POT PERHAPS OKAY?

The towns of Ispwich, Framingham, Winchester and Harwich have reduced
penalties for marijuana possession to consequences similar to those
for a traffic violation. This decriminalization mirrors legislation
being passed or considered in communities and states nationwide as
lawmakers wake up to a question too many people have traditionally
answered with aggressive condemnation: what is wrong with the big bad
weed?

Why should the penal system be overloaded with nonviolent drug
offenders, when more dangerous cigarettes are audaciously lit,
inhaled and enjoyed in public places everywhere? Why should a
distinction be made between marijuana and tobacco? Perhaps because
tobacco had been more profitable early on, as such profit makes a
product socially acceptable or appealing. As long as an industry pays
its taxes to the government, it can do no wrong in the eyes of
lawmakers.

Is marijuana a gateway drug? Perhaps it may act as one, since its
criminal status exposes users to an already illegal environment where
other controlled substances are abused. Is marijuana highly
addictive? The most commonly cited study, involving spider monkeys
trained to self-administer doses of various drugs, has been
determined by prominent scientists to be decidedly invalid. Finally,
is marijuana a serious enough crime to justify minimum mandatory
sentencing, prison overcrowding and condemnation of millions who have
smoked up with no malicious intent? All this rhetoric can be argued
over and over, with no side claiming a logical conclusion of
correctness.

However, the indisputable fact remains that there is no death due to
marijuana overdose on record, according to the National Organization
for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. No marijuana opponent can claim
that there have been no deaths related to tobacco or alcohol use and
abuse.

Four towns in Massachusetts think the reasons for harshly punishing
marijuana users are not good enough. Perhaps their decriminalization,
stopping at fines instead of going all the way to legality, was also
not good enough. But at least these communities are joining in the
progression toward a society where harmless practices are accepted.