MARIJUANA'S DEPRESSING EFFECTS ON SOCIETY JUST AS BAD AS BOOZE

Elise Patkotak's promotion of marijuana over alcohol is the same as
comparing sins ("Booze destroys more families than pot," April 9). No
matter the drug or sin of choice, someone to some degree is going to
be hurt. It is important that people see truth through the lies of any
drug and alcohol use. It revolves around selfishness, and selfishness
is the root of sin.

It is easy to see the effects of alcohol abuse on our families and
society simply because it is legal and publicly accepted. If all other
drugs were legal, the evidence of use and abuse would be just as
negative and hurtful. Because marijuana is used under the radar, the
public does not see the depressing effects it has on families and
society in general.

We can have conversations about the extrinsic costs of drug
enforcement on marijuana, but what is more difficult to talk about is
the intrinsic costs to the community and healthy relationships. Pot
use encourages laziness, apathy, emotional numbness and the avoidance
of personal and family responsibility. With alcohol we can more easily
measure the societal costs, and yes, they are huge just as Patkotak
mentioned in her column. However, don't believe for a moment those
costs are going to be any less with the legalization of what appears
to be a more benign drug.

Rhonda Hubbard

Seward