Pubdate: Thu, 12 Mar 1998
Date: March 12, 1998
Source: Calgary Sun (CAN)
Author: Greg Handevidt

RE: THE EDITOR'S note on a recent letter: "Drug laws aren't oppressive".

Any law that restricts an adult's control over his or her own body is
oppressive if that law is not founded in any scientific reason and doesn't
prevent the physical or pecuniary harm of another person.

Marijuana laws cannot be justified with science, because all the research
on the effects of marijuana has returned results which contradict the
current prohibition. The prohibition of marijuana does not prevent the
physical harm of anyone other than the user, and the prohibition of
marijuana does not prevent the financial harm of anyone, unless you
consider the drop in profits for organized crime and loss of political
payoffs, which would occur with legalization.

The government must stop trying to protect us from ourselves. Marijuana
laws are oppressive. They take away the rights of adults to make free
choices, and they protect no one except criminals.

Greg Handevidt