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- From: zane@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Sameer Parekh)
- Newsgroups: alt.drugs,talk.politics.drugs
- Subject: Two anti-legalization pamphlets
- Message-ID: <ByD5F7.F91@ddsw1.mcs.com>
- Date: Fri, 27 Nov 1992 07:13:54 GMT
- Organization: ddsw1.MCS.COM Contributor, Chicago, IL
- Lines: 1134
-
-
- ----
- On Thu Nov 26 00:51:36 1992 I wrote:
-
- My high school's advisor of Sigma Alpha Delta (Students Against
- Drinking/Drugs-- the local misinformation joint) recently asked me to
- critique two pamphlets she had received. Today I began work, but I didn't
- get to the second one. (I am not finished with the first one yet.)
- If you'd like to send me suggestions about how to discuss the points
- mentioned, or how to improve what I have said, please do so. This advisor is
- of the "compassionate" temperament. When I was speaking to her today I
- emphasized that I want legalization not because I or others want to smoke
- pot, but I want it because it would make drug use less dangerous. (That was
- what she picked up-- I said more, but she didn't pick up onthe rest of what
- I said..)
- Note that she told me today, *sort of* that she is infavor of
- alcohol prohibition. I told her how under alcohol prohibition and limited
- tobacco availability the situation was worse, and I don't know if I got that
- point across. Remember that when you make your comments. Someone else
- commented though, that legalizing drugs is differeing from ending the
- prohibition of alcohol because alcohol was in widespread usage, while most
- drugs right now have been illegal for a long time and there isn't public
- support for legalization. I couldn't think of anything to say to that-- any
- ideas?
- Thanks.
- --------------
- Well, I finished everything that I want to say-- here it is. Send me
- comments..
-
- --
- Sameer_Parekh zane@ddsw1.MCS.COM zane@infopls.chi.il.us
- PFA related mail to pfa@ddsw1.MCS.COM | Specialization is for insects
- Anonymous mail to ap.2363@cupid.sai.com | - Robert A. Heinlein
- Fri Nov 27 00:45:18 1992 US Debt: $4,148,371,135,209 Per capita: $16,215
-
- After reading this piece, I was *amazed* at the lengths to which
- the Prohibitionists continue to lie. I really shouldn't be amazed, but I
- was. The pieces you gave me provided absolutely *no* references so that
- I may check out their claims to see how valid they were. Because they
- didn't tell me exactly which studies they were describing, I am unable
- to look at the exact study, and see if the study was done impartially.
- When I say things, I *will* provide references, so that if you
- doubt anything that I say, you can check it for yourself and not that
- what I am saying is true. Some things I will say are merely guesses, but
- I will clearly mark that which I am guessing and the solid facts. This
- will be in sharp contrast the the materials you gave me. My facts will
- have evidence to back them up.
- With regard the PRIDE surveys, and having had the "pleasure" of
- taking one of these, I must say that they are not very good. I don't
- have the survey at hand, so that I may criticize it in full (If you have
- a copy of one, I would appreciate it if you could show it to me) but I
- remember a few things. The survey has one classification "LSD, PCP, and
- other hallucinogens." This classification is misleading, because LSD and
- PCP are incredibly different drugs. LSD is a psychedelic
- (mind-manifesting) drug, while PCP is merely a disassociative
- anesthetic. The term "hallucinogens" is very vague, as any drug, taken
- to huge dosages, can produce hallucinations. The difference between
- "hallucinations" produced by psychedelic drugs and those produced by
- large doses of alcohol or opiates, is that the alcohol/opiate
- hallucinations are because the user's body is dying. The hallucinations
- from psychedelic drugs (LSD, DMT, etc.) are a direct result of the
- drug's interactions with the brain's neurotransmitters.
- The survey also lists a "continuum" of drug experiences. I don't
- remember the exact details, but the marijuana pamphlet you gave me
- mentioned the "very high, bombed, or stoned" characterization. Drugs are
- different, and a cocaine experience cannot be classified along the same
- continuum as a psychedelic experience. Would Terrence McKenna's DMT
- flash in the Amazon in which he used the I Ching to develop a fractal
- map of novelty conservation in the world count as "very high, bombed, or
- stoned," or would it count as a "buzz"? Where would the Massachussets
- program which reduced the recidivism of inmates to a number near 3% lie?
- (This program involved the legal administration of psilocybin or LSD, I
- forget which, to Massachussets prison inmates by Dr. Timothy Leary so
- that they may overcome their predisposition to violence. This is
- documented in Leary's autobiography, _Flashbacks_, and _Storming Heaven
- : LSD and the American Dream_ by Jay Stevens.)
- I don't have an answer to every claim that pamphlet about
- marijuana makes about marijuana. I am not all-encompassing. Note the
- following quote from DEA Administrative Law Judge Francis L. Young:
- marijuana is "one of the safest therapeutically active substances known
- to man."
- I think that is about it for the preliminary comments. I am very
- glad that you have given me this opportunity to tell you about my point
- of view.
- (Please excuse any typographical errors, I have an AP Lit.
- presentation to write, an AP Lit. paper to write, AP Physics C homework,
- AP Latin homework, and 2 college applications to finish.. I don't have
- time to proofread.)
-
- In a recent article, the Prohibitionists said:
- >MARIJUANA
- >An Environmental Pollutant
- >
- >by Marsha Keith Schuchard, Ph.D.
- >
- >"If we are concerned about the external pollutants that threaten our
- >environment, we should be equally concerned about internal pollutants--
- >like marijuana products. For sheer survival, we must defend ourselves
- >against both kinds of pollution. I believe that we need to keep all our
- >sense constantly at their maximum keenness if we are to take full
- >advantage of our short participation in the miracle of life."
- > - Jacques Ives Cousteau
- >
- >CURBING THE DRUG EPIDEMIC
- >
- >The United States entered the 1990's with real hope of reversing the
- >epidemic spread of illicit drug use. After reaching a peak in 1979,
- >teenage use of marijuana has steadily declined, until a majority of high
- >school seniors report that they have *never* tried the drug. However, as
- Surveys are inaccurate. As I said above, the PRIDE surveys have
- a great deal of ambiguities and misconceptions. Surveys do not measure
- much more than the *visibility* of drug use. While visibility of
- marijuana use in 1979 was high, use was probably no different. President
- Carter was in favor of decriminalization, saying that, "Penalites
- against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an
- individual than the use of the drug itself." (October 2, 1977: Source:
- _PiHKAL: A Chemical Love Story_, by Dr. Alexander T. Shulgin)
-
- >the multi-billion dollar consumer market shrinks, drug marketeers are
- >accelerating their efforts to portray marijuana as a harmless,
- >ecologically-sound "herb," in order to appeal to youthful concerns about
- >the environment. This new strategy is also utilized by lobbyists for
- >marijuana legislation, who receive much attention in the popular media.
- Just one simple comment: The only lobbyists for marijuana
- legislation *I* notice in the popular media are the ones in favor of
- stricter regulations, drivers license suspensions, and other such
- tryannical marijuana legislation.
-
- >Thus, it is important for parents, educators, youth, and concerned
- >citizens to educate themselves about the documented health hazards of
- >marijuana-- which is now classified as an environmental pollutant and
- >biological toxin.
- Just because it is classified as something doesn't mean it is.
- Marijuana is "classified" under the Controlled Substances Act under
- Schedule I: "no medical use", but marijuana is useful as an
- anti-convulsant, an analgesic, and muscle relaxant. It has been used for
- chronic bronchitis, tetanus, asthma, glaucoma, postpartum psychosis,
- appetite stimulation, migraine headaches, and opiate withdrawal.
- (Source: _Marihuana Reconsidered_ by Dr. Lester Grinspoon, M.D., 1978.)
-
- >
- >CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE CRUDE DRUG
- >
- >While marijuana marketeers promote the drug as a "natural organic
- >product," scientists and physicians increasingly documents its chemical
- >complexity and biological hazards. The crude drug marijauan is made from
- >the dried leaves and flowering tops of the _Cannabis sativa_ plant, and
- >it contains over 400 chemicals which are transformed into 2,000
- >compounds when burned and smoked. The drug contains 70 chemical
- True, but misleading. The 31 August 1990 issue of the magazine
- Science notes that of the over 800 volatile chemical present in roasted
- coffee, only 21 have actually been tested on animals, and 16 of these
- cause cancer in rodents. Yet coffee remains legal and is generally
- considered fairly safe. (Source: "Too Many Rodent Carcinogens:
- Mitogenesis Increases Mutagenesis", Bruce N. Ames and Lois Swirsky.
- _Science_. Vole 249, 31 August 1990, p. 971.)
-
- >cannabinoids, which are highly fat soluble and retained in fatty
- >membranes for weeks. (Alcohol, which is also a drug, is water-soluble
- >and metabolizes rapidly out of the body.) Like the banned pesticide DDT,
- >which is also fat-soluble, cannabinoids accumulate in the body with
- >repeated use. Delta-9-tetrahydracannabinol (THC) is the most potent
- This is also true but misleading. Cannabinoids are fat soluble
- as are innumerable nutrients and, yes, some poisons like DDT. For
- example, the essential nutrient, Vitamin A, is fat soluble. Thus, what
- one could do, is say, "Like the essential Vitamin A, cannabinoids
- accumulate in the body with repeated use." Sounds a bit different
- doesn't it? (Source: _Marijuana and Health_, Institute of Medicine,
- National Academy of Sciences, 1982. & "The A Team" in _Scientific
- American_, VOl 264, No. 2, Feb. 1991, p. 16.)
-
- >psychoactive or mind-altering chemical, but other cannabinoids also
- >affect the brain. The chemical half-life of THC is seven days, and it
- >can be traced to urine 14 days after smoking a single "joint."
- >
- >INCREASING POTENCY
- >
- >In the early 1960's most American marijuana contained 0.5 ot 1.0% THC
- >and gained a popular reputation as a "harmless weed." Improved plant
- >genetics and cultivation techniques led to increasing potency. In the
- >1990's, confiscated samples average 7% THC, with California-produces
- >Sinsemilla rising to 16% and hashish oil to 28% THC. High potency
- >marijuana can cause serious psyhiatric and physical problems--it is not
- >a "soft" drug. PRIDE surveys reveal that 62% of 12th-grade marijuana
- >users report getting "very high, bombed, or stoned" on the drug (versus
- >28% of beer drinkers and 73% of cocaine users).
- See my earlier comments about using one standard for rating
- experiences for different drugs.
-
- >
- >PREVALENCE OF USAGE
- >
- >Marijuana smoking is generally initiated during adolescence, with 14-15
- >the predominant age, though some children begin usage in primary school.
- >There are significant racial and ethnic differences in usage, with
- >Whites and Native American Indians having the highest rates, followed by
- >Hispanics, Blacks, and Orientals. PRIDE surveys reveal that among high
- >school seniors, 32% of White [sic] males user marijuana (versus 22% black
- >males), [All capitalization in here is sic] and that 26% white femals
- >use (versus 12% black females). Males tend to be heavier users, with
- >5.1% White and 2.8% Black males using daily. Consumption tends to be
- >highest among White children of highly-educated, affluent suburbanites
- >and in states with more permissive laws.
- >
- >FREQUENCY OF USAGE
- >
- >Despite earlier claims that marijuana is not addictive, the medical
- >consensus is now clear that it is a dependence-producing drug. Chronic
- >users develop tolerance (need increasing doses to get "high"),
- In fact, marijuana use does not create a tolerance, but a
- sensitization. No one has found "evidence of pharmacological tolerance
- in human beings at recreational doses; instead, it still seems that
- experienced users are more sensitive to the desired effects at lower
- doses." (Source: _Marihuana Reconsidered_, ibid. p. 381)
-
- >experience withdrawal symptoms (irritability, restlessness, sweating,
- >decreased appetite), and have difficulty stopping use. Because of the
- Dependency on marijuana is *highly* dependent on the individual.
- Terrence McKenna, who used to smoke *many* joints per day, had no
- trouble quitting his use of marijuana. In a study of Jamaican heavy
- users, where marijuana use is socially acceptable, many users do not
- become greatly upset when their supply is cut off, usually for economic
- reasons. E.g. "When you don't have money, you don't buy it." (Source:
- _Ganja in Jamaica_, by Vera Rubins and Lambros Comitas, 1976, p. 137.)
-
- >drug's long half-life and slow elimination from the body, withdrawal is
- >not as abrupt or dramatic as withdrawal from alcohol or heroin (which
- >are rapidly metabolized out of the body). Unlike the next-morning
- >"hangover" from overuse of alcohol, the abstinence syndrome from
- >marijuana occurs more subtly two to three days later, as THC is slowly
- >excreted from the system. Craving for the marijuana "high" and
- >"post-high" depression contributes to the addiction process.
- >
- >PRIDE surveys reveal that 10% of teenage marijuana smokers use daily and
- >21% smoke three times a week or more; by contrast, 3% of beer drinkers
- >use daily and 11% use three time a week or more. NIDA surveys reveal
- >that 19% of Native American male users, 13% of White male users, and 9%
- >of Black male users consume marijuana daily. In certain Jamaican
- >villages, where usage is socially acceptable, 50% of smokers are daily,
- >heavy consumers. Epidemiological studies suggest that marijuana is three
- >to seven times more addictive than alcohol, and that compulsive daily
- >use escalates with rising potency, easier availability, and social
- >acceptability.
- >
- >ROLE AS GATEWAY DRUG
- >
- >Though many casual "experimenters" do not move beyond marijuana, over
- >1/3 of young smokers do "progress" to other illicit drugs. Conversely,
- >if youngsters do *not* smoke marijuana, the odds are 90 to one that they
- >will *never* try any other drug. PRIDE surveys show that 36% of high
- >school marijuana users try stimulants, 28% try hallucinogens, and 21%
- >try cocaine. Among young adults, 75% of frequent marijuana users also
- >try cocaine. The main predictor of Crack cocaine use is previous
- >marijuana use. Marijuana users also tend to be heavy consumers of
- >alcohol and tobacco.
- >
- A real world example of what can happen when marijuana is
- readily available is Holland. The Dutch effectively decriminalized
- marijuana in the 1970s. Since then, heroin and cocaine use have declined
- substantially. Actual studies show that most hard drug "addicts" start
- with alcohol and tobacco. (Source: "A Comparison of Marijuana Users and
- Non-users" by Norman Zinberg and Andrew Weil (1971). "The Economics of
- Legalizing Drugs" by Richard J. Dennis, _The Atlantic Monthly_, Vol 266,
- No. 5, Nov 1990 p. 130.) It is important to note that a correlation
- does not mean causality. The person's marijuana use probably did not
- *cause* them to try cocaine. The marijuana user who tries cocaine is
- probably already predisposed to illegal drug use, and if marijuana were
- unavailable, would use more often the more dangerous cocaine.
-
- >EFFECTS ON BRAIN
- >
- >In 1990 scientists located natural receptors for cannabinoids in the
- >human brain. The existence of these receptors means that marijuana acts
- >for like heroin or morphine, which also have natural receptors, than
- >like alcohol, which does not have receptors. The opiates and
- >cannabinoids lock onto and stimulates [sic] their special receptor
- >molecules. The high concentration of cannabinoid receptors in the
- This means something only to neurobiologists. It does not mean
- that the effects of marijuana are in any way similar to opiates, nor
- does it mean that the effects of marijuana and opiates are in some way
- "more severe" than alcohol just because they have natural receptors.
- Actually, the fact that alcohol does *not* have natural receptors *may*
- mean that it more dangerous than marijuana and opiates, because it
- affects the ENTIRE brain, and not just certain portions, but this is
- just postulation.
-
- >cerebellum (which controls motor coordination), the forebrain (which
- >controls cognition and higher mental function), and the hippocampus
- >(which links to the limbic system that controls emotion) explains many
- >of the behavioral and mental effects of the drug-- _i.e._, limpness of
- >limbs, slowness of walk, fragmentation of thought, loosening of
- >associations, impaired short term memory, decreased analytic capaciy.
- >Cannabinoid receptors of the stratium, which is associated with reward
- >mechanisms in the brain, stimulate sensations of relaxation,
- >painlessness and euphoria which lead to marijuana addiction in users
- >who are biologically susceptible to the drug. Vulnerability to marijuana
- >addiction may arise from individual differences in the density and
- >distribution of THC receptors in the brain. The scarcity of receptors in
- >the lower brainstem areas that control cardiovascular and respiratory
- >function may explain the rarity [sic] of death by marijuana overdose.
- Not rarity. Absence. No one has *ever* died of a marijuana
- overdose. Although the LD50/ED50 ratio (the ratio of lethal dosage to
- intoxicating dosage) for alcohol varies from 4 to 1 and 10 to 1, in
- order to die you would have to consume 40,000 times as much marijuana as
- is needed to get "stoned." (Source: _Marihuana Reconsidered_, ibid. p.
- 227.)
-
- >
- >PROVOKER OF MENTAL ILLNESS
- >
- >New computer imaging techniques, such as Positron Emission Tomography
- >(PET), reveal the dramatic and persistent changes in brain blood flow
- >and glucose metabolism cause by marijuana intoxication and chronic
- >usage. These cerebral disturbances provoke not only the dreamy and
- >fantasy states sough by users, but also delusional thinking, paranoia,
- >panic reaction, and acute psychosis. According to Swedish researchers,
- >the risk of developing schizophrenia for "high consumers" (used
- >marijuana 50 or more times) was six-fold greater than those who never
- >used the drug. Marijuana is not only a provoker of latent schizophrenia,
- Again, a correlation does not imply causality. In this case, it
- is may be likely that a person likely to use marijuana is more likely to
- have a mental disorder. Thus people who use marijuana may be more likely
- to be schizophrenic merely because marijuana attracts schizophrenic
- users. Although my reasoning for the results is postulation, there is
- nothing said here which would mandate a causal relationship.
-
- >but also an independent risk factor for development of the disease.
- >Milder and vaguer forms of mental impairment and disorientation
- >contribute to the "burn-out" syndrome in heavy users--emotional
- >flatness, "spacey" gaps in thinking, slowed and slurred speech.
- >Unfortunately, teenage slang descriptions of abusers as "air heads,"
- >"space cadets," "vet outs," and "wasters" seem to accurately portray
- >these brain changes.
- >
- >CAUSES CANCER IN YOUNG USERS
- >
- >Though it took 70 years to collect evidence of the connection of lung
- >cancer with tobacco smoking, the verdict on marijuana as a potent
- >carcinogen is coming in after 25 years of the American drug epidemic.
- >Sadly, the evidence is coming from young patients, who are stricken with
- >cancers at unusually early ages. the [sic] higher level of carcinogens
- >in marijuana smoke and the method of deep inhalation and breath-holding
- >by users means that smoking on "joint" equals five cigarettes, in terms
- >of respiratory damage. In 1986 physicians began reporting cases of
- Smoked marijuana *does* contain more carcinogens that tobacco,
- but marijuana does not need to be smoked. "Brownie Mary", an 80-year old
- woman, was arrested for giving marijuana brownies to AIDS patients.
- (Marijuana is useful for treating the side effects of AIDS medication.)
- Many people do not do this now because of the prohibitive cost. Under a
- legal system, marijuana would be cheap enough to make brownies from.
- Totally non-carcinogenic cannabis drinks such as "bhang" would also be
- economical under a legal system. Additionally, "water-bongs" and related
- marijuana-smoking paraphenalia reduce the number of carcinogens in
- marijuana smoke, but because of drug paraphenalia laws, they are
- difficult to obtain.
- Marijuana additionally, unlike tobacco, dilates the bronchial
- passages, making it a useful treatment for asthma and chronic
- bronchitis. This bronchiodilation promotes the self-cleaning of the
- lungs. And, because tobacco is so greatly addictive, a heavy tobacco
- smoker consumes much more tobacco than a heavy marijuana smoker.
- (Source: _Working Men and Ganja: Marijuana Use in Rural Jamaica_ by M.C.
- Dreher, Institute for the Study of Human Issues, 1982, ISBN
- 0-89727-025-8. _Marijuana and Health_, ibid.)
-
- >marijuana-ralted cancer of the lung, upper respiratory tract, head,
- >neck, and tongue in "shockingly" young patients (ages 17 to 39), versus
- >ages 60 to 70 in tobacco smokers). [sic] the [sic] highly carcinogenic
- >particulates deposited on the tongue are particularly dangerous, for
- >tongue cancer is biologically more aggresive in young patients. Cancer
- >deaths from marijuana-smoking are now documented.
- I would *really* like to see the source to this one. Everything
- I have read has stated that there are no cancer deaths attributed to
- marijuana smoking. Please show me the source, if you can get it.
-
- >
- >LINKED TO CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIA
- >
- >For two decades, researchers have worried that marijuana causes
- >abnormalities in DNA and chromosome formation that are potentially
- >carcinogenic. In 1989 a consortium of children's cancer hospitals
- >reported that maternal use of marijuana just before and during pregnancy
- >raises the risk ten-fold that the child will develop Acute
- >Nonlymphoblastic Leukemia (ANLL). The researchers were *not* looking for
- >marijauan effects but rather for environmental pollutants such as
- >ionizing radiation, pesticides, solvent and petroleum products. The
- >cellular and chromosomal abnormalities in the marijuana-exposed children
- >were similar to those in Down's Syndrome resulting from radiation.
- >
- >IMPAIRS REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
- >
- >In *females*, marijuana chemicals are absorbed into reproductive organs,
- >where they may cause some atrophy of tissues and interference with
- >regular menstrual cycles. Changes in brain signals can lead to impaired
- >ovluation and decreased fertility. In pregnant women, the cannabinioids
- >cross the placenta and are periodically released and recirculated
- >through the system, so that the fetus may be exposed for 30 days to the
- >chemicals in a single "joint." Marijuana exposure produces abnormalities
- >similar to the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome but at five times the rate of
- >alcohol. The infants tend to be smaller and shorter, and they display
- >symptoms of drug withdrawal (tremors, startling, irritability) similar
- >to opiate withdrawal but milder in degree. Delated maturation of the
- >visual system sometimes results in poor habituation to stimuli, lack of
- >optical blink, and strabismus (crossed-eyes). Abnormalities in EEG sleep
- >patterns, which reveal neurological maturation and organization, persist
- >until age three. Cognitive defects in memory and verbal skills can be
- >measured at age four.
- >
- >In *males*, marijauan smoking causes a drop in testosterone production,
- R.C. Kolodny and associates published an article about a
- testosterone reduction due to marijuana use in 1974. His results have
- not been replicated in other studies. Testosterone levels vary widely
- from day to day, and from hour to hour. It takes a *very* large decline
- to affect sexual performance. (_Marihuana Reconsidered_, ibid. p. 388).
-
- >by as much as 44%. In adolescent males, heavy use increases the risk of
- >uneven or abnormal sexual development. In some teenage "potheads," a
- >stereotypical physique is observed--narrow shoulder; lack of muscle
- >development in arms, chest, and buttocks; slight feminization of voice,
- >beard growth, or genital developments; facial pallor and heavy-lidded,
- >reddened eyes. The "amotivational syndrome" (characterized by apathy,
- >lethargy, and goal-lessness) may be cause be deficiencies of sex and
- The "amotivational syndrome" varies widely from user to user. In
- Jamaican communities, they have found that ganja use actually
- *motivates* the Jamaicans to work hard. "The major reason given for
- _ganja_ use is the perceived stimulus to energy and work motivation. .
- .'I get a strong sensation toward my work.' . . . Non-smokers have
- attested to increased work drive among regular smokers." (Source: _Ganja
- in Jamaica_, ibid. p. 131.)
- With regard to anecdotal evidence, I conducted a survey on the
- Usenet electronic bulletin board alt.drugs with regard to marijuana use
- and grades. The results of that survey are in _The Free Journal_ Volume
- II, Issue 2. The people surveyed were generally either honors students,
- students attending highly competitive schools, or people with
- highly-skilled jobs, usually in the real of computers. If you would like
- to see the complete sample, please tell me. I will have to retrieve it
- from the archive at the University of Washington.
-
- From the article:
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
- Note: This survey was done informally. No formal conclusions
- should be made from this survey. All results are merely anecdotal.
-
- Thirty-seven regular marijuana users were surveyed, in addition
- to nine ex-users. I asked them their average daily dosage of marijuana,
- their self-opinion of their intelligence, their "success" in the
- intellectual field, and what other mind-altering drugs they use.
- I found that the mean daily dosage in grammes (Some estimates
- were made, such as 1 joint = .7075 grammes.) was 0.865 g/day, with a
- standard deviation of 1.188. (Approximately 1.22 joints/day)
- Nearly all of the respondents (87%) thought of their
- intelligence as something above average. No one considered themselves
- below average. Twenty-two people provided GPAs, and the mean was 3.695,
- ranging from 2.900 to 3.980 at institutions such as Stanford and M.I.T.
- where the highest possible GPA is 4.0 (Unlike Libertyville's 5.0
- maximum). The standard deviation was .276. Of the 19 replies with SAT
- scores, the mean was 1359 with a standard deviation of 121.15. The
- scores ranged from 980 to 1570.
- Of the 8 moderate users within two standard deviations from the
- mean of consumption the mean consumption was .850 g/day with a standard
- deviation of .248. The mean GPA was 3.30 with a standard deviation of
- .245.
- Of the 32 light users below two standard deviations from the
- mean, the mean consumption was .179 g/day with a standard deviation of
- .153. The mean GPA was 3.407 with a standard deviation of .386.
- Of the 6 heavy users above two standard deviations the mean
- consumption was 3.805 g/day with a standard deviation of .654. The mean
- GPA was 3.450 with a standard deviation of .636.
- From these data, it could be inferred that among the people
- surveyed marijuana had no effect on ability to do well in school. The
- light and heavy users had only an insignificant increase in GPA above
- the moderate users.
- Of the respondents, 65% have used LSD, 30% have used psilocybin,
- 50% have used alcohol, 13% have used caffeine, 11% have used nicotine,
- 4.3% have used opium, 4.3% have used speed, 2.2% have used amanita
- muscaria, 2.2% have used dativa, 2.2% have used diprenhydramine
- hydrochloride, 10.8% have used xtc, 4.3% have used amphetamines, 4.3%
- have used nootropics, 4.3% have used nitrous oxide, 2.2% have used
- valium, 2.2% have used kava, 2.2% have used MDA, and 2.2% have used
- cocaine.
- Here are some comments from the replies which I have found to be
- a good cross-section of the people. (If you want a completely accurate
- view you will have to look at the entire sample, which is available from
- Sameer Parekh.)
-
- Comments
- "I think regular marijuana use is detrimental to schoolwork
- (from personal experience), but I don't believe it's made much
- difference in my professional life (if this is hypocritical, so be
- it!)."
- "My grades have improved tremendously since that time when I was
- the really gifted kid who didn't work up to potential. I have learned
- that there are many rewards for postponing self-gratification until
- after the work is done, and I think that marijuana has helped me learn
- that."
- "The only negatives that it has produced in my life are the fear
- of governmental retribution for my personal action, and lack of
- understanding of people who feel my action is 'bad.'"
- "Good luck, but I must agree with other reservations about the
- validity of your findings. Without a control and large representative
- sampling, your findings will remain anecdotal."
- The complete results are available in tabular form and in raw
- data form from Sameer Parekh.
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- >energy hormones, as well as dulled brain function. The estrogenic
- >properties of some cannabinoids (found in varying degrees in different
- >types of marijuana plants) occasionally cause gynocomastia (enlarged
- >breasts) in male marijuana smokers, which may require surgical removal.
- >Cannabinoids produce chromosomal defects and abnormal forms in sperm, as
- >well as lowered sperm count and motility. In animal sutides, chromosomal
- >abnormalities are passed onton succeeding generations, where
- >genetically-effected hormone production is impaired at puberty.
- >Marijuana-smoking is associated with rising rates of infertility in
- >young males.
- >
- >IMPAIRS IMMUNE SYSTEM
- >
- >The body defends itself against environmental pollutants, bacteria and
- >viruses by mobilizing its immune system. The rapidity and persistence of
- >this response is the key to successfully fighting infections,
- >sexually-transmitted diseases, and cancer. Marijuana depresses
- >cell-mediated immunity, which leads to increased susceptibility to
- >genital herpes, syphilis, yeast infections, Legionnaire's disease, and
- Like the studies claiming to show damage to the reproductive
- system, this myth was based on studies where animals were given
- extremely high doses of cannabinoids. These results have never been
- duplicated in humans. Interestingly, two studies done in 1978 and one
- done in 1988 showed that hashish and marijuana may have actually
- stimulated the immune system in the people studied. ("Marihuana and
- Immunity", _Journal of Psychoactive Drugs_, Vol 20(1), Jan-Mar 1988.
- Kaklamani, et al., "Hashish smoking and T-lymphocytes", 1978; Kalfoutis
- et. al., "The significance of lymphocyte lipid changes after smoking
- hashish", 1978. Wallace, J.M., Taskin, D.P., Oishi, J.S., Barbers, R.G.,
- "Peripheral Blood Lymphocyte Subpopulations and Mitogen Responsiveness
- in Tobacco and Marijuana Smokers", 1988, _Journal of Psychoactive
- Drugs_, ibid.)
-
- >tuberculosis. Casual weekend users report that marijuana-smoking
- >tirggers recurrence of their herpes outbreaks, probably caused by
- >cellular absorption of cannabinoids which displace or release the
- >dormant virus from nerve ganglia. Researchers worry that cannbinoids may
- >also hasten the release and replication of the HIV virus and accelerate
- >the development of AIDS. In 1992 the U.S. Deparment of Healty [sic] and
- >Human Services warned that marijuana-smoking may be a cofactor in the
- >development of the full-blown AIDS syndrome. Patients with compromised
- >immunity who smoke marijuana are especially vulnerable ot sometimes
- >fatal infection from salmonella bacteria and aspergillus fungus, often
- >present in the crude plant material.
- >
- >DISRUPTS CARDIOVASCULAR AND CEREBROVASCULAR FUNCTION
- >
- >Marijuana smoking causes immediate tachycardia, with the heart rate
- >accelerating by as much as 50% (up to 160 beats a minute), which can
- >decrease the blood supply to the heart. The increased heart rate is
- >dose-related and correlates with the "high," a condition intensified by
- >high-potency marijuana. The sudden increase in heart rate and blood
- >pressure can trigger panic attacks, thought disturbances, and
- >depression. Cardiac patients show chest pains (angina pectoris) more
- >quickly and with less exertion after smoking marijuana than tobacco.
- >Some clinical reports associate heavy marijuana smoking with cerebral
- >stroke in young patients (ages 32-34), probably triggered by abrupt
- >alterations in systemic blood pressure.
- >
- >HAZARDS TO PUBLIC SAFETY
- >
- >Because of its lingering effects, marijuana poses a special threat to
- >public safety. Airline pilots revealed serious problems of judgement,
- >memory, concentration, and reaction for more than 24 hours after smoking
- >one "social" dose of marijuana. Significantly, the pilots beleived they
- >were no longer impaired and were ready to fly. Subway, train, and bus
- Some logic here is a non-sequitor. The fact that they beleived
- that they weren't impaired means that they *were* impaired? It makes no
- sense. What should be done is impairment testing-- before each flight
- the pilot must be put through a short test in which he must make quick,
- stressful decisions. If the answers are not quick enough or bad, then
- the pilot would not fly that day. This set-up would also protect
- travellers from fatigued, angry and otherwise impaired pilots as well.
-
- >drivers, and operators of heavy machinery are especially vulnerable to
- >the long lasting but subtle effects of persistent marijuana
- >intoxication. Many automobile drivers assume they can "handle" driving
- >situations while "high" on marijuana. PRIDE surveys reveal that among
- >teenage marijuana smokers, 45% use the drug in the automobile (versus
- >30% of beer and liquor users). Marijuana is over-represented in drug
- >positive tests done on automobile crash victims. In Maryland, 40% of
- >crash victims tested positive for alcohol, with 32% positive for
- >marijuana, and 2% for cocaine. Twice and many drivers under age 30 used
- If a person tests positive for marijuana, it does not mean that
- they are intoxicated. As this pamphlet says, marijuana can be detected
- in the urine for 14 days, and a sober driver may still test positive for
- marijuana. Marijuana is involved in relatively as many accidents as
- alcohol (relative to the number of users in the general population). It
- was also noted, however, than in 85% of the accidents in which marijuana
- was involved, alcohol was also involved. For people intoxicated solely
- on marijuana, the accident rate was *much* lower. This implies that
- marijuana poses less of a danger to driving than alcohol. (Source: Dale
- Gieringer, "Marijuana, Driving, and Accident Safety," _Journal of
- Psychoactive Drugs_, ibid.)
- I do beleive that driving while impaired laws for alcohol should
- also apply to marijuana. Someone dumb enough to operate a deadly machine
- while intoxicated, tired, angry, or otherwise impaired deserves to be
- prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
-
- >marijuana than older drivers, with no significant differences between
- >male and female use.
- >
- >MARIJUANA IS AN ILLEGAL DRUG
- >
- >The United Nations and World Health Organization characterize _Cannabis
- >sativa_ as a dangerous, stupefying and addictive drug. The United States
- >and 115 other nations are signatories to the _U.N. Single Convention on
- >Narcotic Drugs_, which prohibits all non-medical consumption of
- >_cannabis_, cocaine, heroin, and other drugs of abuse. An international
- >treaty is the highest law of the land, and regional and state
- No. An international treaty is *not* the highest law of the
- land. The Constitution grants the power to the President to make
- treaties with the approval of the Senate, but it does not state that
- treaties in any way supersede the Constitution. The Constitution of the
- United States remains the highest law of the land. If an international
- treaty made speech against established governments illegal, the law
- would be void, as the 1st and 14th amendments to the Constitution
- protect the right of the people. Only by amendment to the Constitution
- can the highest law of the land be changed. This is so incredibly
- offensive, that I am angered at such an organization for ignoring the
- fundamentals which this country was founded on. Also note Amendment 10
- to the Constitution. [End tirade]
-
- >governments cannot independently disregard it, despite local political
- >concerns. In 1975 Alaska removed all penalties for possession of four
- >ounces (approximately 200 "joints") of marijuana, the state was in
- >violation of federal and international laws. [sic] Because of public
- >concern about rising rates of teenage marijuana use and accumulating
- >evidence of marijuana hazards to health and safety, Alaskan voters
- >recriminalized marijuana in 1990.
- >
- >Many states are enacting laws that prohibit the release of known
- >carcinogens and pollutants into the environment, and marijuana would
- >certainly be proscribed by these ecological regulations. Despite the
- >aggresive lobbying of the marijuana-legalization lobby, which
- >inaccurately portrays the drug ("hemp") as a benefactor to the
- >environment, public opinion has turned increasingly against marijuana
- Hemp is a benefactor to the environment. A few uses: "One acre
- of hemp equals 4.1 acres of trees" to make paper. (U.S. Department of
- Agriculture - Bulletin 404 : "Hemp Hurds as Paper-Making Material",
- October 10, 1916.) Using hemp to make paper, there is no need to clear-
- cut old-growth forest and destroy the homes of many animals. All that is
- needed is to use some farmland to grow the hemp, and clearcutting of
- forests can be decreased dramatically.
- "Hemp...is used to produce more than 5000 textile products
- ranging from rope to fine laces...and can be used to produce more than
- 25,000 products, ranging from dynamite to cellophane." ("The New Billion
- Dollar Crop," _Popular Mechanics_, February 1938, p. 238.)
-
- >smoking. After a 25-year national experiment with _cannabis_, an
- What 25-year national experiment?
-
- >overwhelming marjority of teenagers and adults call for tougher drug
- >laws and stricter enforcement. The 1990's should be the decade in which
- Just because a majority of citizens call for tougher drugs laws
- doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. The majority of citizens in
- ante-bellum south thought that Black people were less than human, but
- that didn't mean they were correct.
-
- >informed and concerned citizens should reclaim the American
- >environment--both internal and external--from the drug marketeers.
- >
- >Published by PRIDE
- >National Parent's Resource Institute for Drug Education, Inc.
- >50 Hurt Plaza, Suite 210, Atlanta, GA 30303 404/577-4500
- >
- >Reprinted with Permission
- >Committees of Correspondence, Inc. [*INSULTING!!!!* -SP]
- >57 Conant Street, Room 113, Danvers, MA 01923 508/7742641 [sic]
- >
- >
-
- This second article fails to make a distinction between
- different kinds of drugs. It pretends that marijuana is as dangerous as
- cocaine, or even tobacco and alcohol. There are two methods of
- classifying drugs which I find useful.
- One method is the body/mind drug division. Body drugs are those
- which appeal to the body: relaxants and stimulants such as caffeine,
- speed, alcohol, tobacco, cocaine, and heroin. These drugs appeal to the
- terrestrial circuits of the human psyche. The "mind" drugs are drugs
- which appeal to the senses or creative centers of the mind, such as
- marijuana, LSD, MDMA, DMT, and most other psychedelics. This division is
- based mostly upon effects.
- The second method is the hard/soft division which is most
- popular. Hard drugs are the drugs which hurt the body extensively, such
- as tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, heroin, and speed. Soft drugs are not as
- dangerous to the body, but they may have psychological dangers. These
- include marijuana, the psychedelics, caffeine (which *is* bad for the
- body, but not *very* dangerous.), and others.
- Using these categories, it is much easier to have a rational
- attitude about these drugs, based on their risks, dangers, and benefits.
-
- In another article, the Prohibitionists wrote:
- >Legalization of Illicit Drugs Must be Vigorously Opposed by Government
- >and by all Segments of Society
- >
- >White House Conference for a Drug Free America
- >Final Report 1988
- >Lois Haight [ :-) ] Herrington, Chairman
- >
- >In recent months, there has been increasing clamor in the news media and
- >by some public figures for the legalization of drugs. At first glance,
- >it would appear that this debate is not serious - after all, why would
- >anyone actually espouse eliminating controls over something so
- >destructive? But the proponents of legalizing drugs assure us that they
- >are serious - that legalization would be a good way to eliminate crime
- >and criminal organizations. It seems an exercise in futility to suggest
- >that crime can somehow be eliminated by redefining it - as if a criminal
- >act had no inherent danger other than that derived from its placement in
- >the law books of our Nation. But illicit drugs are indeed a destructive
- >force with which we must reckon.
- >
- >We are learning more and more about the devastating effects that drugs
- >have on the minds and bodies of users. Depending on the drugs, the
- Here it makes the categorization of all illegal drugs as being
- all as dangerous as alcohol, tobacco, or the other "hard" drugs.
-
- >brain, heart, liver, lungs, and kidneys as well as the reproductive and
- >immune systems can all be damaged. In fact, it would be hard to find an
- >organ or a system in the body that is not damaged by illicit drugs.
- It would be hard to find an organ or a system in the body that
- is not damaged by legal drugs. I'm not limiting myself to just alcohol
- and tobacco when I say legal drugs-- I include drugs such as caffeine,
- acetaminophen, ephedrine, and other over-the-counter and prescription
- drugs.
- All drugs have a danger. High doses of Tylenol can cause a heart
- attack. (I think.) Moderate doses of Tylenol ease the pain of headaches
- and help ease fever symptoms. Antihistamines induce drowsiness which is
- incredibly dangerous if a person has to drive or operate other heavy
- machinery. Used properly, however, they can help ease the symptoms of
- the common cold. Ephedrine (synthetic adrelalin) can cause a heart
- attack in high doses, but used properly, is a very valuable
- bronchiodilator for asthmatics. LSD has the potential to release a
- latent psychosis in a person, yet it can also be used to cure
- alcoholics, adjust convicts to life outside prison, and it can also help
- in psychotherapy. (Source: _Storming Heaven_, ibid.) MDMA, in high
- dosages, deteriorates the axons in the brain, but used with moderation,
- is a valuable tool in psychotherapy, as it allows the patient to open up
- to his/her therapist. (Although listed as Schedule I in the United
- States, it is being used successfully in Western Europe for
- psychotherapy.) (Source: _The MDMA Story_, by Bruce Eisner)
-
- >Cocaine increases the likelihood of heart attack and stroke as early as
- >the first use. Heroin ingestion can lead to suppression of respiration
- >sufficient to cause suffocation. Damage to the drug user's mind may be
- >even more frightening. The user under the influence of drugs is not the
- >harmless, sleepy soul we once thought he was. during [sic] drug user and
- >after, people are changed, they do not think clearly, they are filled
- >with anger, fear, paranoia, and a host of emotions they have never
- >experienced or had to keep in check. Memory deprivation, organic brain
- >damage, and psychosis are the recognizable consequences of such use.
- >
-
- A quote from a friend of mine:
- ------------------------------
- "Ha! This is called 'getting to know yourself'. And let's not confine the
- emotions to anger, fear and paranoia, but let's include love, contentness,
- happiness. People are changed? Very possibly: metaprogramming? This is
- ridiculous. People feel emotions they have not felt. I went to a
- high-school football game and felt emotions I had never felt, simply bound
- up in the group mentality and cheering and all. Emotions we have had to
- keep in check? *That* sounds dangerous to me. Bottling something up may
- cause explosions."
- -----------------------------
- -juxlus (the awkward condenser)
-
- >Although it was not long ago that many people thought marijuana and even
- >cocaine were not addictive or particularly harmful, most advocates of
- >legalization do not try to argue that illicit drugs are safe. Instead,
- Again, the pamphlet refuses to acknowledge that all illegal
- drugs are not the same. While legalization advocates argue that
- marijuana is safe, they do not argue that cocaine or alcohol is safe.
- (Marijuana is not totally safe, it is only "one of the safest
- therapeutically active substances known to man", according to DEA
- Administrative Law Judge Francis L. Young.)
-
- >they try to defuse the issue by pointing out that alcohol and
- >cigarettes, two legal substances for adults, kill many more people than
- >illicit drugs. Ironically, this is probably the strongest argument
- >_against_ legalization that they could make. Alcohol and cigarettes are
- >not inherently more dangerous than illicit drugs. A given dose of
- This is *wrong*. Alcohol and tobacco are *far* more dangerous
- that most illicit drugs. One need not just look at deaths per year. One
- can look at deaths per year *PER USER*. Even if usage went up (which it
- probably won't) the deaths per year *PER USER* will not change. This
- number is a rather reliable measure of drug danger, in my opinion. From
- _Thinking About Drug Legalization, by James Ostrowski, Cato Institute
- Paper # 121, May 25, 1989 p. 47:
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------
- Table 4 presents the estimated per capita death rates for each
- drug. (While a number of people have died as a result of marijuana
- _enforcement_, there are apparently no confirmed deaths traceable to
- marijuana use.) The figures for cocaine and heroin have been adjusted
- downward, in accordance with the previous analysis, to include only
- those deaths due to drug use per se. The unadjusted death rate for these
- drugs is in parentheses.
-
- [glo note: the "previous analysis" details how overdose due to variable
- strength and toxic reactions and infections due to uncontrolled black
- market in drugs causes most of the deaths due to "heroin and cocaine"
- use - glo]
-
- Estimated per capita death rates by drugs
- -----------------------------------------------
- Drug Users Deaths/Year Deaths/100,000 users
- -----------------------------------------------
- Tobacco 60,000,000 390,000 650
- Alcohol 100,000,000 150,000 150
- Heroin 500,000 400 (2,000) 80 (400)
- Cocaine 5,000,000 200 (1,000) 4 ( 20)
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- >cocaine or its derivative crack is far more dangerous than a drink. A
- >joint of marijuana is far more carcinogenic than a cigarette, and it
- I already compared marijuana to tobacco, and as my analysis
- stated, it can be shown that marijuana is much safer than tobacco.
-
- >negatively affects the mind as well. Alcohol and cigarettes kills more
- >people than illegal drugs precisely because they _are_ legal - because
- >so many more people use them. We have more public health problems than
- >can presently be handled as a result of alcohol and cigarettes.
- >Legalized drugs would overwhelm our public health system.
- >
- >A related argument that proponents of legalization have relied upon is
- >libertarian: that people should be allowed to take whatever substance
- >they desire, and that users are hurting no one but themselves - they are
- >committing a victimless act. Although this argument has certain
- >simplistic appeal, it is not only factually incorrect, but it has also
- >been repeatedly rejected in the country.
- "repeatedly rejected"? What does that mean? Is that another one
- of those arguments saying, "People are against it, so obviously it's a
- bad idea"? Like I said, in ante-bellum South, the majority of the
- people thought that Blacks were less than human. It doesn't mean that
- they were right.
-
- >
- >Regardless of what we once thought, we know now that illicit drug use is
- >not a victimless crime. Whether we are family members or co-workers of
- "we know now"? Another rhetorical device, trying to ignore
- logic, by saying statements such as "everybody knows that," in order to
- escape the requirement that information be supported with evidence.
-
- >addicts, passengers on airplanes or trains piloted by users, victims of
- >brutal and wanton violence induced by mind altering drugs such as PCP or
- >speed, travellers facing the menace of drugged drivers on our highways,
- >or simply taxpayers, we are all victims of illicit drug use.
- >
- >We take great pains to protect the public from harmful drugs. Medically
- If they take great pains to protect the public, they would ban
- alcohol and tobacco. But it has been established that Prohibition of
- alcohol in the 1920's did *not* work. Ann Landers agrees that
- Prohibition of alcohol in the 1920's did not work and that the solution
- is education. The government doesn't make tobacco illegal because it
- would cause "unemployment" of tobacco farmers. They give subsidies to
- farmers and tax the users. That defies all logic, for the money then
- goes in a circle.
-
- >useful drugs are tested for years before they are allowed on the market,
- By testing these medicines for years, more people die from not
- having access to potentially life-saving drugs than would be saved from
- a deadly drug entering the market. We *know* that people will die from
- the disease, and they have a chance to either live or be killed from the
- drug. "Delays on Propranolol, used to treat angina and hypertension,
- resulted in at least 30,000 avoidable American deaths a year during the
- period the FDA blocked its entry." (Source: "We *Can* Have Affordable
- Health Care" by Vincent H. Miller & Jarret B. Wollstein.)
-
- >and then they are carefully regulated, requiring prescriptions from
- >licensed physicians. It is only because of their medically beneficial
- >effects that they are allowed. What possible beneficial effect is there
- >from marijuana cocaine, [sic] LSD, PCP, or heroin to justify legalizing
- I already talked about the medical uses of marijuana. I talked a
- little bit about the psychiatric uses of LSD, also. Cocaine is legally
- available as a prescription medicine, and is used rarely as an
- anesthetic. (It is listed in Schedule II, which means that the
- prescription needs to be in triplicate and other paperwork has to be
- filled out. Even for *research* to be done on a Schedule I drug, you
- need special permission from the DEA.)
- I think that PCP is used as an anesthetic in veterinary
- medicine. (I could be mistaken.)
-
- >them?
- >
- >It seems clear that most of the present fascination with legalization is
- >born from a sense of frustration at the high level of violent crime
- >associated with drug trafficking, and at our seeming inability to
- >eliminate that violence even through increased expenditures for law
- >enforcement. Legalize drugs, so the argument goes, and we will eliminate
- >drug-related violent crime and save money at the same time. While this
- Before President Reagan's all-out War on Drugs, America's crime
- rate had been declining, but with the event of the new wave of drug
- laws, violent crimes have increased sharply -- 32% between 1976 and
- 1985. (Source: "Ending Our Drug Nightmare" by Jarret Wollstein)
- Drug laws produce a black market. A black market means high
- prices. High prices mean that people have to steal and prostitute
- themselve to afford to buy the drugs. High prices mean high profits.
- High profits mean the drug dealers can afford to buy guns. Guns in the
- hands of drug dealers mean violence.
-
- >argument has appeal on its surface, it fails to stand up to scrutiny.
- >Even if we were to legalize drugs, we would still need drug law
- >enforcement because even most proponents of drugs do not advocate
- >legalizing drugs such as crack, LSD, or PCP, and because drugs would
- If cocaine were legal, people would probably not use crack. It
- is the same situation with alcohol Prohibition. During the Prohibition
- of alcohol, people started using stronger alcohol products because it
- was illegal and they wanted "more bang for the buck." With cocaine
- illegal, people turn to crack, because *it* provides "more bang for the
- buck." (And more danger.) With a legal system, I would not find it
- surprising if people began to turn from crack to cocaine, and maybe from
- cocaine to chewing coca leaves, a much safer form of ingesting the drug
- than the purified chemical. This would be possible because of the
- economics. Under a legal system, using coca leaves would be economically
- feasible. Most drug-enforcement officials' goals are not to "eradicate"
- the drugs, but to raise the prices. This escalation of price hurts
- innocent people who get shot by stray bullets, it hurts Colombian judges
- who get killed by rich drug lords, it corrupts law enforcement officials
- because the drug dealers can afford to pay for huge bribes, and it hurts
- the addict, because he/she must steal or prostitute himself to pay for
- the drug. (Source: _A Weekend with Terrence McKenna_, speeches by
- Terrence McKenna given at Esalen Institute.)
- By raising the price of heroin from five cents to five dollars,
- the only result is that the addict must steal (or even kill) in order to
- get the drugs. (_Licit & Illicit Drugs_, ibid. p. 522.)
-
- >remain illegal for minors. We would thus continue to have drug-related
- >crime and illegal drug distribution organization that would continue to
- >push drugs on our youngsters. We would also have much higher costs
- If drugs were legal for adults, there would be no black market.
- Drugs would be available at your corner pharmacy, and there is no motive
- for a corner pharmacy to push drugs on youngsters. Does the corner
- pharmacy push _alcohol_ on youngsters? No. Young people do buy alcohol,
- but they don't go through black market channels to buy it, they go to
- the corner liquor store and lie about their age.
-
- >associated with increased health care and lost productivity.
- >
- >In the final analysis, legalization is wrong because drugs are wrong
- It is amazing that a species of plant can be "wrong."
- "Wrong" is subjective. Morality cannot be legislated. One
- religion may state that bisexuality is immoral, yet another may mandate
- bisexuality. (A few Native American religions had bisexual rites of
- maturation.) If person A thinks being bisexual is immoral, he has no
- right to stop person B from following the dictates of his religion.
- With the drug issue, the Native American Church uses peyote
- (which contains mescaline) as a sacrament. By banning their use of
- peyote, the government is trampling on the religious freedoms of this
- country's native peoples.
-
- >The legalize behavior is in large measure to condone it. Do we want to
- >say as a Nation [sic] that it is acceptable to ruin one's mind and body,
- >to tolerate as recreation an activity which imposes such risks on every
- >one of us, and to consign a larger proportion of our population to
- >incapacitation and dependence on society. [sic] We should be aware that
- Laws were not devised to "send messages." Laws exist so that
- people may co-exist in harmony without hurting each other. Devices such
- as television, radio, and the newspapers are the proper media which the
- government should use in order to make it's statements that it is not
- acceptable to ruin one's mind an body.
-
- >other countries have tried legalization and that policy has failed.
- There is a fundamental difference between legalization and
- decriminalization, which happened in Holland. Decriminalization
- maintains the black market because it does not make selling the drugs
- legal, it only makes possession legal. In Amsterdam, marijuana is
- effectively legal, and there are few problems with marijuana. In fact,
- after marijuana was made easily available, heroin use went down
- substantially. (As I stated above.)
-
- >Illegal markets with their attendant criminal problems continue to
- >exist. Legalization ensures that the government condones and often ends
- >up supporting an intoxicated lifestyle for a larger number of people.
- >
- >We can be certain that if we legalize drugs, the number of users will
- >increase dramatically. The fact that we cannot deter all users of
- "We can be certain" is another statement meant to hide the lack
- of logical reasoning. There is no proof that the number of users will
- increase. There *is* evidence that the number of users will go down.
- (The situation in Amsterdam..) It is often the laws themselves which
- create the widespread drug use.
- LSD's popularization was intensified by a wave of prohibitive
- legislation. Many cases in which people claimed to have killed people or
- jumped off of buildings while using LSD were not true. After the
- anti-LSD laws were passed, LSD availability increased and LSD demand
- increased. (Source: _Licit & Illicit Drugs_, ibid. pp. 370-2).
-
- >illicit drugs by criminal laws does not mean that we should discard
- >those laws, any more than the fact that we have robbery means that we
- >should make robbery legal.
- >
- >With all these articulable risks and dangers, how could one possibly
- >argue that legalization makes sense? The only conceivable answer is to
- >admit that the criminal justice system is overrun and that the drug
- >thugs are threatening to swap us. Two responses are apparent. First, as
- >discussed elsewhere in this report, we have not given the criminal
- >justice system adequate resources to tackle the problem and pinning our
- >hopes to end the crisis of illegal drugs, solely on prevention and
- The United States already has the highest per capita prison
- population in the world.
-
- >treatment would be an ill-fated gamble with our Nation's [sic] future.
- >Second, it has never been part of the American character to capitulate
- >on criminals.
- It has often been part of the American government to smuggle
- and deal in illegal drugs. When the CIA was aiding the Afghan rebels
- during the Soviet occupation, they established a hashish-smuggling ring
- in order to fund the activities of the rebels. The period when the
- Soviets were in Afghanistan provided hash users in the United States a
- very rich supply of very-strong Afghani hash. When the Soviets pulled
- out of Afghanistan, the CIA staged an elaborate "bust" in order to close
- up the Afghani smuggling operation. (Source: _A Weekend with Terrence
- McKenna_, ibid.)
- It is rumored that George Bush orchestrated a cocaine smuggling
- operation in order to fund military aid to some of his allies. Noriega,
- the famous drug trafficker, was put in power under the auspices of the
- United States CIA, which as I have stated in the last paragraph, uses
- drug smuggling to fund many of its operations.
- The major reason why drugs are illegal in the United States is
- not danger, nor is it public opinion. In the late 1970's, public opinion
- was in favor of legalization. The Reagan/Bush years, with their
- misinformation campaigns, have managed to reverse that opinion. They
- wanted to keep drugs illegal because it is in their best interests to do
- so.
- Under an illegal system, the government has an excuse for
- limiting free speech, taking completely innocent people's property
- without a trial, shooting people for possession of *one* joint, and
- spending more money on the nation's police and military forces. The
- government's covert operations agencies such as the CIA have drug
- smuggling as an easy way to earn a great deal of money from the
- illegality of the drug trade. Under a legal system the CIA would not
- earn so much money smuggling drugs. The money the CIA earns from drug
- smuggling would be a "blank check" for the CIA--they can use it however
- they want, without the supervision of Congress, because Congress knows
- nothing of it.
-
- +--------------------------------------------------------------------+
- | I have no proof, but I believe that *THE*_*CIA*_*IS*_*THE* |
- | *SINGLE*_*LARGEST*_*SMUGGLER*_*OF*_*COCAINE*_*INTO*_*THE*_*UNITED* |
- | *STATES*. |
- +--------------------------------------------------------------------+
-
- >
- >USE OF ILLICIT DRUGS MUST NOT BE CONSIDERED A VICTIMLESS CRIME
- >
- The last section merely says how the *black-market* causes all
- these problems. It does not say that the drugs are that which creates
- the problems. Making drugs illegal is a crime which created the black
- market and all the deaths from unregulated drug supply, drive-by
- shootings, and other "drug-related" (in fact, "black-market related")
- crime.
- By raising the prices of these drugs the DEA is the group
- responsible for the violence. William Bennet was proud when he said, "We
- have raised the price of and ounce of pot past the price of an ounce of
- gold!" In doing so, the DEA is responsible for the violence which is
- tearing apart the inner-cities.
-
- >All citizens must speak out against the common myth that illicit drug
- >use is a victimless crime. The victims of drug use are everywhere;
- >residents of drug-infested neighborhoods, citizens against whom criminal
- >acts are perpetrated by users and traffickers, the business community,
- >and society at large through taxes supporting prisons, law enforcement,
- >medical services, and increased insurance rates.
- These victims of "drug use" are in fact victims of drug
- prohibition. Like I said before with legalization, addicts wouldn't
- steal from innocent people because they would be able to afford the drug
- without stealing. Taxpayers wouldn't have to pay for the huge prison
- costs if drugs were legal, because the users would not be in prison. 60%
- (Source: _A Weekend with Terrence McKenna_, ibid.) of all drug-offenders
- in prison are in there because of marijuana, a drug safer than aspirin.
- Other victims of drug laws are rape victims and murder victims
- of rapists and murderers released from prison. Because of mandatory
- sentencing laws, people who sell marijuana, one of the safest
- therapeutically active substances known to man, must stay in jail for
- maybe seven years *at a minimum* and rapists and murderers are set free
- on parole to ease up the prison crowding.
-
- >
- >The enormous profits generated by the illict drug industry in the United
- >States have attracted some of the most violent criminals to the trade.
- Legalization would eliminate the profits which have attracted
- the most violent criminals to the trade.
-
- >There is no innocent use of illicit drugs. People who use these drugs as
- >a form of "recreation" do not see themselves as hurting anyone, because
- >they did not rob or steal, to obtain their drugs. What these people do
- >not understand, however, is that their use of illicit drugs is helping
- >to fill the pockets of drug dealers with ill-gotten gains and to support
- >violence. The people who "casually" use cocaine are accomplices in the
- >deaths of foreign leaders assassinated by drug cartels, or innocent
- >inner-city children and elderly people who are caught in the crossfire
- >of rival drug gangs, and of law enforcement officers who risk their
- >lives to protect us in our homes and in our communities.
- Drug cartels would not exist in a legal system. Coca leaves
- could be purchased by a reputable pharmaceutical company such as Baxter,
- and Baxter would never have a motive to kill a foreign leader. Elderly
- people and innocent children would not be caught in the crossfire of
- rival drug gangs, because drugs would be sold at pharmacies. When was
- the last time there was a shootout between alcohol-sellers over turf?
- During the Prohibition of alcohol.
-
- >
- >We must be absolutely unyielding in our opposition to illicit drug use.
- >We must be as adamant about "casual" users as we are about addicts. And
- >whereas addicts may also deserve your help, "casual" users deserve our
- >condemnation. These persons must accept responsibility for the brutality
- >and corruption which they help finance.
-
- My final point: The only way to stop the war in our cities is to
- remove the high profits from the illegal drug trade. To remove the high
- profits drugs should be legal. That way innocent people do not die from
- crossfire, drive-by shootings, turf wars, and muggings from people who
- have to pay prohibitive costs for illegal drugs.
- Thank you for reading my points. I respect you a great deal for
- showing interest in my viewpoint. I hope you will take these points into
- consideration when you think about issues in the future. Thank you.
-
- -- Sameer Parekh
- zane@ddsw1.MCS.COM
- "Specialization is for insects"
- - Robert A. Heinlein
-
- Remember: I have the truth on my side. All the Prohibitionists
- have are lies and a great deal of money.
- --
- Sameer_Parekh zane@ddsw1.MCS.COM zane@infopls.chi.il.us
- PFA related mail to pfa@ddsw1.MCS.COM | Specialization is for insects
- Anonymous mail to ap.2363@cupid.sai.com | - Robert A. Heinlein
- Fri Nov 27 00:45:18 1992 US Debt: $4,148,371,135,209 Per capita: $16,215
-