Pubdate: Fri, 25 Jul 2014 Source: Idaho Press-Tribune (ID) Copyright: 2014 The Idaho Press-Tribune Contact: http://www.idahopress.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/203 Author: Judy Smith ALL MIND-ALTERING DRUGS ARE MENACE Responding to Art Rigsby's letter of June 12 in which he criticized mine of May 20, where I stated marijuana shouldn't be called recreational nor legalized, he states there's been no definitive study proving marijuana is a gateway drug to others. Which also means you can't prove it isn't. If marijuana has any medical benefits, synthetic cannabinoids as a prescription should be sufficient, even though they may take longer to be effective. Smoking anything is bad for our health. The articles I quoted in my letter are from the IPT, which I believe is a reliable source. I in no way implied the marijuana cookie which contributed to the teen's death was purchased by him. This only proves that under-age kids are going to have access to marijuana if it's legal because older people will buy it for them. If marijuana is in the house, children will have access. If adults don't want to be protected from their own stupid choices, we must protect our children from their bad. influence and not legalize yet another harmful substance. You're 100 percent correct that alcohol causes countless problems. I've written a number of letters in the past on that subject. Prohibition shouldn't have been repealed. I believe it was because our politicians wanted to drink legally without being arrested. When people defend things detrimental to society, it's often times that they're defending their own addictions or because they're profiting from it monetarily. All mind-altering drugs are a menace to society, and usually used by someone who has no medical condition. One doesn't need studies to open our eyes and use common sense. I stand by what I stated in my letter. * Judy Smith, Huston - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom