, and not to tell people how to live 
their own lives just because we disagree.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth