MDMA DOES NOT CAUSE HEART FAILURE

The Gazette needs to do some real research about MDMA, or Ecstasy. A number
of the stated facts in the article "Police to crash the party" (Gazette,
Aug. 12) are incorrect.

For example, the article implies that MDMA can cause "heart and kidney
failure" despite the fact that in over 35 years of use in therapeutic
settings neither of these problems has ever been reported. There are new
dangers created by the prohibition of the drug. Deadly adulterants, such as
PMA and DXM, are sold in place of real MDMA at raves. Were it not for the
prohibition of this drug, the Ecstasy-related deaths mentioned in your
article would not have happened.

I urge The Gazette to read about 30 years of intense research into the
short- and long-term effects of MDMA, both positive and negative, on
www.maps.org, so that your future articles might be better informed.

Adam Wiggins

Pasadena, Calif.