STANDARD EDUCATION NOT ENOUGH

Editor:

Re: Drug problem festers in society, Feedback, the Observer, April 13.

David Gill is a perfect example of how balderdash propaganda can
blind young people to the facts. I don't blame him, it isn't his
fault he was inundated with systematic lies from the people he was
supposed to trust.

Gill's use of terms like "cancer" when describing drug users, for
example, is typical of the dehumanizing techniques of propagandists
throughout history. It is sickening and dismaying he has been
indoctrinated in this way, as it makes the job of educating him to
the truth about drugs that much harder.

Many times more Canadians will die because of junk food than because
of all illegal drugs combined.

Out of 100 of Gill's classmates, half will be dead by the age of 60
because of diabetes, obesity, or heart disease caused by junk food.

Of the remaining 50, half will die from cancer caused by pollution,
tobacco, or other contaminants. Of the remaining 25, about three to
five will develop a "problem" with alcohol or illegal drugs, and
barely 1.5 - 2 will die before the age of 50 because of "drugs?"

Clearly, the sugar dealers are bigger death merchants than drug dealers.

As for "punishment" being a "deterrent" to drug use, science and
history shows this is wrong. This approach only works on that 10 per
cent of youth who actually buy into that whole father-knows-best,
fear-and-fealty, power-and-authority paradigm. For everyone else,
rules and authority and punishment just stimulate resentment and
meandering rebellion. Education and context are the keys to
preventing drug abuse.

Mandatory extra-curricular activities cost money, and there isn't
enough money for that because governments keep spending more and more
money on cops and jails instead of schools. Gill can't blame the drug
dealers for that.

DARE has proven to be wildly counterproductive, and in some areas, it
has even lead to an increase in drug use.

As for marijuana being "just a weed," recent laboratory science out
of Germany shows how cannabinoids stimulate the body's production of
TIMP-1, which helps healthy cells resist cancer invasion.
www.salem-news.com/articles/january112008/cancer_treatment_11008.php.
This might explain why chronic pot smokers have lower - not higher -
rates of cancer than tobacco smokers (as a recent California study showed).

Also, marijuana's ability to fight diseases such as Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's is well-documented and widely available.

If Gill, teachers, students, and parents at Correlieu secondary are
serious about teaching students about drugs - without all the
hyperbole, spin, and bald-faced lies of the "standard" drug education
programs - I suggest educators For Sensible Drug Policy
(www.EFSDP.org), or Students for Sensible Drug Policy
(http://ssdp.org/index.php) websites.

Sensible, moderate, well-informed drug use is no more harmful,
dangerous, or immoral than any one of dozens of other activities
humans participate in every day - including contact sports.

So if you think "drugs" have nothing good to offer society, then
throw away every CD you own.

Russell Barth

Federal Medical Marijuana License Holder Nepean, Ont.