IN PRAISE OF POT

Filip Palda rightly points out the downside of marijuana use. What he does
not show, however, is any reasonable ground for forbidding its use. Is it
the government's role to force us to live in the most efficient way possible?

If smoking a plant makes them feel happy and become a bit dumber, so be it.

Benjamin Sharma, Princeton, N.J.

IN PRAISE OF POT

Sigh. Yet another lecture from someone who does not smoke marijuana
regularly to those who do. The article claims that marijuana is a
"uniphasic" drug, whose only effect is to stupefy the mind, and that
"nothing productive or uplifting comes from its recreational use." From
personal experience I beg to differ, as would legions of artists,
musicians, and other creative people. Coming from a family that
self-medicated with both alcohol and tobacco to disastrous ends, I take
strong issue with the concept of either of these drugs being "uplifting."
In the end, the truth is simply this: Marijuana is neither better nor worse
than alcohol or tobacco, and if these drugs are legal, then it should be
legal as well. To understand the issue, Filip Palda should toke up, smarten
up and relax.

John Croft, Victoria, B.C.

IN PRAISE OF POT

The column by Filip Palda (Toke Up, and Dumb Down, Aug. 23) demonstrates
the lack of understanding about marijuana among many otherwise educated people.

He characterizes marijuana as "a uniphasic drug whose effect is to scramble
the mind," as compared to alcohol and tobacco, which are "biphasic" having
good effects as well as bad. His view, that it "stupefies" and turns its
user into "a dullard," is only slightly less distorted than the propaganda
of earlier times about reefer madness.

Like almost any drug, the effects of marijuana depend on how much you take.
Excessive amounts can produce the effects he describes, but then excessive
amounts of alcohol can be far more debilitating. At moderate doses, the
effects on the mind from marijuana are both complex and subtle. It can
gently intensify colours, touch and enjoyment of foods and sex. It alters
time sense and deepens the appreciation of music. There is often increased
openness to alternative perspectives and opinions.

Richard A. Harshman, Department of Psychology, University of Western
Ontario, London, Ont.